"Look I know I'm just a genin, and that I shouldn't be learning anything dangerous yet but I need to, so please help me out by teaching me-
"The rasengan" said Naruto
"How to use this sword" said Ino
"The shadow strangle jutsu" said Shikamaru
Shikaku who was facing his son across a shogi board was surprised by the conviction in his son's voice and could only sigh as he knew this would come sooner or later and was hoping for the latter "Fine but after this game and your mother is making lunch so after that as well"
"Fine by me" responded Shikamaru
Elsewhere
Ino was talking to her own dad who was really surprised that this was the same girl who was more concerned about her hair at one point "I can teach you but only the basics as I'm no master in it as well but it will more than be good enough for that weapon you have there but beware of wind users"
"Why wind?" asked Ino
"I'll tell you another time" said Inoichi as he did not wish to be teaching her a lot
Elsewhere
Naruto was talking to his godfather Jiraiya one of the Sannin as this was his teacher/guardian up until Asuma who as his sensei is partly responsible for his genin
"I don't mind teaching it to you but you won't know it before your next mission" said Jiraiya
"Yeah well I'm not going on another serious mission for a while after that last one so I have time to learn one more technique" said Naruto
"Even so it took your father a long time to create it and it even took me a long time to learn it from him so I don't think it will be of any use to you yet"
"Let's make a bet if I don't learn this by the end of these two weeks then I will convince Aunt Tsunade to go on a date with you" said Naruto
'Yes! Naruto has Tsunade wrapped around his finger this is definitely possible' "Ok and if you do somehow learn it" said Jiraiya
"You'll help me with my other techniques" said Naruto as he handed Jiraiya a scroll
As Jiraiya opened the scroll he was surprise that Naruto was working on these kind of jutsus and techniques and he can see them working together
"I'll see what I can do with these, if you learn it" said Jiraiya taking his own scroll and copying Naruto's onto it threw a seal copying technique
"Deal"
"Deal"
Ino and Shikamaru stayed at their clan's households while Naruto took to wandering the village with a water balloon in his hand thinking back to what had happened earlier when he was telling Jiraiya about his mission
Flashback
"I really think you underestimate how much of shinobi fighting is a mainly taijutsu and kenjutsu" said Jiraiya
"What do you mean?" asked Naruto
"Well you definitely been listening to your mom and dad's stories too much they don't tell you the ones when they were genin and using just their intelligence, and when they finally learned ninjutsu they used it to tip the battle to their advantage" said Jiraiya "Not everyone has as much chakra as you do at this age so they couldn't throw all these jutsus you've learned so freely"
"I mean I know that but because I have a lot of chakra means I should use it to my advantage" said Naruto
"Wrong overusing ninjutsu is just covering up your taijutsu, now until you can use them equally without one outdoing the other then you can use ninjutsu to your advantage" said Jiraiya "Besides you save a lot of energy beating someone with only taijutsu"
"I see what you mean" said Naruto as he was thinking everything through his head
"Besides you shouldn't get too mad at the mission, the guy had armor on, trust me not many shinobi wear armor so this was just unfortunate" added Jiraiya
"Yeah I guess" said Naruto not totally convinced
"You know your dad had way too much fun on missions always smiling laughing toying with people" said Jiraiya "Part of it was because he was a little goofy"
Naruto and Jiraiya shared a laughed then it got somber really quick
"Look just because you're a shinobi now doesn't mean you can't have fun but remember this is a serious job okay" said Jiraiya
"Okay!" said Naruto
Flashback end
Naruto already did the water balloon part of the it since he knew about the spinning in multiple directions part of it before hand, so he now was on the rubber balloon part which he was having trouble with as it requires dense chakra so he's thinking of a way to make his chakra denser
"Man I think I should take a break from this" said Naruto putting the ball away and going to a Training ground
He made his way to a training ground and saw team 7 arguing amongst each other, well more of Shino and Sasuke arguing and Hinata trying to mediate
"Hey guys what are you guys arguing about?" asked Naruto
"Shino seems to think he doesn't need to participate in our taijutsu sparring since he doesn't need to because of his insects" said Sasuke
"This is true but Sasuke won't let me use my insects in our spar. Why? Because he knows I will win" said Shino
"They have been like this for the past hour" said Hinata "And we have a mission soon later today"
"Oh what kind?" asked Naruto to Hinata as he was genuinely curious in all missions
"Our first C-rank Kakashi-sensei hasn't told us what it would be yet" said Hinata
"Be careful, my team's first C-rank had a bad turn" said Naruto
"Yeah we heard sorry to hear but hey it was a cool B-rank right?!" said Sasuke
"Maybe looking back on it but in the moment it was terrifying since Asuma-sensei was down" said Naruto
"Yeah I can see that" admitted Sasuke
"And to let you both know you're both right" said the blond ninja addressing both Shino and Sasuke
"How?" asked Shino
"Shino is right that if he uses his insects it will be extremely easier than without" said Naruto "But Sasuke's also right in training in your pure taijutsu will only improve you overall"
"How I'm not a close fighter. Why? Because my parasitic insects can fight from afar" said the goggle wearing genin
"What happens if you fight someone that can defeat your bugs like a dangerous fire user that likes to get up close" said Naruto
"I see what you are saying Naruto, Taijutsu is not only for offense. Why? Because it can be used for defense such as protecting myself" admitted Shino as he wouldn't want his bugs to get burned and him left defenseless
"Yeah if you have a strong defense you can have a good offense" said Naruto which Shino nodded in agreement
"Alright Sasuke lets spar but no sharingan as I am not that proficient in taijutsu as you and Hinata are" said Shino as he took his hands out his pockets and pushed up his sunglasses
"Fine by me but remember to keep it light we have a mission today" agreed Sasuke
As Sasuke and Shino sparred Hinata and Naruto sat down making light conversation
"Oh so I know how much you listen in on the rest of the world anything new out there" said Hinata as she knew Naruto was always curious about the other villages
"Oh yeah! Kirigakure finally picked their new Mizukage and it's a young woman name Mei, she's letting all the bloodlines back in since their civil war is over" said Naruto as he handed Hinata the news scroll he got the info from
"That's great the first female kage and Kiri finally ended the civil war" said Hinata reading the scroll
Naruto felt a ting in his mind similar to his last mission which was letting him know Ino is trying to use her telepathy but is probably too far away to make good contact
"Look I got to go keep the scroll I'll get it back from you later see ya Hinata! See ya guys!" said Naruto as he made his way towards the flower shop
"Bye Naruto-kun!" said Hinata as she waved him off and continued to read the scroll 'I wonder how many people will come back to Kiri?'
Flower shop
Ino was outside the shop with Shikamaru already there meaning he was last as he knew Asuma was probably not coming
"Hey guys! What's up?" asked Naruto
"Me and Ino have been working on ways to strengthen our offensive side to take the load off of you" said Shikamaru
"Wait what?" Asked Naruto curious on what brought this out
"Look we put too much pressure on you and we're going to take some off you okay" Said Ino
"Is this because of the last mission then you really shouldn't worry it was a simple mismatch I mean I'm better now than I was before" said Naruto
"Not just that but we felt really useless as you were fighting Eui and we want to make a bigger difference" said Ino
"Look you guys were the ones who managed to capture him I don't see how you felt useless, Shikamaru you were basically paralyzed most of the fight and Ino you were trying to use telepathy on the four of us the whole time while fighting that's difficult in concept alone" said Naruto
"But you had to do everything from protecting us to fighting Eui who had an advantage on you, I should have come with a strategy to better protect you and give us an advantage" said Shikamaru
"Shika it was your first real mission you probably had nerves the situation didn't help at all, and Ino same with you but the fact that we made it through it means we can only go up from here besides I know what I have to do from now on to get better"
"What's that?" asked Shikamaru
"Being more confident"
Asuma said as he appeared in front of them out of nowhere, he also felt the transmission in his mind but decided to come last to observe his team first
"What do you mean Naruto is the one of most confident people I know" said Ino
"Maybe but he lost some during that fight with the rogue ninja" said Asuma
"Is it true?" asked the Nara as he came to realization that Asuma was right "You were sloppy in a few places such as when you kept using your wind jutsu without marking him with your teleportation jutsu"
"Yeah it's true, I got a bit... stiff … if that's a good way to put it" said Naruto as he was scratching the side of his head trying to think of a better word
"Yeah you had too much going on to keep you focus from me being unavailable to Ino's telepathy with all of us in your mind for the first time, plus you had to sacrifice your sense of hearing in the fight just limited your senses plus seeing your techniques fail or have little effect against the enemy lowers anyone's confidence and Naruto is no different" said Asuma
Ino and Shikamaru both came to realize that it wasn't the pressure that was getting to Naruto it was simply the situation
'I mean if I was playing shogi against Dad and all my moves were failing plus I have people yelling in my ear plus I have to keep in mind that I'm not allowed to use certain pieces on the board it is an unfavorable situation more like a no win situation' thought the Nara
'An unfavorable situation, it was basically unbeatable until Shikamaru was able to use his jutsu which only gave us the element of surprise which we were able to capitalize on. Naruto was in a spot where no one wants to be in especially for a first mission a major blow to his ego' thought Ino
"Look I'm sorry Naruto for making it seem like you were incapable we thought we pressured to much on you when in fact it was the mission itself besides if it was me or Ino out there with you paralyzed we all would have been dead for sure" said Shikamaru
"It's cool and don't sell yourself short you're much smarter than me and you would have found a way" said Naruto
"I'm sorry too I thought you viewed me as someone who needs protecting and not seeing things from your point of view since you're right since without Asuma-sensei me and Shikamaru abilities you were the best shot we had" said Ino
"It's alright besides of course you two are worth protecting we're friends right?" said Naruto a-matter-of-fact
"Right!" said Ino
"Troublesome I guess we are" said Shikamaru
"Good! Now Naruto are you okay" asked Asuma speaking of the confidence viewpoint
"I'm fine I worked it out but I think it was needed it was kind of a wakeup call to show that I'm nowhere near as strong as where I want to be and that my fundamentals are key" said Naruto
"I didn't see anything wrong with your fundamentals" commented Ino
"Maybe but I've been focusing so much improving my ninjutsu arsenal that I didn't work much on being stealthy and tricky, I honestly haven't worked on my taijutsu that much either since I've been relying on my speed so much" said Naruto
"Good to hear that you all have a goal to improve on since the chunin exams are month from now and I would like to enter you all" said Asuma
"Chunin exams?" questioned the only female around
"It's a test to see whether we are ready to be promoted to chunin, it's the only way to be promoted" answered the blond male
"Correct and in addition to that it's a showcase to other villages that the next generation is just as good if not better than the previous" said Asuma
"Wait so other villages take the same exam as us?" asked Ino
"Yes as of right now the exam will be here in Konoha, it changes location every six months, and villages may send as many genin teams as they wish to participate" said Asuma
"So basically it's their way of saying that they are better than us" said Shikamaru
"In a way, you can view it that way if you want but it's more of a peace agreement showing good blood between villages" said the Jonin
"Yeah it's also a scouting tool" said Naruto
"Scouting?" questioned Ino
"There's usually a good chance we will see the participants in the exam later in life as they would be around our age rather than Asuma-sensei's so it ruins the element of surprise when they already know your techniques, it also gives villages a heads up of who to look out for in the future" said Naruto
"A heads up?" asked Ino
"Like if I use the flying thunder god for people to see they will know that I can use it so now they know to beware of getting marked or anything already marked" said Naruto "It might help ninja like Shikamaru who like to know the enemy's abilities beforehand to plan better, but for shinobi like me who like to keep people on their toes to make the battle in my favor puts me at a disadvantage"
'Naruto does like being in control of a battle' Ino quickly thought
"I see you don't like the idea of the exams" said Asuma amused by Naruto's dislike of the exams
"Being around my parents, my godfather, my aunt and the third Hokage a lot gave me insight of how messed up things are" said Naruto "I love peace but the exams are almost built for disaster"
Naruto: the son of the late Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki, Naruto is a prodigy but not by blood but by the people around him he strives to be a great shinobi. Naruto's upbringing made him dislike the politics that involve the shinobi world, but overall is positive guy. He excels in ninjutsu and taijutsu, possess average genjutsu skill. Naruto inherited his father speed and skill, his mother's chakra and caring a fun-loving personality. Naruto's closest friends are Hinata, Sasuke, Ino and Shikamaru as they see how complicated Naruto can really be and accept that about him. Naruto loves to have fun but knows when to be serious, he's cocky but is able to deflate his ego. He's a natural leader who doesn't like to lead but doesn't know when he's already leading.
Asuma: Naruto's a great kid I see a little of myself in him I would like to pass down some techniques to him one day. His skillset is deadly but also is weak if opponent has a counter will need to put him in more fights to develop him more, Potential skill level: Jonin/Kage
Ino: Naruto's awesome, his positive response to things are reassuring it puts me at ease. Having him as a teammate is great since we get along well, I might act like a big sister at times but I only care for him. He's really strong to know someone my age is that strong is inspiring I want to be able to assist him however I can. His confidence is needed around someone like me since I need to know that I'm not being delusional at times. I value his friendship a lot especially of all the hardships he had faced. Potential skill level: Jonin easily!
Shikamaru: Naruto is a strange puzzle that I haven't solved yet. I sometimes see a mature shinobi ready to go to the battlefield any minute he is called upon and other times I see a 12-year-old kid who's having too much fun and doesn't take things seriously. He's smart but not the smartest, he's strong but the not the strongest but I can't help but get behind this guy whenever, whatever. Troublesome. A good friend he value's stargazing like how I like cloud watching so I can respect him for that. Potential skill level: tokubetsu Jonin I don't know if he would even want to be a full Jonin