A/N: Hey everybody, nothing much to report. I hope you all have enjoyed the story so far. Now we enter the chuunin exams and things will start to deviate from canon a little bit more. Now don't expect massive changes but there will be some alterations. I'm happy to report that I've got one hundred reviews and over 20,000 hits. Thanks for the confidence boost you guys. I'll try not to let you down.
Naruto: Sealed Fate
Chapter 6
Kakashi watched as his genin exited the stairwell. He had monitored the altercation but chose to let them resolve it. At the very least, Sasuke had learned a lesson about underestimating his opponent and overestimating his own skills. Naruto continued to surprise him. He had half expected the energetic youth to blurt out his frustration. Before the accident, Naruto had continually compared himself to Sasuke and Kakashi knew that it irked him to no end to fall short. This was just one more sign that things had changed with his team. Hopefully the changes would all be for the better.
Kakashi smiled when the three had made their way to the door. "I'm glad to see all three of you decided to come. If any of you had declined then none of you would be able to take this exam. It has to be taken as a team."
The genin's eyes grew wide. Sakura was the one to respond. "Why didn't you tell us that before sensei?"
Kakashi grew serious and looked them each in the eye. "I did not want you to pressure each other into this. While I have faith in each of you, this was a decision you had to make for yourselves. Going into this with any doubts would only weaken your resolve and that could lead to failure." Kakashi smiled, breaking the somber mood. "But I knew you would come. You three have the potential to become truly great shinobi," Kakashi paused and polished his nails on his vest, "I am your sensei after all."
Naruto snickered while Sakura rolled her eyes and Sasuke just gave a snort. Kakashi blinked then rubbed the back of his head, amused by his cute little genin. Looking at them once more, he had to correct himself. "They are not so little anymore," he thought. "They are growing up."
Naruto, always the optimist, gave the jounin a big grin. "Hah, don't worry about us sensei. I plan to be the greatest Hokage ever, Sakura-chan is awesome, and the teme isn't bad either. We'll pass with no problem." Sakura reddened at his statement while Sasuke just muttered "Whatever dobe." Kakashi chuckled and wished them luck before he shunshined out.
Team 7 entered the exam room and scoped out the competition. There were teams from several villages. Ame, Kusa, and Suna had all sent teams, just to name a few. There was even ninja from a village who's symbol Naruto did not recognize. Of course this being Konoha, the room was dominated by leaf nin. Team 7 wandered through the room until they heard an excited squeal.
"Sasuke-kun!" Sasuke shuddered as he felt a pair of arms encircle his neck from behind. "I've missed you. I hoped you would be here but I didn't know if you had found a new team member," Ino shrieked.
Sakura glared at the girl and pried her off the suffering Uchiha as the rest of Team 10 ambled over. "Ino-pig, do you mind letting go of my teammate. We don't know where you've been."
"Can it Forehead! I'm surprised Sasuke-kun is still hanging around with you. I am sure he would be much better off on my team than with you and whoever else they dug up," Ino retorted. So who is your new teammate any way?"
Ino turned at the sound of a cleared throat. The Yamanaka's attention was drawn to the guy behind her. Ino stared into the most beautiful bright violet eyes she had ever seen. Her eyes moved up to the sunny blond hair then down to the rugged whisker-like marks on the cheeks … wait a minute. Ino gasped, "N-Naruto, is that you?"
This drew the attention of her male compatriots. Upon seeing who stood before them and the changes to him, Choji paused in mid bite and even the legendary apathy of Shikamaru was broken. Team 10 stared at the boy noting the differences between the Naruto they remembered and the one who now stood before them. The most obvious difference was his height. Where once Naruto was the shortest boy in their class, he now stood at an even height with Sasuke. The horrible orange jumpsuit was gone and he now sported black pants, a dark orange vest and black fingerless gloves with metal backing. Ino blushed slightly as she gazed at the tanned and, if his arms were any indication, toned boy in front of her.
Naruto watched the reactions of his former classmates with amusement. Deciding to have a little fun, in his most nonchalant tone he said, "Hey guys, what's new?"
This shook the new Ino-Shika-Cho trio out of their stupor. Shikamaru just shrugged as if he didn't care. Choji smiled and welcomed him back and of course Ino launched into a full on interrogation. As Naruto began his explanation, Team 8 walked up, led by the boisterous Inuzuka Kiba.
"Akamaru said he smelled you but I thought he made a mistake. I should have known better than to doubt Akamaru's nose." Akamaru barked his agreement. Having noted the changes Naruto had undergone, Kiba continued, "When did you get back man? And what happened to you? We all visited you but you were unconscious and they wouldn't say what happened. Then we heard a rumor that you couldn't use jutsu anymore and you got retired."
Once again, Naruto gave the abridged version of his accident that he had previously given to his team. His six former classmates all gave him varying looks of sympathy and expressed their happiness at seeing him recovered and back on active duty. Hinata in particular could not help but sneak glances full of wonder and admiration at him from behind her two teammates. Naruto never failed to inspire the shy Hyuuga with his determination.
Shikamaru traded glances with Shino after the boy had finished his tale. Neither had said anything but both had detected that something was off about his story. Shino sent one of his kikaichu to investigate. When it returned all it could tell him was that Naruto's chakra appeared abnormal.
Shino's attention was drawn back to the conversation as Kiba finished speaking. "That's a tough break about you not being able to use jutsu or anything, man. But at least they let you back on active duty right?"
Naruto smiled, "Yeah. Besides, I'll show everyone just how awesome I can be without jutsu."
Ino rolled her eyes. "Whatever Naruto. No one is as awesome as Sasuke-kun." Ino pressed closer to the long suffering Uchiha.
Sakura glared at her rival. As much as she had changed over the last few weeks, Ino just seemed to bring out the worst in her. "I told you before, back off my teammate Piggy," she shouted.
"Stuff it, Billboard Brow! You're just mad because even though he is on your team you still can't get anywhere with Sasuke-kun." While the two argued, a young man with glasses and silver hair was drawn by the commotion.
"Um, excuse me but you are all rookies just out of the academy, right? You might want to keep it down," said the teen.
Kiba eyed the older boy and responded, "Who the hell are you?"
"My name is Kabuto. More importantly, you might want to look behind you." The group turned to see most of the assembled genin glowering at them. "Everyone is a bit nervous about the exam so you may want to quiet down. I do not blame you because you are rookie and you don't know any better. I guess you remind me of me of how I was my first time."
"So you have taken the exam before?" Sakura asked.
"Yes, this is my seventh time. Since the exams are held twice a year, I have collected a good bit of information and stored them on these." Kabuto pulled out a deck of cards and fanned them out in front of the rookies.
"Hey, there's nothing on them," Ino stated.
"That is because the information is burned on the cards with chakra. You can't see it unless I use my chakra to make it visible. Like so." As he spoke, he channeled chakra into the cards and writing and diagrams appeared. "I have information about the various ninja taking the exam and their records."
Sasuke perked up at this admission. "Can you tell us about a particular individual?" he asked.
Kabuto smiled. "Is there some one you are worried about? Just tell me about them and I'll take a look."
"Rock Lee of Konoha," Sasuke replied.
"Oh, you know his name. That makes it easy. Let's see, Rock Lee. He is a year older than you are and has completed 20 D-ranked and 12 C-ranked missions. His sensei is Maito Gai. His taijutsu is extremely high but he has no ninjutsu or genjutsu. This is his first time here. His teammates are Hyuuga Neji and Tenten." The genin were all impressed with the amount of info the teen possessed.
"What about his team," asked Naruto. "Can you tell us about them?"
Kabuto flipped through his cards until he found the right ones. He looked at the rookies and responded, "Of course. Hyuuga Neji, he is also a year older than you. Like Lee, his taijutsu is high, as expected of a member of the Hyuuga clan. He is considered a prodigy and was rookie of the year for his graduating class. He possesses the byakugan, a bloodline limit doujutsu that allows the user to see in 360 degrees. It also allows them to see an opponent's chakra network and combined with the Juuken, the Hyuuga taijutsu style, it enables them to seal an opponents chakra points. His genjutsu is low but with his doujutsu, he can see them easily. His ninjutsu appears to be limited to the academy standard."
Kabuto switched cards and continued. "Tenten has the same as record as Lee and Neji. Her taijutsu is above average, her genjutsu is limited to the academy standard and her ninjutsu is better than both of her teammate's. Tenten is apparently an aspiring weapons master. Her accuracy with throwing weapons is near perfect and she possesses skill with several hand weapons."
Kabuto looked at the apprehensive expressions on several of their faces. "So you understand now. Konoha, Suna, Ame, Kusa, Taki, and even Oto, all these villages have sent their best to compete in these exams. Well Oto is relatively new and a minor village at best, so there is not much info about them yet."
"So are all of them going to be that good?" Sakura asked.
Yes. They are the top genin from their respective countries and are all talented youngsters. No village would send any less."
Hinata spoke in a voice barely above a whisper, "It is enough to make you want to quit right now."
Naruto looked at the shy girl. He had noticed that throughout the conversation she had been sneaking covert glances his way. He still could not figure out what they meant but he figured he would give her a break. She looked so unsure of herself. "This isn't going to be easy, but I for one am not giving up. I have come too far and been through too much to back out now," he said in a quiet voice. "I'm going to give it my all or what was the point of all my training? Uzumaki Naruto never quits, you can believe that."
Hinata looked at the boy with admiration that bordered on awe. Kiba smiled enthusiastically while Shino gave him a speculative look. Ino groaned and Choji straightened. Shikamaru just gave him an appraising glance. Sakura smiled and Sasuke smirked.
Shino spoke, to everyone's surprise. "Naruto is correct. How do I know this? Because it would be pointless and illogical to quit now after coming this far ." Having said this he looked to Hinata, silently acknowledging that he had noticed her uncertainty.
"Na-Naruto-kun is right. We have to believe in ourselves," Hinata said.
"Hn. Quit making speeches dobe. No one here is giving up and we all know how tough you are. Or maybe stubborn is a better word," Sasuke interjected. Everyone was shocked to see the ghost of a smile on his face. Sasuke never smiled.
"Yeah man, anybody who can take a lightning jutsu to the gut and walk away is pretty badass," was Kiba's boisterous reply. "Not as badass as me but still."
Kabuto stood up. "What a spirited group you are. I hope to see you in the finals." At that moment, one of the assembled genin rushed Kabuto and threw a punch aimed at his head. Kabuto sidestepped the attack and dropped into a defensive stance only to fall to one knee as his glasses cracked and he began to throw up.
The Rookie 9 watched in confusion as Kabuto clutched his stomach and gasped for breath. They could have sworn he had dodged the attack.
The attacking genin turned and addressed the room, his attack having called the attention of the room full of genin. Everyone looked on as the bandaged boy spoke. "Don't look down on Otogakure or its ninja, it might get you killed. We can be quite vicious," said the youth. His two team members flanked him, radiating arrogance and superiority.
Sakura checked on Kabuto while Naruto and Sasuke slipped into defensive stances. The rest of the Rookie 9 could only wonder at how smoothly and easily they moved together.
Meanwhile the other male Oto-nin continued as he sneered at them, "Write this down on your cards. The Hidden Sound ninjas are definitely future chuunin."
Just then, a cloud of smoke burst forth at the front of the room and a deep voice bellowed, "All right quiet down you worthless bastards." When the smoke cleared, a group of uniformed shinobi stood before them, headed by a large scar-faced man in a black trench coat.
"I am Morino Ibiki, the examiner for the chuunin exams first test. Thanks for waiting. As for you," he said pointing at the Oto-nin, "You Hidden Sound guys stop doing as you please before the exam."
The bandaged-faced nin replied, "I apologize. This is our first time and we got a bit carried away." His team leered at the rest of the genin
"Whatever," Ibiki retorted. "I will say this once. There will be no fighting without the permission of the examiner. Ibiki leveled a stony gaze at the aspiring chuunin. "Those pigs that disobey me will be failed immediately. Do I make myself clear?" He watched as they all nodded their agreement. "Now since some of you bastards can't play nice I won't let you sit where you please. Each of you will come up and receive a numbered tag that corresponds to the seat assigned to you. This is not negotiable so I don't want to hear any whining. After you are all seated we will hand out the exams."
The proctors for the exam passed out the test once everyone was seated. Ibiki stood at the blackboard and monitored the process. He addressed the seated genin while his people worked. "Do not turn over your test. I have some important rules for this exam. I will write them on the board as I explain so listen up. Questions will not be allowed so shut up and pay attention." He surveyed the room for any signs of dissent. When he was sure he had their complete attention, he continued. "The first rule is that you will all start the test with ten points. The test is made up of ten questions each worth one point. That means for every one you miss a point will be deducted. The second rule is that this is a team test. You will pass or fail based on the performance of your team as a whole. This means the maximum score is thirty points," Ibiki smiled cruelly, "try to hold on to as many as possible."
Ibiki watched as a few of the genin looked around nervously. No doubt, they were seeking out their teammates, hoping that they could achieve a passing score. Ibiki resumed his explanation, "The third rule is that anyone caught doing anything sneaky, like cheating, will lose two points off their final score for every offense. That means if you are caught five times you automatically fail." Ibiki let loose a sinister chuckle. "We will be watching you. Realize now that the pathetic excuse for shinobi that are caught cheating will be destroying themselves and disgracing their village. As shinobi aspiring to be chuunin, be proud ninja."
The exam instructor noted that many of the genin appeared far less confident. "Just as I planned," he thought. "Now to drive in the final nail." Glaring at the chuunin wannabes as if daring them to interrupt, Ibiki spoke once again, "Now for the final rule. Those that lose all of their points or manage not to answer any questions correctly will fail … as will their two teammates."
There were several cries of "What?!" and "No fair!"
Ibiki waited for a few seconds then bellowed, "Shut up! Now the test will last one hour. Begin now!"
Naruto could not believe his rotten luck. Of all the possible ways he could have been tested, it had to be his biggest weakness. Granted he was much better thanks to Iruka's private instruction, but you do not go from the being a class clown and dead last to an A student in a few weeks. As much information as Naruto had absorbed, he also realized just how much he still had to learn.
Naruto flipped over his test and nearly had a massive coronary. None of this stuff was in any of Iruka's lessons. How the hell was he supposed to plot the trajectory of a shuriken thrown north against a 12 mile per hour southwesterly wind? And what the hell? If a Shinobi leaves Suna at 11:45 and traveled at 15 mph headed towards Kumo … did they really expect him to know this stuff?
Naruto took several calming breaths and did as Iruka taught him. Naruto slowly and methodically went over the rules once again, alert for any tricks. "It's like Kakashi-sensei said, 'A ninja must look underneath the underneath. A shinobi's life is deception.' Take it slow and pay attention," he thought.
"Alright, first each question is worth one point. If I answer a question wrong then I loose a point. That's straightforward enough. Next, this is a team effort. We will be graded as a team, so even if I get some wrong, as long as Sasuke and Sakura-chan get theirs right we won't fail," Naruto thought. "But I don't want to be a burden on them. If I can't pull my own weight then what was the point of coming back to the team?" Naruto's face scrunched in concentration. "Ok moving on, rule three is every time you get caught cheating you lose two points. Hmm, that's weird. Iruka-sensei always failed anyone who was caught cheating. It's like… they want us… to cheat." Naruto broke out of his silent contemplation as he had an epiphany.
Naruto's mind raced as he covertly studied the room. The proctors for the exam lined three sides of the room while the scar-faced harass stood at the front. As he watched, several proctors started to call out numbers.
"Number 27."
"Number 113."
"Number 53."
Naruto watched was sure he had reached the right conclusion. This test was not about how well you knew the information but if you could get it without getting caught. The trick was how could he do it. Naruto tuned out the cries of those who failed and did a mental inventory of his skills and tools. After a few moments, a wide grin broke out on his face. All those who had know the young nin for any length of time would have recognized that grin. It usually preceded a public disturbance and embarrassment for some unfortunate soul.
"Number 18, you fail. You and numbers 63 and 97 leave the examination room," Called out one chuunin with bandages across his nose and wild spiky hair.
Naruto extended his senses and increased his situational awareness as Akisame had taught him. He deftly dipped his hand into his equipment pouch and palmed three smoke bombs as soon as the coast was clear. The former prankster waited for the perfect moment and quick as lightning flicked the bombs a few seats down while no one was looking. The bombs released a thick cloud of smoke that covered the area. There were shouts of confusion from the genin and calls for order from the proctors.
As soon as he was covered, Naruto went to work. He grabbed his paper and slipped around the surrounding genin like an eel through coral. Naruto headed right for his target, a genin a row in front and two seats down from him who he noticed had finished already. In the confusion, Naruto quickly smacked the unsuspecting genin on side of his head and when he turned to retaliate, came from the other side and swapped their two papers. He swapped the papers of four other genin on the way back to his seat just to throw off suspicion. Naruto made it back with just enough time to substitute his name for that of his unlucky target.
When the smoke cleared, Naruto was surprised to see that a few others had taken advantage of the opportunity he provided. Along with the five test he had swapped four others complained their test had been stolen, although not all of the culprits had gotten away cleanly. Two genin were caught going back to their seats, one of which was promptly ejected along with his team.
Naruto looked at the clock and saw that there was less than half an hour left. Just to be on the safe side he decided to go over the test answers. They seemed to be legit but he couldn't know for sure. When he got to the tenth question he found that the final question would be given forty-five minutes after the test had started. Naruto settled in, confident that even if he missed the final question, he and his team would succeed.
Hinata watched Naruto from the corner of her eye. She was ecstatic when she found herself seated next to the young nin. Naruto had been a source of strength for the shy Hyuuga for years now. It was a shame that she could never bring herself to tell him her feelings.
Whenever she found herself near the blond, she became tongue-tied, her heart raced, and she felt light-headed. Of course, this further reinforced the notion that her father and the rest of the clan were right and she really was weak. Hinata had always been a shy girl but the death of her mother and her attempted kidnapping had robbed her of nearly all her courage and self-confidence. Her father's continued obvious disappointment in her only served to further diminish what little remained.
There was one saving grace for little Hyuuga Hinata and that was Uzumaki Naruto. While the boy was not the best student and his skills found much to be desired, Naruto possessed a determination and a confidence in himself that she could only dream of having. No matter how many times he failed, he would just pick himself back up and loudly declare that he would definitely win next time. His most recent situation was a prime, albeit extreme, example.
So when Hinata saw the signs that Naruto was nervous, she only hesitated for a second before she resolved to help the object of her admiration. Just when she was about to slide her paper his way, she saw a flash of understanding followed by that impudent grin that never failed to make her heart race.
"Naruto-kun … you can do it," she thought. Hinata watched discretely as Naruto put his plan into action and she could barely contain her pride and relief when he managed to get away cleanly. Hinata turned back to her own completed test and reaffirmed her commitment to succeed and to show her team, her father, and especially Naruto that she was a strong, capable kunoichi.
Ibiki watched the Kyuubi container as he sat patiently waiting for the final question. Ibiki had not expected the kid to be here as everyone had heard the kid suffered some sort of accident in the field. Sure enough, when he checked, Uzumaki Naruto had been cleared for active duty.
Ibiki had paid close attention to the boy not because he was trying to fail him, at least no more than the rest, but because his behavior had apparently changed. From everything he had heard and seen, the kid was a loudmouth fool who only rarely showed signs of any potential. Ibiki had expected him to flip when he found out the test was a written exam. It was common knowledge that the boy had almost not graduated after all. But no, as Ibiki watched, he kept his cool and worked things out.
Apparently Anko was right about the kid. Ibiki was never one to form opinions without ample information, so up until now he had been on the fence about the boy. While he did not see Uzumaki as the kyuubi like some of the rest of those idiots, neither had he seen any signs of true potential. That is, until the academy reject manage to infiltrate the Hokage tower, incapacitate the Sandaime, steal the forbidden scroll, and manage to learn a technique that only the most elite jounin were allowed to even attempt. So even after an accident had apparently robbed Uzumaki of the ability to use jutsu, when Anko said that the brat had promise, Ibiki listened.
Ibiki looked at the clock. It was time. Now to see just how far his perseverance would carry him. "Uzumaki Naruto, do you have the testicular fortitude to continue and risk it all or are the fools of this village right about you?" Ibiki wondered.
"Alright, it is time for the final question," said the scarred instructor. "But before we continue, I would like to go over the additional rules for the final question." Ibiki paused as the remaining genin murmured to themselves, their confusion readily apparent. "I will now explain the rules of desperation. First, for the tenth question you must decide whether you will take it or not."
Naruto watched as a blonde girl from Suna wearing her hair in four pigtails hollered, "What? What happens if we choose not to take it?"
Ibiki glared at the assembled genin, his cruel features appearing to be etched in stone. "If you choose not to, " he said, "your points will be reduced to zero and you will fail… as will your two team members." Once again there were cries of outrage from the stressed out genin. Ibiki smiled to himself. Now to separate the diamonds from the coal. "If you choose to take it and answer incorrectly… then you will forfeit the right to ever take the chuunin selection exams again."
There was a moment of silence before Inuzuka Kiba erupted. "Oi, what kind of stupid rule is that?" he shouted. "There are guys here who have taken the exam before. What about that?"
Ibiki let out a laugh that chilled many of the genin to the core. "Well then it's just your bad luck that this year I was picked to run things. That means my word is law. But I am not unreasonable so I am giving you a way out." The genin waited, hoping to hear something good from the sadistic instructor. "Those of you that lack the confidence can quit and your team can try again next year."
Ibiki smiled menacingly as he watched them squirm. "Now. Let's begin the tenth question. Those of you who do not wish to take it, raise your hand and when your number is confirmed you and your team may leave."
Less than a minute had passed and already several genin had given up. Naruto was at a crossroads. On one hand, if he quit then they could always try again. On the other hand, if he continued and failed, Sakura and Sasuke would be free to try again but he would be stuck as a perpetual genin.
Naruto turned around, searching for his teammates. His eyes alighted on Sakura who was staring at him with a meaningful expression. In that instant, he made his decision. Naruto smiled at Sakura, answering her silent question in the process. He would go for it. Not once had he ever backed down and he would be damned if he started now. Not after everything he had gone through.
Naruto turned back in his seat. As he turned to look forward he happened to glimpse a look of uncertainty of the face of Hinata. Naruto frowned slightly. Naruto had always remembered her as the quiet, dark, weird girl. She never stood out, preferring the stay in the background. If anyone knew what it was like to be on the outside looking in, it was Naruto. So acting on impulse, he did something that very few people had ever done for him.
Naruto reached his hand over and grasped the hand of the quiet girl. Hinata started slightly at the unexpected contact. When she saw just who it was who held her hand her face turned a deep crimson. She looked into his now violet eyes and saw acceptance and approval aimed at her. Hinata could not believe it. Naruto, the boy she had admired from the shadows for so long had finally taken notice of her.
All of her fears and self-doubt melted away under his kind gaze. If Naruto could believe in her, how could she not believe in herself? Had she not just vowed to show him and everyone else her true strength? How could she even think of backing out now? The little Hyuuga gave Naruto a smile of acceptance and put on her best mask of calm. If her father could see her now he would be amazed at the change in his eldest daughter.
Naruto nodded at the girls changed demeanor. Some times all it took was the slightest encouragement. Naruto watched as various genin gave up one by one.
When no further genin raised their hands, Ibiki stated, "I'll ask you one last time. Remember your lives are riding on this decision. This is your last chance. Does anyone else wish to quit." No one moved as Ibiki swept his eyes across the room. Ibiki noted that there were only 57 genin and among them was Uzumaki Naruto. "Not bad kid," he thought, "You may have what it takes after all."
"Very well then. For those of you remaining I would like to congratulate you on passing the first test!"
Sakura spoke for all the bewildered genin when she asked, "What do you mean, we pass? What about the tenth question?"
Ibiki smiled a true smile for the first time since they had seen him. "There never was a tenth question or rather the choice you made could be considered the tenth question."
The blonde Suna girl yelled, "Hey! Then what the hell were the first nine questions for? Were they pointless?"
Ibiki became serious once again. "Oh they were far from pointless; they had just served their purpose. The reason for the first nine questions was to test your information gathering skills."
"Huh? Information gathering, what do you mean?" the girl asked.
As Ibiki explained the purpose of the exam, Naruto was celebrating internally. He had done it! He took his time and thought things through like he had been taught and he figured out the meaning behind the rules. He was on his was to being an excellent ninja and eventually the Hokage.
Naruto finished cheering just as Ibiki finished his explanation. "The premise of the test was to cheat yes, but those who cheat poorly fail." Ibiki paused and removed his bandana showing the genin for the first time the hideous scars that adorned his head. "At times information is more important than life and on missions or on the battlefield, people will risk everything to get their hands on it."
The horrible burns, screw holes and scars only served to punctuate the seriousness of the situation to the genin. To Naruto it just illustrated what the Sandaime had been telling him. Being a shinobi was something he had to take seriously if he wanted to survive.
Ibiki continued as he retied his bandana. "If an enemy or a third party notices you then there is no guarantee that the info will be accurate. I want you to remember this. Important information can be a powerful weapon for your comrades and your village. Compromised information can get you killed or worse. That is why we had you gather information through cheating. This weeded out those that did not have the skills or the nerve."
The girl from Suna asked, "But what about the last question?"
"Ah yes," Ibiki replied, "As important as the first nine questions were, question ten was the true point of this exam. Let me explain. The tenth question, whether or not to take the test was made to be a painful choice. Those who chose not to take it failed along with their team but those who took it and fail forever gave up the right to take it again. It was a leap of faith. As chuunin, you will be faced with many difficult missions. You may not have enough intel, there may be traps, and you will face unknown numbers of enemy shinobi. The mission, however, is vital to your village. Now, do you accept or not? Whether it's because you fear death or you fear for the safety of your comrades, do you avoid the mission?"
Ibiki looked each genin in the eye as he spoke. "The answer is no! There are some missions you cannot avoid, no matter how dangerous they may be. To be courageous, to survive any hardship, to step up and serve your village, these are the qualities needed to become a chuunin." Ibiki glared at his captive audience. "Those who refuse to put their destinies on the line and who cling to the uncertain future of 'there is always next year' and then walk away from their chance… well those cowardly pieces of trash don't have the right to become chuunin. Not in my eyes." Ibiki smiled once more. "You, however, chose to take it. I have every expectation that you will be able to survive any troubles you face in the future. So again, congratulations, you have made it through the first test of the chuunin selection exam. I wish you all luck."
Ibiki looked to his right as a black bundle smashed through the window. Two hands emerged from the bundle and simultaneously launched two kunai at the ceiling. The bundle unfurled, releasing a whirling figure. The genin looked on in shock as the cloth was revealed to be a sign in front of which stood a figure that Naruto recognized all too well.
"Oh kami, not her," he thought as he slid down into his seat. Both Hinata and the Kusa-nin next to him wondered at his behavior. "Please don't let that psycho see me," Naruto prayed.
At the front of the class, the trench coated figure stood proud. "Hmm, prepare yourselves, for the examiner of the second test is here! Mitarashi Anko. Now lets go." Anko stood with one arm in the air as she watched the genin stare blankly at her.
"She's as bad as Naruto used to be," thought Sakura.
Ibiki peered from behind the sign at the still seated applicants. "Bad timing Anko. You should learn to read the situation better."
Anko snorted indignantly. "Yeah well, whatever. I guess I can't complain you since you only left me with what, 57 of the little shits. Nineteen teams isn't too bad." Anko smirked, "Besides, I'll cut 'em down to less than half that with my test." Anko finally noticed one of the genin attempting to avoid her attention. She smiled wickedly when she recognized who it was. Without warning, Anko seemingly vanished from the front of the room.
Naruto was trying to slip beneath the desk without calling attention to himself. It did not help that the two next to him kept looking his way after he quickly shushed them to stop their questions. Naruto had nearly made it under the desk when he came face to face with a hissing viper. The terrified boy leap up right into the waiting arms of a grinning Anko. "Aww, did little Naru-chan miss his Anko-nee?"
Naruto's eyes widened comically. The pair now had the attention of the entire room. Anko nuzzled the cheek of the trembling nin as the large viper slithered up his leg only to rear back and eye him hungrily.
"Oh look, Shokkushi missed you too. She was a bit upset that you ran away from her last time. She had her little heart set on playing with you."
The genin in the immediate vicinity had all quickly vacated the area at the appearance of the deadly snake. Naruto looked around and saw that help was definitely not on the way and so hoping to survive the encounter, decided to distract the bloodthirsty jounin. "Hey, um Anko-san, shouldn't we be getting to the next test?"
Anko looked at him quizzically before her face brightened up. "Oh yeah," she said. Anko snapped her fingers and dispersed her summons. "I guess you and Shokkushi will just have to play next time." Naruto sighed in relief and dropped to the floor in a boneless heap as Anko released him. Anko turned to see him lying there and her disposition quickly changed. "Well come on gaki, don't just lay there, let's go. That goes for the rest of you, too!"
The genin regrouped with their teams and filed out behind the capricious woman. Hinata looked back hesitantly at Naruto but left when she heard Kiba calling her. Sakura helped Naruto up off the floor.
"So that was…" Sakura began.
"Yeah," Naruto quickly answered.
"She is really…" Sasuke interjected.
"Yeah. At least she didn't throw kunai at me this time." Naruto sighed.
The genin followed Anko to a large gated off section of forest near the edge of the village. A few of the genin stared apprehensively at the many warning signs posted repeatedly across the chain link fence. Anko turned to address the crowd as the last few stragglers joined them. "Welcome to the stage for the next phase of the exams. This is training ground 44, affectionately known as 'the Forest of Death'. You will soon find just how apt a name it is."
Kiba snorted. Sure, the jounin behavior in the classroom had rattled him, but he was an Inuzuka. He would show this broad that he wasn't afraid. "Yeah right, lady. You may have the rest of these chumps spooked but not me!"
"You're spirited," Anko smiled sweetly.
"You poor dumb bastard," thought Naruto.
Before anyone could react, Anko slipped a kunai from up her sleeve and sent it flying at the brash boy. Kiba found himself embraced from behind with Anko licking the blood running from an inch long cut on his cheek. "Kids like you are killed quickly in here," she said, "spraying that red blood I love so much."
Kiba didn't know whether to be terrified or turned on at this point. Before he could react, Anko whipped around, brandishing another kunai at the Kusa-nin who had crept up behind her.
"Here is your kunai," the nin lisped. Kiba's eyes bulged as he saw the girls tongue extended more than a foot out of her mouth, the kunai wrapped in the pink appendage.
"Why thank you," Anko said cordially. "But you know, it is a bad idea to sneak up behind me. Unless you want to die that is."
"Oh you must forgive me," the Kusa-nin smirked. "I get so excited when I see blood. Plus you cut my precious hair. I just could not help myself."
"Sorry about that," Anko said as she released Kiba. "It seems we have some bloodthirsty ones in this exam. This should be fun," she cackled. Anko reached into her coat and pulled out a stack of papers. "Anyway, I have to pass these out before we start the exam. You must sign these waivers to continue on to the next portion. Some of you are probably going to die and if I don't have you sign these, there going to want to hold me responsible," she said in a deceptively sweet tone.
Anko passed out the forms as she spoke. "Now to explain the second test. When I am done you can fill out the form and each team can check in at the booth behind me." Anko finished passing out the forms and stood in front of one of the gates. "Simply put, this exam is the ultimate survival test. You will be competing in a no holds barred battle for these." Anko held up two scrolls. On one was the symbol for heaven and on the other, the symbol for earth. "Each team will be issued one of these scrolls when you turn in your forms.
There are 57 people here, which means nineteen teams. Of that only nine of them can possibly pass. Your objective is to make it to the tower situated in the center of the area with both scrolls. You have 120 hour, that's five days, to make it to the tower."
"What?" Choji yelled indignantly. "What are we supposed to eat in there?"
Anko shrugged nonchalantly, "Eh, it's a survival test. There is all kinds of food in the forest. Just watch out for the man-eating beast, the poisonous insects, the poisonous plants… Anyway, I doubt if nine teams pass. The forest is a dangerous place and its denizens and your fellow genin will hunt you. You will get more desperate as the days drag on. You will have to be on constant alert so you probably won't sleep much. Some of you will definitely die out there.
That reminds me, I have to tell you what will disqualify you. First, if you don't make it to the tower with both scrolls within the time limit. Second, those who lose a teammate or if a teammate is killed. Just so you know, there is no quitting once we start. Its all or nothing kiddies. Finally, you must not open the scrolls until you reach the tower."
"What happens if you do?" asked Naruto.
Anko grinned and replied, "Try it and see gaki."
Naruto shuddered and replied, "No thanks."
"As I was saying, a chuunin will be asked to handle classified information. This is to test how trustworthy you are." Anko yawned and stretched, almost flashing the crowd in the process. She chuckled, amused at the reactions she garnered. "Well that's it for the explanations. The rest you can figure out yourselves. Trade your three forms for a scroll and head for a gate for when we start." As the genin moved to the booth, Anko called out, "Oh yeah, as a word of final advice… don't die."
A group of chuunin lined up and led the teams off one by one after they had received their scroll. Team 7 was led half way around the training area to their gate. Naruto looked around and when he saw no other genin in sight, he took of his forehead protector and removed his vest.
"Na-Naruto, what are you doing?" Sakura could not help but blush. In all the time they had been training, Sakura had never seen Naruto's bare torso. She could barely take her eyes off of him as he turned his vest inside out and put it back on. "There is not an ounce of fat on him," she thought. Her eyes widened in shock at the turn her thoughts had taken. "Oh kami, tell me I'm not ogling Naruto!"
Naruto finished zipping up his vest and unfurled his forehead protector into a bandana. He answered her question as he tied it over his hair. "Well Sakura-chan, it has been repeatedly brought to my attention that, with my hair and my love of orange, I tend to stand out. Since I need every advantage I can get, it was decided that I need to blend in more. So my sensei made a compromise and bought me a reversible vest.
In the village and when I'm off duty, I can wear the orange side out. When I'm on a mission, I wear the green side out. Same thing with my forehead protector. In the village, it's a headband. On missions, it's a bandana to hide my hair."
To Sasuke and Sakura, the difference was subtle yet profound. They had all commended him on wearing a more toned down shade of orange. Furthermore, they admitted he looked much more professional in it, especially with the black pants. But neither of them expected this.
"So why didn't you just wear it that way from the beginning, dobe?"
Naruto looked at Sasuke and grinned. "Well I figured that everybody had already heard about my accident and possibly my problem. So I thought, if I wear the orange and anybody goes looking for me, then I'll be harder to find wearing the green and covering my hair. Sensei says that I'm a natural at stealth and by wearing this I'll almost disappear."
Both of his teammates were surprised at his answer and neither could fault his reasoning. Even the chuunin proctor who had been standing off to the side listening in was mildly impressed.
The proctor looked at his watch and moved to the gate. "Ok you three, it's time to get this show on the road." So saying he unlocked the gate. "The second exam has officially started. Good luck to you."
Team 7 nodded and walked through the gate, only to hear it locked behind them. Naruto surveyed the area then called the other two over. He fished in his pouch and pulled out two scrolls. "I made these for you the other day. These are storage scrolls. Each one contains fifteen explosive notes. I figured that since I can make them now, I might as well supply the team." Sakura smiled and thanked him while Sasuke just nodded.
Naruto glanced at his team and casually asked, "So who is going to be the team leader?"
Sasuke quirked an eyebrow at the question. He supposed he shouldn't be too surprised. "After all," he thought, "The dobe is a bit different from before." He looked Naruto in the eye and asked, "What do you suggest?"
Naruto was confused at the Uchiha's behavior but shrugged it off. His face scrunched in thought for a moment, then he answered. "Sakura-chan you're really smart and you have studied all of this stuff right?" When the girl nodded, Naruto continued. "I think you should lead Sasuke, with Sakura-chan in the middle and me bringing up the rear. That way, since you have your sharingan, you would probably spot anything out of the ordinary and with Sakura-chan right behind you, you could check with her while I watch our backs. Besides, Sakura-chan is the medic and support person so she should would be protected on both sides in case of an attack."
Sasuke realized that he really needed to adjust his mindset where Naruto was concerned. Instead of demanding to be put in charge, the young nin gave a reasonably well thought out explanation for Sasuke to take lead. "Maybe he's not such a dobe any more," he thought.
"Alright Naruto, we will try it your way. It's not a bad plan. We should probably come up with a password in case we are separated as well."
Naruto laughed. "How about, 'What is under Kakashi-sensei's mask?' Would that work?"
Sakura laughed as well, remembering the time they had spent an entire day trying to see their sensei's face, only to be shown another mask under the first one.
"I guess I was wrong," Sasuke thought, "He's still an idiot, just more competent." Sasuke answered, "Sure I guess that will work. We have a heaven scroll so we need to find an earth scroll and make it to the tower." Sasuke gave Naruto with a speculative look. "Naruto, do you have any more blank scrolls?"
"Sure. I keep a couple sealed up just in case. Why?"
"I have an idea."
Team 7 had been walking for over an hour. So far Sasuke had led them around a patch of quicksand and Sakura had pointed out a growth of deadly carnivorous vines. Naruto had kept a constant vigil while familiarizing himself with the forest and kept all of his senses alert for any signs of danger.
The three genin paused when they heard a bloodcurdling scream. "Looks like it's started," Sasuke replied.
The trio began walking again, taking even more care to observe their surroundings. Sasuke called a halt several minutes later.
"Naruto come take a look at this," he whispered. Sakura shuddered at the grisly sight and stepped back into a protective position as Naruto came up. They both examined the bodies that Sasuke had found. Naruto gingerly picked through the remains as Sasuke studied the scene.
"Well I didn't find a scroll but I don't think any ninja did this," Naruto said.
"They probably lost it earlier and then ran into some predator," Sasuke replied. "Sakura says that there are supposedly really large and vicious animals in here. Let's get out of here before they come back." They resumed their formation and headed out.
After they had walked for a while, Naruto stiffened and stopped. "What is it Naruto?" asked Sakura.
"I don't know, but the forest feels different. Sensei taught me to be constantly aware of my surroundings. He says I'm getting pretty good but I sometimes have trouble figuring out the exact changes. Just give me a minute."
"One of these days we are going to have to meet this mysterious sensei of yours," Sakura muttered as he looked around.
Naruto narrowed his eyes. "Wait here for a minute. I think I have it pinned down. I'll go scout ahead." Naruto slipped into the bushes, leaving the other two to close ranks.
The blond returned just as they started to worry. Before he could get close, Sasuke pulled a kunai and blocked his path. "Hold it Naruto. What is under sensei's mask?"
Naruto's eyes narrowed. "Nobody knows what's under Kakashi-sensei's mask, teme. We didn't find out."
Sasuke breathed a sigh of relief and let him pass. Just as Naruto walked past him, Sasuke grabbed
him from behind and put the kunai to his neck. "Nice try but that was the wrong answer. Now who are you and where is Naruto?"
The captured genin released his henge, revealing himself to be a Konoha ninja. The boy appeared to be sixteen and wore dark blue pants with a long sleeved mesh undershirt covered by a dark grey gi. The youth swore, "Damn it, we were told that no one has ever seen the copy-nin's face. We thought you rookies would be easy pickings."
Sasuke was in no mood for stalling. "Where is Naruto and where are your teammates?"
"I told you, we thought you wouldn't be much of a fight, so I came alone. Look my name is Jurou and my friends have your teammate. If you let me give them the signal I'm sure they'll bring him and we can do an exchange."
Sasuke could tell the boy was lying so he was on the lookout, which is why he noticed Sakura's shadow appeared to be getting larger. "Sakura above you!"
Sakura jumped out of the way just before a gangling teen dropped down and struck the ground where she had stood.
The boy being held captive by Sasuke took advantage of the distraction to yank the kunai away from his neck and flip Sasuke over his shoulder. Sasuke somersaulted in mid-air and came down in a defensive stance just in time to meet the older nin's rush. Sasuke blocked a punch to his head and countered with a palm strike to the sternum. The older boy backed away to avoid the kick to his midsection.
Meanwhile Sakura had traded blows with her opponent and quickly realized that his taijutsu was superior. It took all of her skill to stay just out of his reach but too close for him to go for any throwing weapons without her attacking. Quickly coming up with a plan, she took a page from Naruto's book and threw herself at her attacker. The boy dropped into a defensive stance at her sudden shift allowing her just enough time to dive into a forward roll and come up behind him.
The teen turned to block the pink-haired girls' assault, only to see his third team member stab the girl from behind. "Damn man, you didn't have to kill her, she was just a kid!"
Both Sasuke and the genin he fought turned at the cry. Jurou was confused when he saw his friend yelling at empty space as the girl circled around him. "Reiji, it's a genjutsu!"
Sasuke took advantage of his foe's lapse of attention to fling two shuriken at his opponent. The genin dodged out of the way but his eyes widened when he felt a tug only to be caught flatfooted when the ninja wire wrapped around him. Unable to move his arms, the teen was in no position to block Sasuke's follow-up knockout blow. When the Uchiha looked back, Sakura was just finishing tying up her beaten opponent.
The girl giggled. "I'm just glad most genin don't bother with genjutsu after the academy."
Sasuke smiled in reply before his expression hardened. "Where is that idiot? I thought he said he knew where they were?" Sakura could hear the concern in Sasuke's voice even though he tried to hide it. If Naruto's accident did nothing else, it taught them to care more about each other as a team.
The two genin didn't have long to dwell on the matter when another teen leaped out from the bush and slammed Sakura head first into a nearby tree. The girl slid to the ground unconscious from the blow. Sasuke tried to cover his teammate but had to jump aside to avoid several thrown kunai.
"You little shits have caused us enough trouble. When I get my hands on that other little bastard, I'm going to break his legs."
Sasuke smirked despite the situation. He knew better than anyone just how aggravating fighting Naruto could be. Sasuke quickly assessed the situation and tried to sidestep around the teen to get to Sakura.
"Nice try Uchiha but I think I'll keep the girl in the line of fire for a little while longer. No sense letting you use those fancy fire jutsu."
Sasuke swore silently. The teen circled to keep Sakura directly behind him. Sasuke rushed into the larger boy, stopping short to avoid a jab to the face. The teen assumed a boxing stance and waded in to Sasuke with several combination punches.
Sasuke was able to block the strikes but had trouble counter-attacking. Deciding that the time was right, he activated his sharingan just in time to avoid a knee to the midsection. With a predatory smile, Sasuke went on the offensive. With his doujutsu now active, it was child's play to avoid the older genin's attacks.
Sasuke blocked a jab and deflected the follow up elbow. He kicked the boys' knee causing him to buckle slightly. Sasuke used the older boys shift in weight to force him to the side and clearing the way to Sakura in the process.
When the teen tried a back kick, Sasuke leaped up and kicked him further away. Sasuke was about to go for a jutsu when a series of explosions sounded from a short distance in the woods. Sasuke turned to see his opponent freeing the boy that Sakura had tied and gagged.
After his gag was removed the previously bound genin groused, "It's about time Takeda. Where the hell were you?"
"Shut it Reiji," Takeda barked. "I'm not the one who got his ass kicked by a couple of rookie genin." The two boys watched as Sasuke had moved to cover Sakura. While he was certain he could take both boys under other circumstances, as long as he had to guard Sakura his options were limited.
Suddenly there was a cry of pain and a sharp crackling sound. Reiji staggered forward while yanking a kunai from his twitching right arm. There was a dark blur as Naruto streaked from the under brush a leaped into a spinning back kick. Reiji ducked the kick but Naruto continued the spin and lashed out with a momentum fuel overhand punch. Reiji was knocked to the ground and quickly rolled out of the way of Naruto's descending axe kick.
Sasuke took advantage of his teammate's entrance to fire several fireballs at Takeda. Takeda cursed as he dodged the flaming barrage and countered with a blast of flame courtesy of the Fire Dragon Missile. Sasuke jumped to the side and threw a handful of shuriken to distract the teen and rushed in with a series of punches and kicks that kept him off balance.
Meanwhile, Naruto kept the pressure on Reiji by continuously going for his legs and injured arm. Reiji couldn't keep track of the Boy as he dodged, tumbled, and rolled around him. Naruto decided it was time to end this. Naruto channeled chakra into the seals on his gloves causing his hands to become surrounded by crackling blue chakra.
Reiji knew he was beat when he blocked the younger nin's first punch and felt the sting of electricity run up his arm. Briefly unable to control the twitching limb he could not avoid the next three shots to his torso or the uppercut that was thankfully devoid of chakra. The last thing Reiji saw before the darkness claimed him was the stony face of Uzumaki Naruto.
Sasuke felt cheated. It was almost too easy. With his sharingan active, the older boy went down shortly after Naruto got the other one. Now the Uchiha was trying to get his female teammate to come around. Fortunately, while she was pretty woozy, she seemed to be fine otherwise.
"Hey Naruto, we need to get out of here. Check their packs for the scroll while I take care of Sakura. We need to find a place to make camp."
Naruto nodded his agreement before rifling through their packs. Both of his teammates turned when he cursed. "Damn it, all of this and they have the heaven scroll just like us." Naruto pocketed the scroll anyway and tied the three unconscious boys to a tree.
When Sakura was steady on her feet, they continued on. Sasuke finally asked, "What happened dobe? I thought you were going to check things out."
Naruto frowned. "I did. I found them planning to ambush us. I was creeping around to set up some traps to slow them down when one of those jerks set off a trap someone else must have set up. A whole mess of leeches fell from a tree right over where I was hiding. I was able to get away from them but by then they realized I was there and started chasing me. The other two broke off, I guess to come after you and Sakura-chan, but that other asshole kept shooting fire jutsu at me. I was able to avoid them and stay just ahead of him but it's hard to dodge jutsu and watch where you're going at the same time."
The trio walked for a minute before Sasuke blurted, "Well what happened then?" Naruto mumbled his response.
"What did you say Naruto?" Sakura asked.
Naruto could not take it any more. "I said I ran into a giant spider web," he yelled. Sasuke and Sakura looked at each other before bursting into laughter. Naruto on the other hand was not amused. "It's not funny. Four giant spiders came while I was trying to get out and I ended up having to use explosive notes to get them to leave me alone long enough to escape."
Naruto pouted as his two team members snickered at his misfortune. Sasuke smirked, "I guess no matter what happens you will always be a dobe."
"Shut it teme," Naruto deadpanned.
A/N: Well that's it. I hope you enjoyed what I've done so far. Hopefully I did a decent job on the fight scenes. This is my first real attempt at writing one. With any luck I'll improve as I get more experience. That is one of the reasons I'm writing this after all. The action continues next chapter as the second exam continues. We will see if Team 7 is ready to face the challenges ahead. Anyhow, enjoy and I'll have more for you next time.