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Naruto Uchiha: The Prophet with the Cursed Eyes

Naruto had just taken his leave from the Kumo team and his second battle in the Forest of Death when the central tower came into his view. Naruto let a satisfied smile come to his face at the sight of his goal. Naruto was only a few steps from the tower when something from the depths of the forest caught his attention. It was a sudden burst of energy that was cold and dark in its nature so much so that it made Naruto falter in midstride so he could let his vision linger in the general area that the energy came from. Naruto briefly entertained the idea of investigating this negative energy's origins but ultimately decided against it.

"Not my problem but if it becomes my problem then I will deal with it."

Naruto assured himself before entering the tower and walking into the room that was coupled with his gate number. Naruto calmly walked into the room that was empty for the most part except for an inscription on the far wall. The inscription told of the ideas of Heaven and Earth as related to the body yet there were sections from each part missing. Naruto glanced momentarily at the Heaven and Earth scrolls resting in his grip and tossed them to the floor letting the scrolls unravel. Naruto saw the formula for a summoning on the scrolls before the room was filled with a cloud of smoke.

Naruto acting on instinct reached behind him and drew Twilight treating whatever that had been called as hostile. Naruto held his sword arm steady as he calmly waited for the smoke to clear away and the visibility to return. Eventually the smoke cleared at Naruto found himself looking at a Leaf Nin who was wearing sunglasses with red rims. The man was looking down at the tip of Naruto's katana which was right at his Adam's apple. Naruto slowly lowered his katana before placing it where it was, on his back. This earned Naruto a sigh of relief from the older Leaf shinobi.

"Aoba-san what are you doing here?" Naruto asked politely with his arms crossed over the front of his chest. The only sign of curiosity coming from the teen was the single arched eyebrow while his eyes bore into Aoba with a natural intensity.

"I… I am here to explain to you this here inscription. You see if your body is lacking physical strength, speed or endurance than you will not succeed as a Chunin. Earth refers to your body. However that doesn't mean that a strong body and jutsu are all you need. As a Chunin you will also need to make use of your mind, your mental capability that is Heaven." Aoba filled in the blanks that were on the wall which had Naruto nodding his head slowly since what the older shinobi was saying made perfect sense. An idiot with a powerful jutsu was just as useless as a genius with no strength.

"Though since I personally have seen your skills in both of those fields I don't feel the need to tell you what you already know. You are the third team to make it here and you will find a rest area behind the door to the left." Aoba informed his charge. Naruto bowed slightly to the man in thanks for his words as well as his explanation. Naruto watched as Aoba took his leave before taking his own leave from the room leaving the scrolls crossed on the floor. Naruto calmly strolled through the common resting area towards the stairs that took the participants to the bedrooms.

Naruto slowly walked past two of the shinobi hailing from Sunagakure ignoring the boy in the cat bodysuit who looked as pale as a bed sheet and the girl with a fan who was currently muttering into her hand probably insulting her brother. Naruto deduced that the problems were revolving around their Jinchuuriki of a brother. Naruto was glad that his biju was not mentally unstable or else he would be sorely tempted to test the controlling abilities of the Sharingan. 'Maybe the Spirit of the Desert has an inferiority complex due to him being the fewest of the tailed beast. That is actually quite hysterical.'

Naruto wondered why the Kyuubi did not respond to his cynical comment which the fox seemed to like. Naruto just assumed that the large kitsune was asleep which seemed to be his second favorite activity behind destroying Uchiha. 'Maybe one day we can have a spar Kyuubi. My eyes versus your legendary power… It will be the match of the century.' Naruto's blood started to pump just thinking of fighting something as powerful as the Kyuubi but the young Uchiha knew that would be much further down the road. Believing he could fight the strongest of the Tailed Beasts as he was would be just downright foolish.

Naruto was a few steps from the base of the stairs when two boys came down from the stairs talking to each other rather happily. The boy on the left had short, messy black hair that just covered the top of his Takigakure headband. His brown eyes were trained on the boy to his right and aside from the red scarf hanging from his neck there was nothing special about the teen. The other Takigakure shinobi had darker skin than his teammate and had a shaved haircut and green eyes. The only thing really different about this teen was the blue scarf he had wrapped around his neck.

"That demon bitch thinks she can call the shots on our team? What a joke she was lucky we let her used that curse of hers to gather the scroll we needed!" Red said cruelly while trying not to laugh at the thought of the demon being in charged. The boy with the blue scarf nodded his head but unlike the shinobi wearing red he was laughing openly. Naruto catching their words stopped at the bottom of the steps as they continued to descend from the second floor. The word demon always made Naruto go to a place few had seen from the raven haired teen.

"Yeah like that would ever happen! Did you see the look on her face when she thought we had accepted her? Oh I think I saw the tears following behind her as she ran to the training ground! What a riot!" Blue said with a smirk of his own as he looked down the hallway at the far end of the large room. The shinobi with the red scarf just chuckled at the blue scarf's words as if they were the first joke ever invented. Naruto took one moment to check the area and made sure they were alone as the two Taki Nin made it off of the staircase.

Naruto threw the two Taki shinobi against a wall so hard that it created a spider web like crack in the stone structure and drew the breath from their lungs. The two scarf wearing teens looked up in disbelief and bewilderment wondering what just hit them. In that moment they really wished they hadn't because they were gazing right into the red slitted eyes of Naruto. "Do you care to repeat just what you said?" Naruto's voice was dark to the point where it was almost feral in nature. To make matters worse for the Taki Nin Naruto's body began to release a murderous black aura that shrouded his body.

The two Waterfall Village shinobi began to shake like a leaf that was fluttering freely in a strong wind. Normally Naruto would find such cowardice entertaining after hearing their bold words but when the word demon was attached to another being Naruto was not one for games. The boy with the red scarf could not find enough resolve to answer Naruto who looked like the Shinigami in human form. Fortunately for him the boy with the blue scarf was too blinded by his bigotry to swallow his tongue. "W-Why do you care about that demon? She is the reason I lost my parents and causes the problems in our village!?"

The boy shouted angrily at Naruto not understanding the difference in the Human Sacrifice and the Tailed Beast. Naruto was slowly losing the very thin amount of patience he had for the two foreign shinobi he had at his mercy. "Answer… my… question filth!" Naruto's voice deepened even more making the boy in the red scarf truly believe it was his time to visit oblivion. The black aura around Naruto started to wave violently and sporadically slowly threatening to consume the two bigots. The shinobi with the red scarf in an effort to try and save his skin quickly answered Naruto before his teammate could infuriate the Hidden Leaf Demon further.

"S-She ran off to the training ground to be alone! T-That's all we know I promise! Just don't kill us please!" The teen begged as Naruto's slitted eyes pierced through his very soul in an attempt to discern any lie or deceit. Naruto deeming the boy was telling the truth called back his murderous intent but it caused an aftershock that rendered both Takigakure shinobi unconscious against the wall. Naruto's eyes turned back to the calm blue they normally took as he made his way towards the training ground provided for the teams who had completed their task. It only took the Hokage's son a few moments to step into the open training ground.

Naruto heard sobbing echoing in the room all of which were coming from a green haired kunoichi who had her legs in front her and her arms wrapped around them in a protective means. Her shinobi gear consisted of a white top that ended midriff with a fishnet armor underneath of it. Her forearms were covered by white sections of the same clothing and a red cylinder shaped object on her back. Naruto immediately picked out the Taki forehead protector on her right arm. Naruto took a few calming breathes before he tried to talk to the distraught container because the last thing he wanted was to come off threatening.

Naruto slowly walked over to where the green haired girl was crying and slowly lowered himself so he was sitting next to her. The girl had yet to realize Naruto was sitting there due to her emotional state something which Naruto took notice of. To gain her attention Naruto coughed once which got her to pause her crying but not to look up from her knees. "Go away! I'm not even doing anything to bother you! All I'm doing is being alone like the world seems to like it!" The girl screamed at Naruto though her voice was hoarse from all of the sobbing she was doing at the moment.

"Why would I want to leave you all alone? It looks like you could use some company to me." Naruto said calmly in the softest voice he could manage as he looked ahead. The girl's body tensed at hearing an unfamiliar voice so close to her. Looking up curious as to who was so close to her she saw Naruto's face and his blue eyes that were looking straight ahead. Naruto turned his head and his blue eyes locked with her orange eyes where he flashed a small smile to the girl whose eyes were red from crying."I'm sure you know who I am by now so may I ask for your name then Miss?"

The green hair girl simply stared at the teen who she knew was the son of the Fourth Hokage which would basically make him like a prince in Konoha. 'Why is he even speaking to someone like me?' The girl asked herself as she remembered the brief moment her eyes met Naruto's where she saw so much. To most people's Naruto's eyes were cold and uncaring but to her someone who had been scorned her entire life they were so warm and accepting. There was no malice in those blue eyes; it was those eyes that made her feel something she had long forsaken… hope. "M-My name is Fu but you shouldn't be talking to someone like me. I mean you are the son of the Fourth Hokage and all…"

Fu's voice was so low that if Naruto was not as close as he was he would not have been able to her Fu introduce herself to him. His hand though did twitch slightly when Fu called him Minato's son but he would let it slide seeing how depressed the kunoichi was. "Why wouldn't I want to talk to someone I can empathize with so deeply?" Naruto asked rhetorically as he looked out over the training ground with a faraway look in his azure eyes. Naruto's faraway gaze was due to the rush of memories of how terrible his childhood was. How he had people who were meant to protect him yet they abandoned him. Life as a Jinchuuriki was hell that much was true.

The look of unmistakable sorrow in Fu's orange eyes quickly morphed into a look of uncontainable fury. 'How could this well off guy even think he could possibly relate to my pain?!' Fu's fists clenched as her teeth ground against each other as she tried to reign in her rage caused by Naruto's words. "How could you even think you know anything about the life that was forced on to me? You know nothing!" Fu challenged Naruto's words not believing someone as important as he could possibly be hated. The truth is that ever since Mihawk had taken Naruto away the hate-filled populace of Konoha had forgotten about its pariah.

Naruto scoffed not at Fu but at the idea of being loved by the parasites that had infested the Hidden Leaf. That was something Naruto had blamed on Minato but also on the Nidaime Hokage for creating the Civilian Council. Naruto always wondered what a militant leader like Tobirama Senju was thinking when he passed that doctrine. 'Foolish Senju…' Naruto's inner Uchiha perked up at the chance to insult their blood rivals. Naruto looked back at Fu allowing her to see the bitter look in his eyes. At first Fu thought it was directed at her but upon closer examination she could tell it was something else that caused the raven haired boy next to her so much pain.

"This village will never accept me. No nothing here will change until the older generation is wiped away and the new generation takes its place, clean of useless hate. I will tell you the story of my life Fu and then you can make the decision if our lives are comparable. You see on October Tenth the Kyuubi had attacked Konoha…" Naruto ignored the Kyuubi's indignant grunt from the back of his mind. "…The Fourth Hokage then battled with the Kyuubi had with the assistance of his wife's special binding chakra chains managed to temporarily subdue the Kyuubi. The Fourth then did something to ensure the balance of power in our shinobi world he created two Jinchuurikis. The two Jinchuuriki were his daughters each had a part of the Kyuubi's chakra sealed into them, one with Yin and the other Yang. This left the Nine Tails with just a conscious which he needed to seal as well to prevent the Kyuubi from reforming in the future. He sealed that consciousness into me."

"It does not end there however. No then next he revealed to the villagers just what he had done to the Kyuubi. After his small speech the village hailed the two girls as heroines and princesses. I was scorned however as people believed me to be the Kyuubi wearing human skin coming back to kill more of their loved ones. Not even the great Yondaime's name could save me from the hate and the beatings." Naruto then went into detail on a number of beatings he had received from the civilian and shinobi of the village. Some of the things that Naruto told her made her stomach twist and turn and before she knew it her cheeks were moist and eyes were misty.

"I was given the hatred of a Jinchuuriki but none of the power that accompanies that deep, endless sorrow. To make things worse I had a family who was plenty capable of keeping me safe from the mountain of hatred that was crushing me. Eventually though people saw my struggle and slowly removed that burden from my shoulders and accelerated my growth to make me what I am today." Naruto ended his tale with a small smile as he pictured the faces of his precious people lingered in front of him. Fu was looking at Naruto in admiration wondering how he could be so strong under such dire circumstances.

"He is not lying to you Fu-girl. I can definitely sense the Kyuubi coming from the boy. He is like you." Chomei the Seven Tailed Beetle spoke up for the first time since Naruto had shown in the training ground. Fu and Chomei had one of the more friendly relationships out of the Jinchuuriki and Tailed Beasts. Chomei felt an incredible guilt at what his presence had done to Fu who was such a sweet girl. 'Chomei why are humans such a bunch of irrational fools?' Fu asked sadly as she continued to stare at Naruto who was sitting there with his eyes closed. "Now that my child is something even I do not know the answer to."

Naruto calming his tumultuous emotions opened his eyes and turned to look at the green haired kunoichi sitting next to him. "Now then Fu-chan, will you tell me your story?" Naruto asked with a small smile. Fu's tanned cheeks sported a small blush at having been addressed in such a way, a way that was foreign to her. Never had a boy her age called her that since their favorites were demon or demon whore. The only person to call her that was Shibuki, the village leader who was like an elder brother to her. Managing to kill the blush Fu gave a small nod in response to Naruto's inquiry.

"Unlike Konohagakure, Takigakure is always in a battle to continue to fund things such as development and research units due to our minor village status. For that reason they trained me to become their weapon, to protect the citizens of the village. The very same citizens who would rather watch me burn then try to help me. My elder brother figure, Shibuki can only do so much since he does not have that much political sway since he only recently took over as head of the village." Fu gave Naruto a small run down of the domestic state of Taki to which Naruto nodded slightly since the information seemed accurate enough.

"Since we don't have a large shinobi roster like the other Hidden Villages the civilian side of the council agreed to have me try and master the Seven Tails' chakra. To keep me in check they usually keep a seal collar around my neck. I am forced to live in the Great Tree located at the center of the village away from the villagers. I live on a stipend I get from Shibuki that I can only spend at a few stores that don't have the sign of the beetle hanging from their doors." Fu's voice took a small hint of anger at the mention of the villagers of Taki, not that Naruto would admonish her for that.

"They then assigned me to a team for these Chunin Exams since it would be a good way to show off some of Taki's strength and hopefully draw in more business. I guess I foolishly thought that my team would accept me but I see how wrong I was." Fu could feel the tears welling up in her eyes again and moved to hug her legs again when she felt something warm around her. Fu then realized that it was Naruto who was hugging her tightly, the action alone making her eyes widen in shock. Never before had anyone been so caring towards her and here was the boy she literally met maybe an hour ago hugging her.

"It will be alright you just need to keep on being strong Fu-chan." Naruto whispered into her ear consolingly breaking Fu's emotional dam. Fu let her head drop on to Naruto's shoulder where she began to cry. Naruto just stroked her back as he felt the fabric on his shoulder dampen from the mint haired Jinchuuriki's tears. Naruto held Fu for around ten minutes until Fu managed to gain back control over her tear ducts. Naruto pulled back from the hug making Fu miss the contact of his body. "Say Fu-chan would you like to leave Taki and stay here in Konoha with me?" Naruto asked seemingly out of left field which made Fu recoil in surprise.

"W-What!? I don't think the council would let their most powerful asset go just like that Naruto-kun." Fu said honestly but secretly liked the idea of joining Naruto in living in Konoha and away from the village that se currently resided in. Chomei was also listening on intently since this seemed like the perfect opportunity to get his container away from that cesspit of a village. Naruto's smile slowly changed into a devious grin that spread across his face. To Fu it reminded her of a fox, to Chomei it reminded him of when the Kyuubi would actually indulge his prankster side. To both container and Tailed Beast they could only wonder what Naruto was planning in that head of his.

"Now don't you worry you'll find out soon enough Fu-chan… all in time."

Naruto stood at the far end of the line of Chunin hopefuls that were all staring at one man and that man was the Fourth Hokage of the Village Hidden in the Leaves. All of them except for Naruto who was more entertained with the singe bang hanging over his eye. Rather than look at the man who was meant to be his father Naruto pushed the bang from his face showing his Hidden Leaf headband. "I wish to congratulate all of you for making it through our Forest of Death while also being able to accomplish your objective. It is now that we will determine the draw for the final stage of the Chunin exams." A few of the more intelligent Genin picked up the fact that the Yellow Flash had used the word draw to describe the final stage and pieced together what he meant.

"Normally we would have a round of preliminaries to lessen the number of combatants in the tournament but considering the magnitude of these exams all of the Kage have agreed to hold the tournament over a three day time span where each Kage from the major villages as well as the daimyos would attend to witness this generation's best."The Fourth Hokage ended getting wide eyes from the Genin who just realized how many powerful shinobi would be gathering in Konoha, aside from Naruto that is who just appeared bored. Anko walked up beside Minato holding a box with a hole in the lid big enough for a hand to fit through.

"When you are called you will come forth and draw a number that will slate you in a position for the tourney." The Hokage turned to Anko who nodded her head showing she was ready to begin. Minato called out each Genin who drew a number that Anko would relay to a man behind a monitor who was typing away furiously! Naruto slowly walked up when called and Minato gave him a smile just like he had Narumi and Naomi but where they returned the gesture Naruto just walked past him and picked his number. Another handful of Genin later and the bracket was filled out; Minato nodded his head telling the typist to reveal the tourney.

Bracket One:

Neji Hyuga vs. Akatsuchi

Hin-Tao vs. Yugito Nii

Rock Lee vs. Kurotsuchi

Gaara Sabaku vs. Sakura Haruno

Bracket Two:

Karui vs. Kankuro Sabaku

TenTen vs. Naomi Namikaze-Uzumaki

Fu vs. Dosu Kinuta

Kin Tsuchi vs. Yuna Neira

Day One Intermission

Bracket Three:

Zaku Abumi vs. Narumi Namikaze-Uzumaki

Fenri vs. Choji Akimichi

Ino Yamanaka vs. Haku Yuki

Kakugyo vs. Samui

Bracket Four:

Chojuro vs. Omoi

Temari Sabaku vs. Shikamaru Nara

Shiku vs. Tera

Naruto Namikaze-Uzumaki vs. Sasuke Uchiha

The Genin all searched the giant monitor board for their name and who their opponent would be and once they did the Genin all tried to identify who that opponent was. Sasuke found Naruto's apathetical gaze and smirked confidently at the Hokage's scorned son who just looked on impassively. 'Hey Kyuubi, do you want to see me mess with an Uchiha?' Naruto asked full well knowing the answer he would get from the mass of chakra. "Ningen, there is nothing more that I like than seeing the suffering of an Uchiha." The Kyuubi was just about to take a nap but he was now wide awake not wanting to miss a chance to see an Uchiha's pain.

Naruto nodded and closed his eyes and slowly opened them in a perfect replica of a look Itachi would always give him. Sasuke recognized the look from the face of his traitorous brother and growled as the curse on his neck spread slowly. Before Sasuke could attempt to harm his opponent Kakashi appeared behind his pupil and placed a hand on his shoulder before Body Flickering away to seal off the curse mark. Naruto and the Kyuubi wore identical, amused grins that showcased their fangs quite menacingly. Chojuro who at that moment spared a glance at Naruto shivered as he mentally imaged one of his senseis grinning at him like that.

Minato still had more to say coughed loudly to grab back control of the room as well as to quell the quiet ruckus that had sprang to life. "This tournament will begin here in Konoha in exactly one month's time. This will give you time to hone some of your skills as well as give the Kages and Daimyos proper time to travel. You may stay here to train or return to your home village but know this if you are late you are automatically disqualified no matter how much potential you may have timing is essential in the shinobi world. Good luck to you all." With that Minato had vanished in a yellow flash leaving the Genin who had not seen the technique in awe.

'He did that on purpose.' Naruto groaned silently and walked away clearly not impressed like the other Genin that were not blood relatives of him. Naruto was aware of the few pairs of eyes that were on him as he left but he paid them no mind. He was tired of being around so many people. He needed his solitude. Narumi and Naomi planned to follow them but were quickly confronted by Shikamaru, Ino and Choji who asked them if they wanted to go and try to find Team Eight. The sisters looked over to where Naruto was walking and found nothing sighing they nodded their heads.

Naruto walked down the streets with his hands buried inside the pockets of his zip-up vest quickly closing in on his apartment. That was when a wonderful aroma invaded his nostrils that forced the young Uchiha to halt midstride. Turning to his left Naruto looked upon one of his most favorite places in Konoha, Ichiraku Ramen. Naruto paused his journey and started to slowly approach the ramen restaurant. 'I guess I can treat myself before diving into the deep end with my training.' Naruto walked past the hanging cloth that gave the stand some privacy and silently sat there as Teuchi started to make some ramen. Naruto cleared his throat gaining the ramen maker's attention.

Teuchi paused the making of his next batch of ramen and turned around his polite smile already in place for the customer to feel more welcomed. "Hello how may… oh Naruto my boy how are you doing?" The old man asked his favorite customer who he hadn't seen in a while to which Naruto gave him an apologetic smile.

"Well I have been very busy as of late…" Naruto started off only to have a bowl of Miso Ramen slid across the counter. Naruto blinked and looked up questioningly where he met Teuchi already motioning for him to start eating. Naruto nodded with a grateful smile on his usually stoic face. Breaking open the chopsticks Naruto uttered a quick thank you before he dug into his hot food. Naruto sighed in pleasure as he swallowed his first bite. "So good…"

"Dad did I hear you say Naruto?" A more feminine voice asked from in the kitchen section of the ramen stand. Soon the owner of the voice Ayame, the Ramen Maker's daughter emerged out of the kitchen. Her face lit up upon seeing Naruto sitting there in the stool. Wasting no time she took off at a speed that would leave a Chunin green with envy and locked Naruto in a warm embrace. Thankfully Naruto emptied his first bowl so Ayame's rather sudden action only rattled the empty bowl. Naruto let out a small grunt but managed to keep himself perched atop the small stool despite Ayame's weight crashing against him.

Ayame eventually released the young Uzumaki from her exuberant hug and stared at him expectantly. "Where have you been mister?" Naruto's whole body screamed danger as he gulped down the lump in his throat. Ayame had a hand on her hip and a ladle in her other hand that accompanied with the stern look on her face reminded him of the older sister he saw her as. Naruto thought about escaping but knew that would only make the civilian girl even angrier than she was now. Naruto decided to bite the bullet and tell them the truth of what he had been doing.

Naruto then went on to explain how he had been placed on his own team and had to take an influx of missions to fulfill the requirements needed to participate in the Chunin Exams. Naruto then told them of what he had experienced during his last trip into the Forest of Death. Teuchi nodded his head since he had heard many things about a shinobi's way of life from idle chatter at his establishment. Ayame still looked doubtful but in the end relented only giving Naruto a warning about what she would do if he disappeared ever again. By the end of the talk Naruto had a newfound fear of cast iron pots.

Two Days After Stage Two, Konoha

'Look at all these insignificant worms smiling at me. Just their looks make me want to empty my stomach.' Naruto said to himself as he ignored the smiling elders who would walk by him and the few times they waved Naruto directly frowned at them to which they shrugged it off as a young man having a bad day. "You should let me destroy them then Ningen. I won't devour them because they will leave a bad taste but destroy… that I can do." The Kyuubi voiced his opinion no doubt with a very menacing smirk of his face. Naruto thought about it for a few moments before sighing and shaking his head negatively. 'I can't do that otherwise I'd have the Hokage and the Council on my head. Don't worry once your chakra returns you shall be allowed to stretch your legs Kyuubi.' Naruto assured his Tailed Beast as he continued to walk calmly down the street.

Naruto's forward progress was stopped when a shadow over took his body making Naruto look up to see what it was that was stopping him. The man in front of him was dark skinned and had a muscular build that could make him seem very imposing. The man's right shoulder contained the kanji for iron and a bull's horn was tattooed on his left cheek. The man wore oval shaped sunglasses and the typical Kumo flak jacket but this one only went over one shoulder. The man had a red, rope belt around his waist and a white scarf around his neck. The man carried seven swords with him and Naruto could tell by his presence that the man was no joke. "Hachibi…"

And now it all made sense because in front of him stood the Jinchuuriki of the Eight Tailed Octopus-Ox or an Ushi-Oni. This was the man who had managed to gain prefect control of his tailed beast to the point where he could transform willingly into the Hachibi while still remaining in control. These feats were what earned him the title of the Perfect Jinchuuriki and one of the world's most dangerous shinobi. Naruto was curious as to why this man stopped him for no reason it would seem. "How may I help you Kumo Shinobi?" Naruto asked blankly as he took a step back to put some space between him and his fellow container for safety's purposes.

"No, no that won't do Mr. Nine, you have to call me Hachibi-sama and we will be all fine!" Killer Bee sang in a horrendous rap that made a few bystanders who heard it face plant due to the sheer terribleness. Naruto's eyes narrowed at the larger man for his annoying speaking pattern and silently hoped that it was a onetime thing. "I can't believe this! You are an idiot Bee! Not only did you give out the fact that we are a Jinchuuriki but you also made yourself look like an idiot, which makes me look like an idiot!" The Eight Tailed Ushi-Oni shouted in anger and disbelief at his aspiring rapper of a container. 'Hachibi why you got to hate, my rapping skill is of the highest rate!'

"That's not going to happen." Naruto stated plainly as he looked into Bee's sunglasses with an impassive gaze. 'I take back my thoughts from earlier. Sure he may be powerful but he is also a joke.' Naruto mused to himself while silently thanking Kami for not putting him around the eccentric foreigner in some off chance he had found Naruto while off on a mission or something like that. "Ningen I have never been more happy than I am now that I was sealed into you instead of that idiot." The Kyuubi could only imagine what his brother had to go through having to listen to that incessant form of speech each and every moment.

"Fool ya better respect my rapping skills so mean before I knock your head off clean. Then you won't be so preen." Killer Bee took a more aggressive tone of voice as it always did when someone outside of his brother or the Hachibi insulted his passion. Naruto quickly discerned the threat in the man's idiot speak and tensed himself in case the larger tanned man tried to attack him. "Bee what are you doing threatening this boy? He is the Hokage's son and any fight will draw all of Konoha's forces down on you. My help or not you can't beat them on your own!"

Killer Bee's eyes widened behind his glasses when he realized what that meant and if he did not die then his brother would surely give him his iron claw. Bee managed to keep a grimace from flooding his face at the phantom pain of his brother's claw of pain. Bee looked back at Naruto who was prepared to fight if need be then Bee started to laugh which confused Naruto leading him to question the Kumo Nin's sanity. "Sorry about that yo, I am just going to go." Bee said quickly before hurrying past Naruto muttering a few things Naruto didn't quite catch.

Naruto slowly turned around to make sure that the Kumogakure Jinchuuriki was actually going to leave and not attack him from behind. Naruto watched as he spoke aloud while waving his hands around in weird gestures. The people on the street cleared to one of the sides hoping to avoid catching whatever was wrong with the rapping man. Naruto resisted the urge to palm his face when he saw the man pull out a book labeled rhymes and began to write in the book. Naruto released a breath in an attempt to forget the strange encounter with Kumo's Killer Bee.

"Ningen, if you ever begin speaking like that I will personally rip this seal away and slowly skewer you with each and every one of my claws." The Kyuubi warned Naruto as he glared at the space Killer Bee once occupied trying to forget what he just heard. Naruto nodded his head since that would be something Naruto would fully support. 'You have nothing to fear Kyuubi for if I ever begin to rhyme my words purposefully then I will gladly present my Sharingan to you to crush.' Naruto promised to never be such an idiot and if he was then he would gladly visit the Shinigami.

'Now that, that is over I need to begin my training for the Chunin Exam finals. It is best to use the Shunshin there to avoid any more useless confrontations.' Naruto held a single hand sign and soon his body exploded in black crow feathers shocking the civilians who were passing by. Naruto reformed from a murder of crows inside of the study inside of the apartment complex he had come to own in the Red Light District. "I don't see why you feel the need to train more just for the runts in these exams of yours." The Kyuubi had not had to train in something in centuries so the idea of training was out of his realm of understanding. Naruto sighed as he sat behind his desk pulling out a book and putting it on the desk. 'I am not training for the other participants per say. I am continuing to train so I will not be overtaken by any unforeseen threat that may come this way.'

Getting no response from the mass of chakra sealed inside of him Naruto looked at the book that he placed on the desk. The books bindings were a deep crimson color with a purple Uzumaki swirl emblazoned in the front cover. Naruto had meant to take a look at the book ever since he had claimed it but with all of the work he had on his plate never got the chance. The first hundred pages or so were a general history as well as some firs hand accounts of a few events in history. There was something that made Naruto glance down at himself but he mentally pushed that back in favor for reading more of his book.

Naruto skimmed through another fifty or so pages until something caught his interest so much so that he had momentarily let go of the book to try and comprehend what he had just read. Taking a deep breath Naruto read over the information once again and found that he was not mistaken in what he had read. "Something like that is even possible?" Naruto questioned more to the air than anything else. The Kyuubi who was reading through Naruto's eyes was also quite surprised by what he had read. "It seems unlikely but with things like that you never know until you try." The Kyuubi admitted with some amount of respect for what was accomplished in some of the things done in the book. Naruto nodded his head and began to read with a new sense of purpose in his azure eyes.

Near the borders of the Land of Fire and Earth

"What are we going to do about this Sensei?" A man with charcoal black eyes asked while staring down at the piece of paper that was resting on the counter between the two cloaked figures. If the information on the paper was accurate then what may happen could be very disconcerting to say the least.

"I know you wanted to visit the Chunin Exams to check on our student but these reports if true are quite concerning." A sharp voice said before taking a sip from his cup of tea getting a nod from the person next to him. The man's yellow eyes stared ahead at the road which was now muddy with the rain.

"I agree Sensei. As much as I would like to see his progress since he has left our tutelage we need to check on these rumors." A softer yet equally serious voice replied as the owner looked up into the dark sky from under the small travel station they were resting at.

These two men who were sipping tea were two of Naruto's three senseis, Dracule Mihawk and Itachi Uchiha. Both men were making their way back to Konoha with all intent on checking up on Naruto but a certain piece of information altered those plans. The report from one of Mihawk's informants read of two men who were wearing black cloaks adorned by red clouds. While not as large as Jiraiya's spy network Mihawk's was just as effective when he needed to know something. What bothered the Hawk Eyed Swordsman was who was underneath those cloaks. From the report they were given Itachi and Mihawk had only just missed the two shinobi who were in the center of the report.

"It seems that we will need to visit Tsuchi no Kuni once more Itachi. Are you ready to go?" Mihawk asked seemingly not even bothered by the seasonal downpour that was currently soaking the area. Itachi nodded his head slightly and with that the two traveling shinobi paid for their drinks and walked out into the rain wearing white cloaks with a deep green stripe bisecting the cloak.

One Week after stage two, Konoha

Naruto was sitting in the center of Training Ground Seven having just finished going through the katas for his sword style. It was something Mifune had instilled into the young swordsman's head. Mifune would always say that to keep one's blade as sharp as their mind practice was always needed or else the skills attained would deteriorate. Naruto knew that katas could only take him so far so he asked Neko if she could spar with him once a week. Yugao agreed since with the finals right around the corner all ANBU who were not on long term missions were given leave so they could keep the village's safety uncompromised.

They had already spared once and Naruto could see how happy Yugao was to actually have a duel with someone. Naruto and Yugao both knew that the number of skilled swordsman in Konoha could be counted on one hand. Naruto knew of only one proficient with a blade besides Yugao and his name was Hayate Gekko. Naruto recalled that when he mentioned that name Yugao would tense momentarily but Naruto did not pry. Naruto had been forced to train in his basement while working on his Ninjutsu due to the prying eyes of the village. Naruto was thankful Mihawk had taught him how to use reinforcement seals otherwise the whole complex would have collapsed down on him during his first training session.

Naruto opened his eyes feeling five new presences on the training ground that was just empty aside from him. Naruto's blank eyes found themselves staring at Minato, Kushina, Narumi, Naomi and Jiraiya. Naruto slowly reached for Twilight which was lying on the grass next to him before standing up. "What is it?" Naruto asked already knowing the answer but decided it was best to be civil with a man who could control his entire shinobi career. Kushina sighed sadly at her son's distant behavior which deep down she knew herself to be the cause of. Naruto looked at the group waiting for any of them to answer his question.

Kushina was the first to act and pointed at the large man with white hair who was holding an equally large scroll in one arm. "The pervert and the rest of us would like for you to sign the Toad contract." Kushina said hopeful this could be a chance for her to finally start to make amends with her wayward son. That was the sentiment shared by each person in their little group yet sadly Naruto still wouldn't even smile at them. He looked at them like he was looking at an enemy and to him they may as well be.

Jiraiya scoffed at the red head's words and some weird music began to play confusing everyone minus Minato and Naruto. "I am no mere pervert Kushina! I am the world's greatest pervert! I am a super pervert!" The music came to a climax with a loud trumpet sound and then the field was deathly quiet with each person looking at the Toad Sage. Minato had just face palmed at his Sensei's less than desirable behavior. Kushina and her daughters were glaring bloody murder at the self proclaimed world's greatest pervert. Naruto just stared at the Toad like he would any other time they had encountered each other.

Naomi spoke before Naruto could even manage to respond with a reply of his own. "Yeah Nii-san you should sign the Ero idiot's contract that way we can all train together!" The excitable red head said with a shimmer of hope in her eyes at the thought of having her big brother back. Narumi smiled at her sister already knowing her wish was the same as Naomi's wish though Narumi just couldn't see Naruto as a brother any more it didn't feel right. Naruto was something else to her he was like an engine that wouldn't stop and that belief was only furthered when she read that letter all those years ago.

Naruto's impassive blue eyes softened for a moment as he looked at his sister who looked back imploringly. Back when he was a child Naruto would easily blame his sister for his suffering but as he grew he realized that her actions were not meant to hurt him. She was just acting like any child who would want attention from their parents. "I can't sign the Toad Contract for I have already signed a contract with the Crows and their leader." Naruto replied easily since it was the truth and he had no desire to break the gift given to him by Itachi.

Minato smiled at his son since he already knew that and had come up with a plan just in case Naruto had said that. "That's fine Naruto. We already spoke with Gamabunta and he said he had no problem if you signed the contract to go along with yours. All you have to do is it clear it with the head of the Crows." The rest of the group nodded since it was not easy to get the prideful toad to agree to share a summoner with a species he saw as inferior not that they would tell Naruto he said that.

"I still must decline for I have already discussed this with the leader of the Crows and he has agreed but only with the summon animal I am naturally aligned with, which I have yet to discover what it is." Naruto explained calmly as he looked up into the sky and saw a shadow flicker over the sun briefly but showed no visible reaction to the anomaly. Kushina nodded in understanding since she realized pushing Naruto only made him push back much harder. The four holders of the Toad Contract however were showing varying levels of disappointment with Naruto's decision to decline the contract.

Jiraiya and all his pride could not believe that Naruto could turn down a chance to align himself with the Toads but also by proxy turn down being trained by the fabled Toad Sage. "Kid there are a million people who would kill to be offered what I just offered you. This is your chance to train under my wing and become something feared." Jiraiya explained seriously as he stared into Naruto's glacial eyes with a questioning glint in his eyes. Naruto just stared right back with the only notable facial reaction was the slight downward twitch of his lips.

"Perhaps you are right however I am not one of those so called millions. I can achieve what I need to without your help… that goes for you as well Kushina, Minato. You have nothing I wish to learn. Not the Rasengan or even the Hiraishin. Now if you will excuse me I have something that needs my attention." Naruto then disappeared beneath a shroud of falling crow feathers leaving the five shinobi there speechless. With good reason too since it was not every day that someone refused to learn some of the most feared jutsu in the world. But Naruto was far from normal.

Kurohane Forest

Naruto opened his now Sharingan red eyes as he looked around the area he found himself transported to. Naruto knew this place to be Kurohane Forest which was the home of the Crow summons. This place was only known to the Crows as well as Naruto. Not even Itachi knew of this place because he had declined to train further with his summons content with using them solely for his illusions. On Naruto's first visit he questioned the Crow Patriarch why he was unable to deactivate his dojutsu. The head Crow informed Naruto that the spiritual energy in the forest was so great that Naruto would find it impossible to deactivate his Sharingan.

Naruto gazed out at the boundary that separated the forest of the Crows and another forest and the difference couldn't be any more prominent. The forest Naruto was looking at was lush and vibrant and overall bustling with life. Kurohane on the other hand looked like a desolate land rather than a forest but that was by design. The trees were nothing more than decaying bark structures devoid of life while the dirt was a dark grey with no nutrients to support the trees. This marked the land and told other species to stay away. Naruto knew that the areas adjacent to Kurohane Forest were what feed the Crows.

Naruto walked calmly deeper into the dead forest as the moon that always shone down on the forest illuminated his path. That was another curious thing about the forest was that there was no day time, just night. The moon was infused with more spiritual energy than was the sun so it always illuminated the forest. Thanks to the great amounts of spiritual energy saturating the air the forest was also kept warm by the essence of the energy. Basically over time the forest adapted itself to have no need for the sun something Naruto found fascinating. Naruto finally found what he was looking for, living trees in the dead woods.

These trees were where the crows lived in the forest because unlike the other trees they were alive and certainly thriving. The crows while not a very large clan in comparison to the other summons but they were extremely close-knit to each other and their summoner. That was what Naruto valued the most was their loyalty something he had been deprived of during his childhood. There were a total of twenty living trees clustered in one area of Kurohane Forest each of which were unique thanks to the pigmentation of their leaves. These trees were not normal however; each tree was the size of Konoha's Hokage Monument in both height and width.

Naruto continued on towards the great tree that was in the center of the twenty tree cluster that was specialized thanks to its grey leaves. Naruto waved to a few of the smaller crows who had yet to learn how to speak while giving a few of the elder crows a respectful nod. Naruto walked into the tree that was hallowed out with stairs created for this very purpose. Naruto climbed up to the top where a rather large crow was perched high above the forest floor. The crow was wearing samurai armor form the Edo period that covered his wings and body. The armor was a deep blue almost purple. This was the head of all Crows, Shokei.

"You have called for me Shokei-san?" Naruto asked of his boss summon calmly refusing to bow like he did every time he had visited the head of the murder. At first this lead to a very tense situation but Naruto cleared that up by saying being submissive did not equal respect it showed fear. After than Naruto had earned the large crow's respect and was never asked to bow before him again. The crow opened his void black eyes and stared down his summoner who to his credit showed no sign of discomfort from being examined so crucially. The crow flapped his wings once and let out an ear rattling caw.

"Yes I have Naruto. I believe this is the right time for you to bond yourself with one of the young crows so that they may become your familiar in the future." The old crow's voice was a tad on the shrill side yet still held a tremendous amount of power behind it. Naruto let his eyes widen momentarily in surprise but nodded his head. The first time Naruto was told of this process Naruto questioned when he could perform it but was told that all would work itself out in time. "For every year a human grows we crows shinobi crows grow two so your new partner will soon be able to assist you. Now there are a number of suitable candidates you may choose fr-"

Shokei was cut off when the leaves above their heads started to rustle violently and a few weak caws were heard. Not a moment later a small crow came crashing in through the grey leaves heading straight for a painful collision. Naruto's Sharingan quickly deciphered the path the crow was going to take and quickly leapt up and caught the crow against his torso. Shokei looked irritated at being interrupted by one of the young ones but that look was erased by the look on Naruto's face. "What is it Naruto!?" The old crow's natural protective instinct soon took over the irritation.

"There is quite a deep gash on this young one's underbelly." Naruto said and without looking up at Shokei, Naruto activated the Mystic Palm Technique and began to close up the wound. Now while not being a veterinarian Naruto was able to close up wounds like this one without much of a problem it just took longer than a trained professional. The crow opened its eyes when the pain subsided and looked up to see Naruto smiling at her. "There you are little one, all better now." Naruto said smiling as he gave the crow her chance to fly off but to Naruto's surprise she just hopped onto his head and sat there in his black locks.

Naruto looked up with a smile and gently ran one of his fingers along the top of the crow's head gently earning a happy caw from her. "I think I have found the one I would like to create a bond with." Naruto informed Shokei with a smile as the crow jumped down and perched herself on Naruto's left shoulder. Shokei nodded with a small smile as he looked at the two interact with each other. Shokei recognized the red stripe on the young crow's bottom beak as the mark of one of the great warrior clans. Her father was the last of the subsection of the clan that retired from the active army and settled down with a non-combative crow. This was their daughter who Shokei knew would reach great places with the right partner and hopefully Naruto was that partner.

"Okay Naruto that is fine. To complete the Soul Link the young one on your arm must ingest a drop of your blood. The spiritual essence in your blood will then link your two souls. The bond will only break in the event that one of you should perish." Naruto nodded his head and bit down on his thumb hard enough to break his skin. Naruto positioned his thumb over the crow's mouth allowing her to drink his blood. The Kyuubi quickly healed the wound and Naruto felt the tip of one of Shokei's wing on his head and the tip of the other and the young crow. "Secret Crow Art: Soul Link."

Naruto felt that something inside of him was reaching out for something to connect to and when he thought it wouldn't work he felt a surge go through his body. "So this is what it feels like to be linked." Naruto heard a feminine voice from his side and turned to look at the crow with a raised eyebrow. The crow looked right back at Naruto with her own black eyes before Naruto finally spoke.

"You can talk?" Naruto asked curiously since only moments ago all he could hear from her caws like any other crow. His question seemed to amuse his new familiar if her giggling was any indication.

"Of course I can. I have always been able to but only other crows and those we have been linked with can understand us. My name is Suisei by the way Naruto!" Naruto was about to reply when he saw something that made him pause in his tracks. Suisei's previously empty black eyes changed to a burning red and slowly three tomoe filled each eye. Naruto blinked a few times as did Suisei who saw her eyes reflected in Naruto's headband. Needless to say neither Naruto nor Suisei knew what was going on or why she now had the Sharingan.

"Ah so it seems like the blood from your body has changed Suisei as well, how interesting. Since Itachi had never linked with a crow this is the first time a link had been formed at all especially with a shinobi with a kekkei genkai." Naruto paused and analyzed the situation as well and that was the best and only explanation that even made sense. "Now then why don't you two go back to Konoha and get acquainted with each other? Off you go shoo…"

Then came the simultaneous reply of Naruto and Suisei.

"Stupid bag of feathers…"

As they were brought back to Konoha the old crow broke into a fit of laughter. "They are perfect for each other!"

Translations:

Kurohane- Blackwing

Shokei- Executioner

Suisei- Comet

Review Response: First I know things seem generic almost like the cannon to some of you but I need time to get Naruto's power up high enough to throw in some things I'd like to put in. Let's face it for exciting things to happen you need the real threat of danger which only higher level Nin can provide something Naruto isn't ready with.

Now I don't want my readers to rush into a decision about the Rinnegan until later on in the story when I make it an option. But trust me in saying that it won't come at the same time as the Mangekyō will come if it is added it won't be until the foreseeable future. Open minds readers, open minds.

I see that a few of you have picked up on Naruto's latent ignorance but don't worry soon Naruto will realize how far he was yet to go. But also remember when he verbalizes that arrogance in battle it also serves to make his opponents angry and thus sloppy. Pride is another one of Naruto's flaws but then again it serves to be his greatest strength as well. You just need to look to see it.

As for the pairing and potential for a harem I will say this… Every female I have Naruto interact with has a differing amount of affection for Naruto and for different reasons. Some of these feelings will become more while others won't you just need to read to find out. Evil aren't I?

How were my rhymes by the way?

AN: Here is the latest chapter for my story! Sorry this one was a little late but I had my semester finals for college! However I am out of the summer now! Great right? Any who thank you for your kind words. Those of you who have found some of the not so subtle things I put in there good work. Leave a review please and have a nice day! Ja Ne- Matt