Pseudo Styles: A Naruto Fanfiction

by Alpha Vii

[Undergoing retrofit] Clan desolation reduced. Development heavy plot line where the canon generation is privy to the cloth they are cut from. Rapid growth, and... escalation prone events.

7. Volume 7

Pseudo Styles: A Naruto Fanfiction Volume 7: Rinne Gone and a Chunin's Nightmare Chapters: 1-3

[Important Notice: Retrofit pending. If you are reading this, the chapter has yet to be overhauled. Plot and character points subject to dynamic change. Chapters that have had this message removed have been - for the most part - resolved.]

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In this volume Danzo gets a wake up call. Afterwards Haku gets instated in the C.O.P. and afterwards gets a surprise (to Vii's dismay). Finally the C.O.P. takes the exams by storm and Ibiki gets mocked thoroughly.

===Volume 7===

—Chapter 1: The Hunt is On!—

The three genin returned to the village to see several of the masked ninjas jumping around like flees. They were only around for a few minutes when Vii appeared wielding a golden copy of the severing sword and jets of blue flames trailing behind him. He quickly pounced on the nearest black clad shinobi and Sasuke's eyes widened, "Oh my gosh I remember this technique! I never thought I'd see something this cool again!"

Naruto's eyes turned into sparkling saucers and his teeth glowed like a crescent moon, "I've been asking him to show me this for months!"

Suddenly another Vii skidded to a halt in front of them and waved before taking flight again. This one had a dozen tails which lashed out and smacked apart a group of mystery nin."

The villagers began to gather outside to see what caused the mayhem and some began screaming about demons invading Konoha. The genin were cracking up at this but paused to see three of Vii's clones commanding giant blue dragons and running down large groups of the unmarked nin. Every time they tried to split a batch of Viis would chase them back together.

—Hokage's Office—

Hiruzen was sipping a cup of tea while reading his favorite book when he heard a chorus of roars. Dropping his tea he ran to the window and put a hand to his mouth, "Damn, that kid works fast! I really have to teach him the meaning of subtlety though."

Suddenly the office door was forced open and the village elders walked in including a bandaged war hawk. Homura spoke urgently and shouted, "The village has been invaded Lord Hokage! The people are being swarmed in the streets!"

Hiruzen was about to address the trio when one of the larger creatures roared a very specific sound, "DANZO!" The aged Hokage smiled mischievously, "Have you by any chance insulted the Shinigami recently, Danzo?"

The man in question was miffed, "That's absurd! Regardless we must do something! An attack on this scale has never occurred in our village!"

The other advisors seemed somewhat apprehensive but they where surprised when Hiruzen laughed, "Oh Kami that's rich! Just yesterday you were not so subtly referring to a catastrophe that nearly ended this village! Or did you somehow forget the "Day of the Kyubi" Already?"

Koharu gasped, "Those monsters are heading this way!"

Hiruzen gazed at the ring of multi colored creatures and noticed a few had formed a ring in front of the tower, "Actually they seem to be corralling something. Either way I think I should hurry up and confront them."

—Outside Hokage Tower—

As the last of the Vii clones passed they had followed them towards the Hokage tower. Having gotten this close they saw the leagues of various creatures had managed to gather over a hundred of the identical ninja in front of and around the building. All sorts of leaf ninja gathered around the perimeter to see what the hell was going on.

Hiruzen walked out of the building but staggered at the sheer number of people in front of him. Every single one was near indistinguishable from the rest and his eyes were disoriented by the sight, "Well, well, well. I haven't seen that outfit in over a decade. Danzo, It seem's someone approved of your sense of style because I'm sure I ordered you to disband Root a long time ago."

One of Vii's clones chuckled from the man's side, "Not just the style. I swear I heard one yelp the whole trip here. These guys feel next to nothing…at least that they can't hide with that stalker getup."

The anbu escorting the Hokage decided that unless the boy attacked or Hiruzen signaled a response it was in their best interest to remain vigilant. Koharu however took the initiative to launch a kunai at the boy. To Hiruzen's surprise the blade impacted the boy's chest but before his eyes the 'blade' fell to the ground with a clank.

Vii groaned and gripped his chest, "Note to self: Thrown weapons hurt."

Hiruzen rolled his eyes, "That can't be news to you Vii."

Vii pouted and crossed his arms, "That was the first time a kunai actually hit me. Kudos to you Miss. Anyway one of these drones recently offended the guardian overseeing the artifacts in the vault. In all honesty, I couldn't find the guy in the village as the guy in question left the vault with a serious limp, he should have been obvious with how fast the rest were running."

Homura raised an eyebrow, "How do you know how every person ran? I imagine those are all your clones, but they haven't dispelled."

Hiruzen chuckled, "Vii here had trouble getting the academy style bunshin to work. According to Iruka the boy ended up casting a new technique every time he tried. What did you call them? Ah yes, light clones."

Vii scratched his head bashfully and groaned, "I still can't pull of the damn illusion. My chakras keep identifying the jutsu as a clone jutsu rather than genjutsu and respond accordingly. Weirdly they don't cast shadows either."

Hiruzen turned to face the war hawk and faulted, "Where the hell is Danzo? Anbu search the tower! Find Danzo and capture him!"

Vii groaned and closed his eyes, "Hang on a sec I'll narrow it down." The circuit pattern developed on his forehead and Vii spoke, "Well that's concerning. How far can he get through that tunnel system?"

Hiruzen asked, "What tunnel system?"

"The ones where most of Root operations have been conducted." Suddenly Vii opened his eyes and stared at the man, "Don't tell me you didn't know about those tunnels? I've been staring at root headquarters for months thinking the whole time that you've been keeping tabs on him! How did that escape your knowledge?"

===Chapter 1-2 Bridge===

—Chapter 2: Haku's orientation—

After spending the whole night playing tag in the rat's nest Vii and the anbu managed to lose Danzo after he sealed a tunnel deep under the ancient wall surrounding the village. While Hiruzen was furious that he escaped Konoha, after Vii offered to seal off the tunnels he calmed down a bit. They had spent hours cleaning all the intel out of the tunnels and afterward Vii filled every tunnel with concrete and the chambers were converted into shelters.

—Council of Pranksters HQ—

Vii wearily approached the base of operations and periodically stretched to stir himself awake. As he came within view of the building he was surprised to see Naruto waiting outside, "Good morning your majesty. Is everyone else here?"

Naruto glanced at the building and seemed to be going over the council's membership, "I'll take roll call to be sure, but I think we're good to go. Did you have any trouble with Haku?" The boy noticed a nervous expression on Vii's face and shook his head, "You had to negotiate? How bad is it?"

Vii smiled, "I'm afraid Zabuza is one of those parents. He said, and I quote, "Until you gaki's earn my trust, the boy stays at my side." I hope it won't offend the council that Zabuza will be just outside the building."

Naruto's face projected mock horror, "How could you! No adult has ever violated this location!"

Vii grinned, "Maybe I shouldn't tell the councilors that Zabuza took down a whole class to graduate."

Naruto slowly frowned, "Yeah, don't do that."

—Five Minutes Later—

Zabuza and Haku approached the site and immediately both were in awe. Zabuza whistled, "I wonder what idiot would commission a monument to pranksters."

Vii came from behind a tree laughing, "I did this for fun. Also my peer's are really good folks so they deserved nothing less than this."

Naruto started down the side of a tree while clapping, "Welcome to the C.O.P. headquarters. A place where pranking legends are made. I'm glad you could make it Haku."

Vii added, "Thank you Zabuza for supporting this endeavor. You have been granted approval to remain on site during our meeting today."

Zabuza scoffed, "Don't tell me it's just you?"

Naruto frowned, "Not funny mister. The council is waiting for us in the main chambers. To that end we shouldn't keep them waiting. Haku, Vii will call you when we're ready for your introduction."

The two began jumping up the nearest tree.

—Council Chamber—

Naruto and Vii sat down at the table and the former began the meeting, "Alright crew, before we begin this week's discussion it is time we introduced the first addition to our ranks since our formation. Haku Yuki-Momochi was recently brought to the ranks of Konoha and recently passed her graduation exam with flying colors. Currently she is acting a reservist of the shinobi forces so it's about time we reach out to our new comrade in arms. Vii?"

"Yes sir." Walking over to door he called out firmly, "Haku Yuki-Momochi!"

Haku appeared at the door in a whirl of leaves and bowed to the council, "Nice to meet you all." The boy was shocked to see the sheer number of people at the table. There were dozens of kids around the table and Haku realized why. Only a scattered few wore the Leaf headband meaning the group wasn't limited to shinobi. Standing up he spoke, "I didn't expect to be working with so many people but I'll do my best to work with all of you."

Kiba eyed the boy warily and asked, "Has he chosen a stance yet?"

Naruto shook his head, "You know that comes with time Kiba. On the other hand I suppose it would be helpful if Haku knew the classifications."

Shikamaru stirred from his cushioned desk, "Well that's my cue. Most members decide to chose a particular role in the council. Some of us are particularly good at finding targets. Our head lookouts are Sakura and Ino. Others are more suited to intel gathering. Shino and Hinata are currently our best scouts. A few of us work on planning and tactics. I currently lead that particular front. Our leading pranksters are Naruto, Kiba and Vii."

Kiba smirked pridefully and asked, "So, Haku; have any particular preference?"

Haku frowned and seemed to be going over something. Meanwhile, Vii had been modifying one of the desks to accommodate the boy's personality. After he was done with that his interest visibly peaked, "Now that I think about it: beyond the beacon in the tower we don't have any means of subtle communication. I think with the upcoming exams we may want to look into a relay specialist."

Haku perked up at that, "I might be able to help with that. With my kekkei genkai I have developed a space-time technique that allows me to travel beyond the speeds that most humans can perceive."

Naruto grinned and added enthusiastically, "Barring the presence of a sharingan that would be perfect!"

Sakura, rather puzzled, asked, "Why would the sharingan compromise someone they can't see?"

Vii glanced at Sasuke who nodded an affirmative, "I'm afraid that as long as you're moving the odds are than normal people can actually see you. The reason they wouldn't notice you is because their eyes could only detect you during a single frame of time. With so little info a typical person would unconsciously discard the image, however the sharingan processes up to four times as many images per second as a normal person's eyes can render. Where a normal person would see you once a sharingan wielder would see you multiple times during a single jump."

Shikamaru huffed, "I'm still wondering how you knew the layout of the exams."

Vii grinned, "My sensei met a shinobi who managed to get into the second stage and attended the third event when his team failed to complete the test."

Haku's eye twitched, "Isn't that cheating?"

Choji paused in his snack inhalation to respond, "According to Vii's sensei there's a section that relies solely on the ability to gather intel that varies slightly each time."

Vii scratched his head and added, "My sensei warned the Hokage that I'd know about Ibiki's standard mind games. Odds are the Hokage orders Ibiki to improvise this time. I annoys me that I won't get to exploit a glorious loophole he leaves every stinking time! Even my sensei saw he worded the rules poorly."

Haku sighed and added, "If I can rig the location ahead of time I can set us up. If I have to be seen in the room it could be a challenge though."

Naruto waved him off, "They only accept teams of three for the exams." Suddenly he bolted up as he realized, "Wait a minute! Vii, How did you get in?"

Vii shrugged but his expression was tense, "The Hokage hasn't explained how that's supposed to happen, but I under the impression that he's planning something."

Haku blushed and stammered out, "Umm…I-uh…I Thought he would have told you…"

Vii glanced at the boy and asked, "What did he say?"

Haku kicked his ankles and explained, "The Hokage told me I'd be placed on a new team with you during the upcoming exams."

Vii looked increasingly agitated by the notion that he'd be on a team. Hinata laughed at his expense and explained, "Vii has a unique concern regarding his role as a shinobi."

Shikamaru chuckled with his head on his desk, "Like his mentor, Vii has expressed discomfort at the notion of being publicly associated with people, especially people who draw significant attention to themselves."

Haku smiled and tried to reassure Vii, "I doubt anyone is interested in me. I haven't been on any official missions yet and besides Zabuza I don't have any known people of interest in my life."

Vii groaned and asked stressfully, "I envy your naïvety Haku, but this village goes into a frenzy when they hear someone discuss a new bloodline. You have access to a bloodline limit. That means the civilians will borderline stalk you with praise and the shinobi council will subtly vie for your favor. I have nothing against any type of bloodline as they are particularly interesting to see, however I'm under immense scrutiny since my abilities are all over the place. I don't like the idea of people going after team members because they want my secrets. The shinobi world doesn't seem interested in anonymity these days."

—Hokage's Office: That Evening—

The Hokage was sitting down to a cup of tea and deep in thought, 'Danzo…Why did it have to be Danzo. With how many secrets that man has accumulated he is a threat that exceeds even Orochimaru.' He glanced at his pipe and shook his head, "With all the time I have now I should look into Konohamaru's training 'not to mention asking the boy what the hell Enigma Vii saw fit to teach freshly minted genin.'"

A moment after he finished that thought his secretary spoke over the intercom, "Lord Hokage, There is a civilian here to see you. He doesn't have an appointment and won't give a name but he seems convinced you'd see him."

Hiruzen frowned. Very few civilians bothered to visit the tower without an appointment, "Can you give me a description?"

"Yes sir. He's dressed in black body armor and a deep blue robe. He has a sword in a sheath at his hip. He's tanned with black hair and blue eyes."

Hiruzen sighed, "Let him in."

"Yes sir."

Moments later the man walked in and sighed, "Sorry I didn't contact you ahead of time Hiruzen."

Hiruzen sighed, "Do we need the room again? I seem to remember your Intel is typically very sensitive."

The man laughed and answered, "After all these years you still know me well. Yes, this particular subject is one that few have the salt to take."

As Hiruzen signaled the anbu one of the masked individuals turned back toward the man as they departed. Hiruzen chuckled, "I think you offended Cat just now."

The man watched the anbu member leave and when he turned back toward Hiruzen his face held a remorseful expression. Hiruzen laced his fingers to rest his jaw and asked, "If I didn't know any better I'd think you expected her to die soon. Issue is, I don't know any better and it's irritating to see you like this."

Vii gripped his brow and sighed, "How much do you think this world will let me change without ripping itself apart?"

Hiruzen sighed and turned to look out the window, "Honestly Vii I have no idea what you're fighting here. Based on your reaction to the Uchiha Incident I can tell that this world has a nature I never knew about. I'm afraid that the only advice I have is to pace yourself. Doing too much too fast clearly has consequences. Now does your intel revolve solely around my body guard or is this part of a bigger picture?"

Vii gazed at the ceiling before answering, "I'm worried that I'm taking a risk telling you this, but your life ends during the third stage of the exams. I'm not sure if I can prevent that from happening in this world."

Hiruzen rubbed his brow and asked, "I may need some help understanding what you mean with these prophecies. You say you know that I will die in the future, however you also said that about the Uchiha clan. You prevented their demise and changed the course of history. How can you still predict the future so reliably?"

Vii reached behind his head and spoke slowly, "Time and space are already fluctuating in this world before I arrived. The entity I am relying on to predict the future is more aggressive and persistent. Karma is tied to the nature of souls and governs the world based on the wills of every person that has existed in the past. Those souls maintain the balance and nature the world follows. The Uzumaki were nearly erased from existence and Karma responded by destroying their eternal rival; the Uchiha."

Hiruzen laughed, "I'm shocked that the souls that removed the Uzumaki haven't fought that action."

Vii grinned, "You'd be right, except that a single soul inflamed the fear that killed that clan, and the fear he preyed upon has been dwarfed by the rejoicing of the countries that have thousands of loved ones returned to them."

Hiruzen frowned at that, "Why would a person go to such lengths to destroy the Uzumaki?"

Vii groaned at this, "Minato only had enough expertise to seal half of the kyubi while he would summon the Shinigami to consume the other half. With him AND the Uzumaki gone no one could restrain a tailed beast twice as powerful as the Kyubi."

Hiruzen glanced fearfully at the man and asked, "What on earth could be so absurdly powerful as that?"

Vii shrugged, "Mother of all chakra AKA bunny goddess AKA current tenant of the giant space rock AKA consumer of the sacred tree's fruit AKA Jubi or ten-tailed bunny who was split into the nine famous components of today by the greatest sage to ever live. I hope you remember him."

Hiruzen looked like he just saw a ghost and Vii actually checked that the ancient bad ass wasn't about to silence him. After Hiruzen regained some valuable color in his cheeks he quickly changed the topic, "Assuming I don't suddenly suffer a heart attack, who kills me?"

"Orochimaru. Technically you take down the reincarnated Hokages and the snake's arms with the Shinigami's jutsu."

Hiruzen blinked and asked, "I'm sorry, what?"

Vii had a strained smile, "You've got quite the protege Hiruzen. He has begun defying the Shinigami himself."

Hiruzen slumped in his chair. After the better part of a minute he asked, "How soon does he enter the Village?"

Vii grumbled and said, "I don't know when he arrives exactly, but he was to infiltrate the forest of death to mark Sasuke."

Hiruzen stiffened, "I refuse to allow that to happen to one of my shinobi again! How can we prevent this from happening?"

Vii sighed and responded, "Unfortunately I don't know anyone who could safely defeat him at this time. Even you were unable to take more than his arms when you fought him. I am unable to kill him myself and even if I do manage to drive him off he might get his fangs in the boy before I can defeat him." Seeing the old man trembling Vii sighed, "I am against using my technique on a Konoha shinobi as it is as invasive as Orochimaru's technique, but if that snake tries to rob the boy of his happiness I will make sure he feels every ounce of my wrath when I burn the mark out!"

The Hokage frowned with immense concern, "Is there no way to test the process before it is used on the boy?"

Vii shook his head but froze before continuing to refute the idea.

Hiruzen narrowed his eyes, "What is it Vii?"

Vii looked away from the man, "I won't change one victim for another, and unfortunately I happen to know that Orochimaru inserted some feature of himself to key the seal to his nature. No one can recreate that aspect of the seal, so we're not finding a stand in. Unless…"

Hiruzen glanced at Vii and asked, "Unless what?"

Vii sighed, "During the time I've been present in this world a part of my soul has been reacting to an alternate version of this world. That specific reality was influenced by the author and another bearer of the curse mark crawled out of the woodwork. I'm wondering what the odds are that this world has received the same quirk from his influence?" [Shout out KyuubiGoku for an awesome read.]

Hiruzen raised an eyebrow, "I'm interested to see where your going with this. Who was the bearer? More to the point, is he a shinobi of Konoha?"

Vii was visibly disturbed by the situation and asked, "Has Akira Inuzuka been a particular jerk in this world? If not this is probably irrelevant."

Hiruzen's left eye twitched, "Tsume is particularly irritated with that man, however I haven't heard anything about him possessing that mark."

Vii shifted his weight, "He wouldn't be talking openly about it. Thing is, I don't actually know that he has it at all."

The old man thrummed his desk and sighed, "It wouldn't be hard to find if we searched him as the mark is reliably found on their shoulder. I'll have someone search him tomorrow."

Vii nodded his head but warned, "The moment I enter the chunin exams it becomes too late. The timeline will become too strict to interrupt. I'd need to be present during the search. If Akira does have it I'll need to expel it immediately so he doesn't get pull a Danzo on us."

Hiruzen nodded and pressed the intercom, "Send out a summons for Kakashi Hatake, Tsume Inuzuka, and Anko Mitarashi."

The secretary answered, "Right away Lord Hokage."

—Inuzuka Compound: 0400—

Akira Inuzuka was walking toward the Master complex within the Inuzuka compound intent on confronting Tsume before his next mission. Suddenly he grinned in a predatory manner as he sniffed the evening air, "I was just coming to see you my dear Tsume." He sniffed again, "Though I wasn't aware you had company." The man was thrown when four people jumped in front of him, "Hang on, I only smell Kakashi and that snake's lackey. Why does that man have no scent?"

Vii glanced curiously at the man and asked, "Nothing? Really? Aw man I need to fix that."

Kakashi performed a double take, "How is that even… You know what? I don't care to know. Your student is already a nightmare." Turning to Akira he was about to speak when Anko growled out, "Show us your arms you mutt!"

Akira scoffed at the woman and rolled up his sleeves. Besides a few scars the man had nothing out of the ordinary, "Satisfied?"

Kakashi sighed, "You're whole arms."

The man in question tensed and demanded, "What's this about anyway?"

Anko smirked, "You're suspected of bearing a traitors calling card. By order of the Hokage; reveal your shoulders or be taken into custody."

The man lowered his head and snarled, "I'm shocked that he would compare me to something like you witch!"

Vii's chakra began to visibly bleed from his chest and arms and he grinned, "I've never seen someone capable of concealing that energy once they draw it out. You've had a long time to practice with that thing haven't you." The three jonin quickly braced for a sudden attack.

Akira narrowed his eyes and the repressed aura leapt fourth, "I've fooled sensors with that trick. Tell me; how did you know I was using it." As he spoke the mark began altering his body into something nearing that of a werewolf.

Vii smirked, "Even if you constantly leak a mixture of the snakes chakra with your own, the moment you release it your network start's climbing. I imagine you typically pop a fake pill to convince sensors that your just refilling. However your presence just piked as well and that isn't normal with soldier pills. You would have felt refreshed to me, but you just quintupled your KI." With that said Vii launched at the man.

Akira laughed and appeared in a nearby tree, "Oh Kami you are sooo slow!" As he turned back to Vii he paled. The man was gone.

Vii's voice came from right behind the man and asked, "Hey Anko, would you like me to get this over with or harass him a bit?"

Anko huffed, "Just don't let him escape!"

Vii nodded but asked again, "What about you Tsume?"

Akira lunged at the boy but was shocked to find himself hurtling at the ground. After he impacted he growled, "The hell?"

Tsume's eyes widened at Vii's stance. The man had both hands together at the wrists and open like a hungry Venus fly trap. She grinned evilly, "Make sure there's something left for me!"

Vii cackled, "That's the idea!" Suddenly he appeared over Akira and held out his hand to help the man up, "Let's give 'em a decent show, aye?"

Akira looked at the man like he had two heads, "Are you an idiot?" Suddenly Vii was sent flying back by a razor sharp swipe and thudded against a tree, "Or are you just that eager to die?"

Despite the claw marks on his chest Vii chuckled, "There are a lot of people telling me I should try that some time." Then he appeared in front of the feral man, "Just not interested." He slapped the man under the chin faster than anyone could see and a loud bang was heard. As the jonin stared at the man being knocked five feet high they felt a shockwave wash past them.

When Akira landed in a crouch he was furious, "What the hell was that?" The man shouted nervously, "You didn't even move!" Suddenly Vii appeared and swung a fist that the beast man barely dodged. To his shock he felt something slice at his face and he jumped back. He scanned the man but the only blade he could see was still in a sheath. He felt his cheek and sure enough he was bleeding, "What technique was that?"

Vii scratched his chin, "It's strictly taijutsu but being that it physically manipulates air pressure I guess it's a wind style technique? I should probably show it to Lee sometime."

Akira disappeared and Vii was rapidly knocked around, "Can't hit what you can't see! I'll just make sure you can't pull any more tricks!" The Lycanthrope continued to pummel the guy but began to notice the man was calmly chanting "Inner peace" and grinned, "Guess you take the whole 'Rest in peace' thing seriously!"

Suddenly Vii began to move. Each time Akira landed an attack Vii moved incrementally faster. After three more passes the man open his eyes and grabbed onto the last attack. His feet slid around the dirt as he began spinning in the opposite direction as Akira.

The wild man became nervous when he couldn't shake the calm person off. He realized that this man had somehow gained complete control over his attack. Suddenly he heard a frighteningly familiar voice and paled.

"ROTATION!" A shield of chakra began forming around Vii and he shouted, "EAT YOUR HEART OUT HYUGA!" For an instant Vii released his grip on the Inuzuka and threw him skyward. He leapt up to meet the whirling beast and shouted, "TWO CLAWS!" Vii latched onto Akira with a three pronged grip and the man screamed. Then he detached again and shouted, "FOUR CLAWS!"

"EIGHT CLAWS!"

"SIXTEEN CLAWS!"

"THIRTY-TWO CLAWS!"

"SIXTY-FOUR CLAWS!"

He grinned vengefully and shouted, "ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY EIGHT CLAWS!" The sky exploded with chakra and Akira fell to the ground in a heap. Vii landed in a crouch and spoke in a giddy voice, "Draconic Claw: Three Hundred Eighty Four Talons! Complete!"

Akira groaned and said in a pathetic voice, "That's not even a thing!"

Vii scratched his head, "Honestly I have no idea if I even hit one of your tenketsu but on a scale of one to ten; how would you rate your pain?"

"Ask me again when I can feel anything beneath my neck."

Vii grinned, "Then this shouldn't hurt a bit!" He pulled out a golden sword and it turned a blindingly bright white, "SUFFER YOU SNAKE!"

Kakashi shouted, "WAIT!"

The blade was shoved to the glowing hilt in Akira's shoulder and the man cringed. After a moment he asked, "Did he miss?"

Tsume was a good three steps from decapitating Vii when Akira spoke and she froze, "What? Akira you've got a blade impaling your shoulder. How are you so calm?"

Vii's face was pumping with fury and far off in the distance she picked up the sound of tremendous agony. When Vii heard the sound he grinned victoriously, "That is a beautiful sound! I just wish I could be there to see him squirm!"

Anko glanced off in the distance and a look of fear crossed her face, "He's here? In Konoha?"

"Apparently this is a very effective method to locate the worm. Remote agony!"

—Formerly Abandoned Lab—

Kabuto paled at the sight of his master writhing on the ground like he was set on fire, "WHAT IS HAPPENING LORD OROCHIMARU!"

"JUST MAKE IT STOP! AAAAARG MAKE IT ST-AAAAAAAH! K-KABUTO! GET ME A SEDATIVE NOW! AAAAAAAAH!"

—Inuzuka Compound: 0600—

"Finally." Vii said wiping his brow, "That guy - Gasp - was relentless, - Gasp - even after the power - Gasp - feeding the seal weakened - Gulp - it fought like a demon. Not even a tailed beast is THAT territorial." Sitting back he sighed, "Anko, I'm sorry. I don't have the stamina to pull that again tonight. I'm afraid that I'm going to need at least a day to recover from that." Gathering his remaining strength Vii turned to Akira, "Sorry if I disrupted the equilibrium you found with that seal. You will probably need some time to grow accustomed to your own chakra again, but hopefully with this you can find the source of your own true power."

Akira had begun trembling. He shook like he was fighting a severe trauma. He was audibly frightened, "This feels more terrifying than anything that seal has ever done to me! How is this supposed to give me strength?"

Vii grinned and remarked nostalgically, "When I was a child; I felt so many types of emotions that I had no idea how to react safely. My body had flooded itself with more energy than I could handle, However it wasn't due to obtaining a mythical power. I was seeing the world in a way that no one prepared me for. In fact, I only recently learned that I wasn't producing that power myself. I could perceive the world in ways very few humans can. I discovered that the reason life was impossibly difficult in some places and pathetically trivial in others was because the world doesn't expect to find people with my talents." Looking at Akira he concluded, "You are likely feeling your own power and abilities falling back under your control. It is terrifying at first because we don't understand what that energy wants us to do, but the more we interact with the world; the better we understand what we are called for."

Kakashi looked at the man like he felt slightly violated and asked, "How old are you exactly? I refuse to believe someone this close to my age range talks like that!"

Akira looked at the man and sighed, "So I'm stuck like this?"

Vii laughed, "Your situation is a lot healthier than what I grew up with. As long as you don't suddenly shut people out you will be fine. Just avoid making any kills during the next month and you'll be fine."

Akira whimpered, "You talk like I have a future, but no one will tolerate me after they find out that I utilized the cursed seal."

Anko shook her head, "By the looks of things. You never yielded to the curse mark. Either you have inhuman will power or ridiculous self control."

Vii frowned, "Akira, how long have you used that seal?"

Akira sighed, "Well over a decade." The man slowly flexed his limbs, however he cringed as a tremendous pain racked his body, "OW! I'd honestly rather let Hiashi use me as target practice than face that attack again!"

Vii scratched his head and sighed, "I don't have any official training as a healer so your kinda stuck like that." Turning to Kakashi Vii asked, "Please inform the Hokage of what took place here tonight."

===Chapter 2-3 Bridge===

—Chapter 3: Chunin Exams Stage 1—

Shikamaru groaned as the genin members of the C.O.P. approached the academy building, "Remember guys; These exams are mean't to promote the best of the best. We're going to be facing fierce competition for the next few days."

Vii coughed to conceal an escaping chuckle, "Right. Remember guys; Ibiki isn't Ibiki unless he's messing with your head."

Sasuke rolled his eyes, "This had better be harder than fighting the so called chunin that we met in wave."

Naruto scratched his chin, "I honestly think the other contestants will have a lot more surprises than if they were from the same place."

Kiba smirked, "They better. I'm not here for another two minute fight."

Shikamaru scoffed, "I'd rather chase that damn cat through a maze of it's own design."

Vii's eyes bulged as he couldn't hold it any longer, "I'm so VERY pumped to fight someone! I can't believe I have to get through a whole hour of testing first though. Must - resist - urge - to - prank - jonin!"

Naruto winced at the amount of frustration his advisor was fielding, "And I thought I had it bad."

—The Testing Chambers—

"Sooo - very - excited! Hello fellow ninja! I can't wait to fight with people of such intense and diverse personalities!"

Shikamaru looked at the guy like he was crazy, "How can you be so troublesome in a mere seven seconds?!"

Vii grinned like a child in a candy store, "These folks represent the entire ninja world! I don't think you realize it yet, but this is probably the only chance we'll have to meet some of these people! I think it's stupid to wait until people have been disqualified. The winners aren't always the people you get along with."

Kabuto

'This has got to stop now!' Kabuto dawned his best concerned smile and walked up to the group, "Uhh, you might want to avoid making a scene. Some of the contestants are a bit trigger happy."

Vii looked the older man over and sighed, "Well duh. To some of them this would feel like enemy territory. I'd be nervous too if we were in Kumo or Suna, and most of the newer villages have really bad histories with us larger villages. Personally, I'm not that proud of that. Haven't you been to other countries during the other exams?"

Kabuto tensed as he suppressed his growing frustration, 'I have to shut this idiot up before every one here suddenly finds a conscience! Think Yakushi!' "Since your so interested in skills I guess I could let you in on some intel I've gathered over my travels."

Vii winced, "I think you misunderstand. I don't care so much about what they can do. I'm interested in the wielders of those skills."

Naruto asked the man, "Do you know if Suna sent any shinobi?"

Kabuto grinned and shuffled his cards, "You interested in the Kazekage's kids?"

Naruto nodded, "Thanks. I'm hoping I can ask about basic wind style jutsu."

Vii pointed, "I suggest asking her." Vii pointed toward a sandy blond with loops in her hair wielding a giant fan, "She'd be your best shot. Fans are ideal for casting wind style jutsu. I suggest trading info. Suna's had a lot of missions lost to us so you need to earn her trust."

Naruto frowned, "You mean physical moulding?" He grinned, "It'd be a lot more fun if someone other than us could cast those wicked techniques."

—With The Sand Siblings—

Temari was listening intently to the Konoha brats and tensed when the loud one pointed at her. Kankuro raised his eyebrows, "That kid has you pegged for something."

Temari sighed, "That jerk must be selecting targets. That other guy has me worried. He's pretty eager to hand out information and sounds borderline insistent that they get some."

Kankuro nodded but looked over her shoulder, "What do you want tree-hugger?"

When Temari turned she saw the orange clad boy from the group scratching his head. She was about to scold him from sneaking up on her but the boy spoke first, "Sorry to bother you. My name is Naruto Uzumaki. I was hoping to ask for some advice. My friend over there says that you're a wind style user?"

Temari hesitated, "What do you want? You know this is a competition right?"

Naruto nodded, "Yeah I know. Vii suggests I could teach you a skill he taught my class a few months ago in exchange."

Temari laughed, "You need help with wind style and think you can help me?"

Naruto nodded again, "If we both get through the first stage, there should be time between tests for us to meet. I'll show you before the second exam. It makes jutsu extremely powerful when you cast them with a just a bit more chakra."

Temari seemed interested, "And in exchange?"

Naruto grinned sheepishly, "Well for one, the competition would be a whole lot more fun if others can wield that technique. I'd appreciate it if you had some tips on wind style jutsu, but It's not a dealbreaker if I get to see another badass in this tournament."

Suddenly there was a commotion with the other Leaf shinobi.

—Commotion (Nuff said)—

The three sound genin had jumped in front of Kabuto and were mocking him for underestimating them. The one wearing a turtle shell on his back began his swing at the four eyed boy when Vii appeared gripping the boy's hand with his other hand held in a fist with his first knuckles jutting out. Vii spoke calmly, "It's a bit too early to be attacking your opponents. You pull that again and I obliterate your tuning fork!"

The genin grinned mischievously, "Your bluffing!"

Vii raised his brows and pulled a kunai from his pouch and tossed it up with his free hand. As it came down he punched the knife three times at blinding speeds. The hunchback paled as the whole blade was pulverized into dust, "Alright Ibiki! I believe that was crossing the line as open hostility. You've let these fine shinobi wait long enough."

Suddenly the man appeared at the front of the room and shouted, "That's enough you brats. There will be no fighting without strict permission from a proctor! Any more incidents and the perps will be disqualified. Alright each of you will be handed a number. When you all have received your numbers you will take the corresponding seat."

—Five minutes later—

Everyone took their seats and Ibiki explained the rules. Everything was identical to the rules Vii remembered, 'You can still pass by not answering at all! just don't answer wrong! Then again, that wouldn't be sporting of me.' He raised his hand and Ibiki's eye twitched, "I'm not repeating the rules gaki."

Vii nodded, "I know. I was wondering if I could get two extra copies of the test. I want to make sure I'm thorough."

The man blinked at the boy, "That's not how this works kid."

Vii pouted, "Fine. I'll do it the hard way."

The members of the C.O.P. sweat-dropped as the man said, "BEGIN!"

Vii cracked his knuckles and twirled his pencil, 'Alright troops. Make sure we don't set the paper on fire!' He held the handsign for release and his eyes shifted once again. He paled when he felt a pulse emanate from his body, 'Yikes, I hope no one assumes that I just cheated.' after a moment his pencil began to twitch before it flew over the test in a rapid blur, 'First blue. record all cultural significance of the questions and begin picking them apart. Done. Alright your turn yellow. Do whatever it is that you do.' To Vii's surprise his hand dropped the pencil and tapped each of the answer boxes and a seal appeared in a part of each of the boxes, 'Alright, showoff. You're next Indigo. What do you have to add?' His hands touched each of the opposite corners and to Vii's astonishment lichtenburg dust figures began burning the answers into the page, 'DAMN SON! You scare me!'

looking up at the clock he groaned, 'Fifty six minutes left?! Oh hell no!' Quickly Vii raised his hand.

Ibiki glared at the boy after watching him completely annihilate the test before the hidden chunin even finished the first answer, "What now Gaki?"

"Permission to get a drink of water?"

Ibiki faulted majestically, "That is the worst excuse anyone has ever given in the history of these exams!"

Vii scratched his head in frustration, "I honestly can't sit still and stare at this thing without causing some form of distraction. For the sake of my team I'd like to step out and collect myself."

Ibiki rubbed his brow, "You'd better be back for the tenth question, Gaki."

Vii bowed to the man, "Thank you sir."

—Forty-six Minutes Later—

Ibiki had just opened his mouth to announce the tenth question when two people walked in. Vii Immediately pointed to the Suna shinobi, "I have no control over his timing!"

Ibiki's eye twitched, "Damn it! Get back to your seats already!"

—After the tenth question—

Ibiki had just explained the purpose the tenth question and concluded, "Congratulations, you all will be moving on to the second stage of the exams. I wish you all the best of luck."

Suddenly one of the windows shattered and a ball of cloth flew into the room. A moment later the cloth was pinned at the corners of the wall revealing a banner and Anko appeared in front of it, "Alright maggots, the name's Anko Mitarashi and I'll be your proctor for the second stage of the exams." After a moment she frowned, "What the hell Ibiki! There's still so many. You haven't gone soft on me have you?"

Ibiki walked out from behind Anko's giant banner and shrugged, "Must be a strong crop this year."

Anko grinned, "Whatever, I'll cut them in half during the next stage. Alright maggots, Meet up at training ground forty-four in ten minutes."

Vii grinned, "Have they added any snakes? I wanna fight snakes for once!"

Anko sweat dropped, 'Since when do genin train in the forest of death?'

===Volume 7 End===