The Road Less Taken

The Road Less Taken

Chapter 7

Second Exam: Deathproof

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, Kishimoto does.

I

He had to be strong for this, the thought ran idly in his head as he fumbled around with his fingers nervously, looking more like Hyuuga Hinata then Namikaze Naruto. Why is this always hard? Naruto thought. I'm the Yondaime's son, why am I acting like such a pansy?

"Are you alright, ero-gaki?" A soft, alluring voice spoke to him, and Naruto didn't have to look to know who it was. The very woman he had been about to seek out in the first place. God must really hate me… he mused, before standing up to face her.

"Evening Anko." he bit out a little too roughly. Anko quickly noticed the lack of an honorific to the end of her name. A part of her wanted to cry out to him, to grab him by the front of his shirt and kiss him. But she didn't, instead she merely feigned indifference.

"Shouldn't you be resting, getting some sleep before the second exam?" She replied just as roughly, wincing when she saw Naruto grimace. Unable to look her in the eyes, his gaze wondered elsewhere.

"Just what was I to you?" He honestly couldn't help but ask. The question had been on the tongue, and he couldn't help but spew it out. It had been constantly eating him away, chipping away at him numbness, forcing him to feel, when he'd been trying to do the opposite. Still unable to look into her eyes, he numbly noted that his cheeks were damp. Fuck, he was crying now. Isn't that a bitch? "Was I nothing to you? Was I just a bit of warm comfort on cold nights?"

Anko noticed that he'd been unable to look at her, and instinctively smelled the salty tang of tears. Fuck, she'd made the gaki cry. Every bone in her body demanded that she grabbed him and lick the tears dry, but with the experience of an emotionally distanced kunoichi, she laughed, albeit, the laughter didn't quiet reach her eyes. "Don't tell me your crying kid?" She smirked cruelly.

A sob got caught in his throat and he pushed it down vehemently. "I must have been so fucking stupid…" he said, as if mumbling to himself. "Everyone warned me about you. They all told me that you were no better then Orochimaru, just another user, and I've been defending you like some stupid, lovesick puppy."

Swallowing another sob violently, he clumsily dug into his pocket for a cigarette, found one and brought it to his lips, lighting it in a hurry, before taking a deep drag to calm himself down. "I was such a fool, thinking you could actually love me for me." he whispered, smoke billowing out with each syllable, tears flowing freely now. "You have now idea how much I love you, and you just stand there with sick indifference, knowing that I'm crying because of you." He spat out before pulling a deep drag off his cigarette. "Was everything you told me a lie? Do I mean less than nothing to you Mitarashi-sensei?" Naruto demanded, finally turning around to face her, salty tears streaking his whiskered cheeks.

Her resolve was breaking, her aching her shattering in pieces for him. She closed her eyes and breathed deeply. "Gaki, could you tone the inner emo in you down for a bit? You're just a boy, you don't know the first thing about love, you sound so foolish for trying to convince yourself that you cared for me beyond a physical level. You're just a boy." She replied edgily, wondering how long she had before he lost his cool… she didn't have to wait long.

Innocent azure eyes ebbed away, replaced by twin orbs of demonic red. Naruto grabbed the front of her trench coat and slammed her against a wall, pressing his lean body against hers, his pelvis flush against hers. "A boy, ne Anko?" he growled out, Anko's hazel eyes glaring into his Kyuubi red ones. "A boy you willing took to bed over and over again. Do you know how much it meant to me losing my virginity to you, that first night we made love, you have no fucking idea what that meant for me. But I guess that it didn't mean anything to you." He released her, turning to walk away.

"I don't know, I guess you where just fucking your way to the top. You didn't want to be stuck at special jounin forever and jumped at an opportunity to train the Yondaime's son. It's cool, I'll put in a good word for you." Naruto spat at her, his face impassive.

"You got to pay the bills somehow." Anko replied with a shrug and a cold smile, wiping the tears from his eyes, he knew he had heard enough.

"Those that don't follow rules are trash, but those that intentionally hurt their comrades are less than trash, so I guess we know where you fit, Anko-chan." And with that, he walked away.

The blows that don't kill me, only serve to make me stronger… he remembered his father's words.

Mitarashi Anko watched Naruto leave, his words etching a deep wound in her heart, though he was not to blame. He didn't understand the reason for her departure, his feelings of abandonment resurfacing, causing him to lash out at her.

"You're not good enough for the boy." Uchiha Yukani had screeched at her. "The boy deserves something better than used goods."

Anko trembled, before falling to her knees and sobbing, crying, knowing she would never again know Naruto's love nor touch, and that in itself hurt more than anything he could ever say to her. After all that, how could she even survive around Naruto? Silently she damned the Yondaime and his stupid Uchiha wife. Anko disappeared to her room, sealing all the necessary things into several scrolls. She raised her trembling hands to the back of her head, and undid the knot to her hitai-ate, the metal side landing on the polished floor with a resounding clunk. Bending over, she picked it up and shunshined, heading over to the Hokage's office, where she jumped in through the window, interrupting an argument the Yondaime was having with his son Kakashi.

"How could you do that to Naruto and Anko, otousan?" Kakashi demanded.

Before the Yondaime could answer, Anko appeared in his office. "Yes, Anko-san?" Minato asked. He honestly had no idea what the jounin firecracker was about to say.

Anko reached into her trench coat and pulled out her hitai-ate, throwing it onto his desk offhandedly. "I resign as a Konoha-nin, Hokage-sama, and wish to transfer to an allied nation ANBU." Anko said determinedly.

"You're fucking kidding right?" The Hokage asked in shock.

"No, I'm done with you and your bigoted village. If I am denied, then mark me down as a nukenin because I'm done here." Anko replied evenly.

"Fine, I'm sending you to Kirigakure, let me write you a scroll for recommendation." Minato said, writing one up and then handing it to her. "Here you go. Represent Konoha well, Anko-san."

"Have a nice life Hokage-sama. Oh yeah, and by the way, fuck Konoha!" Anko spat angrily, disappearing in a swirl of leaves.

"You really fucked this one up, otousan." Kakashi replied, disappearing as well.

II

Naruto was crouched over murmuring fervently over the Hero's Memorial Stone. Whispering goodbye to his dead mother Kushina, he stood up only to be interrupted once more. "Hurts doesn't?" Naruto turned to stare at the intruder. It was the woman betrothed to him, the very beautiful Temari, the rose from Sunagakure.

"What does?" He asked, feigning ignorance. His expressionless blue eyes burned away into hers.

"Rejection. It always leaves a sting." Temari whispered, walking up to her future husband, wrapping her arm around him protectively. "It's okay to cry sometimes. You should just let it out." She continued, tilting her head to the side and staring at him, waiting for him to make the next move.

"She hurt me so bad, you know?" he spoke, the life returning to his eyes as they watered up again. "To love someone that much and think they love you like that. But they don't, they've just been using you the whole time, until finally they tire of you, and you don't even know until it's too late." A few tears escaped his eyes. She hugged him tight, Temari's face hidden in the crook of his neck, hoping she didn't cry as well.

"Naruto, if you let me, I'll be the best wife you could ask for, but please don't ever hurt me like she hurt you. I don't love you yet, but maybe one day I will and I don't ever want to be hurt like that again." Temari whispered against the side of his neck.

"I know neither of us asked for this Temari, but I'll keep my promise to never hurt you like that, and I'll do my best to try to love you, like I loved her." Naruto replied.

"No, Naruto-kun. Do not love me like you loved her, learn to love me more, and I'll do the same." Temari said, raising her head and bringing her lips to his in a small chaste kiss.

"Goodnight, Naruto-kun."

"Goodnight, Temari-chan."

The two departed after the quick kiss, both in need of rest, both physical and emotional.

III

13 HOURS LATER

FOREST OF DEATH

Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura tore through the Forest of Death trying to make it to the other side as fast as possible. Shizune, oddly enough became the new proctor for the second exams, and explained the second exam to them. Simply put they had to find the opposite scroll compared to the one they had. They had been given an earth scroll and were searching for another genin team with a Heaven Scroll. They had stopped next to a river, setting up a camp there. After setting numerous traps in a full circle parameter, they stopped to make themselves something to eat.

They had spent a mediocre amount of chakra since the second exam began. Within five hours they had beaten up a set of Kusa nins, only to find out they had a set of earth scrolls as well. Haruno Sakura had definitely impressed Naruto, she knocked out the enemy nin out cold. First she had used genjutsu to hide her position and a hard punch to the stomach had caused the nin to pass out instantly. It seemed her training with Tsunade-sama had paid off after.

Not that Naruto and Sasuke were any slouches, disposing of Kusa nin had been fairly easy, they hadn't been anywhere near their level.

Afterwards Sasuke and Naruto caught a couple of fish, six 20lb snooks to be exact, they quickly descaled them and filleted them with a kunai. While they had been fishing, Sakura had been collecting firewood to start a fire. Half an hour later, the snooks had been cooked and they three Konoha ninja were stuffed, their energy quickly replenishing.

"Go to sleep and rest up Naruto." Sasuke ordered, "I'll take the first watch." Naruto nodded and unsealed a sleeping bag from a scroll. Climbing in the bag, Naruto quickly fell asleep.

"Sasuke, can we talk?" Sakura asked, walking up to the raven hair Uchiha. Sasuke grunted in response. "When I started the academy, I did it all to be able to see you, I know I was a stupid fan girl, but over time I was definitely liking you for more than just your name, I really do Sasuke." Sakura said, her eyes getting moist from all the pent up emotion.

"Sakura, why do you care for me so? I've never been anything but a dick to you. I don't even know who I am anymore, so why do you care." Sasuke asked brutally.

"Because I need you in my life, in some sort of way. You made me want to be stronger. When I started out, I was just another fan girl, now I'm Tsunade-sama's apprentice, her heir to the medical throne as well as Shizune, and it's all because I wanted to be somebody for you. I don't have a fancy bloodline, or the daughter of a Hokage, but in loving you, I found a way to be stronger. Even if you never love me like I love you, I want to be there for you." Sakura finished.

"It's okay Sakura, I love you too." Sasuke turned to the pink hair girl with puckered lips, to find himself on the receiving end of a chakra enhanced punch, sending him back a couple of feet.

"Baka, I'm not stupid, who are you?" Sakura yelled, jumping to her feet and into an offensive stance. "Come on, Sasuke admitting that he cared about me, let alone loved me. You must be real stupid." Sakura said bitterly. The person she had punched popped out of henge, revealing a sound ninja.

"You hit pretty fucking hard, pinky. It's a shame I have to kill you, or maybe I should toy with you for a bit before killing you." The Oto nin in purple and black camouflage stated. He charged towards her again, swinging wildly, the lithe girl weaving under his outstretched arm and gripping a kunai she rose, slicing the jugular clean. The Oto nin fell back, a geyser of blood splurging from his neck.

Then turning into a log.

"Substitution jutsu." Sakura whispered to herself, narrowing her eyes. Her eyes widened as a large sword was swung at her head. Ducking the sword, she didn't have enough time to avoid the punch that landed to her stomach, causing her to double over in pain.

"You've forced me to reveal my true self. Stupid little girl." A man said, hovering over her. Sakura backed away, taking a good look at her attacker. He was taller than her, with long black hair and the creepiest fucking eyes she'd ever laid on. He had golden eyes, narrowed in slits, with purple surrounding it.

"Who are you?" Sakura asked, wheezing slightly.

He had on a fishnet shirt covered over by a purple jounin vest, black ninja pants, and a purple rope tied around his waist. "My name, I'm sorry for being rude, my name is Orochimaru, one of the Sannin. Before I kill you, please tell me who you are." The man Orochimaru demanded.

"Little old me? My name is Haruno Sakura, apprentice to Tsunade of the Sannin, you sick fuck." Sakura spat, sprinting towards him, punching his face in again, only to have it dissolve into a Tsuchi bunshin.

"My, my. I see you also have Tsunade's temper as well as her strength. It's too bad you'll share the same fate." Orochimaru laughed, appearing above her, landing a kick to her face, sending her back a couple of feet.

Sakura quickly stood up and powered up her chakra, running through a series of handseals. "Hidden Leaf Technique: Demonic Image." Sakura spoke, causing a flash of light, blinding Orochimaru. When the light subsided, a demonic looking Sakura loomed over Orochimaru.

"Stupid genjutsus don't fool me. Kai!" Orochimaru yelled, dispelling the technique. Except there was nobody in front of him, he didn't get the leisure of turning around before Sakura landed a punch into his back, sending him flying face first into a tree, knocking it over.

"Stupid girl. You'll never land another finger on me." Orochimaru growled, standing up, pulling out Kusanagi once more.

There was a sound of birds chirping.

When Orochimaru looked to the side, it was too late. Sasuke ran towards him at inhuman speeds, a peculiar jutsu in hand. Lightning crackled around his hand and Sasuke thrusted the arm into Orochimaru's chest, shocking him. "Chidori!"

There was an explosion, and when the smoke cleared, another log in its wake.

"You are just as strong as they Sasuke." Sasuke turned to his right to see a head flying in his direction, fangs bared and ready to bite him. Sasuke knew he wouldn't be able to avoid it.

"Rasengan!"

As the mouth was about to bite Sasuke, a spinning ball of chakra grinded into the extending neck, knocking it out of the way, before Orochimaru could bite Sasuke. Sasuke backed away and saw his best friend Naruto, standing over Orochimaru's body. Before Orochimaru could retaliate, Naruto sent a kick into his ribs, kicking him up into the air, and leaped in the air after him, landing a punch to his face.

Orochimaru was sent hurtling back to the ground, leaving a huge dent in the earth.

"Foolish boy." Orochimaru snapped, appearing above Naruto and kicking him in the face, sending him reeling. Naruto looked over to the spot Orochimaru had landed in a saw a puddle of mud.

That fuck…Naruto thought.

Naruto stood back up. "You're Orochimaru, aren't you? One of the Sannin, and the sensei of Mitarashi Anko?" Naruto demanded.

"Yes, boy. What of it?" Orochimaru asked.

"Because it's all your fault…" Naruto growled, eyes blazing red as he powered up, blue chakra disappearing and replaced by a malignant red. "You're the reason she's gone, why she's so fucked in the mind, and for that I'll kill you!" Naruto spat.

"You a boy will kill me? I am Orochimaru, on of the Sannin, disciple to the Sandaime Hokage. What makes you think you have a chance?" Orochimaru demanded, charging at him and landing another punch, then dodging a kunai that Sasuke had thrown.

"I am Namikaze Naruto. Disciple of the Yondaime Hokage, Jiraiya of the Sannin, and Mitarashi Anko. That and I am the future Hokage, do you hear me Orochimaru, and ironically enough, you won't be alive to see it." Naruto yelled, charging at the sannin once more, only to get kicked away.

Giving Sakura all the time she needed to land a vicious punch to his stomach. Orochimaru's eyes narrowed in surprise as he coughed up blood, apparently the genin had broken his ribs. Naruto stood back up to his feet. Sasuke charged at Orochimaru, holding wires in his hands. Orochimaru ducked and weaved the wires, but Naruto landed a punch to his back, sending him straight into the wires.

Sasuke took the opportunity and wrapped the wires around the S-ranked criminal, wrapping it around a tree and held to the remaining bit. "Katon: Ryuuka no Jutsu." Sasuke yelled, a stream of fire lighting up the end of the wire, shooting straight to Orochimaru and lighting him up on fire, burning him alive.

"It's that Oto nin that first attack." Sakura pointed out confused. Rather than a crispy Orochimaru, the Oto nin that had attacked earlier was tired to the tree burned to death, a Heaven scroll in his hands. Sasuke reached over and grabbed it.

"Let's go then." Sasuke said, without thinking much of it.

Up in the trees Orochimaru watched the genin team. "They're way too strong to attack all at once. I have to get Sasuke by himself. And to think they 'killed' me when I was using 10 percent of my chakra so easily. Just how strong are the new genin." Orochimaru pondered.

Sasuke, Naruto, and Sakura made it to the tower in another hour, passing the second exam.

IV

Temari couldn't help but think of Naruto, as her and her brothers strolled through the forest, both scrolls intact. She had been a bitch at first, when they first met at the first part of the exams. It stung to be rejected by him for some reason, especially for just a jounin when she herself was the daughter of a Kazekage. She wouldn't make Kazekage herself, most likely that would be given to Gaara, the strongest of the three. But still she was the daughter of a Kazekage, men from all over the Great Nations swooned over her, trying to convince her for a marriage, and Naruto had shot her down without a second thought.

She couldn't help but follow him afterwards. She wasn't a stalker by any means, but she wanted to understand, what it was about Naruto that made him care for Anko so. Watching him get rejected by the Special Jounin so cruelly, despite the fact that she could tell she wanted Naruto. It took some convincing to force herself to believe that Anko had actually cried after Naruto left.

Why was she dumping him then?

Still curious, she followed Naruto to the Hero's Memorial Stone where he cried, and prayed to his mother and Temari couldn't help but be touched. Despite not knowing him, watching him cry to his dead mother and spill his emotions out there touched her. Back in Sunagakure, they lived by the shinobi standards of not showing emotion. Her brother Gaara was a big example, the only emotion he had expressed for the majority of 8 years had been anger. Until he met her…

Nii Yugito.

Container to the Nibi bijuu.

Gaara's attraction to her hadn't been physical or sexual. It had been about power, they happened to stumble into her on a mission in Kumogakure. Gaara had only been thirteen at the time and had picked a fight with the jinchiruuki and the two dueled it out until Gaara himself had been defeated. No one had ever been able to land a hit on him until this girl, who had been unnaturally fast, with a large arsenal of deadly fire and lightning techniques.

"Why do you fight so hard to protect him? Love only yourself you fool, that is the only way to be truly strong!" Gaara said harshly.

"Because I love him. You never will see how strong you can be until you're forced to use your strength to protect someone. That's why I will win, it's because of my feelings for him that I'll win this fight. You have no one to love so you'll never be at full strength."

After the fight with Nii Yugito, Gaara had undeniably changed. Understanding her words, he realized that love was not a weakness but rather strength, and instead of distancing himself from his family, Gaara did everything he could love them, and gain their love. He even managed to repair his relationship with his father, who had been sending assassins after him since he was six.

Little by little Gaara had opened up, and Temari couldn't be happier.

Seeing how defensive Naruto had gotten over Anko, it reminded her of Nii Yugito and her inner strength.

Their first kiss had been chaste, but monumental, and something she'd never forget. Being his betrothed, Temari would do everything in her power to love him, and perhaps she'd find that inner strength Yugito had.

V

Hokage's Office

"Yukani-chan, just what in the fuck did you tell Anko?" Minato demanded angrily, his white coat swishing about around him.

"That she wasn't good enough for the boy, that he deserved better." Yukani replied, sitting down in a chair.

Minato paced about angrily. Thanks to his wife he had just lost a jounin, a damn good one at that which specialized in the art of killing. He reached into his jacket and pulled out a cigarette, lighting it up in a hurry. "Why the fuck didn't you tell me?" he argued, blowing smoke into her face, much to her displeasure.

"You know those things could kill right?" she replied sarcastically, dismissing the subject.

"So can I, only I'm deadlier." Minato growled out, pulling another drag from his cigarette. "You didn't answer the fucking question Yukani-chan." He reminded her, as though an afterthought.

"We all keep secrets Minato-kun, even you." Yukani replied.

"Just what do you mean?" He demanded.

"For example, Naruto doesn't know that I'm technically his real mother." Kushina said, a sad smile crossing her lips.

"Uzumaki Kushina is his mother and you know it!"

"Must I remind you of how barren Kushina was? Kushina might of given birth to him, but it is not her genes that run through your son, but mines." Yukani said, pulling out a cigarette of her own.

"You just donated an egg, but he's just like his real mother Kushina." Minato snapped at her.

"Perhaps, but that's because you placed a blood marker on his, sealed away next to the Kyuubi, hypothetically if he were to lose said seal, he would lose some of the very qualities that Kushina's blood were instilled in his, and my Uchiha genes would dominate it. Naruto and Sasuke are blood cousins and you know it."

"Fine, but there aren't any other secrets I've kept from you." Minato pointed out.

"How about the real reason behind Uchiha Fugaku's death?"

Minato narrowed his eyes at his wife.

AN Pt 2: I really don't know what to make of this chapter. Yeah, the fight with Orochimaru was kind of short, and before I get your panties in a bunch, do remember that they are sixteen years old. I've said in a previous chapter, that most characters are about as strong as they were in Shippuden. Take Naruto for example, trained by Minato, Jiraiya, and Anko. Not to mention that he's a Kyuubi jinchiruuki. Sasuke, the avenger, training for years to kill his brother and his apprenticeship to Hatake Kakashi, and Sakura, apprentice to Tsunade. Not to mention that the jutsu that Orochi-teme used only took a tenth of his chakra away.