Disclaimer: Naruto is owned by Kishimoto. Although owning other people has been outlawed for quite some time now. I guess the law does not see Naruto as a person. Honestly, what must he do to get the recognition he deserves?
Chapter 8 - Chunin Exams:
"The Chunin Exam? You really think we're ready for something like that, sensei?" Sakura asked uncertainly. Sasuke was staring intently at their teacher, looking for… something. Naruto looked like someone had just told him the answer to a frustrating question.
"Of course. I wouldn't have nominated you otherwise. Now, I don't expect you to get through this with flying colors. The Chunin Exam is hard, especially for rookies. The more experienced teams will most likely single you out as easy prey." Kakashi continued, something like amusement dancing in his eye. Sakura only looked more uncertain, glancing between her two teammates. "Yet, even if you don't pass, you'll have gained valuable experience. Still, I have faith in you. Remember what I have taught you, and you should be able to get through this." The one eyed jounin reassured them, his one visible eye curving into a smile. "If you are in, then meet up at room 301 at the academy tomorrow 3pm. That's where the first test will be."
Sasuke nodded resolutely, not a shred of doubt in his mind. Sakura was more reserved but nodded anyway. Naruto seemed like he wasn't even paying attention. Instead staring vacantly into space. "Yeah, yeah… I'll be there."
Sakura got a dangerous tick mark above her eye. Staring daggers into their blond teammate. "Naruto." She growled. "Did you even hear what Kaka-sensei said?"
Naruto nodded slowly, still staring vacantly at something or another. "Yeah. Chunin Exam, academy, room 301, 3pm. I'll be there."
Sakura blinked. This was so unlike Naruto she didn't quite know how to react.
"Emm, sorry… I have to do… eh… stuff." The blond started lamely, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. Then he vanished in a shunshin before the situation could get any more awkward.
Sakura stared wide eyed at where Naruto had been just moment prior. "W-what? When did he learn to do that?"
Kakashi blinked, the only reaction of surprise he allowed himself. He had no idea either. He couldn't just have learned it overnight.
"Well then. See you tomorrow. Sensei, Sakura." Sasuke said, before vanishing the same way Naruto had.
Kakashi blinked again. Sasuke as well? At least he had the sharingan. Deciding to go with the flow, Kakashi eye smiled at his last remaining student. "You don't need to choose right away. It is completely voluntary. Sleep on it." Then he too moved away faster than the eye could see. Much more gracefully and efficiently than the two genin had.
Sakura was left gaping on the bridge, her pink hair billowing in the wind.
Naruto collapsed into his bead. He couldn't remember last time he had been so tired. Wait. Yes he could. It was last week. Just having survived a Raikiri to the chest.
The memory trick had been a godsend. During the previous week, he had managed to get more done than he usually did in a month. He had trained more, studied more, spent more time with Ero-sennin and Iruka-sensei than ever before. Oh, and he had eaten enough ramen for an entire army. He had practically emptied his allowance already.
Thankfully, he had started earning his own money from all the missions team 7 had been doing. Without it, he doubted he would have been able to afford this month's rent. Absently, he wondered where all the food his shadow clones ate went. Trying to imagine some weird alternate universe where half-digested food just popped up out of nowhere, Naruto shivered. Perhaps some things were better left unknown.
The clone spamming came at a cost however. He was completely exhausted. As well as having one of the worst headaches he could ever remember having. It was like he had been awake for days on end. Running around, training, reading and doing thousands of other things all at once.
"Oy, Kurama. You awake?"
Naruto could almost feel the giant bijuu roll over in his cage. He didn't answer, so Naruto took that as a no. The blond steadied his breathing, deciding to try something he had only managed twice before. The flow of chakra circulating his body was still going strong, only a little diminished from the day's activities.
The boy felt a familiar tingling in his fingers and toes as he consciously increased the pressure. His chakra flowed like a river inside him. A few drops spilled out here and there, leaving every place he had visited coated in its residue. He would have to do something about that. It was far too easy to track him. Just one more thing to be added to the list. For now though, he concentrated on the spiral of energy centered on his stomach. After a few minutes of silent meditation, Naruto lost himself to the flow of his own energy.
A few moments later, blue eyes looked intently at the sleeping form of the Kyuubi. Two giant gates loomed over him, held together by the flimsy looking piece of paper Naruto had become used to seeing there.
"Kurama? Can you hear me!?" Naruto tried again.
The giant fox shifted in response, one eye opening lazily. "What is it brat? I'm trying to sleep."
Naruto looked away uncertainly. Ever since regaining his memories, uncertainty had not been a prevalent emotion. He knew what he wanted to do, and how to do it. "I figured… well, you know. You're quite lonely in here and…"
Kurama lifted an eyebrow. "Kid. I've been alone for centuries."
At that, Naruto's conviction hardened. "Well, that's even more of a reason then."
"Reason for what?"
"Keeping you company."
The nine-tailed demon fox stilled. One eye became two as the bijuu studied the blond reincarnation of his father's son. "I am the living incarnation of hatred. I despise humans. I do not need your company." The giant fox sneered.
Naruto shook his head stubbornly. "As if I'd believe that now. You're Kurama." Then he smiled. The type of smile that overrode any other emotion. "You're my older brother."
With that, Naruto walked through the space between the metal bars, not a sliver of hesitation in his movements.
Kurama sat perfectly still as Naruto floated up towards him. Naruto's control over his mindscape was still lackluster, but it was getting better.
The blond curled up in the red fur on top of Kurama's head. Falling asleep only a few seconds later.
The bijuu was trying to wrap his mind around what had just happened. His host was inside the cage with him. If he wanted, he could crush him right now. Perhaps the seal stopped him from harming the boy when he was outside, but now the idiot had willingly put himself in harm's way. The ancient demon only had to lift a single hand, and he could crush the human like a bug. He had done it countless times before.
So why did he hesitate now?
The wrinkled, aged face of his father appeared before Kurama inner eye. The fox let out a frustrated and resigned sigh. "Only for you old man."
Kakashi watched as his three students met up on the designated meeting place. Naruto and Sasuke moved with confidence and surety. Sakura, a little less so. She did seem to have regained some of her earlier spunk though, and was trying her hardest to seem brave.
Naruto said something Kakashi couldn't quite pick up and Sakura glared at him. Then he said something else, resulting in Sakura smacking him over the head. The hit sent the blond sprawling to the ground.
Sasuke shook his head and began walking. Sakura following quickly thereafter. The girl had completely forgotten her earlier hesitation as she tried to engage the dark haired Uchiha in conversation. Naruto came stumbling after them, holding his bruised head.
Kakashi smiled beneath his mask. Naruto was more of a ninja than people gave him credit for.
"My name is Rock Lee. And you are Sakura?" Sakura blinked, not fully understanding why this weird boy was talking to her. "Let's go out together! I will protect you 'til I die!" Lee continued, sending her a blinding smile and thumbs up.
An awkward silence followed. Sakura stared blankly at the first boy that had ever asked her out. She looked over at Sasuke and Naruto. Sasuke was ignoring the entire ordeal, while Naruto was trying to hold back laughter. He wasn't doing to well as giggles broke through at regular intervals.
"No way." She said. "You're lame."
Lee hung his head, dark clouds of depression gathering over him. Naruto walked over and clapped him on the back. "Hey, don't give up so easily. If you truly wish for something, then you have to work for it."
Lee straightened at once, a fire burning in his eyes. "Of course! I will take you out on a date, Sakura-chan. I promise you."
Sakura shivered as she tried to ignore the boy's horrible fashion sense. Instead glaring daggers at her teammate. Naruto looked completely unrepentant.
"Hey you, what's your name?" The other boy on the team asked, looking intently at Sasuke.
The dark haired Uchiha smirked back at the pale-eyed boy. "When introducing yourself, shouldn't you give your own name first?" The Hyuuga – for it was obvious that was what he was – didn't seem offended by the question.
Instead, he asked another of his own. "You're a rookie aren't you?"
Sasuke bristled at the question, but he couldn't deny it. "I don't have to answer to you." Almost as one, the two boys turned away from each other, both joining up with their teams once again.
Sasuke smiled. An eager glint in his eyes.
Team seven only managed to stay alone for a few minutes before they were hunted down again by the same guy that had bothered Sakura earlier. "Hey, you with the dark hair!"
Sasuke turned. "What is it?" Sasuke asked impatiently.
"My name is Rock Lee. I challenge you to a spar!" Lee shouted as he jumped down from the dais he had been standing on. "You should introduce yourself before you ask for another's name, is that not so?" Lee said, a challenging tilt to his voice.
Sasuke straightened his stance slightly as Lee landed on the floor. "Uchiha Sasuke." The rookie-of-the-year answered.
Naruto frowned, looking between the two Konoha ninja. They were about to enter the Chunin Exam, no matter how you looked at it, this was a bad idea.
"I wish to test myself against one from the so called genius clan. Plus…" Here he looked over at Sakura before blowing a kiss at her. Sakura swerved to the side to dodge the imaginary heart. Looking utterly terrified by the possibility of it hitting her.
"You wish to challenge me, knowing the Uchiha name? Fool. I will show you what that it truly means." Sasuke said. His eyes hardening.
Naruto had to fight down shivers as the frame of another Uchiha overlapped Sasuke's. He didn't know what to do. Should he intervene? Try to stop the match? Sasuke would never turn down a challenge to his name, even if he didn't want to fight, something which he clearly did.
Naruto bit his lip as he watched the two genin settle into fighting stances.
The fight started much like Sasuke and Naruto's had. The two shinobi sprinting forward to meet in a contest of taijutsu.
There was one difference though. Lee was far, far better at taijutsu than Naruto had ever been. After only three blows, Lee found an opening. The green clad genin's fist snapped forward, impossibly fast and impossible to dodge.
Somehow, Sasuke still managed to put up a block in time. He moved backwards with the blow, lessening the damage all he could. The blow still sent him careening towards the wall though. He got his footing under him in time, stopping just before colliding. Sasuke spit out a piece of blood before looking up at his opponent. His eyes were red, two tomoe spinning in each eye.
Naruto's eyes were wide. Lee was stronger than Sasuke? In an uncomfortable moment of insight, he saw how this one boy could defeat their entire team right now, and there was very little they could do to stop him.
"The sharingan? It will not help you in this fight I'm afraid." Lee said, his voice calm.
Sasuke almost snarled. He was very close to just charging recklessly, but he knew that would almost certainly doom him. Sharingan or not. Before he could think any more on the matter, Lee was upon him. The green clad genin flew through a set of moves faster than normal eyes could see. Sasuke did not have normal eyes though. He dodged, blocked, and rolled with the blows. Still, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't avoid the damage being dealt to him. Even if he blocked the blow, his arms screamed in protest, his legs buckled under the strain. Lee was simply too strong.
He couldn't win with taijutsu, that much was clear.
Before that thought could go much further, a turtle came flying out of nowhere. The summon animal – because there was no way it was anything else – hit Lee over the head. It did not look happy. "What are you doing? You moron!"
Lee grabbed his head in pain, looking slightly guilty and frustrated at the same time. "I-I'm sorry. I just wished to test my skill against another genius."
The turtle huffed irritably. "You have an entire exam to challenge yourself. Gai will not be pleased."
Lee's eyes widened. "I just…"
"Lee!"
The man appeared in burst of smoke atop his giant turtle. The animal seemed resigned to play its role, as if it had done this countless times before. Team 7 could only gawk at what could only be described as a grown-up version of Lee appeared before them. Student and teacher looked at each other for a moment, their similarities impossible to ignore. "Gai-sensei, I'm sorry. I- I-"
"You fool!" Gai shouted as he punched his student across the room. Tears streamed down his face as he got to one knee. Putting his arm forward to help Lee up to his feet again.
"Gai-sensei!" Lee shouted. Tears beginning to stream down his face as well.
"You don't have to say it Lee. I understand." Then the pair embraced. The sun shone across the horizon and waves crashed against the beach behind them. Teacher and student clung to each other, crying for all they were worth.
"Gai-sensei!"
"Lee!"
"Gai-sensei!"
"Lee!"
Team 7 bore witness to the entire scene with disbelieving looks on their faces. "No way. There's no way. I refuse to believe people like this actually exists." Sakura said weakly, her eyes wide.
Sasuke said nothing, only staring at teacher and student intently, still with his sharingan active. "I-I can't see through it. The genjutsu… It has to be a genjutsu, right?" He sounded almost desperate, trying to cling to reality as it unraveled before his eyes.
Then Gai finally noticed them. In an instant, he was behind them. Having traveled the length of the room faster than most jounin could throw a kunai. The Uchiha's red eyes widened. Even with the sharingan, he had only seen the slightest flicker of movement.
"So, you're Kakashi's students, eh?" The green-clad man said cheerfully, patting them on the shoulders.
"You know Kaka-sensei?" Sakura asked, more than a little creeped out by now.
"Know him! Ha! That man and his hip attitude." Gai said, shaking his head. "Don't tell me he hasn't told you about Maito Gai, the Green Beast of Konoha!?" Team 7 was relieved that he hadn't.
Gai sighed with disappointment. "That eternal rival of mine. He must have been blinded by your youth! Forgetting all about me in the process. It has been most difficult trying to find him these last few months." Neither of the genin had anything to say to that.
Team 7 couldn't help but be relieved Kakashi had ended up as their sensei. Despite his rather… undesirable quirks, he wasn't too bad.
Gai beamed at them.
Nope. Not bad at all.
"There you are! I was beginning to wonder if you'd ever show up!" A high-pitched voice cried out. Ino came running at them, throwing herself over a protesting Sasuke.
Naruto snickered as Sakura dragged her rival away from her chosen one.
"Hmm… So you did get here in time? Troublesome." Naruto smiled at his friend. Shikamaru and Choji had followed their teammate.
"Chips?" Choji offered, putting forward a bag of refreshments.
Still smiling, Naruto thanked him and took a few. Sakura was still busy arguing with Ino, while Sasuke seemed to do his best to ignore everyone.
"Ha! So the dead last and his team showed up as well, that means all the rookie teams from our class are participating!" Naruto turned as Kiba, Shino and Hinata approached them. Kiba was his normal boisterous and insulting self. The blond didn't let it bother him though. That was just how Kida rolled. He was a fighter, challenging everything and everyone around him.
"Indeed. Having three rookie teams participate is a rare event. Why? That's because rookie teams seldom have the experience and skills required to be competitive in an event such as the Chunin Exams." Shino's monotonous voice reached them.
Shino was as stoic as only people from his clan could be. But Naruto was pretty sure he could hear a hint of pride in the young man's voice.
"L-let's do our b-best everyone." Hinata stammered.
The blond Uzumaki beamed as he looked at his friends. He could feel his blood boiling.
For some reason, he really wanted to win this. To show the world what he could do.
His right fist clenched and the memory of countless of balloons flew through his mind. He was ready.
Naruto stared down at the piece of paper before him. His mind going a thousand miles per hour.
He didn't know the answer to any of these questions.
How could that be? Some of his earlier lives must have contained at least one smart dude! Surely, he couldn't have been an idiot in every single life… Right?
He could remember learning water walking dozens of times over, but calculating the trajectory of a shuriken?
Still, Naruto wasn't a complete idiot. He knew he wasn't supposed to know the answers. He was supposed to cheat. He had just thought that he might have a good chance of doing it the honest way. How come Sakura was smarter than generations of clan heads?
Finally giving up, the blond ninja sighed. How should he cheat then? Just looking around, he could see at least five different methods. Including very inventive use of ninja wire, lamps and reflections. Still, if he could see them, then surely the proctors could as well. A hazy memory - from god knows how long ago - showed him a seal he could possibly use. It was originally meant to transmit messages across distances by copying writing on one paper to another. The problem was just getting the seal on someone else's test. If he could even remember how to make it, that was.
Naruto ruffled his hair in frustration. If he could just find a way to contact his clones.
He still had a couple running around in Konoha. Making them had become a habit by now. If he made another clone, then popped it, his current memories would be transmitted to them. But was that truly necessary? Why should he have to create a whole new clone to transmit information to what was essentially just constructs of his charka? Of himself?
Naruto closed his eyes. He could feel his chakra clear as day. It flowed unhindered through his body, an ocean of power he could call upon at a moment's notice. To him, and any other ninja worth their salt, the feeling was second nature. But he had pieces of his energy that was outside himself. Chakra that was separated, but still a part of him at the same time. He concentrated, and concentrated, and concentrated.
At one point he was afraid he might dip into senjutsu. Hashirama might have been a master, but this was another body, another mind. And he had no wish to turn into stone.
Nothing. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't connect with the other parts of himself. What now? He couldn't just make a clone before all these people. He would be caught instantly. But what if…
Blinking, the blond frowned as he thought. Would that even work? Well, it was worth as shot.
Closing his eyes again, Naruto formed the cross seal underneath his desk. He could feel the chakra centering on his hara and molding itself in response to the seal. Both mind and body knew what came next. Splitting his chakra neatly in two, Naruto released the jutsu. But before the chakra could fully leave him, he pulled it back – dispelling the technique in less than tenth of a second. A little smoke drifted off him, the only sign of the clone that never was.
The chunin monitoring the exam focused on him. Making the blond genin grin and rub the back of his head. Sweat droplets ran down the back of his neck. They frowned at him but didn't say anything. Naruto breathed a sigh of relief as he waited. He could only hope that worked.
Naruto sat there, waiting several minutes before the response came. Memories of books, a cat, and a crazy lady shouting about dango came back to him.
Naruto smiled to himself as he got to work on the test. Pen flying over the paper. It was in no way easy, but having two – four now – clones rummaging through the library did help a lot. They even did the calculations for him.
As time went by, he began to get regular updates as the clones progressed through the tasks put before them. The memories included several where he asked the librarians for help, sometimes with success, other times… not so much.
He had sent back one or two responses of his own, just to tell them it was working. This time managing to do it without the excess chakra smoke.
By the time the test was called to an end, he was feeling pretty confident. He was by no means finished, but he didn't need to ace the test either. Answering one question would be enough. He trusted Sakura and Sasuke to have much more effective ways of gathering information. Or in Sakura's case; just knowing the answers.
Eventually, the rules of the tenth question was announced.
Naruto was outraged. What had all the previous questions been for then? All around him, people began to withdraw, not willing to risk their careers to one question.
It infuriated him.
No. It enraged him.
How could they just give up? How could they leave at the slightest hint of resistance? A small voice in the back of his head tried to hold him back, but his more impulsive side overrode it instantly.
Slamming his hand onto the table, Naruto rose, staring daggers at Ibiki. The special jounin raised an eyebrow.
"Don't mock us!" The blond shouted. "Never take the test again? Stay Genin forever? What kind of test is this!?"
Ibiki smirked. He had just answered that question. Prepared to do so again, he opened his mouth.
Before he could utter a word though, the blond continued. "Of course we'll take it!" Silence permeated the room as everyone stared at the twelve-year-old boy. "We came here to become chunin. We all knew people gets killed in these exams! Never take the chunin test again!? We all came here willing to die! Of course we'll take the question! And even if we fail, so what?" His question was directed to all the genin in the room. As with the chunin, all of them was looking at him. "My dream is to become hokage! And I'll do that even if I have to be a genin forever! Your rank is meaningless before your dreams! But if you give up now…" Naruto trailed off. Not sure how to finish the sentence. So what if they withdrew? They would stagnate, give up their chance to improve, miss the opportunity to succeed. For some reason, Naruto just couldn't stand the thought. Give up? Ridiculous. He knew he just created more competition for him and his team, but he couldn't bring himself to care.
Ibiki began to chuckle. The chuckle evolved into full-blown laughter as he watched the rest of the genin. It was clear that no one else was going to quit now. He could see it in their eyes. "Ha, very well. If anyone else wishes to back down. Do so now."
No one said anything, Naruto was still staring daggers at him. "Very well. Then you all pass!"
Listening to Ibiki's explanation, Naruto was rendered mute. How could he not have seen that? Of course Ibiki didn't have the authority to ban them from the exams. Leaf shinobi? Maybe. All the others? Not a chance. As the explanation came to a close, Naruto found himself beginning to respect the special jounin. The man had been through a lot. Everyone could tell that from the hideous scars on his head. Yet he still managed to smile and laugh. Soon enough, Ibiki finished his explanation.
Only a moment later, a black blur flew through the window. Throwing up a banner behind herself, Matarshi Anko announced her presence.
"Gah! The crazy dango lady!" Naruto exclaimed.
Anko blinked, looking at the kid who had interrupted her. "You! What the hell are you doing here whelp? I saw you just half an hour ago."
Naruto shivered at the memory. His clone had barely survived the experience. Without the trusted substitution, his clone would have been riddled by a dozen dango sticks. Besides, all he had said was… "Ramen is still better than dango!"
Screaming like a little girl, Naruto quickly switched himself out with a nearby chair as the space he had been occupying was riddled with Kunai and other pointed objects.
"Get over here brat!" Quickly hiding behind Sasuke – who did not look pleased by this arrangement – Naruto shouted back at her. "You will never take me alive!"
That was before he felt something cold touch his cheek. Naruto slowly looked to his left, seeing the sharp edge of a kunai digging into his skin. A small trickle of blood ran down his cheek. Stopping as the woman's tongue licked it up. Naruto shivered as he felt the cold breath on his neck. She could kill him in an instant if she wanted to.
"Anko." Ibiki's voice sounded resigned. As if this was something he was used to dealing with.
The snake mistress looked up at her colleague, pouting in disappointment. "Oh, come on, Ibiki. The kid is the most fun I've had in ages."
The T&I commander shook his head. "The exam." He reminded her gently.
Sighing, Anko pulled away her Kunai. Licking Naruto's cheek one more time before appearing at Ibiki's side.
Naruto was frozen as he felt even Kurama recoil slightly. "If I ever break out of here, I'll make sure not to eat her. I have no wish to be tainted by such a crazy woman. No matter how small the possibility." Naruto found he couldn't really fault his tenant's logic.
Anko proceeded to explain the next test, sending excited looks over to Naruto during the explanation. The other genin were giving them both strange looks, but they were all ninja. They were used to quirks and people more crazy than an entire madhouse put together.
Before they knew it, all the teams were standing before training ground 44, also known as the Forest of Death. The enormous trees looming above them. Naruto blinked as the memory of creating this very forest came to him.
The stream of memories from his earlier lives had mostly faded, but he still got flashes now and then. These trees were decidedly not natural. In fact, he could almost feel their power from here. The whole forest was overflowing with chakra, Hashirama's distinctive signature permeating everything.
Hashirama had actually made most of the trees in Konoha. It had been necessary after one his battles with Madara had destroyed all natural plant growth and flattened the land for miles around. Even the river had been rerouted to flow through the village. Although that had been Tobirama's doing, not Hashirama's.
Naruto shook himself back to reality as they received their scroll. Sasuke seemed to be weighing it in his hand. Looking between Naruto and Sakura.
Finally, he shoved it at Naruto. Making the blond raise an eyebrow. "Can you make two clones and henge them into a similar scroll? Like you did with the shuriken in wave." Sasuke asked. Naruto blinked, he had almost forgotten about that. Normal henge shouldn't actually be capable of transforming into just about anything under the sun.
The farther from the user's original shape and mass, the harder and more demanding it was to maintain. But shadow clones were different. As constructs of chakra, they had no 'original shape' to begin with.
"Sure." He said. Making two clones almost before his hands performed the seal. The copies of him saluted in synchronization before quickly disappearing in a puff of smoke. In their place was two scrolls that looked exactly the same as the original.
Moderately skilled ninja and sensors would be able to tell the difference quite easily, as the scrolls radiated chakra like no inanimate object should. They were still just a henge after all. Although a very well made one. Naruto was good at henge. This was the Chunin Exam though. It might not have fooled everyone here, but most should at least be momentarily distracted by it. Added to that, he could make as many as he wanted.
Soon enough, they were led to their designated starting point. After a few minutes where everyone else got situated, they were let through the fence. The chunin guard nodded cordially before locking the gate and disappearing in a body flicker.
Author's note: So… This took some time. I'm not exactly sure why to be honest. It was a mix of not knowing exactly what to write, usual laziness, another story to demanding my attention, and the fact that I barely have any free time anymore.
So, anyway. Christmas! Yay!
…
Where the heck did all the time run off to?
It seems absurd that it has been half a year since I last updated this story. But I guess that's how it is. Hopefully, the next one won't take as long.
The army has been… an eye-opener, to say the least. You don't know how pampered you are before the comfort of warmth, food and all the other luxuries of modern life is taken from you. If only for a short amount of time. The physical exercise has really not been so bad. Sure, it's not easy, but it's less than I expected.
So, another half a year and then hopefully I'm starting the university and returning to the life of a student.
