Chapter 8 - The Test (Part 2)

Hinata raced through the woods heading towards where Naruto had impacted. She had found him easily enough with her byakugan, but Kakashi-sensei had really sent him flying. It took her at least seven minutes to reach Naruto's location, and she didn't like what she saw when she arrived.

Naruto had apparently crashed head first through a thick branch and was now passed out on the forest floor. On his way down, the branches had torn up his face and now it was covered in some nasty scratches.

She turned him over and carefully dragged him so that he was leaning against a tree. She didn't know what caused him to vomit so intensively after that technique, but she didn't wanting him choking if he had a repeat episode. She reached into her pouch and took out her special ointment that she had made herself and started working on fixing his cuts.

As she worked on the blonde, dabbing the cream on his scratches, Kakashi could not help but be impressed. He watched from the treetops as a clone finished up with Sasuke and he was impressed by her medical knowledge. He noted that all traces of her shyness were gone as she worked like a doctor in the operating room. No space for emotions and focus on the objective.

Time to see if those Hyuuga eyes were as good at detecting genjutsu as they claimed. He started casting a light genjutsu that would make it seem like Naruto's state was detiorating, but she had whipped around and noticed him immediately. Even without the byakugan active, she still saw right through his genjutsu. Now that took some serious chakra control and mental discipline. He was actually starting to like this girl.

He dropped to the ground in front of them as Hinata took up a defensive stance over Naruto.

"That's some very efficient cream. Those scratches already look like they're healing. Any chance you're willing to tell me where you got it?"

"I made it myself from herbs found within the Hyuuga estate," while she answered cordially, her stance did not waver.

"Very impressive. Now then, what are you going to do? There isn't much time left, and you're the only one who hasn't attempted to obtain the bells."

She bit her lip as she glanced between the jounin and the boy behind her. There was no way she was going to be able to protect him as well as trying to get the bells. She was no fool. She knew she had no chance by herself. She needed help.

She quickly flung a kunai at Kakashi before slamming a smoke grenade into the ground. After the clouds settled, Hinata and Naruto were gone. 'At least she understood the point of the exercise,' Kakashi thought to himself, 'but that isn't enough. All three of them have to work together if they want to succeed.'


Hinata raced towards Sasuke's chakra with Naruto's limp form on her back. With Naruto out cold she was going to need the Uchiha's help if any of them were going to pass. As she entered the clearing, she was startled to find Sasuke's heaad sticking out of the ground.

He shot her a glare and uttered, "Not a word."

She gave him a nod, and carefully set Naruto, before helping him dig himself out. Around this time, Naruto was finally beginning to stir, and when he did, he was met with a massive headache.

"Ugh, what hit me?" he said as he tried to regain his bearings. His eyes were blurry and he blinked a few times before his vision finally came back into focus on the sight of Sasuke's head. He took one look, before bursting out laughing and falling on his back.

Sasuke's face lit up red in anger and embarrassment. "Shut up you dobe!"

"Oh my lord. This is priceless!" The blonde rolled on the ground, as Sasuke, finally free from his trap, began brushing off his clothes.

"Umm, excuse me you two…" Hinata interjected. She felt her face heating up as both boys turned their attention on to her. Why had this been so much easier a minute ago?

"I don't think any of us are going to be able to get a bell from Kakashi-sensei on our own."

"Speak for yourself," the Uchiha cut in, "I'm going off to find that man and take that bell."

"Hey," Naruto yelled grabbing the retreating boy's shoulder forcing him to face him. "That was rude. Apologize to Hinata-chan!"

"Let go of me you dobe. I don't want either of your help, nor do I need it."

"You can't do everything yourself you jackass. Stop being so stubborn and just hear her out."

"And I just said I don't want your help!"

"Why you little-"

There argument was broken off as the sound of the alarm clock pierced across the training grounds.

Time was up.

"Oh, Hinata?" a familiar voice called sweetly from a tree near the training posts. Looking up, the genin saw their sensei lazily leaning against the tree trunk.

"Yes sensei," she muttered nervously. She did not like where this was going.

"Did you try to get a bell?" he asked for too casually.

Hinata took a step back. "N-no sensei."

"Well, you know what that means right?"

Hinata could only hang her head in shame as she accepted her fate.


Kakashi had been more than a little disappointed by the results. There was no denying that these kids were talented. Skill wise they earned their genin ranking with flying colors, and maybe could even put a few chunin to shame. As he went over the concept of the "survival exercise," he could not help but notice the feelings of guilt that spread across the boys' faces. If they had tried together to get the bells, he was certain that they at least be able to get one of them.

"Alright, I'm going to give you guys one last chance." He left clear instructions to not feed Hinata for her failure to even attempt to obtain a bell, before disappearing with a shunshin.

He now watched the pair eating quietly as the young girl's stomach growled, causing her to turn red in embarrassment. As if planned together, both boys offered their lunches at once. The three genin stared at each other in shock before Hinata shook her head.

"Please do not waste your opportunity on me."

"Too bad Hinata-chan. I have to make it up to you for patching me up after I landed on my head."

"I also owe you an apology," Sasuke said as he offered her his food, "You were the only one who saw the true meaning of this test. With all of us at our full strength, I'm confident we can get the bells from Kakashi." The blonde vigorously nodded his head in agreement, as tears threatened to fall down the young girl's face.

Kakashi smiled behind his mask. They finally got it.


"Come on sensei! Let us go!" Naruto yelled as he struggled against the rope.

"Sorry. You and Sasuke admitted yourselves that Hinata was the only one who saw through the true meaning of the test. Meaning that you two are the ones who failed. If you want to get free, do it yourself."

The blonde and black haired boys were now tied up against the training posts as Hinata and Kakashi stood over them.

"Alright then, we'll meet back here tomorrow for our first real day of training." As he turned to leave, he gave one last look to Hinata. "I know I just gave that whole speech about abandoning comrades, but try to overlook that right now. Don't help them get free. They'll never learn if you keep picking up the slack."

She blushed at the compliment, as the jounin disappeared in a swirl of leaves.

Hinata turned and bowed to the two boys, with a light smile on her face. "Gomen, Naruto-kun, Sasuke-kun. But it appears I am less than trash." With that she turned and left, barely controlling her giggling.

"Hinata-chan! Please! Don't leave us!"


15 minutes Sasuke finally freed himself from his bindings.

"Great job, Sasuke-teme. Now let me out!" the blonde pleaded.

Sasuke smirked and dropped his kunai just out of reach of Naruto's feet. "A good shinobi should be able to escape from this himself." He strolled away as the blonde yelled at him with a plethora of curses.

After a painstaking hour, Naruto was finally able to wriggle a kunai out of his pouch and cut himself free.

"YATTA!" he shouted to the air.

He was about to head home, when he remembered he was forgetting something. He started frantically searching the field wondering were he could have dropped it, when a cool voice behind him asked, "Looking for this?"

He turned to find Kakashi with his finger through the loop of his special kunai.

Naruto let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you Kakashi-sensei. I don't know what I would have done if I lost that." He reached out for it, and was surprised when Kakashi pulled away.

"I'm happy to return this back to you, but I have a couple of questions I'd like answered first," Kakashi said in a serious tone. After he was sure the blonde understood, he continued, "First off, let's start with the easier question. I assume Kitsune was the one who taught you that katon jutsu?"

The boy was quiet as he nodded vigorously, anxious to get his kunai back.

"I want to make sure that he fully explained how dangerous that jutsu can be." As Naruto tilted his head to the side, it was evident the blonde didn't know what he was talking about.

"I'm sure Kitsune has told you there are multiple steps to that jutsu, correct?" Another nod. "Good, I'm sure that he was going to fully explain it to you, but you are now my soldier, and I want to make sure you know how dangerous that jutsu can be."

He brought up his other hand and raised one finger. "That technique is Kitsune's signature jutsu, as well as one of his most deadly. The jutsu has three stages, each more dangerous than the last. The first is the one you have down, which acts almost like a simple flamethrower katon jutsu. It supplies a steady stream of fire, which takes on yellow hue. What makes this jutsu special is that the flames linger as long as the caster is conscious. Only he can dispel the flames."

He raised his second finger as he continued, "The next stage is about increasing the heat and intensity of the jutsu. The jutsu changes from crimson to a pure white as the heat in increased dramatically. At this stage, the flames would be hot enough to melt steel. What makes it special is like the previous stage, they keep their intense heat even after the technique is ended. The flames only disappear when the caster wants them to."

The boy seemed excited as he lifted his third finger. "Finally, the third stage, which is the most deadly of them all. This stage is why I am making sure you understand how dangerous that jutsu can be. The heat is turned up even more at this stage, turning the flames solid blue. What is incredibly deadly is what happens when the flames come in contact with something. While the first stage is about forming the shape and the second is about increasing the intensity, the third step is about changing the composition of the jutsu. I don't know the full details, but I do know that anything the flame touches practically liquifies on contact."

The boy's eyes were wide in excitement at this. "This can go for anything. Steel walls, enemies,…" He shot him a glare with his visible eye, as he said, "…comrades."

The boy gulped as the realization hit him. He had used a jutsu that could do that on Kakashi-sensei.

"Thankfully, I am a jounin and that was only the first level of the technique, but imagine if you had tried to use that on someone who wasn't able to evade in time. Even if you were using the lower level of the jutsu, imagine hitting one of your teammates. You'd be panicking, making it harder for you correctly form your chakra to dispel the jutsu." He didn't have to say it, but he could tell the boy got the message: be careful and don't use it in a spar against his teammates.

"Now, moving on. The more prevalent question on my mind is this." Once again he held up the kunai. "Where did you find this?"

Naruto gulped as he answered, "I found it out in the woods a couple years ago. I saw the seal formula and I just couldn't help myself. I've been working on it ever since."

Kakashi's visible eye widened. "Are you saying that you learned the Hiraishin all by yourself?"

The boy puffed out his chest. "You bet I did!" 'Although,' the boy thought in his head, 'there are still those drawbacks.'

Kakashi was silent for a moment. "Well, I'll be."

He tossed the boy the kunai, who was happy finally having his prized possession back where it belonged. He was surprised as Kakashi reached into his own pouch and pulled out another identical kunai to the one in his hands.

The blonde looked back and forth between the two, eyes wide.

"Where… where did you get that?" His eyes widened as large as saucers as he looked at his sensei in a new light. "Were you the one to develop the jutsu?"

Kakashi laughed as he shook his head. "Sorry to burst your bubble, but no. My own sensei was actually the one who developed the jutsu. He gave me this kunai as a gift the day I became jounin. I've always kept it with me as a reminder of him."

Rubbing the handle one last time, he offered it to the blonde boy. Naruto was shaking as he slowly took it from the older man's hand.

"Are…are you sure sensei?" his voice cracking.

Kakashi shrugged. "It seems to me that you'll get more out of it than I ever have."

Naruto was awestruck and lunged at the jounin, embracing him around his stomach. Kakashi chuckled as he patted the blonde's head.

"Now, while I'm certainly impressed with how far you've gotten by yourself. I know from experience that those side-affects aren't normal."

The blonde removed himself and wiped his nose before answering. "I'm trying to figure that out. The problem is that the effects vary in intensity each time I do it. I tested to see if distance or chakra usage made the reaction worse, but it has never been constant."

Kakashi nodded as he began to turn back towards the village. He had a meeting after all.

"Wait Kakashi-sensei!" the boy pleaded. "I have to know. Who was your sensei? Is he someone I'd know?"

Kakashi chuckled as he turned his head over his shoulder. "You might have heard of him. After all, he was the one that placed that seal on your stomach."

Kakashi stayed long enough to enjoy the look of wide-eyed realization flash across the boy's face, before he shunshined away towards the Hokage's office.


(2 Hours Later)

"This is just getting silly. I don't understand why you allow him to get away with this Hokage-sama," and irate Kurenai said as she and Asuma stood before the Sandaime.

"Let's just say he's paying his respects to someone in his own special way," the Hokage replied coyly.

"What do you-" Kurenai was cut off as a knock at the door signaled that he had finally arrived.

"Well, look who it is," Asuma said, "couldn't you have hurried up to tell us that you failed them? You know we can't leave until everyone's reports are in."

Kakashi barely paid him any mind as he stood before the Professor. "I'm happy to report that Team 7 passed with flying colors."

The silence ensued and, Kakashi was sure they would have been able to hear a pin drop. Asuma's cigarette was hanging out of his mouth and Kutenai's mouth hung open.

"Did they now?" the Hokage asked with a knowing smile.

"What can I say? The kids have incredible talent," he said with a shrug, before turning his full attention to the Hokage.

"I need to speak to you alone. Now."

The others in the room looked shocked as he continued, "Without ANBU."

Now this was worrying. After a nod from the Hokage, the two jounin and the four shadows hidden in the corners of the room headed out the door without a word.

After a moment of silence, he said, "Kitsune too."

The boy appeared behind the old man's shoulder, his body tense and protective. A simple wave from the Hokage made him stand down, and he begrudgingly left the room.

The silence was deafening. "So," Kakashi began, "when were you going to tell me we had another Yellow Flash on our hands?"

The old man chuckled. "I thought it would be entertaining to see your honest reaction from seeing it in person."

He paused and took a drag of his pipe before continuing. "I'm honestly surprised he got a punch in."

Kakashi eyed the glass ball behind the old man's desk as he rubbed his jaw.

"I was surprised myself. Though he only landed it because of the shock value and the gravity seal. So, he really did discover it himself?"

The old man nodded. "I was just as surprised as you. It was about 2 years ago. I had known for a while he had been meddling with some secret project for some time, but when he came forward and showed me it first hand, I was left speechless. It was like watching Minato attempt the technique all over again." He smiled before his expression took a more serious look, "However, I am concerned about the toll the jutsu is taking on his body."

Kakashi nodded as he waited for him to continue, "Minato had experienced some disorientation the first 20 or so times he practiced the technique, but afterwards his body adjusted to the feeling. The only time he experienced effects anything similar to Naruto's was the first time he ever attempted it. That was before he adjusted the Nidaime's seal. If Tsunade hadn't been present…"

"What do you think the issue could be?" Kakashi asked.

"Who knows? We are talking about a situation where a child, a talented child granted, but nevertheless a child, is attempting to recreate an extremely difficult technique that has stumped seal masters for years. It could be anything from the boy simply not performing the jutsu correctly to something in the seal fighting against him."

Kakashi nodded before asking, "Why not let him look over the jutsu formula?"

"The thought had crossed my mind, but we were never able to locate a detailed copy of Minato's version of the formula. It is likely still locked away in the Namikaze estate. The place is blocked off by powerful blood seals, and the only way in would be with-"

"Naruto," Kakashi finished.

"Yes, and that would raise some difficult questions that the boy is not ready for. It is far too early. Besides, he has come this far on his own. Let's see if the boy is able to master it by himself. The more he experiments, the better understanding he will gain of it."

The Hokage leaned back in his chair. "Now I think we've discussed Naruto enough for one night. I'm curious to hear about your other two students."

Kakashi closed his visible eye. "Sasuke performed just as expected for one from his clan. Powerful fire techniques and superb taijutsu skills. I'd be willing to say that he is already chunin rank in skill."

"But…"

"But he needs to work on social skills. I can already see traces of a severe inferiority and superiority complex in the works. At least he sees his teammates as people he can stand. I intend to keep a close eye on that and make sure it doesn't develop into something ugly."

The Hokage nodded. "And what about little Hinata?"

Kakashi rubbed his head. "Honestly, I didn't get a good look at Hinata's skill level. I can only assume that she is competent in her clan's taijutsu. She was the only one who saw through the meaning of the test and was preoccupied with aiding her teammates the entire time. I'd appreciate it if you could point me in the direction of some beginner medical jutsu. She has a knack for it. Coupled with her byakugan, I see quite the surgeon in our future."

The Hokage nodded as he soaked this in. "She will need your guidance. She is set on a challenging and difficult path."

Kakashi warily stared at the old man. "As her teacher, you are entitled to certain information. This is a secret to be kept between Hiashi Hyuuga and us. About two years ago, there was an incident beneath the clan's library…"


Said Hyuuga unceremoniously flopped onto her bed, exhausted from the day's events. She had just finished talking with her father. His eyes had flashed when he heard the names of her teammates, and she could have sworn she had seen him sharply glance to a photo on his desk. Even after that display, he seemed pleased with the results of her report.

Of course, she had left out the part of how she had been tied to the pole. She could only imagine the lecture and shame she would receive if he heard about that.

She shifted her head into a more comfortable position, and was met by the small scroll sitting on her nightstand. She glared at the parchment until she noticed that something was different. Just like its inside, the outside had always remained blank, but now, there was a kanji for 1 written in black ink.

She nervously took the scroll into her hand. She took a deep breath before slowly opening it. The once blank pages were now partly filled.

She gazed across the title that read: "The Tale of The Rabbit Goddess: Part 1"

Author's Note:

*****IMPORTANT****

(Like I said in the last chapter, I had to split this original chapter in two. So any notes in this chapter also apply to the last. Thank you for your time)

Now that is a long chapter. I've begun to notice that it's actually easier to write the original stuff rather than the parts that actually follow the canon. Odd right? You'd think it would be easier following a set form.

Anyways, I've noticed that some reviews are only showing up in my email, and apparently this is an issue with the site. I am noticing the new reviews, and I do appreciate them. Once the site also fixes its picture problem, I'll upload the cover for the story (it's a depiction of Naruto in his new clothes).

"Why is that one jutsu in English, when the others aren't?" I hear you ask. It's simple. I like it more in English than I like the translation.

I also wrote most of the first half late at night, so sorry if it doesn't seem up to par with the second half.

Anyways, thanks for your continued support. Please follow and review.