Chapter 10 – Chunnin tournament pt.1
Two weeks after Naruto's demonstration to Yuugao and Kurenai, the blonde and Asuma were sparring against each other. Naruto really enjoyed getting some expertise in fuuton ninjutsu from the bearded jounin, since not only Asuma got to teach him more about his twin knife taijutsu style, but also Naruto managed to learn two really interested fuuton jutsus under the bearded jounin's guidance: Fuuton Dai Kamaitachi (Wind Style: Great Cutting Whirlwind) and Fuuton Reppushou (Wind Style: Gale Wind Palm). While the first created a razor sharp wind bigger than the kaze no yaiba, the second consisted of a strong and concentrated gust of wind.
Back to his fight, Asuma and Naruto were clashing knifes at each other rather slowly, so that Naruto could learn how to see Asuma's attack patterns and then increase the rhythm slowly. Asuma was impressed with Naruto's skills while mixing taijutsu and ninjutsu strategically. He knew that Naruto would pick it from his father Minato, whom according to Asuma was one of the best ninjas ever and the way he mixed ration ninjutsu with his taijutsu style was simply amazing to watch. Now here was Asuma teaching the next generation of Namikaze Minato and truth be told, Naruto was very much on the way of becoming one very good shinobi just like his father. "Very good Naruto; now that you improved your fighting skills, I want to teach you a move of mine. I see that when you are with knifes, you can't use your hands to do hand seals so therefore ninjutsu is out of the picture. With this method of mine, you will be able to switch quickly between ninjutsu and taijutsu." – Said Asuma to which Naruto was hearing it intently. Naruto never thought about it, but it would be better than having to put it back inside the kunai holster and then picking it up again.
--Meanwhile with Yuugao--
While Naruto was training for the last part of the chunnin exams, Yuugao's Anbu team was scouting the region for possible threats near the chunnin exams date. Because of the chunnin exams, Konoha's gates are open for visitors, in other words, open for any sneak attack or even an invasion from another village when no one expected. This was supposed to be a normal scouting mission, just like it always had been. However, Yuugao was visibly pissed off right now. The reason was the new Anbu member of the team, Gekkou Hayate; the man was second in line for Konoha's best swordfighter next to her. But that wasn't why she was pissed; the reason was that the man couldn't stop asking her to go on a date with her and the steady coughs were trying to get a little bit annoyed. Yuugao didn't know but the coughs were actually so that the enemy underestimated him by thinking he was terribly sick, but what she did know was the guy had a knack for pissing her off and not in a good way though.
Actually, come to think about it, Yuugao wouldn't even consider going out with someone other than the blonde. It was not the fact that she was in love with him…well not yet anyway. The reason was that she would like to know how Naruto would behave in the future, before jumping to conclusions. As a friend, Naruto was more than okay in her book, but as a lover, the estimations were a lot higher and such a test would have to wait until sometime after he becomes chunnin, in order for him to have some more experience first.
"Neh, Yuugao-san, (cough) have you considered my offer huh?" – Asked Hayate once again to which Yuugao scowled at him behind the mask, but refrained herself from screaming at him. "Hayate-san, would you please drop it, I already told you 'no'. Besides, I already have one person in sight for a date, so don't hold your breath, trying to go out with me" – Said Yuugao, earning looks from Kakashi who even though was supposed to be the captain of this squad, didn't feel like reprimanding the newcomer, confident that his second in command would do just that. However Kakashi was interested to know just who the guy that Yuugao was talking about was. Kakashi knew that something was going on between Naruto and his second in command, but he didn't know was that far. That or Yuugao wasn't talking about Naruto which for the silver haired Anbu, it was little to no possibility that another person could gather Yuugao's interest other than the blonde Namikaze.
"Alright team; let's head back to Anbu HQ. Our mission is over." – Said Kakashi before seeing his team nod and follow him towards Anbu HQ.
--Back with Naruto--
Back to Naruto, the blonde was taking a little break from his training, while doing some meditation exercises. Even though this whole month was in order to improve his fuuton ability, Naruto figured that practicing raiton wasn't such a bad idea. After all, Naruto knew that the iwa genins would be after his head more than trying to become chunnin. Also the fact that Naruto was somehow tempted to think that if one of the iwa genins manages to kill him, he or she would be promoted to chunnin just from this fact alone. Therefore, since raiton ninjutsu were most effective against doton ninjutsu, Naruto needed to practice his raiton attacks. Not wanting to waste time, Naruto focused on raiton chakra and suddenly his body was surrounded by lightning.
Asuma was watching the Namikaze being surrounded with lightning and immediately sent his jaws to the ground. He knew that Naruto also had raiton affinity; however Asuma figured that Naruto was only training in fuuton ninjutsu. Asuma knew how hard it was to master elemental ninjutsu and he even knew how much harder it was to master a second elemental manipulation. Now Naruto here was doing just that with only 12 years old. Damn, like father like son, I believe. After a while, Naruto got up and started punching and kicking, being each attack fused with raiton chakra.
"Okay Naruto. That's it for today. I don't want you to overexert yourself. Those gravity seals of yours can do some serious damage to your body." – Said Asuma to which Naruto nodded. "Ok, Asuma-sensei. See you tomorrow then." – Said Naruto, earning a disappointed look from Asuma, making Naruto question what's wrong to which Asuma responded by saying that the Hokage gave him a mission near the fire temple and that he wouldn't have time to help Naruto with his training. Naruto, after hearing the news, nodded understanding since a jounin of Asuma's status just couldn't be training him all the time. Actually, Naruto thought that his father would call Asuma earlier. "Don't worry about it Asuma-sensei. I'll just train my raiton affinity, then. I appreciate for the lessons and hope that you can come see me at the chunnin exams, if not then, I see you when I see you." – Said Naruto before vanishing within a little tornado, making Asuma smile at the boy's carefree attitude, even after some hardships such as first kills and seeing your comrades getting hurt. Asuma was also puzzled as to how Naruto was able to mix fuuton chakra with the shunshin, but then shrugged it off seeing whose son he is. "I'll be sure to see your match kid." – Said Asuma before walking off to the west gate so to meet the team assigned to his mission.
--With Naruto--
Not feeling the need of more training, Naruto decided to have some lunch at Ichirakus, but he was surprised to see another blonde sitting there, chatting with old man Teuchi and Ayame. "Good afternoon Hokage-sama" – Said Naruto before seeing Minato flinch from hearing his son calling himself like that, even though he specifically asked for him to call him Tou-san when not at the office or while at shinobi duty. But then again, Minato was on hokage duty and Naruto was training for the chunnin exams. "Naruto-kun, how many times have I told you not to call me like that outside the office. Now, I understand Sarutobi's situation with Asuma-san" – Said Minato to which Naruto smiled, seeing that his father took the bait for his little prank. "Sorry Tou-san. I was just confused since you're wearing your uniform, so I thought you were on hokage duty…Old man, two miso ramens please" – Said Naruto to which Teuchi smiled and proceeded to make the noodles, while Minato sighed, since once again his son had the last word of the conversation. "Ok, Naruto. You won this time. So tell me how is training doing with Asuma?" – Asked Minato to which Naruto looked at him suspiciously, since he never mentioned telling anyone that Asuma was training him, well anyone except Yuugao and Kurenai.
"Now…even though you didn't tell me which hurt me deeply, by the way…Asuma told Sarutobi who in turn told me. He told some good stuff about you Naruto-kun. I'm proud of you. Konoha wasn't blessed with many wind users outside of the Sarutobi clan. Now, talking as your tou-san, I'd like to ask you a favor Naruto." – Said Minato, with the last part being dead serious to which Naruto caught it and asked what it was that his father needed of him. "Naruto, as Hokage I'm forbidding the usage of the gravity seal from being used as training." – Said Minato dropping the bomb to Naruto and his training, earning, of course, protests from the little Namikaze.
"Why would you do something like that? It did wonders for me and Yuugao-chan. And looks what it did to you." – Asked Naruto, now increasing his voice so as to make a point. Minato for his part sighed, already knowing it would be as hard for Naruto to let go of the seal as it was for him. "Naruto, the truth is that while the seal does wonder for training purposes, after a while of using, gravity starts causing damage to your body gradually, hindering your growth and damaging your bones in the long run. Another reason, I'm doing this, is because I'm worried about you and Yuugao-san. I did a check up this morning and the head doctor came to me, saying that my bones need some time to reconstruct. He told me that if I remained with the seal more time, there would be high chances that I wouldn't be able to fully heal my body. Even though reluctantly, I removed my 15x gravity seal. Please, I'm not saying as hokage, I'm saying as your father, please remove it and rest for a week." – Said Minato to which Naruto looked down, thinking.
Naruto was at loss of what to do right now. On one hand, the gravity seal actually improved his training like nothing else would; but if he ended up using it too much, he could severely damage his bone structure and hinder his growth. Since Naruto's 1x gravity seal until now, the seal acted more like a legal drug to Naruto. When the seal was off, he felt weird to say the least; it was like the force of gravity that was there before, simply vanished and he felt like floating easily. However, while Naruto was discussing the 'pros' and 'cons' of whether or not to keep the seal, another factor was that his father not only asked prohibited its practice but also asked him with concern clearly on his eyes.
Smiling, he made his decision. "Fuuinjutsu Genshuku Gokuin Immetsu (Sealing Technique: Gravity Seal Extinction)" – Said Naruto before seeing his gravity seal leave his body and immediately the feeling of lost in weight came down rushing him. Suddenly, Naruto started to eat his bowls of ramen, not even realizing that his arms were moving twice as fast as it normally would, making Teuchi and Ayame send their jaws to the ground while Minato smiled, since Kushina had that same reaction after he released the seals and ushered to the bathroom to wash up. "Easy, now; you need to get used to normal gravity now. Trust me it takes a little time." – Said Minato to which Naruto smiled and asked his father, since he remembered the other person who happens to use the gravity seal as well. "Tou-san, we should reach Yuugao-chan to tell her about the seal."
"Yes, I know that. Although I fear that she became more addicted than us. Come; let's go to my office so we can call for her. Teuchi-san, thanks for the lunch…delicious as always." – Said Minato before ushering Naruto to follow him towards his office.
--At the Hokage's office--
Once inside the office, Minato seated on his chair and called for his secretary in order to reach Anbu member Cat. Meanwhile, Naruto was going into details with his father about his training in fuuton ninjutsu. Also Minato gave Naruto a bonus from adding a new jutsu to Konoha's inventory, since any ninja who invented a new technique, would receive a bonus payment according to the technique's level. Since Naruto invented two A ranked techniques (being one of them S in Minato's head, since the technique could slice the opponent in multiple pieces), he earned the equivalent of an A ranked mission payment. Suddenly, a puff of smoke appeared and Cat shunshined inside the Hokage's office. "Hokage-sama, how can I be of service?" – Asked Yuugao although she was puzzled as to why Naruto was there as well. "Yuugao-san, please lose the mask and seat, we have to talk about something urgent." – Said Minato to which the Anbu member nodded and took off her mask before smiling to Naruto, greeting him on the process. "Now, Yuugao-san, as I told Naruto, as of this moment I'm banishing the gravity seal training" – Said Minato to which Yuugao was completely flabbergasted about it.
Just like the Namikaze duo, Yuugao was addicted to the stuff, never forgetting to activate it before leaving home. Yuugao then looked at Naruto who in turn nodded and turned to speak. "Believe me Yuugao-chan; I behaved the same way you did when I heard the news. The point is that as a result of the gravity seal, the gravity starts damaging our body; our bones wouldn't be able to hold the extra weight and it would be impossible to fix it, once broke. However, with me reaching 9x almost 10x and you bearing on the 7x, I believe we had a good run with the seal." – Said Naruto to which Yuugao just stared at him, while thinking about it. 'Sure, the seal made her stronger and faster, but also if Naruto was right, then with time, my bones will begin to break or more fragile, making me useless on a fight, hell no. How the hell would I spar with Naruto-kun and doing Anbu missions?' "Hokage-sama, even though the seal does wonders to training, I don't want to be useless on a fight in the future. I inherited too much of my father's pride to become useless while fighting. How can I remove the seal?" – Said Yuugao to which Minato and Naruto smiled for different reasons though.
Minato remembered the girl's father and also remembered the incorporation of bushido (samurai) in a shinobi. But Naruto was smiling from Yuugao's actions, knowing all about the fact that she would prefer to be dead, then to be considered useless while on a fight. 'That's Yuugao-chan alright. Never backing away, quite interesting and…no Naruto, take these pervert images out of your head.' Yuugao for her part managed to see that Naruto was struggling within himself and smiled, wondering what the blonde would be thinking that got him acting like that. Yuugao knew that Naruto despised perverts, since one day he spotted a white haired man giggling like a school girl and sent a little gust of wind towards his direction, sending him right inside the woman's hot springs, earning quite a beating from the ladies. Yuugao remembered easily that day, since she happened to be inside the hot springs that day when she saw Naruto looking at the perverted man smiling after pushing him with wind chakra.
"Yuugao-san, indeed you have your father's blood running through your veins, now Naruto can do the honors for you" – Said Minato to which Naruto nodded and did the exact same procedure, therefore extinguishing the gravity seal. Because of it, Yuugao's body was lighter, making herself lose control of her body for a minute, ending up falling on the ground, being caught by Naruto who kneeled down next to her with a worried look on her face, since this wasn't supposed to happen. "Naruto-kun, don't worry about her. She just lost control of her body for a second. I bet it is because while you sometimes deactivated the gravity seal, Yuugao didn't. Am I right Yuugao-san?" – Asked Minato to which Yuugao nodded before locking eyes with Naruto for a minute. 'Wow, it's like two deep oceans. It's gorgeous' – Thought Yuugao. Naruto for his part was entranced with her looks and now didn't care that images appeared inside his head, since Yuugao was like an angel to him.
Feeling the need to break the couple apart for now, Minato cleaned his throat a little bit just to get Naruto and Yuugao's attention for a moment, making both heads quickly turn and face a smiling hokage. "Now that both of you are paying attention, it's best for all of us to take it slow this week. So Yuugao-san, I'm giving you a two days vacation from Anbu services in order to be used without the gravity seal. Naruto, meditation for now; also in two days, you can train again. If you want, Kakashi-san will be available for a week of raiton training. Now I have some good news for the both of you. Since the ninja has to constantly to pump chakra through the body in order to move, your chakra capacity nearly doubled by now; also I wouldn't be surprised if your chakra control also improved as well. Now, go rest you two." – Said Minato before seeing Yuugao put her mask back on and vanishing in a puff of smoke while Naruto did the same but with wind chakra infused.
--On top of the Administration Building--
After the whole conversation inside Minato's office, Naruto and Yuugao appeared on top of the building, while looking at each other. When they looked at each other at the Hokage's office, both Naruto and Yuugao felt something entirely different from what they felt before. Yuugao was completely lost by Naruto's blue eyes while Naruto was entranced by her looks. Now, they were looking at each other, with both of them not sure of what to say to each other. Seeing that something had to be said, Yuugao put her job in front of the whole thing. "Naruto-kun, I…I must head to HQ in order to present Hokage's order to Kakashi-senpai" – Said Yuugao at loss of what to say to which Naruto nodded and responded. "Ah…ok. I was wondering if maybe you'd like to go have some lunch or something together." – Whispered Naruto while blushing madly, since he was kind of asking Yuugao on a date. "Naruto-kun, are you asking me on a date?" – Asked Yuugao, completely taken aback by the blonde's initiative. "Sure, pick me at seven. Here's the address." – Said Yuugao as she handed a piece of paper with her address written and then vanished.
--With Naruto--
Seeing that he still had four hours, Naruto sped up towards his house in order to rest a little bit and then get ready for dinner with Yuugao. On the way, Naruto remembered what he did and instantly a red color appeared on his face. Oh man, did I just ask her on a date? And she said yes. As Naruto was jumping through the rooftops, Naruto noticed someone tailing behind him, since said person was somewhat making large noises while landing their foots. During his training under Anko's guidance, Naruto didn't learn many ninjutsu, other than some which were more useful for infiltration and assassinations. Instead, Anko drilled knowledge into him about masking his chakra signature, hiding your trail when travelling so as not to be followed, as well as situations when you can 'sense' other's presences, either by hearing the enemy's footings or their heavy breathing. According to Anko's training, Naruto assumed that said person's skills was similar to an academy student, which was very strange to the blonde Namikaze, since while the man's tracking abilities were practically insignificant, he was able to follow Naruto's speed rather well, so it meant that either the guy just graduated from academy or is a freshmen genin.
Wanting to see the guy's level, Naruto suddenly vanished within a little tornado and appeared behind his follower. As Naruto's eyes focused on the figure that suddenly stopped since he lost his trail, he managed to see Konoha's head band, as well as an uchiha symbol behind the black man's blue shirt. "Tell me why were you following me, Uchiha?" – Said Naruto making the black man turn around scared, as well as trying to figure out how he lost Naruto's trail so easily. Naruto for his part was wondering if the boy grew silent on him or was actually trying to show he was not intimidated by Naruto's sudden evasion technique. "Well, since you're not talking, I will leave." – Said Naruto as he turned his back to the Uchiha with the only purpose of pissing the black haired boy off, since he knew from his father that Uchiha ninja were known for their extreme pride much to Uchiha Sasuke's anger. Sasuke was what could be considered 'stuck up' Uchihas; since he believed that no other ninja could stand against the sharingan. But now seeing that Naruto managed to evade Sasuke's sharingan with his evasion technique, as well as the fact that Naruto seemed to be looking at his feet rather than his eyes, proved that the blonde had knowledge on how to counter his doujutsu. "Fight me" – Said Sasuke to which Naruto just shrugged it off, since he didn't feel like fighting someone only so that the man could copy a technique or two. "Sorry, not interested. First, it's common sense to introduce yourself, then I'm not interested in fighting against you. Now if you don't mind, I'm going home. See ya" – Said Naruto before vanishing once again within a stronger tornado so that Sasuke couldn't copy the technique, since he had to protect his eyes from the wind force.
"Damn it. I wasn't able to copy anything with the sharingan" – Said Sasuke, still trying to see where the blonde Namikaze went, since he didn't knew the range of Naruto's shunshin technique. Grumbling about not fairness in treatment since he belonged to the elite, Sasuke left not at all aware of the fact that another Uchiha had followed him so as to see what Naruto would do against Sasuke. Itachi was surprised to see that Naruto, even though considered a stamina freak and quite eager to battle, managed to hold his ground and avoid confrontation. The Uchiha Anbu was blown away by the blonde's perception of Sasuke's real intentions. When Itachi told Sasuke about the Hokage's son, Sasuke was furious to say the least; in fact Sasuke came to a point where, even though Naruto was not only the Hokage's son, but also two years older than the little Uchiha, he believed himself to be superior in ability simply because of his family to which Itachi openly scowled him in front of the entire clan, saying that having a doujutsu isn't guaranteed to win a fight. Of course, this commentary set one Uchiha Fugaku on edge, since he was considered to be the proudest member of the Uchiha clan and the sharingan, saying from time to time that no one could beat the sharingan.
Back to Naruto, the boy shrugged the little Uchiha off his mind for two reasons. First, he was two years younger than him, therefore not even likely to meet him anytime soon and second because of his arrogant behavior, since the boy almost demanded a confrontation. Naruto was and always will be against favoritism. Being the Hokage's son, he had to endure some of the population 'kissing his ass' simply because of whose son he was and now he saw an example of how could his life be if he let people treat him like royalty. Uchiha Sasuke was the firm example of a spoiled child, who very likely would be killed the first time he faced a powerful enemy. Shrugging it off as in 'not his problem', Naruto arrived home a few minutes later.
--At the Namikaze Residence--
Inside, he was pleased to see that not only his mother was there, but his father was there as well. Add to the fact that Minato was gently caressing Kushina's pregnant belly, showing signs of appreciation towards his future daughter and Naruto's younger sister, Namikaze Misao. As he approached, he was greeted by his parents who ushered him to touch Kushina's belly so as to feel Misao kicking. After doing that, Naruto smiled at his family, imagining when his little sister would be born so that he could play with her. Naruto remembered Kakashi once telling him that Itachi was Sasuke's older brother and also that Itachi wasn't very much around Sasuke very much and promised himself that he would be around his sister's life, playing with her, teaching her some stuff, protect her and most important of all, be around her when possible.
However, because of his sister's topic, Naruto forgot that he was supposed to ask either Minato or Kushina about what to do on a date. "Ah….Tou-san…Kaa-san, I was thinking of asking for advice on something, if you don't mind." – Started Naruto, blushing slightly and scratching the back of his head. "Oh and what would that be, Naruto-kun? You know you can come to us for help anytime you want and we'll try our best to help you, now what's it?" – Asked Kushina, although she was pretty much aware of the topic of discussion, since she knew her son more than anyone and Naruto only blush when a certain topic was involved and that topic involved the mysterious world of dating. "Well….you see…I kind of asked Yuugao out to have dinner and she said….yes. So, I was hoping….if you guys would help me figure what to do." – Asked Naruto making Kushina smile and Minato lift his eyebrows surprised. Kushina smiled since she knew that her son would ask about that and Minato was surprised at not only seeing Naruto asking for help once in his life, but also saying that Yuugao accepted his dating invitation. It didn't mean he wasn't proud of his son, quite the contrary and Minato was sure to let everyone present know about this. "That's my boy….already dating. And even managing to get an older woman to accept; it seemed you're quite a womanizer hey Naruto-kun" – Said Minato, making Naruto blush even more and Kushina scowl at her husband for not helping the situation at all. "Naruto, don't listen to your father, even though we are indeed quite proud of you since you came to us for assistance, instead of asking help from a certain pervert" – Said Kushina, adding emphasis to the last part, as she eyed the adult Namikaze with anger.
At seeing such interaction, Naruto sighed concluding the obvious. According to what his mother told, apparently his father asked for Ero-Sennin Jiraya, his godfather for some tips and knowing the toad pervert, Naruto imagined Minato making bold declarations of his mother's figure, which of course his mother could only answer the compliment with a punch on Minato's face from being such a pervert. Minato for his part shivered in fear from remembering being sent to the hospital for two days after being on the receiving end of Kushina's flawless techniques against perverts and the most difficult time he had, trying to convince Kushina that he wasn't a perverted and that Jiraya was the one that advised him on the manner.
"Now Naruto, the first and most important rule is to be yourself. Trust me on this; if Yuugao accepted your invitation than she doesn't want anyone other than yourself to be her date. Now, as to where to take her, I would advise something neutral, like a sushi place or something like that. Konoha has many of these places and they are lot of places you could take her. However, you have to make your first date special, so you have to figure out something. Try searching your mind for what you know she would like and go for it. Now, etiquette in these situations are quite normal, there is no need to be extra formal, but you have to at least show that you can behave normally. Always remember some rules, though. Never let her pay for her meal, that shows that you are a gentleman and also mean that you are able to take her to a nice place once in a while, without her thinking that you can't afford or something. Also, know that since she is an Anbu jounin, she makes more money than you, now I know you had accomplished some B ranked missions recently and money is not an issue for you, but try not to go to an extra-expensive place. Last rule of all, try to relax and enjoy the company." – Explained Kushina as she was relating the important rules of dating to Naruto who in turn wanted to hug his mother for helping him with this, only stopping himself since he could damage the baby.
Showing his appreciation for the help, Naruto run upstairs to get dressed and choose on what to wear for the special event. After he arrived inside his bedroom, he went to take a shower quickly. While washing his body, his thoughts drifted off to what he could do to surprise Yuugao. Immediately he began shifting through everything he ever heard about Yuugao and trying to come up with a great surprise for her. After some time, an idea suddenly appeared inside his head. One time he read a book about samurais and the fact that the samurais enjoyed fighting below the moonlight, because of the way their swords reflects its light. There was also some aspects to the blood being spilled, but that was irrelevant at the moment. Naruto knew that the Uzuki clan was founded by samurais a long time ago and the fact that the woman happens to be one of the best kenjutsu user in Konoha only improved her success rate.
--With Yuugao--
Still dizzy from Naruto's sudden approach, Yuugao was slowly jumping through rooftops so as to get once again acquainted to her normal body weight, since the seal wasn't there anymore. She was thinking about going on a date with Naruto all of a sudden and the truth was that while she wanted to go eventually, she wanted to wait at least until he was fourteen or even chunnin rank already. However, she was impressed when Naruto came asking her out like that. Yuugao was so caught in wondering what would be like dating Naruto that she didn't realize that she was in front of Anbu HQ and also the fact that she forgot about the Hokage's orders to be handed to Kakashi-senpai.
Once inside the HQ, Yuugao found Kakashi looking at a mission scroll intently. Once he looked up, he spotted her looking at him while holding a piece of paper. "Ohayo, Yuugao-san, may I ask what that piece of paper is about?" – Asked Kakashi, though never taking his eyes off his mission scroll. Yuugao for his part handed the paper to Kakashi as in wanting him to read rather than her to tell him. Naruto
After reading, Kakashi sighed. What he read was an order from Hokage to give Yuugao a two day vacation in order to get reacquainted with her normal weight. However, Kakashi had no other choice, having to ignore the Hokage's orders, since the mission his team was about to do consist of an information gathering mission near Konoha's marked district. "I'm sorry Yuugao-san; we cannot comply with such an order. Our team has an information gathering mission around Konoha's market district. However, you don't need to worry since we won't be doing any physical effort." – Said Kakashi, making Yuugao look down slightly sad about not being able to rest a little bit. Oh no, Naruto's date. I have to tell him.
"I understand senpai." – Said Yuugao still looking down, making Kakashi wonder why his second in command was sad about taking such a mission. If his mind served him correctly, the woman was eager for each assignment, never once backing away from a challenge, now here she is showing signs of not wanting to ditch the mission. Something was definitely amiss with his vice-captain and something told him that a certain blonde was involved. Kakashi knew that Naruto was having feelings for her and he also knew such a feeling was mutual, but if she was sad about Naruto, maybe the boy faced her about asking her for a date.
However seeing it as a personal matter, Kakashi shrugged it off, telling her to meet their team in twenty minutes on top of the Anbu HQ and then disappeared within a swirl of leaves, leaving Yuugao to her thoughts. She thought about what she would say to Naruto that she wouldn't be able to attend their date. Instantly, Yuugao cursed the blonde from rarely seeing him sad about something, except the time of his first kill, since, because of this, she didn't know he would react to the news. Her professional side said that he would understand since she had a mission; however her personal side told that the blonde Namikaze would be crushed to be stood up like this. After measuring the two sides, Yuugao sighed, seeing that she didn't have a choice.
However because of the fact that their date would have to postponed, that didn't mean that she would leave him waiting outside her door forever. Since she had time to meet her team, she quickly left HQ and speed up to Naruto's house since it was relatively close. After a quick travel, Yuugao landed at the building in front of Naruto's house, more specifically his room. Quickly scribing a little note explaining her motive of absence, she strapped it within a kunai and threw it at the open window's direction and then seeing it pierce Naruto's wall. Satisfied, Yuugao then left towards her rendezvous point where she was supposed to meet her team, wishing Naruto would understand her situation.
--Back with Naruto--
Getting out of the shower, Naruto heard the sound of something inside his room and then went there to investigate. Seeing the Kunai which he figured belong to Yuugao, Naruto smiled and yanked the little note attached to it.
Naruto-kun, I sorry about cancelling our date; the fact is that right after I was about to handle Hokage's order, Kakashi-senpai told me about the necessity of my presence on a mission our team will be fulfilling. I hope that you can forgive me and I hope we can schedule another date for us. Also, since we'll be doing an information gathering mission, I don't know when it will be over. I'm sorry yet again. Hopefully, I'll get to see your performance at the chunnin exams. Good luck with your training, Naruto-kun and once again forgive me.
Yuugao.
After Naruto read the note, he smiled upon seeing her consideration with him. However, he would remember to scowl her from apologizing so much, even though she had a perfectly accepted motive. A ninja's mission always came before their social life and therefore Naruto understood that. Gently yanking the kunai off the wall, Naruto kept the kunai close from his own set and put a different set of clothes than he was supposed to wear. Although Naruto wasn't leaving today, he would be able to attend his best hobby which was to watch the full moon and all its glory.
Some would think after all these years, watching the full moon would eventually get tiring and therefore Naruto would stop doing it. However, few actually knew that Naruto was literally addicted to such a light. True to his father's words once, Naruto was like a werewolf except the obvious part of resembling a wolf physically. However since he still had some time until the full moon was scheduled to appear; Naruto directed his attention to the scroll of the most difficult technique yet. The Raiton Ikazuchi Butoukai Hou (Lightning Style: Thunder Ball Cannon Jutsu) was by far Naruto's most difficult technique yet, taking almost two years to learn it fully. Until now, Naruto was able to master the ball formation, though he had still to guess how much of Fuuton Daitoppa (Wind Style: Great Breakthrough Jutsu) he needed to launch the ball successfully.
Now looking at the scroll for what seemed like 1100th time he did so, Naruto threw it hard on top of his table, showing just how stupid he was, seeing that the only way to achieve the technique was to practice it, rather than once again read the theory which by the way he already memorized everything. What Naruto needed right now was a way of not rather launch the ball, but instead control its path somehow? Wait, control the path of objects, why that sentence seems familiar to me…..I remember Asuma-sensei telling me something about that, but then he thought I was still inexperienced to be able to do such a thing.
Flashback on
Naruto was practicing some new katas from Asuma's twin knife style when Asuma called him up. "Naruto, come here for a second" – Said Asuma making Naruto drop his stance and then walk towards his temporary sensei. "Naruto, I see that now isn't much more I can teach you regarding fuuton ninjutsu, however there is a final technique that only Suna jounin or even higher can do. It's called Fuuton Suiran Reppu (Wind Style: Verdant Mountain's Violent Wind). This specific jutsu is ranked as a C ranked one by Suna's standards, however while its rank is low, the ninja's chakra control would have to be far from excellent. This technique can control an object's movements, watch." – Said Asuma, as he threw one of his trench knifes on the ground and made the technique.
What happened next made Naruto's eyes grow big as he saw the knife literally getting off the ground on its own and start spinning madly. Upon seeing Asuma, Naruto managed to see that Asuma was doing the mi (snake) seal and applying fuuton chakra towards the knife, controlling her movements. "Wow, Asuma-sensei, do you think I can do that?" – Asked Naruto, definitely eager to learn it. "Unfortunately no Naruto; while I can see that you almost perfected your fuuton ninjutsu, you'd need to have almost perfect chakra control in order to perform this technique." – Said Asuma, before seeing the boy look down sadly.
Flashback off
"Huh, I wonder if such a technique is listed in my book" – Said Naruto before picking the book in question. It's been a while since Naruto opened his fuuton ninjutsu book since he figured that he did learn quite a lot of fuuton techniques. However, as he was flipping through pages, he realized his foolishness in seeing that the book still contained even more jutsus, making Naruto wonder if he could even memorize all of them. As he flipped through the pages in search for the jutsu in question, he found it near the book's end, which was no surprise to him if what Asuma said was true. According to Asuma, the jutsu was tough because of the chakra control needed in order to control the direction of objects.
As he read the jutsu's description, the theory consisted of surrounding the object with a little typhoon. After that, the ninja would get to control the typhoon, which meant that the object would be controlled as well. Once he stopped reading, he found that the theory was once again rather simple, but like always, the practice was the toughest part. Huh, in order to make a typhoon around the thunder ball, I have to be sure not to mix both of them, since it would dissipate both energies or worse….the energy from the encounter can come back at me, attacking me instead.
After thorough consideration, Naruto figured that since the raiton technique would no longer be shot straight forwards, might as well make some changes to it. If Naruto's theory proved to be correct, then he could control the thunder ball through whatever direction he want, therefore eliminating one of the attack's weakness which would be if the enemy simply moved out of the ball's path. Therefore, a: little change of name would be in order, Naruto thought. Okay, since it won't be considered cannon then, how about simply eliminating that part. "Ok, then this technique will be from now on called Raiton Ikazuchi Butoukai (Lightning Style: Thunder Ball Jutsu). Now, that the name is set, let's see if I can make this technique finally work.
Since Naruto's focus was diverted towards his lightning jutsu, Naruto forgot to pay attention to the fact that the sun was setting down and that the moon was rising up to the sky, illuminating everything once again. "Wow, it's night already. The time sure passes quickly when you're having fun. Now, let's set everything up on the roof so I can enjoy the moonlight." – Said Naruto as he shunshined up to the roof and there he stood sitting with his legs crossed, looking up to the magnificence that happen to illuminate Konoha with its light. "Wow, so beautiful!" – Whispered Naruto as a broad smile appeared on his face.
--The day of the tournament--
Two weeks after, the chunnin tournament date arrived. Because of the sun light, Naruto awoke, though a little grumpy from his month training so far. Being able to pass the first steps of the chunnin exams, managed to rise even more Naruto's need to become stronger, therefore training essentially kept him occupied for quite a lot of time with very few spare time to relax and enjoy the sight he got from the Hokage Monument, being that his favorite place to go. However there was one thing Naruto wasn't happy about and that's being Yuugao's sudden disappearance from view. Since her note explaining (well more apologizing then explaining) the reason for her absence, the purple haired Anbu had yet to be seen.
Naruto even had the trouble of asking Kurenai and Anko about it, but both of them told him not to worry since Anbu got some long term missions from time to time. Still Naruto wanted at least to see her before the chunnin tournament began. It was not because he was scared or because he wanted some reassurance of his abilities, but rather her presence to see him fight. Since they meet with each other, their rivalries only grew and spite the fact that both of them had feelings for each other, both of them were warriors at heart.
Nonetheless, Naruto wouldn't brood too much on this and kept up with his training. His taijustu was improved greatly after he got accustomed to his natural weight. Also he managed himself against ten kage bunshins which while he was with the gravity seal, he couldn't take more than six of his clones without having to dissipate them. After that he only improved his ninjutsu techniques, hoping one day to fully master them. However, his twin knife style training was solely reverted to practicing Asuma's move in order to connect the style with ninjustu. Even though Naruto were victorious at the end accomplish to maneuver the technique, it took some time from him to do so. The reason was because at first he couldn't do fast enough, therefore knowing that the enemy wouldn't wait for him to complete before taking the advantage head on.
Lastly, Naruto's ultimate raiton technique was almost completed which he glad since he pretty much spent two years trying to do so. While he could control the lightning ball now with the Fuuton Suiran Reppu, he could only do so within a short distance before the lightning ball dissipated or just would continue its last course before the control ended. He seriously didn't want to depend on such jutsu, because of a number of things that could go wrong at the moment. For the technique to be accurately performed, he needed at least a considerable quantity of chakra capacity since not only because of the focus on holding the technique, but also since he ended up using chakra in order to control the lightning ball.
Getting up, Naruto went to the bathroom in order to wash up and do all the necessities. After that he put his outfit and stared at the mirror wondering if today would be the day that he would either add a chunnin vest on top of it or succumb to Konoha's standard chunnin outfit. Putting that aside for now, Naruto went down stairs just to see his mother having breakfast quietly. Seating quietly as not to disturb his mother's moment, Naruto grabbed a few things to eat and some milk. Upon looking at her one more time, Naruto smiled seeing that Kushina was trapped into another dimension, playing, talking and singing to her future daughter. Naruto knew from his father how attached she was to him during pregnancy and while someone would expect jealousy from Naruto since he was about to become a chunnin and his mother didn't even say a word, but he knew better that Kushina always wanted a little girl. Not to say that Naruto also wanted a little brother or sister, always dreaming about how much he could play with him or her or even teach some stuff if he or she wanted to become a ninja there is.
Getting up, he went towards the door before taking a look back to see his mother and smiled, knowing that his sister will be treated with much care and love as he did, even better since now he would be there as well. I have to become stronger to be able to protect her as well. Thought Naruto as he jumped towards the next building forwards the place where the tournament would take place. On the way, he was considering the competition. Because of the number of competitors, the fights had to be arranged so that each genin fights at least two times.
--With Yuugao--
Meanwhile, Yuugao was going through a wide list of curses inside her head because of her situation right now. As a result of her last mission, her Anbu team managed to find out some illegal activities going on inside Konoha's market district, therefore her Anbu team was inside a room going through trade documents in order to find documental proof. The reason why she was pissed was because it's been two weeks since she literally stood Naruto up and today would be his chunnin tournament. She had promised him that she would be there to see him fight, but this mission was still far from over and ever second that passed was becoming like torture to Yuugao.
--At the chunnin stadium--
After Naruto's arrival, he saw his team gathering in front of what seemed like the tournament chart. As he arrived closer, he greeted Tenten, Neji and Anko who turned to greet him as well. "Ohayo Naruto. Tell me how did training go?" – Asked Neji to which Naruto smiled and answered. "It was excellent, Neji. Although I will refrain telling any of you since we may be facing each other, won't we?" – Said Naruto asking that next part while looking at the board.
As he looked, Anko began explaining the order of the fights. "We actually don't know if you guys will fight each other or not. The first battle will be between a genin from Kumo and one from Kiri. The second one will be between you Naruto and a Suna genin named Takashido Oroi. Next one will be Neji's fight against a genin from Kumo. Be careful Neji, some people uses this fights not to become chunnins, but rather to complete an objective set by his respective village; I'm not saying he will be after the byakugan, but stay on alert. The forth fight will be between another genin from Kiri and a genin from Iwa. The fifth one will be between you Tenten and a genin from Iwa. Since there is an uneven number of a fighter, Tenten, in case you win your fight, you'll be up to fight at the finals." – Said Anko, explaining the orders, while waiting for doubts or any information regarding their opponents.
"Anko-sensei, what could you tell us about our opponents?" – Asked Tenten, although Naruto and Neji looked at their sensei, also curious about their opponents. "Well, Naruto's opponent, from what I heard the jounin saying, wants to be a fuuton specialist. He has considerable chakra reserves. I do not know about his other abilities, but since he wants to become a ninjutsu specialist, there is a good chance that he could be mid to long range fighter. Neji's opponent uses C ranked raiton techniques together with taijutsu, quite similar to Naruto's fighting, so you shouldn't have many problems trying to figure out how to counterattack. Tenten, your guy came from Iwa, but he is considered to be a taijutsu specialist, so close range." – Said Anko, seeing nods of appreciation from her genins.
"Okay, Team 5. Just a piece of advice to all of you. You guys have potential to become chunnins, however sometimes potential don't mean anything if the opponent somehow manages to land a substantial hit, disabling your best abilities. Remember a chunnin not only has to be powerful, but also have analytical abilities. Don't jump head on against the enemy without a strategy. And remember that if I see that you guys lost because of stupidity, I'll be summoning so much snakes in order to chase you, I doubt any of you would be walking any time soon. Well, good luck team, ja ne." – Said Anko, before disappearing without even seeing the look of despair from her genins, simply because they knew she wasn't kidding with the threat.
A while later, all the genin stood at the center of the arena awaiting for the Yondaime Hokage to address the fighters as well as the audience composed of daimyos, shinobis from other villages as well as from Konoha. From Konoha, were all the recently graduated genin which in the future would become the Konoha nine and some jounins namely Aoba, Kurenai, Asuma, Gai, Anko and others.
Meanwhile, Naruto was looking through the audience, looking for traces of Yuugao either as a Cat masked Anbu or herself, but sadly to no avail. Deep inside he wanted her to be here and it saddened him to see that either she was on a mission or chose not to come, but he shrugged the last alternative, since Yuugao would be here if she was able to. Deciding to present her with his chunnin vest, Naruto vowed to impress the judges, therefore earning the position of chunnin. Looking up, he saw his father seated with Kakashi standing next to him as well as the raikage and kazekage.
Minato for his part was watching the crowd as they were seating amongst the audience. When he saw that the gates were closed, Minato rose from his seat and began his announcement. "Welcome ladies and gentleman to the third phase of the chunnin exams. As you may or may not know, the genins that stand before you will perform all out fights against each other in hopes to be promoted to the rank of chunnin; now without further a due, let the tournament begin" – Said Minato before the crowd clapped and cheered for the contestants.
Genma being the proctor for the third part of the chunnin exams turned to speak. "Okay, let's begin. Now everyone except Satori Kato and Kaguya Yazo, please go to that booth. The chunnin exams will begin." – Said Genma to which the rest of the genins went to the waiting booth in order to see the fight. After they arrived, Naruto and Neji were watching the member of the Kaguya clan with interest. Their kekkei genkai were amongst the most dangerous ones, using their bones as weapons.
After Genma ushered the start of the match, the competitors vanished in thin air and clashed at the center of the arena, exchanging taijutsu attacks. The kumo genin was having trouble trying to land substantial hit on the Kaguya, but because of his kekkei genkai, Yazo wasn't feeling any pain from the blows. After a while, Yazo landed a kick at Kato, sending him flying and started making hand seals. "Suiton Daibafuku no Jutsu (Water Style: Grand Waterfall Jutsu)" – Said the Kaguya member and instantly a huge torrent of water was sent towards the opponent, giving him no alternative other than doing a kawarimi and get out of the way. Instantly, as he appeared to the right of Yazo, Kato started his seals before mentally saying the name of his technique. "Raiton Hekireki Hoippu (Lightning Style: Thunder Whip Jutsu)".
Seeing the thunder whip coming his way, Yazo was surprised to see the speed of the attack. Quickly, he pulled a sword from his arm made of bone and placed it in front of the attack, blocking the first of the multiple attacks. Kato after seeing the attack being blocked, ushered to follow an attack combo, attacking in succession, giving Yazo no alternative rather than defend himself. For a moment, Kato was winning the battle, since Yazo didn't do anything other than defend himself. Out of the blue, Yazo increased the thrust of his bone sword, disrupting the thunder whip and attacking Kato with his kekkai genkai attack called Tenshi Sendan (bone finger bullet). With that, Yazo fired five bone bullets, hitting Kato's arms, legs and his stomach, rendering him unconscious. "Winner Kaguya Yazo" – Said Genma before the crowd exploded with cheers for the Kaguya clan member's victory.
Naruto for his part was amazed by the abilities shown and hoped to fight the Kaguya member. Neji smiled seeing that his jyuuken could be able to penetrate the Kaguya's defense, seeing that his family taijutsu attacked the enemy's tenketsus instead of the body. Meanwhile, Minato was talking to the mizukage, asking about the loss of the kaguya clan to which the mizukage responded by saying that Yazo was among the only two survivors of the clan with another Kaguya Kimimaro but he was declared a missing-nin last year.
"Now, next match. Will Namikaze Naruto and Takashido Oroi approach the arena." – Said Genma before seeing the said names coming down from the bench. Genma remembered Naruto for his mission with his team a long time ago and if Naruto was tough back then, now Genma could expect anything coming from the blonde Namikaze. Also Kurenai, Asuma, Aoba and Anko were thrilled to see the blonde in action. Anko, Kurenai and Asuma already knew the kid's potential from previous spars against him, but Aoba only saw him twice and didn't know how much stronger he got since last time.
Minato for his part was smiling upon seeing his son walk calmly towards the center of the arena as if he was confident of his abilities. Now, it's your chance Naruto-kun. Show all these people what you're made of. I'm proud of you my son. You worked really hard to be where you are now, do your best. "I would suggest that your son watch his back, Hokage-dono, Oroi is very talented with fuuton ninjutsu" – Said Kazekage before seeing a wide smile from Minato making him shiver inside from seeing the very same smile that happened to win the Iwa-Konoha war. "Do not worry about Naruto, Kazekage-dono. It's your genin, I'm worried about." – Said Minato, making Kazekage wonder if the boy knew his father's techniques. After seeing the discussion, the raikage add his voice on the conversation. "Your son does look confident Hokage-dono. This match will be interesting."
Back with Naruto, he was studying his opponent before Genma usher them to fight. Ok, he is a fuuton user, so if I were to use fuuton, I'll be just wasting chakra. Therefore fuuton is out of the question. Raiton it is then. However, I have to see how good he is before I choose the attack. Thought Naruto before Genma shouted the beginning of the match. After that, both fighters eyed each other. Oroi didn't want to attack first, since he knew Naruto was the Hokage's son, so attacking head on would only prove stupid to do so. Out of the blue, Naruto made a cross hand seal and three kage bunshins appeared. "Scatter" – Said Naruto, before the clones sunshined within a little tornado and disappeared. Oroi was wondering why he would revert to waist chakra without even knowing about his abilities, but little did he know that the clones appeared on each corner of the stadium, therefore making all Narutos face the opponent from a different angle. Oroi continued to study Naruto's face reactions, a little stunned to see that he was smiling. Out of the blue, three kunais pierced Oroi's body, making him fall not only from panic since he didn't know how Naruto did, but also because of the impact. Seeing the momentum, Naruto charged towards the opponent, while doing hand seals before landing his hands on the opponent's chest, saying Raiton Daigeki Mahi (Lightning Style: Shock Paralysis Jutsu). With that, Naruto sent a wave of lightning chakra through his body, paralyzing him completely.
"Winner, Namikaze Naruto." – Screamed Genma. The crowd was dead silent, wondering what the hell happened since the suna genin didn't do anything. But the ones, who knew, rose and clapped in recognition of Naruto's tactics. The recently graduated genins were still wondering what happened as well, but Iruka explained to them. "Iruka-sensei, I didn't see anything. My brother said that this Naruto is very capable, but I didn't see anything." – Said Sasuke to which Iruka smiled in recognition of Naruto's tactics and turned to explain. "It's very simple yet effective. While the opponent thought that the kage bunshins simply disappeared, actually they used shunshin to appear at certain positions around Oroi, trapping him without his knowledge. While from a distance, the clones threw the kunais, hitting the target and when Naruto saw the opening, he used that raiton technique of his to paralyze the opponent, therefore winning the match." – Said Iruka, explaining to the young genins.
"What a pussy, revert to deceive the enemy." – Said one of the genin with a puppy on top of his head by the name of Inuzuka Kiba. "Kiba, using brute force isn't always the best strategy to win a fight. Also deception can be the best weapon a shinobi has in order to win a fight. This is a tournament, Kiba. Naruto will have to fight again, so he can't be wasting chakra where there is no need for it." – Said Iruka, scowling the hyperactive member of the Inuzuka clan.
Meanwhile the jounins were clapping at the display. Asuma as well as Kurenai applauded at the boy's tactics, while Anko smiled upon seeing Naruto avoiding unnecessary use of chakra while taking care of the enemy. Gai, however, were screaming about youthfulness and how Naruto were just like Minato. Speaking of the Hokage, said person smiled at seeing how easily Naruto dispatched the enemy without showing any of his attacks while the kazekage and the raikage were staring at the little blonde, observing him. The kazekage was pissed upon seeing Suna's best genin being defeated so easily while the raikage smiled upon seeing the blonde's jutsu. "Hokage-dono, it seems your son prefers my village's ninjutsus, rather than yours." – Said the raikage, chuckling a little, being accompanied by Minato who nodded at the raikage's assessment. "Yeah, well not entirely true; but you'll see what I'm talking about in a while"
--With Naruto--
While walking towards the booth, Naruto was taken aback when a shuriken landed a little further from his next step with a note. Smiling broadly from seeing the same thing happening two weeks ago, Naruto picked the note and turned to read.
Nice fighting Naruto-kun; although I hope to see more of your abilities later on.
Love Yuugao.
PS: Look above you.
After reading, Naruto stopped and turned looking up, only to see two Anbus standing on top of the stadium. One with the cat mask (Yuugao) and another with the dog mask (Kakashi). The dog masked Anbu sent thumbs up while the cat masked Anbu took off her mask in order to smile at the blonde and then returned it in place. Naruto nodded in return and kept walking back towards the booth. Up on the stands, people were wondering what Naruto was looking at, since the Anbus were on top of their heads, well except two people. Anko and Kurenai already knew Naruto's smile when he saw Yuugao, so they didn't need confirmation. Naruto always displayed that smile when near Yuugao and today was no different and to both girls, both Yuugao and Naruto were extremely lucky to have found one another. "Anko-chan, they are a perfect match, aren't they?" – Asked Kurenai to which Anko nodded, showing vehemently that she knew it from the start. "Yep there are. I've told her from the beginning. Now, look at Naruto's smile, it's quite obvious what each feel for the other" – Said Anko.
While people in general were talking about the fights so far, they heard Genma shouting to Hyuuga Neji and Takaito Shita to approach the center of the arena. Neji, after hearing this, was just like Naruto. Walking casually, Neji passed next to Naruto and just eyed him for a moment with Naruto doing the same to Neji. While staring at each other, both of them were smiling. "Neji, I want to fight against you with everything you've got. Finish this quickly and save chakra. I want to see how well you've improved." – Said Naruto to which Neji smiled accepting the challenge. "It's a challenge Naruto. I'll seal some tenketsus and this guy will be gone before he knows what happened." – Said Neji.
"Do this; I want to look at the Raikage's face when he sees you beating his genin." – Said Naruto before turning around and heading to the booth while Neji smiled once again in recognition and turned to the arena. As he arrived, his opponent was already there and Neji could see the guy's anticipation, which only confirmed Anko-sensei's suspicions. Neji knew that this guy must be Kumo's hope of getting the byakugan or even beating it, showing to the world that the Hyuuga doujutsu is not unbeatable. He stopped facing his opponent and waited for Genma to shout the beginning of the match. "Begin" – Shouted Genma to which Neji smirked, activating his byakugan. "Gladly. I don't know you and I as hell not even bothering know your real name. All I'm saying is this. You're in range of my divination. Hakke Rokujuuyonshou (Eight Divination Signs, Sixty-Four Palms of the Hand)". With that, Neji charged the opponent and a few seconds later, 64 of the guy's tenketsus were sealed, rendering him unconscious.
After the result, Naruto grinned upon seeing the angered face displayed by the raikage. Naruto and Neji had already displayed hate at Kumo and Iwa, having already disposed of some shinobis from these villages. When Neji arrived near Naruto, Naruto grinned once again. "Good one, Neji. The raikage was pretty pissed about it." – Said Naruto before seeing Neji smile at him and Tenten sigh a little bit. "Man, sometimes I don't understand either of you. Keep pushing such people and you guys will be in trouble." – Said Tenten, making both of them to look at her like they didn't know what she was talking about. "Did you say something, Tenten?" – Asked Neji, earning laughs from Naruto and Tenten to smack her forehead protector. "Forget it".
--With Anko and the other jounins--
After Neji's quick victory, all the jounins except Anko were at loss of words right now. First Naruto, now Neji. "Anko-chan, I thought that only Naruto was strong, but Neji finished his fight in record time." – Said Kurenai to which Anko laughed a little bit in recognition of her team's efforts. "Don't worry Kurenai-chan, Neji and Naruto didn't even sweat yet. Also, I believe Neji finished the fight quickly only to piss the raikage off. He and Naruto vowed to piss off both Iwa and Kumo, so I believe they planned to be like this all along. I swear one day, those two will be cause of war against said villages." – Said Anko although still smiling to which Asuma entered the conversation. "Neji is a genius from the Hyuuga clan and Naruto is talented on his own right. Quite a team you got that, Anko-san. I'm eager to see what Tenten is made of".
"While no one genin or chunnin could compare with Naruto in terms of ninjutsu or Neji in terms of taijutsu, Tenten is proficient with weapons and katon ninjutsu." – Said Anko to which Asuma nodded, while eager to take a team of his own after the end of the chunnin exams.
--At the arena--
"Now, will Satoshi Yahiko and Hoshikage Kira approach the arena" – Shouted Genma addressing for the forth fight before seeing the two genins get down from the booth and approach the center of the arena. Amongst the crowd, people were whispering about the kiri genin's name as similar to Hoshikage Kisame's who in turn became missing-nin some time ago, making Kira flinch. She was pissed at her uncle Kisame from attempting an attack at the Water Daimyou, therefore tainting the Hoshikage clan. Nevertheless, Kira vowed to become stronger and becoming chunnin was her next obstacle. Well that and proving to the world that the Hoshikage clan. As she arrived at the center, she eyed her opponent. From what she knew about the guy, she knew that Yahiko was somewhere proficient with doton jutsu, however she didn't know about the guy's genjutsu and taijutsu or even other ninja arts. "Fighters, begin" – Said Genma before seeing Kira did some hand seals, saying Suiton Mizu Kiken (Water Style: Water Atmosphere Jutsu).
After that, blue particles started floating near the center of the arena making Yahiko tremble in fear from the implications of such jutsu. Meanwhile, all the suiton users present at the arena were trying to hold their jaws from falling. Such a jutsu, even though low level and supplementary, could overcome the biggest weakness of suiton jutsus which tend to rely on water to use. Yuugao for her part was trying to hold herself from dropping to the arena and ask the genin to teach her such jutsu. Back to the fight, Kira started doing a high sequence of hand seals and suddenly a huge water dragon appeared and charged Yahiko who in turn made kawarimi with a mud clone and appeared within some distance from Kira. Quickly taking a bunch of shuriken and kunai, Yahiko threw the barrage of projectiles at Kira who made two mizu bunshins in order to assist her in taking care of the projectiles and then adding a few of her own together with an exploding tag. Upon closure, Yahiko cursed the attack while charging chakra through his feet in order to get out of the way of the explosion. After dodging, Yahiko was trapped by six mizu bunshins. Seeing no other alternative, Yahiko ran through hand seals then slamming his hands on the ground. Doton Jishin (Earth Style: Earthquake jutsu). With that, the bunshins lost their balance, giving Yahiko the opportunity to take care of all of them by slashing them with kunai.
Seeing her plan frustrated, Kira proceeded to do more hand seals and this time, focusing more chakra and screaming with all her lungs, sending her last attack. "Suiton Shuishouha (Water Style: Wave Collision Destruction Jutsu). After that, a huge wave went towards the opponent who quickly did his hand signs for the technique called Doton Dochuu Eigyo (Earth Style: Underground Fish Projection Jutsu) and sank below the ground, swiftly escaping the tidal wave that threatened to cause quite a lot of damage to him. After seeing Yahiko appear from the ground, Kira cursed herself from using so much chakra and had no choice other than forfeit the match. "Proctor, I forfeit. I'm very low on chakra" – Said Kira, receiving a nod from Genma who gave the victory to Yahiko.
As Kira was being attended by the medic-nins, the crowd cheered at her up to the point of hearing claps coming from the crowd and from the booth. Upon looking further, Kira noticed that the Hokage's son was the one clapping at her. Naruto for his part was amazed by her display of suiton ninjutsu as well as quick thinking. However, while Kira was good, Naruto had no doubts about that Yuugao's abilities in reference to suiton ninjutsu and also her fighting abilities. According to Naruto, using only ninjutsu was just a waist of chakra; however Kira had the background of good kenjutsu users so it was only natural that she would learn it eventually.
Next was Tenten's fight and she would be fighting another Iwa genin as well. Since she was a part of team 5, Iwa had a bit of a quarry with them. Every once in a while, Team 5 ended up ruining some of Iwa's missions from time to time. And now she would fight against one of Iwa's genin, but this time she would be alone against him and that thought scared her a little bit. Tenten remembered Anko talking to her about it.
Flashback on
After team 5's mission near Iwa border, Anko and her genins were coming back to Konoha carrying some wounds and even a couple of deep cuts. Their mission was to protect a farmer from attack from bandits. It turned out that said bandits hired an iwa chunnin team to help them to attack the farmer. In the end, Anko managed to take care of the tougher ones while Naruto and Neji managed to take care of two of the teams with help from Tenten's kunais and shurikens. When they arrived at Konoha from what turned out to be a B ranked mission instead of a C ranked, Naruto and Neji went to the hospital, while Anko and Tenten went towards the Hokage's office in order to deliver the report. On the way, Anko turned to talk to Tenten. "Tenten, I want to talk to you regarding the last mission" – Said Anko, making Tenten look at her, wondering about what Anko would want to talk about. "What's about Anko-sensei?" – Asked Tenten.
"I noticed that when the last chunnin attacked us, you were frightened, weren't you? If Neji wasn't quick enough to make the earth wall, there would be some serious injury. What happened?" – Asked Anko before seeing Tenten look to the ground in shame. Truthfully, she was beating herself up about this since the trip home started. "I….thought I was going to die, Anko-sensei. When the enemy moved to attack me, I was defenseless, I was unprepared. I…I just stood there waiting for the death blow" – Said Tenten now on the verge of tears.
"Tenten, look at me right now. Mistakes can't afford to happen while on missions, that's why we train close to exhaustion. As a kunoichi, you have to be alert all the time. It's not always you'll have someone to cover for you. I thought we got that covered because of my snake summoning training." – Said Anko before seeing a negative response from Tenten. "I thought I got it covered, but you never attacked with killing intent. This time was my first death escape, I'm different from Naruto and Neji. Those guys escaped death constantly because of Iwa and Kumo." – Mumbled Tenten from trying to compare herself from her teammates to which Anko responded with a slap at her face. "Pull yourself together, girl. What, it wouldn't do any good to wallow in self pity now. What's done it's done. Now, we need to up your awareness training. Come on, you're on Anko's team." – Screamed Anko, cheering Tenten up a little bit, who whipped her tears and nodded while smiling.
Flashback off
"Will Tenten and Higurashi Akira approach the center of the arena." – Shouted Genma, earning Tenten's attention as well as her teammates who also remembered Anko telling them about what happened. "Tenten, keep your eyes open for sneak attacks and be always aware. You'll be great." – Said Neji to which Tenten smiled and Naruto showed her thumbs up. "Just another one to crush, Tenten; show them what you're made of" – Said Naruto also receiving a nod from Tenten. I can do this, my team believes in me, my sensei believes in me – Thought Tenten as she looked up and saw Anko looking at her as well.
Up the stand, Anko was looking at her genin slightly worried, but also hopeful. You can do this Tenten, makes us proud.
Back to the center of the arena, Tenten was at a specific distance in reference to her adversary, being it not so close and yet no so far either. Meanwhile, Akira was taunting her with gestures and small talk, but to no avail. Tenten was confident and therefore any taunting at her part wouldn't change anything. Waiting for Genma's authorization, Tenten was already reaching for four shurikens to throw at the guy as soon as the possible. When Genma shouted, Tenten didn't waste any time and threw the shurikens against the guy as well as making hand seals. "Shuriken Kage Bunshin no Jutsu (Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu); with that the four shurikens turned to forty and Akira jumped to the side, as to avoid the torrents of shurikens which hit the ground.
After that, Akira charged Tenten while already preparing for a taijutsu match. Quickly arriving, Akira started with the punching assault, leaving Tenten no other option than to block and dodge. After a while, Tenten managed to saw Akira's skills with taijutsu and concluded that a little evasion technique was in order. Not even bothering for hand seals, since she had to block the punches, Tenten wanted for Akira to throw the last punch, before substituting herself with a tree log and appearing within quite a distance from the opponent.
Using the distance, Tenten went through hand seals and gathered air through her lungs. Upon exhaling, Tenten made a huge fireball that charged towards Akira who slapped his hands on the ground and screamed Doton Doryuheki (Earth Style: Earth Wall Jutsu), blocking the incoming fire ball and then dissipating the wall wearing an arrogant grin on his face. "If I were you, I wouldn't smile like that" – Said Tenten to which Akira smiled, threatening her to tell him why. "Oh and why is that girlie?" – Asked Akira, taunting her, not even realizing the great mistake he made of calling her by that specific name.
Up on the stands, Naruto and Neji flinched at Tenten's sudden killing intent. They remembered what happened to the last one who called her that, since they had to send the guy to the hospital after he challenged Tenten to a 'friendly' spar. "Neji, do you think she's going to kill him?" – Asked Naruto, not even surprised if Tenten even get to kill the guy. "Hard to say, although you do remember what kept her from killing the last one who called her that, don't you?" – Said Neji to which Naruto nodded. "Yeah, I do. Us"
Meanwhile up with the jounins, Anko now felt sympathy for Akira. "With all the words that guy could've said, he had to call her that" – Said Anko, earning Kurenai's attention. "What are you talking about?" – Asked Kurenai to which Anko chose to elaborate. "Tenten hate people who treat women like they were weaker than man. One time, one Konoha genin challenged her to a spar and Tenten refused. After he taunted her calling her 'girlie', Tenten lost her mind and kicked the shit out of the boy. After that, Tenten tried to cook the bastard by sending a fireball towards him. Thanks to Naruto and Neji, Tenten wasn't charged with murder. Neji made an earth wall and Naruto used shunshin to get the boy out of harm's way. According to Naruto, they had to take the guy to the hospital from serious injures" – Said Anko.
"Quite a firecracker, you got there Anko-san" – Said Asuma, still looking at the weapon user to which Kurenai and Anko scowled at him. "You'd do well not do go there, Asuma. Every kunoichi I know hates being treated like that. Tenten just happens to express herself like that." – Said Kurenai making Asuma flinch at the insinuation. He knew how Anko, Kurenai and Yuugao behaved after hearing such comments and he knew better than to provoke any of them. It was right there that Asuma felt sympathy from Naruto who happen to hang around with all three of them.
Back at the fight, Tenten was seeing red right now. No one called her that and got away with it. She concluded that a little lesson was in place. Even though she didn't master her next jutsu, she would do well to teach this Akira a lesson. Not giving the guy any time to regret his choice of words, Tenten went quickly through a series of hand seals, while gathering huge amounts of air inside her lungs. Once she exhaled (Katon Karyuu Endan – Fire Stile Flame Missile Jutsu), a missile of white flame charged towards Akira whose only action possible was to stop smiling and become scared of the incoming lava missile which happened to hit him dead on, burning the guy heavily. "Winner Tenten" – Shouted Genma before ushering the medics to attend to Akira's burnings ASAP, because of Tenten's attack.
After the medics carried Akira away, Genma proceeded to speak. "The first round has ended. We'll take a break of half an hour for the remaining fighters to rest and then we'll proceed with the second round".