Shingen Takeda 1521- I know you aren't gonna be happy with this, but…while I will eventually get the two together, I don't want it to be like all the other Naru/Hina stories out there. It'll take some time for them to realize that they are meant to be with each other. You know how people are; they never can see what we see.
Narutos Vixen- No no no. I WONT have any of that. I'm just showing that in this story, Naruto wasn't hooked to Sakura like in the manga. He had other crushes than her. I have a different person in mind for Ino…
Pre-Exam Jitters! The Chuunin Exams Beckon on the Horizon!
Naruto was anxious as Team 7 and their new travel buddies walked along the forest path. They were going to be back in Konoha soon and Naruto missed home.
The blonde Kitsune looked over his group as they stopped for their last break. Sasuke was sitting by himself on a tree, being as big an emo as ever.
Zabuza and Haku kept to themselves. Zabuza was sharpening his sword and seemed to be muttering to himself. Haku kept sneaking furtive looks at Sasuke and blushed every time he looked in her direction.
Kakashi was laying on the ground, staring at clouds. It's become his favorite pastime as of late.
Inari was rapidly yammering with Jade and Nagare. Jade was a pretty girl, about ten-years-old. She had medium length, green hair and brilliantly bright red eyes. She wore a green dress that made her eyes look even brighter.
Nagare, also ten, had spiky grey hair and stone grey eyes. He wore black-rimmed glasses and a black shirt with the kanji for doom in grey, brown pants, and an odd, ornate bracelet.
Hinata was sitting by herself, staring off into space. Naruto looked at her, and all he could feel was anger. As much as he wished he could forget, she called him a monster. Like all the other villagers, she thought he was a bloodthirsty monster. They may act like all nice to him because his father is the Hokage, but his ears pick up what they whisper behind his back. Naruto was crushed that a person he thought he could trust was no better than anyone else.
By this time, Hinata had walked over to Naruto. "H-H-Hey!" she said chipperly. Naruto simply didn't say anything. "U-U-Uh, are you ok?" Hinata hesitantly asked.
Naruto stood up and walked away, sitting under the tree Sasuke was sitting in. The Uchiha smirked and said, "And you call me an emo." Hinata stared incredulously as Naruto didn't reply.
By sunset, the group had arrived at the southeastern gate of Konoha. After explaining the extra people to the sentries, they walked along into the village and to the Hokage Tower.
They arrived in Minato's office ten minutes later. "I see your mission went better than expected, Kakashi. You brought back Momoichi Zabuza as a prisoner," Minato said.
Kakashi replied, "Not as a prisoner. As an ally."
Minato looked at the young Jonin like he lost his mind. "You know Konoha doesn't associate with terrorists."
"But in the Code of Laws, Section III, Paragraph 56, written by the Nidaime Hokage, Senju Tobirama, a missing-nin who helps a Konoha-nin capture a criminal wanted in at least three major nations and swears his undying allegiance to our village can be granted citizenship in Konoha and indirectly Hi no Kuni," Kakashi shot back.
Minato rolled his eyes and sighed. "You know the law better than I do. I don't know if I should be proud or embarrassed. What criminal has Zabuza helped you capture?"
Kakashi turned to Hinata and said, "Take the kids out of here until I call for them." The Hyuuga did as her sensei asked. Kakashi pulled a scroll out of one of his jacket pockets. He bit his thumb and made some hand seals. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu (Summoning Technique)!" A small head appeared on the desk. Minato whistled as he looked at the head.
"Boukun Gato, a gangster born in Iwagakure no Sato (Village Hidden in the Rocks). Wanted in Tsuchi, Hi, Kumo, and Kaze for everything from rape and murder to public lewdness. Must have been one hell of a battle.
"Still, Zabuza is an A-Class Missing-nin. I'm not just going to hand over citizenship like that. You and your, um, what is she?" Minato inquired.
"She's my daughter, Haku," Zabuza replied, speaking for the first time since they left Nami.
"Well, you and Haku here have to be interrogated by ANBU. Once my men can determine you mean us no harm, I'll give you citizenship and rank," Minato said. "Now then, tell me about your mission."
After Team 7 filled Minato in on everything that happened and explained the reason the kids were with them, they were free to go.
"Well, anyone up for some ramen?" asked Kakashi. Sasuke and Hinata quickly agreed. Naruto began walking away from them. "Hey! I'm paying Naruto-ototo!" Kakashi shouted after him.
"No thanks," Naruto shouted back. Kakashi watched his brother walk away and turned to the other two ninja.
"I'll meet you at Ichiraku's. I gotta check on Naruto," said Kakashi. Kakashi chased after the Kitsune as Hinata watched on, worry on her face.
"Sasuke, would you know what's wrong with Naruto?" Hinata asked.
"I take it people don't take to kindly to being called out of their names," Sasuke said. "Wouldn't you agree?" And with that, Sasuke walked off toward Ichiraku's, leaving Hinata to reflect on what he said.
A few months had gone by, and life returned to normal in Konoha. Team 7 had returned to doing C-Rank missions, albeit their group chemistry was off, more so than ever before. Naruto would often go off on his own during battles, refusing help from both Sasuke AND Hinata. He wouldn't talk to them unless absolutely necessary. It got to the point where Naruto would refuse to eat with the squad, even if it was his favorite, beef ramen.
Zabuza and Haku passed the interrogation with flying colors. Zabuza was made a Jonin, while Haku was made a Genin, albeit on a reserve list, for there were no available openings on any Genin squads.
Right now, Naruto was lounging in downtown Konoha. He had just returned from another escort mission and was looking to have down time. As he walked closer to the Konoha Hospital, he noticed the crowds got larger, and it got quieter. Suddenly, the pungent odor of blood filled Naruto's nostrils. He leapt onto the rooftops and ran to what, or rather who, the crowd was looking at.
A young girl, about Naruto's age, with long black hair lay on the ground, bleeding profusely from the kunai wounds to her neck, wrists, and chest. A medic-nin was trying to revive her, but it didn't seem to be working.
And then Naruto saw them. A blonde boy in purple and a brunette boy in grey and brown. The brunette was covered in blood and shaking; the blonde watched the girl with nervous interest.
'That's Satsu and Kiokure! Then that means…oh Kami! Nai!' Naruto thought. Naruto's fears were confirmed when he jumped and landed near Kiokure. The girl on the ground, the girl who just died, was Ichiban Nai, a classmate of Naruto. [1]
"She's gone…I can't believe she's gone," Kiokure muttered as the medic-nin declared the time of death.
"This is all my fault," Satsu said. "I should have stopped the kunai! I know I could have! But I was so determined to catch those bandits!"
Naruto looked at Nai with a heavy heart. Although they never spoke and weren't friends, Naruto had respect for her that one might have for their comrade. It was definitely sad that she passed so soon.
"Satsu, Kiokure!" The three boys turned to see a Jonin with wild black hair and facial hair walking toward them.
Satsu and Kiokure bowed to him and said in unison, "Yes, Asuma-sensei?"
Asuma viewed Nai's body and turned his head as if disgusted. "Nai was our comrade and she was a ray of light in an otherwise dark world. She'd be pissed if she saw us moping around. Nai would want us to learn from her death and move on. Don't beat yourselves up over this. I've learned that if Shinigami wants you bad enough, he'll get you," Asuma said.
"You boys hurry along. I'll break the news to Nai's parents," he said. As they fought their way through the crowds, Naruto turned to Asuma. He could smell the tears that rolled down his face as he viewed Nai's bloody, lifeless body one more time.
A few weeks had gone by and Naruto was walking away from the cemetery, garbbed in black. Kiokure had asked Naruto to go with him to visit Nai's grave. The Ichibans owned an ice cream parlor and served as Chuunin for the village. They always treated Naruto with kindness, so Naruto thought the least he could do was show their daughter respect.
As Naruto walked, he saw Haku walking in his direction. She was garbbed in a bright blue tunic and black leggings. Her hair was tied with a pale blue hair tie and cascaded down her back.
"Konichiwa Naruto-san. How are you today?" Haku asked with a pleasant smile.
Naruto returned her sentiment and said, "I'm ok. I heard about you being on Squad 6."
"Yeah, I've never worked with anyone other than Tou-san. I was kinda nervous," Haku said.
Naruto smiled and replied, "You're with my best friend, Masurao Kiokure, and Toppyoushimonai Satsu. They're both strong ninja."
Before Haku could reply, Hinata and Sasuke turned the corner. Hinata waved at Haku and Naruto and walked over to them.
"N-N-Naruto-kun, w-w-we've been looking all over for you. S-S-Sensei wants to talk with us," Hinata said. Almost as if someone flipped a switch, Naruto became cold and distant. Everyone could feel the difference, especially Hinata.
"I'll meet him there," Naruto coldly replied. He turned around to walk away and bumped into a guy.
"Watch where you're going, punk," the guy said as he shoved Naruto into the ground. Naruto growled, sprung to his feet, and with all his strength, punched the guy dead in his face.
Naruto took this time to quickly assess his opponent. He was a lot taller than Naruto and looked kind of creepy. He wore an all black jumpsuit, a black cloth with a Suna hitai-ite attached on his head, and make-up on his face.
The guy rubbed his face and said, "That fucking hurt! I'm gonna kill you!" He grabbed Naruto by his collar and headbutted him.
"Naruto-kun!" Hinata shouted. She ran to help him but a girl suddenly appeared out of nowhere. She was very pretty, with spiky blonde hair tied into four pigtails and bright green eyes. She was wearing a lavender battle kimono and fishnets underneath. Her Suna hitai-ite was tied around her neck. She grabbed Hinata's arm to stop her from getting closer.
"Kankuro-kun, enough!" the girl shouted.
Kankuro punched Naruto again and shouted back, "This fucker punched me! I'm gonna make sure he at least never throws a punch again!"
Kakashi was standing in the Council Hall, waiting for Minato to show up. He called a meeting between the other ten Jonin senseis. The senseis of Squads 1,2,3,4,and 5 filled in slowly but surely.
"Lil' Sweet Cheeks!" Kakashi groaned and turned around to see his best friend, Uchiha Obito. Obito had spiky, black hair, very similar to Naruto's own hairstyle. He eyes black like coals, and a scar that ran down his left eye.
The other Jonin snickered at Kakashi's nickname. The silver-haired Jonin growled and said, "I thought you agreed to never speak about that again?!"
"I don't know about that, man. We were in Tsuchi, I was bleeding a lot, it's really blurry," Obito said with a devilish smile.
"You boys never grow up," a lithe, feminine voice said. Kakashi turned and was met with a vision of perfect beauty. She had long, straight, reddish-brown hair that flowed down to the top of her back. She was wearing a dark blue kimono with pink and yellow stars decorating it.
"Rin!" both Jonin shouted. They instantly stopped their arguing. Rin had a habit of hitting people in places they shouldn't be hit when annoyed.
"Still have those dogs trained well, eh Inuzuka?" Asuma asked as he walked in.
Rin scrunched her nose up at Asuma, who smelled of tobacco. "Still trying to turn your lungs into black jelly, eh Sarutobi?"
Asuma laughed and replied, "You know I smoke for my jutsu."
Obito leaned over to Kakashi and whispered, "I didn't know Big Tobacco here had any jutsu."
Asuma heard Obito and shouted, "IF YOU WANT I CAN SHOW YOU!!!"
Obito got in Asuma's face and shouted, "BRING IT ON NEWPORT!!!"
"That's enough you two!" The Jonin turned around to see Minato and Shikan standing in the center of the room. "You should thank me. Rin was about to kick you in the nuts," Minato said.
"Now, as to why I called you ten here…well it should be obvious, but the Chuunin Exams are near."
"It's that near? How much longer do we have?" asked Kakashi.
Shikan coughed and replied, "About a month."
"Why so soon? The exams are usually held in September, not July," inquired Asuma.
"I don't know. The Kazekage has asked that we expedite the Exams. He claims that Suna is preparing to declare war on the Yakuza, and that the first battle is planned to be in September. So now we need to pick the Genin who will participate," Minato stated.
Minato called each Jonin sensei up to nominate which of their Genin would participate. It was a bit disheartening to see that one or none of their Genin was ready to participate. Finally, Minato got to Asuma.
"I nominate Masurao Kiokure, Momoichi Haku, and Toppyoushimonai Satsu," Asuma said.
"I nominate Namikaze Naruto, Hyuuga Hinata, and Uchiha Sasuke," Kakashi said.
"I nominate Nara Shikamaru, Yamanaka Ino, and Akimichi Choji," Obito said.
Rin was next, but she hesitated a little. Minato noticed this and asked, "What's the problem Rin-san?"
"I nominate Aburame Shino to take the Chuunin Exams. I would like to nominate Haruno Sakura and Inuzuka Kiba, but I have some…concerns," Rin stated.
Minato raised his eyebrow and replied, "What kind of concerns?"
"*Sigh* Sakura hasn't progressed much. I was really excited to get her, since she was the Kunoichi of the Year like I was 13 years ago, but Sakura is quite apprehensive to work. And she doesn't get along with Kiba or Shino.
"As for Kiba, he's loud and reckless. I don't think he has the maturity required to take part in an exam like these," Rin stated.
Shikan looked between them and said, "I don't think…"
"Nevertheless, I'll nominate them both solely on the fact that bad qualities aside, they are superb at what they do [2]," Rin said, cutting the officer off.
"Ok. I'll accept your nominations," Minato said. "All in all, we have 17 Genin who will take part in the exams. I spoke to Guy last night and he nominated his whole squad. They should be back from their mission in a week's time. Since that's everybody—"
"WAIT!!!" Everyone turned to see Iruka standing in the doorway. He was panting from running and he said, "I…I…I can't allow Squads 6, 7, 8, and 10 to take part in the Exams!"
Minato looked bewildered and said, "Why not?"
"They're not ready! I taught all of them, well except for Haku, and they may be talented, but they each have serious flaws that—"
"Hey, Iruka. Butt out!" Kakashi said.
"Excuse me?" Iruka growled.
"These kids have long since surpassed the Genin level. They need the Exams so that they can keep growing," Kakashi said.
Iruka was quiet for a moment then replied, "Since words won't work…I challenge you to a duel!"
Gasps filled the room. No Jonin in the room, save for Obito or maybe Asuma, had the balls to challenge THE Hatake Kakashi to a fight. And here was this Chuunin practically signing his life away.
"I accept," Kakashi said.
"Kakashi! Stop being so macho!" Rin whispered.
"If I win, then your squads can't take part in the Chuunin Exams!" Iruka said.
"And if I win, you have to cut the umbilical cords," Kakashi replied.
Minato leaned over to Shikan and said, "Start taking bets. I have $1,000 on Kakashi."
Kankuro tossed Naruto into some garbage cans and removed the bandaged object from his back. Sasuke sighed and thought, 'I have to get involved now.'
The Uchiha picked up a rock and threw it at Kankuro's head. "Leave the dobe alone. He's not worth it," Sasuke said.
"Oh and I suppose you are, huh fucker?" Kankuro asked.
"Didn't your mother teach you any manners?" Sasuke replied. Temari's eyes widened; the cute boy in front of her was about to die.
"Don't…ever…talk…about…my…mother!" shouted Kankuro as he leapt at Sasuke. Suddenly, a very dark energy filled the air. Kankuro stopped and began shaking.
"Y-Y-You didn't tell me he was coming," Kankuro shouted.
Temari smirked and replied, "You were too busy playing with the kids to feel his yokai heading this way."
Naruto's eyes widened at that. 'Y-Y-Yokai?! Could this guy be a demon too?' he thought. Naruto was about to get the answer to his question.
A boy, slightly taller than Naruto, turned the corner behind Kankuro. He had short, straight, brick-red hair, pale skin, and turquoise eyes so big his pupils were nearly invisible. Thick, black lines ran along the edges of his eyes. In red, the kanji for love was tattooed on the left side of his forehead He wore black overalls, a short-sleeve fishnet t-shirt, and a long white scarf, which was tied so it laid across his right shoulder and left leg. A large, earthen gourd was tied to his back.
"Kankuro…you're such an embarrassment to our village," the boy said as he shoved the older, larger boy out of the way.
"Ga-Gaara!" Kankuro stammered.
'When did he get here? He's as sneaky as Kakashi!' thought Sasuke.
"Losing yourself in a fight…you look so pathetic. We didn't come here for this," Gaara stated.
"But Gaara! They started—"
Gaara appeared behind Kankuro instantly. He stood on his tiptoes and whispered, "Shut the fuck up or I'll kill you." Gaara returned to his normal height and said, "Apologize to these people."
Kankuro bowed his head and said, "Sumimasen."
Gaara turned to Sasuke and said, "I can tell you're the leader. You're definitely the strongest here. I apologize on behalf of my squad mates."
Gaara turned and began walking away. "We got here too early. Let's take some time to train. I'm tired of rescuing you two all the time. Maybe I should let you die next time."
Both Temari and Kankuro winced and followed after Gaara. Naruto looked at Gaara and said, "Wait! Can I ask you a question?" Gaara stopped walking and looked at Naruto impatiently. "Are you a…are you a demon too?"
Gaara's eyes widened. 'How could he know? I can't believe I've been discovered so quickly!'
Bah! You're an idiot! He's a demon too! Can't you tell by the fucking fox ears? He's probably Kitsune scum!
Gaara looked at Naruto and simply said, "No." The three Suna-nin vanished in a swirl of leaves.
Haku spoke up and said, "Those guys…were weird."
Naruto sighed and suddenly, Kyo's voice boomed in his head. *YAWN* So…what did I miss?
Unbeknownst to them, three figures were sitting in a tree a few yards away. "So Dosu, what do you think?"
"I think we have nothing to worry about Zaku."
"Let's get something to eat, please baby?"
"Fine Kin. Let's get out of here."
All the Jonin in Konoha (minus Rin and Kurenai) gathered at Training Ground #1, also known as Karidaichiijin (The Devil's Hunting Ground). Kakashi was sitting on the ground, staring at the clouds as the setting sun turned them into brilliant shades of red, pink, orange, and purple.
Iruka soon arrived, carrying a standard issue katana. "Kakashi! Let's go!" Shikan pulled out his own katana and traced a circle in the ground, about 50 feet in diameter. He then walked in the middle of the ring and gave his trademark pre-speech cough.
"I want a good clean fight. No Ninjutsu or Genjutsu; no kekkei genkei; just Taijutsu and Kenjutsu. First out of the ring loses. Oh, and no killing Kakashi," Shikan stated. The officer leapt out of the way as Iruka unsheathed his blade. Kakashi opted to not move from his position.
"So you're not going to take me seriously, Kakashi?" Iruka said as he raised his blade over his head.
"Yup," the Jonin replied.
Iruka growled and ran at Kakashi in full sprint. He swung down diagonally from left to right, and Kakashi simply bent over forward.
"My turn!" Kakashi said. He grabbed a kunai out of Iruka's leg holster, flipped it so that the hilt as pointing upward, and jabbed Iruka's, uh, butt.
"Konohagakure Hiden: Taijutsu no Ōugi: Sennen Goroshi (Hidden Leaf Village Secret Finger Technique: One Thousand Years of Death)!" [3]
Iruka squealed in pain as he was propelled high into the sky, and out of the ring. All the Jonin, save for Obito and Asuma, released a raucous roar of laughter. Shikan groaned as he was forced to give his sensei $1,000.
Obito sighed and said, "Gotta hand it to Kakashi. Using such an idiotic jutsu and infusing it with chakra…it's ingenious! Why didn't I ever think of that?"
Asuma rolled his eyes and said, "You answered your own question."
Once again, Obito got in Asuma's face. "HEY SMOKEY!!! WE CAN SETTLE THIS NOW!!!"
"LET"S GO PRETTY BOY!!!" [4]
"Hey, what's so funny?"
All laughter and arguing stopped as the Jonin turned to Zabuza. He was wearing the same black clothing he wore during his battle with Kakashi on the bridge, a green flak jacket, and a Konohagakure hitai-ite, which was tied around his forehead.
Most of the Jonin glared at Zabuza like he had the plague. "I can see I'm not wanted here," Zabuza said.
"What gave that away?" a young, newly appointed Jonin muttered. Under normal circumstances, Zabuza would have diced him into cubed slices and not have batted an eye. But he forced himself to remember why he came to the village in the first place.
"Then I'll just go," the devil said slowly. He made a hand seal and vanished in a swirl of leaves. Obito turned to the ninja and shook his head.
"Great job making the new guy feel welcome. Remind me to ask one of you meat heads to welcome the next one," he said before vanishing in a swirl of leaves as well.
Next Time: It's finally here! The Chuunin Exams begin today! But I hear that people don't always survive…THAT JUST MAKES IT MORE AWESOME!!!!!! And who's the weirdo in the spandex?
So it Begins! Konoha's Tanseiijin [5] vs. The Queen of Emos!
1- If you recall in Chapter 4, I mentioned Nai in passing when the teams were called out. I purposely chose a name that would translate into the first dead because I planned all along to replace her with Haku. And her name means first dead…
2- RIn's reasoning for allowing Kiba and Sakura to partake in the exams will be explained in the next chapter.
3- Sorry if I let you all down with that fight, but as you may have noticed, there's always a method to my madness.
4- Obito and Asuma are my comic relief during tense situations as you'll see throughout the series.
5- This translates to the Leaf's Handsome Devil. I'm sure that we all know who's appearing next chapter.