Author's Note: Hey everybody, I'm back. Now that I'm finally finished with the Land of Waves saga, I can go ahead and really start to do what I've wanted to do with this story since before I put the prologue. Over the next few chapters the story is going to be branching further and further away from canon with only certain major events remaining in the mix. This is mainly because when I first planned out this story, I really dove into the ideas of what could happen thanks to it being AU. That being said, on to a single review question, submitted by TCM (I'm not using your full screen name but you should know who you are), the pairing is NaruHina. Now to those of you who read the last chapter (or any of the ones so far for that matter): thanks as always. Well now, on to chapter ten.

"I…" indicates speech.

"I…" indicates inner thought.

"I…" indicates Kyuubi is speaker.


Chapter 10: Catching Up


The Top of Mt. Hokage

8:00 a.m.

He stared out over the village, the familiar sights and sounds of a place he had given up long ago all the sudden overwhelming his ancient mind as he gazed. All throughout the air around him, he could hear the movements and motions of the peaceful villagers of Konohagakure no Sato as they went about their lives, completely unaware of the dogs of war that would soon be unleashed upon them. These people were quiet, content, and even blissful; but as they say, ignorance is bliss.

"Zetsumei-sensei; not to put an end to your little daze out moment, but are we going to finally go down into the village or are you going to stand there and reminisce all day? I'd really like to see the inside of an inn before nightfall possibly," Spoke one of the three genin behind him, a mischievous and sarcastic little preteen girl with short-cropped and wildly vibrant orange hair and sapphire blue eyes.

Turning to face the three preteen orphans that he had been raising as his own and training as shinobi for the better part of eight years each, the elderly man smiled with a wizened aged grin that reflected the numerous years he had seen. The man was old both physically and mentally; older than even his wrinkled and warmly smiling face did justice to. Hidden behind the veil of the time-worn creases that covered his face was a soul that had seen more conflict and strife in his seventy long years than most villages saw in an era. His eyes were a deep and wondrous shade of red irises without any visible pupils that seemed to radiate with a calm intensity that emanated into the area around him. The man's gray mane was pulled back into a short-cropped top knot and faded gray as was the little crowd of whiskers that protruded from his unshaven chin. Yet even despite his obviously old appearance, the man still seemed to just exhale vigor and strength, as though he would never truly be worn down even until death.

"It has been quite some time since I have been back this way, Yue. Much has changed since then." He replied calmly as he adjusted the worn white jacket that covered most of his back. Wearing a pair of black pants coupled with a long-sleeve fishnet shirt under an unmarked white and black ninja vest, the man looked like just another harmless foreign shinobi which was exactly what he wanted. Coupled with the worn Kirigakure headband he had tied over his forehead and the illusion was complete. To the outside world, he and his team appeared to be another team from Kiri but in reality they bore allegiance to no land or people. However, because of the sheer fact that he had to have a village's backing to have his genin join in the exams, if they wanted to trace his connections all they would learn was that he apparently was a shinobi working for a small village near the very northeast of the Land of Waves. The beauty of it all was the village he worked for never existed, except for on a set of falsified documents that he had set up into the Water Daimyo's village registry. "But you are right, my children; we do need to get down to the village if I am going to register you three for the exams. Akano, Satsuyo, Yue; I trust you three are fully prepared for what you will face during the tests."

Akano, the only male in the group besides their old sensei, spoke up first as he adjusted the Mist headband he had tied around his left bicep. "Master, are you really sure that everything is going to happen like you told us? I mean, it seems so placid down there…" His jade green eyes sparked with understandable caution as he spoke and pushed a strand of his long brown hair out of his face. The young boy was just barely the tallest of the group but by far the most mature of their little squadron, having a mind that worked like most competent ANBU investigators'. Wearing a pair of loose fitting green fatigues on his legs with a basic white shirt under a black jacket coupled with the hitai-ate of Kiri on his arm, he stood there calmly watching their sensei's reactions.

"I can guarantee you three that what you will see down there is going to be exactly what I told you. However, I want you all to remember your primary objective during the exams." He replied, watching each of them until his final student had a chance to talk.

"Sensei, what should we do if we happen to encounter either of them?" Satsuyo finally spoke up, her eyes bright as she watched the clear blue sky behind him. With the same pale lavender eyes and faded hair as the majority of the Hyuga clan, she looked like she was possibly one of their long lost daughters but the resemblance stopped there. Instead of a noble's robes and an intricate knowledge of what it meant to be bound by a life that belonged to the clan instead of the person, she was free in heart and spirit and wore clothing that reflected this little detail. Dressed in a long fishnet shirt under form-fitting white blouse along with a red skirt and the Kiri band that hung around her neck like a necklace, she seemed distinctly more cheerful than either of her adopted siblings.

"If you happen to get paired against them in the preliminary matches or in the tournament itself, use discretion and forfeit if you want to because I will not risk your safety going against opponents like that my children." He replied calmly, watching the smiles that rose on all their cheeks as he proved once again that he truly did view them as his own family and cared for their wellbeing instead of only his mission. It brought warmth to his heart as he really did wish only for their safety like any father would. "Now, I think it is time that we head down to the village. Once we get settled, you are all free to do as you wish while I go take care of what I must. However, please remember while you are out that the villagers and especially while you are among the ninja of this village must not be allowed to know your true purpose. Do not breathe a word of it to anyone while you are anywhere except when you are with me. Is that understood?"

"Hai, sensei!" They answered in unison.

"Good. Now let's go introduce ourselves to Konoha, my children." With that, they began the descent down the path leading into the village.

(I)

The Uzumaki Family Apartment

8:10 a.m.

"'The normal creation of a shadow clone requires that the creator evenly distribute an amount of chakra into all created clones. As such, one can manipulate the form and abilities of said clones by manipulation of the chakra distribution when creating them, using more or less of the creator's chakra to modify the physical properties and/or talents of the clones.'" Naruto read aloud, pouring over more and more of the Shodaime's scroll as he studied up all he could on the shadow clone technique, completely alone in his and his mom's apartment since his mom was on another mission for ANBU at the moment. He was slowly becoming more accustomed to her being gone ever since she had gone back to the shinobi lifestyle; they were both ninja after all. And ever since Team Nine had returned from the Land of Waves a month and half ago, their days had been filled with nothing more than D-ranked missions and chakra control training exercises with Anko-sensei so it was starting to drive him insane. A part of him longed for a chance to really try out some of the ideas he had been cooking up in his mind regarding the First's jutsus ever since he had created his Kyuubi back upon the bridge. But as the chance of anything exciting happening soon was slim to none unless they got assigned another good mission, he was simply limited to experimenting in his free time and studying as much as he could. "If that's all true, then I might be able to…"

He quickly scribbled down another line of notes regarding his ideas for another new utilization of his shadow clones and then turned his attention back to the worn scroll. His mind was simply overflowing with ideas of what he could do with the Shodaime's knowledge and techniques. The man that had created all the techniques and jutsu he was currently pouring over truly had been a genius in his own right, a fully qualified Hokage in every right according to what he was reading. With all that was in the scroll, even the most challenged of Academy students could easily become a superb ninja just by studying the First's training methods and skills.

"The burning clones were useful back in Wave… but in a normal battle that might not be the case. If Kaname and Hinata had been in the dome with me, they could have been seriously burned just being around the clones so if I'm going to use them again, I have to really focus on how to scale down their power when necessary. I wonder if I could just pour less chakra into them to solve the problem… Or would that cause too big of a decrease in the fire inside of them to make them useless? Perhaps I can refocus the chakra instead of just using less…" Having been up for two hours already that morning, Naruto was already wide awake and just trying to get in as much of his own personal training before Kiba came by later on in the morning to mess around in the village for a while since Anko-sensei had given Team Nine the day off. "And if I can, I wonder what that would mean with my normal shadow clones? His notes say both the properties and talents so does that possibly mean changing their size instead of just strength? Damn there are just too many possibilities with this scroll…"

His brain was already swimming and he had only been studying over the scroll for only about fifteen minutes now. For the better part of the last month since they had gotten home, he had only studied the lowest levels of jutsu the scroll had to offer so he could get a better grasp on the First's style 

before he really began to pour into the information. Today was only his third day really studying the shadow clones and already it was giving him a headache.

"Oh well, might as well grab some breakfast before I have to get going." With that he stood up from the small table in his bedroom and took one quick glance in the mirror. Staring for a moment, he couldn't help but notice that it was getting to the point that, even when he was not using his 'other side', his eyes were starting to stay crimson for longer and longer periods of time and he had to force himself to get them to revert to the blue he had known for the better part of his life. The fangs that set in the center of his mouth were becoming more and more prominent with each passing day, making him look even less like the people of this village. Simply put, he knew that since he was starting to use what he had, he was starting to look like her and it excited him greatly.

(I)

The Konoha Training Grounds

10:15 a.m.

"So you ready to do fight or what, mutt-boy?" Naruto taunted as he spread his feet apart and took his stance. The young kitsune boy was forcing himself to keep his chakra suppressed so that his eyes would remain a steady shade of blue while he was out with Kiba in the village. Even though that he trusted the young cub of the Inuzuka clan, he wasn't ready to out himself as the son of the queen of the Bijuu just yet. Among his own team, he was not going to let anyone else besides Hinata learn; he couldn't stop the Hokage from telling anyone but at the very least he could keep it contained in his own personal circles. So as he readied himself for a friendly little training match against his best friend, he was concentrating as best he could to stay human. "Or am I gonna have to stand here all day and just watch Akamaru scratch himself?"

"You hear that Akamaru? I think he's making fun of you." Kiba replied, glancing down to his furry little best friend who was scratching himself on the ground next to the Inuzuka boy. The puppy just yipped a quick response while staring down Naruto with an ironically happy ferocity in his eyes and Naruto had hung around with Kiba and Akamaru long enough to know that the little fur ball was ready to fight him at anytime if Kiba wanted to. The dog had a fighter's spirit, a rebellious strength in him that was a perfect match to the almost renegade and untamed attitude his master and companion always showed. After a moment, Kiba's lips curled up into a grin as he responded to his friend's bark. "Yeah, I think we need to teach him a lesson as well."

"Now we're talkin'." Naruto smirked as he pulled a kunai from the satchel on his belt and readied himself.

He and Kiba were standing out in the middle of the training grounds on the outskirts of Konoha, near the Hero's Memorial, and were about to spar with each other for the first time since they had left the Academy almost two months earlier. Sure the blonde had been back in the village for a month and a half since he and his team had returned from the Land of Waves but this was the first time he had really had any time for his friends in between missions or training sessions with his team and the few times he and Hinata had walked around Konoha. Since their return from Tazuna's village, he had spent a few quiet nights watching the sky with her while his mother was gone working a mission for ANBU but that was it. Together they would spend hours watching the moon from atop Mt. Hokage, looking out at the village and the lands beyond as the world fell asleep and left them to enjoy each other's company for at 

least a little while. From the fear that Naruto had about what might happen to her if it was discovered that she was slowly becoming involved with something like him to her own concerns about her family and their potential reactions, those few hours every now and then were all they could afford. However, it was everything he wanted just to lie out under the trees atop the mountain and watch the clear night skies while she lay next to him. So with a small smile rising to his face as he thought about her and their few nights together, he just turned his focus back to his best friend and their little match.

"Go Akamaru!" Kiba roared as he launched three shuriken at Naruto.

Immediately stepping to the side while he spun around, he used a little move he had picked up on by watching Hinata's Juken style to deflect the shuriken with his knife. Forcing the chakra into his feet like a coiled spring, he leapt up into the air as high as he could and landed on a tree branch about twenty feet off the ground. Akamaru was hot on his trail, leaping up the few branches that stuck out like stairs as he chased the fox boy up the tree like some sort of ridiculously funny rabid gray squirrel. Naruto nimbly jumped from one branch to another, gathering a very little bit of chakra as he quickly went through a set of hand signs.

"Doton: Doryuu Taiga." The Kyuubi yelled as he flipped wildly off of the branch he landed on and dove back down toward the ground, holding his hands out in front of him as he came down. As soon as he touched the earth, he slapped both of his palms onto the ground, a seal appearing across the grass covered dirt as he brought his hands down against it. Without even taking the time to look up, he just smirked and began to chuckle.

"Wha-What the hell?!" Kiba shouted from where he now stood trapped in a four-foot deep mud whirlpool. Finally standing up straight to look at his best friend, Naruto fought back the urge not to just laugh outright at the marvelously hilarious results of one of the new jutsu he had been learning from the Shodai Hokage's scroll. Its name was the earth river technique, a unique jutsu that allowed its user to turn the ground beneath an opponent from a solid platform into a swift-flowing stream of mud and water that washed them away. Although it was only a C-ranked jutsu unlike the shadow clone technique, since the First had considered it worthy of writing down he definitely considered it worth learning. And although the First wrote that it was to be used on a hill, the effects that came from him using it on flat ground turned out to be just as useful. "Get me outta here now! Naruto, you bastard, get me the hell outta here!"

"Hah, sorry man!" Naruto said, reaching his hand out to pull his young friend from the spinning pit of muck and mud. Gripping Kiba's outstretched arm with all his might, he yanked the young dog trainer from the whirlpool only to laugh harder as the Inuzuka boy was now covered in a thick layer of dirt and mud that extended up to his neck.

"Damnit whiskers! Look at this crap; my mom's gonna kill me now! You coulda just used a water clone and fought me like normal but nooo… You had to use the… the mud bath jutsu and completely cover me in this… this crap!" Kiba shouted, pulling off his thick jacket to reveal a mostly clean black shirt underneath. The lower half of his body, however, was completely and utterly soaked through with dark brown sludge, making him look as though he were part man and part mud beast. This of course made Naruto laugh even harder until he was doubled on the ground clutching his sides and gasping for air. After a moment though, Kiba realized just how ridiculous he now looked and began to laugh too. The two of them just sat there on the ground for a while laughing as they rested and let the pressures of the ninja world wash away and just acted like kids. Finally though, they both stopped laughing and regained their composure once again, Kiba speaking first. "Just what the hell kind of a technique was that anyways?"

"Earth Release: Earth Flow River. It's a nifty little jutsu that I picked up from the scroll my Grandpa gave me back after we graduated and became genin two months ago. Ever since my team and I got back from the mission we had a few weeks ago, I've been studying up on a few new jutsu to see what I could really learn from it." Naruto replied, shrugging as he took the time to explain all that he had learned from the First's scroll over the earth flow technique while they began to walk back toward the village.

(I)

Ichiraku Ramen

11:30 a.m.

"Y'know, something tells me your mother your mom is going to have that big old wolf Kuromaru chasing you through Konoha by the end of the day once she sees that mess you left back at the Inuzuka compound." Naruto said as he merrily slurped on the bowl of ramen in front of him. It was his third bowl already and he was knocking each noodle like he hadn't eaten a single bite for the last month, a broad and carefree smile on his whiskered face as he put away another huge mouthful. A little more than thirty minutes earlier, the two young genin had left the Inuzuka manor after Kiba changed from the mud-caked clothing into a simple fishnet shirt underneath a black tee with his clan's logo on the back and a loose pair of gray pants. Akamaru was sitting atop his Kiba's head, wagging his tail cheerfully as he ate a little bit of beef from his partner's bowl. "I mean seriously, did'cha have to track mud through the entire house or was that just for laughs because I… I gotta be honest; your mother is going to probably kill us both, mutt."

"And this coming from the kid who decided it'd be a good idea to use a jutsu which put me into a mud-filled washing machine!" Kiba replied with a sarcastic laugh. "But yeah I guess it wasn't really that smart to leave my prints behind. But hey, at least I was smart enough to take the trashed clothes off before walking through my room. So, you haven't told me yet; how did that mission over in the Land of Waves end anyways?"

Since they had sat down at the small little booth, the young kitsune had been telling his best friend most of the details about Team Nine's mission and Tazuna but had been selectively editing parts of the story so that he didn't accidentally tell Kiba anything about what was happening inside of him. "Well after Zabuza died, all that was left out of Gato's camp was a bunch of half-rate thugs that couldn't last five minutes against a real shinobi team. It was kind of funny actually because Anko-sensei just walked up and performed an interesting kind of clone jutsu and scared them all off of the bridge because she conjured close to a hundred clones of her own and then just stared them down. They jumped over the edge and back into their boats so fast that at least twenty of them missed and landed into the water." He answered, lying about the fact that it was actually he that had created the 'interesting kind' of clones that had fought off the thugs that Gato had hired to enforce his mafioso tactics. Together with the young assassin from the Mist, Naruto had effectively and permanently ended any threat from Gato's organization to Tazuna's village.

"And what happened afterwards?" Kiba asked, stretching his arms for a moment as he scratched Akamaru's back from where the dog laid atop his head.

"Well we came home two days later and we've been back to the D-rank line ever since. But it's kind of cool that old man Tazuna actually decided to name the bridge after us. He named it the Great Nine Bridge because of our squad." He replied coolly.

"But what happened to Tazuna, Haku and the village?"

"Well Haku actually decided to stay in the village. With Zabuza gone, she really didn't have much of a reason to keep killing people because he was the one with all the contacts for the hits. On Anko-sensei's advice, Tazuna hired her as a personal bodyguard for the village so I'm pretty sure she's just gonna stay there for a while, y'know?"

"So was there anything going on… between Haku… and…" Kiba gestured with his hands kind of crazily as he tried to ask whether or not anything happened between him and the girl that had tried to kill them.

"No, nothing happened between us! God get your head outta the gutter for once!"

"Well not to add insult to your complete lack of luck with any girl ever born but I'm getting to spend plenty of time with a beautiful pink-haired kunoichi that could not help but love every part of me." Kiba taunted, trying to get any sort of rise out of his best friend. The boy had a mischievous smile plastered all over his face but it quickly faltered a moment later once he realized that Naruto seemed almost entirely uninterested at Kiba's remark. "Come on man, don't you wanna hear about all that Sakura, Sasuke and I do together now that we're a team? I may hate that arrogant bastard but you really wouldn't believe what we've done."

"I honestly couldn't care less about what you do with Sasuke though I think Iruka-sensei would advise you two against starting a serious relationship until you're both a little older. And of course, please remember that you should both try to adopt because you can't have a child with another guy. I mean the laws of nature proved that can happen already so don't hold your breath, dog-boy." He finally replied after a second, a sly smirk rising on his face as he retorted; meanwhile, Kiba just glared at him angrily because of his joke. "…Besides… I think I've moved on from my Sakura crush now."

"What?! When the hell did this happen?"

"It just kind of did." He responded kind of shyly. "I've been thinking a lot lately and it's not like she really even ever noticed me so I decided that I moved on and… I don't know; I've just been doing a lot of thinking."

"So then what's her name?" Kiba replied, scratching Akamaru's head as he turned on the stool to fully face his fox-born comrade with a serious look in his eyes. Though Naruto was focusing to make sure he was not displaying any outward characteristics of his birth, he was concentrating well enough that he could just barely hear Kiba begin to sniff the air as he waited for his friend's response to the question. It kind of surprised him to know that the Team Seven genin was paying that much attention but, with how he had responded to Kiba's remark about Sakura, it was to be expected that the dog boy wouldn't let this go that easily. "If you've really given up on trying to ever get anywhere with the pink-haired chairwoman of Sasuke's fanclub then you must have been really up to some interesting work since the last time we hung out. So what's the deal?"

Over the last month and a half since he had returned from the Land of Wave, he had been spending more and more time together with Hinata late at night whenever he had time to sneak out of his mom's apartment high above the city. Sticking to the rooftops, he would run silently above the streets of Konoha until he reached the Hyuga manor and reached her. From there, they would take backroads and alleyways until they were at the back of the Hokage residence and then follow a small path up to the top of the mountain. There was a tiny clearing in the forest atop Mount Hokage that allowed them to see the open sky while still being surrounded by a fair amount of trees in case any patrolling jonin were around. For hours on end they sat up there, watching the moon and just talking about who they both were, getting to truly know one another. Naruto didn't think he could really describe what it was like lying atop the mountain with her to him in a way that Kiba could understand just yet but there was something simply peaceful… something simply wonderful about being able to look down at the village from that high. It was as though they were… were king and queen and Konoha was their dominion far below.

"Y'know what, I'll tell you later." He answered after a moment.

Kiba simply shrugged. "Oh well, your choice. But just so you know, from the smell of your pheromones right now it's really easy to tell you're hiding something big, blondie. But I guess I'll let you just hang on this secret for now." Atop his head, Akamaru just yipped something that only Kiba could understand to his young master, a small smile rising on the Inuzuka boy's face as he listened to the small gray puppy. "You're right, Akamaru. He really has begun to smell an awful lot like her."

Naruto simply remained silent as he watched his friend's reaction.

"Fine. I'll shut up."

"Thanks, I think." The kitsune finally retorted, once again turning to the bowl that was setting in front of him.

"... So has your sensei told you and your team yet?" Kiba asked after a moment. "About the exams, I mean."

"What exam?" Those simple words piqued Naruto's interest immediately. He had not heard a thing about any tests or any new missions besides the ridiculously boring chores they were doing on an almost daily basis ever since they had gotten back from protecting Tazuna. All they had done was capture lost pets, weed out newly planted gardens and deliver supplies to various people all throughout Konoha and, to put it as simply as possible, it was boring the young blonde out of his skull. Even with his… other side becoming more and more active each and every day and improving his senses and skills, he still felt like he was losing a sort of edge by doing such meaningless tasks. It was dulling him down instead of really preparing him for the kind of lives chunin, jonin, and even the Hokage himself lived. And quite frankly, if he ever really wanted to become the Mizukage, he was going to have to damn well be the best.

"The Chunin Exams. Kakashi-sensei told Sasuke, Sakura, and me that the exams are starting next week and that he's entered Team Seven because he thinks we're actually already ready to become chunin… even though we haven't really done anything as special as your mission with Tazuna yet. And from what he told us, we weren't the only rookie genin team that's been entered." Kiba answered, drawing even more of Naruto's interest with each word that he spoke. If there was really a chance that he and his squad could make it to the next shinobi ranking this quickly out of the Academy, they had to take it because it meant they would no longer be assigned the kind of boring grunt work they had been doing since they got back from the Land of Wave. They could actually be completing real ninja missions, ones that involved protection of a client or infiltration of an enemy empire or anything else really exciting. His mind was already racing with all the possibilities. "Now this is what you really wanna know; Kakashi-sensei said that, in addition to him entering us, both of the instructors for Team Nine and Team Ten have entered their squads. That means that you and your team; me, Sasuke, and Sakura; Choji, Ino, and Shikamaru are all going to be competing in the exams. We're gonna be chunin, whiskers!"

"Hell yes!" Naruto roared cheerfully, leaping up from his seat. Before Kiba could even stand up, he had already pulled a few ryou for both Kiba's and his food from his green-frog wallet and placed it on bar in front of him. "Thanks, Teuchi! Tell Ayame I said hi!"

"W-wait, Naruto, where the heck are you goin'?" Kiba asked, almost dumbfounded at his friend's sudden urge to bolt from the small ramen bar like a recently freed jackrabbit.

"To tell Kaname and Hinata! If we're going to be in the chunin exams, we've gotta be ready and I've got to get back to my training right now! I'll see ya soon man and tell your mom I'm sorry about the mess!" He finished with a pumped up grin before turning away with a simple wave. Focusing all the chakra he could into the soles of his feet, Naruto felt his body become light and almost weightless for a moment as he pushed down against the ground. A split second later, he released all the pent up energy and leapt up into the air and across the crowded street, running clear up the side of the building on all fours as soon as he touched it until he flipped up onto the roof. Without even turning around to face the dumbstruck crowd behind him, he just took off across the rooftops of Konohagakure no Sato, headed for the Hyuga compound with a beaming smile on his face.

"Hmm… There is something different about that boy lately." Kiba turned his head at the sound of old man Teuchi's voice behind him. The cook was standing behind his counter, staring up intently at the spot where Naruto had touched down on the rooftop across the street with his arms folded over his chest. There was a look of calm mixed with what Kiba could only make out as suspicion plastered all over his old and wrinkled face.

"That's Naruto for you. He's never been one to care about what people would consider normal by any means. I guess it's what makes him a great ninja." Kiba replied as he too stood up from the bar. As Akamaru jumped down from his head to walk beside his master, the young dog trainer just waved goodbye to their favorite bartender and walked out into the street as well. "Thanks for the ramen, Mr. Teuchi."

"Come again and I'll cook you a great bowl!" Teuchi roared happily before Kiba was out of earshot, his face quickly returning to its suspicious grimace as soon as he was sure that the Inuzuka clansman was fully gone. With no customers in his little booth, he silently whispered to himself, still staring at the spot where Naruto had landed on the roof. "He… It's almost like the woman who used to come here… but…"

(I)



"So how many teams does that make competing this year, ?" The Sandaime asked as he blew another puff of bluish white smoke from the pipe that sat upon his lips. Behind him, the sun was quickly setting over Konoha as the sixth to last day before the Chunin Exams drew to a close. Five days from now, genin from all over the great Lands would be tested physically, mentally, and emotionally to see if they were worthy of being promoted to the ranks of chunin. For some, preparation for this test had taken years as they studied and trained as best as they could. But for others however, like the rookie genin that Kakashi, Anko, and his own son Asuma had entered into the competition.

"Grand total, there are close to thirty teams participating in the examinations, Lord Hokage." Replied his young assistant as she read over the report in her hands. The woman was a petite and short little redheaded shinobi that had earlier that week nearly resigned from her position after sending a grab-happy toad sannin through one of the windows of the Hokage's office before the Sandaime assured her it was alright.

"What can you tell me about them? Are there any interesting teams competing besides the ones from Konoha?" He asked with a genuine curiosity regarding the topic. He was very interested to see how his own sons and daughters would do against the rather large amount of foreign ninja that were involved in the exams this year, especially considering the fact that some of the ninja from Konoha were far from average.

"There are a few, like one of the teams from Suna. According to the roster we received, it consists of two of the Kazekage's sons Gaara and Kankuro as well as his daughter Temari."

"The son of the Kazekage, hmm… Any others?"

"Well there was one other team, a squadron from Kiri that seemed to be composed of all rookies based on their ages." The assistant answered.

"Go on."

"The only information we have is that it is comprised of three genin named Akano, Satsuyo and Yue Suné and is led by an old male jonin who we do not seem to have in any of our registries. According to the report, the man's name is Zetsumei and is actually the adoptive father of all three genin."

"Zetsumei you say?" Sarutobi replied as he blew out another puff of bluish smoke, taking a keen interest in such a curious little name. He knew he had heard the name before but was completely incapable of remembering just where it had come from. However, a part of him was sure he had heard it before and that was more than enough to keep his interest. Turning around to face the setting sun and look upon the village below him, he just waved his hand to dismiss the young assistant. "Keep me informed."

"As you command, Lord Hokage."

'Where have I heard that name before?' He wondered silently as he stared out over the village.


Author's Note: It's 12:45 am on Thursday morning and I'm finally done with this chapter after what has been the biggest case of writer's block I've had since I began this story. Coupled with the fact I really suck at writing filler and this has been one big blah for the last few weeks. To anyone who was waiting for an update, sorry it's taken so long but you can thank my semester finals and a complete lack of ideas of how to write the filler for this chapter for that. Anyways, next chapter the exams begin so I'll be back soon and I hope you enjoyed this one. Review and tell me what you thought. Peace.