Chapter 11- Bloody Sigil

Naruto shot up, scattering droplets of sweat across his bed. His eyes were wide in fear, remembering the vision he just had.

He ran a hand across his face as he felt frigid metal pressing against his cheeks, his silvery tears running down the side of his face. That wasn't right; he didn't remember crying, not even in the dream.

With a sigh, his head landed on his pillow as he thought back to the dream. It ran through his mind every time he slept, and he woke at least six times in the past couple hours. Now he didn't want to go back to sleep, otherwise he'd just have it again.

It was the same one he experienced during the Chunin Exam. The dream followed the exact same pattern, him running through a maze of mirrors until he hit the room where the silver flower bloomed. Then he would mess around in there until things got weird. And like the first time and every time he had the dream, he became engulfed in the silver liquid, or whatever it was. Only one thing changed: whenever he woke up he was crying silver tears.

It was starting to make him nervous. This dream had to be something more. But who could he talk to that was capable of telling him what it possibly meant without freaking out? Dreams normally held no meaning, but if you kept having one, there was something fishy about it. He had to understand.

With a sigh, he got out of bed to change. He couldn't go to sleep now; besides, he was afraid of that dream, though he couldn't put his finger on why.

He grabbed his clothes and quickly slid off his pajamas as he let his mind wander. Anko was out of the question to talk to. She was still in her drunken stupor and wouldn't wake until morning, or at least he hoped. Sometimes her moments lasted until noon the next day, and that was if she got drunk in the afternoon of the day before.

Naruto shook his head. He needed to keep the alcohol out of her reach for a while.

After he grabbed his black jacket, he opened the window and was gone, looking like a shadow in the darkness with his dark clothing.

Maybe all he needed was to clear his mind.


The night air felt cool against his skin and the moon shone brightly in the sky. It felt refreshing. Nobody was out, giving him freedom to pull off his goggles and show his eyes to the world.

He landed on a particular rooftop that overlooked the town square. The area was littered with shops and lights, but being minutes to midnight nobody was out, making the place look eerie but peaceful at the same time. At night, hustle and bustle was replaced by pure, unbridled tranquility.

The stands were dark and the street lamps scattered light in the midnight air where the moon couldn't touch. A fountain in the center of the square gently lulled, only adding to the serenity of the area.

Every so often when he was younger and couldn't sleep because of nightmares, he came here. It was the only way he could come visit here and never get a sneer or a curse aimed at him. He could also allow his reflective eyes freedom without threatening his life.

He sighed again as he thought about the second part of the exam and his sister's warning. That Kusa genin scared him, and there was something about said genin that left no qualms for Naruto about listening to Anko for once. It was hard to explain that feeling; it felt like treading near a dangerous serpent with every intention of killing you, but only when the moment was right and when the target was within reach.

Then he thought about Hinata and how they became friends, very close ones at that, and in such a short time. They were both so alike. For once he had someone he could lean on his own age and knew the pains he did, pains of loneliness and hatred given to them everyday. It felt good. But there was also the threat of Anko teasing him about getting a girlfriend. He wasn't quite that old yet, but the thought alone was enough to give him a blush.

Another thought that crossed his mind, though by far the least pleasant of all, was Sakura's and Sasuke's growing relationship. Ever since the Wave mission they became friends and have been inching closer to one another as time ticked away. And it made Naruto sick. Sakura was supposed to like him, not the prick! He was nice and the other guy acted like a… well… a prick! What did the shit-head have that he didn't? Good looks?

The more Naruto ranted about it in his mind, the more he steeled an idea: He was going to put a wedge in between the two!

An echo of all too familiar laughter rang through his head. Immediately, he regretted thinking such a thing, but it was too late to be repentant about having felt those emotions.

He jumped as he felt a hand touch his cheek. Naruto's eyes widened as he saw the Kyuubi standing behind him.

"What the hell are you doing out of your kennel, bitch!" he yelled, backing away in fear knowing she could touch him.

"That's so funny that I'm laughing on the inside," she told him as she folded her arms.

"I'll stop you before you harm the village!" Naruto shouted at her, pulling out a senbon. Instead, he only grabbed futilely at air.

"Looking for these?" Kyuubi asked, holding up his weapons. She then threw them across the roof, scattering them in a mess of metal.

"Such dark thoughts for someone who keeps pushing me away." Her eyes briefly became cat-like as she stared at him. "Admit it; you're just like me, a person with desires. You want them fulfilled. I can do it; you know it."

Naruto blinked his eyes, but the moment he did she disappeared. The next second, he felt a pair of warm arms wrap around him, and then felt warm breathe against his neck. It didn't take a second to realize his living nightmare was trying everything in the book tonight.

"Come, on Naruto," she whispered so seductively into his ears. Naruto couldn't help but shiver under her sweet voice. "Jealousy can be such a dark emotion. Why don't you become angrier more often? The darker you become, the closer you come to me. That's why I'm here," she pressed her face against his neck, making his skin crawl. "Because your black emotions call so longingly to me."

Naruto jumped away from her, wide-eyed and spooked. She looked upset that he slipped from her grasp, but it only lasted for a transient second. She then smiled cunningly, as if winning some kind game.

"I've always been interested in you, my container," she said, walking to him as he took steps backwards. "You teeter so close to the edge," even as she said it, Naruto could feel himself pressing against the railing. "You're a being between the light and darkness, a person stuck in the twilight."

"What are you talking about?" he asked nervously as he pressed harder into the cold metal of the railing, hoping to escape Kyuubi as she came closer.

"To deny me, Naruto, is to deny your darker half," she continued, causing him to flinch as she caressed his cheek. "The farther away from me you are the closer you are to the light, but know this." She leaned in and whispered in his ear. "Even the light devours."

She stepped backwards, a devious smile painting her lips, one that didn't bode well with Naruto. "They call me a monster? What a joke. You need me, Naruto. The closer to the light you step, the more likely you are to succumb to insanity."

He blinked and she was gone. Naruto spun his head, searching for her, but the only proof of his encounter was the scattered senbon.

"That… That couldn't have been a dream," he muttered to himself in wide eyed-disbelief.

His skin crawled at the memory of her skin against his own. It was a sensation he lustfully longed for, but, at the same time, he desired escape from such thoughts. She was just trying to use him for her own means. There was no other reason for her to act the way she did. Like any other demon, she was just looking for an escape route.

With shaky hands, he meandered to the senbon and began the arduous task of collecting them. It was difficult to put them in the holster since they vibrated under his touch. After an incident like that, though, who wouldn't be freaked out of their own skin?

The very being he imprisoned somehow wormed her way out of his mind and spoke to him, touched him. He could feel the longing, and he was pretty sure the Kyuubi could feel his every desire. That's why he hated her; she knew just the right buttons to push, the spots to tread, and the tender areas to touch to get her way. He hated being honest about such thoughts, but it was becoming difficult to deny her advances.

Still panting and sweating, he sat on the railing and mulled over what just happened. Gaining control of his body, Naruto scrunched up his face in thought as he analyzed everything.

The Kyuubi came out of his mind. There was no doubt about it, but there was something odd he noticed. Though she was out in the open, she lacked that aura of power she practically blanketed herself in inside his mind. But it still didn't explain much of what happened.

"Not a very good move, Silver-Eyes. It's not good to be by yourself," a voice next to his ear whispered.

Out of surprise and reflex, he jumped into the air and landed twenty feet away, his heart pounding and adrenaline coursing through his body. Naruto looked around for the perpetrator, but found nothing but thin air.

"It's also not good to talk to your self either," the voice continued, sounding almost amused. "But then again, the burst of chakra that made your senbon cartridge launch in the air was pretty weird."

Well that answered one question. It had to have been in his mind. But that still didn't explain how the senbon cartridge launched itself from his belt.

Then he remembered what the voice had called him: Silver-Eyes. He cursed as he quickly put on his water goggles. Someone was out here and knew his secret. Either he killed them, or he captured the perpetrator and took him/her to the Hokage… or his sister, or someone he at least knew.

"Come out coward!" he yelled, goading his hidden enemy.

"Take off the goggles and I'll put mine on," a feminine voice shot back, though, with a hint of mischief and amusement.

Reluctantly he pulled them off. The person already knew his secret, so might as well. Slowly, his hand reached to his eyes and pulled off his wear, revealing the Kyoukagan in its full glory.

He felt naked without the goggles on. If he fought, it would be the first time someone would see his eyes in full action –would it be possible for someone to decipher his abilities by looking at his eyes?

With a chuckle, the person appeared, but who it was… it was something Naruto never expected. There, standing before him was a girl about his age and height, putting on the eyewear she promised –a set of welder's goggles that made it impossible to see her eyes.

"Sorry," she said, "but without them, I have trouble controlling my Bloodline Limit."

Naruto looked her up and down, picking out anything that stuck out for when he needed to identify her. She was a petite thing, having the same height as Naruto; at the same time she was scrawny; a long braid of fiery-orange hair swayed behind her back. Her clothes were baggy; the pants were falling off of her seemingly frail frame –a set of white khakis with numerous pockets- and were supported by a belt decorated with a set of three thin kunai, longer than normal ones, but thinner and possibly faster when thrown. Her shirt of choice was a green tank top, the only tight piece of clothing on her frame, though it left her belly exposed being a half shirt. On her right arm was a fold-up knife, but Naruto couldn't tell what kind due to lack of lighting.

The one piece of her outfit that really stuck out was her headband. A half sun eclipsed by a crescent moon inscribed on the metal. She hailed from a village Naruto wasn't familiar with.

"Who are you?" Naruto asked; a name would give him the jackpot in identifying her.

She smiled. "My name is…" She stopped as she put a finger to her mouth, her lips twitching deviously. "Maybe I shouldn't tell. You might squeal on me for cheating."

"Cheating on what?" Naruto asked, not liking where this was going.

"Why, on the second part of the Chuunin Exam of course!" her smile widened even more. "But then again, the only way you could tattle is if you live."

"What do you mean?" Naruto took a step back in caution.

It was suddenly very tempting to activate his Hyakurai and wake up the entire neighborhood with a nice, loud thunderclap.

"There's only one way to cheat," she answered, almost as if she was talking about nothing big. "The only way is to kill the participants before the start of the test."

"Sorry, but I don't like your way of thinking." Ah, crap! I have a feeling I'm not going to enjoy the next couple minutes! Naruto yelled in his mind.

"Well, okay, let me rephrase that," she said, holding up her hands. "I'm only killing particulars. Basically, the people who threaten me."

Naruto raised an eyebrow as he inched towards his kunai pouch. Something told him senbon were going to be useless in this fight; this was going to be far worse than his battle with Haku.

"What? Afraid of me?" Naruto asked out of both taunt and curiosity.

"Don't get me wrong," the girl said as she shrugged, "it's nothing personal like that. I don't fear you, or any of the other competitors. But there is such thing as feeling threatened."

"If that's true, aren't you threatened by Gaara or some of the other stronger competitors?"

She covered her mouth as she giggled, as if knowing something that everyone else didn't. "Silly, why would you think I'd feel threatened by them? I'm in a league of my own. They could never hope to touch me. I'd shatter their minds before they could come within a foot of me."

"That's a little arrogant," Naruto told her sarcastically.

"It's not a matter of arrogance," she shot back, cocking her head to the side. "It's a matter of truth. I admit, Gaara would give me a run for my money –he might even push me to my limits- but he could never beat me."

"Then why me? I'm supposedly the weakest genin in the group."

"If that's true, Silver-Eyes, I'll eat my sandals," she said with a knowing smile.

Naruto already didn't like her. She was so wistful, prodding into him and seeing deeply into his very being, but he couldn't tell why. At the same time, she seemed so capricious, acting so flamboyant when she was about to commit a murder.

"But I guess I should answer your question of 'why me?'" she said, snapping him out of his reverie. "It's simple," she pointed at his eyes, "you're like me. I knew it the moment I saw you freeze those students. I was curious about you at first; I had never seen an Elemental Bloodline Limit before, so I followed you to see more. Imagine my surprise, though, when I followed you during your game of tag with that girl and found out about your eyes."

SHIT! Naruto yelled in his mind, along with a whole array of colorful words that would have made Anko blush. He took another step backwards, wide-eyed with shock.

She pointed accusingly at Naruto, wearing a devious smile. "A Limit that copies other Limits; a Limit that can create other Limits should the person come into contact your blood. That's a sign of a Transcendent Bloodline Limit, one of the Three Great Doujutsu! The Kyoukagan: the creator of all the other Limits in existence!"

"How… How do you know that?" Naruto asked in shock.

She snickered as she pulled off her welder's goggles, revealing closed eyes. As she slowly opened them, she spoke: "I know because I have the third one."

Then she looked at him. Her eyes weren't normal, even for a Bloodline Limit. Her irises were pearlescent green, changing shade as she moved, but at the same time they rippled with every movement she made.

"Look into my eyes," she said, no longer sounding whimsical, "the Genzoume (Mirage Eye, lit. Phantom Image Eye)"

"What?" Naruto asked, not believing his eyes. He was staring at another Transcendent Limit? It was hard to believe, but she was there, staring at him with the most grotesque of all Doujutsu.

"Don't you know anything about the other Transcendent Limits?" she asked, closing her eyes. "Sorry. I would let you look at them longer, but it's hard to control my Genzoume. Effectively, I'm blind, otherwise if I open my eyes… let's just say that people that have tried to hurt me have turned into vegetables."

She put up her finger up to her lips as she thought of something. "Wait, you named the Unnamed Great Doujutsu? That's cool! I like Kyoukagan. It's very fitting."

"What do you mean?" Naruto asked nervously.

"You don't know the legend?" she asked, still keeping up her fanciful state with her eyes closed. "Well, I'm not surprised. Iwa does keep better track of history than any other of the Great Shinobi Nations. After all, this is a bedtime story for all the kids in Iwa, or at least from what I could remember last."

Now Naruto was curious. He knew nothing of the history of his Limit, but here was someone with knowledge he wanted. There was a always a piece of him ever since the day he named his Limit that desired to know where it came from, why it existed, and why he had to be the stupid one to get the damn thing.

"Tell me," he ordered.

"Well that's rude," she said, "but I suppose I could indulge you since you're going to die. Better to pass away knowing what kind of power you hold."

The girl took in a deep breath. "There were three brothers. Nothing was special about them, but they were close; all of them were together no matter what."

Naruto clung to every word as if these were instructions on how he was going to die. This may have been a story from Iwa, but in Konoha, it was as real as anything could be.

"One day, as they were tending their fields, three beings came to them. The three claimed to be the gods Tsukuyomi, Susano'o, and Amatarasu. Of course, the three brothers thought they were lying and told them to go away, but the gods refused, saying they had brought gifts for them, depending, though, on what they wanted. Thinking this was a joke the older brother stepped forward and said that he wanted a way to bring peace to the world. Joining his brother, the middle one said in a joking voice that he wanted to be able to make people's dreams come true."

The carrot top paused as she gathered her thoughts, but it only lasted for a second. "But the youngest brother stayed quiet. And when the gods asked what he wanted, he told them he wanted to give to people gifts of their own somehow. His voice held no mocking like his brothers' and his request seemed genuine.

"Moved by his sincerity, Amatarasu came to him, pricked her finger and allowed a drop of blood to fall into his eyes. Susano'o followed what his sister did, except he picked up a piece of dust and put into the oldest brother's eye. Tsukuyomi came to the middle brother and breathed into his eyes, making them water from how cool his breath was.

"'Tomorrow' Amatarasu told the brothers, 'you'll receive your gifts.' Thinking it was a joke, the brothers walked into their home and fell asleep. When morning came, that was when their eyes changed. The oldest brother's eyes became the rippling eyes, the Rin'negan, while the middle brother's eyes became the misty eyes, the Genzoume, and of course, the youngest brother held the unnamed silver eyes."

"Later, the eldest brother became the Sage of the Six Paths, creator of ninjutsu, the middle brother became the Sage of the Water Moon, creator of genjutsu, and the youngest brother became the Sage of the Silver Tears, creator of all of the Bloodline Limits that exist today."

"Is that it?" Naruto asked. That couldn't be all. Stories don't just abruptly cutoff without an ending. This was supposed to be a children's story, told by parents to their children in an effort to keep an old legend alive.

"There is more," she said wagging her finger, "but I'm afraid that if you want to learn it, you'll have to beat me. Unfortunately, it'll take millennia before you can touch me."

"Try me!" Naruto yelled, shattering his eyes instinctively and turning them into the blood-red of the Sharingan. If this doujutsu specialized in illusion, he needed something to see past them.

"Fool, do you think that something as weak as the Sharingan can track me?" she taunted.

The girl slowly opened her eyes and the moment her eyelids passed her pupils, she disappeared from his sight. Naruto frantically looked around, but his scarlet eyes picked up nothing, not even footprints.

Failing to track her with his Sharingan, he turned to his Kyoukagan's Limit sensing. He grimaced as he sensed nothing. Well… he did, but everything felt fuzzy, as if it was snowing or raining on his radar. To his dismay, he couldn't get past her invisibility.

Why isn't my Kyoukagan working? He thought while scanning the rooftops.

Then he felt a something grab his feet. Looking down, he found it to be a tree branch that was quickly snaking its way up his leg. He grabbed a kunai and attempted to cut it, but it went through it like it never existed. Finally, he cut himself on his leg with the expectation that the pain would make it go away, but even that didn't lift the illusion.

Naruto got desperate and changed his Limit, changing his eyes from scarlet to that of Iruka's. Electricity danced around him as he charged up and released a flash of lightning, dissipating the branch illusion, and making the girl's invisibility flash on and off.

"What a powerful Limit," she said as she slowly stood up, becoming transparent once more. "It's also a little dangerous if I come too close. How about I fix that?"

A flash light stunned Naruto's eyes, and then the next second he was thrown into the roof of the building next door. He slowly rose from the crater while breathing hard, but then could feel another hit connect, sending him into some railing. Before another of whatever-those-were made contact, he jumped to the other side of the roof, his Hyakurai scanning everything around him.

He smiled as he sensed her bioelectricity. Illusion or not, it was hard to hide such a thing. Naruto charged his hand full of lightning. When his enemy came close enough he slapped, unleashing a flare of power and earning a scream of shock and pain from his opponent. Her invisibility finally shattered and she stood for all to see.

The girl clutched her heart as she felt it skip a beat or two, but then jumped to the side as Naruto raced at her with his arm cocked back. Her eye flashed with chakra, creating a wall of fire in front of her where she had looked at the ground. Thinking it was just another illusion, he jumped into it, only to jump backwards as he burned his hand.

Naruto quickly noticed her eyes glowing once again and jumped out of the way as a hand made out of stone came of the ground to choke him, but he quickly pulled out a kunai and threw it at the stone appendage. His eyes widened as he saw how his weapon went through the hand without making a sound.

Suddenly, stone hands sprouted out of everywhere. Just as he landed, two hands grabbed his feet, tripping him into a small garden of them. Several held him down while one went at his throat, choking him. Out of desperation, he charged up as much electricity as he could and channeled it through the roof, not caring if he blew up a couple light bulbs inside. The effect was immediate as all the hands disappeared, and an invisible girl fell off the lightning rod at the other end.

Getting up off the ground, Naruto pulled out a kunai and threw it at the girl, and before she could stand, he sent a huge arc of electricity at her. The night lit up as a huge boom pierced the tranquility, creating a crater of charred roof where the girl had been, but her carcass wasn't anywhere to be seen.

He looked up in time for her to drop out of the sky, her switchblade now open. Naruto jumped out of the way, but then jumped backwards as she suddenly appeared in front of him, slashing at him and giving him a cut on the arm.

When he jumped away, he could see that her switchblade was a butterfly knife. Normally a trade weapon of gangsters who think they could use a knife, most shinobi found them useless, just like all other switchblades, but for this girl to pick such a useless weapon out of the thousands that existed wasn't something he found himself understanding.

She played with the weapon skillfully, switching the blade in and out and playing with the brightly colored handle. Slowly she walked towards him and while she moved in close, Naruto switched Limits, returning his eyes to Sharingan.

At that moment, another tomoe added to his eyes, increasing the clarity of the area around him. But that didn't soothe his fears any.

The girl came close, and when she came in for the attack, Naruto's eyes registered what was going to happen.

She's going to try and cut my left shoulder! He made a motion to block her attack, but instead, his right shoulder was split open. Before he could react, his Sharingan sensed her attack aiming for his stomach. Like before he made an attempt to jump backwards, but instead of getting sliced at the stomach, the bridge of his nose busted open with blood gushing out.

Before he could analyze what was going on, he felt a long slice into his back, pushing him forward towards nobody, but he could then feel someone invisible make a downward slash, cutting from his left shoulder down to his right thigh. He fell to his knees and spat out the blood collecting in his mouth. Finally, his chest made contact with the roof, making his already laborious breathing harder.

"Sorry, it looks like I win," a voice he was coming to resent as much as Sasuke's told him.

Naruto looked up into her pearlescent, undulating eyes and only wanted to gouge out her precious Genzoume more with every second he looked into them.

"Look on the bright side, I'll tell you my name since now you won't be able to tell anyone, speaking that you are going to die," she victoriously said. "My name is Shizuka Komoriuta. Remember it when you see the Shinigami."

Shizuka pulled her butterfly knife up, but before she could bring it down, something that looked vaguely like a rope of white-something wrapped around her wrist. Her surprised look was the last thing Naruto saw before the blood loss became too much even for his body. After another second, he passed out.


Naruto groaned as he rubbed his head. His body felt like someone had dropped a huge whale on it and then proceeded to repeatedly slam the giant fish against him until they grinded every bone in his body to nothing but dust. That had to be the most uncomfortable nap he could ever recall having.

"You picked the worst fight possible; you do know that right?" a voice told him.

"My head…" was all Naruto moaned out.

"Take this," the voice ordered.

The blond held out his hand and grabbed what felt like a cup of water –he wasn't sure; at the moment he was so disoriented that he couldn't tell his own ass from his head. In his other hand, he could feel a couple of pills enter his palm. Obviously it was aspirin. This wasn't a hangover, but it sure as hell was worse than one… not that he'd know what one felt like.

After chugging down the medicine and water, he rubbed his head and was relieved that his eyes were covered with his goggles. Otherwise, whoever this guy was, he'd find out about the Kyoukagan. Normally, Naruto would do his best to avoid strangers, but every single last one of his senses weren't working properly, and this guy did seem nice.

Taking a moment to figure out where he was, all he could see was a blurry world coming to focus at a snail's pace. The only thing he knew was that he was laying on a bed… a nice, soft, fluffy bed.

He recalled what happened during his romp through Konoha last night. He barely recalled his conversation with the Kyuubi and the spat between him and Shizuka. It all merely felt like a nightmare. And like any other nightmare, it felt so distant now that he was awake.

"Bad dream," he muttered as he rubbed his aching head again.

"Actually, that wasn't a dream," the stranger corrected. "The person you fought was Komoriuta Shizuka, a genin that hails from Hakubogakure no Sato, the Village Hidden in the Twilight, a small shinobi village between Iwa and Kumo. Unfortunately for you, you fought a very dangerous genin."

"I'll take you word for it," Naruto managed to moan out before he rubbed his eyes. "What time is it, where in hell am I, why do I feel like shit, and why do I keep feeling a sense of vertigo?"

"It's six minutes till seven," the stranger answered. "And to answer your second question, you're in my hotel room. Your racket last night was loud enough to wake me up from my beauty sleep, and since I couldn't fall asleep again I decided to investigate. To answer your next two questions, stick around."

"Do I have much of a choice?" Naruto asked sarcastically.

"Well, not until your senses correct themselves, which may take anywhere from a couple minutes to a couple hours, but they should be fine by the time you head to the Chuunin Exam."

The genin could then hear a low level fire technique going off and then for the smell of cigarette smoke, but with his higher than normal senses, he could tell that it was coming from a pipe, not a cancer stick.

He could just barely make out that he was in a white motel room, only marred by the fact that everything was blurry and the figure sitting at the bed next to his. With his sense of touch, he could tell he was still fully dressed. But that sense of vertigo wasn't loosening up yet.

"Alright, spill the beans," Naruto told the guy. "How the hell did she pull half that crap?"

The man chuckled, expelling more of the cigarette smoke in his direction. He could smell a hint of peppermint mixed in, obviously one of those flavored smoke-things or something like that. Or it was more than likely that the peppermint was just mixed in.

"Sorry," the man apologized. "It isn't very often I smoke, but once in a while I do when I need to calm my nerves. Anyways, for starters, all that happened last night was an illusion. The scars you got, everything. If you feel around, not even the fabric of your clothes have been ripped. Also, think back to the battle and how even though she kept hitting and slicing at you, the Hyakurai couldn't shock her for some odd reason."

True to what he said, Naruto's clothes looked like he done nothing in them except sleep. And he did recall that even though she did make contact with him, she still never got shocked unless he tracked her and charged his electricity to hit a wide area. If what the man said was true, then all the pain, all the blood of his that was spilled was nothing more than an elaborate genjutsu?

The thought made Naruto uncomfortable knowing that particular branch of the ninja arts could be so deadly. Maybe he should've paid more attention to Iruka during that part of class, especially during the part where he explained how to break out of the optical illusions.

"The reason for this is because," the man continued, "the Genzoume is aptly named. Its most effective ability is to create illusions so powerful that they can't be broken by normal means –hybrid genjutsu if you will. And the most dangerous part is the fact that whatever happens can come true. It's so great that had one of her illusions made a lethal blow, it would've killed you because the mind would've been fooled into thinking it actually happened. The only way to truly counter it is to strike the person behind the illusions, which you did every time you hit her with a blast of electricity."

Naruto's eyes were now beginning to focus, allowing him to see that the person had a big something on his back and his hair was unruly on top, but long enough to keep in a decent sized ponytail.

"Now, I got a question for you," the man told him. "Ever heard of the Kurama clan?"

Naruto shook his head. "Not really."

"Wasn't expecting you to have." The man gave off a large puff of his pipe, sending more peppermint-scented smoke into the air. "They're a clan from Konoha that specializes in genjutsu that, at first glance, seems as powerful as the Genzoume genjutsu. This is far from true. The Genzoume has a whole arsenal of abilities that put it in a whole different level, thus why it's called a Transcendent Bloodline Limit."

He was interrupted as the boy before him cut in. "My turn for a question. How do you know so much on Transcendent Bloodline Limits?"

"Shut up, brat, and I might tell you later. Believe me when I say I'm a lot older and I know more than you."

Naruto already did not like this guy.

The man took a second to empty his pipe of the burnt tobacco and peppermint and then to put it away.

"Now where was I? Ah, yes, now I remember! The Genzoume has an arsenal of abilities, and unlike the Kurama which have just an unusual brain, Genzoume users have an unprecedented nervous system which is needed for the illusions to be woven. Their senses are ten times greater than an average human, putting them on a pedestal as trackers greater than an Abarume and Inuzaka, and an I.Q. and thinking capacity just as great, if not greater, than your friend Shikamaru, who I believe to be the most gifted Nara born in a couple generations. They also have some of the greatest reflexes and balance on the planet, and I swear to the gods I'm not joking. Walking on wire comes as natural as breathing for them."

"Damn," Naruto mumbled, honestly impressed and jealous that his Kyoukagan didn't have anything as fancy.

"Yeah, it gets better," the man said sarcastically. "Those abilities alone make Genzoume users pretty dangerous, but their eyes have more uses than just projecting illusions, which is what really sets them apart. Never look directly into their eyes, otherwise they can get into your head, pick out information they want and then use it against you. Skilled users can even read your thoughts should you look them in the eyes, but I doubt Shizuka has that much skill yet. She's good, but not that good."

Naruto sighed in relief knowing that his secrets were safe… for the moment at least. The last thing he needed was information about his Kyoukagan disclosed he didn't want leaked, such as its weaknesses and everything else. It also brought him some comfort knowing his secret about Kyuubi was still safe from the world.

But one thing was for sure: Should he have a rematch with Shizuka, he had to be a thousand times more careful. He needed more information, though; everything had a weakness –even the greatest of all Limits had a chink in their impregnable armor.

"What else?" Naruto asked, watching as the ceiling began to come into focus, albeit slowly.

"I'm not done explaining her eyes. The other reason you never look into a Genzoume user's eyes is because they gain the advantage and you end up having to play by their rules. This is because they get control of your senses early, which is a must in the art of genjutsu. Once that happens, they have free reign to do whatever the hell they want. Why do you think you feel like shit? Even though she wasn't able to kill you, she was kind enough to leave you with a parting gift of screwed up senses for a couple hours at the most."

"But if those were illusions," Naruto thought aloud, "then…" He caught himself before he could say anything about his Sharingan. "Could a Sharingan work against her, or even a Byakugan?"

The man snorted in amusement. "I highly doubt it. If Shizuka was smart, she would've studied on the Sharingan and the Byakugan to figure out how they work. Then she'd be able to play with them like any other human being, only with the added spice of humor at the sight of them not knowing what the hell is going on. Like I said, her genjutsu is at an unreachable level, so strong it isn't hard to fool other Limits."

That did explain a lot. She simply knew how the Sharingan worked and used its own abilities to her advantage. It was too much like controlling a marionette, and it wouldn't be hard to maneuver a person into a corner and then go in for a quick killing blow. The more he thought about Shizuka, the more invincible she seemed.

It also explained why he couldn't sense her with his Kyoukagan. Though she didn't know how his eyes fully worked, it was a sixth sense and therefore was under her control last night. By all means, she could've manipulated it to her use; thankfully, she didn't know about it.

"There are some weaknesses, though," the man said with a smirk.

Naruto turned to his blurry form almost like he had he was getting free ramen for life; now the most hyperactive ninja alive was paying attention.

"They're pretty deadly too. You did see that she was wearing a set of welder's goggles right?" Naruto nodded his head up and down. "The only time those come off is when she needs to use her eyes. Otherwise, if she didn't keep those on, she'd go blind permanently. The senses Genzoume users pride themselves on are their very weakness. Loud sounds, too much pain or pressure on the body, too much light, powerful smells… all of that makes them as fragile as expensive fine china. Which also brings up another point, they need to make eye contact in order to bring their genjutsu to full effectiveness, but this is a problem, especially during the day when it's bright out. Also, they're prone to electricity because it messes up their nervous system, the very basis for their entire Limit. I want you to keep this in mind; I have a feeling this won't be the last time you meet Komoriuta."

By now, Naruto's senses had corrected themselves, allowing him to see who this mysterious man was.

He had white hair and a huge scroll strapped to his back; his headband had two small horns, and instead of a village insignia he had the kanji for 'oil' on it. He had red paint running down from his eyes, and his clothing looked as if it belonged to a traditional Kabuki dancer.

The blond sat up and moved to the edge of the bed, stretching and working the kinks out of his body Shizuka caused. A sense of vertigo still stuck, but it wasn't nearly as awful as when he first woke up.

"I remember her using a weird weapon, a butterfly knife I think," Naruto told him as he popped his back. "Why would a shinobi want to use such a useless weapon?"

"Any weapon can be deadly if used correctly," the man explained. "The way she used the balisong only added to the effect of her genjutsu. That, and I noticed you made eye contact a couple times when you were following the weapon movement. For her, the knife has several uses, which is probably why she chose it to have a fancy color."

"Oh." Naruto stood up and popped his neck, but then sat down holding his head as the vertigo kicked in. "Sorry, but man! She messed up my senses good."

"I give you a couple more minutes before you fully recover from your fight," the man said as he himself stood. "The Kyuubi's healing abilities made it to where you recovered in merely an hour and a half, instead of several hours like I bet she was hoping for."

Naruto stood stock still at the mention of his inner demon. "Hey, wait… oh yeah," he then rubbed the back of his in embarrassment. "You would know about her since you're probably from around here."

"It's a 'her'?" the man asked, wearing a lecherous grin that seemed unusually fitting on his face. "Do describe!"

Faster than the human eye could track, he took out a pen and notepad while wearing an excited grin. Who would have thought that the greatest demon to walk the earth was a female? The man wondered if she was hot or…

Naruto grimaced and turned away. "I hate her. She keeps trying to take over, and she keeps messing with my emotions to do it."

"Oh," the man muttered as he put away his notes and sat back down. Although a pervert he was, he knew there were some things he should be serious about. Messing with someone's emotions was a very deep crime in his book, and if the Kyuubi was that desperate to get out, he could only feel bad for this boy.

"Sorry, I didn't know," the man apologized as folded his arms. "The only thing I can say is to avoid feeling darker emotions, such as anger, jealousy, fear, and anything else like those."

Naruto looked up with a confused look. "Why?"

"Because it gives her a foothold. When you're really feeling bad, she could probably manifest outside your body in some way to tempt you. Because of your connection to her, though, you'd probably be the only that'd be able to see her."

That didn't make the blond feel any better. He couldn't get angry, he couldn't get jealous, he couldn't cry, or feel anything else negative, not unless he wanted to give the Kyuubi the strength she so desired.

Thinking about it, he was glad he at least pretended to be a happy-go-lucky idiot. In a way, it covered his negative emotions not only from the world, but also from himself and the Kyuubi. Still, she knew him more deeply than anyone else that existed, and she took every advantage of it. Eventually, there may be a time where he'd give in… there was no doubt about it.

He looked up as he felt a hand against his shoulder, greeting his eyes to the refreshing smile on the stranger's face. "You got it rough, and trust me when I say that I could never handle half of the crap that you've probably gone through. But look at it this way: it could be worse. What about Gaara and how he ended up? That could've been you."

A sad smile traced Naruto's lips. This guy was right; things could be worse off than they were already. If it wasn't for all of his precious people –Iruka, Haku, Kakashi, Anko, Yamato, Sarutobi, Hinata and maybe Sasuke and Sakura- he would've become the same as the ghoul. He had so many reasons to try his best and keep the Kyuubi at bay.

The man sighed with a smile as he stood up and walked over to a chair next to a table laden with notes of god-knows-what.

"Now, I need to get back to work and I believe that you have to head out and get ready for the Chuunin Exam."

"Yeah, thanks," Naruto said with a grin.

He liked this guy. There was just something familiar about him, but what, he couldn't put his finger on it.

Before he took a step out of the door, he turned to the man with a foxy smile. "Hey, I never got your name."

The man smiled as he looked up from his notes. "It's Jiraiya."

"The name's Uzumaki Naruto. You might want to remember it because I'll be the next Hokage! Well, be seeing you!"

With one last wave of his hand he turned and left out the doorway, but he missed Jiraiya's wide-eyed, shock filled face.

Naruto stopped in the middle of the hall as a random thought hit him. Jiraiya never did tell him how he knew so much about Transcendent Bloodline Limits. With a shrug of his shoulders, he just kept moving. It was just one of those things that were going to remain a mystery to him.


Naruto was enjoying a bowl of ramen for brunch since it was too late for breakfast and too early for lunch. Ayame leaned on the counter waiting for the moment when he'd ask for another bowl. It wasn't uncommon for him to down several in one sitting.

Even as he ate, Naruto was worried. There was no doubt in his mind that Shizuka and he were going to butt heads again; the major change now was he at least stood a chance. He just had to make sure he never looked into her eyes; otherwise, it would be a massacre like last night. The hits he did give her were straight luck, a matter of her not knowing how Hyakurai worked, but she'd be more prepared next time.

He paused on his chewing as he thought about what she said. The Genzoume, the Kyoukagan, and the Rin'negan… those were The Three Legendary Doujutsu. For a second he wondered what the Rin'negan was like; the Genzoume was devastating, and the abilities it had were numerous.

Then he groaned as he thought of another threat: Gaara of the Desert. The redheaded ghoul was dangerous, and probably on par with Shizuka. Jikiton was a dangerous Limit (not quite as much as the Genzoume) and there wasn't any telling whatever else he was hiding.

He sighed at the thought of everyone out for his ass. At least Lee was a nice guy… energetic, but nice nonetheless; Ino was annoying, simply put, and why was she so adamant about having a rematch when she didn't even acknowledge his presence back at the academy? Naruto wasn't sure of Neji had it out for him as, and hopefully, the Hyuuga didn't. The Oto team looked like they didn't like him; then again, they looked like they didn't like anyone. Was this an average day in the life of a Kyoukagan user, and if it was, was it possible to trade lives with someone else?

Naruto looked to the side as the counter was slammed, revealing Ino wearing an expectant smile. Inside his mind, he groaned. This wasn't crap he needed right now.

Ayame sighed as she retreated deeper into the stand. It wasn't hard to tell that Naruto was stressed enough already, but then to throw the blond pig into the equation… She wondered how the whiskered boy lived as long as he did.

"What do you want?" Naruto asked as he slurped up the remaining contents of his seventh bowl of ramen.

"How about we end it right here, right now?" Ino said, wearing a sly smile that tried to convey that she was better than him and that everybody should be aware of it. "We wouldn't have to fight during the Chuunin Exam since by then we'll know who the loser is."

Not even looking up from his bowl of ramen, he gave his reply: "Stand at the back of the line. I lost count of how many people want my head, and the last problem I need is to worry about you."

"Huh?" Ino asked intelligently. "What do you mean 'stand at the back of the line'? I've been standing at the front for god-knows-how-long!"

"Let me put it into the perspective of the two people who really, really want me dead." Naruto turned to her, wearing an annoyed look. "Gaara, the guy from Suna, has threatened to 'feed me' to his sand on several occasions. And just last night, a girl from Hakubo, or wherever in hell that place is, attacked me and actually came close to killing me. Right now you're pretty low on the 'people-who-want-to-kill-me' list."

Ino stayed silent long enough for Naruto to worry that he accidentally broke her brain. Once or twice she tried to muster up something to say, but then she'd shake her head and then go back to contemplating.

After five minutes of saying nothing, Ino finally spoke. "You're being serious, aren't you?"

Naruto just blinked. "It took you five minutes to come to that conclusion?" He gave her a thumb up, all the while still looking unimpressed. "Great job, genius!"

That earned him a one-way ticket to the dirt, courtesy of Ino's fist.

Even on the ground, there was the threat of accidentally looking up her short skirt, but he made sure to keep his eyes averted. If the sarcastic comment was enough to get a black eye, he could only wonder what making her think he was a pervert would earn him.

"Okay, I probably deserved that one," Naruto said as he crawled back up to his seat, rubbing his now swollen eye. He was thankful that bruises usually disappeared after only five minutes –thanks to the Kyuubi of course.

"Sometimes you can be a real asshole," Ino told him.

"I try," Naruto told her with a grin. "It's fun, especially when I do it to piss off my sister."

"Sister?" Ino asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah… well…" Naruto took a second to think, putting his chopsticks up to his chin. "Actually, she's not really my sister, but we're so close that we just call each other brother and sister. Anko may be crazy, but she's there for me."

"Oh," Ino thought aloud, looking confused at the thought of calling someone like that a sibling.

How could Naruto put up with someone like that? She heard horror stories about Anko, what she did, and what could've possibly happened to make her the way she was. There shouldn't have been any way someone stood within a foot of her and not get poisoned just for talking. Anko was a person that got scorned, but would then snap back with a threat one couldn't tell whether or not she'd actually fulfill.

But then she remembered Naruto and what kind of life he led. Everyone seemed to look down upon him; every single last villager always seemed to pay no heed to him, as if they hated him and wanted him to disappear. He had no parents, no brothers, or sisters to lean to, and neither did Anko. Both of them were the village pariahs, shunned because they were different, acting the way they did so that they could get as much attention as possible.

At the same time, they were human. Compassion was something people naturally drove for. But they lacked it; nobody would be willing to give it to them. They grew up deprived of the very thing everyone else tasted every day of their lives.

Ino looked saddened as she continued to think about it. Being a Yamanaka, she was well versed in psychology and how emotions drove people. It was from this knowledge that she came to the conclusion on why the two stayed together.

They needed each other. The world was cruel to them, but they drove on with a sliver of hope. Without one another, there was no one they'd be able to hang on to.

Naruto noticed Ino's darkening complexion and immediately became worried. "Hey, sorry about what I said earlier, but you know, it's been kind of stressful. We'll have our match soon, but when, I couldn't tell you."

Ino shook her head.

"It's okay," she told him. "I'm not worried about it right now." The platinum blond sighed. "I'm just thinking about things."

"Want a bowl of ramen?" Naruto asked with a friendly smile. "It always helps me out when I need to think."

She looked caught off guard by the request. Ino blinked her eyes a couple times before she shrugged, earning a grin from Naruto.

"What kind do you want?"

"Surprise me," she answered.


Sakura scurried to the gate area of the Forest of Death, with her katana –she named it Bloody Rose- swinging behind her.

As she came up on the area, she could see crowds of genin getting ready to enter the forest, all of them laden with supplies and full to the rim of weapons she couldn't identify. She identified a couple of teams, one of them being Team Ten with Shikamaru and Chouji, waiting for their teammates to arrive.

She huffed as she came to a stop in front of Sasuke, who was leaning against a tree, and Anko, who was rubbing her head and moaning while saying something along the lines of 'too much alcohol.'

"Sorry, I'm…" she tried to say, only to be interrupted by Anko.

"Can it," she said in an agitated voice. "The second part of the exam doesn't begin for another half hour, and right now the teams are just getting their scrolls. Speaking of which…"

As if on cue, Sasuke dug in his bag and pulled out a scroll. "We've got a heaven scroll," he told her.

"Okay, but what's it for?" Sakura found herself asking.

"Give me a couple seconds," Anko told her, rubbing a tender spot right below her eyes. "Naruto isn't here yet, so you'll have to relay the info to him. You have to get the counterpart of the scroll –the earth scroll in your case- in order to pass. You do this by," here she groaned and mumbled under her breath about 'damn hangovers' before she continued, "you do this by stealing it from the other teams. By what means you do it… have fun, it's a free-for-all. You could even kill for one, but that'd be a little extreme. Keep in mind that other teams can steal yours as well, and there is no limit to how many scrolls you can have."

Naruto's older sister walked away, shouting for someone to get her some aspirin before she lost her temper. Sakura and Sasuke watched as several chuunin ran at once like chickens with their heads cut off to find the deranged jounin her medicine before someone died.

"Anyways," Sakura said, turning around to meet her crush. "Do you know where Naruto is?"

Sasuke shook his head. "I don't have a clue where goggle-head is, and neither did Anko. She said he wasn't home when she woke up."

"If that idiot doesn't show up…" Sakura said past clenched teeth.

She was interrupted as they both heard a pair of ninja sandals. Sakura spun around, expecting it to be her teammate and fully ready to yell her head off. Instead, her eyes were greeted by the sight of a scrawny girl with bright orange hair and a set of welder's goggles that were eerily reminiscent of Naruto's water goggles.

Sasuke stopped leaning as he stared into her welder's goggles. He didn't like her already; there was an air of arrogance around her, but at the same time, it held a power that seemed able to back it.

"And you are…?" Sasuke asked the newcomer, his hand inching to his kunai.

"I would head home if I were you two," she told them in a whimsical voice, holding her hands behind her back.

"Why would that be?" Sakura had her hand on Bloody Rose, ready to pull the katana out and hack at this annoying girl.

"Because your teammate, Naruto, isn't going to show," she simply told them, relishing the looks of shock and confusion on their faces.

"How would you know that?" Sakura dangerously asked, now pulling out her katana.

It took a couple of seconds, but then Sasuke realized what the girl was leading onto. "What did you do to Naruto?" he questioned, pulling out a kunai to attack her.

"Oh, I just disposed of him for the moment," she answered, talking to them as if she was chatting about something as mundane as the weather. "Unfortunately, I couldn't kill him like I originally planned, but I did put him out of commission."

"YOU WHAT?" Sakura screeched, glaring bloody murder at the girl.

"Who do you think you are?" Sasuke stepped forward, feeling as angry as Sakura.

"To answer the first question," she said while crossing her arms, "I merely nullified his senses, and sadly for you, it won't be until the late afternoon until they return to normal. He probably can't even stand up straight right now. And to answer your second question: I'm someone that's stronger than you, and that's all you need to know."

"Big talk for a…" before Sasuke could react, she was already behind him with her balisong at his neck.

She pressed the blade into his neck, drawing blood. And then the next second, she reappeared in front of them, folding up her knife.

Sasuke held a hand up to his throat, expecting to feel the sensation of blood in between his fingers. Instead he felt nothing, as if she never touched his throat. His eye widened as he realized what just took place was nothing more than an illusion.

"Like I said," she told them, "I'm stronger than you."

"Shizuka!" a familiar voice rung, making Sasuke and Sakura smile and said girl's eye unnoticeably twitch in aggravation. She grimaced as she spun and saw Naruto walking up to them, angry and looking annoyed.

He stopped three feet away from her and the two proceeded to have a stare down. Sakura became nervous as she felt killer intent leaking into the air, its source being Naruto and the strange girl. If the two were going to fight, it would more than likely turn into a bloody mess.

Sasuke also felt the killer intent in the air, but he acknowledged it with a raised eyebrow. The two had met, and Naruto wasn't very happy about their last meeting, but Shizuka wasn't happy either to see her plans disrupted.

"You're a low life piece-of-shit," Naruto was the first to break the silence.

"I wasn't expecting you to be here so early," she merely told him, remaining whimsical despite the fact that her original plan had been shattered. "I didn't expect you to be up and walking after last night."

"Yeah, well, crap happens," Naruto smoothly countered. "Let's just say that I heal quickly."

"Even then, you would've been a worm feast had the old fart not intervened," she continued. "But still, when our paths cross again, I'll finish what I started."

"Keep thinking that."

The two stared at each other past their goggles, trying to size the other up. Naruto knew Shizuka's weaknesses, but she knew about the one Limit he needed to gain advantage of their future battle. She was intelligent, cunning, and dangerous. As a shinobi, it was the worst combination to fight against.

"Alright, break it up!" Anko butted in, walking up to them and making them dissipate whatever intention they had to rip each other apart. She was looking to be in better condition than a couple minutes ago, having gotten the aspirin she needed. "Save the fighting for the forest!"

Shizuka grunted and moved to leave, but before she left the group eyeing her, she came up to Naruto and whispered into his ear.

"I won't tell anyone about you, Silver-Eyes, but I'll still kill you," she spoke to him in an undertone.

"You still owe me the ending of the story," Naruto told her with a smirk. Shizuka grunted in amusement.

She trotted away, donning her whimsical smile as she left to where her supplies were. Team Seven and Anko kept their eyes on her until she disappeared into the crowd of genin, but the moment she did Anko rounded on the small group near her.

"That girl is strange," Naruto was about to tell Anko she was calling the kettle black, but then his sister finished the sentence. "She's a one man team, and the only genin to ever come here from Hakubo. I think you guys should be a little cautious around her."

"Why would she be the only one on a team? Aren't squads made up of three genin and one jounin?" Sakura asked.

"Because, sometimes in the smaller hidden villages," Anko explained, taking a seat on a nearby rock –it was obvious to Sasuke and Sakura her headache was still plaguing her, "there are not enough genin or wannabe ninjas to create a ninja academy, or to create squads like we do here. So, what some of them do is assign a jounin to one genin, creating an apprenticeship, but the odds of the genin passing the test are much lower than what you guys had; at least a seventy-percent failure rate."

"How often do some of them come to the exam?" Sasuke questioned. He was beginning to take an interest in this Shizuka.

"I only see one of these genin once every couple years," Anko answered. "And now that we have done our history lesson, time for me to address another issue."

She stood up and then walked up to Naruto who looked at her oddly. He felt like he was being blamed for something he didn't do, but it was still a mystery to him of what it could be.

Before he could react, he was punched into the ground… hard. Sasuke and Sakura flinched at the sound of their teammate being the target of his sister's rage.

"Where in hell were you this morning?" Anko shouted.

"Making best friends with Shizuka!" Naruto shot back while holding the lump that was going to be forming on his head.

"What?" Anko asked, genuinely surprised at the mention of the girl's name.

"Yeah, she…!"

"ATTENTION, ALL GENIN!" an intercom shouted. "PLEASE GET TO YOUR POSITIONS, THE EXAM WILL BE BEGINNNG IN THE NEXT COUPLE OF MINUTES!"

"We'll talk about it later," Anko told him as she ran off.

After the jounin was gone, Sakura piped up, "I think we should head to our gate."


Naruto stood beside his teammates, staring into the Forest of Death. The gate had yet to open, but Team Seven was ready.

Sakura gave him a brief explanation of what they needed to do. At first thought, it didn't seem too hard, but thinking about it a little more, he knew it'd be a problem if they made contact with some of the stronger teams.

He shattered his eyes and turned them into the milky white of the Byakugan. He had yet to use the Limit that Hinata gave him, but he felt now was the best time to take it out for a spin. If there were teams out to get him, he'd be the first to know. It also might give him a couple of seconds to determine whether or not Shizuka was going to go hunting for a particular whiskered boy.

Sakura gulped as she stared into the forest. To anyone else, it would be apparent she was nervous. She didn't want to fail Sasuke or Naruto, and she didn't know how useful her Kinzokuton would be. Her newest attack could be quite deadly, but only if she had enough chakra.

For that reason, she patted her holster, feeling the soldier pills she bought that morning. Should she ever get into a jam, all she needed to do was pop a pill and launch her attack. But she hoped it never came down to that.

Sasuke remained emotionless, but on the inside, he could feel an adrenaline rush. If anything, he was excited. This was what being a shinobi was about.

At that moment, a buzzer went off and the gate opened. Team Seven stepped forward.

Kill Joy no Jutsu (A.K.A. Author's Note): Okay, I lied again. No Orochimaru/Naruto battle yet. But on a brighter note, I have introduced the antagonist I had planned. Shizuka should be a problem for Naruto throughout the story. The next battle will be the battle between Sakura and Sasuke against the Hebi-Teme, complete with a couple new Kinzokuton moves. There will also be a battle between Shizuka and Naruto. Expect some awesome battles.

Jiraiya has just discovered Naruto! Imagine the conversation he's going to have the Hokage!

The Ino/Naruto moment, although short, did get a connection between the two. Expect some more, and I am hoping for the two to meet during their time in the Forest, but how, I don't have a clue quite yet. Give me a day or two and I could tell you.

I imagine that the dream is confusing you and the Kyuubi moment is just as irritating, but hear me out. It all will make sense in due time. This is all hinting towards a very big moment in the story as Naruto begins to uncover more secrets of the Kyoukagan.

Not much else for me to go over. I will post the info on the Genzoume next chapter. Sorry if you're really wanting it, but I kind of have a lack of time right now.