Chapter 11

Kumogakure

Things were not going exactly in the way Minato had planned for them, but there was no doubt in his mind that Naruto would be able to sweep aside his opponents during the exams. it wasn't just the hope of a father in his son but the believe coming from understanding the difference in power and having seen his son fight as well as train hard in order to be a capable shinobi. Anything less than victory for Naruto was unacceptable.

It was not the expectation that had been placed on the redhead by him or anyone in the village. Of course the villagers had seen them off when they were leaving the Hidden Leaf and were expecting nothing less of victory. Konoha was the best and its Shinobi were expected to be the best. But that was not what made defeat and failure unacceptable.

Naruto just didn't like losing. He was so focused when fighting an enemy that Minato truly feared for anyone who would face him when he was in the mood. As Itachi has always said, Naruto is a genius in a fight. But of course that genius does not always show. When he was hard pressed that was when the best of him surfaced.

They had come to the Cloud for the Exams and it has just been the two of them. Normally, Naruto was supposed to come with his team and a sensei, but he didn't have that at the moment. Team Mahiro was no more and so Minato had spoken with the Yondaime Raikage about allowing Naruto to participate without a team. The man had been amused when Minato made the request but he didn't refuse. He only said if Minato thought Naruto could survive; then he was not going to stop them.

There was one thing that he had made with the Raikage about Naruto's participation in the exams: Kumogakure would not be responsible if anything happens to Naruto whether during the exams or while still in the village. Minato could have understood in the exams without any complains but he around the village? He had made some complains but the man was not willing to budge and he had been forced to agree to the terms just so Naruto could participate.

It didn't matter either way, he would make sure that Naruto was safe and the redhead could take care of himself.

Looking at his son – Naruto was standing by the window, looking at the streets of the Kumo – Minato could see that he was really excited. He could tell even though Naruto wasn't looking at him. He could read the body language.

"Are you really this excited about this?" Minato asked, walking over to Naruto.

Naruto waited until his father was by his side, looking outside their hotel. "Yes," He said with a smile.

He had been waiting for this moment for a long time. Itachi had done it way before him and now it was his time. It was time for the Elemental Nations to know that he was Uzumaki Naruto not just the son of Konoha's yellow flash. The path to his fame had to begin with his domination of the exams. He could not have things either way. In the finals of the exams, he had to win by a large a large margin. Defeat would not be allowed to smell him.

If it does,there would be pain to whoever causes it.

For these past years he had been forced to act the good police officer in the streets of the Hidden Leaf, but now he was free. He could look at his dream. He could make his way into books of legends by starting things here. Besides, he was tired being called a genin. Other shinobi tended to look down on you just because you are a mere genin. After this exam, he would no longer be genin, but a Chunin. And after this, he would give it a year at most for the Jonin flank jacket to be handed over to him.

He was dreaming big.

"Just don't get too excited though," Minato warned. "You don't want to end up being careless…" Minato almost hit himself after saying those words: Naruto being careless in a battle? The very thought was amusing and on the flip side of the coin, it was just ridiculous.

"That would be a foolish mistake," Naruto said to his father. "The reception in the village has not been that bad though," the redhead calmly.

He couldn't go as far as to say that upon their entrance in the village, they had been showered with love and affection… saying that would be a complete lie. Kumogakure has just been neutral towards him. Minato received the greetings and respect he commanded a Kage and one of the most famous shinobi in the current life time. There was nothing more than that.

Naruto held no love for Kumogakure. Even if they had glared at him, he would not have minded, nor would he have given it much thought. The feeling would have somewhat mutual. Kumogakure has been nothing but a pain to him. But of course, the redhead wouldn't go as far as to say he would be more than willing to attack any Cloud shinobi he comes across. He wasn't that much of a terrible person.

Or was he?

"Considering the current diplomatic relationship between the two villages, I am surprised as well," Minato said. "It could be that the most villagers don't know everything. There are things that are not for the masses to know."

"Better off ignorant, huh?" Naruto said in though. How he missed those days. The redhead sighed as he spoke once again. "I wonder how it would be in Iwagakure if we were to go there…"

"It would be an unpleasant experience," Minato said with somewhat of a pained look on his face. "I am not the most loved person in that village. When some look at me, they see the man responsible for slaughtering their loved ones."

"But it was war," Naruto said. "They should at least understand that. People," the redhead shook his head. "Our emotional opinions of people make us handle things irrationally and illogically. Those people are consumed by their hatred that they cannot see past reason."

Minato actually turned to face Naruto a bit surprised that those words actually came out of Naruto's mouth. Naruto didn't usually talk about things like that. He could talk about other things, like the state of the shinobi world, but he was never actually focused on dealing with people and their emotions.

"You have studied the behaviour of people?"

"A necessity during my days in MPC," Naruto said a bit indifferently. "It wasn't easy to defuse conflicts if you could not understand the people. Understanding how people think and walk made it easy to be able to see when things were wrong. The Uchihas problem was that they didn't try to understand people and the situation around them, they just used force. That was one of the reason they didn't get along with the villagers."

Minato nodded. "Force is necessary at times…" he said.

"It is, but one must be able to judge when it must be applied. If you just apply the force when there is no life being threatened and with the villagers watching, you will have a problem…" Naruto said. "I was able to function well because I was able to adapt to the demands of the job while not looking at what I must do but what the villagers will think about my actions."

Minato smiled. "You managed to change the image of the Uchiha by that," the Yondaime Hokage said. "Fugaku will always be thankful you know."

"He has given me a lot. Though having to adapt to that kind of life was a bother, it was the least I could do for him," Naruto responded calmly.

"Well, let us just hope that nothing happens that will ruin your relationship with the Uchihas…"

"Hopefully, but I am not too concerned about it," Naruto said a bit carelessly.

"Your mind appears to be fresh considering what was happened over the past weeks," Minato said. To be honest, he was actually worried about Naruto's state of mind after what happened. Perhaps the redhead was okay because he was shoving his burdens at the back of his head and just ignore them. He was rather good at ignoring things. He really hoped that was not the case though.

The fears about the redhead's mental state have been always present, but according to Kurenai, Naruto knew how to handle his problems and was actually fine. But she did say that there might be something wrong with him because how he handled his problems was not how normal people handled his problems. Psychological evaluation still showed nothing.

"I have no burdens," Naruto only said. "If I had burdens, I wouldn't be able to focus and I wish not be an embarrassment in this stage that has been prepared. Everybody deals with different situations in life and I have learned that we all deal with them in different ways. Some prefer talking about them… I don't like that."

"Normal people talk about things Naruto," Minato said a bit firmly.

"Then I'm not normal," Naruto said with a shrug of his shoulders. "I'm going out. The exams don't start until tomorrow."

"Be careful," Minato said to the redhead. He knew that Naruto was leaving because he no longer wanted to talk about subject they were having. Saying he was going out was his way of saying he was tired of the crap they were talking about.

Outside

Naruto made his way through the Cloud streets, his eyes not bothering to look around the village to see how it was made and its structures; there was no need for him to see anything from the village. He had no interest in Kumogakure after all. Besides, there was already too much information inside his head; he did not need to get his head on overdrive over anything that was unnecessary. There were things that were just trivial and he didn't need to know them all.

As he walked around, Naruto made sure to see where he was going just so he doesn't end up getting lost in the village. It would be embarrassing if he ended up getting lost in the village. Who knew what might actually happen if he ended up in the wrong place?

The village seemed rather lively though. No doubt that the Chunin exams were just a knock away. There were people around the streets and it was clearly obvious that some of them were not from the Cloud but coming from other nations. Well, Chunin exams were mostly used for showing off and conducting business. No doubt even merchants would be roaming around, looking for clients and other business opportunities.

While on the way, Naruto saw a ramen stand and decided to get some. He wasn't hungry, but just wanted to taste its flavour and see if it was as good as the one sold in Konoha and Icharaku ramen. The redhead smiled at the old woman behind the counter as he spoke. "One bowl of your best dish please," the redhead said.

The old woman nodded and went away from the redhead. She returned a minute later with a bowl of what Naruto recognized as pork ramen. He breathed in the steaming moisture he dug in. "You here for the exams?"

Naruto nodded.

"It is not often we see Konoha shinobi in our village these days," the old woman said in thought. She then smiled. "Well good luck in the exams."

Naruto just thanked her and continued to eat his ramen without saying too much. He wasn't all fond in speaking to strangers. It might be called rude, but he didn't care. It was not like he was even ignoring her away.

As Naruto was still eating, a man walked towards the stand and sat beside him. "The usual?" the old woman asked.

The man nodded and did a few subtle hand seals but Naruto noted by the use of chakra. He didn't say anything though. He just continued eating his ramen in peace. Once his ramen was brought over, the man took out a picture and slid it over to Naruto.

"Yugito Nii," the man said as Naruto's eyes looked at the image of a blonde girl. "You're likely to face her in the Chunnin exams. From all of Kumo's participants, she is the strongest. I suspect that she is a Jinchuriki of the Two-tails given that she is closer to both the Raikage and his brother. The former was even taking special care to her in preparation for the exams."

Naruto looked at the image for a moment before it burned. He didn't respond. The man was done eating and walked away while Naruto was still savouring his bowl.

Silencing jutsu… that was what the man had used to avoid anyone overhearing what he wanted to say and provided that the old woman didn't even ask what he was going to eat, the redhead assumed the man was a regular in the stand. Who was he again? Naruto could not remember ever meeting the man anywhere in his life. He did forget about people, but he would have to ask his father about this.

Back At the Hotel

"I was almost ready to come look for you when I saw you were not returning," Minato said as Naruto walked towards the sitting Hokage. "I was thinking you'd gotten lost."

"Why would you think that?" Naruto asked. It was just ridiculous asking that. He did have the thought of getting lost. Although his father was sometimes a bit overprotective, he could understand this one. He was thinking about it anyway.

"Fugaku told me that in your first day when they had you memorize the village layout on your own, you got lost," Minato said.

"It happens," Naruto said. "The village is by no means small and I'm not the one to be usually roaming around the streets to actually know everything." the redhead said as he sat beside his father. "A man walked up to me and gave me information."

"Oh, Jiraiya's contact," Minato then smiled a bit sheepishly. "Sorry, I should have told you about that before you left."

Naruto just shook his head.

"What did he say?"

"A suspected Kumo's Jinchuriki and that she is stronger than all other Kumo's participants." Naruto explained lightly.

He was rather surprised; surprised at the fact that he could just accept those words from that man without thinking about anything. A normal person would've demanded answers from the man, but he didn't even ask for the man's name or why he was even telling him the information. He had simply taken it all in silently. Had he really become that kind of a person who just takes in everything that life gives and just accept it?

Had he really become that kind of a person? The redhead shook his head. There was no need to have such thoughts. Even if he had become that kind of a person, what did it matter? He wouldn't complain if he was able to live through his life without any problems.

"You already know that Kumogakure has two Jinchurikis," Minato said calmly. "We will also be assessing Kumo's military strength while in the village. With your defensive jutsus you will be able to fight your way out without using too much of Ninjutsu. I would rather we keep it that way and while doing the tests, avoid using too much chakra as you don't know what might happen next."

Naruto just nodded. He had not planned on doing anything contradictory.

"Iwagakure will also be participating. Extra carefulness there," Minato said. "I assume the reason the exams are being held just for two days only is because the Raikage doesn't want 'enemies' inside his village. There more people there are, the harder it will become to keep surveillance. Well, we don't have to worry about anything…" the man paused for a moment. "We will be going to Kirigakure right after we finish the exams. Have that in mind."

The Following Day

9am

The Chunin exams participants were all gathered at the village gates. There were so many participants from various villages. Naruto was leaning against the large gate frames, with his hands folded across his chest, eyes closed.

So many faces around and a lot of noise being made… and he was the only one who didn't seem to have a team with him. The others were on a team and that meant that things would be difficult for him but not impossible. He could do this. Itachi had done it when the exams were being held in Konoha. What could stop him from making it? Uzumaki Naruto was not going to expect anything less than victory in the exams. He could not fail.

There was a considerable amount of killing intent around the atmosphere. Some of it was being directed at him, but Naruto didn't even as much as twitch; he just remained calm, eyes closed. He looked to be in his own world, not caring about that was happening with everyone. The games had yet to begin; he could see things through when they do begin.

"Feeling all mighty, eh?"

Naruto partially opened his eyes; he was being stared down by smirks from some genins. He closed his eyes and said nothing. They seemed to have a problem with him, but he did not. Perhaps if he just ignored them they would walk away. He wanted to laugh at that thought. When had it ever worked before?

"We are talking to you," another said, looking a bit insulted that he had been ignored. "We heard that you are on your own… how arrogant can you be? You think just because you're the Yondaime's son, you can take us all. I doubt that there won't be anyone who wants a piece of you."

There was no hatred in that. Naruto could understand how it would make others feel; he was all alone, thinking he was powerful enough to do it on his own. Some people may feel insulted and would want to show it to him that he wasn't all that strong and since he was just one person, he would likely face ambushes since a team would rather attack one person rather than a group. Numbers would give others the advantage over him. Well at least that is what he believed they would be thinking.

The fact that he was the son of a famous person didn't lesson things for him. On a normal day, Naruto would hate being subjected to that kind of thing, but today he was glad for it. When they tell stories about this, it would make it even much more impressive. It wasn't just him against one opponent; it was him against many other opponents. This was th-

Naruto's thoughts were cut off when he was grabbed by his shirt. "What? We not worth your time, teme?"

Naruto tilted his head to the side and smiled thinly; eyes closed eyes and held up his hands as if to surrender. His words were different though. "Yes," the redhead said bluntly. "Now can you get your hand off me?"

"Why you little..!"

"Let's just smack him around," another boy said as he stepped closer to Naruto. He drove his right punch towards Naruto's head. The redhead just tilted his head to ridiculous proportions to avoid the punch and just smiled.

"I dislike bullies," the redhead said calmly. "Shinobi-san, will you get your hand off me? This is making me rather uncomfortable…"

"And what if I don't? What are you going to do?"

Naruto stopped smiling and opened his eyes, turning a sharp and cold gaze. His lips curled slightly and he responded. "You will be rolling around the ground with flames around your body."

"What?"

Naruto grabbed the hand holding him and shoved it away while slamming a paper into the chest of the genin. He then snapped his fingers and flames burst out of the paper, consuming the body.

"Ahhhhhh!" the boy cried out as the flames travelled around his body. His entire body was on fire and he fell on the ground, rolling over as he tried to put out the flames. All eyes turned to face the redhead over what he just did. They had been looking when the confrontation started. Naruto really didn't care. He could not allow anyone to make himself lord over him.

Nobody seemed to be in the position to help the poor body from being burnt to ashes because the flames were not dying regardless of much he rolled. His teammates looked clueless on what to do about the situation. They seemed hesitant. Perhaps stuck on whether they should try to hit him or help out their teammate.

Naruto shook his head. Was the shinobi really like this? Were all these people just going to watch another shinobi die even when they have the power to stop it? It was a cruel world when you were surrounded by enemies.

The redhead took out a marked kunai and threw it towards the boy. The Kunai actually pierced through the boy's right shoulder, but the seal on it absorbed all the flames and the moment all the flames were gone, three people crashed into the ground just away from the group; it was the Raikage, flanked by two Jonins.

The man spared no one a look nor did he even ask what was going on. He just started speaking. "The exams will be composed of two trials. One will be done today and the finals will be held tomorrow." The Yondaime Raikage stopped there.

The man on his right hand continued after he had spoken. "To go the finals, you have to pass all of today's trials by 12pm. If you fail to finish before then, know that you have failed and you can pack your bags and go home."

The man on the left hand took over. "You have a written exam that you must complete during the first trial. Each team will be given a map. You will have to use that map to find the temple that is marked on the map. Upon reaching the temple, you will be given a flag with your village's symbol. The first person to reach the temple will be given answers to the exams; you will have to complete the written exam while on this mission. In order to pass, you need at least two flags. It must not be the same as you have. You must be in possession of two different flags.

"One more thing: the flag you have will determine who will face in the first round of the finals. Unless there are circumstances that force us to deviate from that, the first round tomorrow will be done so." The man paused for a moment. "Let me be clear: You need two flags, and must finish before 12pm. You also need to have the map and the answer sheet given to you. Unless you tick all those boxes, you have failed. Any questions?"

"Since we are going to be given one flag, does that mean that we will have to fight other teams in order to get the second flag?"

"Yes. You will have to fight another team to get the second flag."

"How many flags are really there? Kumogakure and Iwa have more teams than any other. Konoha just has one person. It is possible that we may end up fighting our comrades."

"Say there are 10 different villages here, that means that there will be just 20 flags. Each village gets just two flags. There is a possibility that by the time you get to the temple, flags from your village will be finished. If you want to pass, you will have to fight to get them."

"If I manage to get two flags but none are from my village?"

"You fail unless one of the flags you have is from an ally of your village; there must be a friend or an enemy."

With no more questions, they were given the maps and the answer sheets for the written exam. "You're free to begin any time you choose."

The moment those words were said, Kumo shinobi were the first to leave. It wasn't surprising. They knew the temple better than anyone. Naruto didn't want to waste time. He wanted to be first. Reading a map wasn't that difficult for him. He could get through. The rest followed shortly afterwards.

Leaving the village, they went into a forest. Naruto landed on a tree as he put on a thought. To have a safe passage he would need diversions. He created 10 clones and had them scatter around the terrain. They would give him a vision of what was happening around. It was obvious that some teams would not even bother to go to the temple. They would rather sit back and allow others to get the flags for them. It was all just troubling. Naruto wasn't going to allow anyone to get his flag though. He still needed to fight either way.

The redhead positioned his map and looked at it to get the general location of where he was going. But before he could even leave, Yugito's team surrounded him. The blonde looked at the redhead who didn't appear alarmed, he just smiled at her.

"Naruto Uzumaki," she said. "I hope you manage to make it to the finals. I wish to fight you. I have heard quite a lot about you."

Naruto's smile was just charming, it wasn't creepy. "I'm delighted that such a beautiful girl knows about me." The redhead tilted his head and closed his eyes as spoke once again, "Can we make a deal?"

"A deal?"

"Yugito," the only male in the team said warningly. "We can't be making deals with the enemy. Not to mention he killed Mikado-sensei…" the boy sent a glare at Naruto.

The redhead tilted his head to the side. Mikado sensei? The only Jonin from Kumo he had killed was that man. If they were talking about him, how did they even know about it? It was supposed to be secret that he actually did it. It was unless Kumogakure had been watching. The boy sounded sure it was him that did it. But the Anbu had cleaned all evidence of that battle. It was either information was leaked or Kumogakure had been watching it happen.

Yugito ignored what was being said by her teammate and focused on Naruto. "Why must I make a deal with you?"

"I'm not familiar with this place, but you are. Why don't we go together? You can leave me at the temple once we get there and I will fight on my way back. If I'm good, I will make it back to the village with two flags and you will get to fight me, and if you win, I can give you the formula of my father's Flying Thunder God technique."

"And if I lose?"

"When we both become adults, you owe me a date," Naruto said smiling.

Yugito snorted. "I'm not stupid. Why would you risk that much just for a date?"

"I think your beauty is worth it," Naruto said smiling. "But of course if you don't think you can defeat me, you can forget about it. You won't be losing much anyway."

"Are you crazy?"

Naruto shook his head. He took out a three-pronged kunai. "No, just confident about my abilities and very much attracted to your beauty that I'm willing to do anything." He said that bluntly.

Yugito was confident about her abilities. She was confident she could not lose, but why would he offer that much? Did he really think that he could defeat her? What was making him so confident about beating him? Surely the Raikage would be infuriated if he learns that she refused such an offer. She was positive about that.

"How do I know you won't back out of the deal?"

Naruto threw the kunai he was holding towards the blonde. "That is a special kunai my father uses for his jutsu. Having fought him in different occasions, your Raikage must know it. This is proof that I will not back down if I lose."

Of course he didn't say the kunai actually had the seal on it. That would be just be playing dangerous. The Kunai had a different purpose, but Yugito didn't know that and that worked well for him.

"I want it back when I defeat you," Naruto said. "Do we have a deal?"

"On one condition," Yugito said. "Even if you don't make it to the finals or lose to anyone other than me, you will still give me the technique…"

"I can go with that," Naruto said.

"Then we have a deal," Yugito said. "Follow us… and better keep up because we will not wait for you. If you fall behind, that is your problem."

"Lead the way…" Naruto said.

People were really simple, weren't they? Just something that appeared to be attracting they were ready to jump in the ship. Just because the nice Uzumaki was offering candy and she was ready to jump in his car. How could she accept such an unfair deal to begin with? She had basically put up nothing while he had put up Konoha's future in the line and yet she accepted it without offering anything in return that would be equal to what he had in mind.

The shinobi world was not fair. That much was very much apparent and people were willing to do anything in order to get what they wanted. Should he say though? He was a selfish person who sought out what was best for him in most cases and he wasn't even in Kumogakure for Konoha, but for his own benefits.

Naruto shook his as he hopped through the trees, following Yugito and her teammates. They ran for about an hour before reaching a place that had no trees. There were just large boulders around the place and the Kumogakure team halted, taking slow movements as walked through the rocky area.

"The temple is just ahead," Yugito said. "You can find it on your own." The moment those reached Naruto, she was gone.

Naruto simply shook his head. He ended up smiling though as sped off. He had seen faster speeds for them to actually think that they'd lose him so easily. He was not a good chakra sensor, but he had followed their movements. Years of watching his father had really paid off just as the man said it would.

Once Naruto was able to see the large temple, he slowed down and just walked towards the muddy building.

"Congratulations," a Kumogakure Jonin said as he gave Naruto the Konoha flag.

Once Naruto got the flag, he sealed it away and made his way towards a large boulder as he collected the memories of his clones. He needed another flag in order to pass. Considering the fact that by the time they left the village it was already pass 9am and it took about an hour to get to the temple, he could say he had less than two hours to finish things up. He had an hour for going back and the rest of the minutes to fend off teams after him and get a flag.

The problem was that other teams had yet to reach the temple and he could not get a flag if others were not yet here: that was a problem. He would have to wait for another team and while waiting, time would not be on his side.

They'd been given at least 2 and a half hour to complete the trial. Two hours for going and coming back from the temple. Within the remaining minutes, one had to fight for the second flag and do the damn written exams. Well, Naruto has not had a problem with anything written.

His clones had given him the locations of other teams: there were a total of about 20 teams who had yet to take the flag. That meant about there would be no more than 11 teams in passing the trial. Time was also a problem. Most would likely not make it before 12pm.

Without any more thoughts making it into his head, Naruto disappeared from the rocks, heading towards the trees. Once he was halfway through towards the village gates, the redhead stopped and relaxed on a tree branch. He created ten more clones to go around and look for a team for him.

Naruto was sure he had waited for about 30 minutes before his clones dispelled, informing of the groups that had flags. Since there was a team that would make it towards him, Naruto had not bothered to leave his position, he stayed still and didn't hide his chakra. It would be much simpler for other teams to find him.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" A genin from Iwagakure said, looking up at the redhead who was sitting atop of a tree branch, his feet swinging slowly.

"We must be fortunate to be finding Uzumaki of all people," another said smiling. "But it seems you have been waiting for another team. I assume that you're also short of one flag to go back to the village."

Naruto didn't look at the three. Why did he even choose to face Iwagakure shinobi to begin with? Did he just like the idea of fighting people who had a problem with his family? He couldn't sense much malice from the genins, but obviously he was not their favourites.

The redhead looked at the gloves he was wearing for a second before jumping down the ground. He had wasted enough time already and he needed to get this done quickly in order to make it in time. It would be rather disappointing if he failed to make it back before 12pm. But it was certain that he would get back to the village after half past eleven.

Naruto smiled at his 'guests' before speaking. "My flag is sealed in a storage scroll that is in my right pocket. If you want it, come and get it."

"You think you can take us on?" One of the three asked. "It is three against one."

"Time is not on my side so I would rather skip the chit chat and get down to it," Naruto said a bit carelessly. "But of course if you're willing to give me your flag, I'd be more than happy to take it off your hands."

"Like we'd give a Konoha shinobi our flag… this represents Iwagakure and if we just give it away, it means we have insulted our village. We cannot let it fall into enemy hands."

"Then, come at me," Naruto said calmly.

He never charged first against an opponent he knew nothing about. Even though he knew that they were just genins, he wasn't going to risk anything by being careless. He would wait for them to attack and make his move. It would be much simpler to allow them to attack than him attacking. He could read their game while they attack and counter attack. Opening himself up for an attack was not an option, especially when he didn't know what awaited him once he leaves this place.

"You're on, Uzumaki!"

The three darted towards him all at once, taking advantage of their numbers. Naruto just stood still as his eyes watched their slow movements towards him. Perhaps he had just grown used to the speeds of his father and Itachi. Even so, he found this to be boring. Did he really have to wait for his opponents to reach him? He could make things easier by moving as well.

Naruto shook his head. He shouldn't think like that.

The three surrounded his form and Naruto finally took a stance as his eyes watched their movements: one attacked from the front, throwing a right swing that was aimed at the right side of his head. Naruto leaned back to avoid the bunch. He was forced to duck under a kick that was swung towards the back of his head from the genin that was behind him.

The genin on his left side attempted to kick him was he in a crouched position, but Naruto caught the right foot with his right hand. The redhead stood up still holding the foot. He stomped on the genin's leg just around his knee. There was a loud snap followed by a cry of pain. Naruto pushed the genin backwards before making a distance with the three.

"Fuck. You broke my leg!" The genin cried out his broken leg. "What are you still doing here? The bastard broke my leg. Go after him!"

Was this really simple as he thought it was? Really, he had grown used to the fists and kicks of Fugaku that he never attempted to block that this was really child's play. It was not entertaining and that made him very displeased… he was very disappointed that he even stopped smiling. He wouldn't complain if it was just bandits because he expected them to be pathetic against a shinobi, but for genins to be this slow, it was really disappointing.

Naruto felt a bit mad at the three for being such disappointments. If people were going to fight him, they should at least do better than this.

Naruto was brought out of his thoughts when the two charged towards him once again. He waited until they all lunged at him all at once before releasing a smoke bomb. He was using it to cover up what was coming up: as soon as the two were caught in the smoke, Naruto released his chakra chains. They tried to get out of the smoke, but they were all caught.

"Short distances favour me greatly because I can do this," the redhead stated calmly as his chains wrapped around the two genins. "It doesn't matter how powerful you are but if you allow me to get closer to you enough for the chains to get you, I win."

"Bastard! Free us!"

"After putting out such a show I should punish you. You were a disappointment," Naruto stated calmly, as his chains lifted the two. "Should I break a few bones, crush you to death or just burn… well, it doesn't matter… in the end, you all experience pain…" the redhead shook his head. "I shouldn't make enemies like that… Now where is your flag?"

"We are not telling you!"

Naruto stared at the boy who said that and brought him closer. He smiled, "You will." He said clasping his hands together.

Pained cries echoed throughout the trees as Naruto worked on the genins. It took a minute or so before they finally spoke. Naruto didn't want to feel miserable afterwards, so he didn't commit any sin of killing anyone.

Meanwhile

"Someone is already doing something," one of Yugito's teammates said, looking up into the sky after hearing the pained screams.

"We already have two flags. It shouldn't bother us," Yugito said. "But we still need more flags to reduce the numbers of those who will make it back to the village with two flags."

That was their mission anyway. The Raikage had said that those who would be defeated would be weak and there would be no need to cater for them in the finals. He only wanted a small number of people competing in the finals anyway and those genins had to be strong. Anything less would make the exams boring and he didn't want that. He only wanted to see the strongest fighting in the finals.

"We should get to work on it then," the other teammate said. "There isn't too much time to waste."

"What are you going to do about the Uzumaki?" the male in the team asked. "Surely we can't allow him to have a safe passage back into the village…"

"Something tells me he will be having two flags with him. But what if we tell other teams what he has three or more flags? They will wait for him just away from the gates and against the numbers, no matter how strong he is, he will likely be held back and won't make it in time."

"Fair enough," the male said. "Do you actually believe the deal though?"

"I wouldn't put much into it," the other girl said calmly. "You do remember what we did, right? It could be that he is trying to play mind games. No sane person can make that kind of a deal."

Back with Naruto

Naruto frowned when he came into the view of the rocky Village Hidden in Clouds… the gates to be exact. Between him and the gates, there were four teams blocking the path. It was no doubt in his mind that they were waiting for him. What was the point of searching for him when he could walk towards them?

The damn proctors were just standing at the gates, watching. Where was the fairness in all these?

Naruto looked up into the sky for a moment before walking towards the 12 genins. He stopped at a good distance: it was unlikely that there were traps around the ground. There were twelve of them and he was just one genin. Their numbers would have given the confidence to do things without traps as they would be counting on their numbers to do it for them.

"Give us all your flags and we won't harm you…" one of the genins said. "We are told you have about four flags with you. If you can just give us your flags, we won't have a problem. We will simply make our way to the village while you go back home."

Naruto didn't respond; there was no need to do so. He just had to do what he had to do. The redhead started to run towards the group of genins in an acceptable speed. It may have been a bit too fast for genins, but that didn't matter. He wasn't going to fight such a number of genins when there was no need to do so.

When he was a couple of feet away from the group, Naruto pushed chakra into his feet and took off from the ground in a burst. Once he was in mid-air, he summoned three clones. All three held his body. The redhead used the clones to balance himself as he pushed more chakra into his knees: the clones had their hands held together with Naruto kneeling on them. the redhead took off like a bullet, blasting away from the clones, and as he did, the clones disappeared in a puff of smoke.

The genins could only watch as Naruto blasted above them in tremendous speed. The redhead landed on the ground, away from them and turned to look at them. He smiled waving his right hand.

"I didn't take the Uzumaki to be a chicken. Coward, running away from a battle!"

Naruto just turned away without responding. They would fight amongst themselves. He wasn't going to entertain them or their small talk. He really had no appetite for that kind of talk. Besides between him and 12 of them, who was the real coward? He was just one and they were 12 and yet they have the balls to call him a coward for avoiding them?

Ridiculous

"11:45," One of the proctors said to Naruto as he reached the gates. "Produce your flags, answer sheet and you pass."

Naruto took out his summoning scroll and summoned the two flags before handing them to the proctor. He withdrew the answer sheet and the map from his left pocket and handed them to the man.

"You didn't fill in any answers…" the man stated.

Naruto shrugged. "You didn't say we had to fill in the answers in order to pass. If I remember correctly, I just had to return this paper," the redhead said calmly.

The man just smiled and congratulated the redhead for making it. Naruto didn't even sound excited that he had made it; he just nodded and walked towards the frame of the gate and settled down, with his eyes closed.

Fifteen minutes passed and only four teams had made it. They were gathered around by the proctor who congratulated them all on passing before he started explaining the purpose of the trial. "As a shinobi, you will be sent to do missions on places you do not know, surrounded by enemies and you'll still have to complete it within a given time. The flags represented what you're fighting for. Shinobi must be willing to die for their villages. If you simply gave away your village's flag it means that you're not strong enough to fight for your village. If you're captured by the enemy and taken through torture, you will tell village secrets. Under no circumstances must you give away village secrets. Those who simply gave away their flags under pain gave away their village's security.

You didn't have to answer the questions we gave you. It's simple, the answer sheet represented a scroll you were given to deliver. The answers are really difficult to answer. Even some Jonins can't answer the questions. Given the difficulty, it was obvious that you'd fight over not just for the flags but for the answers. Most of you probably thought you had to answer the questions in order to pass. If that was an important scroll containing valuable information, you would have to protect it without your life against enemies who want that information. Bringing it back means you have completed your mission successfully."

The other proctor took over. "There are thirteen of you and we can't draw the matches with one short of a partner… is there anyone who wants to quit? Tomorrow you will be fighting your friends…"

The male from Kumo's team quit.

"Excellent," the proctor said. "The finals will be held at the stadium from 9am tomorrow morning but you should be at the stadium at 8 so that you can know who will face."

Later

Yugito held the Kunai that Naruto gave her, staring at it – she was standing right in front of the door to A's office. She was rather flattered that Naruto thought of her as beautiful and that he was willing to risk it all just for a date with her. This kunai was proof that an agreement had been made and she didn't doubt that he would make true to his word. There wasn't much she knew about his skills, but he had to be obviously skilled if Konoha was willing to send him on his own to represent it.

What was he thinking though? There had to be something that he had planned. He couldn't have made the deal on the spot, could he? Anything was possible at this stage but Yugito was sure that the redhead had something planned up.

Either way, she had to tell the Raikage about it. The man would be infuriated with her if she keeps it to herself. Yugito braced herself as she knocked. Once the magic words were uttered, she walked in.

"What is it, Yugito?"

Yugito placed the Kunai in her pocket before she responded. Would he actually believe her? Yugito shook her head, "I wanted to know where Bee is… and if you are willing, could you help me out for tomorrow?"

With Naruto and Minato

With having seen so much of Naruto's abilities, Minato wasn't happy that Naruto had made it to the finals. To him, he felt that it was something that was to be expected. He would have been disappointed actually if Naruto had not made it through, but he was just okay that the redhead had made it. Not proud though. Naruto would probably tell him something as this wasn't something that one could be proud off. It was a small achievement that needed no celebration.

"I bet with Yugito that I would give her the formula of your Hiraishin if she beats me in the finals…" Naruto said.

Minato widened his eyes. "What? Why would you do that, Naruto?" The Yondaime demanded. That was something that he could not allow Kumogakure to have. They would do everything in their power to make sure that Naruto loses.

"There is a suspicion that she is a Jinchuriki, but nothing concrete. To win, she will give everything and the Raikage will be sure to ensure that she does, even if that means revealing that she is a Jinchuriki. The revelation is a small price to pay for the Hiraishin," Naruto explained lightly. "Besides, if I lose, I quit being a shinobi. A grand stage like this is made for me. Should I lose, then I'm good as dead. Do you understand what I am saying father?"

Minato nodded. "Your whole life is also on the line."

"I have much to lose if I face defeat," Naruto said.

Defeat was unacceptable. He could not accept defeat at such a grand stage. He had sworn that he would never lose a match again. This only gave him more motivation to win the match and test himself against someone who will be willing to do anything in order to win the battle. All odds will be against him and Naruto would still win.

This was his beginning after all. He could not afford to embarrass himself and the name of the Uzumaki in front of the Elemental Nations. People from all over were watching and he would shine. This was his chance to start the journey towards leaving his father's shadow.

"You do know that the Raikage will be willing to cheat to get you to lose. By that I mean being poisoned, setting you up for tougher matches," the matches for tomorrow had yet to be drawn. Participants would know of their opponents tomorrow. That would give the man the chance to cheat.

"I have calculated for that as well," Naruto said calmly. "Well, that depends if he actually believes that I will actually had over the jutsu… we don't even know if Yugito will tell the man about it. Besides, I don't actually own the jutsu to make such bets…" Naruto said smiling.

Minato appeared to think about it. "A bet is a bet, but Kumogakure has been dishonest before and as you said, the jutsu is not yours. Even if you made the bet, the jutsu is not yours to give. Since Kumogakure has been dishonest before, you can use that against them." Minato smiled. "That's not very nice, Naruto," Minato said.

The redhead shrugged. "Blame Fugaku," he said with a shrug.

"What happens if you win?" Minato asked curiously.

Naruto stood up, smiling at his father. "Yugito goes on a date with me…"

"Huh?" Minato stared for a moment before speaking once again. "You mean to tell me you bet the Hiraishin over a date? A date? Are you out of your mind Naruto?!"

Naruto just shrugged. "She is worth it."

Minato sighed. "I really should be freaking out about this, but my confidence in you eases the worries. But if you have to use S-rank jutsu in order you will have to, do you understand me, Naruto? I don't care if you have to expose your abilities, you have to win. No matter what." The Yondaime Hokage was very serious about it.

"There will be no need to even expose everything," Naruto said. He smiled, eyes closed. "Let us make a deal, father…"

"When you smile like that, I will feel like I am making a deal with the devil," Minato could not believe that he was saying that to his own son, but he was sure no one would blame him for saying something like that. "No; I'm not making a deal with you."

"Disappointing," Naruto said with a shake of his head. "Fine; I'm heading out."

"Why don't we go together? The Raikage won't discuss anything else with me other than the Chunin exams. I thought I would get a chance to talk to him about our relationship with them, but he doesn't appear to be interested," Minato said with a frown on his lips.

"That reminds me," Naruto started. "Kumogakure apparently knows that I killed that man." The redhead said as he walked towards the exit, with his father right behind him.

The Following Morning

A, the Yondaime Raikage, looked around the contestants, counting them as they were supposed to be twelve of them but he could only see eleven of them. He would not have complained if they were less, but he couldn't cut them at this number. Some matches would be quick and but the number of matches would entertain the crowd and once things were over, everyone would leave his village and he would be going back to the drawing board.

The man could clearly see that there was one contestant who wasn't present. They were all supposed to be present at 8 and now it was close to half past eight. The spectators had already gathered in stadium.

The Raikage looked at the man on his right hand, "Do you know where the missing finalist is?"

"Probably still at the hotel," the man responded calmly. "Should I go and call him?"

The Raikage shook his head, "Leave them be," he said turning to face the finalists. "I won't bother telling you the reason Chunin exams are held like this. If you don't know, go ask your sensei or your Kage when you get back to your village," the man stated calmly. "I can only say that go out knowing that you're representing your village."

The man nodded to the proctor before walking away. "I am Dodai, and I will be the proctor for the finals," the man said. "The reason you were not drawn yesterday to know your opponent is because in the shinobi world, you won't always know who you will face. As a shinobi, you must be able to think on your feet and be ready for anything. In this exam, we won't be assessing your skills only, but how well you adapt to the unexpected and how you fight an opponent you know nothing about."

It was a tough test but it was one that was necessary. Enemies were availing themselves in all corners and you would not know anything about them, but find out more about their abilities and how to counter them during the battle. Situations like that existed and as shinobi who wanted to become Chunin, they had to show the mind-set and aptitude to be able to think with a kunai at the back of their heads.

"Having said that; you don't necessarily have to win the finals, but you just have to show that you're skilled enough to be a Chunin and possess the right min-set to be a Chunin. It isn't just skills that make you a Chunin, but the mind as well. Becoming a Chunin means that you might end up leading a team: You must be able to lead those under you."

At that moment, Naruto walked into the 'room' hands inside his pockets. He didn't say anything, but just leaned against a wall, eyes closed with his ears open to hear everything being said.

"You were told that your secondary flag will determine your first round opponent…" Dodai continued on. "But in some cases there would be an exemption to that rule. There are cases in which you have been exempted from the rule. The first rounds will have four matches. That will be our quarterfinal."

"Four matches? But there are twelve of us. Shouldn't there be six matches?"

"It wouldn't do," Dodai said. "There should have been just eight or sixteen of you to make it possible to draw the matches. The first rounds will have three contestants battling it each other. The winner of each round will move to the semi-final. We have already drawn each rounds," the man said pointing at a board behind him. "This will be how it is. Prepare yourself. Once time comes, you will be called."

Naruto looked at the board. He was pitted against Iwagakure shinobi. Well, that was to be expected. He had taken the flag of Iwagakure genins. He wasn't going to complain about that. But the fact that his route to the final avoided facing Kumo's Yugito made him raise an eye brow. It couldn't have been set up like that, could it?

Even if it was, who would complain about it? The majority of the spectators were Kumo people and they would love nothing but to see the best of their genins take centre stage. If Naruto lost a match, the two Kumo genins would face each other. Talk about a fixed drawing board. Oh well, Naruto wasn't complaining. It would make his heroics even more pleasant to talk about.

Kage Booth

"I'm surprised that you bothered to show your face to my village even after you just sent weaklings to the exams, Tsuchikage" The Yondaime Raikage stated as he sat down between the Sandaime Tsuchikage and Yondaime Hokage.

Onoki turned to the Raikage for a moment before looking away. It was amazing that Minato could be so calm when he was surrounded by enemies. There was no doubt that he didn't get along with both Kumogakure and Iwagakure and yet he was still looking so calm and perfectly fine. If anything, it made Onoki curse the blond Hokage for his confidence. If there was a chance, this was as good as any to get rid of the Kage and his brat.

The Sandaime Tsuchikage turned his eyes towards the spectators before responding to the Raikage, "This was simply the best of what my village could offer…" the old man. "You can disagree if you know something that I don't."

A sent the old man a look before looking towards Minato. But before he could say anything, Onoki beat him to the punch. "It is nothing more insulting than what he has done. I call it an insult to just send one mere genin to fight against all other contestants. Are you simply saying that your son is enough against everyone else?"

Minato merely smiled. "If he wins, will there be a need for me to answer the question?"

The Raikage scoffed at Naruto's chances of winning. "He cannot and will not win," the man said firmly. "I heard that he's also made an interesting bet with Yugito."

Minato just laughed. "Yes, he told me about it," the Yondaime Hokage said. "I have to admit, I was rather shocked by it myself."

"I propose we make a wager," the Raikage said.

"What assurances do you give me that you will stick to it? I remember what you still tried to do," Minato stated in a calm tone.

A merely shrugged carelessly. "A thing of the past," he said. "If Yugito wins the final match, no matter what happens, Konoha and Kumogakure will not go to war with each other and even if you go to war with Iwa, we will not participate. This of course will only be applicable for the next five years."

Minato narrowed his eyes towards the Raikage before staring at the empty space ahead of him. "I didn't think you'd be willing to do something to avoid war with Konoha. Your recent actions have done nothing but provoke us into action. Had it not be me who was Hokage, Konoha would have surely attacked this village."

Onoki snorted. "Unlikely," he said mildly. "The Leaf has become nothing more than a shell of its former self. You appear as if you fear war. Are you afraid that going into war will knock you down from your glorious seat?"

Minato shook his head still smiling, "Tsuchikage-sama, I have not forgotten," Minato said calmly. "We have our reasons for doing things the way we are doing them. You don't need to understand them, but those who have wronged us will have to eventually face us."

Onoki appeared amused. "I didn't take you for that kind of a person?"

"That kind of a person? You misunderstood me," Minato said calmly. "What you must understand is that I have not spoken of retribution or vengeance. I merely said those who have wronged us will have to face us… for what reason I did not specify. Konoha does not fear anything. It has never feared anyone and it never will. Anyone thinking we choose not to ignite the flames of war because we have become weak is delusional…" The Yondaime Hokage paused for a moment as he turned his attention towards the Raikage once more. "Then?"

A stared at Minato for a moment. Regardless of what one would think, it was hard not to realize that Minato was damn serious about what he was saying. It was a lot more like a promise of pain from a man had the power to cause the pain.

It was a bold statement from the Hokage.

"I have my reasons. You don't have to know them," A said with a shrug of his shoulders.

"I see," Minato paused for a moment as he thought of a few things. "I will agree on the wager if you agree that you will no longer attempt what you tried with the Hyuga and if Naruto wins, you will travel to the Hidden Leaf or send someone who will offer apologies as well as compensation for the grief you have caused."

"That is a little too much…"

Minato shrugged. "Considering that you are the ones who have given us every reason to fight you, I'd say that agreeing to your terms on my part is being generous. But if you think your genin cannot win, then we can skip this farce of a wager…" the Yondaime Hokage said with a thin smile.

"That will be done," A was quick to say.

"Excellent," Minato said clasping his hands. "There is one thing though. If you go back on your word and do anything traitorous, Yugito Nii will be taken by Konoha – either by force or free will. Any acceptable method that will hold you accountable will do. After the exams, I will let the Feudal Lords know. The Tsuchikage is a witness."

The Raikage had not been planning on anything dangerous with Konoha and knowing the kind of person Minato was, he was sure the Hokage would merely keep his distance for the duration of the five years and things would be a little cool enough for him to work on strengthening his village's forces.

"Shall we shake on it?"

Arena

The first match pitted Naruto against two genins from Iwagakure. In Naruto's eyes they were weak. It may have been right that Iwagakure actually sent weak teams into the exams just for the sake of having their presence in the village. It was a good opportunity to show off, but the village opted against showing off in favour of keeping their cards to themselves.

Oh well, it couldn't be helped. Since his opponents were weak, Naruto wasn't going to waste time with them. He was going to crush them since he didn't have a reason to be cautious with them. They could not threaten him or his glory seeking hands.

"Contestants ready?" The proctor asked, receiving nods of approvals from the genins. "Begin!"

Naruto wasn't surprised when his opponents actually decided to charge at him together as if it was two on one. It was okay; he had thought they would do something like that. They were both from the same village and he was the enemy.

That didn't concern him though.

Naruto waited until they neared him before making a move. The first genin attempted to punch him on the face while the other came on his left hand, launching a right punch towards his head as well. Naruto caught the punch of the latter with his right hand and dodged the formers punch by moving slightly to the left while taking a single step forward to flank the genin's side.

Naruto Didn't let go of the hand he was holding as a sickening snap rounded off around the arena followed by a cringe worthy cry of pain. Naruto had brutally stomped on the right leg – just around the knee – of the genin whose punch he had dodged. His right foot crashed brutally snapping the leg. With his bone snapping, causing the leg to bend humanly impossible, the genin cried out in pain.

Naruto pushed the boy whose hand he was holding to the side. The movement had been quick and meant to make the genin off balance and he succeeded in doing so.

Without wasting time, he flashed away from his position and appeared on the left side of the genin he had pushed away. A swinging high foot crashed into the genin's temple. The kick sent the genin towards his teammate, sending them crashing towards the wall of the arena.

And then there was silence.

The match was over.

Naruto refused to smile, but he was happy. That was what he called victory. A victory when the opponent stood a chance of winning and had some good shots wasn't satisfying. He liked total domination over his opponents and nothing else.

The proctor stepped up seeing that the two Iwa genins could no longer continue. Not to mention, one had a broken leg. He winced just imagining having his leg broken like that. "Winner: Uzumaki Naruto!"

The other matches came in and went. Yugito made it to her semi-final in a show if speed and power. Her opponents were easily taken care of and made it to the final round. The other semi-final was against Naruto and another blonde Cloud genin.

Naruto looked at the person in front of him with his head tilted to the side: Kumogakure certainly had some interesting blondes. This Samui was Yugito's teammate… why hadn't he noticed her back then? Was it because he had been told that the latter was the strongest of the pack and being his old self he had simply ignored her in favour of Yugito.

The redhead smiled at the blonde, "You know; if there was a choice, I'd rather not have to fight such a beautiful girl."

Samui didn't appear impressed; she just stared at his form for a few moments before unsheathing her sword. "Shall we?"

"Cold," Naruto said to himself before taking out his sword. There wasn't any other word that left his lips as he waited for Samui to make the first move. It was his policy to allow the opponent he didn't know anything about to make the first move.

Samui watched the redhead for a few moments; he didn't look like he was going to attack her. He had even taken a defensive stance. He was inviting her to attack him. It didn't really matter either way. She had already won her first match and she just had to fight with her all in this match and also fight using her head. It would be enough to earn her a promotion.

The blonde Cloud genin calmed her features before dashing towards the redhead. She had been quick to halt her fast movements just in front of him and swing her sword with her right hand in downward slash. Naruto held out his sword horizontally with just his right hand and blocked the slash, before he used his physical prowess to push the genin away from away.

Even though he pushed Samui away, Naruto didn't attack. His half opened eyes just watched the blonde with a look of concentration. It was obvious that he wasn't just looking at her but calculatedly observing her.

Samui was forced to do the attacking once again: she darted towards the redhead with the tip of her blade cutting through the ground as she ran. When she neared him, she lifted it up, picking up sand. She sent the sand towards Naruto's face, causing him to jump back to avoid being temporarily blinded.

The moment Naruto landed on the ground, Samui flashed just behind him, swing her sword with both her hands: she was swinging her sword horizontally, just above Naruto's waist level, intending to cut through his body. Naruto reacted by jumping up. He did so remarkably before flipping whilst above Samui and went on to land behind her.

He was not allowed to make the first move as the blonde spun around clock wise with her sword cleaving through the air as it travelled towards Naruto's chest. Naruto held out his sword in a vertical position, its tip facing down before there was a clash of metal with Samui's sword.

With his defence holding firm, Naruto moved his right foot through the ground, sweeping it towards Samui's. The Cloud genin reacted quickly by jumping above the ground. She held her sword firmly whilst still above the ground and as gravity started to pull her down, she did a powerful downward swing.

Naruto didn't attempt to block the swing. He just moved back slightly and allowed the sword cut through the air just in front of him before he twisted around. When Samui's sword hit the ground, Naruto's right foot quickly slammed into her forehead, sending her flying backwards.

She was able to recover quickly as she flipped several times in mid-air before landing on the ground in a kneeled position. Naruto was already upon her when she did so: he flashed just above the ground, his right foot travelling towards her forehead once again. It was instantaneous, but Samui was able to slam an explosive on Naruto's foot as it hit her on her forehead. The kick sent her flying and she winced as she crashed into the wall of the arena with her back, but she managed to keep her eyes focused on Naruto.

Naruto saw the tag and it was going to set off. It would take his foot with it. The redhead threw his blade into the air as he created a seal less clone. The clone appeared in a puff of smoke just behind him.

Boom!

The spectators waited with baited breath as the fiery explosion of flames rocked through the arena. There was only one Naruto who was blasted away by the explosion. He didn't look particularly harmed, just a few cuts on his clothes.

The crowd roared in cheers seeing that it was remarkable that he had been able to get out of the explosion alive and without any physical damage.

The redhead landed on the ground on his knees before straightening up. He looked up into the air for a few moments before walked over to the centre of the arena to take his sword. As he kneeled down to pick it up, Samui's left foot stomped on the blade, while her right cut through the air heading towards his forehead. Naruto pushed chakra into the palm of his right hand and blurred his hand towards the kick, grabbing it with full force.

Still holding, Samui's foot, Naruto straightened up, smiling with his eyes closed. "For a moment I thought you were trying to kill me… If I hadn't been able to replace myself with the clone in the split second the explosive tag went off, there would have been massive damages."

Samui just stared, but really, she was unnerved by his smile. "What if I was?"

"I'd try to kill you as well," Naruto said in a whisper. "You're fast, but not fast enough. I have not looked at your taijutsu skills, but I think you're holding out on me. Either way, we must end this before it becomes dangerous for me."

The first thought that came into Samui's mind was making some distance between her and the redhead. He was speaking dangerously, and he'd spoken as if he could take her down. She couldn't make the distance she wanted because he was holding her right foot firmly. She tried pulling, but he didn't budge.

This forced her to use the foot Naruto was holding as means to balance herself as she tried lunge he free foot towards his left shoulder, but the moment she made that movement, Naruto pushed her right foot away, making her lose her balance.

The redhead kicked his sword from the ground, bringing it up to him. Samui saw that she had to act. As Naruto's right hand grabbed the hilt of his sword, she brought out her own and it held it firmly with its tip facing up. A second later, Naruto's sword clashed with hers with so much power that she was forced to stumble backwards and eventually fall down the ground as she had already been off-balance before she even tried to block his swing.

This time, Naruto didn't watch her; he attacked her by throwing his sword towards her head. Samui felt relieved when the blade whizzed past her right ear, imbedding on the ground. It had just been a couple of inches away from her.

Before she could move, Naruto flashed above her and slammed his right in her gut so brutally that she cried while trying to push away his foot. The redhead didn't even seem concerned… his left hand just moved towards his sword as he leaned over to her face.

"I don't like showing mercy to my opponents, but this isn't the dance of death… do you mind waving the white flag?"

Samui suppressed the urge to frown: she hadn't done much; nothing to weaken him. He hadn't done much in this battle and the closest she came to harming him was with the explosive tag and that seemed to have only made him want to end things quickly.

She gritted her teeth. This hadn't been a battle. She couldn't give up now, not when she had yet to give her everything. "I refuse," the blonde said firmly before releasing lightning from her hands – which were holding Naruto's right foot.

The moment the lightning started to course through the redhead's leg, going through his body, Naruto made the distance, which was what she wanted.

Samui quickly got up on her feet and lunged towards Naruto. It took just a couple of seconds before she could reach him head on. Sticking her left foot firmly on the ground, she raised her right, swinging it towards the redhead's upper body, but Naruto jumped back to avoid her kick.

Samui was on the attack once again and this time, she appeared slightly above the ground and spun around to gain more power and speed in her kick. The kick was aimed at the side of Naruto's head. As her foot neared him, Naruto ducked under the kick, avoiding it completely.

Before Samui could make another move, Naruto had moved faster than her, while in the crouched position bellow her. The redhead grabbed her left foot and forcefully slammed her into the ground, creating a small boom as her body crashed into the unforgiving ground. Naruto didn't stop there: he still picked her up, twisting around to gain momentum. He twisted her around in mid-air a couple of times before he sent her crashing into the wall of the arena with so much force that there was a loud boom when she crashed with her face.

The blonde's crash left a large dent on the wall as she slid down the ground.

The Proctor looked on for a moment before stepping into the arena. He could announce the match as over. It was obvious that the redhead hadn't been fighting wholeheartedly. It almost seemed as if he was forced. Samui wasn't out cold, but it was best to just end it.

"Winner, Naruto Uzumaki!"

The crowds' reaction was a little subdued. He could understand that a little since the match hadn't been all that exciting for Kumo people. Perhaps if it had been a full blown out right, they would be cheering for the entertainment. Well the next match was certainly going to be interesting and it would certainly be entertaining.

He could say it was a little unfair since they were not going to take a break for the final match, but he had to do as instructed. "Next match: the final! Yugito Nii versus Naruto Uzumaki!"

A confident looking Yugito stepped into the arena as her home crowd cheered for her. Naruto looked calm. He even had the time to look up into the calm sky. Things hadn't been as difficult as he thought it would be. Everything has just been a little too easy. He was beginning to feel slightly disappointed. Had Itachi been faced with the same situation? If not, there was really nothing one could be proud of in this picture.

"Contestants ready?" Yugito nodded but it took a couple of seconds for the words to register in Naruto's mind and the redhead just smiled in response. "Begin!"

That was the magic word needed for Yugito to make a move. The blonde Jinchuriki hadn't wasted time in lunging towards her opponent in some ridiculous burst of speed. She was upon the redhead in a moment of a second.

Yugito swung her right foot – which was raised high – towards Naruto's left shoulder. The redhead brought out his left hand and positioned it on the side of his shoulder as Yugito's kick reached him. Upon the connecting with his guard, the kick caused Naruto to slide side-ways under the force of the kick.

The blonde didn't waste time to be on the attack again: she twisted clockwise while simultaneously jumping towards Naruto. She flashed above the redhead her left foot swinging towards the right side of his head. Naruto brought out his right hand and held it firmly on the side. The defence managed to block the left footed kick, but Yugito wasn't done; while still in mid-air, she swung her right foot towards Naruto's head. As he did with the left, Naruto blocked the kick.

This time, he suppressed a wince when the kick collided with his hand: it had hurt. Yugito packed more power behind her than he had anticipated.

Seeing that all her attempts had been blocked, Yugito moved her head towards Naruto's, attempting to head-butt him but the redhead jumped back slightly to avoid the blow.

As soon as Naruto touched down, he lunged towards Yugito – who had yet to hit the ground. He reached her slightly on her right side before he twisted around anti-clockwise, returning with a high right kick aimed at his opponent's temple. Upon seeing the kick, Yugito crossed her hands in front of her and blocked the kick. Despite her defence holding firm, she was still pushed back by the power behind the kick.

Yugito looked up from her defence as the crowd cheered. Well, that was an interesting beginning to the match. One worthy of being a final to the Chunin exams, but this was still nothing.

"You have a habit of observing your opponents even if you land a hit," Yugito said to Naruto who was standing a distance away. "I have been watching you: you rarely make a follow up move. Most of the time you're defending."

Naruto tilted his head to the side with his eyes closed. He could almost play his hands like a conductor and lead the cheers and roars from the crowd that were like music to his ears. This was the kind of an atmosphere he liked. It was the kind of the spotlight that was created for him.

He opened his eyes and looked at Yugito before responding to her statement. "I prefer not to make unnecessary moves and I like observing my opponents. It becomes easy to break them apart when I know how they move."

"Everyone always hides something in battle. Don't think that you can always discover something about your opponents…"

"Wouldn't you say that is the same thing for me?" Naruto asked calmly. "While defending, I hardly show any of my skills. Can you say you know anything or everything about me?"

Yugito blinked; the thought hadn't come to mind, but he did have a point. He was right. Even so, being defensive wasn't going to win him a fight. In the flip side of things, he wasn't the only one holding back something. Even his opponent would be holding out on him.

The blonde Jinchuriki shook her head before darting towards Naruto once again. Then she suddenly blurred out of his sight, appearing behind him while above the ground, her right foot cleaving through the air as it went towards the back of his head. Naruto didn't need to turn back in order to avoid it: he just dropped to the ground and landed on his hands. He quickly used them as balance before he flipped, turning to face the blonde.

"Raiton: Lightning Bolt."

Yugito released a bolt of lightning that sped towards the redhead before he could do anything. Naruto shunshined out of the way, as he stood a distance away, he frowned when he realized bits of the lightning had caught him. It hadn't damaged him. The problem was that he couldn't move.

Yugito suddenly flashed in front of him, her nails extended ridiculously and cut through his chest in a fast slash. The blonde didn't stop there. She twisted around while jumping above the ground. She lashed a high and powerful kick straight into Naruto's forehead. The kick hit brutally and picked him up from the ground.

However, before he could be sent flying, Yugito grabbed his right foot and slammed him into the ground. She did so much more brutally than what Naruto did in the previous match. And as Naruto did to Samui, she picked him up from the ground before twisting him in mid-air, before she sent him crashing into the wall so brutally that there was a loud boom when he crashed.

Yugito did not rest; she lunged towards the redhead intent of finishing up things. As soon as she reached Naruto – who was plastered against the wall – she drove a right punch towards his head, but Naruto dodged the punch by tilting his head to the side.

The Kumo Jinchuriki looked into Naruto's eyes; they were cold and he seemed very displeased. Before she could do anything, he grabbed the hand that had tried to punch him and got off the wall, eyes staring into hers.

"I really dislike taking hits," he said, the dislike clearly evident in his tone. The moment he said that, chains burst out before wrapping around her body. She knew what was going to come next and she wasn't going to allow it. As far as she was concerned, this was Naruto's finishing move.

She quickly clasped her hands before releasing powerful bolts of lightning throughout her body. The lightning travelled through the chains before literally shocking Naruto. He may not have cried, but he did grit his teeth as he allowed Yugito to be free by dispersing the chains.

"Do you want to give up or shall we continue?" Yugito asked much to the roars of her home crowd.

Naruto looked at his hands frowning for a second. He looked at Yugito with partially opened eyes before speaking in a calm tone. "I guess this happens when you focus on defending rather than attacking. I didn't expect you to counter my chains in this way. I should have… I guess this is because of the lack of real battle experience. In any case, I shall commence my brutality."

There was something in his tone that just made Yugito jump away from him with a cold chill running down her spine.

Kage Booth

"Your son isn't as impressive as I thought he would be," A said with a frown.

Still, Minato hadn't looked concerned about a minute ago. He had been just smiling even though when Naruto was being put in the defensive. What made it curious now was the fact that even though Yugito had evidently fled from Naruto, the blond Hokage looked slightly concerned. What could be more worrying now? Or was he perhaps finally grasping that his son was going to lose?

"I can't agree with that statement," Onoki said with a frown of his own. "He hasn't been fighting since the tournament begun. In the first round, he merely brutalized his opponents and in the second round, he played the defensive and even now. It is hard for you to notice, but I have been a shinobi for far too long to be deceived."

"What are you saying?" A demanded.

"That hardly matters now," Minato intervened. Even though Naruto liked the spotlight, he wasn't the one to show off his skills. But when that was not an option, he didn't like getting those kinds of hits. It was safe to say that since Yugito had come close to a win, Naruto was going to be a little vengeful and that worried the Yondaime Hokage. "Be ready to stop the match at any moment."

Back with the Fight

Naruto took a couple of steps towards Yugito while doing hand seals. He didn't stop walking as he released a fire jutsu. "Katon: Gouka Mekkyaku," the jutsu was released with ease, but the flames were still as intense and big enough to cover a large portion of the arena.

Yugito flashed towards her left to avoid the intense flames. She was sure if she had allowed the flames to touch her, she wouldn't have been breathing. Hell, she could feel intensity of the flames even though she was away from them.

So Naruto could use fire based attacks of this level. That was beyond what a normal genin could do and if he could release a jutsu of that level, then there was no telling if he could use other attacks. Yugito looked back to Naruto's position. She widened her eyes when she felt a cold breath on her neck.

The blonde quickly twisted around: when she did, Naruto grabbed her by her face and lifted her up slightly. Yugito only made one attempt to break free but when she realized that she could not escape, she drove her right knee towards Naruto's chest, but the redhead caught it with his free hand before brutally slamming her into the ground.

Yugito winced as her back crashed into the ground. She left relieved that there was no sickening sound of something breaking.

As Naruto leaned down to grab her once again, Yugito kicked out, forcing the redhead to jump away. But as he was doing that, a chain burst out and grabbed her foot before lifting her from the ground. Yugito was twisted around the air a couple of times before she was slammed down the ground, brutally. There was a resounding boom as she crashed down, forming a human size crater.

Yugito elicited a loud cry when her foot started to burn with the chain holding her now engulfed with crimson flames.

Once again, Naruto lifted Yugito from the ground and threw her up into the air. The chain then wrapped around his right foot and Naruto jumped up slightly while twisting to gain some momentum. As gravity started to pull Yugito down, Naruto hit her on her chest with his right foot. There was a sickening sound of bones breaking when the kick connected with Yugito's chest. Much more sickening was how she crashed into the wall of the arena. She crashed on her back, breaking the hard wall.

Yet remarkably, she wasn't out cold. While bleeding from her mouth, she slid onto her knees, breathing heavily.

She could still go on.

Yugito summoned bits of her Bijuu's chakra. Even though it was not visible, Naruto felt it and frowned. The chakra would potentially heal her wounds and give her a major power boost. That was something that he was not looking forward.

Yugito straightened herself before spitting out blood from her mouth. She then disappeared. Naruto's eyes caught on when Yugito suddenly flashed in front of him without a sound. But the Bijuu chakra she was emitting was certainly doing its oppressive job.

When the blond Jinchuriki attacked, it happened in an instant; she suddenly spun around while raising her right root high. She did so to gain more speed and power in kick. Naruto did enough to put on a haste defence to try to block the flying kick that was aimed at his face. The kick connected with his defence and although it failed to breakthrough, it still forced off the ground sent him flying backwards, crashing towards the wall of the arena.

To avoid hitting the wall with his back, Naruto flipped several times as the momentum carried him backwards. He summoned his chakra chains before crash landing on the wall with both his feet, his chakra chains, piercing through the wall for balance as he was sideways on the wall and in a crouched position.

"Nezumi Kedama!"

Naruto looked up and saw multiple dark blue objects speeding towards him. He pushed chakra into his knees and formed a protective barrier around him with two chains before he took off in burst, nearly tearing the wall as he did.

Two mouse balls crashed into the chains he had put around himself before they exploded. As the explosion occurred, Naruto was forced to land on the ground before jumping into the air once again. The mouse balls followed him into the air.

Naruto flipped upside down with six of his chains facing all directions. He then took out six kunais before he suddenly spun around in quick motion, while throwing the kunais in different directions. The chains around him spun around like a fan before they burst into flames. A small tornado of flames formed around Naruto, creating a powerful barrier of flames.

The mouse balls reached him and crashed into the defensive flames before bursting out into blue flames mixed with red. The flames created a dome above the ground, before an unharmed Naruto suddenly started falling down the ground. He landed on both his feet.

The moment he did so, Yugito flashed above him, her hands covered his dark blue chakra. She held them together and slammed them towards Naruto's head. The chains sped above the redhead, creating a quick defence. There was a burst of blue and crimson flames when Yugito's attack collided with Naruto's chains and the ground shattered as Naruto's knees bent slightly under the strain.

The redhead pushed back forcefully, forcing the blonde to jump away from him. Naruto sped towards his opponent. When he was closer, he jumped up into the air and brought out his chains. As gravity started to pull him down, he attempted to slam the chains towards Yugito. But the blonde blurred out of sight as the chains crashed on the ground.

Yugito suddenly flashed in front of Naruto, her body covered in blue chakra. Her right fist moved in blinding speeds before smashing into his face. The punch was so powerful that it sent Naruto crashing into the wall of the arena like a bullet. There was a loud boom when Naruto crashed into the wall.

Yugito didn't let up even though the redhead was covered in debris and dust. She lunged towards him and she reached him quickly. Her eyes slightly widened when Naruto's right hand snaked through the dust and grabbed her by her face. It had happened so quickly that she didn't have time to react. Naruto twisted around as he slammed her into the wall he had been plastered into.

The moment Yugito crashed into the wall, chakra chains pierced through the wall just around her, blocking her escape. Naruto's knee slammed into Yugito's gut with so much force that the blonde let out a cry as she spat out saliva from her mouth. Naruto wasn't done. He followed this by slamming his right fist into her chest.

Yugito bit her lip when she felt a snap in her chest. He had just broken a bone in her ribcage. If she did not get out of this trap, she wasn't going to come out of it in a good condition.

She didn't get to make a move as Naruto once again slammed his fist into her chest. No one heard the sickening crack that followed then because the wall behind crashed in a boom, having held back enough. Yugito coughed up blood from her mouth, before she quickly acted.

She exhaled a stream of blue flames from her mouth on point blank range. The flames exploded when they crashed into Naruto, creating a dome of flames. Yugito got her time to escape, flashing away from the blond.

She landed a distance away on her knees, breathing laboured and watched as the flames died down. Naruto turned around, frowning, with his clothes burnt. He then held did hand seals. Yugito looked at the ground, seeing it glow with marks all over. She looked around and saw that the marks were originating from the kunais Naruto had thrown earlier.

Naruto suddenly disappeared in what appeared to be a flash of red but it had been a burst of flames. The movement had just happened so fast that it appeared like it was a flash. He appeared right behind Yugito.

"It is apparent that the extra chakra is giving you an advantage. I really shouldn't be fighting a Jinchuriki, but that is alright," the redhead stated calmly. "I will request the kunai I gave you when I come for my date."

It was purely out of instinct that Yugito was able to dodge a chain that burst forth from the ground under her. If she had not dodged it, it would have pierced through her chin, going up.

The moment she landed a couple of feet away, Naruto was already on one knee his right palm on the ground. Two chains burst forth from the ground, piercing through her foot. Yugito cried out in pain as the thing went through her bone as if it was nothing.

She was put into more horrors when Naruto suddenly flashed on her left side and slammed his foot around her knee. There loud snap echoed around the stadium when Naruto broke Yugito's leg in brutal fashion. What followed then was another cry of pain that silenced the crowd as the cry was cringe worthy.

Naruto took out his sword and held it firmly before it burst into flames. But before he could do anything, the proctor jumped into the ring, right behind Yugito. He effectively stopped the match.

"Yugito Nii is unable to continue. Winner: Naruto Uzumaki!"

I really did try to shorten the chapter by removing some scenes and focusing on Naruto, but the chapter still went about long. In any case, I hope it wasn't just a load of bull*.

There are obviously umm… grievances – for the lack of a better word – about Yoshino's appearance. I'm sure if this was a tv series, she would really be getting hate mails and told to quit the story or else… Anyway, she has served her meaningless purpose.

Some questions I will not answer.

And yes, Naruto seems to have a thing about breaking legs. I just hope Yugito doesn't end up hating him for it. I really felt bad writing it knowing the kind of life she was forced to live when being trained to learn to control Matatabi's chakra. She really didn't deserve it, but that is about how things went.

Someone once pm'd about a moniker name for Naruto… I really suck at those. I have been trying to rack my brains to get a name, but I can't find anything. Having said that, I'm really open to suggestions.

Don't expect chapter 12 next week because it's unlikely I will post. I wish to take a breather from this story.

The Omnipresent Sage