Disclaimer: Naruto isn't mine, none of the characters are, only some Jutsu that I've come up with. No money is being made doing this, just having some fun.

The board showed two names; glowing yellow against the black background.

Uzumaki Naruto vs. Hyuga Hinata.

"I have to fight Hinata/Naruto-kun," the pair said at the same time.

"Yahoo Hinata, you got so lucky getting to face the dobe," Kiba laughed. Naruto glared at the feral boy, who had returned from the infirmary after looking at his injuries. "This will be a breeze."

"Uzumaki Naruto, Hyuga Hinata, will you please come down here?" Gekko called.

The pair leapt down to the floor and stood apart.

"Well, well, well, the worthless heiress and the dead last," Neji called down from the viewing platform. "This fight isn't going to be worth watching, just declare it a draw. Fate has decreed that these two weaklings will…"

"Will you shut up!" Naruto shouted form the floor. "Stop whining about fate and all that shit. And Hinata isn't worthless, she's stronger than you think."

"Why you insolent brat! You know nothing," Neji growled. "And if you think that Hinata is strong, than you are more of an idiot than I thought."

Naruto glared at the older Hyuga. He turned back to Hinata, who was looking down at floor. "Come on Hinata, don't listen to that teme," Naruto said. "Just because you don't like to fight doesn't mean you're weak, it takes more strength not to fight than it does to fight."

Hinata looked up at Naruto. "But Naruto-kun, I don't want to fight you," she said softly.

"I don't want to fight you either Hinata but there are times when you have to do things you don't want too do in order to help your friends," Naruto said. "And you need to learn to get over this confidence issue of yours. You are a lot stronger than you realize, you just have to believe in yourself."

"But Naruto-kun…"

"No buts Hinata, we will have this fight so you can show everyone how strong you are," Naruto interrupted her.

"That weakling will never be strong, fate has decreed…"

"Will you shut up!" Naruto roared. "Hinata and I are trying to have a conversation and you're interrupting, didn't your parents teach you any manners?"

Neji's brow twitched and his Byakugan activated.

"Don't you dare speak of my parents you bastard, didn't your parents tell you to respect your betters."

Harsh laughter billowed out of Naruto at this. "I wouldn't know, I never met my parents, they died within hours of my birth. And besides, what makes you think you're my better," Naruto said.

Silence hemmed Neji in as everyone looked down at Naruto. The Sandiame, Kakashi and Sakura looked down at their feet, while the other spectators were looking down at Naruto with varying looks.

"Come on Hinata, it's time to start this fight," Naruto said. "It's time to show the world how strong you are."

"Naruto-kun, I'm not strong like you," Hinata whispered. "Everyone knows it."

"Stop talking like that Hinata," Naruto snapped. "Who cares what everyone else thinks, the only people whose opinions should matter are yourself and those you wish for. Hell, if I were what everyone thought of me as, the village probably wouldn't be standing. It would be rubble and ash."

Shocked silence met Naruto's statement. The Hokage and the older Leaf jonin knew what Naruto was speaking of and honestly they couldn't fault him for it. The foreigners and the assembled genin looked both confused and a bit miffed that Naruto would make such a statement.

"Naruto, what the hell are you talking about?" Ino cried. "Like hell you have enough power to beat Hinata, let alone destroy the village. Why the hell would you want too anyway?"

"Trust me Ino, if you have lived my life growing up, you wouldn't be so quick to judge me," Naruto said.

"Come on baka, you didn't have a rough life," Kiba said. "You were always smiling, laughing and all that. What makes you think you had it rough?"

Team 7 looked at the feral boy in disgust, Sasuke was glaring at Kiba, his Sharingan blazing, while Sakura looked furious. Kakashi also looked angry with Kiba.

"Kiba, don't talk of things you don't understand," Naruto cried.

"Why you!" Kiba growled.

"Enough Kiba," Kurenai barked.

Naruto turned to Hinata. "Hinata, it's time. Let's do this," he said, settling into his taijutsu stance.

"Nar…Naruto-kun, please don't do this," Hinata stammered.

"Hinata, I'm sorry but this is for your own good. I know you don't like hurting people, but you have to get over it."

"But…"

"Stop being selfish!" Naruto roared. Hinata flinched as if being struck. "Do you think that an enemy will take it easy on you and not fight just because you said you didn't want to fight? Hell no, they won't care what you'd say. What would happen if the enemy was after your sister, or someone you cared about, what would you do then?"

"I'd protect my sister," Hinata said.

"That's right, because you want to protect her but if you don't start believing in yourself, you'll never become strong enough to do that," Naruto said. "In order to become truly strong, you need to fight for something precious to you. You'd want to protect your sister, your clan, then do so and fight me. Prove to me that you're strong enough to protect those precious to you."

Hinata looked at Naruto and something changed in her eyes. They became calmer, more sure of herself.

"There you go Hinata and show me what you've got," Naruto said before he raced forward. Hinata's Byakugan activated on instinct as Naruto reached her, she slapped aside a punch and made to strike back but Naruto leapt away.

'This is going to be hard, I can't let her get a chance to mess with my chakra but I also can't go easy on her,' Naruto thought as he dodged a couple of blows. 'She needs this as much as I do.'

"That's it Hinata, show me how strong you are," Naruto said as he ducked under a blow and went to deliver a shot to Hinata's side when she danced around it and hit Naruto in the arm.

Everyone froze, even Hinata. And that cost her.

"Don't stop Hinata, don't ever stop moving forward and never let your enemy get a chance to regroup," Naruto said as he landed a spin kick to Hinata's chest. She was able to partially deflect it but the force of the blow still sent her stumbling back a couple of feet.

The spectators watched in amazement as Naruto and Hinata traded blows. No one had seen this side of Hinata, she seemed confident and focused; her eyes were different than what anyone had seen.

'Hinata, is this who you really are?' Kurenai thought. 'Thank you Naruto.'

'All right Hinata, let's see how good your eyes are,' Naruto thought as he lowered his gravity seal by two steps. "Catch me if you can Hinata," he laughed as he sped off.

Hinata's eyes widened as she struggled to keep up with Naruto's increased speed. She ducked a punch and shot her hand out and caught Naruto's side. Naruto winced as he felt Hinata's chakra 'punch' him. He knew that he couldn't take a lot of those types of hits. The Gentle Fist was the epitome of close combat taijutsu style.

Naruto leapt back and flew through some hand signs. "Futon: Renkudan!" he cried. Naruto spat a ball of compressed chakra at Hinata.

Hinata leapt out of the way of the attack and bit her lip. She knew that at close range, the Gentle Fist had the advantage but she had no range attacks.

"Come on Hinata, I know this isn't all you've got," Naruto mocked. A hidden frown twisted his lips as he mocked his friend. 'Hinata, I don't want to do this but if you don't stop holding back in fear of hurting me, you'll never be strong enough to protect someone precious to you,' he thought.

Hinata raced forward. 'There you go Hinata, don't be afraid to let go and let your instincts take over,' Naruto thought as he dodged a strike aimed at his chest. Naruto retaliated with a punch that caught Hinata in the shoulder. Hinata went with the blow and used its momentum to spin away from Naruto.

"Futon: Shippuu Dageki!" Naruto shouted as he charged forward and punched Hinata in the stomach.

Hinata's eyes widened as the wind chakra aided strike impacted her stomach. As Naruto leapt back, Hinata bent over and clutched her stomach.

"You can't take your eyes off your opponent, Hinata," Narutos' voice came from above Hinata. "Senpuu Handou!" (Whirlwind Kick.)

In a blur of blue and orange, Naruto appeared above Hinata and delivered a devastating spin kick to Hinata's side. The girl was able to get an arm up to partially block some of the force but it still felt like getting hit by a sledgehammer. Hinata got to her feet gingerly, her left arm numb.

"Come on Hinata, that can't be it," Naruto said. "I know you're stronger than this. Show me how strong you are. Or are Neji's words true, that you are weak? Because I know there's a whole hell of a lot more than you can give."

Naruto grinned as Hinata flinched when she heard his verbal jab and looked up at him with hurt eyes.

"Hinata, you are strong, stop hiding behind this meek façade," Naruto said. "Show everyone the real you, stop acting this way. You want to protect your family, then stop doubting yourself!"

Hinata's Byakugan reactivated as her face settled into a stony mask.

"That's it Hinata, come at me with everything you've got, prove to me that you're different than what everyone says," Naruto said as he settled into his 'Current of the Whirlpool' stance.

Hinata surged forward, her palms glowing. Naruto ducked under a palm strike and delivered another Shippuu Dageki to Hinata's stomach, which caused Hinata to spit up some blood. But she managed to hit Naruto several times in the stomach as well.

"There you go Hinata," Naruto grunted. Those strikes, while they looked like nothing, felt like Kakashi had punched him. "No more holding back."

Naruto blocked a punch and landed of his own that caused Hinata to double over.

"It's over Hinata," Naruto said. "Uzumaki Dageki!" he cried bring his knee up and catching Hinata under her chin that snapped her head back. He followed that up with a double fisted punch to her chest that sent Hinata flying backward. Naruto blurred behind her and cried, "Senpuu Handou!"

Naruto's spin kick caught Hinata in the side and sent her crashing to the floor. Naruto flinched as Hinata's body settled on the floor.

'I'm sorry Hinata but I had to get you to fight,' Naruto thought.

Gekko stepped forward. "With his opponent unable…"

"No!" a soft cry came from Hinata on the floor. Naruto turned and saw that she was slowly getting to her feet, even with blood trickling from her mouth. "I'm not done yet, I still have to prove, Naruto-kun, that I am strong. I won't give up."

Naruto smiled at Hinata. "If you're sure?" he said getting back into his stance. Gekko looked like he wanted to end the fight but subsided. Hinata looked at Naruto, her eyes sharp and focused.

"Naruto-kun, thank you," Hinata said. "Thank you for believing in me and showing me that I am strong and I am what I wish to be."

"I'm happy I was able to help Hinata, it's what friends are for," Naruto said. "Now I believe we have a match to finish."

"Hai, we do."

The two fighters raced forward once more and began exchanging blows. Hinata's attacks, while slightly slower because of her injuries and exhaustion, were sharper and more accurate, forcing Naruto to duck and weave around them.

'I need to finish this quickly or I might lose,' Naruto thought. 'I'm glad I was able to help Hinata get over her confidence issues and self-esteem but if I'm not careful, she might actually hurt me.'

Just then Hinata stumbled as exhaustion and fatigue finally set in. Naruto rushed forward and cried, "Uzumaki Genkotsu!" before planting his fist once more in Hinata's stomach. Hinata's eyes widened as her breath left her in one gasp. She tried to regain her breath but her body wouldn't cooperate. She crashed to the floor with a muted thud and darkness claimed the Hyuga heiress.

"Winner Uzumaki Naruto," Gekko said before signaling for the medical team.

"How is she?" Naruto asked after the medical team had lifted Hinata onto a stretcher.

"A couple of cracked ribs, some bruising and a mile concussion," the lead medic said. "She'll need to rest for a week or so but she'll make a full recovery."

"Thank you," Naruto said with a bow to the medic. He then made his way up to the viewing platforms where the other genins looked at him with a multitude of reactions.

"It seems that you were fated to defeat that worthless waste of space," Neji sneered. "You were lucky not to face a real Hyuga or you would have lost."

"I thought I just beat a real Hyuga," Naruto said. "Hinata is much stronger than you think Neji and I must have misspoke earlier. I beat a human being, not a puppet that has a giant stick up its ass crying for a little pity party."

Neji's eyes widened in shock, 'How dare this…this commoner speak to me in such a way,' he thought. "You better pray to Kami that we don't fight in the Finals, because I will kill you," Neji snarled.

Naruto just looked at the enraged Hyuga and said, "Better men than you have tried and failed. Your tough guy act doesn't scare me, so get over yourself."

"Enough Naruto," Kakashi said sternly, though he privately agreed with his student.

"Why isn't Naruto scared that Neji said he would kill him if they fight in the finals?" Ino asked. She had recovered from her injuries and had returned to the indoor arena.

"And why did he say that others had tried to kill him, I mean sure Naruto is annoying, but he is exaggerating about people trying to kill him, right?" Kiba asked.

Naruto looked away and walked over to the bench and sat down. Sakura and Kakashi noticed this and gave him space. Sasuke snorted.

"Please, the dobe is just playing the fool," Sasuke sneered. "He thinks he's had a hard life, please."

"Sasuke, that's enough," Kakashi growled.

"Yeah Sasuke, stop being such a brat," Sakura snapped.

Sasuke snarled. "Don't speak to me like that weakling," the boy growled. "You know nothing of what I have had to endure."

"No she hasn't," Naruto's voice growled from behind Sasuke. "But that doesn't give you the fight to speak to Sakura-chan like that."

Sasuke spun around, his Sharingan spinning. "Don't you dare talk down to me like that dobe, you're nothing but trash, a clanless dobe who will amount to nothing," Sasuke growled at Naruto, disdain dripping from his voice.

Naruto just glared at Sasuke. "We'll see Sasuke. Make it through the Finals, and when we fight, we'll see who's stronger."

"Oh come on Naruto, don't be stupid," Ino scolded. "There's no way you could ever beat Sasuke."

Naruto just gave her a foxy grin. "We'll just have to wait and see."

The board beeped and everyone glanced up at the board.

"Would Dosu and Ichigo of Mizu please come down here?" Gekko called.

The bandaged Oto ninja leapt down from the platforms. A red spiky haired boy joined him.

"Man, these Mist ninja are pathetic compared to Haku and Zabuza," Naruto said as the Leaf ninja watched the Oto nin dominate the Mizu nin. It was an interesting match, since Dosu never seemed to land a blow on the other shinobi.

'What's his trick?' Naruto thought.

"Yosh! It's finally my turn," Rock Lee cried from alongside the rookie genin, as the final two names appeared on the board.

Rock Lee vs. Gaara of the Sand.

Naruto watched as Lee leapt down from the platforms, Gaara appearing fifteen feet away in a swirl of sand. Gaara was staring at Lee, almost like a piece of meat. The redhead's mouth was twisted in an evil, bloodthirsty smile.

"I don't like this, that Gaara kid, he's not normal," Naruto said.

Kakashi looked at Naruto sharply, while the other genin looked at him strangely.

"What are you talking about Naruto?" Sakura asked.

"I don't know myself for sure, but there's something off about him," Naruto said. "I don't know if Lee can win this fight." Tenten glared at the blonde. "I'm not saying that Lee isn't strong, but Gaara is on a whole different level."

"My student isn't one to back down from a fight, and his will is strong," Gai said.

"I understand Gai-sensei and I'm not doubting that Lee isn't strong, he's probably stronger than me but I don't think it will be enough against Gaara," Naruto said.

"Are the two fighters ready?" Gekko asked.

"Yosh! Let us have a good fight," Lee said loudly, giving Gaara a thumbs up. The Sand nin didn't react.

"Begin!" Gekko cried, leaping back.

Naruto and the other genin watched in amazement and awe, then shock, then awe again as the bout between Gaara and Lee went back and forth. Naruto was stunned at the speed Lee possessed without his weights on; Lee was faster than he was without his seals on. Naruto was also terrified at the display of power from Gaara. Any other person would have been beaten to a bloody pulp by Lee's attacks but Gaara was able to mostly shrug them off, at least until Lee open the Celestial Gates. However that proved to be a double-edged sword as after using the Gates to gain a small advantage, the strain proved too much and Gaara's sand was able to capture Lee. Naruto and the other Leaf genin watched in horror as Gaara seemingly effortless used his sand to crush Lee's left arm and leg. The older genin was only saved by the timely action of Gai who leapt into the fray as Gaara made to finish Lee, permanently. The medical team carried Lee off, and Naruto bowed his head in respect to his fallen comrade. Lee had shown them what a truly splendid ninja he was, and Naruto vowed to show the world the same in Lee's absence.

"Now that the preliminaries have been completed, we will draw slots for the final examination," the Hokage announced.

"What?" Naruto cried. "We've got to fight again, now!"

"No, no Naruto, the final competition will be held in one month's time," the Hokage said. "This will give you all time to recover from your injuries, as well as train to get stronger. Also it will give our VIPs time to arrive, as the Chunin Exams are very important to the villages that participate, as they are able to impress clients who will bring more missions to the villages. Now then, you will each select a number at random form this box."

Anko stepped forward and each genin withdrew a slip of paper.

"If you would please give the number you have chosen, starting with you Naruto?" the Hokage asked.

"One," Naruto said.

"Six," said Sakura, holding up her slip.

"Seven," Kankuro said with a grin.

"Three," Sasuke said.

"Ten," said Aniki.

"Twelve," Katsumi whispered.

"Eight," Shino said in his monotone.

"Four," Gaara said.

"Five," Temari stated.

"Two," Neji said, glaring over at Naruto, who met the Hyuga's gaze evenly.

"I have nine," said Dosu.

"Which means I have eleven," muttered Shikamaru.

"So the pairings are set, please take a good look at who you will be facing in the first round," Anko said, holding up a piece of paper.

Match one: Uzumaki Naruto vs. Hyuga Neji

Match two: Uchiha Sasuke vs. Sabaku no Gaara

Match three: Sabaku no Temari vs. Haruno Sakura

Match four: Sabaku no Kankuro vs. Aburame Shino

Match five: Dosu vs. Aniki

Match six: Nara Shikamaru vs. Katsumi

"There you have it, now I wish you all good luck in the upcoming competition," the Hokage said. "Train hard and make your villages proud."

"Wait, if this is a tournament then does only one of us become a chunin?" Kankuro asked.

"No, you don't have to win the competition to be promoted," the Hokage said. "In fact, you could lose your first match and still be promoted. The chunin selections are based on your skill, rather than if you win or lose. Though the more times you defeat your opponent, the more opportunities you get to show the judges your strengths."

"So, you're saying that all of us, or even none of us could be promoted?" Shikamaru asked. The Hokage nodded. "What a drag." he muttered.

"Now then, you will all be escorted from the tower and free to do as you wish for the next month," the Hokage said.

"Hey Kakashi-sensei, when are we meeting for training tomorrow?" Naruto asked, when they reached the village. "I need to get stronger if I want to beat that stuck up Hyuga-teme."

Kakashi looked down at his blonde student. "Naruto, I can't train you, I need to be focusing on Sasuke. He's facing Gaara, he's going to need all the help he can get."

Naruto's face darkened. "Of course, the teme gets special treatment."

"Naruto, if Sasuke were to face Gaara now, he'd most likely be killed," Kakashi said. "Now's not the time to be selfish, think about your teammate."

"Oh right, of course I'm being selfish by asking my jonin-sensei to help train me," Naruto growled.

Kakashi frowned. "I know it isn't fair Naruto but I have my orders," he said, though Naruto could hear the undercurrent of disgust in his sensei's voice. "Ask Hokage-sama, he might know someone who could train you."

"Ok Kakashi-sensei, what about Sakura-chan though, she made it to the finals as well?" Naruto asked.

"I have some ideas on who she needs to ask to help her train," Kakashi said. "I can give you some more jutsu scrolls, but she needs to learn more genjutsu, and I'm not the right person for the job."

"Oh, ok, then I'll guess I see you around sensei," Naruto said before vanishing in a swirl of wind.

Naruto reappeared outside his old apartment, while he had moved into his parents' house, sometimes he would still come back here almost unconsciously. And today was one of the days that he wish he hadn't. Across the door, in red paint were the words Die Demon Die. 'At least people still think I live here, its keeping them from looking for me,' Naruto thought before making a ram hand sign, releasing the seal protecting his door. Naruto had gone to the Hokage when he first entered the Academy, asking for a way to protect his apartment from the villagers trying to break in and wreck it or worse. The Hokage gave him a book on the art of Fuinjutsu. And Naruto took to it like a fish in water. It didn't hurt that the Yondaime Hokage had been a master of fuinjutsu and the Yondaime was Naruto's hero, his respect for the man had gone up even after finding out that the Yondaime had been the one to seal the fox in him. Naruto started taking down the seals that he had put up around the apartment, it was time to leave everything behind. By nightfall, Naruto had stripped the place of all it's seals except for the locking seal on the door and windows, he didn't want anyone breaking in and trying to torch the place, again.

The next morning found Naruto making his way to the Hokage Tower. He ignored the secretary, who hated him anyway, and shoved the door open.

"Hey old man, I need a couple of favors," Naruto said.

"Ah Naruto-kun, what brings you here?" the Sandaime Hokage asked. "I thought that you would be training already."

"That's part of the reason I'm here jiji, I need a sensei. Kakashi has to train the teme because of the damn Council, and he left me high and dry."

"I see. I might have someone who can help you out," the Hokage said. "He should be by the bathhouses. Look for an older man, with long, spiky white hair and red lines on his face."

"Will do, well then I better get going, I'm burning daylight," Naruto said. "Ja ne jiji," Naruto said before vanishing out the window.

He reappeared at the Konoha bathhouses a moment later and began looking around for the man that the Hokage had said would help him train. It wasn't long until he came upon a taller man, sitting on top of a giant toad peeking over the fence to the women's side of the baths.

'Pervert!' Naruto huffed. "Hey ero-jiji, what the hell do you think you're doing?" he cried. He grinned as multiple cries of "Pervert!" came from the hot springs and the fence came crashing down as a group of enraged women attacked the white haired man with weapons that appeared out of no where, considering the women were only wearing towels, or less.

Naruto's face went bright red as he felt blood flow down his face before turning away. When he turned back around, the mob of angry women (the most destructive force on the planet) was gone and what was left wasn't pretty. The white haired man's face was bloody, bruised and misshapen to the point that you could barely recognize that the face was human.

"Note to self: Never peek on women," Naruto said.

"Better yet, don't get caught," Kurama's voice chuckled in Naruto's head. Naruto nodded in concession.

"Wait a minute, please don't tell me this is the guy that jiji said would train me?" Naruto wailed as the white haired man came too.

"Who are you gaki?" the man snapped.

"Uzumaki Naruto, who the hell are you?" Naruto snapped back. The man's eyes widened for a spilt second, but Naruto caught it. Then Naruto's mouth fell open as the white haired man introduced himself in the most ridiculous way possible.

"You're Jiraiya of the Sannin, the Toad Sage, correct?" Naruto asked.

"Yep!" Jiraiya said proudly.

"So where have you been all these year, kyoufu?" Naruto asked coldly. Jiraiya's face paled.

"What are you talking about?" he whispered.

"Save the denial act, I know about my parents, my 'tenant' and you," Naruto growled. "So answer my question: where have you been?"

Jiraiya sighed and dropped his head. "Naruto, I don't know what to say. What do you want me to say? I wanted to be here, to raise you but my obligations to the village made me stay on the move almost constantly. And with me being constantly on the move, spying and gathering information for the village, that's no way to raise a child."

"But why haven't I seen you around before? I mean, you can't have been gone all these years?" Naruto asked.

"I've tried to see you as much as I could, but the blasted Council stopped me at every turn," Jiraiya said. "Though who do you think gave you your frog wallet and those goggles for your birthday a couple years ago?"

"That was you?" Naruto asked softly.

"Of course, I know they weren't the best gifts but I couldn't really give you something really extravagant or people would have started asking questions and you don't need more unwanted attention."

Naruto nodded. "Thank you kyoufu," he whispered. "I know that you would have tried to take me with you, but if I had gone with you I probably would have been in as much danger as I am in the village. I understand you're reasons for not being able to care for me growing up, but it's going to take some time for me to forget."

Jiraiya bowed his head. "I don't deserve forgiveness, hell, your parents would probably knock me for a loop if they knew, but thank you Naruto, and I promise that I will be around as much as I can be," he said. Naruto nodded. "So sensei sent you to find me to get some training for the Chunin Finals right?" Jiraiya asked.

"Hai!"

"What are you planning on working on then? Sensei sent some notes along to me over the years, and they've become more frequent since you graduated. He said that you know the Shadow Clone Jutsu, what else?"

"Hai, I know that, a couple wind and water jutsus, though I'm having trouble using my lighting affinity."

"Wait, you have a lighting affinity?" Jiraiya asked.

"Yeah, actually I've got three affinities; wind, water and lighting."

'The kid's got three elemental affinities!' Jiraiya thought. 'I wonder if he's just like Minato.' "You've got three affinities!" Jiraiya exclaimed. "That's really rare. Only problem is, my two affinities are the only two you don't have; earth and fire. So I don't know how much help I can really be in regards to those. Though I do have some jutsu scrolls that you can look at."

"That would be great, ero-sensei, but first I need to get my chakra control up to an acceptable level," Naruto said. "Right now, it's at high-genin/low-chunin level. I want it at low-jonin by the end of the month."

"Aren't you aiming a little high there?" Jiraiya said.

"Not really," Naruto said. "Taju Kage Bunshin!"

The clearing suddenly filled with around 100 clones. Jiraiya was gob smacked at the amount.

"All right, I want 25 of you to work on tree climbing until we can do it without thinking. Another 25 of you will work on the leaf exercise while tree climbing, and the rest of you start on water walking. Use up all your chakra then dispel, slowly."

"Yosh!" the clones cried.

Jiraiya watched in amazement as the clones rushed off to their assigned tasks. Then he turned to the original. "So you know the secrets for the Shadow Clone, well done. And what are you going to do?"

"I'm going to up my gravity seal to the next level and spend the night getting used to it," Naruto said.

"You use a gravity seal? What level are you at?" Jiraiya asked.

"Yes, I've been using them ever since I graduated, and I'm at level 5 going on level 6," Naruto said.

Jiraiya was stunned. 'A kid his age already at level 6 of a gravity seal!' he thought. "So what am I to do while you train?" he asked.

"Well, like I said, I need to get used to my new weight so I'll take it easy, though since you're a spy, you must have some jutsu that enables you to hide in plain sight, or turn invisible, right?" Naruto asked.

"Now that you mention it, I do have a jutsu that fits that description perfectly," Jiraiya said, mischief gleaming in his eyes. Here was something that he could give his godson that was his alone. "I call it my Transparency Jutsu, really useful for sneaking around, makes you turn invisible. It's nearly perfect, I just have to disguise my scent as well."

"Can you teach me, I think I might have an idea on how to use it against Neji-teme as well as give the village something to enjoy?" Naruto asked. Jiraiya smiled and nodded.

A/N: Well, there's chapter 12. Sorry it took so long, been having real trouble with my muse. I know what I want to do with this story, mainly since it follows the manga, but I've been having trouble putting it in words. Hopefully you liked my Naruto/Hinata fight. I choose Hinata to fight Naruto because I wanted to have him change her character, make Hinata more confident and assertive. And in the manga, Hinata always wanted to show Naruto how much she's changed, so I thought might as well make her fighting Naruto the catalyst for that change.

I've had some reviewers over the chapters ask about 'ships in this story and I've decided that there won't be any 'real' relationships in this story, since it will only go until Naruto leaves for his training trip. There will be a sequel to this but that's quite a bit aways.

Hopefully you liked this chapter, please read and review. Send me messages if you have any suggestions on things to tweak, I'll consider them but there's no guarantee that they will be used.

Also, should Naruto have a kekkai Genkai? I have an idea to use his lighting affinity, have him internalize it and make it speed up his reflexes, like what the Raikage has in the manga. And if it were to become a Kekkai Genkai, I would add his wind element to it, to increase his speed but I'm not sure, so any thoughts on the idea would be greatly appreciated.

Phoenixflame