Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
"Naruto" – Talking
'Naruto' – Thoughts
Naruto – Flashback
Naruto – Jutsu
Cracking Gaps: Sins of a Family
A Glimpse of Hope or Distrust?
Previously on Cracking Gaps: Sins of a Family,
'Help us…Kurama!' That was to be the thoughts of Keiji and Mito before they felt a surge of energy. It filled every inch of their bodies, almost like they were being covered from head to toe in power. It was also bright, repelling the giant snakes from the tree. But the twins kept their concentration through the pleasurable feeling and sent this energy high into the air like a large flare.
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And while this was happening, Minato and Kushina were awaiting anxiously (in secret of course) for their children to arrive. They were hoping that it won't take too long. After all, they finally got the name of the intruder and it was the name of a man that they both hoped to never find their children.
Then all of a sudden, there was the feeling of fear. A feeling of tension and fear. A feeling that someone close was in grave danger. When Minato and Kushina reacted to the sensation, their honed senses had told them that it came from within the forest. They trusted their instincts since they developed them during their years of training in the Shinobi arts. They were even saved on many occasions by trusting their gut feelings.
"That chakra, Minato!" Kushina panicked. She was picking up a maelstrom of emotions and dark energy. And all of it came from that tornado of orange light that was shooting out of the forest.
"That's it's chakra but I don't feel rage from it but fear! Like it is calling for help!" Minato shouted. "This isn't it trying to escape but to trying to summon help to its containers! I never even dreamed of it doing such a thing!" Minato shouted like a genius proven wrong about something on all accounts. It was so shocking that the Hokage was holding his head in pain while scratching the back of his neck for a short time.
And, to add on this little mystery, Kushina was ignoring he husband's headache and scratched her neck in the back as well. But they both did this for only a few seconds and never noticed it. "Never mind that Minato-kun, we need to get there! Naruto-kun is strong but who knows long he can last against him. Against Orochimaru!"
There was no need for words anymore so they hurried towards that spot in the forest in blurs. They were moving so fast that trails of leaves from the tree branches tracing their movements. Every step left a burn mark on the tree bark, a branch was chipped off and the trees were slightly uprooted from the earth at their bases.
'You better not have stolen our children from us, Kyubi Demon!' Minato and Kushina thought as they approached closer and closer. To what they thought to be a traitor about to kill their children, while a 'demon' was making them sitting ducks. Instead, this will be when answers are given to those who deserve them; but there is always a twist to the truth, it is all on how they are going to take the truth that is going to shape their futures.
To see and try to describe the scene, is to witness a bloody battle and stare into the red earth and burnt carnage. All of it in a clearing with a giant snake corpse and two men. A blonde and a pale snake face, both looking at each other while panting and scowling. These men are mortal enemies and nothing below the intent to kill each other ever escapes their eyes.
"For a Jonin, you sure are a fly hard to swat. I heard on how you were duped into graduating without your previous girlfriend, trusting a dumb blonde of a Kage's words. I thought you were as sharp as you look, Naruto-kun." Orochimaru felt pain everywhere, even when he was chuckling at the bruised blonde right in front of him.
"You have to right to chuckle on how you were about to be a Kage until you blew it. I guess that those words you said to the old man about your team were lies, like the ones to said to your 'allies', your slaves and even to yourself. No Kage of ours will be that pathetic." Naruto felt like rubbing his jaw while retorting, he could sure use a scratch for an inch on his nose too.
"Pathetic eh!?" Orochimaru tried to shout, only to feel one of his ribs poking his heart in a painful way. This caused him to 'accidently' place his hand there. It took what felt like hours in seconds for the old snake face to notice this act of 'weakness' and growled at Naruto, daring the blonde to even smirk.
"Yes, I am sure that a genius like you will know what the word means. You must use it every time you let that trash bag of a mouth open." Naruto replied anyways with a grin instead. "To your slaves about their cooking, your allies about what they have to offer. Maybe even your boyfriend's manhood is pathetic. Maybe even his kissing skills are like your complexion." To hear a slightly louder growl from the snake face was what got Naruto to finally get onto his two legs. Meanwhile, Orochimaru found the giant snake corpse to be a good wall to lay on, until it vanished at that moment. "And no wonder, your lower hold is just as weak~!"
"Shut up this instant!" Orochimaru shouted with the eyes of a beast, rubbed the wrong way and feeling the salt on the wounds; the ground felt very cold at his palms and knees too. "You are starting to bore me with this worthless talk. And I don't need to hear anything to know that your team is done for! And a waste since I went through all this trouble for a simple gift to give!"
"Actually, it is your talk that is worthless." The two men jolted up and turned to a certain direction. And their reactions were nothing like happiness, relief, fear or even anger. Orochimaru just growled louder the empty stomach of a bear with eyes of frustration and resentfulness. Meanwhile, Naruto wasn't any happier but didn't make a peep.
"Hello Hokage-sama. Fancy seeing you and Kushina-sama in this trash pit." Naruto just said with a neutral expression if there ever was one in his tone. He kept it up, even when Orochimaru cursed at him and vanished himself when the ANBU showed up. "And guys, it is all clear." Naruto then turned to some untouched patches of the earth, which opened like the drain in a sink filled with water; three of them exactly. And out of each of them came a Genin, familiar ones.
"Team Seven? I was under the impression…" Minato queried until they heard a moan coming Naruto, holding his head with the signs of a migraine.
"That they will be in a tree? I am surprised by how easily fooled those giant scale skins were fooled by a couple of clones I sent on the way." Naruto muttered. "What a mess this is. Now that the entire forest felt the signal, they will be coming at their own pace. My team has been found out, not what any of us had planned."
That was a good point and pretty much summarizes the entire Second Part of the Chunin Exams; to survive in harsh conditions, on the run from even fellow Shinobi and looking for a prize to keep out the hands of the many enemies in the forest. "Well we can make an exception to the rules…" Kushina was about to suggest until Hinata and Mito pulled out an Earth and Heaven scroll respectably, silencing her.
"When…?" Minato was also in the dark,
"After how you gave me those orders to pull my team out of the Exams temporarily, I had a gut feeling that something like this can happen. Why do you think that Keiji still let his mouth go with the proctor?" Naruto replied and then realized that the same woman had finally showed up. And she looked furious, like her date stood her up right in front of her friends.
"You brat! That is why you embarrassed me in front of the other maggots!? To steal my scrolls!?" Minato, Kushina and the ANBU sweat dropped at Anko's rants. But that did solve the mystery as to why Naruto wasn't worried about the scrolls, but the other Genin teams.
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Later,
"Finally, we're here." Keiji said once Team Seven had found the tower in the forest and set foot inside with both scrolls at last. "But what now?"
"It won't hurt to look around since we still have about five days left." Mito suggested so Team Seven did walk down a corridor, noticing that there are no other doors or any more hallways. Just a large room, a giant dead end, with a large picture frame at the top of the wall. It read like so;
If you lack in Earth, run through the fields of opportunity. If you lack in Heaven, expand your horizons. If you lack in both, you are doomed to fail. If you lack in none, there is no problem too great to solve. That is the truth of Shinobi.
Hiruzen Sarutobi, God of Shinobi, The Professor, Sandaime Hokage of Konoha
"'Earth'? And 'Heaven'?" Hinata muttered. "Just like on the scrolls they told us to find and bring here. There's got to be something here that we need to figure out." The twins nodded.
"So let's get to it. It said that we need to run through 'the fields of opportunity' if we didn't have Earth. And that we need to 'expand our horizons' if we didn't have Heaven. But what does it all mean?" Keiji brought up to focus.
"The proctor did say that if we didn't show up with either scroll or just one then we fail the Second Part." Mito added and she, along with Hinata, brought out the two scrolls that Keiji stole before they entered the forest. "Naruto-sensei even told us that if we tried to open them before entering the forest then that is a fail too."
"Maybe it is the scrolls." Hinata spoke up. "Maybe this means that we are only allowed to open the scrolls when we are in the tower and with both of them in hand." The twins looked at each other. "Maybe we need to open them here in order to pass the exam."
"It's worth a try since we are not going in trouble for opening them here." Keiji said and the girls nodded. Team Seven slowly opened the scrolls so that every eye sees what is inside. On both scrolls were some kind of matrix made from ink and with the Kanji for 'person' in the center.
The twins then gasped, feeling chakra in the ink letters. It was some kind of Jutsu on paper. "Toss them!" The girls did so and the scrolls started to give off some kind of smoke. Once the scrolls landed on the ground, the matrixes in ink had met in a cross formulation. From that new spot, a cloud of smoke enough to cover a full-grown man.
"Hey guys, I knew that you will solve it in no time at all." Team Seven knew that voice and their faces brighten up as a result.
"Naruto-kun/sensei!" Hinata raced and embraced around the neck with glee while the twins did his waist, like lost children finally reuniting with their older brother. After a short moment, the twins settled down while Hinata got a quick kiss on the lips before jumping down.
"Thanks. I guess that I have been a good boy lately." Naruto smirked and popped a joke which at least got his team to chuckle a little.
"So sensei, about the scrolls…" Keiji brought up and Naruto nodded.
"'Earth' and 'Heaven' were more than two names we chose to tell the scrolls apart. The 'fields of opportunity' refer to physical prowess of a Shinobi to deal out attacks, take a hit better and can keep chasing your prey for hours. Make sure to keep it in top condition, those guys in chairs are bad models for that." This time, Team Seven laughed slightly louder. "And the part about 'expanding your horizons' refers to the knowledge, cunning and intellect of a Shinobi. To figure out the enemies' course of action and plot several steps ahead, take them by surprise and outwit the sharpest of minds. If you keep that also in top form, you can finally shut the Naras up during their chess games."
Team Seven then fell to the ground in a holler of a group laugh at the ideas that their teacher was filling their heads. What an amusing way to end a trip into a dangerous forest with the most dangerous of predators, as an intruder.
"And I brought some company who want to see you. A little bonus for excellent work as a team for the entire Second Part." Naruto smirked to see that his girlfriend and the twins peer in to hear what their teacher has in mind. And the answer came when Naruto placed his hands together, a slightly larger cloud of smoke appeared, right in front of him.
It took only a few seconds for Team Seven to see who was inside the cloud of smoke. "No way!" Keiji spoke loud and true for how he and his team reacted to this surprise.
"Haku-chan!"
"Yurina-chan!"
"Hanabi-chan!"
After seeing each of his students chatting with each of the visitors, Naruto had one more thing to announce. "I have one more friend I would like you to visit. I am sure that you three know him very well. You two, the twins, are more like him than you think." Team Seven and guest knew that Naruto loved to be cryptic, it keeps everyone guessing, so they left it at that until a later time.
"And remember, we still have four more days. Once the sixth day start then you will need to get to a certain room. Don't be late." Naruto knew that his team and the guests got the memo when they left to enjoy the tower, with a farewell given to him.
'Meanwhile, I need to do some digging. What happened today in the office is definitely making my gut feeling scream for me to do so.' Naruto thought to himself before disappearing in a puff of smoke.
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The morning of the sixth day, with the Chunin Exam's Second Part over, every passing Genin team were assembled in a room similar to the one with the riddle. But in its placed was a large statue of a pair of hands making the Tiger hand seal, the most popular of them all. There seemed to be exactly seven teams left, five from Konoha, one from Suna and another from Oto (This new Shinobi Village founded recently).
"Greetings to all Genin who have proven your merit in the first two parts of the Chunin Exams. This Third Part will be the last, there will no more once this trial has been completed." Minato did his duty announcements and noticed that most of the Genin looked battered and rugged, like they were sleeping the nights on rocks and with pine needles as blankets." All I have to say now is; best of luck, you will need it. For we are going to have Preliminary match-ups!"
Minato had seen that most of the Genin were now outraged. They were just told that they needed to fight against another one of them, only a few were able to get to the tower with plenty of time to sleep in a bed and eat 'real' food. "SILENCE!" Minato shouted, not noticing that his hand was scratching that same spot when the Second Part was going to start.
"I am sorry that you are not allowed to take a break but when you are in conflict with enemies, they won't let you have any rest. I figured that the Second Part in the Forest of Death would have taught you that. Maybe I should reconsider some of you greenhorns and whiners from ever becoming Chunin!" Minato shouted at the top of his lungs to silence the crowd and succeeded. "Thank you and I wish to get the Third Part underway but there is too many of you. If you all fought to the last Genin, it will take all day. And our guests are not that patient to wait an entire day under the hot sun. The Preliminary rounds are simply to cut the number of you into half, a much better number."
The crowd was still mumbling and moaning but not actually complaining out loud anymore. "Now with that in mind, the match-ups will be at random and those who lose or come to a draw will have to drop out of the Chunin Exams and will have try again the next year for the promotion. Still try your best, that is what your villages will want to see."
Since there were still no complainants, Minato was about to continue, "Excuse me, Hokage-sama. I would like to *cough* start explaining the Preliminaries *cough* please?" Everyone turned to see a zombie of a man, with coughing every five seconds.
"Hayate…." Minato trailed off. "Go ahead." This coughing man thanked Minato and headed into the sun gaze to give the Genin a better look.
Hayate had short brown hair, dark-colored eyes and dark markings under his eyes. Even though he was a young man, he had pronounced lines under his eyes as well as an unexplained chronic cough that plagued him. He wore the standard Konoha shinobi outfit complete with a forehead protector that he wore as a bandanna, flak jacket and regular shinobi sandals. He also carried a katana with a rectangular hand guard strapped over his back.
"Like the *cough* Hokage himself said, *cough* we need the Preliminaries to *cough cough* to reduce the number of Genin by *cough* half. Once the match-ups are *cough* done, we will be ready for the final part of the *cough* Chunin Exams." Hayate tried his best through his coughing fit. One of them suggested a doctor and a good nap, which somehow got everyone present in the room to laugh at it, including the Hokage.
"Whatever. The waivers *cough* you sighed at the entrance to the *cough* Training Ground 44 will *cough* be submitted into this *cough* machine." Hayate pointed to the top of the wall his back was facing. From the ceiling came a large black board. "This will show *cough* two random names. When you see yours, head over to the center of the room to fight your opponent. Any one wish to quit? Last chance."
"I wish to quit." Hayate and the Jonin looked over to the crowd and saw a Genin from the Konoha teams. It was the other team that had been out of the Academy like Team Nine, but for much longer. "I have used a lot of chakra and I don't think that I can fight at my fullest. I will try again next year."
"You are Kabuto Yakushi, failed the Chunin Exams throughout the *cough* Elemental Nations seven times." Hayate said and the crowd started to mutter. They knew Kabuto, the one who said that he was the veteran of the Chunin Exams since he failed but survived seven of them in a row. But they assumed that Kabuto meant the Exams happening in Konoha; but the 'four-eyes' Genin has been in the Exams throughout the Elemental Nations?
Kabuto has onyx eyes and ash-grey hair, which he normally keeps in a ponytail. His most consistent feature are his black rimmed circular glasses. Kabuto wears a dark purple shirt with a high collar, a white under-shirt, and dark purple pants with a white cloth waistband. He wears also dark purple fingerless gloves with armoured plates on the back of the hand and a blue forehead protector.
"If you are, then I am sorry but we have been given *cough* specific orders to allow except *cough* you to quit at this point. Hokage's orders." Hayate answered and Kabuto had to make a silent growl. This will be a monkey wrench in his plans. "And if there aren't anyone else, then we will begin. And remember, one of you will get a free pass since there is an odd number of you Genin."
And while Hayate was going to speak more, Team Seven started the same telepathic conversations that they used during the First Part of the Exams, courtesy of their teacher. {For a veteran Genin, he was quick to quit. Like he wanted to have that streak of failures when he could have flunked the first two Parts.} Keiji started it off.
{Chakra exhaustion is such a lame excuse and any experienced Genin would have thought of something with more imagination than that.} Mito added.
{I checked those Chakra coils myself, they are not even strained. He was lying about being low on energy.} Hinata concluded. {He must have a good reason to thwart any chance for the promotion for something else.}
{But more importantly…} Keiji then said with his thoughts, {Did you all notice the seals on the back of their necks? The chakra inside reeks and is enough to rattle a man's nerves. And the Hokage-Sama has been scratching that spot for the entire time.} Keiji had hoped he was seeing things but that was not to be once he saw that his sister and Hinata both nodded, with a look of concern and uneasiness on their faces. Just what is going on in this village?
End of Chapter 14.
*Thanks for the reviews! I really appreciate it all as an author. So here is more of the drama and mystery of the Namikaze Clan. Hope you like it! *