NARUTO
Maoyū
Show Your Stuff
(Meanwhile)
(Hokage Tower)
"A Grand Chunin Exam, huh?" the voice of Asuma Sarutobi filled the room as he and a dozen other Jonin stood in a single group in front of their village leader's desk, who was currently sitting in it with her fingers laced together and her elbows resting in front of her. After hearing what the woman had to say about the up and coming plans, the man with the bear and goatee couldn't help but chuckle. "I gotta say, that sounds pretty awesome. A prestigious event that will pit- not just our village and allies' young Genin against one another for the titles of Chunin- but the other Five Great Nations as well?"
"Count me in," Kurenai spoke up from beside her fellow instructor, a hand propped on her hip and an excited look in her eyes. "Yeah. I bet my team will be all for it."
"Same here," Izumi Uchiha spoke from the far side of the crowd, arms folded and a grin plastered across her face. "They've been grinding through every single D-Rank mission I've thrown at them over the last couple of months. I bet they would be thrilled to take a break from all of that and have a crack at winning a vest in a massive contest."
Asuma grinned across at the young Uchiha Jonin, "I can definitely agree on that."
As the Jonin started clamoring amongst each other and saying which of their squads would be eager to participate in this event, Kakashi, being the most collected and calm among them, turned to his colleagues and spoke up. "Now hold on a second, you guys. Let's not start jumping the gun just yet. The event is still in the middle of its planning stages, so nothing has been a hundred percent confirmed yet," the silver-haired warrior stated. Seeing the group of adults settle, the shinobi then looked back towards their leader, whom he could see was smiling back at all of them. "Isn't that right, Hokage-sama?"
"That's right, Kakashi-san," Mikoto replied, bringing everyone back around to her as she then placed a hand down on the desk in front of her where several documents were currently lying. "The Third Hokage has been in conference with the other Kage about this for a few months now… and seeing as how I've inherited the task of finalizing this from him, I need to make sure everything is in order before we can proceed." She then eyed every single Jonin present carefully. "This is going to be the biggest Chunin Exams any of the big five have ever held. The reason why it's being conducted is not only for the villages to get an idea on the quality of shinobi they are currently producing, but it also gives us Kage a chance to sit down together and talk politics. Doing so over a ritual commonly shared between them is usually the best time to do that."
"So… it's kind of like meeting over a ball game or a theatre performance, where everyone will be able to have fun and be in a good-enough mood to talk?" one of the other Jonin in the crowd asked.
"Exactly," Mikoto informed, at the same time resting back in her seat. "At least that's how we're hoping it will go. Another plus side to all of this is that every single village across the continent will be receiving a massive boon from all the clients that will be requesting the services of our shinobi. Since this is going to be a highly broadcasted event, set on one of the most popular and tourist rich nations in the world, you can assume that there is a lot riding on the success of this event." The woman then grinned as she tilted her head to the side. "There's also a lot of anticipation over having the big five finally coming together for the first time since the end of the last Shinobi World War."
Asuma chuckled at this. "I'll bet." Those times had been rough on all of them- especially since most of them had been kids during those months of fighting. Though the reasons behind the war had gone over a lot of their heads at the time, now that they were all a lot older and a lot wiser than before, the Jonin had a much deeper appreciation for the peace they'd been able to walk away with.
It was then one of the other Jonin in the group decided to speak up- a woman from the Yamanaka Clan with blond hair and a battle skirt under her Jonin vest. "So is that why the four villages sent their ambassadors here to Konohagakure? To talk over the numbers and dates of the upcoming event with you?"
"Yes. As a show of good faith for our handling of the Kotaro Crisis incident, the four Kage sent their delegates to our village to discuss all of the administration material with me. That includes the total number of villages and countries participating, the important guests we're going to be inviting, and the costs of hosting the affair in the Crescent Moon Kingdom. Not to mention how much of the profits each party will be receiving," Mikoto informed, before then leaning forward and smiling at the Jonin in front of them. "However, before we get down to all of that business, the other Kage informed me that they would like to have a demonstration first."
Izumi raised an eyebrow. "A demonstration?"
"What kind of demonstration?" Kurenai asked.
"The other leaders would like to pit the best of our newest batch of Genin that will be participating in the exams, in a practice match against teams from each of the five states. Pretty much a five way, free-for-all of our up and coming number one prospects. The ambassadors sent here to observe will be able to make an assessment from the performances put on by the Genin and report the results back to their Kage," Mikoto informed, while simultaneously crossing her arms. "In other words, we're having a pseudo trial run of the exam's main event in our stadium, which we are expected to hold tomorrow to a small audience."
"So the other villages want to see what kind of weapons we're packing, huh?" Asuma asked for extra confirmation, which earned a nod from the Fifth Hokage in return. "Alright. How's this going to go down?"
"Before I go any further, I would just like to confirm from the Jonin Captains present on whose teams are going to be put forth for the upcoming contest," Mikoto continued, raising a hand to stop any sudden calls being made in her office. "Now bear in mind… the tests that are going to be held at this year's assessment are going to be unlike any of the others held in the previous years. Since it's also being held on an island far outside of the influence of the other states, you can forget about having a home field advantage. Not only are the stakes expected to be much higher, but the trials are also going to be tougher and the competition much fiercer. Every village across the continent will be sending the best of their best to this tournament, for whatever reasons they may have. All in all- this will be a test of power, as well as a test of strength and intelligence." She then lowered her hand to her desk and rested it there. "That being said, for all those who haven't volunteered their teams yet and still wish to… please do so now."
After looking around at one another to see who had yet to put forward their teams yet, as well as who would be the first to step up, everyone suddenly saw the tall, imposing form of Asuma Sarutobi step forward and form the Seal of Confrontation- which also acted as a sign of compliance.
"Jonin Captain of Team 10- Sarutobi Asuma- volunteers his students Nara Shikamaru, Yamanaka Ino, and Akimichi Choji, to participate in the upcoming Chunin Exams," the bearded man stated with a confident smile.
Shortly after he stepped forward, Kurenai joined him and also formed a seal. "Jonin Captain of Team 8- Yuhi Kurenai- volunteers Hyuuga Hinata, Inuzuka Kiba, and Aburame Shino of her team to participate in the tournament," the raven haired, red-eyed kunoichi stated with a firm voice.
"Uchiha Izumi- Jonin Captain of Team 11- volunteers her students Hara Tayuya, Kurama Yakumo, and Uchiha Kurumi, to participate in the upcoming trials," the young Jonin in the black and grey uniform contemporary of her clan's forces spoke up, at the same time joining the other shinobi in front of the Hokage's desk.
The last one to step forward, the masked Kakashi, positioned himself next to the young Uchiha and also formed the Seal of Confrontation. "Hatake Kakashi- Jonin Captain of Team 7- volunteers his students Uchiha Sasuke, Haruno Sakura, and Uzumaki Naruto, to participate in the Chunin Exams."
Seeing the four newest captains take up position in front of her caused Mikoto to smile broadly, before she then stood up and faced them instructors properly. "Good. Any other captains who have yet to submit their teams for consideration or would like to double-check their squad's paperwork, I will be accepting their submissions over the next couple of weeks. You will have plenty of time until then to decide whether or not you want their names to be registered or removed." She then straightened up and set a hand on her hip, at the same time the four Jonin in front of her lowered their hands and stood at attention. "As for our newest captains, since the visiting ambassadors have each brought with them their highest performing Genin team from their most recent graduating groups, I will determine which out of your squads will be taking part in the demonstration."
OOO
(That evening)
As it turns out, Kakashi didn't end up coming out to meet up with his Genin team for another mission. This meant that Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke were given the rest of the day to chill out and hang with their newfound friends from Iwagakure. Since they were used to speaking with a lot of the other kids from their graduating group, being able to talk to Kurotsuchi and her squad was a pretty welcome breath of fresh air.
Understandably enough, the news of the upcoming Grand Chunin Exams that was said to be hosted sometime in the next couple of months wound up becoming the main top of their discussions for a good chunk of their daytime spent together. Even after finishing up their lunch at Ichiraku's Ramen Noodle Shop and taking their explorations to the streets, the collection of six kids couldn't help but jabber on about the upcoming festival- with Naruto voicing his opinion about how he wanted to participate in it, and Kurotsuchi bragging incessantly about how she was going to blitz it through to the end and win herself a vest.
"We've been training like crazy for the past few months for this exam. We even managed to overtake some of the older Genin groups in our village with the performance records our team has been setting," the raven haired girl said to Naruto as she walked alongside him down the road that their group was following. Completely ignoring the strange looks they were receiving from some of the adult villagers they passed, the clearly excited girl grinned broadly and raised both her fists in front of her. "There is no way we're going to lose."
The blond youngster couldn't help but spare a grin across at the gutsy girl. "Man. After everything you told us about how hard the Chunin Exams are, you don't seem worried in the slightest."
The regular Chunin Exams, which were normally held once a year in most villages, was- by their understanding- probably one of the most viewed and celebrated events in shinobi culture. It allowed the next generation of up and coming young ninja, who had been honing their craft through countless hours of missions and training, to test their skills against others of the same or older generation, and show off their stuff in front of a live audience. Of course, the trials that took place in them were nothing to gloss over, as they not only tested the intelligence and wisdom of those who were participating, but also their nerve, toughness, and fortitude as shinobi of their respective villages.
In short, the tests exams were of an entirely different level compared to the ones at the academy. They were like a rite of passage that marked their first steps into adulthood.
"Are you kidding? Why would I be?" Kurotsuchi asked the jinchuriki, whom she saw was still looking at her with great intent. Ignoring the flutter in her chest from his gaze, the girl carried on boldly. "Any kind of challenge for us is just another stepping stone towards success. Whether we approach them with a strong spirit or a weak one that crumbles into dust, will determine if we come out the other end a little wiser or a little more foolish. That's what Tsuchikage-jiji told us while we were still at the academy. The strongest stones are those who support and hold every other one up."
Sakura meanwhile, who was listening to the girl from Naruto's other flank, simply smiled across at her. "Those are some pretty cool words your Kage gave to you." Powerful ones too. It kind of reminded the pinkette about their own village leader's lessons and their message about the Will of Fire- and how it was the key to salvation and peace.
"Our village is built on timeless teachings and traditions that are engraved in the hearts of every one of us," Akatsuchi informed, leaning forward and smiling at the Genin from Konohagakure. "They're the same values that our founders first laid down a hundred years ago… and they have since persisted to this day."
"That much is to be expected," Sasuke commented from his end, having also been listening to the conversation with rapt interest.
Naruto couldn't help but feel a small sense of inspiration come over him in response to the group's display of confidence- as well as their strong sense of respect to their village's history. After mulling it over for a moment and giving his own core beliefs a momentary assessment, the blond then leaned over and grinned across at the upbeat Kurotsuchi. "No wonder you guys are considered one of the Five Great Villages. You definitely have no shortage of great shinobi coming out of your academy." He then leaned back and stuck his chest out confidently. "To be honest, all this talk about strength and resilience... really makes me want to have a match against you guys."
Hearing his comment loud and clear had Kurotsuchi shoot a smirk back at the blond. "Oh really? Are you saying you wouldn't mind challenging one of us- the best Genin from Iwagakure- to a little bout?" Her query was matched by an intrigued glance from Akatsuchi and Kari, both of whom were now listening to the pair square off.
"Yeah. I think either of you three would make a fantastic opponent," Naruto replied, before then stopping and eyeing the kunoichi beside him. "Especially you, Kurotsuchi-chan. If you and I went head to head on the battlefield, I have a feeling you'd be able to give me a pretty decent run for my money."
Feeling her heart race from excitement, as well as the compliments she was receiving from the dashing young rogue, the girl from Iwa- with a light shade of red glowing in her cheeks- stroked her chin while murmuring to herself, "Hmm… it certainly is a tempting challenge." A mischievous glint then appeared in her eyes a few moments later. "If we're lucky… maybe the two of us will end up having a go at each other sometime in the near future. Maybe even in this coming exam if you guys manage to make it that far."
Her remark had Naruto chuckle, "Fingers crossed."
Over the course of their afternoon together, Kurotsuchi and her teammates wound up talking to the Genin of Team 7 about a couple of the exams from their past years in Iwagakure. This included one infamous period where the examiners instructed the squads who past the first trial to race across the Hidden Stone's killer Mountain Ranges to reach their second objective, which ended in a few people plummeting to their deaths amidst the many canyons and sinkholes dotting the region. Then there was another year where the squads of Genin had to fight in a large underground stadium, the surface of which was set to continuously shift and change beneath them, resulting in even more gruesome injuries and ring-outs.
After a little more talking, exploring, and a quick visit to one of the main parks in the central area of Konohagakure, the two teams soon had to go their separate ways. Sasuke ended up excusing himself early so that his trip back home wouldn't take him too long, in which he told his teammates that he will be seeing them tomorrow at their usual spot on the red bridge. Sakura our the other hand wound up sticking with Naruto while he walked the Iwa team back to their village's temporary embassy- a mansion reserved for the leaf's most important visitors. When they wound up stopping at the front gate of the property that stood on the edge of the administration district, both Akatsuchi and Kari bid the two remaining members of Team 7 goodnight.
Kurotsuchi ended up lingering behind for a little bit longer. When she stood in front of Naruto and shared a few warm words with him, she presented herself in a slightly more subdued and timid manner, in which she had her hands behind her back, her foot scraping against her calf nervously, and her body swinging back and forth. The side she showed was a stark contrast to the cocky, brave, and tomboyish persona she had on before, and after a few laughs and a few compliments, the girl awkwardly gave the boy a fist bump to the shoulder and told him she would like to meet up with him again tomorrow- alone- after her business with their ambassador was concluded.
After saying goodnight to her, both Naruto and Sakura began heading back towards their suburbs. Along the way, as they were cutting through the side streets to avoid the village's busy main highway, the blond delinquent was unable to keep the big smile from stretching across his lips.
"I'd say that was a pretty great day," the jinchuriki said, at the same time throwing his hands behind his head. "Not only did we meet a couple of new faces from another ninja village, but we also got to talk about the next Chunin Exams with them." He then shook his head in amazement. "How come we didn't hear about any of this earlier? Especially since this is going to be the biggest one yet."
"No idea," Sakura remarked, keeping in step with her teammate as they continued to walk along the dirt road past a few quiet houses. "But when news gets out around the village, the hype for it is going to go through the roof."
If there was anything they knew that their people got hyped up about the most, it was big festivals and celebrations. This one was definitely not exception.
"They'll probably have posters and billboards advertising the day set up around every single corner and building across the entire village," Naruto said, drawing his hand across the sky to illustrate his point. After which he then clenched it into a fist. "Damn. Now I definitely know what I'll be focusing on for the next couple of weeks. I'm just so pumped." If there was going to be a massive contest going down in a far off country with chances of him and his friends participating in it, then Naruto wanted to be as ready for it as he possibly could be. That meant a steeper training regiment and a tighter scheduled for him from here on out.
His remark was followed up by a cheerful bark from Tama and a big smile from his kunoichi teammate.
As they strolled along, with Naruto's eyes practically glowing with excitement, the delinquent failed to notice the slightly worried look come over Sakura. Pushing back a few strands of hair, the pinkette then gazed across at her teammate. "N-Naruto-kun… do you, umm… do you like girls who are like Kurotsuchi-san?"
"Huh?"
"I mean… I could tell from the way you two were talking to each other- sharing interests, ideas and plans- that you really enjoyed hanging out with her. Not to mention she was practically hanging off of your every compliment and story," Sakura explained, at the same time playing with her fingers behind her back anxiously. "Are you… into girls like that? Ones with short hair, a pretty face, and a tough attitude?"
Naruto, sensing the girl's curiosity, squinted thoughtfully for a moment before setting his hands on his hips and leaning back. "I wouldn't really say I have any kind of preference. I guess I just find strong girls in general to be attractive… regardless of where they come from or what they look like." A cheeky grin then tugged at his lips. "Though it does help a lot if they're cute too."
"Oh. I see," Sakura murmured, at the same time averting her eyes in a dejected manner. From what she could gauge from the adolescent's words, the kunoichi felt that compared to a lot of the others females that she knew personally, she was clearly losing out.
As much as she admired Naruto and wanted to earn his praise and affections, between Genin like Tayuya, Hinata, and that Kurotsuchi, Sakura knew that she didn't have a hope in hell of even competing with them in strength or character. All of them held a much higher standard to her, which made her feel both inferior and honestly a little bit jealous.
However, before the pinkette could fully descend into her depressed slump, Naruto followed up his statement by stepping towards Sakura and nudging her in the arm. When she looked up at him, the girl almost jumped when she saw the charming smile he gave her. "But if I really had to pick a type… girls who are smart, strong, and have a good heart like you- Sakura-chan- are definitely winners in my book."
The kunoichi swore she felt her heart stop for several moments, as she walked along staring wide-eyed at the boy for several moments. Heck, she almost ended up tripping over her own feet because she was gaping at him. When she righted herself, her face had turned bright red and she was unable to face him. This resulted in the kunoichi making some rather strange noises akin to jumbled replies, before she then stuttered a somewhat more understandable one.
"W-W-What? No, no… I…" Sakura choked out, eyes wide as they darted between him and ahead of her a couple of times. She became so flustered she missed the amused look she received from the blond. "Really? I-I'm not-"
"Not what? Smart? Strong? Kind? Cute? Because from what I can tell, I think you're all four of those things and more, Sakura-chan," Naruto finished, not at all afraid to admit this when the kunoichi looked back at him with a clear sense of astonishment. "I can't lie about something like that. No way. What I'm telling you is what I've seen for myself firsthand… and that's the truth."
Naruto's straight-shooting words left Sakura in a state of bewilderment and awe. For the remainder of their walk together, the blushing pinkette remained quiet, as her brain slowly processed what the boy had said to her. During which time she couldn't help but spare short glances across at the delinquent, catching shots of his profile from the side while being watched by a keenly observing Tama- who was still present on the boy's shoulder.
Eventually the pair arrived at her place and, after stopping outside her front door, Naruto bid his teammate a well-earned good night.
"I'll drop by tomorrow to pick you up for our morning run, okay?" the blond said, at the same time turning to head off. Just before he could step away, the whiskered warrior noticed the kunoichi standing there and staring at him- her fists clenched and a firm expression in play. The look that she also had in her eyes prompted the boy to stop in his tracks. "Hm? What's up, Sakura-chan?"
After staring at him in a rather stiffened state for several awkward seconds, the pink-haired kunoichi took a deep breath, before speaking in a resolute voice. "J-Just so you know… I won't give up." Her statement had Naruto blink in surprise. "And I won't lose either… not to Tayuya-san, Hinata-san, or any of the other girls. Understand?"
At first wondering what she meant by that, after seeing the red in her cheeks and the glistening in her eyes, the boy then realized exactly what she was getting at and smiled. "Yeah. I understand, Sakura-chan."
Smile returning full force to her blushing face after relaying her declaration of confidence, the kunoichi then spun on her heel and sprinted inside- obviously in an attempt to get out of there so that she could freak-out over what she'd just said to the boy she liked.
Seconds upon seeing his teammate disappear, Naruto then heard his animal companion next to him give a sigh, which in turn drew his gaze to her.
"Little deviant," the fox said in her trademark womanly voice- a teasing glint in her smile and gaze. "Toying with girls' hearts left and right."
The blond chuckled as he turned around and continued. "What can I say? I learned from the best," the jinchuriki replied, which earned an affectionate lick on the cheek from his spirit partner.
From there, both the delinquent hero and his animal companion strolled down the side streets of the hidden leaf- enjoying the quiet of the late evening and the company of each other. Having grown up in this area for his entire life, Naruto knew every turn, every road, and every alley there was in suburban Konohagakure like the back of his hand. It's what allowed him to navigate through the streets so comfortably and without fear of getting lost.
On his way back home, wanting to pick up a quick dinner for him, Tayuya and Aya, the whiskered youngster stopped off at a local convenience store and bought a handful of bento that were on special. Upon which he then headed down the road and straight to his apartment block, which he could see peaking over the buildings ahead of him. Though the hour was late and the sun was gone, Naruto was still feeling incredibly restless and excited.
His moon only became even more so when, upon approaching the path that led into his apartment block area, the spiky haired youngster stopped suddenly when he spotted a familiar figure standing at the gates.
Wearing a grey kimono vest and a black skirt, fishnet stockings and shirt underneath, and black sandals with a tantō sitting behind her hip, and her light blonde hair still styled in its signature Bob cut, Samui Shimizu of Kumogakure could be found blocking the entrance to the building. Staring up at it with her usual cool visage, the sound of footsteps scraping against the dirt drew her gaze down the road, where she discovered the person she'd been looking for gaping at her a few feet away.
"S-Samui-chan?" Though it took a few moments for his brain to click back into motion, Naruto eventually put on a big grin and quickly jogged forward. "Hey. Long time no see."
The kunoichi chuckled as she turned to face him. "Yeah. It's been a while, hasn't it, Naruto-kun." When he eventually coasted to a stop in front of her, the Genin from Kumo then directed her gaze towards Tama, whom she saw was wagging her tail happily over the jinchuriki's shoulder. "And you too, Tama-san. Have you been well?" When she heard the fox bark lightly, the kunoichi beamed. "Good." Giving the youngster a quick once over, she then nodded her head in approval. "I see the months since we last saw one another have been very kind on both of you. You're looking a lot fitter and stronger than before."
"Oh, totally. I can say the same thing about you too." Glancing her up and down, the youngster smiled observantly. "Sharper… stronger… but still the cool and radiant girl I met back in that hot spring inn," Naruto remarked, before then pointing at his cheek. "I can see you've got a bit of tan going on as well."
"I do?" the girl asked while tentatively prodding her face with her fingers. "It… doesn't look strange, does it?"
"Nah. It looks great," Naruto quickly replied, putting his pen pal's worries at ease before nodding to her. "I'm guessing you've been training a lot over the last few months outside, huh?"
A soft smile crossed Samui's lips as she rested her arms at her sides, "You guessed it. Ever since he heard about our battle at that lakeside village, Killer Bee-sensei has been putting our team through the wringer of a lifetime. This consisted mostly of strength-based training, spirit-hazing fitness sessions, daily ninjutsu and kenjutsu workouts, and a whole lot of… how should I say it… spirit cleansing."
"Spirit cleansing?" Naruto repeated curiously.
Samui shrugged and cocked her head to the side. "Basically sensei's had our team come up with a collection of limericks and songs for an anthology, which he said we could use to recite before the start of a big battle in order to hype us up." The girl chuckled a little in amusement. "Omoi calls it character building."
"Sounds fun," Naruto replied, before then glancing off to the side with a frown. "Kakashi-sensei has us run all sorts of drills whenever we're training together- silent codes, offensive and defensive maneuvers, and visual signals. Then he has all of us practice our group formations on him during the same session, but we usually end up being tied to a stump or buried together." The boy frowned when he remembered the last time they tried one of their 'Capture their Jonin Teacher' strategies on the elite shinobi, but had all ended up tied to a tree. "He can be a real dick with his training sometimes."
"I know what you mean," Samui replied with a tired shake of her head.
After allowing their amusement from their respective recaps to run their course, Naruto then propped his hands on his hips and beamed at her. "This really is an interesting day. Not only do we run into a Genin team from Iwagakure, but I end up bumping into you at the end of the day as well. Now I really know something is going down in the village."
Samui cocked her head to the side. "The Grand Chunin Exams?"
The delinquent clicked his finger at her, "Bingo. We found out that ambassadors from all over have come here to Konohagakure to meet up with the Hokage to talk about the preparations for the event. From what we could tell, they've also brought along a couple of Genin teams with them to take part in some kind of… practice event?"
"We're unsure of what they want us to do. However, a demonstration was strongly implied by Raikage-sama when he selected us to take part in it," the blonde girl stated with confidence.
Noticing that the street lights were switching on around them, Naruto then gestured towards his building. "Want to come inside? We can talk more about this at greater length."
The offer more or less raised Samui's enthusiasm, who visibly lifted a little on the spot, "I'd like that." With the jinchuriki directing her with a casual wave of his hand, the two then strode side-by-side onto the property.
Hitting the stairs and climbing up to the second floor, the delinquent flipped out his key as he saw the door approaching. "How are Omoi and Karui doing by the way? Are they well?"
"Yes. About as well as you'd expect," Samui replied, adding a little chuckle at the end. "They still constantly bicker with one another every time the former gets flustered and starts having one of his internal struggles- where his optimism and pessimism wind up clashing for dominance."
"Heh. So in other words, they're doing exactly as I was expecting," Naruto laughed a little, at the same time stopping by his door and slipping the key in. "With any luck, I bet Tayuya-chan is home already." Opening the door and allowing the lady through first, Naruto then followed in after her, being the first to kick off his sandals at the entrance. When he slipped through, he found Tayuya sitting at the desk with Aya, both of whom were reading from a couple of books. His smile came in full force the moment he saw the pair look up, at the same time he set the bag of bento boxes he'd bought on the floor. "Ah. Speak of the devil. I can see you guys are hard at work."
"Pft. That's old news, shithead," the flute player replied, looking up from her novel with a smile on her face. "We finished studying over an hour and a half ago. Now we're just chilling out and enjoying some light reading. We're also thinking of maybe heading down to the springs afterwards for a quick soak."
"Sounds fun. Maybe I'll join you," Naruto replied, allowing Tama to hop off of his arm and down to the floor. As she scampered across the room and jumped up onto the cupboard beneath their main window, the boy then began taking off his jacket to hang on the hook on the wall next to him. "Of course, I'm probably going to end up stuck on the other side of the divider with Suiro, so I doubt I'll be able to share any gripping convos with you or Aya-chan."
At this comment, a rather sly smirk crossed Tayuya's lips, "Well, if you're going to be that salty about it, I wouldn't really mind if you snuck over to the girls' side and-" She then stopped abruptly when she noticed the cute blonde girl walk in behind Naruto. Pausing for a moment in surprise when she saw the beguiling and mature kunoichi- who looked to be around their age- the flute player gaped for a moment before shaking her head. "Uh. Shithead? Who's that?"
Naruto grinned and gestured over his shoulder at the girl in question, "A friend of mine from another village decided to stop by our place to say hello to me. So I invited her in."
Looking about, the kunoichi with the Bob-cut nodded and looked back at the spiky haired boy she'd followed in. "Hm… small… cozy… and practical. Exactly what I imagined from a man as pragmatic and forward-thinking as you, Naruto-kun." When the delinquent grinned at her, Samui turned to the girls sitting around the table. Seeming not at all surprised to see either the redhead or the half-spider girl staring at her, the kunoichi bowed to them. "Greetings."
"Umm… g-greetings," Tayuya replied, blushing a little when she felt the blonde girl's cool, blue eyes boring into her. Setting her book down due to the intensity she felt from the seemingly cool and monotone girl, the Genin from Team 11 then blinked when she noticed the forehead protector sewn into her belt. "Huh? She's… from Kumogakure?"
"Yep," Naruto nodded, before then making introductions. "This is Samui-chan of Team Bee- kunoichi from the hidden cloud and one of the coolest girls you'll ever meet." His compliment had the girl in question's cheeks turn red with embarrassment, as she then glanced away momentarily to avoid the delinquent's gaze.
Finding the youngster's reaction quite flattering to her complexion, as well as cute, after a few seconds of looking her over, a memory was suddenly triggered in the recesses of Tayuya's mind. "Wait? Samui… isn't she the same girl that fought with you and Tama-chan against-" When she saw Naruto nod, Tayuya then gawked across at the female she'd apparently heard many stories about before grinning. "Heh. Now isn't this a fascinating development?"
Not only was she meeting someone from her crush's not too distant past, but she'd also run into a very dangerous rival… and an incredibly beautiful one at that.
Samui of course blinked as she analyzed the redhead that was checking her out. "Ah. Judging from your fair appearance and striking reddish-pink hair, you must be Tayuya-san- Naruto's close friend and confidant."
The Konohagakure Genin blinked in surprise, "You… know me?"
"Yes. Naruto-kun told me all about you on our first meeting together. During our conversation, he spoke nothing but high praise for your strength, talent, and character. As I understand it, the two of you are incredibly close to one another," Samui informed, at the same time glancing over at the spiky haired hero to see him unwrap his scarf Aijo, which then telepathically snapped towards where his jacket was hanging and draped itself over it- seemingly of its own accord. Seeing Naruto give a stretch with his back turned to them before then wandering over to the window to check on the laundry hanging outside, the blonde kunoichi admired him for a moment before looking back at his roommate. "Though I am touched by the bond you share, it also presents a rather perplexing scenario for the two of us as well. Wouldn't you agree?"
Quickly deciphering the meaning behind the girl's words, Tayuya then smirked, "Indeed. Couldn't have put it better myself." She then stood up off the floor and, propping her hands on her hips while Naruto was busy wandering around the apartment and grabbing stuff, the flute player then eyed Samui intently. "Right now I'm having a rather tough time deciding whether I should welcome you into our home… or snap at you with a jealous outburst. Shit knows I'd prefer the latter over the former."
"Well… this is Naruto-kun we're talking about, so I shouldn't be surprised. His air and charisma are highly intoxicating," Samui said, strolling across the tatami matted floor and coming to stand in front of the girl. Looking directly at her, the two girls found themselves quickly locked in a staring contest- in which brown eyes bore into cold blue ones. "So what do you suggest we do about this?"
"Don't know yet," Tayuya shrugged, but then titled her head. "But we're two smart and reasonable girls. I'm sure that with time, we should be able to come to some kind of an understanding." Deciding to fall back on her intelligent side, considering they were currently inside a very small apartment with a lot of personal possessions and people surrounding them, the redhead figured that now was not the best time to get physical right now. Instead, she focused on the other strength in her arsenal that she could rely on. "For now, we can have a truce. Agreed?"
"Agreed," Samui replied, her stance relaxing slightly, before she then closed her eyes and gave the girl a warm smile. "All the same, it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Tayuya-san."
"Likewise," the flute player replied, giving the girl a momentary good look over, before then also relaxing her hands. Without even realizing it, Tayuya's fingers had curled into fists.
At this point, the blonde girl then took note of the spider girl sitting by the table and watching them. When her eyes fell on her, Samui saw the young but large Jorogumo balk at being spotted and quickly try to hide behind the book she was reading. The Kumo girl's then immediate action was to tilt her head curiously. "Huh. It seems you've made a couple of new additions to your inner circle since we last met." She then directed her gaze towards Naruto, whom she could see had finished pulling in the few bits of laundry hanging outside and folded them up on top of the window side cupboard. "An enchanted scarf and… judging from her appearance… a spider demon."
Though she would've scared the daylights out of some poor villager or farmer, Samui wasn't at all put-off by her appearance. This was probably because the girl wasn't standing at full height or leering at her with any venomous intent.
"Yeah. A lot of things happened over the past few months," Naruto said, turning around and beaming at his guest. Leaving the washing he'd folded up in the care of Tama, who was now lying across the wooden surface, curled up in a ball, the boy then moved forward. "It'll take some time and a hearty dinner to explain."
A feeling of invigoration coming over her, Samui allowed a small grin to form over her lips, "Well… it's not like I'm going anywhere for a while… and the rest of my team is currently held up at our temporary embassy. Right now I have the entire night to kick back and relax."
Naruto, appeared perked up, then pointed towards the open window beside him. "Alright. But before we make ourselves at home, how about we all go down to the baths and have a dip? I think the three of us can definitely use it."
This was an idea that both Samui and Tayuya could certainly get behind.
XXX
(Next morning)
Naruto's day spent with his team had been both a relaxing and eventful one. The evening to follow was also a surprisingly busy period too- where the delinquent found himself not only in the company of his roommate, but also his friend Samui. After a long dunk in the hot springs on the floor below, in which the three of them were able to ease out some of the wrinkles in their moods, they then retired to the room upstairs where they wound up crashing just shy of an hour later.
What the jinchuriki wound up waking to the next morning was a very asleep Tayuya holding onto his right arm while Samui was tentatively curled up on his left- with the white vixen Tama sleeping peacefully on top of his chest. The sight of the trio using him as their own personal hug pillow made for a very interesting wakeup call for him. Hilariously, despite wanting to get up and start moving, the unconscious girls prevented him from doing so by moving in closer and tightening their holds over his limbs, effectively pinning him to the bed.
Though Naruto was more than capable of removing himself from this situation, he didn't want to due mostly to the fact that he would end up waking the girls. This would also inevitably result in him being scolded by them, which resulted in him resigning himself to his fate.
Eventually the sound of the alarm clock on the nearby table woke all of them from their slumber at the strike of five and- after Naruto managed to shake the feeling back into his limbs from nearly having the blood circulation cut off in them- the trio went about readying themselves to head out to their respective meeting places. Samui had borrowed one of Tayuya's oversized shirts, which had allowed her to air out her regular clothes over the night.
As soon as all of them were back in their regular uniforms- the jinchuriki in his signature white coat and scarf, and his red-haired partner sporting her usual maroon Konoha varsity jacket and earphones- the three Genin then left the apartment in the care of Aya, who made herself some porridge for breakfast from the cabinets.
After grabbing some bread rolls for breakfast down at the local store, Tayuya casually broke off from her roommate about halfway down the main road to meet up with her squad over in the administration district. Naruto meanwhile- with Tama on his shoulder- escorted Samui a little bit further into the village's center, until she eventually took a right turn at a T-junction to rendezvous with her group at their village's embassy.
Before the two of them parted ways, the Kumo Genin gave the blond delinquent a tender peck on the cheek- as both a show of appreciation for letting her stay over at his place and for his selfless display of chivalry. This gesture also helped to dispel any remaining cobwebs of drowsiness lingering inside Naruto's head, who as soon as he was done seeing the blonde off then went straight for Sakura's place to pick her up for their usual string of morning exercises. Along the way, the villagers noticed the delinquent had a bit of an extra skip behind each step and a whopping big smile on his face, which in turn earned a few strange looks from the people who the youngster passed.
When Naruto arrived at the pinkette's place several minutes later, the duo went for a good hard sprint around the hidden leaf.
The blond set the pace for them so that they could make up for lost time and put the weight bands the kunoichi had brought out to good use, taking her round the main road that went toward the far edges of the village close to the perimeter wall. As they ran, they passed by every possible terrain their village had to provide- the rice farms, the forest, around the back of the Hokage Monument, and into the outer districts where shrines and guard posts stood- all the while carrying several hundred kilograms of weight between them.
Naruto's bands of course totaled a whole lot more than what Sakura was hauling, though the girl was admittedly trying her best to match him. This of course wasn't counting the fact that her teammate was setting an average pace of over forty kilometers an hour.
When they arrived at their usual finishing line on a hill overlooking the southern side of Konoha, they capped off their morning run with several strength building exercises and weight work. This took another hour to complete. Afterwards they ventured back into town towards their team's regular meeting spot.
Out on the red wooden bridge arcing over one of Konohagakure's main tributaries, they found Sasuke already standing there and waiting for them. When the Uchiha watched the pair approach him, he immediately noticed the cheerful smile on Naruto's face and the dazed and frazzled look that Sakura was currently sporting. When he also observed how the kunoichi's shoulders were slumped forward and she seemed to wobble after every five paces, the kid in the blue high-collar shirt and white shorts cracked a small smile of amusement.
"Morning workout?" he asked Sakura directly, to which he received a tired groan and a wave from her in response. "Thought so. You look like crap."
"It's not my fault," the pink-haired Genin whined back, before promptly hitting Naruto in the shoulder. However, due to how fatigued her muscles were, all she ended up doing was bouncing her fist off of him uselessly. "This jerk made me do over fifty miles and twenty sets of everything. I can barely walk straight now, I'm so tired."
Naruto chuckled, "Trust me. It was totally worth it." His remark was backed up by a 'yip' from Tama.
"Damn… you don't usually push me that hard unless you're in a really, really good mood," Sakura said, while trying to guess as to why her teammate had been so cheeky with her. She then frowned and leaned over to give the boy a dirty glare. "Did Tayuya do something to you last night?"
"Nope," the delinquent replied while strolling over to where Sasuke was standing, "At least not outside of the usual stuff she does."
His answer had Sakura freeze and gape after the child for a moment. "The… the usual s-stuff?" In that instant, the kunoichi felt her face heat up at an alarming rate, as a series of rather lewd images involving the blond and his redheaded roommate engaging in several very censored activities passed through her head.
Though most of it was just kissing, it was all done in various degrees of semi-naked states. Nothing sex-related, but for a growing adolescent like Sakura, the illustrations were still incredibly intense.
"Calm down. I'm sure it's not what you're thinking it is," Sasuke told the girl when he saw the steam starting to rise off of her head, at the same time Naruto went over to the bridge's opposite railing and leant against it with his arms crossed. When the Uchiha took note of the glowing look in his rival's eyes and the rather secretive smile he was wearing, the frown in his gaze deepened. "At least… I hope not…"
There was no telling with this kid. Whether it was in the company or on his own, Naruto always managed to get up to something that just went beyond the norm.
Sakura eventually managed to cool off enough to go over to where her blond teammate was standing and leant on the railing next to him. Though still finding it difficult to look him directly in the eye, the pink-haired girl still managed to smile and tentatively nudge his shoulder with hers every once in a while- in a rather passive aggressive way of telling him she was there. Naruto of course didn't mind her presence one bit and- since they had to wait a while for their team leader to show up- engaged her and his teammate in conversation.
As if prophesizing this eventuality, the group was kept waiting on that bridge for close to an hour, in which all of them didn't even bother checking their watches since this was such a regular occurrence for them by this point. Instead they chose to use this time in a semi-productive manner, such as skipping rocks over the bridge, playing a game of twenty questions, and trying to guess what each of them could spot in the distance.
While Sasuke was too busy cheating in their last game, which really irked Naruto and Sakura somewhat since the kid could use his Sharingan to follow their line of sight, the squad was then interrupted by the arrival of their teacher.
Appearing from a shimmer, the man with silver hair and the mask beamed when he saw the three turn to glare at him. "Morning all."
"Late… again…" Naruto mumbled, his foul glare matching those worn by Sasuke and Sakura as well.
"Honestly. Why do you even bother getting up in the morning, sensei?" the pinkette asked tiredly, which of course was followed by a bark from Tama. "Do you even have a reason to go out and about in the world when you show up late to everything?"
The Jonin grinned back at his team coyly. "Well, I do have a life outside of my home. Plus a wonderful squad of young, up-and-coming, talented little shinobi that are in need of guidance. So yes… I believe I have plenty of reasons to get up every day." His comment towards his group did have them lift their heads with momentary pride and helped to quell their frustration- if for but a moment. In short, they simply took his compliments without complaint. Seeing that he was able to dampen the hateful glares on him for the moment, Kakashi then approached his group with his hands comfortably slipped into the pockets of his vest. "Anyway, it's good to see the three of you- oh, sorry- the four of you are all here." His correction was of course in regards to Tama, who gave a happy wag of her tail from where she was currently lying across her partner's shoulders at being addressed as well. "Judging from your expressions, you guys are more than ready to get this day underway."
With the way Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke were positioned on the bridge in front of their teacher- the blond with his scarf pulled up high, the kunoichi in the two-piece red and white qi pao uniform standing beside him with her fists clenched at her sides, and the Uchiha with his arms crossed and leaning against the railing behind them- they really looked the part of a pro team ready for some action.
"What job have you got for us this time, sensei?" Naruto asked, his smirk coming on full force as a wind picked up across the bridge to ruffle his scarf and hair. "Is it a missing cat assignment?"
"Or a tatami mat cleaning mission?" Sasuke asked, with a surprisingly more excited lilt in his voice than normal. "Please say it's a mat cleaning mission. I'd really appreciate it." He then saw Naruto turn to glare at him, which the Uchiha returned full force as the pair became locked in a staring contest.
Finding the pair's little questions quite odd- since the three of them would normally be begging him for more challenging assignments that were above D-Rank- Kakashi paused for a moment before clearing his throat. "Uhh. Well… I don't really have any assignments prepared for you guys today," the Jonin said, causing his students to turn and look at him in surprise. "At least… not in an official mission sense."
Sakura blinked, "Huh? What do you mean, sensei?"
Removing one hand from his pocket, the adult shinobi then proceeded to get right down to business. "You probably may not know this already, but there are currently a number of very important, high-profile guests in the village right now- all of whom have come from all four corners of the mainland to discuss a very significant matter with the Fifth Hokage."
Kakashi's words instantly cued the trio into what he was going to say next, which prompted Sasuke to cock an eyebrow, "You're talking about the upcoming Chunin Exams, right?"
"And the ambassadors from the other hidden villages that have arrived in Konohagakure?" Naruto followed up, at the same time pointing towards the Hokage Monument in the distance. "The three of us actually ran into one of the Genin teams that came with their delegate. A group from Iwagakure." He'd also run into one kunoichi from Kumogakure as well, but the blond wisely decided to omit that detail for the sake of time constraints.
"Oh. So you guys know about that already?" Kakashi asked. When he saw the three kids nod, the man chuckled lightheartedly. "Good. That means I can get right into it. The Hokage is going to be in conference with the representatives from the Five Great Villages regarding the coming tournament. It's expected to be the grandest and most immaculate exam ever hosted by any of the countries, and it's all anticipated to take place in the next couple of months. But before that however, the people charged with overseeing the preparations would like us to run an assessment."
This question quickly peeked Sakura's curiosity, "What kind of assessment?"
"After a brief discussion with each other over dinner, the Hokage and the other village ambassadors have requested that we host a small demonstration for them in the hidden leaf's stadium. They would like for each of the hidden villages' newest and most talented prospects to participate in a small free-for-all combat scenario, in order to gauge the level of the most recent batches of graduates from the five main states," Kakashi informed, at the same time looking between the youngsters gathered in front of him. "Sunagakure, Kirigakure, and Kumogakure have brought along their last semester's graduating teams, whereas Iwagakure and Konohagakure are putting forward their most recent semester's teams. And it seems that our squad made the cut."
"Wait…" Naruto said, at the same time raising his hand in surprise, "Do you mean that-"
"Yep," Kakashi chirped, while giving his team his signature eye-smile. "The Hokage selected Team 7 to take part in the test." When he saw Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke's expressions all brighten up with excitement- completely dispelling all the negativities they were initially radiating- the Jonin then stepped around while giving them a serious stare. "Though I wasn't informed as to exactly what this test would be, we have been instructed to meet outside Konoha's Chunin Exam stadium in the next hour. So I suggest we all get a move on."
Sakura, having been perked up significantly, straightened her posture and raised her fist, "Yes, sir!" Her exclamation was followed by a happy bark from Tama and a grin from Naruto, who reached up and adjusted the scarf around his neck. Even Sasuke couldn't help but snicker a little at their kunoichi teammate's gung-ho shout.
The fact that she was the only one that did so made the moment even more adorable.
The chuckle that came from Kakashi was one of genuine delight, "I'm glad to hear you guys are so pumped for this. Let's go." He then beckoned for his team to follow, while simultaneously pulling out his signature orange book from his pouch.
Immediately falling into step with the man, Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura walked with the shinobi off of the bridge and into town. Though they had no idea what exactly they were going to get when they reached the stadium. All they knew was that it was going to be awesome…
OOO
(Sometime later)
"You assholes," Kiba shouted.
Or… you know… at least they were hoping it would be awesome.
The moment Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura arrived at the main entrance outside the tunnel leading into the stadium's fighting pit, the youngsters quickly found themselves confronted by a very angry Inuzuka and a rather annoyed looking Tayuya. Though neither of them remembered doing or saying anything to them to earn this kind of reception, the squad could venture a guess as to what the reason actually was.
As it turns out, all of the teams that'd graduated from their year level were currently present in the village, and had assembled outside of the colosseum alongside their respective Jonin instructors. While the members of team seven were happy to see them and were looking forward to a quick catch up, they were instead finding themselves on the receiving end of a rather vicious tongue lashing from two of their closest companions- whom they guessed had wanted to participate in this event in their place.
This much was evident by how Kiba and Tayuya were now standing in the way of the three kids and glaring daggers at them.
"I can't believe the Hokage ended up picking you guys to take part in this demonstration!" the redheaded flute player said loudly, while driving her knuckles into her hips and stepping right up to Sakura's face- leaning towards her for good measure. "You lucky bastards. I'm so jealous right now."
Though Naruto and his partners were used to this kind of reaction- more so the former than the latter- the fact that the teams from Iwagakure and Sunagakure were also standing on the road nearby and watching them, kind of made this scene a little bit awkward.
Out of all of them, Kakashi wasn't affected by the output of attention at all. He was too busy reading from his novel to really care.
"What exactly makes you guys so special, huh?" Kiba asked as well, while directing this question to Sasuke, who was currently looking back at the feral-looking youngster with a surprised look on his face. "Our team has done just as many missions as you and completed just as many contracts. Maybe even more."
"It's because those guys recently scored themselves an S-Rank mission outside of the village," a new voice- Shikamaru's- spoke from the side, drawing the group's attention over to him. When Naruto and the others looked to the right of the road, they saw the rest of the members of Team 8, Team 10, and Team 11 all standing there, with Asuma, Kurenai and Izumi accompanying them. "They also hold a perfect track record for all the jobs they've completed and have three of the highest scoring students from the school making up their squad. It's troublesome, but it's a fact."
While Choji stood there eating from a bag of pretzels, an intently listening Ino smiled and crossed her arms. "I'm not surprised one bit that Team 7 was picked for this. Naruto-kun's group is pretty amazing."
"Hmph," Kiba grunted indignantly, while at the same time giving Sasuke a dirty look. "And here I thought that it was because they had the son of the Fifth Hokage with them that they wound up being selected over us." Though he was sure they were picked because the three of them had built up a big reputation in the office for their efficiency, the boy couldn't help but suspect it was also because of one of their members' connections that scored them this gig. "As great as they may seem on the outside, I still find this whole thing a little bit fishy."
In response, the calm Uchiha youngster smirked back at the Inuzuka cockily. "Why? Are you jealous, Kiba?"
"Pft. As if. It just tells me I have to do a lot better than you when the real exams come around," the boy with brown scraggly hair replied, leaning away when his companion Akamaru barked. "Just make sure you don't make the rest of us look bad out there, okay?"
"We won't forgive you if you end up getting your asses kicked," Tayuya replied, while also stepping away from Sakura. "The pride of the entire village is resting on your tight little shoulders. So whatever you do, don't fuck this up." When her eyes snapped over to Naruto, she saw the blond with the fox on his shoulder grin broadly at her.
"Don't worry. We won't," he replied, which earned him a warm smile from the flute player, before she wandered back over to where her team was.
Naruto and the others watched the two Genin reunite with their squads. After the blond waved to both Kurumi and Ino when they greeted him, the jinchuriki then turned his attention towards the gate in front of them, and the two foreign squads who were currently present.
It didn't come as much as a surprise to him or his teammates that Kurotsuchi's squad was already standing there alongside their Jonin. The three of them had taken notice of team seven's arrival and had observed the entire exchange with their friends from afar. It was clear from the looks on their faces that the little back and forth between them and their frustrated comrades had entertained the Iwa cohort greatly, which prompted Naruto to smirk and nod towards them.
Kurotsuchi returned his grin with a smile of her own, while Kari and Akatsuchi merely grinned.
As for the Sunagakure team, Team 7 couldn't help but notice a slight disparity amongst their numbers. Though there were three of them in total- just like every other squad- one of their members seemed to be a little bit younger than the other two. The first one among them was a boy wearing a black desert gi and turban, as well as purple face paint that gave him a very intimidating look. He was also carrying a large, mysterious bundle wrapped in bandages around his back- and kind of bore the outline of a person. The second was a rather cool-looking girl with sharp eyes and golden blond hair tied into bunches on her head, who was wearing a pink gi, her headband wrapped around her waist, and fishnet armor underneath. There was also what looked to be a large, folded up battle fan hanging from her back, which told Naruto that she probably used wind as her element.
The third and most noticeable of the Suna Team was a boy with reddish-brown hair, carrying a large gourd on his back, and wearing an odd ensemble of dark clothing and a white sash. Though being the shortest of the trio, he was surprisingly the most imposing of them- bearing a stern face with black rings around his eyes, which gave the impression that he didn't get much sleep.
He also had a red painted kanji for love engraved into the side of his forehead. It was something that Naruto took notice of and had him eye the boy rather suspiciously for a moment.
"Huh. Is it just me… or are you guys getting some really weird vibes from that guy?" Naruto asked in a low voice, while directing this question towards his friends.
Glancing across at the Suna Team for herself, Sakura narrowed her eyes thoughtfully. "Yeah. He seems pretty tense." Maybe it was because of the atmosphere around them. Being handpicked to participate in a quick contest- even a practice one- was a pretty big honor.
"Not really the most approachable looking guy in the world. That's for sure," Sasuke also remarked off-handedly, obviously referring to the boy's rather unpleasant-looking demeanor.
After seeing the group from the Hidden Sand village turn away from them, a rather excited smirk came upon Naruto's face. "Heh. I can tell this is going to be a really interesting day." So many different kids from different villages- all participating in the same competition. The prospect of possibly fighting so many unique individuals with different levels of ability had the blond clench his fists in anticipation for the bouts to come. "I wonder what's going to happen."
When smiles appeared on Sakura and Sasuke's faces, it was clear they were looking forward to this too.
Of course, just before he or his team could begin thinking about who else they would most likely end up facing in this demonstration, as well as the real Chunin Exams later, the group was suddenly interrupted from their meditation by the arrival of yet another team. Though at first none of them obviously noticed them, it was only after one of them spoke up in a chirpy voice that Naruto suddenly felt his body freeze up in alarm.
"Hey there, cuzz."
Eyes widening and energy suddenly coming to a screeching halt, the blond slowly turned his head about in the direction of the voice- an action that was copied by both Sasuke and Sakura. When the delinquent's eyes landed on the path just a few yards away from him and his team, the youngster in the white and blue jacket felt his jaw drop slightly. At the same time Tama couldn't help but blink a little in surprise.
"Whoa. No way," Naruto whispered, clearly unable to believe who he'd now spotted.
Standing in front of her equally cool teammates and teacher, with her two bandaged-up spears affixed to her back, the familiar, raven haired girl in the fishnet armor, black banded top and hot shorts of the Kirigakure Genin team- Mae Uzumaki- was standing there and grinning back at the delinquent in all her glory.
Seeing her shocked relative's eyes land on her, the girl raised her hand and waved, "Yo."
TO BE CONTINUED…
Author's Note: Before anyone else asks, go back a few chapters to when Naruto first encounters the Kirigakure Team. If no one else remembers, Mae uses the Henge no Jutsu to change her hair from red to black. Happened right in that chapter.