((Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. This applies to the entire story, even the chapters that I forget to put a disclaimer in…which, lately, has been most of them .

I must apologize. This will be the last chapter for a good while since I am going back to college. My free time tends to disappear there…I'll try to write when I can, but I honestly don't see that happening much. Sorry and thanks to all those who continue to read.))

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Last Minute

Uppun scowled down at the village from the apartment Konoha had given them to live in for the duration of the chuunin exams. The idiots outside were going about their daily business like there was nothing going on. The only indication that the third exam was less than a week away was the influx of people at the gate.

"I still don't see why you hate everyone so much. You don't even know what village did it.

Uppun turned a glare on Sakkaku. He didn't need to be reminded of his father's death.

"That's exactly why I hate everyone. That way, I know I hate the ones that actually did it."

The kunoichi shrugged. "Whatever you say."

Uppun snarled, slowly letting his gaze return to where it had been. His eyes hesitated on Suta. The boy was sitting in a corner of the room, quite clearly sulking. The grappler still didn't know what his deal was. It was starting to worry him. The kid was never this quiet.

It was lucky that the two had decided not to train in hostile territory, or he may have been injured. They didn't want to give away any of their powers and didn't truly fell they needed to train. They were both confident they could defeat anyone they came across, aside from the older Mist duo, which was obviously a stacked team.

Turning back to the window, the scowl became fixed on his face once more. These bastards didn't deserve to live such peaceful lives. Maybe he would get to disturb that life at some point.

But, he knew that now was not the time. He wasn't powerful enough to make the difference he wanted to. He only had to wait for the right time. Then, he would have his revenge.

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Jiheki ran around the wall of Konoha at a mild pace for a ninja, breathing heavily. His chest pounded heavily as he pushed himself as hard as he could manage. A stitch was beginning to form painfully in his side.

Suddenly, a green form skidded next to him, kicking up dust. Jiheki coughed as the air cleared, watching as the person assumed a speed even with him. Shan appeared, jogging beside the Sand nin.

"Your pace is slowing, Jiheki-kun," noted the junior green beast with a frown.

Between gasps for breath, the Suna genin spoke. "I'm doing-the best-I can-Shan-chan."

The bowl cut kunoichi gave a whoop. "Yes! Push yourself to the limits of your capabilities, and you shall become stronger!"

Jiheki moaned. "Hai…"

Shan pumped an arm in the air. "Now, let us finish our hundred laps of Konoha and then we shall spar with an intensity that has never been seen before in the Fire country!" Before another word could be spoken, the girl was gone with an insane burst of speed.

Jiheki watched the girl's shapely rear as she darted off. If only the girl wouldn't dress like that ridiculous sensei of hers, she'd be rather pretty. Hopefully, her teammates would be able to convince her to change, as he knew they were trying.

Then, what she had said finally hit the Sand nin, and he groaned. He was really beginning to regret having asked the girl and her teacher if he could train with them. The whole month had been miserably difficult. He only hoped the results were worth the effort…

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Hou Chiku observed Konoha from one of his team's apartment rooms. It was very…peaceful. The Sound Village was nothing like this. Everyone moved with a purpose, because if you didn't have a purpose there, you were as good as a dead man. Here, he could see people loitering around wherever they felt like it.

It was…odd.

Chiku heard the door open behind him and looked over his shoulder. Hason and their supposed sensei entered quietly and shut the door behind him.

"Do you think we'll be ready for the tournament?" asked Nami from her position laying on her bed. She and Chiku were sharing a room as they had only been given two, and he was the only one she trusted not to try anything.

Hason nodded seriously, walking farther into the room alongside their sensei. "It should be easy enough for you. Just go through the strategy like usual."

Chiku shook his head, turning back to the window. Sometimes it was hard talking to each other without raising any more suspicion among their hosts.

"Well, I certainly can't wait for it," said their sensei, grinning. "It's going to be so exciting!"

Chiku could practically feel Nami rolling her eyes. "You're so childish, Zakyou."

"But that's the fun of it!" exclaimed Zakyou happily, radiating energy despite his heavy clothing.

Hason interrupted before the two could start arguing again. "Nonetheless, you should be able to get it done."

Chiku went back to observing the civilians of the Village Hidden in the Leaves. In less than a week, it would be in utter chaos, for more than one reason.

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Hotaru scowled at a grinning Naruto. This was getting completely ridiculous. They had been at it for nearly a month, and her new sensei had yet to explain what he was trying to accomplish. It was two days before the exams restarted, for Kami's sake! It was supremely frustrating.

The genin leapt sideways, out of Naruto's line of sight. She quietly melded with the crowd. She already knew that waiting for him to let his guard down was useless, seeing as how he never seemed to be caught unprepared.

Less than a minute later, she darted back out at him, making a grab at him. With hardly any effort, Naruto hopped aside. Hotaru tossed a kunai after him. The jounin frowned, clearly disappointed that she would do such a thing with so many innocents nearby. He pulled his own kunai and blocked the attack. He looked up at her to find the genin's hands in a seal.

"Kawarimi!" he realized suddenly. She appeared in front of him, already reaching for his pocket, a moment before he leapt back, evading her grasp.

Hotaru let out a violent hiss of anger. She glared at her teacher with a hate she hadn't showed anyone, ever. That was it. She no longer cared about the other people around them. It was just her and her sensei, and she planned to get her wallet back, by any means necessary now.

She saw him raise an eyebrow before she rejoined the crowd. Face set with grim determination, she activated her kekkei genkai. She blended with the crowd to conceal herself once more. When Naruto started acting as if he were taking a casual stroll, she rushed at him.

She was unsurprised when he dodged her first strike by hopping away. She immediately began a quick set of seals, noting the shock on Naruto's face. Their eyes met momentarily and Hotaru could tell that her sensei saw her silver irises. He grinned at her, still in mid-air, as she activate her jutsu.

"Seireigyo no Jutsu" (Spirit Control Jutsu)

The spirit of a teenage ninja appeared behind Naruto. Hotaru spun, causing the spirit to face Naruto, and reached out in an attempt to grab her sensei with her jutsu. When she felt something solid stop in her arms, she activated another jutsu.

"Keii Haji no Jutsu" (Hold Position Jutsu)

When she turned around, she was slightly shocked to find her sensei grinning from within the spirit's motionless grasp. She glared at him with a triumphant anger, approaching him. "Ha! Now, I can get my wallet back!" She smirked as she reached for the pocket that she knew he kept the offending item in.

"Look around, Hotaru-chan," said Naruto, still grinning idiotically.

The kunoichi stiffened. She had forgotten that she was surrounded by civilians. Now, they would be reminded of her deathly powers and be afraid of her again. She closed her eyes. No, she couldn't take those looks again. She couldn't…

Suddenly, she felt a supportive hand on her head. "I said, look around, Hotaru-chan."

She opened her eyes slightly to see that her jutsu had cancelled when she had lost concentration on it and that Naruto stood in front of her, giving her a sincere smile. "B-but-"

"Just do it," interrupted her sensei, beaming.

She grit her teeth. She didn't know why she still trusted this man, but something about him just glowed with honesty. Taking a deep breath and bracing for the looks of fear she would no doubt see, she scanned the surrounding people-

-And was shocked to find most of them going about their business as if nothing had happened. She saw a few curious gazes, but no one seemed afraid of her. The scene utterly baffled her.

"Congratulations, Hotaru-chan. You've passed my training in the nick of time." She felt a touch on her arm and looked over to find her wallet being held out for her.

She gave Naruto a look of complete shock, ignoring her wallet for the moment. "B-but they've seen my jutsu! Why aren't they running in terror?!" she demanded.

Naruto grinned. "We've been training around them for a month, Hotaru-chan. They know that we're ninja and that we're bound to have unusual abilities. They don't see you as a necromancer, but as a shinobi with a unique bloodline." He held the wallet up higher to make sure she took it.

She accepted the item in a bewildered state. "So, you're saying that they were only afraid of me before because they didn't know what I was?"

Naruto tilted his head. "I think it had more to do with the chaos you created and the fact that it had no discernible cause at the time."

Hotaru looked at him, completely numb. She didn't even think to ask how he knew about her past. All she could manage was a weak nod.

The blond jounin grinned at her. "Take tomorrow off and rest up for the exam. You've earned it."

"So, that's all you wanted me to do? Use my kekkei genkai in public?" asked Hotaru before he could leave.

The man chuckled. "Yup. I look forward to seeing those special techniques of yours in the tournament."

The kunoichi watched him go, still shocked. Slowly, it dawned on her. She could use her jutsu in front of people. She started to laugh hysterically. She could use her abilities in the coming fights without fear! She wouldn't scare people!

With a grin on her face, she looked at the wallet in her hand. She noticed then that the wallet didn't seem to have lost any weight. Confused, she opened it up to find a large number of bills still remaining. She counted over them quickly to find that not a single ryo was missing. She laughed lightly. That idiot had only been using his own money to pay for both of their meals at Ichiraku all month.

With her heart soaring, she started toward home. Today had made the whole month worthwhile.

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Tsunade let out an exhausted sigh. This month had been one of the longest in her history as Hokage. Questions had plagued her continuously throughout the time, most of which had to do with the older Mist team and their questionable entrance into the exams. It didn't help that there had been a number of political disputes with their neighbors, as there always were. In addition, Aero had told them of how, a month ago, during the preliminary matches, an unknown man had spoken to their leader and they had started marching on the Leaf Village the next day; they still didn't know who that man was. There were also a lot of questions concerning the chuunin exams themselves.

Slowly, she stood up and walked toward the conference room. As she entered, she was greeted by the stares of the jounin sensei of the genin still in the exams, even the foreign ones. She strode towards the desk at the front of the room, scanning the room to make sure everyone was there.

"I'm glad to see that everyone could make it," she stated in her business tone. She motioned to a stack of papers on the desk. "These are the brackets for the third stage of the chuunin exams. I want each of you to take one and look it over."

Konohamaru, the sensei nearest the stack, picked it up, took one, and passed it on. In a few minutes, everyone had one. The Godaime observed them as they glanced over them, taking special note of the heavily clothed Mist teacher's large grin.

"Does anyone have any questions or complaints?" she asked calmly. All was silent around her. "Good. I expect this information not to leave this room. Please leave the brackets on the desk before you leave. Dismissed."

The crowd in front of her dispersed. Tsunade waited to make sure everyone replaced their document and left. She was surprised to find Shino put his paper down and turn toward her. "Could I have a word, Hokage-sama?"

The blonde woman nodded, waiting for the others to leave. When they were finally alone, she turned toward her trench-coat wearing companion.

"You were saying?"

"You are having my student fight one of the suspects," he observed without emotion.

"Hai." She brought a hand up to massage her temples. "I feel your student has the best chance against that particular one."

Shino nodded, agreeing with her assessment. "And the other one?"

She sighed. "I couldn't find anyone to counter the style, so I'm simply hoping to have the strongest genin there, the ones that reach the semi-finals, fight that one."

"They'll be tired at that point," the jounin noted.

Tsunade groaned. "I know. But Shikamaru felt this would come out with the best conclusion."

Shino only nodded.

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Rei relaxed in the public hot springs. Around her were the other Konoha genin kunoichi that had participated in the exams, as well as a few of their parents. They all settled into the springs, ready to unwind, many after a month straight of training. The hot water soothed their aching muscles and replenished their strength. Rei enjoyed the hot water immensely.

She caught sight of a small hole in the wall separating the male and female springs. Suddenly, her curiosity peaked. She had never seen a guy naked before. What would it be like?

As casually as she could, she stood up and walked toward the hole. "Where are you going, Rei-chan?"

Rei turned toward Hotaru and shook herself like a wet cat might. "I'm not sure water is the best relaxation technique for a neko-nin," she stated weakly. She always was a pretty good actor.

Hotaru frowned at her. "Taru-chan's doing just fine in the water," she noted pointedly.

Rei stuck her tongue out at her. "I guess I'm more cat-like than her."

The purple haired genin shrugged. "If you say so."

Rei turned around, scowling. She wasn't sure she liked this new, more confident Hotaru. She was a lot nosier.

She walked over to the hole in the wall and took a seat next to it. With a quick glance around to make sure no one was watching her, she looked through the hole-

-And gasped, immediately turning back around, an action that was mimicked on the other side of the wall. This drew the attention of the nearest girl, Taru. "You alright, Rei?"

Rei shook her head, collecting herself. "I'm fine. Just scared myself."

Taru raised a concerned eyebrow but spun back around anyway. Rei shifted so that she was sitting in front of the hole, giving only a view of her bare lower back.

"Hey!"

"Like I'm going to let you stare at us like that," she hissed.

Rei heard Hari snarl irritably before shifting so that he was in the same position as she was on the other side of the wall. After a few seconds, he spoke hesitantly. "What can I do to convince you to let me?"

Rei had to suppress her grin. "We each allow the other to look through for two minutes. Then, we each walk away."

Hari snorted, clearly dissatisfied with this. "Fine," he relented with distaste.

Rei grinned. "So, who's going first?"

"You," grunted the perverted genin in annoyance.

The cat nin smirked, glancing around one last time to make sure she wasn't being observed before looking through the hole.

In all honesty, it wasn't as impressive a sight as she thought it would have been. Like on the female side, it was mostly populated by genin resting for the chuunin exams and some of their teachers and parents. She could hardly see anything that she hadn't seen before due to all the mist in the air, and most of the men were at least waist deep in water.

However, what she did see still made her blush. She stared, eyes wide, for as long as she could, quenching her cat-like curiosity, before Hari moved in front of the hole, giving her only a view of his mid-back. She scowled, turning around so that she was out of the way of the hole.

"You've got two minutes, perv."

She heard a perverted giggle behind her. Counting it off in her head, she gave him exactly that amount of time before putting herself between him and his view the same way he had for her. When she did, Hari groaned at the loss.

"You've had your fun, Hari-san. Now, turn around and walk away. If I catch you looking again, I will castrate you." The boy yelped softly at the threat. "Understood?"

Hari responded with his voice cracking. "Yes." A second later, she heard steps, followed by the splashing of someone new getting in the water.

Rei grinned, re-entering the water. She had finally accomplished something she hadn't managed yet, and it had been an…interesting experience.

"What are you so happy about, Rei-chan?" asked one of the elder Konoha nin, Shan, curiously.

The cat-nin smirked at her. "I just caught a glimpse of our future," she stated, motioning toward the hole in the wall.

The older girl pumped a hand into the air. "Yosh! Perhaps, we should all look then, so we can all have advance notice of fights to come!"

Before the girl even moved, a hand landed on her shoulder. "That's quite alright, Shan. That's not exactly what she means." Shan looked up to find Tenten with a concerned look on her face. The woman then walked past both girls to the hole and promptly stuck a kunai firmly in the hole, completely blocking any possible view.

Rei let out a snort of laughter. Then, the brown haired woman turned on her. "And you should know better than to look through that."

The neko-nin had the courtesy to look sheepish. "Well, I was curious."

She heard a chuckle beside her. "Curious nothing. You were being perverted."

Rei glared at Taru, but was interrupted before she could respond.

"That's the mundane way of looking at them," claimed Hinashin energetically. "This is how you do it." She did a quick hand seal. "Stalker style: Look Through Walls no Jutsu!" Everyone stared as her Byakugan activated and sweat-dropped anime-style.

Suddenly, there was an ominous presence behind her. Hinashin laughed nervously. "Er…heheh…Hi, Mom."

Hinata grabbed her by the ear, causing her to yelp in pain. "I've told you not to use your bloodline like that, Hinashin." She proceeded to drag the girl off to the other side of the springs. Bad things were, no doubt, in store for her. Those present would later recall that despite the imminent threat, Hinashin had yet to release her technique nor wipe away the Cheshire grin accompanying it.