Author's Review Response: Before I begin the usual stuff, I got to put a list of clarifications regarding this story's chronology and universal differences.

1. Fairy Tail's universe (in this AU) is set two hundred and seven years after the series. That means that there will be no interaction with anybody (aside from one person we'll get to in the Tower Arc) during Fairy Tail Zero, the pre Lucy storylines, and/or the post Lucy storylines.

Sorry people, I'm trying to do something different here.

2. This is a Naruto AU that borrows a lot of elements from the canon universe and the Infinite Tsukuyomi Genjutsu World that Tenten was placed in during one of the filler episodes of Shippūden.

3. Many events were altered, delayed, or just never happened. For example, even though some scenes will play out similarly like they did in Part I, its happening later as everyone is aged up to look like they are in Part II. The Uchiha Massacre never happened, and that will hopefully be explained later.

4. The characters that you haven't heard of (Like Kai, Animus, Tania, Wulf, Magius, Galeen, and etc.) are all original characters I made up. Why? Because Fairy Tail is no more, and I didn't want to do what's already done before with actual Fairy Tail members that I can't focus on without getting bored. This cast was created to balance Ventos (Naruto) out, and as to act as his guild/family (and moral support).

5. Whenever I say Runic Language, I have the wizards who are engaging with other wizards speak English (but I imagine them having a Scottish accent to them). But when I say Nihongo, either ninja to ninja or wizard to ninja, they add simple Japanese words, suffixes, and translations of attacks (only once after the first mention or appearance). Spells only changes to straight English if its done in a place that is not the Elemental Nations. Oh, Animus has [] in his dialogue because his grammar is broken do to him being a crossbreed. So is there's [] surrounding a word, he did not say that word.

And by the way, some attacks, magic, and spells either made up by myself, or borrowed from another fantasy series. Just a heads up.

Anyways, on with the show!

Uzu-Nami Compound, Konohagakure, 91 N.E.

Minato Namikaze was currently it at the kitchen of his family's home. From a general perspective, it seems like he was reading the newspaper, but in actuality, what was on the sun-kissed blond's mind was hope. Thoughts were racing around his head, performing amazing acrobatics. And all of this occurred because of a discussion he had with his daughter yesterday.

-Flashback-

Minato was at his office like usual, paying anyone mind since he had to deal with the bane of his role as Hokage, paperwork. But over the years after the departure of his late son, Minato managed to gain the upper hand over his dreadful adversary with sheer determination and skillful context clue seeking techniques. Just when the village leader was about to stamp the last document...

SLAM!

The door slammed open which was followed by a loud shout of "Tou-chan". Minato blinked stupidly, bring attention to his nearly energy-deprived daughter.

"Ruki-chan? What are you doing here, aren't you supposed to be out doing training exercises with Kakashi?" Minato questioned.

A cluster filled words flew out of the Red tipped blonde's mouth as one run down sentence. It was times like these where Minato wished that Ruki had inherited his calm and collective personality rather than Kushina's impulsive behavior. Needless to say, Minato hushed his panting child.

"Ma, Ma, Ruki-chan. Deep breaths."

The miniature blonde did what's instructed and breathed deeply yet slowly. After doing so, the Hokage rubbed her back.

"There we go, all better. Now, what were you try to tell me a moment ago?"

"It's about the Kiri-nin. One of the new representatives of the new Mizukage!" Ruki tried explaining.

Blinking stupidly, Minato asked his daughter, "What about the Kiri genin, musume (daughter)?"

"They're the ones who finished the revolt, dattebano!"

Minato was taken back from that answer.

Being the overseer of his village, Minato was aware of the numerous rumors about a group of five rōnin appearing out of nowhere and finished the self-conflicting nation that is Kiri. But to learn that these individuals were mere children, let alone genin was kind of amazing.

The younger generations were getting more and more amazing (in his eyes).

"Seriously? Huh... This year's Chunin Exams has just got more interesting. Aren't you excited about this, Ruki-chan?"

"H-Hai..."

Minato studied the sudden attitude change of one of his pride and joy. If the pig tailed genin acted normally, she'd be boasting about her winning the whole event. that, or expressing her hype for the event the very least.

This was a rare side Ruki ever showed; being lost in thought.

"What's wrong, musume? You never get this quiet."

"Well...It's just—It started like this..."

Ruki proceeded to give her father a recap on the incident with Konohamaru and the Suna-nin. She went into great detail on the boy's savior, who introduced himself as one of the five who brought an end to the Chigiri no Sato.

The Hokage's mind computed this information, soaking every last detail in his brain like a sponge.

"...I see. So Ranryū no Kiri saved little Konohamaru. That's great news!" Minato responded thoughtfully.

'Oh thank goodness he did. That saved me the headache of having to deal with more paperwork and a conflict between the village and Suna. I knew that forming that Kiri-Konoha alliance was a good idea.'

"Hai, Ano... But, there's something else." Ruki said.

"What do you mean exactly?"

"Well," Ruki began. "It's about that Ventos guy. For a split second, I had this feeling. L-like, when I looked at him, I felt like I knew him. And I know his hair color and demeanor is completely different, and I couldn't quite see his whole face because of that scarf. But in that sudden moment, reminded me of someone we knew."

"Really, who's that?"

"Los–," Ruki said before correcting herself out of respect for the dead. "I mean, Naruto."

"EH!?" The man replied in a hush, yet exasperating tone.

Minato was always a man of decently ground logic. The elder blond took the time to cognitively come up with a well-executed plan of action to reap all the benefits and have them in his favor. So when Ruki told that there was a young man around his daughter's age that reminded her of her long lost twin, his brain began to work. Not wanting to take any more chances, the man entered 'Hokage mode'.

"Ruki, I want you tell me how did this boy act. Give a full detailed description of him. No mannerisms left out at all!"

"Hai!" The younger Namikaze squeaked.

-Flashback over-

The blond man echoed that name to himself, still trying to make sense of its sound and origin.

"Ventos...Drakkenborne? ...I'm not even sure that's a name from any countries from the Elemental Nations, let alone from Kiri."

Before he could attempt to raise his papers up to truly cover the current news, a pair of small hands peeled off papers from top to bottom.

"Ohayo, Papa!" A high pitched voice called out.

A large smile was brought to Minato by a little red-haired girl with blue eyes. She wore a white shirt and blue overalls with green shoes. Minato hoisted the little rosette to his lap.

"Good morning to you too, Bara-chan! How's my little rose doing right now?"

"I'm great! Ka-chan woke me up, she said that she'll be ready soon after she's done showering." The munchkin chirped.

"Alright then."

"Papa, are we gonna see Ruki-nee fight in the Exams?"

"That's right, and you're gonna sit at the tippy top with your Kaa-chan."

"Yay!"

The lively atmosphere brightened significantly once Kushina came downstairs with a better positive face, thank she had seven years.

After losing her eldest child and only son, Kushina isolated herself from everyone around her, even her broken family. The Uzumaki matriarch rarely got out for the basic necessities of life, she only stayed in Naruto's old barren room, wallowing in her self-pity. The poor woman started to have nightmares of the spirit of Mito Uzumaki belittling and denouncing her for allowing her own flesh and blood to be neglected and abused, ultimately leading towards his death. One night, Kushina planned to join her son in the next life by using rusty kitchen knife.

The seppuku (belly cutting) would have followed through if had not been for her stomach sickness kicking in.

Once the distress seals activate. After one quick heart to heart with the return of Tsunade, it was confirmed Kushina was pregnant with a third child. Despite the fear of screwing up once more, the elder redhead gained the determination to raise Bara right, where she had failed with the twins. Minato decided to make the extra effort of coming home early to spend time with everyone as a family, including all present members. It was safe to say that things got better over the years for Kushina. And yet, every day, at least one of the Uzumaki-Namikaze family leaves one flower for their dead member and mourns for his loss.

"Ohaiyo, Mina-kun, Bara-chan!"

"Morning Kushi-chan/Mama!"

The three began their usual breakfast routines as Kushina prepared the food while little Bara assisted. Minato, however, stayed within himself cognitively as he gazed at his youngest child with a hopeful grin.

'Bara-chan is just as lovely as ever I see. My only regret is that I allowed sensei's plan to go too far, making her unable to meet her brother. Though, if what Ruki had described is true, then there may be hope for us—for me to atone for our mistakes. No, I know what my gut is telling me! There's no doubt about it, That young man—he has to be my son! And if it is him...I'll do whatever it takes to bring him back! I vow on my parents and sister's graves, I'll do whatever it takes!'

-Ninja Academy, A Few Hours Later-

The Andreíos Soul trio stood outside of the building. Ventos, Animus, and Kai formed a sub-group while Tania and Beowulf paired with each other.

"Okay, we're about head in. " Ventos announced in Runic.

"Alrighty then," Tania said. "Try not to get into too much trouble."

"Lighten up, Babypop. All we gotta do is keep Dipstick over here from having a meltdown and ace the tests. Piece of cake." Assured Kai, grinning at her younger guild siblings while Ventos said "I resent that."

"Aside from "Sir-Grouch-A-Lot" over there, be sure to kick some tail for the guild when you get out!" Beowulf, now it his human(ish) form.

"We'll go the distance and win this for Andreíos Soul!" Animus declared.

"AYE!" Agreed all five mages.

The two sub-groups broke off with the trio of mages heading inside of the ninja academy and the other duo walking back home.

-Konoha Ninja Academy, Konohagakure, Moments Later-

The three mages entered the auditorium wearing their respective cloaks, though their goods were off, exposing the mages' faces. Fortunately, Ventos kept his scarf on his lower face to avoid his uncanny resemblance to the Yondaime Hokage (aside from the different hairstyles hair color, and eye color). Murmuring nearly deafened the auditorium with conversations and preparations amongst ninja, native and native alike.

The Suna faction had about four teams of three with Gaara's group representing the Kazekage.

The faction of Iwa had fewer in numbers, with three teams being present. One of the teams is a representative of the Tsuchikage (Earth Shadow). This team was lead by a kunoichi by the name of Kurotsuchi, the granddaughter of the Sandaime Tsuchikage

Kumo's faction, like Suna, similarly had four teams. The team that represented the Raikage (Lightning Shadow) was led by a teenaged blonde-haired named Samui, whose team consisted of two darked skinned ninja. One was a redhead named Karui, and the other, Darui, has shaggy white hair (who wielded great sword).

And since they're the only team that Kiri had accepted in making into the exams, the process of elimination drew it down to the final ninja faction present, Konoha.

Ventos took a moment to look at his old classmates from afar. He could tell that all of them grew up, well at least physically. Some of the girls sported new hairstyles while the boys' hair grew, however, everybody wore different variations of their clothes from when Ventos last has seen them.

He could hear the constant shouts of certain howling girls fighting over a guy and cheeriness of a fondly obnoxious animal lover along with a...nice spastic around that area. Internally, emotional conflicts emerged from his heart since he couldn't decide whether or not to feel something. He's not surprised and irritated to see a few of his former sister's posse still acting like the same little girls (Sakura and Ino), he was indifferent at those who haven't talked to him (Rock Lee, Tenten, Shikamaru, and Chōji), he almost instantly miffed that some people still haven't grasped the concept of humility (Ruki, who was now more reserved and cold. Also, Neji, who is the same, but arrogant). However, seeing some of his old friends (Itachi, Kiba, and Shino).

When Ventos simultaneously was about to continue walking, a single person caught his one left eye.

A girl, no more than his own age stood with Kiba and Shino. The girl had a familiar princess style hair cut, but the difference lied in the longer length of her hair. The young woman's milky-white eyes lacked pupils but had the slightest bit of lavender as a tinge. Her attire was a fitting lavender and a cream hoodie with blue kunoichi pants and standard-issue kunoichi sandals. The young girl had her hitai-ate gently wrapped around her neck. But what was also on her neck and under her hitai-ate was a necklace. And it was not just any necklace. It was the other piece off of his crimson whirlpool charm.

This girl...no, this young woman was the one! The one who saved him from the dark path he was heading, the girl who befriended him when he was lonesome, the person who cared for him while his own flesh and blood didn't.

'...That...Hinata? Hinata-chan?'

The other two mages decided to listen to the conversations of their brother's old classmates to see what kind of people they'll be facing.

"GO AWAY, DEKORĪN (FOREHEAD GIRL)! ITACHI-KUN WOULDN'T WANT TO DATE YOU WITH THAT MASSIVE HEAD OF YOURS, ANYWAY!" A teenage Ino screeched as she faced her love rival.

"LIKE YOU DO ANY BETTER! WHY WOULD HE WANT TO GO OUT WITH A DIRTY PORKER LIKE YOU, INO-BUNTO!" Sakura shouted back and Ino glared at her. That ended up turning up into an argument.

"This is such a drag, Chōji will these girls ever stop fighting raving over that guy? It's starting to get on my nerves more that Ruki does!" Shikamaru of the Nara clan complained.

"Mhm, I know. I mean, they're on good terms normally. But whenever Itachi's either brought up or is nearby, it becomes a competition …or a catfight. " concurred Choji Akimichi, who was eating a bag of chips.

"WOOHOO! THE GANG'S ALL HERE! Kiba cheered in glee while his faithful nin-ken, Akamaru howled excitedly.

"Shut it, mutt!" Commanded the stuck up Uzu-Nami heiress, Ruki. "The only reason why you made it so far is because of sheer luck."

Jerking his head towards the pig tailed girl, he growled shouting, "What did you say?"

Ruki scoffed at Kiba's 'easy to piss off' attitude, retorting all the same, "What, do you got dirt in your ears, mutt? I said that you only got here through sheer luck. Maybe if you paid attention to Iruka-sensei back when we were in the academy, you won't be so close to being the dobe (dead last) of our graduating class, dumbass!"

"Bite me, Namikaze! At least I didn't help my pack oppress their own kin to death!"

All the genin from Konoha dropped everything (including the chubby Akimichi, who dropped his snack) from the words that Kiba just said.

For those who do not know, the topic of 'Naruto' was considered taboo amongst those who were tied with him. That included Kiba, Shino, Itachi, Hinata, and especially Ruki. There was an incident at one time where Ami, a former academy student, started publicly mocking Naruto roughly after he 'died'. Saying the wrong words, Ami found herself being brutally pummeled by Ruki, who told her "Nobody insults my dead brother's memory while I'm still breathing, dattebane!"

Since then, Ami was taken out of the academy and placed in a civilian school. And to this day, Ami's beating set an example for the other Konoha children to never mention Naruto in front of the daughter of the Yondaime Hokage.

...Until Kiba broke it today.

"The fuck do you know! I was helping him get his shit together to get stronger!" Ruki argued irrationally. But Kiba sniffed her excuse a mile away and scoffed at her.

"That's a load of bullshit and you know it, Namikaze! I knew that guy long enough as a friend to see that he was strong was in his own respect, unlike you and your shitty ass family! So I know more than enough to recognize that what you did to him was torture!"

Tensions rose as the two went back and forth. Ventos' face brightened to see that even when 'Naruto' was 'dead', his buddy Kiba always got his back. As the argument grew toxic, Shino and surprisingly Sakura tried pulling their respective rowdy teammates as the hot tempered Konoha-nin bump butt heads with each other.

"YOU WANNA GO, FLEA BAG?! WE CAN THROW DOWN RIGHT HERE AND NOW, 'TTEBANO!"

"BRING IT, YOU FRIGID BITCH! I'm NOT SCARED OF YOU!"

Things only have gotten worse as a crowd witnessed raw hatred and killing intent radiating across the center point of the crowd. Murmurings of confusion were flung about, wondering what Konoha was fighting each other.

As Kiba and Ruki kept screaming at each other's faces with their teammates struggling to break each other, Hinata, unable to stand the reasoning behind the quarrel began to bow her head down in sadness while clenching the other face of the whirlpool charm. The girl kept whispering the mage's birth name, yearning for him to help their classmates.

Ventos' eye grew when he saw Hinata shed a single tear. The pastel blond subconsciously touched his own hidden piece of the charm, like if he can feel the fair-skinned girl's emotions running through his spirit and chakra.

From there, an almost animalistic urge to hurt something or someone appeared once more. He didn't know if it was the Ryū no Tane (Dragon Seed) taking effect, or if its the thought of seeing a precious person of his upset. But one thing was for sure...

...Ruki was the cause of it.

Anger from deep inside him started to slowly vent out in the form of bloodlust. The raw killing intent leaked out, ceasing all those who were around Naruto.

All things ceased to move as everyone quickly faced the enraged one-eyed mage. Ventos was seething with killing intent jumping off the charts of a genin to high chunin/low jonin levels. That not only stopped the two got heads from bickering, but caused most genin to stand still while they fidget in fear.

But before Ventos could act in anger a hand gently gripped his left shoulder. Turning to the owner of that left hand, he glanced at the supportive stares of Animus, with Kai beside him. Acknowledging their silent conversation, Ventos calmed down, ending the killing intent...

...For now.

The scarf wearing wizard casually approached the two quarreling Konoha-nin with an impassive, yet haunting glare. Ventos looked at the pair, disappointedly at his old friend, and angrily at the so-called "Princess of Konoha".

Getting close, Ventos spoke to the

"I'm going to say this one good time. I could care less about your personal issues. But when you're shouting in the place like an angsty teen drama in a professional setting, I got a problem with that." Drakkenborne growled in Nihongo. "Get yourselves together, or shit like could get you asses killed!"

Moving close to Ruki, Naruto whispered in her ear as he finished the conversation, "Demon, or no demon!"

Noticing that he was an alpha male, Kiba's head nodded in compliance. Ruki made a poor attempt to utter her voice but was met with the glare of a Ventos' dead eye on his left eye. Reluctantly admitting defeat, Ruki shook her head in compliance. Satisfied, the teenage Drakkenborne paced out but not before he made eye contact with Hinata.

Both he and the girl in question had an exchange in facial expression. Ventos gazes upon his inspiration with a warm eye smile and a nod of reassurance, prompting the girl to cease her few tears.

"Everything will be okay." He whispered softly.

Hinata was somewhat stunned at this friendly gesture, considering what she heard and read about "Heroes of Kiri", along with the leader's (partial)credit for taking down the Yondaime Mizukage in his demon chakra mode.

Despite being a stranger, he managed to make her face brighten up like a megawatt house light. Something that nobody was able to do since... Naruto had passed. The warmth of her face matches the rapid skips of the Hyūga's beating heart.

This feeling...it was as if the stirring of emotions was recognizable to her. And it was this odd reason that the Hyūga girl had the urge to pursue the boy.

But before she could even approach him, Ventos and his team left before she got the chance.

Hinata sighed for the umpteenth time, holding her charm close to her while Shino quietly scolded Kiba for even responding to Ruki's verb jab.

The blonde girl stayed silent, constantly rationalizing her past actions to her brother.

By the time the other genin began to walk down the halls, Konoha-nin followed suit as the last ones. But all can agree that the days ahead will be some of the toughest times of their teenage lives.

-Timeskip, In The Hallway Moments Later-

"Let us inside, please! We need to make it to the first stage!" Implored a youthful Rock Lee.

The trio of mages along with the newly arriving genin witnessed a problematic situation. The second-year genin, Squad Gai, was being blocked out of an entranceway by a couple of 'genin'.

"Come on guys, just hear us out! We've been genin for a long time, taking these exams had our teammates die. All this is a death trap, a disaster waiting to happen. So between us genin, let us do you a favor and back out while you can." One of the "genin" said.

Most of the other ninja from the lesser powerful villages scurried away, intimidated by the words of the two "genin". Having enough of their bullshit, Kai went up to pass through the pair, which as halted by a firm hand.

"Are you deaf, girl? Didn't you hear what h—"

The genin's rant was cut short relatively quickly. Due to getting impatience and possessing a short fuse, Kai ended up crushing the hand of the random "genin" who touched her which was followed by her flipping the poor bastard and giving a devastating kick to the gut, sending to the other 'genin' who started the whole mess. The two fallen shinobi burst in a puff of smoke, revealing their true forms as chunin. Although, one of them was revealed to be Izumo.

"Yeah, I heard you alright. And to be frank, I'm very tired of listening to your little mind tricks. If you really want to do us a favor, keep those illusions and your bullshit to yourself, understood? Dictated Kai, as she raised a threatening first cloaked in her Shinsei no Metsuchō Mahō (Sacred Phoenix Slayer Magic).

Izumo and the broken chunin shook their heads with an understanding of her words and the fear that complimented on it nicely.

Everybody in the room gaped at the excellence of Kai's strength and swiftness she briefly displayed.

"Holy shit! Did you see how that babe just took out two chunin? …That's hot as hell!" The aged up Kiba barked as his bigger companion, Akamaru, whimpere\ing from Kai's spike of killing intent.

While others spoke in agreement, Itachi did so within his mind. Even so, he was glad that there were strong adversaries, one seized the Uchiha heir's eyes. The blond-haired kid with wild hair and one visible eye.

Remembering the pledge he swore upon that day, Itachi activated his dōjutsu's advanced form, the Mangekyo Sharingan, and glanced at the three mages to look for their chakra signatures.

But much to his alarming surprise, two of the three did not possess chakra signatures at all, and the other one did. What was covering three was a different kind of energy. The power had hues of white and violet which shrouded their inner core and spread outwards. This was the reason why Itachi felt his heart beat faster than normal. Still, the chakra signature of the scarf-wearing blond kid had a sense of familiarity, as if the Uchiha knew him. And despite being overshadowed by this other energy, the chakra signature Itachi looked uncanny to him.

'These people...they possess little to no chakra! How can this be? Nobody can survive in this world without chakra, that was always the fundamental principle! This doesn't make any sense!' Ranted the flabbergasted.

'But that would mean that they're not from any part of the nations,' The reserved Itachi concluded. 'Yes, they must be outsiders, it explains why they can withstand this world without dying. And whatever power that they house is even more dense and potent than our chakra. But if that's the case, then why does that blond in the middle have both energy signatures? What makes him so special? And why does his signature seem so...familar?' Itachi muttered in his thoughts.

Wanting to move on from all the excitement, Ventos walked over to the entrance with an extended right arm and spoke an utterance of a word.

"Disuperu (Dispell)."

The illusion that shrouded the minds of the genin vanished for the stairs the lead up to a different level was merely a genjutsu (illusion technique). The armored mage walked to the crowds of genin to speak.

"This was [a] trick. [There] never really was another floor. Follow us to [the] testing room if you're ready." Animus kindly offered butcheredly, regardless of his (partially) improved grammar.

Without giving it a thought, the rest of the four ninja teams and the other small ninja groups tailed the leading trio of mages to the first portion of the exams. After a few minutes, the genin eventually found the proctor of the first part of the exams. Though... he wasn't necessarily the typical proctor. The man bears a black attire with chainmail armor under a beige utility flake jacket of sorts with a bunch of pouches strapped to it and calf-length sandals. He wore a bandana hitai-ate. Ibiki Morino was the name of this man.

"So you maggots manage to arrive on your own, ne? And here I thought I was gonna have to get you, kids, myself... Alright, get your asses in gear and get in that room!" Commanded Ibiki.

-Timeskip, An Hour Later-

During the written exams, many people found ways to capitalize on another genin in order to answer the first nine questions.

Take the Rookie 12 for example. Each squad utilizes its own unique specialties stealthily and successfully without getting caught. Squad Gai capitalized on other poor saps with the use of mirrors (Tenten and Rock Lee), and the all-seeing white-eye, Byakugan (via Neji).

Squad 10 had a much subtler way of making it through the test. With the Kagemane no Jutsu (Shadow Imitation Technique), Shikamaru possessed Choji's shadow to copy his answers. Meanwhile, Ino's Shintenshin no Jutsu (Mind-Body Switch Technique) allowed her to prey on her love rival's mind by obtaining the information on Sakura's test to her own.

Squad 8 was similar to the previous two teams in the usage of their family's abilities. Shino's insects provided him the answers (one of them entered Ventos' scarf) as did Akamaru barking the answers to Kiba, who understood his companion. Like her cousin, Neji, Hinata also blazed through the test with her own Byakugan.

And finally, Squad 7 finished the nine questions, or rather two-thirds of the team did. Itachi was a prodigy in his own right, but with the fully matured Mangekyō Sharingan adding to his intellect, the raven-haired teen aces it with moments to spare. Sakura also finished relatively easily by showing off her intensive book smarts, making an easy target for the Yamanaka heiress to ride on mentally. However, Ruki had a difficult time with the questions. Despite being raised by the Yondaime, the last Uzumaki, and trained by the gama-sannin, the blonde dandelion wasn't the brightest flower in the patch. Reading books aren't her style, she was more of a 'hands-on' and "person of action' type of teen.

Needless to say, she was in a bit of a tight spot. But before she could answer a single question, the bell rang, indicating that the time was up.

"And...TIME! PENCILS DOWN, RUNTS!" Shouted Ibiki.

And with that, the genin stopped writing. All eyes darted towards the proctor ninja, awaiting his orders.

"Now, before I give the tenth question, I need verification on if any of you wish to continue this exam. If you want out then raise your hand up high but once you do...both you and your teammates will be excluded from the Exams. Furthermore, your team will remain genin forever!" Ibiki declared, shocking the entire room.

Waves of rebellious screams became the result.

"What!? That's Bullshit! You can't do that to us!" Kiba protested with several others agreeing and backing him up.

"Life's not fair, runt. I'm your proctor so in here, my word is the law! There will be people that will be higher than you, so deal with it! Okay, now for those who want to give up, raise your hands now while you still can. Otherwise, there's no going back!" Said Ikibi, implementing his authoritative tone to silence some of the rebellious genin.

One by one, hands were raised by different teams from different factions (excluding the Konoha Rookie 12). While most of the basic genin felt like they were facing an ultimatum, the mages saw through the deceit that Ibiki spewed. Hell, Ventos muttered "shit" to his other teammates, who agreed since Ibiki was full of shit. As the jotun and the muspelson nodded to their guild brother, Ventos smiled and then before turning to face the scar-faced jōnin.

"You're bluffing."

All voices stopped as Ibiki inwardly blanched at the comment that Ventos had spewed.

"Excuse me?" Blanched Ibiki.

"Did I stutter? I'm calling you out on your bluff!" Ventos shot back with full force.

Mouths dropped when the genin heard the words flew out of Ventos' mouth. Ikibi, internally impressed and somewhat curious, decided to humor him by analyzing him.

"You got some balls, don't you? …Though I'm curious, what makes you say that about the tenth question, Kiri-gaki?"

"You're the proctor, you do not determine whether we get promoted or not or bar us from taking the exams. That job belongs to your superior. And don't think that my team and I haven't seen through your intimidation tactic to psych us out, because that tom foolery's cheap and you know it! So cut that shit out already, you mugged face asshole!"

The minds of the Konoha-nin were blown out of figurative proportions. Everybody knew that this special jōnin was apart of the Torture and Interrogation Unit, therefore, it was incredibly terrifying and must not be trifled with. And yet, despite being one of the people who ended a civil war, a mere genin not only called him out but verbally insulted Ibiki in his face in front of everyone! Similar. Yet, various thoughts ran through the kids' minds.

'...Oh Kami!' Ruki stumbled in her mind.

'Fascinating demeanor...Looks like I have to take my analysis even further.' Itachi noticed with interest.

'WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH THIS KID!? HE'S GONNA GET US ALL KILLED, SHANNARO (DAMN IT)!' Screeched Inner Sakura.

'Well, I get this it...If only I had my favorite food.' Chōji internally cried.

'Your confidence. …It's great to have you back, old friend.' Though Shino, as his bug returned from Ventos' scarf.

'He did not just say that! This is gonna be such a drag.' Shikamaru denied, shocked at the Kir-nin's insult.

'He just sealed his own fate.' Concluded Neji cognitively.

'We're doomed.' Tenten moped, putting her head down in defeat at the words of who she believes was a moron.

'HIS YOUTHFUL FLAMES SHROUDS HIS UNWAVERING SPIRIT!' Exclaimed Lee in his mind.

'It's official, this guy is the coolest alpha!' Kiba thought.

'Why do I feel warm when he's near me? ...Who this boy?' Hinata questioned herself as she looked at the pastel blond, almost longingly.

'Whoa, this guy is either the bravest soul ever, or just plain stupid...' Temari concluded in her thoughts.

'Man, it is gonna suck to be that poor bastard right now. Oh well, serves his ass right for interrupting me from squashing that brat when I had the chance!' Kankurō snarked internally, hoping to see Ventos reprimanded in a cruel fashion.

'Yes, you will be a glorious challenge to be, Ranryū. Mother will be ever so pleased.' Cackled the unstable Gaara.

'Damn, this guy's insane!' Everybody else awed at the mage.

Ibiki eventually snapped out from his shock and met the gaze of Ventos' glare. This commenced a staredown between the two. A good long minute was the duration of the eye lockdown. However, Ibiki was actually studying Ventos' attitude, seeing if there was meaning in the boy's words and he wasn't all talk. Much to the interrogator's surprise, all he could see was a face filled with confidence and seriousness so sharp it could cut through steel. The proctor looked around the room to see no hands were raised. Impressed, Ibiki straightened his back and cleared his throat to speak.

"Well I'll be damned, looks like everybody stayed after all...Congratulations, maggots, you all passed!" Ibiki

"EHHH!?" The whole room shouted saved for Gaara who just looked at Naruto with a deranged look on his eyes while Team Ventos (as what Animus like to call their little group) covered their ears to block out the genin's loud shout.

"Say what!? How come?" Kiba shouted in shock.

The scarred special jōnin debriefed on how the test's purpose was about gathering intel without jeopardizing the mission by being caught while the last question was if they want to continue the exam or not.

"Anyways, now that the first part of the exam is over, you can continue to the next phase.I sincerely wish you all good luck, and remember to kick some ass along the way." Ibiki said and everyone nodded at him while Ventos and the other mages smirked at Ibiki and he saw this and smirked back.

-Forest Of Death, Moments Later-

The magical trio was on their way to the next portion of the exams. They laughed as they recalled how everybody reacted when Ventos mocked the so-called "Torture and Interrogation specialist".

"Damn, Dipstick! That roast was so funny, I c-can-HAHAHA! " Laughed hard Kai in Runic, who was momentarily holding her sides.

"A-Aye, his face was priceless!" Animus agreed, wiping a tear off his face.

"Hey, its not my fault his face looked like a cat tore the shit out of him before getting slapped by an ugly stick." Ventos heckled, prompting them to share another laugh.

"Oi, YOU THERE! WAIT FOR US!" A brash voice yelled out in his native language.

The trio turned around to see Squad 8 approaching their way. That respective team had the carefree Inuzuka heir with his arms behind his head along with his larger, a casual hood and black glasses-wearing Aburame heir, and a bashful Hyūga who was too busy looking directly at Ventos.

"Eh? Aren't you that guy with the over-sized ggreat Pyrenees?" Kai asked, putting her Nihongo practice to use.

"Hai! I'm Kiba, my nin-ken here is my buddy Akamaru, and these are my friends Shino, and Hinata! Together, we're the best trackers of the Konoha Rookie 9!" Boasted the boy, introducing his team to the mages.

"Likewise, Kiba-san. The name's Sorcha, Kai Sorcha. The super tall redhead in armor is Animus Brynjar, and the dipstick here is our fearless leader, Ventos Drakkenborne." Kai echoed, introducing her guildmates.

"...So you're the ninja who ended the civil war in Kiri." Shino deduced, grabbing everyone else's attention for a brief moment.

"Oh right, you're that Ranryū guy from the Bingo Book!" Kiba realized. "No wonder you were able to call out Ibiki back there so easily. Still, that was a pretty gutsy move back there!".

"Don't think much of it, Kiba-san. It was either going to be me, or Kai would've snapped. And trust me, unless you enjoy smelling like barbecue, you wouldn't want to spew any nonsense near her." Ventos answered neutrally.

"Damn skippy! Gals like me take no shit from anybody!" Kai replied in pride of her inner strength.

Kiba wholeheartedly laughed his team's new new acquaintances with Akamai wagging his tail.

"Yeah, about that... Sorry for that little episode back in the hallway. It's just that I hate one of our classmate's guts right now an—" Kiba tried to explain, only to be cut off by Animus by all people.

"Don't fret, friend. We know about [the] 'Uzu-Nami Incident' from eight years ago. I take it that you knew with the Yondaime's eldest son?" Animus deduced.

"Hai. Our team and a member from Squad 7 seven were his only friends in Konoha." Shino revealed, shocking the mages (save for Ventos). "Would you mind telling how Kiri knows out about the incident?"

Hinata, prying her eyes away from the pastel blond haired mage, began to pay close attention to any and every detail of the conversation.

"Short answer; rumors. Long answer: A lot of rumors. Basically, after your Kage fucked up as a father, stories were being perpetuated like wildfire. Once it was contracted, it spread all across the nations. It was only a matter of time before Kiri got it. In fact, according to Mizukage-sama, Kiri nearly declined your village's alliance because of that factor. But considering...Kiri's issues, we had to take whatever we're offered." Kai instructed.

"That's not surprising. After all, that scandal cost Konoha's economic, political, and social power. And personally, I can't respect a guy who drove his own kid away." Shino commented.

"Yeah, what kind of leader are you if you can't even protect your own pack!" Kiba added in confusion and frustration.

As the two boys of the Squad 8 talked, Kai, noticed how Hinata was silently staring at her blond godbrother with uncertainty and strangely enough, longing, and dared her to say lovingly. And what was even more strange was that Ventos reciprocated that look using his left eye. Beginning to form a connection, Kai donned the biggest mischievous grin known to womankind as she learned something interestingly new about her younger guild brother.

Ventos unknowingly was in love with Hinata.

Wanting to know more, Kai called on the bluenette and pulled her to the side for a little girl talk.

"...Say Hinata, was it? I don't mean to be all insensitive and or nosy, but I am curious. What was that "Fishcake" boy to you?" Kai wondered, prompting Events to gain a tick mark from the misuse of his birth name.

From afar, the air tensed up from that initial question. Despite Kai having a certain mindfulness of other people's emotions, Hinata would still keep to herself inwardly when it came to the topic of Naruto. But to the male members' surprise, Hinata answered the foreigner.

"Naruto-kun's name means "Maelstrom", Kai-san. And to me, he was someone who was really special. He had this carefree and goofy attitude that would brighten up wherever that grin of his went. Another thing about him was that he this positive flow of aura that surrounded him. It makes you...safe." She started, slowly opening up her feelings little by little. "

"N-Naruto-kun, in my eyes, was the strongest, out of all of us. No matter what kind of twisted or cruel thing he went through, he always had hope that things would be better...until that happened." Hinata explained, hardening her voice when referencing Naruto's exile from his own clan.

"...I just wish I had a chance to see him, even if it was for the last time." Responded Hinata, speaking with a passion and with the tinge of longing.

The rest of Squad 8 saw the sorrow in their female teammate.

Over the years, Kiba tried to be there for her whenever he could. The guy even went so far as to try and be her special person. Alas, Hinata already knew that he had a thing for her at some point and swiftly squashed any chance he had with her, stating that she only had eyes for Naruto and that she viewed Kiba as a brother just as much as she sees Shino platonically. Furthermore, she firmly believed that Naruto was alive (much to the shock and pity of Kiba). Regardless, Kiba grew to accept that, remaining as a loyal supportive brother figure.

Shino also remained supportive of her beliefs and actions, closely watching the kunoichi like an older brother. Kiba eventually came around and gave her the benefit of the doubt, becoming more like a brother as well, forming a family bond with Hinata instead of trying to replace his longtime friend.

Still, the pain of Naruto's disappearance had great negative effects on Hinata.

The Andreíos Soul trio was beyond speechless.

Animus, hearing the girl due to his height, felt every word hit his heart. Despite being the 'mind' of the group, never in the jotun's life has he ever perceived such compassion emanating from a person. Animus' grew happy, knowing that his guild brother had a person in this world that genuinely adores him.

Kai also cracked a smile from the Hyūga's kind way of words. Now she has a new friend to hang out with another person to tease with the blond.

Saying Ventos was emotionally touched was an understatement. His heart melted from the endearing speech, receiving both happiness and a bit of guilt from him partially doing that to her (and the rest of his friends by extension).

Without thinking, Ventos attempted to bring his voice out...

...Only for Kai to beat him to the punch.

"Hey, I'm sure you'll see him again, so dry those tears, girl! It's like what our godmother always says, 'There's nothing wrong with a little bit of wishing!' And who knows, if a body wasn't found, that just means that Naruto is still around." Kai assured, tilting her head to secretly look at her blond guild brother.

"You really mean it?" Hinata asked with a ray of hope on her side.

"Call it a girl's intuition." Kai replied, holding the Hyūga's hands.

Ever so thankful, Humans have the dark-skinned girl a hug. Kai hugged back as Hinata spoke softly.

"Thank you so much, Kai-chan. You don't know how much this helps."

"It's no big whoop, Hinata-chan, I'm just glad I got to meet a genuine kunoichi instead of these snobby, glossy, and guy-hungry brats."

Just when the two girls giggled for a minute, Kiba called out to one of them from.

"Hey, Hinata! We found where the other squads are gathered! Let's get a move on before we're left behind!"

Nodding to her group, the girl let go of Kai and raced off to her team. But not before wishing the mages luck.

"I'll be seeing you, Kai, Animus. And good luck to you too, Vento-san!"

The Dragon Slayer waved weakly before turning to see two sly looking mages.

"What's up, guys? Is there something on my face?"

Both Animus and Kai turned to look at each other with their arms crossed before looking back at the blond.

"What?" Ventos continued with a louder tone.

"VENTOS AND HINATA SITTING IN [A] TREE! K-I-S-S-I-N-G! Declared the two mages in a sing-song tone.

Glowing red from the blood rushing on his face (which was covered by his scarf by the way), Ventos shouted, "YOU GUYS ARE CHILDREN!"

By the time the group got to the next testing area, Ventos had become a sputtering mess. Despite being embarrassed, the pastel blond couldn't help but cherish having his guild siblings meet his old friends. It kept him from going insane, also and it made the journey all the more fun.

And besides, what's more enjoyable than spending time with family?

To Be Continued...

Author's Note:

Another chronicle done! Oh, sorry about the deletion and re-uploading thing. I had to correct the timeline in Earthland, you know? That stuff is important. Anyhow, let me know about what you guys think. I'll be seeing you all later!

Have a blessed day! Shadow, out!

-DarkShadowGames451