Author's Note: Umm, Yeah I guess I should explain why I didn't post for soo long. I have no excuse hehe, sorry, just been dealing with some things in life and lost my flow. I'll try to be regular now. Please drop a review down if you like the story or even don't like it, really helps me to know if I should continue or not.

Just a gentle reminder that there are some changes to the story y'all need to remember

*I am not gonna use the canon lore, I came up with something I feel is better suited for this fic.

*Characters' age is different from canon

*Characters' relations

ANYWAYS

Enjoy the story ;)

Speaking: "Naruto"

Thinking: 'Naruto'

Tailed Beasts/Summoning: "Naruto"

Shouting: "NARUTO"

Jutsu: "Rasengan"

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, never will. I mean you are reading this on "FanFiction". Please google what it means. Thank you.

Chapter 4~

Birds of a feather

"Are you okay, Jiraiya...?" Hiruzen asked, with a bit of hesitation in his voice as he looked at his former student lying down on the hospital bed, covered in bandages.

Jiraiya looked at him incredulously, "She broke my legs so I couldn't run away, then she broke the rest of the bones in my body and healed them and broke them again and healed them... I don't even remember how many times she repeated that...Yeah, I guess I am in pretty fantastic condition, sensei!" he spoke, wincing in pain after every word.

"You have seven broken ribs, try not to move soo much... " Hiruzen placed his hand on Jiraiya's shoulder and gave him a comforting squeeze. "She'll forgive you, trust me"

Jiraiya sighed closing his eyes, "I am not so sure about that sensei..." he spoke making Hiruzen sigh. "...but that's not my main worry right now, sensei" he added blankly staring at the ceiling.

"I know..." Hiruzen spoke clenching his fists, "If only I had the evidence to prove it to the council... I would have already taken Danzo down..." a pained expression on his face as he turned towards Jiraiya. "Looks like you aren't the only one who has let the Senjus down," he spoke and started to walk towards the door.

"You still are the Hokage, Sarutobi-sensei. Your word is the law for the hidden leaf shinobi" Jiraya spoke turning his head towards Hiruzen's back, "And you always have me to count on as your loyal subordinate," he spoke grinning and then wincing in pain again.

Hiruzen stopped and chuckled turning his head back to meet Jiraiya's gaze "Well then my loyal subordinate, I need you up and running as soon as possible, the chunin exams are near, and we are inviting a new ninja village inside our borders," he spoke.

"Don't worry sensei, you know how fast I can recover from Tsunade's beatings," Jiraiya replied and grinned.

Hiruzen shook his head and sighed, 'I don't really think it's something you should be proud about Jiraiya..' he thought, exiting the room shaking his head with disappointment.

Training Ground 7

(Konohagakure no Sato)

'So it's that time already huh?' Kakashi thought looking up at the messenger Hawk circling him. Tilting his head back down to meet the faces of the four genins under his command, he smiled and clapped his hands to get their attention "Okay my cute little genins, today is a day off for you all, meet me tomorrow at the same spot, don't be late!" he spoke. Giving them a mock salute, he disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Sakura growled in frustration, "Just great! first he shows up 3 hours late and then tells us to go back home," she said stomping her foot on the ground.

"Well, yes he did. I thought you were used to it by now," Sai smiled turning his face towards Sakura " you said so yourself, remember ugly?" he asked with an innocent expression.

Sakura clenched her fists looking at the eerie fake smile on his face, "How many times do I have to tell you THAT I WOULD KILL YOU FOR CALLING ME THAT!" she shouted and charged towards him aiming to punch.

Sai effortlessly kept dodging all her punches, frustrating her even more, "You should really eat at some point you are really weak. And you know what ugly? that dieting isn't gonna help you with Sasuke" he spoke, the eerie fake smile still on his face.

"YOU SHUT UP!"

"By the way, he is already leaving" he added.

Sakura abruptly stopped her attack and turned to see Sasuke near the exit, "Sasuke-Kun wait!" she exclaimed running towards the exit to follow him, back to her routine of pestering him for a date.

'There she goes...' Sai thought looking at the dust cloud Sakura left behind. 'Huh? I guess he left too...' he thought finding no signs of Naruo when he turned back.

In the shadows nearby, Crow looked at the messenger Hawk on Boar's shoulder curiously, "You really think it's a smart choice to let this team participate, Captain?"

Boar shrugged his shoulders petting the Hawk, "I really don't know... but I have faith in Lord third's decision," he spoke as the Hawk flew away.
"Now let's go, can't keep the Hokage waiting" he added and both the Anbu disappeared in a swirl of leaves.

Hokage Office

(Hokage Tower)

Hiruzen set his gaze up at the three Jonin standing in front of him and then back at the forms on his table, "Alright then the decision is final, Team 7 under Kakashi Hatake, Team 8 under Kurenai Yuhi, and Team 10 under Asuma Sarutobi are granted permission to participate in the chunin exams," he spoke handing the three of them conscent forms for the teams.

Hiruzen released a sigh as all the Jonins and village elders exited the room, "You may Enter," he answered the knock on the door taking out his cigar pipe from his robe.
In a blur Bear and Crow appeared in front of his table, kneeling down on the ground as the door opened to reveal Kakashi.

"Good that you aren't late for this Kakashi. I am quite curious as to why you think your team is ready for the chunin exams. Knowing what all happened with Naruto, I thought it would take more than a month to get your team back to normal. " Hiruzen spoke lighting his pipe.

"Getting the team back as it was, seems a far-fetched dream now." Kakashi spoke gaining a curious look from the Hokage, "Naruto has become a lot distant, to the point I can't tell what's going inside his head at all. The team hasn't been affected due to Sai's presence, if anything their performance has become better... I don't know why but it seems like he doesn't wanna make contact with the two again, and the other two seem to not care about it... But maybe the exams will help them bond into a team back together"

Hiruzen smiled seeing the hopeful look in Kakashi's eye, "I appreciate your decision, Kakashi." he spoke getting a grateful nod from Kakashi.
Turning his head towards Boar and Crow, he took another puff from his pipe to calm down his nerves. "Report," he commanded.

Boar nodded, raising his head up "He has enough control, that no one at the level of a trained Chunin should pose any threat to the nine tails breaking the seal." he spoke in a monotone.

Hiruzen sighed in relief, releasing a cloud of smoke with it, "That's really good to hear... but I guess the smartest decision would be to block the seal for the initial two rounds." he spoke getting nods from both the Anbu guards.

He gestured Kakashi to speak seeing the apprehensive look on his face, "Don't you think that's a big handicap for him, Lord third?" Kakashi asked getting a chuckle from the old Hokage in reply.

"Oh Kakashi, you don't have to worry about that, and these are terms to which the council agreed." Hiruzen spoke, seeing that Kakashi still wasn't satisfied with the response he continued, "We'll be allowing the new hidden sound village in our borders. We have no idea what they are capable of, and I believe Naruto losing control and killing any of their genins won't be a good sign for any further alliance talks."

Kakashi finally nodded, tho a bit hesitantly, and took a step back.

"Have weasel put the seal on him tomorrow, I have no doubt that he won't refuse a chance like this," Hiruzen spoke getting a nod from both the Anbu guards.

"As you command, my Lord" Boar answered standing up, "Kakashi, him not surviving through those rounds should be the least of your concerns, trust me" he added and disappeared with Crow into the shadows.

"What did he mean by that?" Kakashi asked looking at Hiruzen with a confused expression.

Hiruzen chuckled again as he looked at the sun going down from his window, "oh, you'll see.. "

Western Cliffs

"*Bark*" the mountain hound announced himself stopping at the edge of the cliff. "Hey, buddy, nice to see you again." the hound looked down hearing Naruto's voice, and met the sight of him hanging by the edge with one arm, a book in another as he performed pull-ups.

"Just wait a few mins the food will be ready" he spoke launching himself up in the air and landing beside the hound.

Naruto splashed some water on his face washing off the dirt and sweat from his training. He looked up at the sky to see it was a full moon, his eyes devoid of any emotion as he gazed blankly at the moon. The hound released a low growl seeing him in a daze but got no reaction, after a few moments Naruto chuckled shaking his head "Sorry about that, I just got a little lost in my thoughts" he spoke patting the hound's head who sighed in response. "Let's go, the food must be ready,"

In the distance hiding on a tree branch, Tsunade looked at Naruto's retreating back with a pained smile, "So he actually does have meals with a friend...that's good to know" she spoke wiping off the lone tear that rolled down her face.

"He prefers to be with the hound more than us or any of his teammates, my lady" Cat spoke in her usual Anbu monotone.

Shizune placed a comforting hand on Tsunade's shoulder seeing the pained expression on her face. "He will open up more to people during the Chunin exams hopefully. Don't lose faith Aunt Tsunade." It has been this way for the last month, every single day she observes him from a distance, looking for signs of improvement.

"Lady Tsunade?", Tsunade turned towards Cat hearing her confused tone. "What's with that bag?" she asked pointing at the large bag by Tsunade's feet

Tsunade blinked looking at her, then at the bag, and then back at her then again at the bag. "Ooh this?" she smirked picking it up, "I am just getting ready to pack all the betting money at the chunin exams," she spoke giving them a victory sign and grinned.

Cat sweatdropped seeing the legendary ninja's antics. Shizune sighed, shaking her head in disappointment. 'Why did I even think she would forget about it?' she thought looking at Tsunade drooling thinking about money.

The next day

'Even Iruka-sensei won't tell me anything...I am tired of people hiding things from me...' Konohamaru thought sighing defeatedly, looking down blankly at the road as he walked. Both his friends looked at him with worried expressions. He has been looking for Naruto for the past few months and none of the adults would tell him anything, the two haven't met Naruto but could tell Konohamaru looked up to him like an older brother.

"Are you okay...Konohamaru?" Moegi asked looking at him worriedly. She looked down saddened getting no response.

Moegi and Udon's heads snapped up hearing Konohamaru speak up, "I don't know really...No one tells me anything" he stopped his face scrunched up in an irritated look, "Even the old man won't tell me anything!" he exclaimed kicking a stone forward in frustration.

"Aagh!" the three academy students looked up to see the source of the scream walking towards them. A 12-year-old boy in a black, baggy, full bodysuit, rubbing the back of his head. On taking a proper look the three realized he was a genin from their ally village of Suna. He was wearing a black hood that covered his head completely with cat-like ear shapes on top, making it appear like a catsuit, a Sunagakure forehead protector on his forehead, purple triangle facepaint, and carried a human-like object wrapped in bandages on his back.

Before any of the three could react the boy grabbed Konohamaru by the collar and lifted him up "That hurt, you little punk! " he spoke gritting his teeth in frustration and narrowing his eyes.

"Konohamaru! " Moegi and Udon exclaimed looking scared. They were afraid of being hurt but still worried about their friend.

"Leave him Kankuro, you will get us in trouble." spoke the girl standing behind him, she also appeared to be a Sunagakure ninja. She had teal eyes and sandy blonde hair, which were tied into four consecutive pigtails; she wore a light purple-colored, an off-the-shoulders garment that extended to halfway down her thighs, with a scarlet sash tied around her waist and carried a battle fan on her back.

The Suna genin now identified as Kankuro glanced back at her and spoke, "Oh Relax Temari! I am just having little fun. Don't worry he wouldn't find out- " suddenly he felt the temperature around him drop and something sharp pressed against his throat.

"Kankuro!" Temari exclaimed and reached back for her battle fan. In a blur, she felt her vision go blank and all the air escape out her body as she was slammed into the wall with her battle fan. 'What is happening!?' teal eyes met cold his blue gaze, a kunai knife at her throat.

"Try anything funny and I promise you will regret it. " Naruto spoke tightening his grip on the kunai, moving it closer to Kankuro's throat. "Let the kid go," Kankuro frozen with fear complied and slowly placed Konohamaru back on the ground.

Konohamaru coughed and backed away rapidly as Moegi and Udon rushed to his side.

With a puff of smoke, the Shadow Clones disappeared freeing the two Sunagakure ninja and Naruto appeared in front of the three academy students with his back covering them. "You always get into trouble with someone, don't Konohamaru?" Naruto spoke glancing back at the three. Konohamaru looked at him in disbelief, he opened his mouth to speak but no words came out. "Don't worry I am here now" Naruto spoke narrowing his eyes at the two in front of him.

Kankuro slammed the bandaged object in front of him, "You chose the wrong people to threaten pal, I'll teach you some manners" he spoke gritting his teeth in anger.

"I don't think you will be doing anything of that sort," spoke Boar in a monotone landing behind Naruto with his Anbu squad. "Not inside our borders, even though you are our allies trying to harm one of ours is crossing the line," Hawk added.

"It's the little brat's fault for kicking that stone at me!" Kankuro exclaimed pointing at Konohamaru,

Temari placed her hand on his shoulder"We are leaving, Kankuro" she spoke glaring at him, daring him to refuse.

Naruto stepped forward turning his head towards the tree by the roadside, "Did u enjoy this little show from up there?" he spoke confusing everyone except the Anbu squad. In a swirl of sand from the tree, a young boy appeared. He was fair-skinned, had short auburn spiky hair, and had tanuki-like black rings around his green pupil-less eyes and kanji for "love" (愛) tattooed in red ink, on the left side of his forehead. He wore a black bodysuit with an open neck, t-shirt-like sleeves, almost full-length leggings, a white cloth over his right shoulder, and the left side of his hips. A wide leather band from his left shoulder to his right hip with which he carried a large sand gourd and a Sunagakure forehead protector wrapped around it.

"G-Gaara?!" Kankuro stuttered taking a step back with Temari, "You are a disgrace to our village?" the young boy now identified as Gaara spoke, turning his head towards Kankuro.

"I-I was just-" Kankuro started speaking but was cut off by Gaara, "Shut up or I'll kill you" Gaara threatened, making him wince and step back.

"I am sorry for the trouble caused by my stupid brother," Garra spoke as he turned to meet Naruto's gaze, "I hope we can all forget this as a sign of good faith between our villages,"

Before any of the Anbu guards could say anything, Naruto spoke "Of course..." and started walking towards Gaara.

"Hey kid-," Hawk took a step forward aiming to stop Naruto but was stopped by Boar, "Let him" Boar commanded.

"But Captain, that is-" Hawk tried retorting but was cut off by Weasel this time, "Don't interfere, he knows what he is dealing with"

"... our villages have been allies for decades now, we wouldn't want that to change because of this little incident," Naruto spoke stopping in front of Gaara. "Naruto Uzumaki, a pleasure to meet you" he added moving his hand forward for a handshake.

From the sand gourd on Gaara's back an arm made o sand slowly escaped and shook Naruto's hand while Garra stood there with his arms folded, "Sabaku no Gaara" he spoke, his voice emotionless.

"I see, " Naruto took another step forward still holding Gaara's hand of sand, "As a sign of good faith I'll also ask u to get ur seal checked, it's dangerous for everyone around if it breaks" he spoke in a low voice making Gaara's eyes slightly widen in surprise.

"How-"

"How do I know? Well, that shouldn't be much of a surprise," Naruto looked directly into his eyes, lifeless just like his, "We are birds of a feather after all... Welcome to the hidden leaf, vessel of the one-tail" Naruto spoke and then took a step back breaking the handshake.

Gaara stood there blankly looking at his cold blue gaze.

"Gaara.. ?" Temari spoke worriedly finally breaking him out of his thoughts.

"We are leaving" Gaara announced turning back and then started walking away. His siblings followed his back silently.

"Told you," Weasel elbowed Hawk's arm, "He knows what he's dealing with," Hawk sighed tiredly and nodded, "Yeah you're right..."

"You alright Kono?" Naruto asked placing his hand over Konohamaru's head and ruffling his hair.

Naruto tilted his head left dodging Konohamaru's punch. "YOU BIG JERK! WHERE WERE YOU?! " Konohamaru exclaimed chargING towards Naruto with his fist cocked back. Naruto effortlessly dodged his attacks frustrating him even more.

"STOP MOVING AND LET ME HIT YOU!" Konohamaru launched himself in the air aiming to land a kick to Naruto's head.

"Stop it," Crow spoke catching Konohamaru midair and holding him down.

"Let me go! I need to teach that jerk a lesson!" Konohamaru exclaimed struggling in Crow's grip.

'I am so sorry for all of this Konohamaru...' Naruto thought sadly, but his face remained impassive.

"Your grandfather would like to hear from you about this"Crow spoke, hearing this Konohamaru finally stopped struggling.

"Fine, I'll come with you to the old man," Konohamaru spoke dusting off his scarf.

"You both come with me too," Crow spoke turning his head towards Moegi and Udon who immediately rushed to his side.

"You have gotten stronger," Konohamaru turned abruptly hearing Naruto speak, "Keep training and someday you might beat your grandfather to become the Hokage," he spoke with a small smile and then disappeared into the trees with the other three Anbu guards.

"Konohamaru..?" Moegi asked looking at him worriedly as he stood there with a sad smile on his face.

"That stupid Jerk, who does he think he's talking to.." Konohamaru spoke wiping away the tears that rolled down his face.

Training Ground 7

'So the council really agreed on letting me participate, huh?' Naruto thought looking down at the form Kakashi handed him, and then back up at Kakashi who just stood there giggling like a schoolgirl reading his favorite orange book.

"So you mean Sai won't be with us on missions from now on?" Sakura asked looking around finding no signs of Sai.

Kakashi slammed his book shut and eye smiled, "Nope, now that your team has been nominated for chunin exams you'll work back in this three-man formation."

'If we become chunin then this team breaks...Sasuke-Kun will surely win the exams...Do I have what it takes to be Chunin..?' Sakura thought looking down at the form, gripping it tightly.

"So we just bring this form to the academy room 3-C, right?" Sasuke asked getting a nod from Kakashi. "Hn, I am leaving" he announced pocketing his form and started walking away.

"Sasuke-Kun wait!" Sakura exclaimed following him, going back to her routine of pestering him for dates.

"Why didn't you tell them?" Kakashi turned hearing Naruto's question, "What do you mean, Naruto?" Kakashi asked, tilting his head in confusion.

"Don't bother pretending sensei. The ninja tools I use are the ones I collected from the corpses of teams who died in Training ground 44. I know if Sakura doesn't participate we'll be disqualified." Naruto spoke looking Kakashi dead in the eye.

"Huh, really?" Kakashi asked tilting his head to the other side. Naruto sighed, shaking his head as he walked past Kakashi "I'll see you tomorrow, sensei" Naruto spoke and Body flickered away.

A small smile spread under Kakashi's mask as he looked up at the sky, 'He is growing into a fine ninja, sensei'

The Next Day

Ninja Academy

"You going in alone, Sasuke?" Naruto asked seeing Sasuke walking towards the entrance.

"You two losers will only hold me back, I can win this all on my own," Sasuke spoke, not even sparing a glance back.

"SASUKE-KUN WAIT!" both Naruto and Sasuke turned back hearing the familiar screech and saw a dust cloud approaching them.

'Looks like we wouldn't be disqualified after all,' Naruto thought as Sakura stopped in front of them breathing heavily.

"Let's go in together Sasuke-Kun," Sakura spoke, smiling brightly.

"Hn, whatever" Sasuke spoke turning back towards the entrance and walking in.

Getting such a dismissive response made Sakura sad, she turned around cocking her fist back. "It's all your-" she stopped midway finding no signs of Naruto by her side. 'What the hell happened to him?' she thought seeing him walk into the academy quietly. She followed behind quietly, confused as to why wasn't he standing nearby her.

As th three of them made their way up the stairs to the second floor they noticed two genins blocking the entrance to room 3-C and a crowd of genins surrounding them, asking them to let them go in.

"We are doing you Kids a favor by not letting you go in. Weaklings like you die there in these exams," one of the genins blocking the door spoke pushing a boy with a weird bowl cut.

"Hey, just let us go in already!" one of the genins in the crowd shouted.

"Yeah sure," the other Genin blocking the door spoke cracking his knuckles "Just beat us and we'll let you go in," he spoke and grinned maniacally. The two blocking the door were older and had the size advantage on all of them.

"We are all here to participate, stopping us like this is very unyouthful," spoke the boy getting back up, making everyone sweatdrop at the 'unyouthful' part. He had shiny black hair in a bowl cut, round eyes, with very thick eyebrows, and had the most comical outfit; he wore a green spandex jumpsuit with orange leg warmers, a red forehead protector tied around his waist like a belt, and had bandages wrapped around his forearms up to his fingers covering a set of stitches on his hands.

'Who's this joker?' Sasuke thought looking at the green-clad genin staring.

Naruto just quietly continued walking towards the staircase to the next floor, 'So Izumo and Kotetsu finally got something other than chasing me and gate duty. Good for them I guess.. '

'Where is this Idiot thinks he is going?' Sakura thought looking angrily at Naruto. "Hey! where do you think you're-" she started but was cut off by Sasuke speaking up.

"Just drop it already," Sasuke spoke walking towards the two bullies, "Noone is falling for that pathetic Genjutsu you have put on" he spoke, smirking at the two as the crowd finally realized that they were standing in front of the wrong room.

"Trying to be a smartass huh? Let's see if you can deal with me" the disguised Kotetsu exclaimed launching a kick towards Sasuke. Sasuke tried to match the kick with his own but instead of the impact, he felt a firm grip on his shin stopping him.

There stood the funny-looking green-clad genin, blocking both their kicks effortlessly with his arms. "There's no need for a fight here," he spoke

'That is some strong chakra he got there...Who is this guy?' Sasuke thought, feeling the pressure on his shins and the ease with which his kick was blocked.

"What was that about hiding our strength for the finals, Lee?" a fair-skinned boy about Naruto's age standing behind Sasuke spoke.

'A Hyuga clan member...' Naruto thought looking at the pale pupil-less eyes of the boy. He wore a beige-colored shirt, a dull blue shirt beneath that, and mesh armor beneath that. Dark brown shorts, blue shinobi sandals, and bandages wrapped around his right arm, chest, and right leg. His hair was tied back in a loose ponytail. A black Konohagakure forehead protector tied around his forehead, under which was a smaller headband with two straps that frame the sides of his face.

"Well I couldn't just let them get into a fight here," the green-clad genin now identified as Lee spoke folding his arms.

"Hn" Sasuke grunted retreating his leg, "We are leaving," he spoke glancing back at Sakura and started walking up the stairs, 'Of all those people even this loser got it, I am starting to believe it's gonna be a waste of time' he thought walking past Naruto.

'Naruto got it?! No chance, why am I even considering it. He was a loser, he is just a criminal too now.' Sakura thought following Sasuke.

"Hey, you, the one with the dark eyes." came Lee's voice from behind.

Sasuke turned around with a bored expression, "What do you want?"

Lee stopped in front of the three, "You are Sasuke Uchiha, the rookie of the year from the last batch that graduated, right?"

Sasuke smirked, "So what?" he asked in a bored tone.

Lee put his left hand stretched forward palm facing up, his right hand folded behind his back and stood straight in a fighting stance, "I am Rock Lee, I am the strongest genin participating this year,"

"huh? you?" Sasuke raised his eyebrow, looking at him curiously.

'The Goken fighting stance...' Naruto thought leaning against the wall, silently observing them.

"Fight me, I wanna see if you are worth the title." Rock Lee spoke, narrowing his eyes at Sasuke.

'Who does he think he is?! Challenging Sasuke-Kun to a fight like this, does he wish to end up in the hospital before the exams?' Sakura thought looking at Lee with a superior look.

Rock Lee turned his gaze towards her and winked, 'Oh, I'll beat him and then win her heart,' he thought mentally fist-pumping.

'That was creepy,' Sakura thought, now looking at him with a disgusted expression.

Sasuke cracked his shoulders, taking his own fighting stance, and smirked "If that's your wish, then I'll happily comply," he curled his fingers, signaling Lee to come at him.

'This is gonna be a good warmup' Sasuke thought and then suddenly, felt all the leave out of his body and sharp pain in his gut as he was launched back. He coughed violently, roughly landing on the floor. 'He is fast...Damn that hurt' Sasuke thought looking at his opponent who stood there, with his arms outstretched in the punch that launched Sasuke.

"As I suspected." Lee started taking his fighting stance again "You are weak Sasuke Uchiha," in a burst of speed Lee landed multiple kicks to Sasuke's ribs making him grunt in pain. Sasuke skidded back, barely managing to stay on his feet.

'I can't believe this is happening. He is beating Sasuke-Kun!,' Sakura thought looking at Lee in disbelief.

"Careful with what you speak, I'll show you what real strength is" Sasuke spoke gritting his teeth.

Lee narrowed his eyes as Sasuke's black eyes turned crimson red with two tomoe spinning violently around the pupils. 'The Uchiha Clan's famed bloodline the Sharingan'

Sakura's face brightened up seeing this 'I knew it! He could never lose to someone like this,' she thought looking at Sasuke, a small blush over her face.

"Get ready, I'll end this now." Sasuke announced charging towards Lee.

"Wrong!" Rock Lee exclaimed dodging Sasuke's punch. "I'll be the one ending this.." He kicked Sasuke on the chin, launching him up in the air, and then jumped up himself, floating below Sasuke like a shadow.

"Sasuke-Kun! " Sakura exclaimed worriedly.

The bandages around Lee's arm loosened and started wrapping around Sasuke restricting all movement.

"Lee you fool, " came a voice from the other corner of the empty hallway. Hearing this, Lee grabbed Sasuke and made a soft landing down.

"Gai-sensei?" Lee spoke, seeing his Jonin instructor walking towards him. The man looked like an older version of Lee, the only difference in their attire being the Konoha Jonin flack jacket.

"Using a forbidden move on a fellow Konoha shinobi, that was a very unyouthful thing Lee, I am very disappointed" Gai spoke crying anime tears, and to Team Seven's surprise, he punched Lee hard enough that he flew to the other corner of the room.

Lee recovered fast and rushed back to his Jonin instructor bowing down in apology, "I am so sorry Gai-sensei" Lee also started crying anime tears.

"As a punishment and to make sure your flames of youth stay strong you'll do 100 laps around the village on your hands after the Chunin exam is over" Gai spoke placing his hand on Rock Lee's shoulder.

"Sasuke-Kun are you okay?" Sakura asked looking at him worriedly as she helped him get back to his feet.

Sasuke grunted dusting off his clothes, 'How many people are there who are stronger than me even with the Sharingan Dammit! ' he thought, gritting his teeth in anger.

Rock Lee walked towards him, "I am sorry, it was unyoutful of me trying to use a forbidden move on you," he spoke making Sasuke even more frustrated.

"One more thing before I go, I lied about being the strongest" Rock Lee added gaining Sasuke's full attention.

'There's someone stronger than him...How far behind am I?' Sasuke asked himself feeling lost.

"My teammate, he's from the Hyuga clan was the rookie of the year when we graduated, he's the strongest guy participating this year," Lee spoke and turned back walking away from them.

Gai's gaze fell upon Naruto who was looking at him curiously. "You must be Kakashi's genin team" Gai spoke walking towards them.

"Who are you? And how do you know Kakashi?" Sasuke asked stepping front, still frustrated about his loss.

"Oh, me?" Gai grinned pointing his thumb at himself, "I am Kakashi's eternal rival, and I am actually stronger than him." he spoke.

'What?!' Sasuke and Sakura thought looking at him with stupified expressions.

Room 3-C

'They sure are late,' Kakashi thought, leaning against the entrance to the examination room while reading his favorite book.

He closed the book hearing footsteps, and turned towards them with an eye smile "Good, all three of you are here" he spoke in his usual nonchalant way. "Sasuke? What happened to you?" he asked looking at bruises on his face.

"He had a spar with your eternal rival's student, anyways here's my form, we are already late" Naruto spoke handing Kakashi the form and walking past him.

Kakashi looked at Sakura who nodded with a sad expression making him sigh tiredly, 'You have turned that kid into a carbon copy of yourself Gai.. ' he thought facepalming.

He shook his head getting back to the urgent matter at hand "Good thing you decided to participate Sakura, otherwise your team would have been disqualified" he spoke taking their forms.

"SO WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL US THIS BEFORE! " Sakura screeched looking at him in disbelief. Sasuke too looked at him with an annoyed expression.

"Cuz I didn't want the other two forcing you to participate. The exam rounds are dangerous. Be safe in there. All the best you two" Kakashi spoke giving them a mock salute and then vanished in a puff of smoke.

Entering the room, Naruto's eyes fell upon the Sungakure genin team he had confronted the previous day. Seeing the redhead's gaze on him Naruto nodded in recognition walked away.

Gaara nodded back, his face still carrying the emotionless expression. Temari stood there with her curious gaze on him and Kankuro? Well, he just stood there with a scowl on his face, still bitter about the previous encounter.

"SASUKE-KUN!"

Here we go again...' Naruto thought leaning against the wall and sighing disappointedly.

Ino jumped towards Sasuke, latching onto his arm. "I missed you soo much Sasuke-Kun" she spoke gripping his arm tightly.

Sakura latched onto Sasuke's other arm, "GET YOUR HANDS OFF HIM INO-PIG! " she screeched glaring at her.

"YOU GET YOUR HANDS OF MY SASUKE-KUN, FOREHEAD!" Ino screeched, glaring back at her, both the girls shooting lightning at each other with the glares

"WHEN DID HE BECOME YOUR SASUKE-KUN HE IS MY SASUKE-KUN,"

"OH YEAH?!"

"YEAH!"

"DON'T YOU DARE"

Having gathered the attention of all the occupants of the room, the two girls kept screeching at each other with Sasuke struggling to get out of their grips.

"So the loser team made it huh?" Kiba spoke stopping in front of Sasuke who finally escaped from the girls' grip.

"Yeah, I can see your team made it here Kiba" Sasuke spoke, smirking as he saw Kiba gritting his teeth.

"You wanna say that again you smug bastard !?" Kiba spoke walking closer to him with Hinata looking at him worriedly.

"Kiba-Kun, please calm down..." Hinata tried calming him down, embarrassed at seeing everyone's attention on them.

"Creating a scene as always are they? troublesome.." Shikamaru spoke walking towards Hinata, in his usual lazy manner with Choji following behind munching on a bag of chips.

"Hey Hinata, chips?" Choji greeted her with a smile, offering her some of his snacks

"DON'T YOU DARE GET NEAR HIM AGAIN PIG!" Sakura shouted holding pulling Ino away from Sasuke.

"DON'T GET IN BETWEEN ME AND SASUKE-KUN FOREHEAD." Ino screeched back trying to get off Sakura's grip.

"As I said once a loser always a loser you will never beat me," Sasuke said still smirking.

"If you make it to the finals, I am gonna defeat you this time easily Sasuke!" Kiba exclaimed

The other three just stood there disappointed, watching them go at each other.

"Just look at those little brats, pathetic Konoha shinobi," Kankuro said scowling as he looked at the commotion the Konoha rookies were making.

"Not all of them seem to be pathetic," Temari spoke, pointing her finger towards the other corner of the room.

Kankuro's scowl grew deeper seeing the person she was pointing at was Naruto "I'll show that guy his place... next time he won't catch me off guard-" Kankuro started speaking but was cut off by Gaara.

"No," Gaara spoke startling both his siblings. "You won't face him, he is mine"

'Gaara..Kill him for me..'

'Yes mother, I will be a good boy and do as you say '

"Mother wants his blood," he spoke making them take a step away, terrified seeing the sinister smile on his face.

Back with Sasuke and the others.

"You know you should quiet down a bit, you are drawing a lot of attention. " came a voice from behind Sasuke, he turned to see a silver-haired Konoha ninja walking towards them. True to the man's words they were the center of attention, almost every person in the room had their eyes on them.

"You got a problem pal?" Kiba stepped forward, threatening him.

"No no I am just trying to help you fellow leaf ninjas" the man spoke, putting his hands up in a surrendering gesture "... my name is Kabuto Yakushi, you all must be the rookie teams participating this year."

"So what if we are?" Sasuke asked in an annoyed tone, pocketing his hands.

"Easy there I mean no harm" Kabuto replied, glancinng back at the crowd "As I said just trying the help you fellow Konoha shinobi out... I can share some information I have on the other teams with you if you want to know... "

Sasuke raised an eyebrow in curiosity, "How would you do that?".

"Having intel is what I specialize in, don't worry" Kabuto spoke with a smile pulling out a deck of cards.

"So..who do want information on? just give me any little detail about them, I will show you what I got on the person." Kabuto asked.

"Tell me what you have on Rock Lee and his teammate from the Hyuga Clan" Sasuke replied.

"Oh you already have some names and their teammates... that takes all the fun away but, here you go," Kabuto spoke crouching down and shuffling the cards, he then channeled his chakra into the deck of cards and three cards flipped out in front of him and he spoke again, ".. hmm Neji Hyuga is the guy you are looking for, He is the Hyuga clan's prodigy from the clan's branch family, Age -13 years; Specializes in Taijutsu, proficient with his clan's famous taijutsu style Gentle Fist, genjutsu is practically useless against him due to his Byakugan. It says he has successfully completed 54-D ranks and 17-C ranks with his team, he was the rookie of the year for the batch that graduated before you. Really a prodigy huh." Kabuto spoke as the rookies quietly stood there, giving him their full attention. Hinata lowered her head, sad thinking about her cousin and family.

"Well onto his teammates, hmm they are quite interesting too... Higurashi Tenten age-13 years, kunoichi of the year from the same batch. Specializes in using weapons for combat in all short, mid, and long ranges. Then there's the third teammate, the name you mentioned, Rock Lee... also 13 years old, was the dead last of their batch and has no aptitude for ninjutsu or genjutsu."

It was surprising enough that it got Shikamaru curious "What do you mean by no aptitude at all?" he asked.

"Exactly that, none whatsoever" Kabuto replied holding up a card with a photograph of a Rock Lee, with his ridiculous shiny bowl-cut hair and caterpillar-like thick eyebrows. His stats in taijutsu were ridiculously high but non-existent in ninjutsu and genjutsu.

"...There's a team I suggest you all look to for.." Kabuto spoke gaining all their attention back to him. "This team from Sunagakure, they are called the sand siblings, the current Kazekage's children."

"And why do you think we should look out for them?" Sasuke asked getting curious.

"See for yourself," Kabuto flipped 3 cards over from the deck in his hands "Gaara no Sabaku, Age- 11 years old has been a genin for a year. Completed 27-D ranks 12-C ranks and even a B-rank. He was born with his clan's bloodline limit that helps him manipulate sand."

"Why should we be scared of an 11-year-old who can make sand dance huh?" Kiba exclaimed making Shikamaru sigh in disappointment.

'What an idiot he's missing the point as always..'Shikamaru thought and signaled Kabuto to continue.

"His elder sibling Kankuro no Sabaku, Age- 12 years; Specializes in puppeteering and poisons, and the oldest of the three Temari no Sabaku, Age-13 years; She specializes in wind element techniques mainly with a battle fan. The scariest thing about them is that they have returned back from every mission without a single scratch on them." Kabuto looked up to see their different reaction, ranging from curiosity to fear.

He noticed Sasuke looking at him with a questioning. "What do you have on my team?" Sasuke asked getting a nod from Kabuto in reply.

"Sasuke Uchiha Age -12, it says your team has completed 27-D ranks, 6-C ranks and a C-rank turned B-rank, that's impressive; an all-rounder and proficient in all ninjutsu, genjutsu, and taijutsu; awarded rookie of the year for this year's graduating batch. Has awakened his clan's famed bloodline limit the Sharingan." Sasuke smirked listening to this with Ino and Sakura fawning over him.

".. your teammate Sakura Haruno Age-12 years, was the Kunoichi of the year this year with the highest written scores, has a high aptitude for genjutsu and very good chakra control," Sakura raised her chin and folded her arms, looking at Ino with a superior look. Ino just glared at her in response.

"What about their third teammate, the criminal standing away?" Kiba spoke. Hinata lowered her head at the mention of Naruto like that, she never thought Naruto of all people would attack someone like that.

"What? you scared of even that loser?" Sasuke spoke smugly riling him up further.

"Please go ahead and show us," Shikamaru spoke gaining all their attention, "Even I wanna know how he attacked a chunin successfully"

Kabuto nodded and flipped another card "... umm your third teammate, Naruto Uzumaki, Age-14 years, he was the dead last of your batch; has no aptitude for genjutsu... and mid to low-level stats at ninjutsu and taijutsu."

"Hah, what a loser!" Kiba exclaimed.

"Suprising he even got to attend these exams, someone like him would easily get killed here" Kabuto added.

Shikamaru cleared his throat getting Kabuto's attention, "By the way you speak about it, you sound like you have given this exams before."

Kabuto stood up collecting his info cards and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, "Well it's my seventh attempt." he spoke laughing nervoouslly

"Man you must suck! " Kiba exclaimed laughing at Kabuto. Hinata gave Kabuto an apologetic look, he just waved his hand dismissively in reply.

"Or maybe the exams are just that tough because I am not the only one who has to repeat it so many times..." Kabuto spoke glancing over the crowd of ninjas from different villages in the room.

"It doesn't matter I will win the tournament no problem! " Kiba exclaimed trying to hide his nervousness with Akamaru barking in his support.

"Yeah of course Inuzuka!," Sasuke replied, sarcasm clear in his voice.

Kiba was going to reply to the jab but was cut off by a smoke bomb that erupted in the middle of the room.

"Alright maggots quiet down! " came the voice of a tall man wearing a grey Konoha Torture and Investigation department uniform, with a long black trench coat. He had two scars running down his face, with his Konoha forehead protector wore like a Bandana.

"I am Ibiki Morino, the proctor for the first round of the chunin exams "

Chapter End