Hello there, DelTheAUO here!
It's been a while (a month to be exact, unfortunately), college got a little hectic, but I managed to pull this out before it took way too long.
Anyway, let's continue with this story!
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'Still can't believe it was that easy to get this scroll. Either Mizuki did some really good research and had this planned for months in advance, or the security in this village is extremely lacking.' thought Naruto as he ran through the trees and arrived at the clearing where he was instructed to go.
'Alright. Now that we're here, let's see what's in this scroll… Kage Bunshin? That thing is a forbidden jutsu? Strange. That Jounin I saw used it pretty often. And he wasn't trying to hide it either.' he thought and began to read through the scroll, only to get another idea.
Making a cross hand seal, a Kage Bunshin puffed into existence. Remembering the reason of its existence, it took the scroll and ran off somewhere. Meanwhile, the real Naruto summoned another Kage Bunshin that transformed into the scroll.
'And now, we wait.' he thought as he took the fake scroll with him and sat under a tree, awaiting the arrival of the one who assigned him this task.
(About an hour later)
'Okay. How has nobody found me yet? This is about a scroll that has all of this village's secret techniques and literally nobody is bothered? That Old Man should have the entire village looking for the damn thing!' thought our resident Herrscher in irritation.
"Maybe he hasn't noticed that the scroll is missing? After all, you were very thorough with how you took it in the first place. You avoided leaving any traces of your presence there. Although I must admit, the security for one of the village's prized possessions is very lax. The response to it being stolen is even worse." said Mei, as she gave her own observations on this situation.
'I know right? I wonder if- 'he began before he stopped. 'Someone's coming.' he thought as he cut the connection. After a few seconds, the figure of Iruka was revealed.
"Oh, you're finally here. Good. Just take this damn scroll and end the test already." He said, as he picked up the fake scroll and began to walk towards the Chuunin.
"Naruto, you idiot! What made you think that steal- wait, did you say test?" asked Iruka, who's expression went from one of anger to confusion.
"Yeah, I did. Now that you found me, let's go- "he said as he was interrupted by a small whistle of flying projectiles, that flew towards them. Having noticed Iruka simply standing there with that confused expression, Naruto pushed him out of the way, although, the Chuunin hit a tree nearby and suffered a blow to the head, making his senses less efficient. Before he could regain his bearings, two kunai flew from the trees and into the instructor's chest, although not too deeply. The chuunin flak jacket had protected him from a lethal hit.
"Good. You found it. Now hand it over Naruto and you pass the test." said Mizuki as he jumped into the clearing. Iruka, having connected the dots, widened his eyes in realization and tried to move. However, he was losing too much blood and, combined with the head injury, was losing consciousness.
"Naruto…don't…he's…" he barely managed to say before coughing out blood. After looking back at Iruka, he took a few steps away from Mizuki, preparing to run.
'Damnit, he's trying to escape. From the few times I've seen him run, he's extremely fast. I need to do something now.' thought Mizuki in panic. Iruka's intervention had ruined everything. It was supposed to be a quick handover but Iruka had beaten him to it.
"Naruto, hand over the scroll quickly. I'll tell you a secret that your classmates don't know…it's about why people hate you." he said, causing both of Iruka's and Naruto's eyes to widen, with the latter putting up an act.
"Why…they hate me?" asked the boy, with a voice that clearly indicated interest. Iruka, sensing what was about to happen, tried to convince his old friend to keep that secret to himself.
"Don't…please…" were his words before he lost consciousness. Ignoring the incapacitation of his comrade, he focused his attention towards his target.
"Yes. Remember what happened 15 years ago? The Kyuubi attack?" receiving a nod in response. "Well, what you don't know is that the Fourth Hokage didn't kill the Kyuubi. He used a jutsu to- "
"Seal it into me? Yeah. I know. Anything new?" he finished, with a bored expression on his face. Mizuki was shocked. How did he know? "How do you- "
"How did I know? Obvious signs. I was born on the day of the Kyuubi attack. I was born with very unusual marks on my face. And it's not like I couldn't hear the whispers. Do you really think I'm that stupid?" he replied, making Mizuki panic mentally. His plan had failed, so there was only one option left.
Reaching for the giant shuriken on his back, he bent his knees, ready to jump. "In that case…. DIE KYUUBI!" he screamed, as he flung the shuriken at the boy. Mizuki smirked as the weapon whistled through the air towards his target, awaiting the squelching sound and the spray of blood, but was shocked to see the shuriken being sliced in half by a flash of yellow.
The two halves of the shuriken changed direction and impacted two trees behind him. As Mizuki focused his vision, he saw a simple katana…or at least, it would be simple if the blade wasn't glowing a bright yellow.
"You know, the Kyuubi isn't so bad." said the boy as he tapped a small metal circle on his arm. His Battlesuit began to glow for a moment, and revealed itself to be something entirely different.
This new Battlesuit consisted of a black, sleeveless, high collared, top that nearly covered his mouth, with an armoured…skirt-like thing. Black finger-less gloves encased by red armor adorned his arms. Various plates of armor and other straps covered small parts of his legs, with shin length boots, which had wing-like protrusions at the heel. There was nothing covering his back, which revealed a faint red glowing on his back. A flowing red scarf was wrapped around his neck, with the trailing edge appearing to fade like bright Sakura petals. To finish the look, there was a black, fox like mask was placed on the side of his head.
A duplicate of the sword in his right hand appeared in his left and held both in a reverse grip. Taking further notice of the attire, Mizuki couldn't help but smirk.
"So, dressing like a woman makes you think you can defeat me? Think again!" he mocked, as he charged toward his oddly-dressed opponent with a kunai held in his right hand, ready for a stab, who was…suddenly not there. Suddenly, he felt a burning sensation in the hand with the kunai, and immediately let it go. Taking a closer look at the source of pain, he saw a portion of cauterized flesh, surrounded by his burnt shirt.
"You didn't let me finish." Came the voice of the boy from behind him, grabbing his attention. While initially against the idea of wearing the Valkyries' Battlesuits, he had the shame of wearing women's attire beaten out of him by his instructors. In a fight, what you wear doesn't matter, so long as it is an asset, and not a hindrance. Moreover, modifying some of the Valkyries' Battlesuits to fit his needs would be very tedious, since that technology is not very easily replicated in this world of Chakra. Not even with a Herrscher core, or the knowledge of ex-Valkyries and Schicksal engineers that he had access to.
"As I said, the Kyuubi isn't so bad…want to meet him?" he said, enjoying the look of fear on Mizuki's face. "He has a name though, so remember that, will you?"
Raising his hand, he shouted two, very simple words.
"Come, Raigokumaru!"
In a flash of lightning, a new, very distinctly non-human entity appeared. It was about as tall as the height of the ground to half the height of the trees that surrounded them. It was a very dark shade of violet, nearing black, and had sparks emitting from it, indicating it was a lightning beast. But as it was implied, it had the form a fox, with multiple tails.
"You called, young Master?" came the extremely deep voice of the lightning-fox, which indicated that it held power way beyond what its current appearance indicated.
"He is a traitor. Mark him." He said simply. Acknowledging the instruction, the fox slammed a tail at the shell-shocked Mizuki, who couldn't comprehend the fact that this…academy student could summon the actual Kyuubi. And the thing called him master for crying out loud!
After being slammed through a few trees, he barely got up, and tried to muster all his strength to run, scroll be damned. After all, self-preservation of one's own life was human nature. He was stopped before he could run by a firm grip on his shoulder.
"Now, Now. You've been marked already." came Naruto's voice as he poked a mark on his body that was not there before. It primarily appeared as three tomoe, yet, looked oddly different.
"Time for the end." he declared as he jumped back and got into a stance, ready for attack. Bent knees, and his swords in the reverse grip from before. His eyes and the mark glowed together as he dashed in a blur.
The next thing Mizuki saw were three flashes of violet light, similar to a trail as they passed him in different directions, as he was simultaneously lifted into the air.
"Gedo Roppa...kai!" declared Naruto, and slammed into the ground. A burst of lightning erupted from the ground, in a similar pattern to the mark. No scream came from the traitor, who was now badly paralyzed and burned in places, courtesy of the lightning-based attacks used against him.
Dismissing his Battlesuit and donning his original uniform, he picked up the now paralyzed Mizuki, and walked back to Iruka's location, where he was greeted by a handful of ANBU.
"Leave the traitor with us. The Hokage has summoned you." They simply stated as Naruto picked up the (real) scroll and went to the Hokage's office. The clone that he had summoned back then had long-since, achieved its purpose and dismissed itself.
(About an hour later - In the Hokage's office)
"You know, for something this important, I expected you to be a part of the search team as well. Unless you were simply testing them." said Naruto, as he leaned into his seat, with a tone that leaked of disappointment.
"It is the latter in fact. Such a shame, to be honest. A Chuunin found you before the trained 'elites' could? A shame really." said Hiruzen as he lit his pipe.
Taking a puff from the pipe, he decided to get straight to the point. "Since when- "he began, but was promptly interrupted.
"Since when did I know, or when could I summon? Your question will depend whether I give you an answer or not." said the boy. If this was to happen, it would happen on his terms alone. He wasn't going to let the Hokage attempt to interfere anymore.
"Since when could you summon it?" came the question. The answer was straight to the point.
"I am entitled to my own secrets." he replied.
"This is a matter of village security. I cannot be left in the dark about this. If someone finds out- "
"There are a few things that I know you are keeping from me. Such as the identity of my parents. I am willing to offer an exchange of information. You tell me some of your secrets that concern me, and I will give some of the information that you want." he replied with a firm tone. Looks like taking those special lessons on negotiations were coming in handy. Mei's experience was invaluable in these situations.
After having a small clash of wills through their individual gazes, Hiruzen realized that this would take him nowhere. Taking a deep puff of his pipe, Hiruzen leaned back in defeat.
"I'm sorry, but you are not ready yet." he replied. Looks like the exchange wouldn't happen. Taking the response, Naruto stood up from his seat.
"In that case, you aren't ready yet either. If that will be all, Hokage-sama, I will take my leave." he said, as he made his way towards the door.
"Wait Naruto!" said the Hokage, stopping the boy in his tracks. "I…just want you to answer this one question honestly. I am not expecting something an answer that pleases me. Just an honest one. What do you think of this village…and the people?"
"The village? It began with good intentions. Two great rival clans uniting to act a means to end all war. To act as a ray of peace in the dark, war-driven world. Now, it is just a hotspot for civilians to hold more power over the damn ninja who are supposed to run the place." Hiruzen winced at this. It had become apparent to him that the civilian council had been gaining more power by the day, but for this detail to be slammed straight in his face still hurt a little.
"As for the people? No love for them. Couldn't care about what happens to them at all, save a few of them. You're lucky to be one of those few. Good night." he said, and walked out of the door. Leaving a slightly touched Hiruzen. At least the boy hadn't cut all ties with him. He took this as a new beginning to start repairing the bonds with him.
(Time skip-a few weeks later)
"EVERYBODY SHUT UP! YOU ARE ALL BEING ASSIGNED TEAMS TODAY AND THIS IS HOW YOU ACT? I SHOULD SEND YOU BACK TO THE BEGINNING RIGHT NOW!" yelled a now mostly healthy Iruka, while using the notorious Big-Head Jutsu, making the entire class quiet down, and completely forgetting about the reason for the ruckus.
Said ruckus was our protagonist, who appeared a little more different than usual. The dark streaks in his hair had grown exponentially, and was long enough to be put into a short ponytail by a circular ring. His new change in attire was very drastic however, now consisting of a white top, which appeared to be similar to a short dress like garment. The part above his chest and upper back was completely exposed, along with the shoulders, with the exception of four black strips of fabric, that connected to a circular ring around his neck. the rest of his arms were encased in a slightly baggy covering, with the wrists encased in indigo cuffs. Several violet lines spread across the top in an unusual (to the students) pattern. Covering the bottom however, were a pair of very short black shorts. He wore thigh length socks, which had a black gradient to them, and ended with a set of violet pouches.
Two things caused the chaos.
1. The fangirls screaming because there was a new girl that was sitting next to Sasuke before them.
2. Said 'girl', actually being Naruto.
Looks like the natural inheritance of slightly feminine facial features, and having the imprint of a former Herrscher showed itself in…unusual ways. Not that it mattered to him of course.
After getting the class under control, he too noticed the new 'girl' in the class. Before he could question 'her' identity, 'she' simply gave a small smile and motioned for him to carry on.
"Alright class, today you are no longer my students. Instead, a Jounin sensei will be in charge of your respective teams, so my advice to you is to absorb their teachings like a sponge, as they are much more experienced than you, or even me for that matter. Remember to get along with your teammates…." Iruka went on with his graduation speech, but most of the graduates were more interested in their future placements to pay attention.
"Okay, with that out of the way, I have your teams right here. Your Jounin sensei will come to pick you up after lunch. Now Team 1- "
(Time skip)
It had been 4 hours.
4 hours since they returned to the classroom. All the other Jounin had picked up their students and headed off. However, their own Jounin was yet to make an appearance.
"Argh! Where is he?! It's been 4 hours and he still hasn't come!" came the irritated screech of a certain pink haired fangirl, which offended the eardrums of the other two people in the room.
The resident broody avenger tried to ignore the complaint while thinking of two things. How to kill his traitor of a brother, and his evaluation of the third member of their team, who was sitting at the back of the classroom, while examining a simple white katana…or at least that's what it looked like. Recollecting their fight, he remembered the way his opponent moved, the sheer damage that he caused with a simple strike. It was extremely similar to the Hyuuga's Jyuken. But there was no way that the Hyuuga would let their secrets be leaked outside the clan.
Then there were those gauntlets that he had pulled out near the end. The one that stopped the fireball. Now he had decided that those will be his someday. By words, or by force…
Meanwhile, our protagonist was examining his blade, while having a mental conversation. 'You still haven't told me why this weapon is suited for this Battlesuit. Come to think of it, I don't really know much about this Battlesuit, since this is my first official A rank Battlesuit.'
"I should have probably started with that before giving you the Battlesuit. Anyway, it doesn't look like your Jounin is coming soon, so I can explain a bit." began Mei. "This Battlesuit is an Augmented Combat Raiment, and was not developed originally by Schicksal. Its name is Striker Fulminata, named after the numerous Fulminare cores utilized to create this. This was one of the primary reasons I advised you to use it as it is, and not modify it. We cannot afford to tamper with the cores that are there in this." she paused, in order to let her student, take in the information.
"Now, this Battlesuit is meant for delivering multiple quick strikes in succession. It is not meant for damage, but more so for speed. And this is where the weapon comes in. The 3rd Sacred Relic. That is all I will tell you for now. Battle will teach you more." she said, making Naruto mentally sigh. His teacher never gave him the full details about everything, but that was alright with him. He didn't want to be given everything, or else he be over reliant on Mei for each and every situation, which wouldn't help him in the long run.
He was broken out of the conversation by the shrill voice of his new teammate. 'I still can't believe that someone like her managed to pass the tests. Also, I'm still confused as to how we're in the same team. My target was the middle of the class, so that I wouldn't be put with these two. And if I recalled correctly, I had reached that mark.'
"Maybe the Hokage pulled some strings? If he's anything like that damn Overseer, I know he would…" Kiana began ranting, as she recalled certain…unpleasant memories.
"You might have a point about him pulling some strings, but I can tell he isn't anything like that man." said Mei, assuring Kiana that they didn't have another immortality-seeking madman as their superior…
(Meanwhile, in the depths of Otogakure)
A certain Snake Sannin sneezed rather violently, causing him to spill the liquid medicine he was drinking all over him. Cursing at the foul smell of the medicine that Kabuto had made, he went off to change into cleaner clothes, while plotting as to who his next body should be…
(Back to the classroom)
'Anyway, we can't do anything about it. I'll just have to tolerate these two for as long as needed. Unless they do something incredibly stupid. In that case, I could apply for a change of team.' he said. 'As for the Jounin, I have only the information that the Bingo book has on him. Kakashi Hatake of the Sharingan eye, the man who knows a thousand Jutsu… he's qualified for sure, and he was most likely selected to train the Uchiha in using his eyes. His attitude leaves much to be desired however…'
"I agree. This level of tardiness is unacceptable. It's either a regular habit for him, he doesn't think very highly of you three, or it's a test of patience."
'It could be…the others don't seem very patient though. The Uchiha is not outright showing it, but his fists are clenched a little too tightly. As for the pinky…need I say more?'
He would have continued the discussion, had the door not opened, revealing the man who would be guiding them in the ninja art for the coming year at least. He wore the standard Jounin attire, but with a face mask that covered the lower half of his face. How he was able to breathe normally under it would always be a mystery to many people.
"So…you're supposed to be my new team huh." said the man in a voice that lacked any enthusiasm. "I was informed that my team would be consisting of two boys and a girl. Not two girls."
Sakura, having forgotten all about their commanding officer's tardiness corrected him. "Sensei, that girlish looking boy is Naruto-Baka!" she said, while pointing at the boy, who was looking at the new arrival, analyzing him from head to toe.
"Hmm…so a crossdresser who looks like a girl, an emo kid who needs to get out more, and a fangirl who blows out your eardrums. What joy." he said sarcastically. "Meet me at training ground 7." he ordered and vanished in a Shunshin.
Putting his sword into the horizontal sheath on his lower back, Naruto got up from his seat and went outside, leaving his teammates in the room. As soon as he was out of sight, he sped off in a streak of violet lightning. By the time the other two had left the room, he was long gone. Putting his shock at his peer's speed aside, Sasuke put his hands in his pockets and walked off, as Sakura followed him like a lost puppy.
(At the training ground)
Kakashi was nonchalantly reading his book, while thinking about the team he was assigned. The Last Uchiha in the village? Most likely to train his eyes. The fangirl? Apparently, a top student, however her attitude stated otherwise. And the last one…was an unknown, well, except for the fact that he was the Jinchuuriki. For what reason he was assigned to this team, the Copy-ninja would never know. Placed in the middle of the class, which completely went against tradition, yet a lot more than what he showed, seeing as he was the first to get there, and only a few minutes after he himself had arrived.
"Your teammates seem awfully slow huh." said Kakashi, attempting to strike a conversation, possibly get to know some more information. After all, he had a brief idea of how he was treated as a Jinchuuriki.
"Seems so." was the simple reply. 'Not much of a talker. Worth a try at least.' he thought, and noticed the small book that was in the young Genin's hand. "Oh? What book are you reading, if you don't mind me asking? I read too." he said, showing the book in his hand.
"It's a book on weapons. I would like to keep the contents to myself." said the boy before Kakashi even had an opportunity to ask.
"Maa maa, I was just asking…"
(Half an hour later)
The three Genin stood in front of their commanding officer, waiting for further instructions. "Alright, so before we begin, I will tell you one thing. You are not Genin yet." said Kakashi, who received looks of shock from his 'students'.
"But sensei, we already gave the Genin exams, we're more than ready!" complained Sakura, only to receive a fierce glare from their sensei's lone eye.
"If you thought that those tests were enough to make you ready of the world out there, then you should quit now. What will await you is death on your first mission." the fierceness was quickly replaced by an eye smile.
"Now, back to more pleasant news, if you can clear my test, then you become Genin!" her eyes lit up. "But the success rate is only 33%. If you fail, you will be sent back to the academy!" her face fell into shock again.
"Now…let's begin with the rules…"
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I was super tempted to do the test, but I wanted to get this chapter out soon, since I had kept you all waiting for a while. I'm unsure how long it will be until the next chapter, but will try to get it out ASAP.
This time, more A rank Battlesuits that you may recognize (if you've read until now, you'll probably recognize them. And if someone says that the Ranger Uniform that he wore before was an A rank as well, it wasn't really a Battlesuit in that case.) Some new weapons were brought here too, and expect to see more soon!
As usual, Review Please! Positive feedback is very much welcome, constructive criticism will be accepted, but flames will be ignored.
I reply to questions in PMs, so if you want to ask anything, feel free to ask under the reviews.
As usual, please let me know if the quality of writing has declined since the last chapter. That way, I'll see if there's a way I can improve the next one.
Thanks for reading this chapter!
DelTheAUO, Out.
