Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, Kishimoto does. Also any series referenced in the story, yeah I don't own them either.

Author's note: This is actually an idea I adopted from TheBeardedOne, a really good author in my opinion. Also no I'm not being a kiss ass. Although I wish more of his stories would enter Shippuden. So yeah I adopted the different path plot bunny and decided to put my own twist on it. The first chapter is going to basically be an altered version of the plot bunny, after that the real fun begins. I must cover a few things first. First off, the graduation age for Naruto's class was fourteen. So Naruto and the other rookies are 14, while team nine are 15. Second, Naruto isn't going to be a super hyper idiot, instead he will be smarter, and calmer in battle. He will also insult his enemy at times to set them off. Third, there is a slight multi crossover element, with the addition of Naruto's new Taijutsu style. He will be learning Black Leg Style from one Piece I just like the style. I will also use it to introduce Haki (Don't worry, no conqueror or future sight, just Armament and basic observation) As well as a few other styles from other anime will be mentioned in this chapter. Although his Kenjutsu style will be homemade. Also, his summons will come from another series all together. I have nothing against the toads, I rather like them. But I wanted Naruto to have something from his clan, thus I gave the Uzumaki clan a seriously powerful summon contract. Finally, the Kumo incident never happened, but Hizashi still died. But he died on a mission instead, so Neji isn't a total asshole. He acts more like his Shippuden version

Speech - Well hey there Iruka-sensei

Thought - So what's the best move here.

Bijuu / Summon Speech - I'll show you some serious honor bound duty!

Bijuu / Summon Thought - Kit, show me that you're different from other humans.

Technique - Rasengan!

Text - I have sent this friendly little letter to inform you.

(Note) - (A note looks like this)

Chapter 1, The Path Deviates.

Naruto sighed as he looked out over Konoha from atop the cliff holding the faces of the four Hokages of Konoha. Sure, he was going to become Hokage someday. He knew that, but entering the Chunin exam, he wasn't so sure that he was ready.

His mind drifted back to the mission that he and his team (team, ha!) had completed in the Land of Waves. During the mission, all he had learned was tree-walking. Sasuke had managed to awaken his shining… shoring… Sharingan, that was it, giving him a massive boost. Even Sakura had come out better with her perfect chakra control and Kakashi-sensei giving her taijutsu tips, but what had he learned?

Tree walking. And he still wasn't very good at doing it. His only real Jutsu was his Shadow Clone and they were only really good for weakening an enemy since they burst too easily. He was in no way ready for the Chunin exams.

He needed to learn more Jutsu, but how? Kakashi kept refusing to teach him, spending time helping Sasuke with his fire jutsu and Sakura would simply pound him again. Naruto sighed. He just wasn't ready. Unless he used the Kyuubi's chakra as he did on the bridge, he was hopeless. Even Sakura could beat him in taijutsu and she was using the basic Academy style, not the advanced form that Mizuki had. Naruto froze before he snarled, as he finally made a connection that he really should have made months ago. He was the only one who taught that style and almost everyone could beat him in a spar. Mizuki had taught him a bad style and only his pain tolerance and sheer stamina got him through the real fights. There was no choice.

Until he got better, until he learned a proper style and got some more Jutsu to use, he just wasn't ready for promotion. He would send a shadow clone to wish his so-called teammates good luck while he would train.

Naruto rested his chin on his hands and he began to make a mental list of what he needed to do. He would need to find a new Taijutsu style, one that would suit him. Maybe something with a lot of kicks, he always hated punching, preferring to kick when he could. He would also need to learn more chakra control exercises, but where could he get the knowledge? Then it hit him, Iruka-sensei would be willing to help him. He could go see him tomorrow. He could also search the library for a proper Taijutsu style. Luckily the librarian was one of the few who didn't blame him for the Kyuubi attack.

Naruto nodded as he rose from his seat, unaware that his decision had just changed the course of the future.


(The Next Morning)

The alarm sounded and Naruto pulled himself out of bed, yawning. Getting up, he staggered into the bathroom and switched on the shower, letting the shock of the cold water finish waking him up as he reached for the lye soap. Wincing at its harshness, he scrubbed himself all over to get clean, then switched off the shower and wrapped a towel around his waist as he headed for the kitchen to make his breakfast. As he did so, he glanced at the calendar.

"Urgh, I need to do some training, but where. Iruka would know where a quiet place is! Maybe practice my kunai throwing, I suck at it." The whistling of the kettle caught his attention and he quickly turned off the stove before pouring the hot water into a pot of instant ramen.

"Instant Ramen, why do they call it instant." He groused, slowly stirring it. "Should be called three-minute ramen, not instant ramen, why does this take so long! Why do three minutes pass like a damned three hours waiting for Kakashi-sensei? Grrrrr." After far too long for the blond's liking, the ramen was finally ready and he grabbed a pair of chopsticks. "Itadakimasu!"

As he ate he couldn't help but think. "As good as Ramen is, I should learn how to cook. What old man Teuchi said to me a couple of days ago is probably true. If I only eat ramen then I won't grow any taller. I could always use the Transformation to buy the things I need to cook."

Within a minute, the cup was empty and Naruto threw it into the bin. "Ahh, that hit the spot. Alright, time to get dressed and then find Iruka-sensei Dattebayo!"


Iruka sighed as he worked his way through the folders arrayed on the desk before him. Although the Chunin exams were about to happen (and the Academy had been temporarily closed down for the first stage), the paperwork was still somehow piling up. He would even take having to deal with another prank by Naruto rather than…

"Iruka-sensei!" Iruka looked up as Naruto pulled himself in through the window. "Heya, Iruka-sensei, I've been looking for you!"

Iruka smiled as he said. "Naruto, I'm afraid that I have a deadline, so I can't treat you to…"

Naruto interrupted Iruka. "Nah, don't want that at the moment." that sentence caused Iruka to stare at him in shock. "I need some advice, Iruka-sensei. My chakra-control still sucks even though I can tree-walk. What other exercises are there?"

Iruka leaned back, rubbing his chin thoughtfully as Naruto performed one of the best Puppy Dog Eyes no Jutsu he had ever seen a male perform. Honestly, it was better than some of the fangirls he had seen use it. Probably because of the whiskers. The only girl he had seen in the academy who could do better was Hinata. "Well, the next stage is generally water-walking. It's like tree-walking but takes more chakra and you have to keep changing the amount because the water keeps flowing."

Naruto exclaimed with a grin. "Right! Water walking! That'll help with my chakra control and learning more jutsu dattebayo!"

Iruka frowned slightly. "Naruto, after, that night, I did some research into the Shadow Clone. Did you know that when a clone dispels, everything it learns gets sent back to the original and any other clones?" Naruto looked at him blankly and Iruka sighed. "Look, make a clone for me."

A puff of smoke marked the appearance of a second Naruto and Iruka rose. "Okay, original Naruto, stay here, clone, with me."

Naruto nodded and sat down as Iruka and his clone walked out the door. A moment passed, then Naruto blinked as Iruka re-entered. "Excellent! I'll head there to do it!"

"Head where?"

Naruto stared at him as if he'd gone mad. "The small lake you just told me about."

"I told your clone about it." Iruka pointed out and Naruto's eyes widened so much that Iruka thought that they were about to fall out of their sockets.

"Whoa! That's cool! Freaky, but cool!"

Iruka shrugged. "It'll help with your chakra control. Make fifty clones to do tree-walking and fifty to do water-walking. Every five minutes or so, dispel the best clone of each, and the memories of how to do it should help all the other clones do it better. Once all the clones are gone, you should be good at both. Just don't dispel too many at once or the influx of memories might knock you out."

"Whoah." Naruto breathed, then he lunged forwards and hugged Iruka. "Thanks! I knew that you'd be able to help me with that! Thanks, Iruka-sensei! You're much better at teaching than Kakashi-sensei!" Before Iruka could respond, Naruto had released him and dived out of the window.

"I hope he remembers that he has the chunin exam today." Iruka sighed as he sat back down. PPPPPHHHhhhttthhhhhhttttttt!

Iruka sighed, then stood up. Lifting the cushion, he pulled out a now-deflated whoopee cushion that had been concealed beneath it. Looking at the whiskered chibi drawn on it, a figure giving the victory sign, he sighed with a wry grin. "Alright, he got me."


Naruto was in the shinobi section of the library browsing through Taijutsu scrolls. He wanted to find one that would work best for him. Nearby was Lilith Levi, the retired kunoichi in charge of the Shinobi section. She had never judged Naruto for being a Jinchuruki. Currently, she was giving Naruto some advice.

"So you want a Taijutsu style revolving around kicks huh. Well, we don't have many of those." She placed his finger on her cheek as she started to think. "Well, actually I think I know one that might suit you well. But it's pretty old and no one uses it, because it is all kicks. Most shinobi tend to use both their hands and legs in a fight."

Lilith left for a few minutes before coming out with an old scroll and handed it to naruto who opened it and started looking through it. Not noticing Lilith smile and nod. She was right about her thoughts, it was the perfect style for him. "It's called Black Leg Style. It was developed by a fighting sea cook. It relies entirely on kicks as he was quoted saying. "How would I cook if I ruined my hands?"

Naruto looked through the scroll and smiled. He didn't know why, but this style just seemed to call to him. "Is it possible to get a copy?"

Lilith smiled. "Of course Naruto-san. I'll make you a copy real quick."


"Hey, boss, watcha doin'?"

"Hey, Konohamaru, Moegi, Udon." Naruto smiled at the trio of kids who were jogging up after him. "Training, tree-walking, and water-walking, once I grab a swimsuit."

"Cool! Can we come?" Konohamaru asked and Naruto raised an eyebrow.

"Well, okay, I'll teach you tree-walking when we get to the lake. You know where the small lake is near the training area 32?" Naruto asked and Konohamaru nodded. "Good, meet me there in half an hour and I'll get you started on learning tree-walking which helps you with your chakra control and stealth. After all, very few people look up."

To make his point, Naruto placed his foot on the wall of the building and then, concentrating hard, walked up the side of it until he was on the roof. Looking down, he smiled at the shocked expressions of the three children. "Well, get moving dattebayo!"

"Yes, sensei!" All three chorused before sprinting off. Naruto chuckled and leaped across the alley, heading for his apartment.


Arriving at the lake, Naruto quickly set up several long stakes, attaching a sheet to them to make a shielded training area. Pausing in thought, he performed his favorite Jutsu and sixty clones appeared. "You," Naruto said pointing to one, "Head to the academy, when Teme and Sakura show up, join them and wish them good luck, then dispel. The rest of you, start tree-walking, except you two. You're on timing duty. I want you to see which clone is the best and have it dispel after ten minutes, you're on trees and you will be water. You six stay to one side, you'll be teaching Ko and his friends tree-walking when they arrive."

"Yes, boss!" The clones shouted, then they split up to begin as Naruto darted into the shelter to change into his swimming trunks. Once he had done so, he moved to the edge of the small lake and summoned another fifty clones. "Water-walking!" He commanded. "Are you ready to start timing?"

"Sure boss." Said the clone that had ambled over to join them, a big grin on its face. "This should be fun!"

"Yeah, yeah." Naruto sighed, then he started to focus his chakra.

"Whoa! We never spotted that before!" one of his clones marveled. Naruto blinked and looked down at his stomach where an odd spiraling seal was fading.

"Oh, that. That must be the seal that the Yondaime sealed the Kyuubi into. Just ignore it."

"The Kyuubi? Cool!" A younger voice crowed and Naruto facepalmed.

"Konohamaru, you're early."

"You have the Kyuubi sealed away? That's awesome!" Konohamaru said as he dragged his friends to the water's edge.

Naruto sighed as he said. "It's not that great. It's why so many hate me, they don't see me, they see it. The Yondaime sealed it away with the greatest seal he'd ever made so that it couldn't escape, but…" Naruto looked away with a frown. "The village blames me for what Kyuubi did."

Konohamaru frowned as he replied. "That's just dumb, you're the boss. You're not the Kyuubi."

Naruto shrugged but couldn't help but smile hearing what Konohamaru said.

Udon leaned forwards as he studied the seal. "That's amazing. I am so going to learn how to do that."

"It's called Fuuinjutsu. I'll probably end up learning how to use it eventually. Would be very useful." Naruto supplied, then he blinked and turned to the other trunk-clad clones crowding around. "Oy! Water walking, remember?!"

The clones promptly scrambled to the edge of the lake and soon a near-constant stream of splashes and cut-off swearing started to echo across the lake. Naruto sighed again. "Okay you three, I have six clones over there who will help you. They'll support you until you get the chakra right in your feet and catch you if you fall. Go on."

"Thanks, boss!" Konohamaru shouted as the trio ran towards the waiting clones.

Naruto turned his attention to the lake. "Now, focus chakra, push it through my feet and…glub! Bleurgh! Dammit! This is way harder than tree-walking dattebayo!"


One of the clones supporting Konohamaru explained what he had to do. "Now, channel your chakra through your feet and into the tree..Once you think you have it, try to pull your foot away to check that it's sticking."

"This is easy… whoa! Thanks." Konohamaru glanced across to the next tree, where Moegi had just been caught as she slipped off the trunk. The clones re-positioned her so that her feet were pressed against the bark and, frowning in concentration, she started to slowly walk up the tree again.

"This isn't so hard… whoa!" Konohamaru looked the other way just in time to see the pair of clones assigned to Udon catch the plummeting boy.

As he tried to calm down, the clones carefully repositioned him. "You're doing good. Keep going until you get tired, then stop for a rest."

Konohamaru made the Ram sign with his hands and felt his Chakra flowing towards his feet. "Okay…" He whispered and carefully took one step up the branch, then a second and a third. "Yes! Aaargh!" The clones caught him as he dropped and he smiled at them. "Thanks."


Naruto leaped for joy as he stood atop the water. Only fifteen clones had been dispelled before the accumulated experience let him reach the point where he no longer had to concentrate. His remaining tree-climbing clones were all moving easily up and down the trees and along the underneath of the branches as if the oddly-angled surfaces were simply the flat ground.

From one side, the young trio watched in amazement. "See, I told you that Boss was awesome." Konohamaru exalted as he wiped the sweat off his brow. "He taught us how to tree-walk in one day, who else could have done that?"

"Yeah, he's cool," Moegi admitted, then she sighed. "But I'm exhausted, how do I get home?"

"My clones can carry you back," Naruto said as he walked towards the changing area to put his normal clothes back on. "Just direct them to where you need to go."

"Thanks, boss," Konohamaru said as he let one of the clones pick him up and place him on the back of another clone. "Hokage mansion! Away!"

"Hush you." Laughed the clone as it started to jog off.

"Thanks, boss!" Udon called as he was carried away and Moegi waved as she left. Naruto smiled and looked around. "Alright, dispel five at a time," Naruto shouted and the poof's of dispelling clones soon filled the clearing. Naruto closed his eyes as the memories flooded in, then he smiled as they settled down.

"Damn, that's a lot of tree-climbing and water walking. Well, that means that I now have a better chance of learning new jutsu. Well, since my memories show that Teme and Sakura have entered the exam, I guess I should try and see if any D-rank missions need doing, I need the money."

Naruto paused and looked up at the sky. "I think I'll get some Ramen instead. Ichiraku's, here I come!" Laughing he ran out of the clearing, then after a few moments, he re-entered it, muttering under his breath. "Can't believe that I forgot the sheet, I can't afford to leave it behind, tonight will be too cold without it, brr."


"Hey, old man, Ayame-nee-san! One Naruto special please!" Ayame stared at him in shock and Naruto shifted under her gaze. "What? Have I got something on my forehead?"

"Naruto?" Teuchi asked as he emerged from the kitchen area. "What are you doing here? I thought you had entered the chunin exams?"

Naruto sighed, looking down at the counter. "Nah. I'm not ready for them yet. Haven't learned enough, all I've got is my Shadow Clone. Teme has his Sharingan and fire jutsu while Sakura can think her way through anything and has perfect chakra control. Me, I'll just hold them back."

Ayame and Teuchi exchanged a long glance, then Ayame spoke. "Dad, you get the Ramen started. I got this."

"Okay." As Teuchi vanished back through to the kitchen, Ayame leaned forwards, resting her elbows on the counter. "So, how did the other two take your absence?"

Naruto sighed as he said. "I sent a clone to give my best to them, but Sakura and the Teme refused to listen to it. I don't know why we're still regarded as a team, I mean, the only time we work together is when we're about to be killed. What sort of teamwork is that? Sakura keeps punching me, Sasuke never speaks more than three words at a time and usually just grunts. Kakashi only ever bothers to teach the two of them." He shook his head. "Well since Kakashi doesn't want to bother to teach me, then I will just learn myself. Which reminds me." Naruto blushed as he said. "Um, could you or old man Teuchi help me learn how to cook? I can't always just eat ramen."

Ayame smiled as she said. "Sure Naruto-kun, I'll teach you how to cook."

"Naruto?" A female voice gasped and Naruto spun round to find three people his age staring at him in shock.

"Hey, Kiba, Hiya Shino, hello… hello… I know we used to be in the same class, what's your name again?"

"Hinata." The girl half-whispered.

Naruto grinned as he said. "Well, Hinata you have a very pretty name." Hinata began to blush upon hearing this, while Kiba snickered.

"Hey man, where were you?" Kiba asked. "I couldn't see you at the exam at all after the girls leaped at Sasuke."

"I decided I wasn't ready, so I stayed away." Naruto shrugged. "I sent a clone to wish the other two luck, but they didn't listen."

"Man, that blows!" Kiba snarled. "You mean the other two got to take the exam without you? We were told by Kurenai-sensei that all three were needed before we could enter."

"I'm sorry…" Hinata whispered, staring at the ground and Kiba shook his head. "Yeah, well, fortunately, the scar-head was lying about never taking the exam again. We'll just have to get you stronger for next time."

"What happened?" Naruto asked curiously.


(Earlier with Naruto's clone that was sent to inform his team)

"Where is that Baka?!" Sakura half-shouted, glaring around.

From his perch on the railing of the small bridge, Sasuke just shrugged. "Maybe we should just leave him behind."

Sakura growled. "We're ready for this, even if the baka isn't."

Sasuke dropped onto the bridge with another grunt. Placing his hands in his pockets, he started to walk towards the Academy and Sakura quickly followed. A moment later, Sakura overtook him. "Come on! We need to run to get there on time!"

Sasuke pulled out his pocket-watch and glanced at it, then broke into a sprint. "Dammit, if waiting for him costs me my chance at promotion, I'll kill the dobe!"

As the Academy came into view, Sakura snarled at the sight of a familiar orange-clad figure waiting by the door. "Dammit! He knew to meet us at the bridge!"

Sasuke snarled. "Probably wanted us to fail so that he could pass."

"Hey, guys, I…" The figure started, only to stop as Sakura grabbed his collar.

"Shut up and come on!"

"Hey, wait, you don't understand… glrk!"

Working together, Sakura and Sasuke dashed up the two flights of stairs dragging the protesting form of their team-mate behind them. At the door to room 301, a familiar figure was waiting for them.

"Just in time, another thirty seconds and you'd have been disqualified," Kakashi said, not looking up from the orange book he was reading. "Go on, the test is waiting for you and it's a good thing you are all here as if one of you had decided not to come, none of you could have participated."

Sakura snarled at the protesting blond as she shoved him through the door. "You almost cost us our chance!" As Sasuke followed them through, the door closed and locked behind them.

"Sasuke!" Ino barreled through, knocking Sakura sideways as she latched onto Sasuke, then a voice sounded.

"Enough! Everyone grab a number and get to a seat, NOW!"

Sakura grabbed a ticket from the proffered fishbowl and scurried to her seat. Once she sat down, she glanced around. "That's odd," she thought, 'What happened to Naruto? His eye-burning orange should be easy to spot, but I can't see him? Oh well. It's not as if he'd be of any use to us. Not compared to Sasuke."

"Welcome to the first stage of the chunin exams." The intimidating figure at the front of the examination hall growled. "I am Ibiki, the main Proctor of this stage. The rules are simple. You start with ten points per team and each time you are caught cheating, your team loses two points. Once a team has lost all its points, it will be removed from the exams. There is no appeal, the examiners' decision is final. You will answer the first nine questions and in one hour, you will have the choice of answering the tenth question, although different rules will apply. You may begin!"

Sakura gulped and turned over the first page of her sheet. 'Well, these questions are advanced, but I know the answers. Oh, I hope that Naruto doesn't screw things up trying to cheat, we all know what a klutz he is…"


"Byakugan," Hinata whispered as she activated her Kekkei Genkai. Without moving, she let her gaze drift around the room. "Aha, Sakura is already answering the questions, I can copy off her and… what? Where's Naruto? I know that I saw him come in, but I can't see him! What's going on? Has he been thrown out already, and if he was, why are Sakura and Sasuke still here? I don't understand!"


At the front of the room, Morino Ibiki frowned as he counted the students yet again. "154 of the seats are filled, but there should be 155 given that two of those seated are planted chunin for others to copy off. 87 people from Konoha, 30 from Suna, 21 from Ame, 6 each from Kusa and Taki, and a team of 3 from the new village of Otogakure, so which group is missing one? I can see both the chunin, so I know that they're not the problem… dammit, I hate it when things don't add up properly."


Sasuke activates his Sharingan. From where he was sitting in the back row, he could see Sakura's right arm and he used his Sharingan to duplicate the movements, letting his arm copy her work. "I guess that she can be useful after all." He mused with a small smirk on his face as he finished filling in the ninth question. Deactivating his Sharingan, he looked around, then frowned. "Where the hell did the dobe end up? I am not going to get thrown out because that idiot panicked about the test. Heh, chances are that he wouldn't even be able to put his name down correctly."


"How troublesome." Shikamaru thought, glancing around covertly. "I know that I saw Naruto come in, then Ino sent him flying and he must have done a Shunshin or something as he vanished in a cloud of smoke, but where did he go? Did he simply step out to avoid this test or something?' No answer presented itself and Shikamaru turned his attention back to answering the questions. 'What a drag."


Ibiki snarled, his frustration at having failed to work out which team was undermanned evident in his voice. "Time's up, put your pencils down. It's time for the final question. Fail this question and you'll be banned from participating in a chunin exam ever again. Quit now and your team will go with you, but your team will be allowed to try again later. Now, how many of you think that you can pass, because the nine questions you've answered are easy compared to the tenth!"

Ibiki glared at the remaining genin, slowly ratcheting up the killing intent until one of the Suna genin cracked. "Sorry guys, but…"

The unfortunate genin was the stone that triggered the avalanche and Ibiki hid his smirk as the number of departing genin grew. After a few moments, the flow decreased and he looked at the remaining group. "Heh, only ten teams remaining… although one of them is the Kami-damned team of two. Ah well, may as well end it now, or Anko will be whining about how I'm spoiling her fun."

Ibiki growled. "All right, The tenth question… you all pass."

For a moment, everyone was silent, then the pink-haired girl slammed up into a standing position. "WHAT?"

Ibiki smirked as he said "You all pass, This was a test to see if you were willing to take the risks required to finish a mission. When you go out there, you won't have all the information you need, and sometimes the client will lie to you."

Ibiki pulled off his bandana and several of the genin turned white at the sight of the scars and holes on his shaven scalp. "I gained these scars because my team was given false information and we were ambushed. I was tortured for information, but I didn't break. You didn't break…"

CRASH!

Ibiki blinked as a banner unfurled in front of him even as the broken glass from the window finished hitting the floor and he sighed as he donned his bandana again. Reaching out, he moved the banner aside and stepped forwards, glaring at the lady who had made such a dramatic entrance through the now-glassless window. "Anko, you're early."

The shorter woman smirked at him as he glanced at the banner that proclaimed her to be the sexy and single proctor of the second exam, Mitarashi Anko, then she turned her attention to the staring genin. "Heh, ten teams, huh? You pruned them back for me. Alright, scumbags, the next test is at training area 44, follow me!"

Before Ibiki could say anything, Anko had dived out of the window, followed by several of the genin while the rest piled out through the door. "Collect the papers and compare them to the list." Ibiki directed the chunin proctors. "Find out which team was missing one of their members. If it was a Konoha team, their jounin-sensei and I are going to talk."


"I'm sorry," Hinata muttered sadly for the dozenth time, refusing to look up at her two team-mates. "I'm not strong enough yet, I'm holding you back…"

Shino and Kiba exchanged glances, then Kiba sighed. "It's okay. We'll help you get stronger, then we can participate in the next exams."

"I agree." Shino droned. "Why you ask? Although I am advanced in my clan's techniques, I am unconvinced that I am strong enough to advance given that we have been genin for only half a year."

"I still let you down," Hinata whispered, then she looked up as a familiar voice said something. " Kurenai-sensei…"

"Ibiki?" Kurenai asked, her red eyes filled with understanding and Hinata nodded, her gaze dropping back down to the ground.

"I cracked and couldn't take the pressure. I'll drag Kiba and Shino down."

Kurenai knelt in front of Hinata. "Hinata, that lie was supposed to do that. It just shows that you know you're not ready to be a chunin Hinata. I'm proud of you."

"Really?"

"Yes Hinata, that question was meant to simulate whether you could accept a mission that if you failed would get your team killed. If you're not certain that you can do a mission, you shouldn't accept it." Kurenai said, then she glanced up at a bird flying overhead. "Something's come up and I need to get going. You two, get Hinata home safely and I'll see you all tomorrow at ten for a mission and training."

"Sure thing, sensei!" Kiba replied as Shino nodded silently. As Kurenai strode off, the trio resumed their progress...


After hearing the story from the three Naruto flinched. "Damn, if I had gone I would have likely just dragged down Teme and Sakura. I guess it was for the best that I didn't go." Hinata seemed to deflate more before Naruto placed his hand on her head. She looked up to see him smiling. "It's okay Hinata, I think you did well. I mean come on, so what if you got psyched out. It just means you guys will be more prepared for the next exam. Not to mention it's not like you were the only one. You guys said only ten teams passed that part."

Kiba frowned as Akamaru barked. "You're right buddy."

Naruto looked at Kiba. "Kiba, do you mind translating for us that don't speak dog?"

"Akamaru asked how those two were able to get into the exams without you."

"Dunno." Naruto shrugged, turning to the bowl of ramen that had been placed on the counter. "I thought it was either Kakashi being a lazy git like normal or the other ninja trying to ignore me again. Didn't seem at all unusual to me."

As he picked up his chopsticks, a puff of smoke erupted by his side to reveal the form of Kakashi. "Hey, sensei. Fancy a bowl?"

"Naruto…" Kakashi growled, grabbing him by his collar.

"What?" Naruto yelped as they vanished.

"What just happened?" Kiba asked after a silent moment. Hinata and Shino both shrugged, confused as he was. Hinata couldn't help but worry for Naruto though.


(At the forest of death, a few minutes earlier)

The gates slammed shut behind the genin vanishing into the forest and Anko pulled out a wrapped stick of Dango, only to pause as one of the chunin appeared. "What?"

"We just counted the forms, Anko-san." The chunin said nervously. "There's twenty-nine of them."

"So?" Anko shrugged, then her brows furrowed.

"Hang on… that means that there's a team that isn't three, but only two. How the hell did that happen? Who bailed?"

"It's worse than that." A voice said from behind her and Anko looked round. "Oh, hi, Ibiki. Worse?"

"We know who the missing genin is." Anko raised an eyebrow, then looked at the ten Jonin from the various villages arrayed behind Ibiki. "Uzumaki Naruto."

Hatake Kakashi dropped his book as all the other Jonin turned to stare at him. "What?!"

"You passed two of your team through instead of stopping them at the door, Kakashi," Ibiki growled, transfixing Kakashi with his glare.

"All three of them were there!" Kakashi protested and Ibiki shook his head. Anko looked up from the pile of forms.

"I don't have a form for the Uzumaki brat. Got one for the Uchiha and the screaming fangirl, though. What the hell is going on?"

"Shadow Clone," Ibiki stated. "I watched the recording, one of Naruto's Bunshin entered the room and was dispelled. What were you thinking, Kakashi? I know you can tell the difference between a clone and a genin."

"Ummm, well…"

"Find him and bring him here. Now!" Ibiki stated and Kakashi vanished in a sealless shunshin.

"Damn, the copycat got pranked?" Anko whistled and Ibiki sighed.

"We all did and now it's too late to interfere. I need to know why the kid did that."

"My ramen!" A voice protested as Kakashi reappeared and dropped Naruto onto the ground. "Dammit, sensei, I paid for that! You owe me another bowl of ramen dattebayo!" Several sniggers alerted the irate teen to the fact that he was in the company of multiple high ranking jounin and he looked around. "Sensei, what's going on…?"

"Well," Kakashi said grumpily, "It would seem that you've broken the rules and left the test half-way through."

"What?" Naruto yelped. "I never entered! I sent a clone to wish Sakura and the Teme good luck, that was all!"

"You never entered?" Ibiki repeated, causing Naruto to gulp nervously upon noticing him. "Why would you not want to be promoted? After all, you want to be Hokage, right?"

"Hell yeah!" Naruto half-shouted, then he looked at the ground. "And I can't be Hokage if I suck, I need way more training and Kakashi doesn't give it to me!" Everyone stared at Kakashi as Naruto continued his rant. "I have to work with a girl who has the idea that saying hello is to punch me and a Teme best described as. What did Moegi call him? Ah yes, that's right, Duckbutt McGrumpypants!" Several of the assembled Jonin quickly smothered their laughter. "Dammit, we're not even a team! Sakura's constantly mooning over the Teme and refusing to train because it'll wreck her figure, as if she isn't more flat-chested than I am, while the Teme is so transfixed on killing his brother that if it doesn't give him power, he doesn't want to know! The only reason he puts up with being around me is that he can test his taijutsu on me since I don't go down easy, and he's got worse since getting those red eyes of his! He's got the Sharingan and loads of Jutsus, Sakura's got perfect chakra control and enough brains to think through anything, all I have is clones and stubbornness! That isn't enough! If I'm going to be a chunin, I need more than that!"

"You have more than that…'' Kakashi protested, only for Naruto to glare at him.

"Yeah, I have tree-walking from you and water-walking from Iruka-sensei this morning. Shadow Clone, Transformation, Substitution that works maybe one time in ten, tree, and water-walking. That's fucking it! Thanks to Mizuki, my taijutsu sucks and I can't get help because you're too Kami-damned lazy!"

Kakashi struck out at Naruto as he screamed the end of his rant, knocking him unconscious, then he looked around him. "It's not that bad, honestly."

"It does explain why Konohamaru was going on about learning tree-walking from Naruto earlier, though," Hiruzen said, walking around the group and looking down at Naruto. "Kakashi, I am disappointed…"

"I'll punish Naruto, you don't need to," Kakashi said quickly, only to stop as Hiruzen glared at him.

"As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted, I am disappointed in you, Kakashi. As a Jonin-sensei, you are meant to help them to progress but from what Naruto has said, you have failed in that. Even if that wasn't the case, your failure to ensure all three of them entered together have already left a very large black mark on your record."

"Hokage-sama…"

"No," Hiruzen stated. "Irrespective of whether they reach the tower or not, your other students will not be allowed to advance and will be pulled from the exam. Furthermore, the future of Team 7 will rely entirely on their reaction to this and you will not be allowed to interfere. Understand?" Kakashi nodded slowly. "Good."

"Arrrgh." Naruto moaned. "What hit me?"


The gate closed behind them as Sasuke and Sakura dashed into the forest. Running up one of the trees just inside the boundary, they paused.

"Alright," Sasuke grunted. "We don't have the dobe to slow us down, so we head out and find another team. We follow them until they fight and we see which team wins while I use my Sharingan to copy their jutsu. Once the fighting is over, we follow the winners and attack them for the scroll, then head for the tower."

Sakura nodded, her mind filled with amazement at Sasuke's brilliance. Sasuke saw her nod and leaped to the next branch, Sakura hot on his trail.


"Dammit." Snarled the black-clad ninja, dropping the scroll back onto the pile of bloody sand that he'd retrieved it from. "Earth scroll." Sakura's eyes widened as Sasuke gently stroked the pocket holding their Heaven scroll.

"Head towards the tower, I'll catch up with you." He whispered and Sakura nodded. Moving as quietly as she could, she eased away from the Suna team that had mercilessly killed the entire Ame team.

"Run!" Sakura glanced backward and screamed as a wave of sand slammed through the trees behind her, barely missing Sasuke who was holding the required scroll in his hand. Without bothering to think, Sakura spun and sprinted as fast as she could, trying to outpace the crashing sand that was smashing through the Forest.

"What is he?" Sakura gasped as a spinning branch flew by her head.

Sasuke grunted. "Less talk, more run!"

"DIE!" A burst of adrenaline flooded Sakura's muscles as the insane voice screamed from behind them and she accelerated, as did Sasuke. Seeing an open area, they burst out of the undergrowth and found themselves at the edge of a river.

"Logs!" Sakura shouted, pointing at the floating items. "We can cross!"

Sasuke nodded and they leaped from the shore to the first, then the second and to a third as something roared behind them. As they landed on the fourth and final log, it shifted underneath them and Sakura gulped as realization dawned. "Oh, shi…"

The water seemed to explode as the river monster bucked underneath them and the duo were hurled into the canopy. Just before she impacted with a branch, Sakura saw one of the river beasts lunging at the trio that had been pursuing them, then everything went dark.


"urgh."

"Hn."

Sakura's eyes flickered open slowly and the world slowly resolved into a cave with Sasuke sitting at the entrance, a silhouette against the greenery stretched across the opening to disguise it. "How… long…"

"Full day," Sasuke grunted, glancing out of the camouflage. "I was starting to think you'd sleep to the end."

"Did anything happen?" Sakura asked weakly and Sasuke shrugged.

"Fight in the distance managed to get a few more jutsu from it. Other than that, nothing."

Sakura nodded and sat up, slowly stretching as her limbs protested. "Water in the canteen," Sasuke said, nodding to the small pile of camping equipment. "I'll re-seal it when you're ready to move out."

Sakura smiled. Sasuke knew how to seal stuff already, he was so cool. "Good thing the baka wasn't with us," Sakura noted. "He'd have got killed and got us kicked out. I wonder what happened to him?"

"Don't know and don't care." Sasuke shrugged. "Dobe would have got us thrown out somehow."

"Yeah." Sakura agreed. "He's such an idiotic klutz."

Sasuke paused for a moment, memories of Nauto's insane-yet-somehow-workable plans flicking through his head. He still doesn't know how Naruto had done the impossible and henged into a Windmill Shuriken while his shadow clones were a trick that he still hadn't been able to copy since it was a layered hand seal technique that relied on the user learning one string of hand seals, perfecting them to the point that they weren't actually needed anymore to shape the Chakra and then funneled through a second seal. His Sharingan meant that he could only learn the overseal and not the underlying chakra manipulation required. It was somewhat ironic that a Hyuuga would have a better chance of learning that technique from simple observation. How Naruto had learned it when he couldn't do a normal Bunshin, he had no idea.

"Here's a food pill," Sasuke said, handing it over. "Eat it and get a drink, then tell me when you're good to move out. I want you at full, otherwise, we might hit trouble."

Sakura hid a smile. Sasuke did care for her!


"The tower." Sakura gasped as they landed in the undergrowth just before the clearing that held the structure in question. Making to rise, she paused as Sasuke clapped his hand on her shoulder.

"Sakura, there's someone nearby. Someone with a lot of chakra."

"Kukukukuku." A voice laughed and boh genin spun round to find themselves facing a woman with a Grass Village Hitai-ate. A moment later, they were hit with a huge gust of wind that hurled them into the air, away from the sanctuary offered by the Tower. Sakura screamed as she hurtled towards the canopy, impacting harshly and feeling her left arm shatter under the impact. Crashing to the ground, she whimpered as her ankle twisted and she felt something give before her ankle began to feel like it was filled with molten lead. Preventing her from running away, she could barely think through the pain.

A dozen meters away, Sasuke landed heavily, bruised but without the broken bones that she had suffered. "Sas… suke…" She gasped, clutching her broken arm tightly to her. "Who.. who was that?"

"I don't know," Sasuke admitted, his Sharingan scanning around him for any sign of the ninja who had attacked them, "but she wasn't a normal genin. Not with that amount of power."

"Well said." The woman sneered as she dropped down lightly. "Hello, Sasuke, you have something that interests me."

Sasuke blinked while Sakura started muttering. "She's chosen to go after us… Sasuke-kun is her target… something that… Sasuke! She's after your eyes!"

"Well done." The woman said sarcastically, She then disappeared and reappeared in front of Sakura and knocked her out before tossing her out of the tree "Now that your little whore is otherwise occupied, I think that…"

The woman vanished in a fireball, then reappeared from behind a tree. "Nice jutsu, Sasuke. Not nearly as good as your brother's fireballs, but not bad."

Sasuke snarled. "What do you know about Itachi?"

"Oh, he and I used to work for the same people. I got to know him quite well."

Sasuke pulled out a kunai and leaped at the woman, his Sharingan flaring red. The woman laughed as she pulled out her kunai and blocked him, then her grin widened. "Three tomoe now, I see. You are getting better."

Sasuke blinked and the instant of distraction was enough to let the woman throw him into a tree. Pulling himself to his feet, he lunged forwards again, only for his strike to be blocked. An instant later, the woman lunged forwards and bit him on the side of his neck. "AAAAARGH!"

As he collapsed from the sheer agony flowing through his veins, he saw the woman smiling. "Use my gift of power well, little Uchiha. When you want more, come to me. Kukuku Kukuku!" The world went black as the jagged lances of acidic heat seemed to stab through him.


(Several hours later, in the tower entrance)

Iruka found himself summoned in the tower entrance. As the smoke was clearing he heard a voice say weakly. "Help… us…"

Iruka blinked as he saw the sight before him. Sakura was barely standing as she used a branch as a makeshift crutch, on a makeshift stretch that was tied to her by rope was the unconscious form of Sasuke who she had to drag to the tower. "What happened?"

"Strong genin attacked us… my arm is broken, ankle as well… Sasuke down… don't know why, it hurts."

Iruka nodded and gently picked up Sasuke.

"I'll be back in a moment. Stay put."

As he vanished in a shunshin, Sakura finally gave in to the pain and collapsed on the floor beside the two unrolled scrolls.


(four hours later, in the Tower at the center of the Forest of Death)

"Report."

The doctor looked at the Hokage and the Teacher for a moment, then down at the clipboard he was holding. "Both patients are stable. Haruno suffered three breaks in her left arm, they have been realigned and placed in a cast, with the proper medical jutsu, the bones should be set within a fortnight. She broke her right ankle completely, it has been reset but her walking on it while dragging the Uchiha behind her did not do it any good. It will be two months before she is allowed to walk anywhere due to the damage she did to the tendons and muscles. Honestly, I'm not certain if she will be able to walk without a limp."

"As for the Uchiha, several cracked bones and a seal on his neck that resembles that applied by Orochimaru to Mitarashi Anko, only more advanced." The doctor read. "The seal seems to be… for lack of a better description, rooting itself into his chakra network. Until we can place it under a containment seal, we cannot let the Uchiha out of the hospital."

Hiruzen sighed. "Alright. Until they recover, they are both off duty."

"What about Naruto?" Iruka asked and Hiruzen frowned.

"I never got round to replacing Mizuki, did I?"

"No, Hokage-sama, but why do, you have got to be kidding!"

Hiruzen smirked. "He seems to have shown a talent for teaching students. He taught Konohamaru, and his friends Moegi and Udon tree walking in a single day."

"Hokage-sama." An ANBU said, appearing and proffering a scroll. "The list of those who made it. Twelve in total, four teams, two from Konoha, one from sound, and one from Suna."

Hiruzen accepted the scroll. "Hmmmmm… Team nine, Hyuuga Neji, Higurashi Tenten, Rock Lee. The Suna Siblings, Gaara, Kankuro, and Temari of the Sand. The Sound team, Dosu Kinuta, Zaku Abumi, and Kin Tsuchi. Temporary team beta, Yakushi Kabuto, Akado Yoroi, and Tsurugi Misumi. Interesting."

"Yes, My Lord." The ANBU said. "They are assembling for the speech."

"Very well," Hiruzen said, walking towards the door. "Iruka, find Naruto, and start teaching him how to be a classroom assistant, he starts tomorrow morning."

"Yes, Hokage-sama." Iruka sighed. "And while you are at it, you might as well see just how badly the other teachers mistrained him and see if you can sort it out."

"Yes, Hokage-sama." Iruka grinned.


(The Next Day, at the Academy)

"What the… boss?" Naruto grinned as Konohamaru's exclamation of shock echoed off the walls of the classroom.

"It's Naruto-sensei now, Konohamaru. I've been tapped to help Iruka-sensei keep you all under control."

One of the other children snorted. "Yeah, right. There's only one of you and… Sweet Kami!"

Konohamaru, Moegi, and Udon exchanged grins as several dozen Naruto clones spread out, each one taking a position by a suddenly-silent child as Iruka entered.

"Hello, class," Iruka said, calling on all of his self-control to hide his grin. "As you can see, I have a new assistant that will be helping with your physical training. Naruto, head out, give me another thirty to forty clones and then head over to training field nine for your lessons in taijutsu under Maito Guy."

"You got it, sensei." Naruto saluted, then he vaulted out of a window, landing silently.

Iruka shook his head. "Normally we would be continuing with the leaf exercise, but it has come to my attention that three of you can do tree-climbing. Could those three raise their hands and tell the class who taught them?"

Konohamaru grinned as He, Moegi, and Udon all raised their hands, then Udon spoke up. "It was Naruto-san who taught us, he used his clones to help us do it and make sure we didn't get hurt."

Iruka nodded. "I got the story from Naruto and it seems that his method is more efficient than the normal one, although it requires the teacher to concentrate fully on one student at a time. As a result, it isn't a surprise that Naruto managed to come up with it. He's a one-man army. All right, I see he has more clones waiting, let's head to the trees." With a resounding cheer, the students flooded out of the door while the clones left via the windows.


"Aha, Naruto! It is good to see you this youthful morning!" Naruto froze for a moment, then glanced around. To his left was another green-spandex clad figure looking like a smaller version of Maito Guy. The other two genins with them were a dark-haired boy with a marked resemblance to Hinata and a brown-haired girl with her hair pulled up into two buns that looked a bit like panda ears.

"Ummm, hi?"

"Ah, you have yet to meet my youthful team!" Guy exclaimed, giving Naruto an admittedly slightly disturbing grin and thumbs-up. "First is Hyuuga Neji, a genius of talent."

The aforementioned Hyuuga simply nodded, then resumed staring at nothing in particular. Thinking about his training plans for the month.

"And here is Higurashi Tenten, a genius of skill!"

Tenten looked up from the kunai that she was polishing and smiled. "Hello."

"Hi." Naruto managed, somewhat disconcerted by the fact that a girl was talking to him rather than shouting at or hitting him (Ayame didn't count as he'd known her so long).

"And we have my youthful student, a genius of hard work, Rock Lee!"

Naruto stared at the chibi-Guy, then rubbed his eyes and resumed staring. It didn't help. The teen was still looking too much like Guy.

"Um, hi?"

"Hello, it is good to meet another who is willing to devote so much time to improving himself!" Naruto blinked as Lee stood in the same thumbs-up pose as Guy, with a very similar smile on his face.

"Umino-san was kind enough to inform me that you were capable of utilizing the Shadow Clone." Guy continued and Naruto nodded. "May I ask how many you can make?"

"Not sure." Naruto shrugged. "I've got about sixty helping Iruka-sensei with his class now." For a long moment, Guy just stared at him. "S s sixty?!"

"Could be seventy." Naruto shrugged. "Since I learned tree- and water-walking, it seems to take less energy to make them. I could probably make a couple of hundred more easily if you want."

Naruto looked round in confusion as everyone else stared at him with varying expressions of shock, then Neji spoke. "You learned water-walking? How long did it take?"

"About three hours." Naruto shrugged. "I used a whole load of clones and dispelled the best-performing one every five minutes. The experience mounted up quickly." This shocked the team even more.

"Interesting." Guy mused, stroking his chin in thought. "Very well, let us spar now so that I can see what style you use and what style might suit you."

Naruto coughed. "Um, I have a style I'm trying to learn. Lilith-san helped me pick it out from the Shinobi library. She said since I wanted to rely on kicks it would suit me best."

Guy rubbed his chin. Lilith Levi had been a very skilled Taijutsu user before she retired. So most likely she was right. "Do you mind telling me what style she picked out for you Naruto?"

Naruto pulled out the scroll. "It's called the Black Leg Style, supposedly it was developed by a seafaring chef who learned to fight. He would only use kicks to avoid ruining his hands."

Guy's eyes went wide as he said. "Did you say the Black Leg Style?"

Naruto nodded. "Yeah, why?"

"May I see the scroll?" Naruto handed him the scroll. Guy examined it and said in awe. "This is the most youthful day. Naruto, you don't realize how youthful this taijutsu style is. It is known as one of the five greatest styles. It is even more powerful than my Strong fist, or the Hyuga clan's Gentle fist."

Everyone who heard that was shocked to hear this. Neji's eyes had gone wide as he looked at Guy in shock. "That can't be possible Guy-sensei, the Gentle Fist is the strongest taijutsu style there is."

Guy shook his head. "No Neji, sadly it isn't even close. The five great taijutsu styles have mostly been lost. As only those who have the qualifications can read the scrolls containing them. This is because each style unlocks a unique power in the user. Those five styles are the Black Leg Style, which unlocks a unique power known as Haki, which allows the user to enhance their strikes as well as predict every movement the opponent makes through their intent. The Resshuken, which unlocks a unique form of chakra that protects the body known as Holy Chakra. The Hamon which grants the user the ability to use the Sun's power in their strikes. The Anything Goes style, an ever-evolving style that made the user into a human Sharingan and allowed them to learn any other Taijutsu style to add to their arsenal. And finally, the Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist allows the user the ability to remain calm no matter what goes on around them as well as the ability to produce water with their very movement. (Ok so the first Style is obviously from One Piece, Sanji's signature fighting style. The other four styles will not appear in the story so don't worry. But the other four styles are Resshuken from Yu Yu Hakusho, Hamon from JoJo Bizarre Adventure, The Anything goes style from Ranma, and of course Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist from One Punch man.)

Everyone quickly started to look at the scroll. But found they couldn't even comprehend it. Tenten frowned as she said. "Why can't I understand it. I can read the words and see the pictures. But it's like they go into my mind and then disappear."

Guy nodded as he handed back the scroll to Naruto. "That is proof that this is one of those five styles. It keeps anyone unable to use it from reading the scroll. This is an extremely hard style to master. But I believe Lilith-san was right if she said you can use it. Well, I guess we should begin your training. I'm sure I have some of Lee's old training weights you can use. Are you ready to train?"

Naruto nodded. He wasn't going to give up. He would grow stronger and become Hokage. "Yes Guy-sensei, I'm ready!"


"…and that concludes today's practice," Iruka said with a smile. "I am glad that you were all able to take at least several steps, we'll be repeating this next week. Ah, Naruto… what happened?"

"Guy… style… of… training…" Naruto managed to gasp before his legs gave out. Only Iruka's reflexes stopped him from measuring his length in the dirt.

"You found out why he is called the Green Beast of Konoha, huh?" Iruka chuckled. "Alright. Clones, dispel by pairs. Naruto, prepare for a whole load of memories about over-excited children getting tree-walking wrong." Naruto snorted with laughter even as the first clones vanished into puffs of smoke.

Once the last clone had dispelled, Naruto looked up. "You weren't kidding. I think only Konohamaru's team and that Hyuuga girl managed to do it right."

"Well," Iruka said thoughtfully, "The Hyuuga clan are well-known for their advanced chakra control. Their fighting style depends on it, gathering it and releasing it in controlled bursts."

"Wow." Naruto breathed. "I never knew that."

"Well, you did miss out on quite a few lessons when you were younger," Iruka said gently. "Now, I've set out a dozen books for you on the table in my classroom, so when you are ready, create some more clones to read them. In the meantime, here's your paycheck for today so perhaps you can treat me to ramen for a change."

Naruto accepted the moneybag from the grinning adult and tucked it into his pocket before making a familiar seal. The clones that appeared promptly ran off into the Academy to begin their (re)-education and Naruto stretched, wincing a bit as he did so.

"So, how did you enjoy teaching?" Iruka asked.

Naruto grinned. "I see now why you like it so much." He admitted. "And on that note, for all the times I mucked around in class, I'm sorry. I guess I just got into some bad habits before you took over."

Iruka shrugged as they started to walk towards the main gate. "Well, at least you're making progress in catching up to where you should be."

"Thanks to you." Naruto grinned. "I don't know why Kakashi didn't tell me about how Shadow Clone helps in learning, it's almost like he wanted me to be weaker than the Teme."

"It probably never really occurred to him." Iruka shrugged. "He might be one of the strongest Jonin in Konoha, but you three were the first team that he has had. He may be a great Jonin, but that doesn't mean that he's a good teacher."

"He never taught me anything other than tree-walking in the two months I was assigned to him dattebayo!"


"Damn that bastard!" Sakura howled as she stared at her leg that was in a cast. "It's all his fault, I know it!"

"In a way, maybe," Kakashi said as placatingly as he could. "You and Sasuke shouldn't have entered but Naruto tricked me by sending a shadow clone instead of showing up himself…"

"I'll kill the bastard!" Sakura hissed. "He knew what would happen…"

"I'll complain about him to the Hokage personally." Haruno Mebuki grated from where she sat by the window. "Dereliction of duty, treason, betrayal of his team… I'll have him thrown into the deepest, dampest cell there is for the rest of his miserable existence!"

"That could be a problem as he didn't break any of the laws," Kakashi said quickly.

"Look what he did to my daughter! She might be forced to walk with a limp for the rest of her life because of him" Mebuki almost shrieked and Kakashi winced.

"It was Orochimaru who…"

"I bet that the bastard is allied to him!" Mebuki over-rode his protests. "He will pay for this, even if I have to carve him up myself!" Kakashi swallowed nervously as the situation spun out of control...


"What do you mean that Sasuke has been removed from the exams?!" Orochimaru hissed.

The silver-haired genin medic-nin looked back at him without flinching from his anger. "One of his team-mates chose not to enter the exam and sent a Shadow Clone to wish them luck. Due to a mix-up, the presence of the clone got them into the first exam and by the time it was discovered that they should have been refused entry, they were already in the Forest of Death. The Hokage decreed that irrespective of what happened, both Sasuke and his team-mate Sakura would be removed from the tests as soon as they reached the tower. Both of them are currently in the hospital, having been officially declared unable to continue."

Orochimaru growled, his eyes narrowing in rage. "That is not good news."

"The girl blames the Jinchuuriki for not supporting them," Kabuto smirked. "When Sasuke recovers, he'll probably do the same, especially if I help him reach that conclusion. When that happens, he'll probably ask to join you just to get revenge on his team-mate."

Orochimaru paused, then slowly an evil smirk spread across his face. "Yes, an excellent plan and one that fits in very well with the planned attack."

"It shouldn't be too hard," Kabuto said with a matching smile. "All I need to do is point out that while Sasuke was getting injured fleeing from Gaara, Naruto was having a cushy time helping the Academy brats learn chakra control."

"Kukukukuku." Orochimaru chuckled. "Your plan has promise, Kabuto. I look forward to hearing about your next report."

"Thank you, Lord Orochimaru." Kabuto bowed.


Asuma looked up as a familiar figure approached him and his team. Ino spoke up once she saw the figure. "Hey, that's Naruto, isn't it?. Didn't he quit the Chunin exams?"

"He never entered," Asuma said, remembering the rumors that had been flying around the Jonin information network. "He sent a Shadow Clone to wish his team good luck and it somehow got the other two in. Kakashi got blacklisted for that."

"Hi," Naruto said, scratching at the back of his head. "Ummm, you're Sarutobi Asuma, right?"

"I am," Asuma said and Naruto nodded. "Iruka-sensei said that you were one of the only Wind-element types in Konoha and…"

"Wait," Asuma commanded, his eyes intent. "You're a wind-type yourself?"

Naruto nodded. "Yup, well Wind and Fire. Iruka said you could give me a few hints on how to start my elemental training since you and someone called Danzo are the only wind-users in Konoha, and he said you would be the easier of the two to find. He also said you had a fire element as well so you could show me both beginning exercises."

"I see." Asuma nodded. "So, have you learned any exercises for it yet?" Naruto shook his head and Asuma picked up a fallen leaf. Holding it in his hand, he frowned slightly in concentration, and the leaf promptly split in half. "That was the first exercise." He said to the wide-eyed boy. "You focus your chakra on the leaf and cut it. I picture it as a pair of thin blades grinding against each other to sharpen them, you might do something else. It all depends on what you can get to work for you."

"Cool!" Naruto half-shouted, then he leaned forwards. "Ummm, can you show me again, please?" With a grin, Asuma picked up another leaf, and a second later, both halves fluttered to the ground.

"Okay, I think I got it. Can you show me the beginning fire exercise?"

Asuma smiled. "Sure kid." He grabbed another leaf and held it in his palm till it ignited and turned to ash. "This is easier than the wind element. All you need to do is imagine your chakra burning the leaf."

Okay, thank you so much. The Boss will want to try it."

"Wait!" Asuma commanded, staring at the boy. "Boss?"

"Yeah." Naruto grinned, one hand rubbing the back of his head. "I'm a clone, Boss sent me to see if I could pick up a few tips from you. What are you doing? Quit poking me!"

Ino stepped back, eyes wide as she pulled her hand back to her side. "You're solid!"

"Shadow Clone." The clone announced proudly. "Everything I learn goes straight back to the Boss and my bros when I dispel. Boss is getting thwacked by Lee at the moment, even Shadow Clone isn't helping him, although he's getting good at his Kawarimi."

"He's swapping with his clones to avoid Lee's attacks." Shikamaru deduced and the clone nodded.

"Yep, Bushy-brows Junior packs a wallop. He may not be able to use chakra, but he's scary fast. But he's the best person for Boss to practice his new taijutsu style again. Whup! They're taking a breather, gotta go. Thanks!" The clone vanished in a puff of smoke.

Ino sighed, turning her attention back to the remaining two males. "I'm going to the hospital to check on Choji." She declared and Shikamaru glanced up as he moved a piece, causing Asuma to moan. "I'll come with you." He said as Asuma sighed and started putting the pieces away. "I heard that they'll be removing the cast from his leg today, although he'll need crutches for a while."

"Yeah. Okay." Ino shrugged. "I heard that they're going to release Sakura today as well." Shikamaru paused at that.

"Sakura? Haruno Sakura? Naruto's team-mate? What happened to her?"


"Hey, fore… head…" Ino's standard greeting faded as Sakura turned to face her. Sakura's eyes burned with a madness that made Ino uncomfortable. It was like she could snap at any moment.

"Ino." Ino shivered slightly at the coldness in Sakura's voice.

"I heard that you were being released today and…" Sakura snorted and turned to look out of the window. Ino sighed. "Sakura, I'm not here to gloat. I was worried about you…"

"You should be worried about Naruto-baka because I'm going to kill him for what he did to me," Sakura growled out.

Ino frowned in confusion. "What? He was nowhere near you when…"

Sakura's head snapped around, her eyes narrowed in anger. "Exactly! He abandoned us, betrayed us, and ran away! I'll make sure he never runs away again!"

Ino stepped back, staring in shock at the girl who had once been her closest friend, and who she no longer knew.

Outside the window, an ANBU pocketed the tape recorder and vanished in a shunshin.


"…and that should do it." Kabuto smiled as he lifted his hands from Sasuke's torso. "Your ribs are now as strong as they were before they were broken."

Sasuke sat up, then slowly stretched. After a moment, he nodded. "Thanks."

"Just doing my duty." Kabuto smiled, although his gaze flickered to a small shadow on the windowsill. "You went up against Orochimaru, you were lucky to escape."

"I wasn't strong enough." Sasuke mused, almost ignoring the med-nin.

"Then you need to find another way to get stronger." Kabuto offered. "Perhaps your sensei can suggest something. Maybe new exercises."

"Hmph." Sasuke snorted. "Kakashi, teach? He's a lazy bastard who is always late."

"Then perhaps you could ask another Jonin to help you train in your spare time," Kabuto suggested. "I heard that your team-mate Naruto is being trained by your Sensei's eternal rival, Maito Guy. He is considered the best taijutsu master in Konoha, if not the Elemental Countries. I hear Iruka's giving him remedial lessons as well."

"What?!" Sasuke growled. "He decided to betray the team and got rewarded with extra training?!"

Kabuto hid a smirk as he tried unsuccessfully to calm Sasuke down, making sure that he didn't say anything that could incriminate him when the Hokage listened to the tape being recorded by the ANBU on the wall outside. His smirk briefly broke free as Sasuke stomped out of the room and then he began tidying the ward. Just because Konoha was going to be destroyed didn't mean that he could slack off in his duties.


Hiruzen sighed and pressed the button to stop the tape before looking up at Kakashi. The silver-haired Jonin seemed to have aged dramatically as he listened to the recordings.

"Hokage-sama… I…"

"I let you have Team 7 because you specifically asked for it," Hiruzen said, his quiet voice somehow filling the office. "You wanted to teach Naruto and I was willing to let you do so, but it seems that my decision was in error."

"Hokage-sama…" Kakashi started, his voice pleading and Hiruzen shook his head.

"This was your last team, Kakashi. You heard yourself how unstable two of them are, this sort of thing was what you were meant to watch out for and counter." Kakashi slumped, his gaze fixed on the ground. "As of today, team 7 is no more." Hiruzen sighed. "It's uncertain if Haruno will be able to stay a shinobi with the damage done to her leg. If she had trained more often the damage might not have been as severe, but because she didn't and was on a diet the damage will likely be permanent. She at best will be put in the shinobi reserves. As for Uchiha, if he wishes to remain as a ninja, he must first submit to a full psychiatric evaluation from Yamanaka Inoichi and Morino Ibiki and undergo whatever remedial training is deemed necessary. Failure to comply within the week will result in them being returned to civilian status."

"And Naruto?" Kakashi sighed.

Hiruzen pushed forwards a file and leaned back as Kakashi read through it, becoming more and more depressed as he did so. Finally, Kakashi returned the file to the desk. "Naruto has progressed more in the last week than he has done in all the months he spent in team 7," Hiruzen said, his voice gentle but the message brutal. "Guy reports that with the aid of Shadow Clone, Naruto is quickly mastering the first stage of the Black Leg Taijutsu. He is also going through training weights abnormally quickly as his body adapts within hours. The fact he has begun to eat more than just ramen is helping as well. His weapons skills have also improved out of all recognition and he has begun to learn the sword, not to mention he has calmed down quite a bit and is beginning to think things through. My son reports that Naruto has already completed the leaf-cutting exercise and is moving on to waterfall-cutting. While with his fire element he has already completed leaf-burning and stick-burning, he's now working on boiling water. He's also begun to study Fuinjutsu and is taking to it like fish to water."

Kakashi seemed to slump even more as Hiruzen continued speaking. "I am redesignating Naruto as an independent genin and will be rotating him between teams eight, ten, and Team Guy. Lee on Team Guy has decided that Naruto is his eternal rival." Hiruzen chuckled slightly. "At this time, I have promoted Iruka to special Jonin and placed him in charge of Naruto's overall progress with Naruto also being assigned to aid him in the Academy. Furthermore, given how much he has improved, I will be telling him about his parents and giving him his inheritance within the week. Given how much he has improved, he may be able to learn the Rasengan."

Kakashi swayed as if someone had thrown a Kunai through his heart. "Hokage-sama, please…"

"Kakashi," Hiruzen commanded. "You are barred from contacting him for the next two weeks. He is no longer your concern. Your old position in ANBU is still open if you want to re-enlist in it, or I'm sure that I can find a mission or two for you to perform."

For a moment the two remained silent, then Hiruzen spoke again, his voice softer. "Kakashi, not everyone is suited to teaching. You are one of the best when it comes to completing missions but no-one is great at everything." Kakashi seemed as if he was about to break as Hiruzen sighed. "If it makes you feel better, Naruto doesn't hate you."

Kakashi looked up, his one eye filled with hope. As Hiruzen continued speaking. "After the two weeks are up, I'll allow you to try and patch things up with Naruto. But it's up to him if he forgives you. If he does forgive you, maybe you can teach him a few jutsu."

Kakashi bent his head. "Thank you hokage-sama."


(An Unknown Location)

Hagoromo Otsutsuki sighed as he watched what was happening. It was hard to see how far his oldest son had fallen in many worlds. In some he was able to redeem himself, in others he became completely corrupted and Asura was forced to destroy him completely. But Hagoromo always held out hope till the end. It seemed this world was one of the worlds where Indra was too far gone. He could see the corruption in his aura affecting his reincarnation.

Suddenly a voice spoke up from behind him. "You will need to decide soon Hagoromo, if you don't you could doom that world."

Hagoromo turned to see a man standing behind him. The man had long white hair that shone like a pearl. His hair was done up in a braided ponytail. His face was pale and handsome, his eyes were golden with slit pupils that seemed to look through him. He was wearing a simple black and white robe as he stood before Hagoromo.

Hagoromo sighed as he said. "I know Kyoleth, but I find it hard to abandon one of my children just because he has fallen."

Kyoleth shook his head with a sigh. "You will need to make your choice soon Hagoromo. You won't be able to give both of them your power in this world. If you don't make your choice, then I will for you." With those words, Kyoleth walked away.

Hagoromo shook his head as he said to himself. "It is not as easy as you think Kyoleth."

He returned to watching Sasuke, trying to figure out why his aura felt different from the other Indra reincarnations. It was much lighter than the others, almost as if it was second hand.


(Omake: Why Lee and Naruto Aren't Allowed to Hang Out in Public)

(A week after end of second round of chunin exams)

Naruto had just finished sparring with Rock Lee. He was getting quite good at the basic level of Black Leg Style. He had taken to it like a fish to water.

As the two relaxed after their spar, they were chatting about various things. Sadly, spending so much time with Rock Lee and Might Guy had affected Naruto a little. Thus causing the scene that Neji and Tenten walked in on.

"Lee!"

"Naruto!"

"Lee!"

"Naruto!"

The two genin hugged, with manly tears about their youthfulness. That is when the horror began. Neji and tenten who were close by were horrified as reality seemed to change and soon they were standing on a massive pirate ship with a lion figurehead on the sea. Instead of wood, there was grass beneath their feet. The ship was rocking with the sea much to the two's shock. But this was only the beginning of the horror. Because Might Guy had noticed what was going on.

"What a youthful display!" Shouted the Taijutsu master as he hugged the two genin, crying as well.

That was when it all went wrong. Because the moment Might Guy hugged the two crying genin. A voice sounded behind Neji and Tenten. "This is one Super Moment!"

The two turned to see a man with blue hair in a buzzcut and massive arms in a pose. This wouldn't have been that bad. If the man hadn't been wearing only an open tropical shirt and a speedo with his nipples shining. The two genin began to scream in horror.


(A few hours later, Hokage office)

Hiruzen facepalmed as he read the report. Neji Hyuga and Tenten Higurashi were both currently in the hospital for mental trauma. Naruto and Rock Lee had developed a new version of the sunset genjutsu. But it was completely different and only got worse the moment Might Guy joined in.

"Why am I still hokage? I should have retired ages ago. Let my successor deal with this shit."

(I do not own either the enhanced Sunset Genjutsu, or the location. I'm pretty sure I got the idea from a Highschool DxD x Naruto Crossover, just can't remember the name. I just remember the idea came from a scene of Naruto and Sirzechs hugging, that caused a waste land to appear with geysers of fire. The setting through, was the Thousand Sunny from One Piece. The man in the speedo was Franky the Cyborg, post timeskip version. Nipple lights are actually optional.)


Welp guess what, that is the first chapter. So I should warn people, you might see small references to other animes in this series, the biggest reference of course is Black Leg Style and Haki which Naruto will eventually gain. Honestly I feel LIke Haki is the most universal power in Anime. It's not a mystical energy that certain people gain, it's literally willpower given form. As you see, there is a larger story going on then you might think. But what exactly this story might be, you'll have to wait to find out. Also for those who are wondering about the match-ups. The match-ups are as follows

Zaku Abumi vs Temari

Kin Tsuchi vs Kabuto Yakushi

Kankuro vs Neji Hyuuga

Misumi Tsurugi vs Rock Lee

Dosu Kinta vs Gaara

Yoroi Akado vs Tenten

This is The Celestial Dragon Kyoleth signing off.