Naruto – The SERIES
Disclaimer: See previous Chapters
A/N: Well, this chapter will not be packed full of action, but I tried to insert more emotion... As for Naruto being OOC, I know of this, don't think I don't. But with power, comes great responsibility. Naruto has grown so much since the beginning; clearly he should grow up a bit as well. He won't stay loud-mouthed, aggressive and enthusiastic forever. And now he has proven himself more than often. He won't give his all immediately in a fight. Maybe Neji's attitude is rubbing off on him. You can understand, right?
A cough, soft breathing and total silence. All of that in front of one little campfire. Neji had arrived in the middle of the night, making Naruto and Gaara come together, before returning to the village. Now they were all awake, making conversation, or at least, trying to.
"Ah, Naruto... I've wanted to ask you this for quite some time..." Neji began. He looked at Naruto and stirred the fire a bit up as he carefully picked his words.
The one who wasn't participating in the conversation at all, was Gaara. But to be honest, Gaara was lacking experience considering conversations. He just sat there, enjoying the warmth and observing the two other boys.
"You know of my past and you know why I act like I do. In other words, you know a lot about me. But I don't know anything about you." He said, sitting back next to Gaara after throwing in some new stacks of wood in the fire.
In complete contrast to the situation, Gaara chose to speak up. "Yes. I also would like to know, since you know of my past as well…" Which caused Neji to wonder about Gaara's past too.
Naruto swallowed. "You know… You can ask me all sorts of thing. What I eat, what I do and even what I want. I have an answer for everything, except if you ask me a question which begins with a 'Why?', you know? It's a much more difficult question."
Neji and Gaara remained silent and waited for Naruto to continue. They both saw Naruto was being hesitant in explaining himself
"I, too, have had a pretty tough past…. Gaara and I are very much the same… But I think that if I tell you the truth about me, I really think you'd hate me, Neji.." Naruto said, carefully looking at Neji.
'He.. he actually looks ashamed…'Neji slightly tilted his head to the side. "So, now you decide how I'll react? Believe me, I won't easily hate you, Naruto…"
Naruto cracked a half-smile, truly unsure of himself. "Fine… I will tell you…" His eyes were beginning to water a little and his hands, now formed in fists were slightly trembling.
"When I was young, all the people in this village hated me… And in fact, they still do… Now, I will also tell you the reason…" Gaara and Neji knew he was serious, since there was almost no emotion in his voice, no enthusiasm.
Neji narrowed his eyes. 'Dead-last, huh? I knew of Naruto, since he was looked down on by all the children on school.. He had no choice but to be alone in school, since no one wanted to be friends with him… Now that I think of it… he really had no one… I didn't have any friends either when I was in school… But that was mostly my own fault..'
There Where When is Now
Chapter 12
"I didn't do anything to them, but everyone hated, no…hates me…. even the kids in my class detested me. Everyone saw me as a complete failure, while the older people in the village hated me…."
Gaara was quite interested in the reason for their hatred. 'Very similar… everyone hated me as well…. No… they more, like, feared me… and therefore they hated me..'
"Surely both of you have heard of the Nine-tailed Fox Demon?"
Neji seemed puzzled at first as to why Naruto would bring something like that up.
"The Fourth had defeated it, yes. But he sealed it into a baby child 12 years, almost 13 years ago.. Guess who that child was?" He asked with a sad chuckle.
And then Neji's eyes widened. '… He can't be insinuating…'
Gaara's eyes also had widened. 'So… that's his monster? I've heard of the Kyuubi..'
Naruto sadly smiled as he read their reactions. "Yes… I have that demon inside of me… and the red chakra you've seen with you Byakugan… is the demon's Chakra…"
Gaara didn't change facial expressions and just closed his eyes. "I see…. We really are alike then…"
Neji narrowed his eyes. "So.. you're responsible for all those deaths?"
Naruto quickly shook his head. "No!! I didn't even know that that demon was inside of me until I was 12!"
Neji was surprised as Naruto said that and turned a little sad. "So… until you were twelve, you didn't know why the people hated you so much?"
Naruto nodded his head. "Yes… I understand now.. But it's still… unfair.."
"Perhaps… but life is nothing but everything that is unfair.." Gaara said. "Shinobis like us are needed to point that out and to punish those that are unfair.. "
Naruto frowned. "Punish?"
Gaara nodded slowly. "Yes.. You can't be telling me that you don't feel resentment against those that hated you, while you didn't know why?"
Naruto remained silent as Gaara's words sank in.
"I see.." Neji said. "Naruto… I understand your situation, but I have to disagree with you, Gaara… surely, you can use your powers for something other than torture?"
Gaara didn't react. 'Perhaps…'
Dead silence filled the air, except for the fire that was still burning in their midst.
"Naruto… I don't hate you.." Neji said.
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"So… how was it, Sasuke-kun?"
Sasuke looked up from his training "Ah, Kakashi. Took you long enough to get here… I've been training for two weeks, and now you show up?"
Kakashi closed his eyes and smiled. "Well, some things you can better do yourself… But how was the Forest of Death? Did you see Naruto fight?"
Sasuke smiled. "Yeah.. he has grown even more than before, at least, that's what I think.. He's changed, too… he's no longer the show-off that you know, Kakashi. And another thing, Sakura also has improved… she hit me with Sakuran no Jutsu…"
Kakashi frowned and then chuckled. "Heh… that's a very slow attack, Sasuke-kun… to think you would be hit by that.."
Sasuke glared at Kakashi. "I just didn't expect her to just attack me… although I changed my appearance to fool her and her team."
"Well, I just came by here, since I sensed Naruto has returned to the village… I owe him my apologies, actually… and I haven't seen him for a long time.."
Sasuke smiled. "Hmm.. send him my regards, I'll continue training."
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"So, you're going to train with your brother and sister now?"
Gaara nodded. "Yes… I thought of some techniques that they can learn while I was in the Forest, they definitely need strengthen up."
Naruto smiled widely, while Neji just smiled. "I'm going home, I will continue my training there.. I will see you two in the Exams.."
Gaara and Neji jumped away, leaving a small cloud of smoke behind.. Naruto scratched his head and started his trek homewards.
But as he made his third step, he sensed someone approaching him in very high speed. 'Shit.. if this is an enemy, I have to use Kyuubi Chakra…' But after a little while of analyzing, he found out who it was that was approaching him. 'I see…' He thought with a smile.
"I can sense you… Kakashi-sensei."
"As I thought, Naruto.."
Kakashi appeared right in front of Naruto and looked him square in the eye. "How are you, Naruto?"
Naruto chuckled as he scratched the back of his head. "I'm fine!"
Kakashi narrowed his eye as he analyzed Naruto. 'Jeez… Jiraiya has been training him pretty good… He's full of confidence… I actually felt him raising his own Chakra while I was approaching him…. He was actually ready to attack me or defend himself…' Kakashi smiled, although he was a bit worried about Naruto's strength. "Naruto… I feel I have to apologize.."
Naruto looked puzzled at him and frowned. "Apologize? What for?"
Kakashi turned serious. "Well, because I've been neglecting you… It would be a pleasure if you would let me train you these two weeks before the Final Exam…"
Naruto also turned serious. "Kakashi-sensei… It didn't really bother me, since you couldn't have trained me like Pervert-SenNin did. But I accept your apologies!" Naruto chuckled happily. "But I would like for you to train me now! But I don't know if you can teach me much now!"
Suddenly, Kakashi chuckled. "What? You think you've learned everything now!? Yes, Jiraiya might be better than me, but I know certain things even he doesn't know… I wasn't the Fourth Hokage's student for nothing! But, let me prove it to you… let us spar… I want to see how good you are.."
Naruto hesitated. "Hmmm.. you could be doing this so you can read my movements and see my new techniques… so you can tell Sasuke!! How can I know if I can trust you!!"
Kakashi chuckled. "Heh.. I think you misunderstand… I'm not doing everything for Sasuke-kun…"
Naruto narrowed his eyes at his former teacher. "Well… it's not like you didn't choose him over me to train in the previous Chuunin Exam!!"
Kakashi embarrassedly chuckled as he scratched the back of his head. "Well… I apologized for that… and you do have a good point, Naruto.. But I promise, this time I will put all my attention on you!"
Naruto narrowed his eyes to slits as he stared at Kakashi. "Fine.. but I still don't trust you… I won't use my secret techniques against you! And you better not use your Freaky Eye!!"
Kakashi laughed loudly. "It's a promise! I'm here just to help you, Naruto! But first, let's eat!"
Naruto's eyes widened from happiness and he completely forgot about the previous subject of their conversation. "Yeah!! Let's GO!!"
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Neji was walking toward his own home while he was in deep thought. 'Had to be a burden.. a big burden to live like that… he had it even tougher than me… I had no idea.. Naruto, you really are something… and Gaara too.. I'm happy they're my friends now..'
Neji, who was looking at the ground as he was walking, suddenly looked straight ahead of him. He had sensed something and immediately acted. "Byakugan!!"
What he saw, was another Byakugan and a little girl, also a Hyuga. "Heh… they don't seem to be a lot stronger than me…. he's a Chuunin, most likely.. and she's not even a Genin… no worries."
They stopped right before him. "Neji-sama.."
Neji frowned.. 'Neji.. Sama?' He thought, as the little girl named him so.
"I am Hyuga Hanabi.."
Neji narrowed his eyes. 'Hanabi? … So, this is Hinata-sama's little baby-sister…' Neji frowned at the little girl and the boy beside her. "What do you want?"
The boy spoke up. "Hiashi-sama has ordered us, to train with you, to help you prepare for the Last Test of The Chuunin Exam."
Neji snarled. "I don't need weaklings such as yourself to help me.. what's the point if someone weaker than yourself is training with me? Please, leave me alone."
The boy shook his head. "So, you think you're stronger than me?"
Neji rolled his eyes. "Who are you?"
"Hyuga Hat."
Neji frowned. 'What a stupid name….' Neji went into the Hyuga stance.
Hat smiled. "So, you want to fight me?'
Neji smiled. "If you can beat me, Chuunin, than I'll let you two train with me…"
Hat smiled back as he also went into the Hyuga fighting style. "Very well."
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"Welcome back, Gaara."
Gaara, after spotting Temari and Kankurou right in front of him, looked to his right, to see the man who had just spoken up. 'Why is he here?'
They were staying in a small house in the Leaf Village, sort of like guest houses. The Stone Genins were staying in the house next to theirs. Gaara really didn't care that much about his sensei, Baki. But if he had this major idea of taking over Leaf Village, Gaara would decline this time.
"Why are you here?"
Baki nervously swallowed. 'Well… he never did like me..' Baki paused before he began to explain himself. "Gaara…. I just told Temari and Kankurou… no.. I just asked them… to forgive me for giving you such an order as the one I gave you in the previous Chuunin Exam… I would like to train you three now…"
Gaara narrowed his eyes. "I don't forgive you… And I train alone…" He turned his attention to Temari and Kankurou. "But before I take my leave… I would like to show my brother and sister something..." And then he turned back to Baki and.. smiled.. coldly. "You can join us if you like…"
Stepping outside, the four of them jumped from roof to roof, until Gaara stopped and found a suitable spot.
Gaara he landed on the ground. "Temari, Kankurou… I would like you two to try something…. It might be very helpful in the Exam."
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Naruto ate as much as he could as Kakashi stared unbelieving at him. 'I just don't understand how a little kid like him can eat that much?'
"Oh my GOD!! This is so delicious!! This is way better than those dirty animals in the Forest of Death!"
Kakashi frowned. 'Jeez… I guess it's a part of growing up…'
"Naruto… After this, we'll be training where you became a Genin. You remember where that is, right?"
Naruto nodded as he slurped his food. "Oy, Kakashi-sensei!! This cup is of Ramen… it's empty.. I need at least five more!!"
Kakashi groaned and ordered at the same time. As he looked from the corner of his eyes behind him he noticed three girls were entering the Ramen Stand. "Ah, what a coincidence."
Naruto, after finishing his first cup, frowned at Kakashi. "What, you're talking to yourself?"
Kakashi shook his head and merely pointed his finger behind him, which lead to Naruto staring in the given direction. "Ooh.. It's Sakura, Hinata and Ino, huh?"
Kakashi observed his reaction and it was clear from his expression that he expected another response from the blonde boy. 'Huh… so his infatuation with Sakura is gone now?'
"Kakashi-sensei! Naruto… what are you two doing here?"
Kakashi shrugged. 'Sometimes, she's helpless…' Kakashi shrugged at his own thoughts. "Well, obviously, we're eating.."
A vein appeared on Sakura's wide forehead. "I know that!! But shouldn't you be training Sasuke-kun and the others?"
Naruto wasn't even paying attention as he was putting all of it on his food. Sakura strangely looked at the eating boy. Hinata and Ino, did quite the same, although differently as well. "Naruto?" Sakura spoke up.
Naruto turned around and looked at Sakura. "Hmm?" He had much pieces of food on his face and his mouth was still full, so he couldn't speak that well.
Ino, looking quite disgusted, decided to order food. "Sakura…. I'm ordering food…" Ino also had a popped vein on her forehead. 'Ieuw, Naruto! You're really disgusting!' she thought.
Kakashi shook his head in understanding. "Naruto… hurry up a bit.. I don't have all day.."
"Naruto…"
Naruto swallowed the food he had in his mouth. "Sakura-chan…. I'm sorry, for taking your scrolls in the Forest… If it were up to me back then, I wouldn't have taken them…" He then turned to Kakashi. "Sensei!! I'm finished!"
Kakashi paid for the Ramen with a snarl on his face, since it was quite a lot and then they left, leaving Sakura all to herself. Ino and Hinata had already taken a table to eat the food they had ordered.
"Wait, Naruto!!" Sakura yelled. Naruto, being puzzled, turned around and faced Sakura.
"What is it?"
"I… I know we're not close…. But, don't you think you're being cold, ignoring me like this!?" Sakura yelled with full emotion.
Naruto smiled sadly. "Consider it making up for all the times you ignored me…" And then he left, leaving a surprised Sakura all to herself. But, Naruto was again interrupted as another called his name, though a lot softer.
"Hinata-chan?" Naruto asked, turning towards her.
Hinata, blushing, spoke up. "I…. anno… I forgive you… for taking the scrolls.."
Naruto looked totally confused at the sudden admission coming from the shy girl. "Ah… Thank you very much, Hinata-chan!!"
"I… .. I am glad you made it through.. this Test… Naruto-kun.." Hinata said.
Ino frowned at the girl before her. 'What is she doing?'
Sakura was very sad as the comment Naruto made struck her hard and was being totally silent.
Kakashi was leaning against a wall, waiting for Naruto. 'This might take a while.' He thought as he glanced at Hinata and knew how shy the girl was.
"Tha-Thank you, Hinata-chan.. I'm sorry.. you didn't make it through.."
The weirdness of the situation didn't help either of them.
Naruto watched Hinata struggle to say something. He was uncomfortable himself. 'Weird… why am I….. so nervous?' Naruto tilted his head to the side. "Well, I have to go, Hinata-chan! Have a nice meal!! Bye!" Naruto turned around, glad he had shaken off the hesitation in his voice.
Hinata blushed. "Thuh-Thank you, Naruto-kun."
Sakura meanwhile, watched as Naruto left the Ramen Stand. 'He.. he has a point… I've been giving all my attention to Sasuke-kun… that's all I have ever done…'
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Sasuke was releasing all his Chakra and had his Sharingan activated. 'My next match will be a hard one… I don't even know how Hyuga Neji fights… Maybe I have to face Lee again.. That would be enjoyable…'
"Oy, Sasuke!"
Sasuke looked up to find Shigeru staring at him. "Training hard, I see… Anyway, I was looking for you.. and Naruto.. But I didn't find him."
Sasuke smiled as he lowered his own Chakra again and deactivated his Sharingan. "Heh.. Did you check the Ramen Stand?"
Shigeru shook his head. "No.. Should I have?"
'Heh, he doesn't know us too well, but then again, we don't know him either..' Sasuke shook his head. "Shigeru… can you use your best Genjutsu on me? I want to test my Sharingan."
'Heh, he actually asked for my help..' Shigeru thought. 'Too bad I have to decline, though..'
"Afraid not… My best Genjutsu is…. a Kinjutsu as well. It's not a Jutsu that you can copy with your Sharingan either. And besides, I'm planning on using it in the Chuunin Exam… but, I can use other Genjutsu's on you, though, just not my best.." He said with a confident smile.
Sasuke smiled back and looked confident. "Well bring it on…"
Shigeru shrugged. "You're already in a Genjutsu of mine.. One that could be very deluding for you Sharingan.. I purposely created Genjutsu's like these…"
Sasuke looked to his left and right, but everything looked the same. "Sharingan!!" He frowned as there were Genjutsu Kanji all over the place, though it was still not clear what was going on.
Shigeru smiled. "You're not the only one that has been training. So… when will you start attacking me?"
Sasuke jumped towards Shigeru, and as he was approaching him, he decided to land in front of him and just give a playful punch. But with his Sharingan he saw the Genjutsu Kanji light up. 'What is going on here?' Sasuke thought as he landed.
He gasped with surprise as he saw that he hadn't advanced an inch towards Shigeru. Shigeru chuckled. "yeah, it's a very mean Genjutsu.. one that won't be easily figured out.. well, except for a Hyuga, but the Sharingan isn't as good as the Byakugan."
Sasuke looked all around him. 'If I can't approach him, I'll just have to resort to distance attacks.' Sasuke performed the Fire seal "Katon, Goukakyuu no Jutsu!!"'
Shigeru jumped away. "Heh… I know I'm not very impressive and all, but come on…. I ain't that bad.. To use such a low and slow technique on me… I really feel low now.." Shigeru mockingly sulked.
Sasuke gritted his teeth and ran towards Shigeru, only to see that he just didn't advance an inch towards him. He stopped running. 'So.. this Genjutsu created an illusion around me..' Sasuke suddenly got an idea… 'I'm concentrating my Sharingan on my surroundings.. What if I concentrate my Sharingan on myself?'
As soon as he did so, he saw that Shigeru's Chakra was all over his own body. 'I see… so this is how he does it? Devious indeed…'
Shigeru nodded. "I see you figured it out. Although I expected you to see through it faster than this, especially with a Sharingan… Oh well… even if you do get out of this Genjutsu… You're already wrapped up in my second…"
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"Alright, Chouji! Now that you can handle two pills in combination with a soldier pill, you'll be unbeatable!!" Asuma yelled as Chouji had a lot of Chakra around him.
"Man… he sure packs a lot of power… but he still lacks speed, though a lot less than before." Kiba said. "I'm impressed…"
"…." Shino just stood there, analyzing it all… 'I have to fight him…. He's all Chakra, I wonder what lies beneath it all… perhaps an opening? A door to his defeat.. I hope my new skills will be suitable for the battle ahead.. '
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Gai analyzed Lee's movements as Ten-Ten attacked him with all he got.. 'Correct, Lee now only uses the Heal Gate, so he can always come back to fight… Neji will have it hard… But then again… With the Heal Gate open, a lot of Chakra is lost every minute…'
Lee's speed had increased greatly as he easily moved from one spot to another, avoiding Ten-Ten's weapon attack. But Lee's clothes showed he had been hit more than once, even if Lee was so fast… Ten-Ten's attacks right now sometimes offered no escape. And on top of that, Gai has been teaching Ten-Ten TaiJutsu for quite some time.
"This time, my students will show more than before…"
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"Nice Chakra.." Kakashi observed. 'And he's not using one bit of the Kyuubi's Chakra… that's very impressive..'
"Oy, Kakashi-sensei! No Sharingan, remember?"
"Hey, Hey!! A promise is a promise!" Kakashi reacted. 'Jeez.. I guess I deserve that he doubts me….'
Naruto vanished from Kakashi's sight. 'Oohh… he's sped up this much? I have to be careful…' Kakashi suddenly put up his right arm, to block a planned jab from Naruto. After hearing a 'Damn!'Kakashi easily picked up Naruto's movements around him.
Kakashi had to put up his feet and arms every second as Naruto was vanishing and then attacking moment after moment.
'Good movement and a nice attack pattern.. in and out…' Kakashi's eyes widened as Naruto rose his Chakra even more. 'What?'
The fist that appeared before him was an indication Kakashi wasn't paying that much attention, he couldn't have blocked Naruto's attack.
Naruto returned his fist to his side. "Oy, Kakashi-sensei! I know you're a lot stronger than me… but you shouldn't be holding that much back…"
Kakashi smiled. "Roger! Let's turn serious now!"
Naruto's eyes widened as he received a playful punch on his back. After that, he smiled. "Yeah!! That's more like it!!"
He turned enthusiastic a little too fast as Kakashi easily kicked him in the side, grabbed him by the collar and held him up in front of him. "Is that all you've got, Naruto?"
"Uh, Kakashi, you're holding a clone." Said a chuckling Naruto behind Kakashi.
'What? A clone? This can't be Bunshin or Kage Bunshin.. since I have hit it several times..' Kakashi frowned as the Naruto he was holding vanished with a puff of smoke. "Very good.. So you control the clone completely, even letting it vanish when you wish? So, you can use Taiyuu Bunshin now?"
"Hehe, yup!" The chuckling Naruto was surprised to find Kakashi grabbing his leg and easily throwing him away toward.. another Kakashi. 'This is entertaining even me, I think that if he releases his Kyuubi Chakra he could very well be almost equal to me….'
Naruto scratched his head from the pain. "Aaah, this is unfair!! You're a lot stronger!!" And that's when Naruto raised his Chakra again.
Kakashi's eyes widened. 'Hmmm.. I wonder how much he's holding back… But I can still manage easily without the Sharingan..'
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Neji suddenly performed a whole different seal, which surprised the Hyuga Chuunin. "Hyouketsu no Jutsu!!"
Neji had just send a Small Ice beam towards Hat. Hat jumped up but his leg got hit and he fell like a rock towards the ground. His leg has now become a completely frozen leg.
Hat grumbled and Neji took this time to approach him. 'I knew it.. he's nothing…'
Hat quickly performed a seal. "Terepo no Jutsu!!"
Neji gritted his teeth angrily as he saw Hat had teleported away and was now ten feet behind him, breaking the ice around his leg.
Neji performed a whole new seal. "Not bad.. but not good enough… Taiyuu Raiden no Jutsu!!"
Hanabi had to jump away as Neji sent several lightning bolts to each direction, controlling them with his own Chakra and sending them all towards Hat, while he himself was also running quickly towards him.
Hat's eyes were widened. 'Shit… who would have thought he had other Jutsu's?'
Neji stopped attacking him and let the Lightning bolt disappear as he stopped near Hat. He shook his head. "No, you are not fit to train with me.."
"Wait…"
Neji glanced sideways at Hanabi. "What is it?" Neji frowned at the little girl. 'There is no need to be formal against her… Especially since Hiashi isn't here…'
"I know you have a grudge against us."
Neji frowned even more. 'Us? Jeez, she acts superior already, what a brat…'
Hanabi narrowed her eyes, reading Neji's reaction. "But, I know of certain things, some Hyuga techniques you can't easily learn… I'll show you… you can easily figure it out when you have your Byakugan activated and you watch me."
Neji in return also narrowed his eyes. "Why would you want to do that?"
Hanabi turned slightly nervous. "I… I don't have many friends… and I consider you as my family… I.. I want to know you better…"
Neji watched on as Hanabi explained herself. 'Hmm, seems her father forced much on her… should I comply?'
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Sasuke and Shigeru trained together occasionally, but most of the times Sasuke wanted to train alone. Shigeru had new Genjutsu moves and Sasuke had learned some new techniques. As he was walking towards the building where the last Test of the Chuunin Exam would be held, he felt totally satisfied. 'I'm going to show them..' He looked sideways as he saw a familiar face.
Shigeru smiled at Sasuke as he walked beside him. "Ready, Sasuke-san?" As he received a small nod, he smiled. 'Yeah… of course he's ready… He's good and smart.. My opponent is that Kiba Inuzuka… Jeez.. I think he's gonna be a real pain…'
A few feet away, Naruto was walking as well, by himself. 'I'm so excited I couldn't even sleep… but I have a Rock Genin as an opponent… I will crack him up!!! I'll completely rip him to pieces!!! Hell yeah!' Naruto asked Kakashi to only train him one week. Kakashi had agreed. After that week, Naruto trained alone.
Neji was walking with Rock Lee and Ten-Ten. Gai had things to do for the preparations of the Chuunin Exam, everyone was double checked, in case something would occur similar to what happened in the previous Chuunin Exam.
'I am walking beside my opponent… how stupid can a match-up like this be?' Neji thought as he glanced at Rock Lee for a second.
'Gai-sensei will be watching me! This time I will be the shining brightly!' Rock Lee thought. 'But my opponent is Neji…'
'Revenge… I will beat you now, Temari..' Ten-Ten thought.
"Heh.. I have it quite easy in the start… since I'll be facing that failure again.." Temari said as she spoke with Kankurou.
"Hmm, I'll probably have it hard… Stone Genins are really a pain.." Kankurou responded.
"Use your new moves, Kankurou.." Gaara said, although in a very strange way. Surprise was evident on Kankurou's face as Gaara just advised him something.
"So, the Final Test begins… I have a feeling there will be some excellent matches…" Aoba said as he saw the first participants enter the building. "Don't you agree, Kakashi?"
Kakashi seemed busy analyzing everyone in the building and felt something was very off… kind of similar to when Orochimaru attacked.
Two people were seated on the left side of where the Hokage was seated. They seemed like two normal Chuunins as they sat there….
And then, one spoke up. "I wonder… it seems there's a Hyuga in the Chuunin Exam, Dareda." He said as he saw Neji enter along with Rock Lee and Ten-Ten.
Dareda, in disguise, having deluded the two Jounins who checked everyone near the entrance, reacted chuckling. "Yeah… To be honest, I have already heard of this particular one… Hyuga Neji… But, he does have a Curse Seal on his forehead.. So, when are we going to make our move, Itachi?"
Itachi, also in disguise, answered. "We will wait until this Chuunin Exam is over.. I want to see the fights…"
"Hey, that's an Uchiha… right there, Itachi!" Dareda whispered. "I thought you were the only Uchiha left!"
Itachi nodded. "It's my little brother… I forced him to be an Avenger type of ninja…. I want to see how strong he is now…"
Dareda nodded.. "I see… Well, let's enjoy the show, then!" He ended with a chuckle.
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TBC
A/N: Yeah, yeah, almost all talk, huh? Well, I just had to work on the relationship between Naruto and Sakura, Naruto and Hinata, Neji and Hanabi, Shigeru and Sasuke and especially Naruto and Kakashi. In the next chapter there will of course be fights, but also flashbacks of talks between Kakashi and Naruto, Neji and Hanabi (and Hat) and maybe a little Naruto/Sakura and Naruto/Hinata…
Next Chapter: Assemble for the Final Exam!!
