DOWNFALL OF THE LIGHT
Chapter 11: United We Stand
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Warcraft 3! If I did, I won't be stuck in this deadly mission! Man, I really don't cherish my life don't I?
"...": Speech
'...': Thoughts
(...): Scene Change or Author's Notes
AN: (Shoots down an enemy soldier with an M-249 and walks to him checking if he's alive.) HA, that's right, that's right, that's what you get! (Turns around slightly.) Whoa, I didn't even realize you guys were here... how much did you hear?
You: Nothing too incriminating, sir...
AN: Oh, good. Man, this place makes boot-camp seem like Disneyland... this mission is way beyond FUBAR. July 20th... missions have been quite a success... well in terms of me getting shot that is. I have an incredible record in getting shot with 9mms (Glock and Assauly Rifle), 12mms (Turrets), .357 (Magnum and Desert Eagles, 556(M-249), 762(Sniper Rifle), Assault Shotguns... the medics don't even understand how I'm still alive. Those who thought there were hot medics, I'm not sure what I should say. My ideal medic would of course be Hinata, her healing could make any injury of mine recover. Anyway, under these heavy circumstances, I managed to continue this chapter. Before my chapter begins, have you seen any other soldiers from my platoon? If you haven't seen them, I'm going to look for them and make sure they live. I need them just as much as they need me. (Takes the M-249 and leaves) I hope I come back to see all of you again!
More AN: Before I leave for now or forever, some readers had some questions for me. I'll gladly answer them now since... well... I'm a 'nice' guy who wants you all to understand more about my story. Man, this entire operation is outta control! Anyway, scratch that and I hope you understand the plot better. (Dashes off to the battlefield and attacks anything hostile. IF you don't want to be on my hostile list, I suggest you do things right)
Question and Answer Period again:
1Q: How strong is Naruto? Is he holding a lot back?
1A: To be completely honest, his power is beyond imaginable. He has been holding a hell lot back, the reason is of course there is no need for him to show off anything since no one is that worthy for him to use it on. If you want a little more detailed description, I'll say he is a decent challenger to Itachi but still not good enough to beat him. Rin is only slighter weaker than Naruto.
2Q: Are these kids too mature?
2A: Personally, in almost all anime series, the characters are at least 2 to 3 years more mature than their age. I suppose I would apply the same principle here. So, even though Naruto is only 12 turning 13, he has a mind of a 17 year old since his harsh life has made him see in a lot more different perspective. Hinata, she always has been more mature in the anime and her affections were always genuine. It's rare to see a 12 year old to have such deep and passionate feelings for a person, I already assumed she had maturity of a 15- 16 year old girl.
3Q: Is Rin a chunnin?
3A: The answer is, yes she is. She became a chunnin right after she returned to her home village. Why didn't Naruto take it with her, well read the previous chapter thoroughly and the answer would be there. Anyone who believed I made a mistake or they read wrong, I'll say it again. Rin is a chunnin!
4Q: Will the story follow the same storyline? Like will Orochimaru show up?
4A: I will say that Orochimaru will show up for being a jackass that he is. The thing is, I'm not going to tell you if he's after Sasuke or Naruto or even if the two teams work together to take him down. The result may be different so please be patient, I know you all can.
5Q: Is there a reason why I always get shot and live?
5A: If I died, who would be sad? (I'll safely assume no one raised their hand) Anyway, if I died there will no longer be story, that's simple. As a soldier, you have to know that I always need medics, friendly soldiers, weapons, friendly fire (that's not a good thing!), enemies and not to mention medical attention. I get shot because I can seriously become a pain in the ass for a lot of people. For the enemy, that's a good thing. To my friends... man, I see why they show no hesitation to shoot me especially when I wiped out half the squadron on purpose. I really deserve to get killed. My record should say something like this.
Subject: OpposingForce
Rank: Corporal
Status: Executed
Reason: Subject failed to utilize human assets in achievement of goal. (That's a real nice way to hide the truth!)
(In Room 301)
As Team 7 entered room 301, Naruto was surprised at the amount of people there. However, at the same time these numbers scared Hinata and Sakura. There were over 200 genins in this room, all of them had an frustrated expressions across their faces. Their eyes showed nothing but fury, if Naruto wasn't in front of them, the girls could've sworn they would've fainted. The Death Knight could sense the chakra levels in this room was extremely high, a lot higher than usual. If Gaara was in this room, which he was, that would've explained it. Even so, the chakra signatures were quite higher than Naruto expected. This wasn't the chunnin exam for nothing. At this moment, Naruto was still amazed at the numbers, this meant more competition. To the girls however, their chances of succeeding has dropped.
"Hey!" called a voice to Team 7. Hinata turned around just to see a boy with a short ponytail was walking towards them. "You guys are taking this too? Man, this is so troublesome..."
"It's good to see you, Shikamaru-kun," greeted Hinata with a smile. Shikamaru politely smiled back.
"Likewise, Hinata. Have you realized that this place has a lot of freaks than it should be?"
"I realized..." replied Hinata trying not to insult anyone. Two other people then approached Team 7, one girl with long beautiful blond hair and a chubby boy with a bag of chips. Their appearance caught Naruto's attention.
"Sakura-chan, who are these people? I can only remember Ino..." asked Naruto eyeing the three strangers.
"I forgot you were only here at the genin exam," said Sakura. "That was like 2 months ago. Okay, Naruto-nichan, this is the idiot trio." Shikamaru gave Sakura a slight glare, Naruto simply grinned.
"I told you not to call us that, Sakura!" barked Shikamaru annoyed.
"Fine, I'm sorry." It didn't take a genius to know that she didn't mean that. She quickly looked at her brother. "Okay, this is Nara Shikamaru. A lazy bum who complains about anything and everything in life like an old geezer. Yep, a boring guy who thinks everything is too troublesome." Sakura finished with a giggle which earned another glare from Shikamaru. The pink hair girl shrugged it off while the Nara boy thought it was a pain in the ass to continue. Then, Sakura pointed to the boy with the bag of chips. "That, my big brother, is Akimichi Chouji. I'm not going to say too much but you can obviously tell that he loves to eat more than he likes to train. He's also Shikamaru's best friend." Chouji snorted in annoyance, this didn't go unnoticed by Naruto.
"Akimichi... this name sounds familiar..." said Naruto trying to recall something in his head. However, he tossed that thought away when he saw the girl who was looking at him shyly with a blush. He decided to lighten up the atmosphere by some sort. "She's... Ino, right?"
"Yep!" exclaimed Ino happily. "I'm Yamanaka Ino, there's no need for that forehead girl to introduce me, I can do it myself."
"Hey, I'm doing you a favor by helping you, Ino!" snapped Sakura.
"You're just going to make insults like you did to my Shikamaru and Chouji! Fat chance, forehead girl!"
"Forehead girl? You should watch yourself, Ino-pig!"
"Sakura-chan, let Ino do her thing..." said Naruto a little bit irritated.
"You're so nice!" said Ino wrapped her arms around his neck immediately. "You are so much better than that forehead girl over there!"
"That forehead girl happens to be my sister, Ino."
"Really?" asked Ino very surprised. "Sakura, you never told me this blind person was your brother. What other secrets don't I know?"
"We aren't biological siblings, Ino," answered Naruto with a grin. "We are just very, very close friends."
"Get your hands off him, Ino-pig!" screamed Sakura demandingly. Hinata giggled at Sakura's act but soon felt jealous as she saw Naruto allowing Ino to do what she was doing.
"So, is there anything about you that I should know?" asked the Death Knight to Ino.
"Of course there is," replied the blond hair girl. "You should know that I am more beautiful, smarter and more charming that my rival Sakura over there! My only goal now is to claim Sasuke-kun. Of course, if I can't get Sasuke-kun, I'm more than willing to know you better."
"I'm glad you want to know me more, Ino-san."
"You can call me Ino-chan if you want."
"Fine, Ino-chan... I will be glad to know you better as well." Ino then broke the embrace with him but still whispered something into his ear. Naruto chuckled at that, Hinata and Sakura were curious at what she just said.
"Ino, what did you just say to Naruto-nichan?" questioned Sakura angrily.
"Nothing, I was just saying how big and ugly your forehead was when you were a girl. Naruto-kun here happened to find it very funny." explained Ino with a grin. Hinata giggled while the pink hair girl was enraged.
"Ugly? How dare you call me ugly! What did you mean you were the prettier one just now? Naruto-nichan, tell me who is the prettier one, me or Ino-pig! Stand up for your little sister!"
"Don't you have a nice way of asking others for their support, Sakura." teased Ino. "Naruto-kun, just say what's in your heart, you and I both know who the prettier one is."
"Is there a way for me to get out of this?" asked Naruto wanting an objection, he couldn't believe what kind of situation he was actually in. The girls shook their heads which made Hinata giggle even more. This conflict was another event that would either resolve in getting a punch or a kiss in the face. However, this time around neither answer would satisfy them both. If he said Ino was better looking, Sakura would punch him to the wall causing a major dent. If he chose Sakura... who knew what Ino would do. The Death Knight then glanced over at Shikamaru and Chouji's faces, they strongly advised him to pick Ino. It wasn't because they wanted to support their teammate, it was more like an ballistic Ino wasn't someone that anyone could control. The two girls stared at Naruto with demanding eyes along with a strong sense of authority. They wanted an answer and they wanted it now.
"I think..." said Naruto nervously swallowing very hard. "I think Hinata-chan is a lot prettier!" He finished the last part very quickly. Suddenly, he realized what he just said but it was just a little too late. 'What the hell did you just say, you idiot!' cursed the Death Knight to himself. 'I'm so going to get it...' Suddenly, he felt a pair of arms encircling around his neck passionately. He could recognize that feeling anyday.
"You're so nice to me." Said Hinata giving the boy a soft kiss on the cheek. Sakura was dumbfounded at Naruto's answer while Ino smirked a victorious smirk.
"Looks like Naruto-kun likes Hinata-san, well, you and I both know who Naruto-kun would've picked me, ne, Sakura?" teased Ino triumphantly.
"You're going to regret that!" retorted Sakura as the two girls began a girly fist fight. Shikamaru and Naruto sighed in most relief. Hinata didn't care and still hung on to the Death Knight as if he was the most important thing in the world. In reality, he was to her.
"Nice save, Naruto." said Shikamaru relieved.
"Looks like my skills of improvisation really paid off today..." replied Naruto equally glad.
"Yeah? Man, I sure wish you were on my team."
"Because I beat Sasuke?"
"No, it's just that Ino has been really bugging me lately ever since we are on the same team. She's like Shikamaru this, Shikamaru that... she worries too much about me as if she has nothing better to do."
"If Ino-chan always worries about you, she must care for you a lot."
"Ino? No way, ever since we were kids she likes to do troublesome things around me... there is no way Ino cares that much about me. She likes Sasuke."
"Maybe she's just too shy to admit it to you. Maybe she just doesn't want to accept the fact that she likes you, I think she's just using Sasuke as an addict for something she doesn't want to deal with."
"Am I that hard to deal with?" asked the lazy genin very dully.
"I don't know, I don't know you well enough to be the judge of that. But women aren't that hard to understand. You just have to think a little bit more underneath the underneath." replied Naruto.
"Having two girls on your team must've been a great help, hasn't it?"
"You think it's great? It does has its drawbacks." stated Naruto which earned a look from the Hyuga girl. The Death Knight glanced at her and terror sweated, he realized he just said something that he really shouldn't have.
"Drawbacks?" questioned Hinata sweetly. He sensed all the wrath behind it. "Whatever did you mean by that?" Shikamaru looked at Naruto who was trying to get out of the embrace as quick as he could. However, Hinata was holding on to his neck a little bit tight causing the boy's efforts to be in vain. Hinata sounded so sweet, then Shikamaru realized what was going on. It was like how Ino would act but based on the fact Hinata was always so shy and innocent (AN: She is really not that innocent in this story, for those who think she is, you are a lot denser than I thought!), coming from her was frightening.
"Nothing, Hinata-chan... I didn't mean that..." justified Naruto trying to be emotionless.
"Is that true?" she asked innocently while she allowed her fingers to do the talking. She touched his neck softly and passed it gently with her fingers like a vampire would. Then she pulled his head a little closer so her mouth would be next to his ear. "God... I want to eat you..." she whispered seductively into his ear. The Death Knight then started to experience something he hasn't experienced in a long time, fear.
"You... don't mean that do you, Hinata-chan?"
"I mean every word my sweet Naruto-kun..." The Death Knight began to tremble, this was something he never got used to.
"Looks like I'll leave you two alone now," said Shikamaru walking away.
"Wait!" shouted Naruto reaching out his hand desperately. "We were still talking! Let's finish it first!" Then he felt the Hyuga girl swooning over him claiming him away from what he was trying to do. Naruto looked at the girl with the most fear, her eyes were seductive, she wanted him all to herself.
"Hey, Hinata-san." called a very familiar voice. Hinata groaned in a little bit of annoyance knowing her fun was ruined. Even so, she put on the brightest smile on her face and loosened her grip knowing it was Sasuke who called her.
"Sasuke-kun," said Hinata releasing herself off her freaked out beyond imagination boyfriend. She then saw Team 8, the team with three males. The Death Knight then silently went to the wall and leaned against it with his arms crossed avoiding anymore human contact. Sakura didn't hesitate at all to go to her brother's side and stood next to him without words. "How are you doing? I haven't seen you for a while."
"C'mon," said the Uchiha with a chuckle. "I saw you three days ago. Oh yeah, how is that Mist-nin Haku doing? Is he awake yet?"
"Not yet," replied the heiress sadly. "Naruto-kun has been quite down ever since Haku-san arrived..."
"You should cheer him up, shouldn't you?"
"I want to... I want his pain and worries turn into pleasure... I can't bear to see him like this..."
"Pleasure and joy?" asked the Uchiha raising an eyebrow. "I think that would be a little hard... Naruto seems to be a real hard person... the things that make him depressed can only be healed if those things could repair themselves. As long as Haku is unconscious, I know Naruto would still search for the most optimistic way to deal with things. Hinata-san, I think what Naruto needs is some space to think on his own..."
"I think he needs my company, he always have been feeling better with me around. I really want him to experience happiness, I want to be with him..."
"I think giving him some space would be better... I could refer myself to him very well. You know we should ask Naruto himself."
"Fine, but don't make it so direct, okay?" Sasuke nodded and dragged his friend to her other two teammates who were talking silently as if they didn't want anyone else involved. When Naruto saw Sasuke, he gave him a grin and the Uchiha gave one back in return. "Naruto, I have something to ask you."
"Can I be part of this conversation too?" asked Sakura hopefully. Hinata and Sasuke then nodded.
"I want to ask if your relationship partner is depressed, what would you do to make him/her feel better?" asked Hinata. "What would you two pick?" Hinata was hoping that her boyfriend would pick the right choice.
"That's easy," said Sakura.
"The choice that I'm going to pick is," added Naruto.
"Stay close with them."
"Give them space." finished the Death Knight without much emotion. "Why would I want anyone to be near me when I'm upset?" Sasuke immediately went to Sakura who was looking at her brother in disbelief. 'Naruto-nichan, what are you doing?' screamed Inner Sakura. 'Naruto... if you die, I hope you have a good funeral...' added Sasuke in thought.
"Give you space, Naruto-kun?" asked Hinata in a very mutual voice holding her hands together shyly. The Death Knight looked at her while rolling his eyes somewhat in exhaustion. He knew that voice too well.
"What did I say wrong?" he asked a little directly.
"Fine, whenever you're upset I won't kiss you or hug you or even talk to you since you love your space." Hinata blurted out softly but Sasuke, Sakura and Naruto sensed the other feeling behind it.
"Suit yourself, Hinata-chan," said Naruto as he took out his novel from his pouch. Hinata could feel her eyes tear up by hearing those words, her boyfriend really wasn't the warmest person she knew but never this cold. However, she could hear him chuckling. "I'll make you a bet, Hinata-chan,"
"What bet?" she asked timidly.
"I bet that you'll not follow the words that you just said."
"I meant every..." Hinata stopped when she saw a very dark grin coming from the boy. She stopped arguing, she knew she would never have the heart to leave his side and not do a thing to help him feel better. She pouted immediately, Naruto immediately tugged her close to him and laughed. Sasuke and Sakura sighed in relief, they thought a emotional riot would occur, they were glad that it didn't happen. The duo soon looked at Naruto, their faces turned serious when they saw the expression the Death Knight had, he was observing something. Sakura and Sasuke quickly followed what the boy was watching, he was watching the crowd. The mood on everyone's faces were filled with frustration, anger, irritation, annoyance and nervousness. Come to think of it, that was the look they had ever since they stepped into the room.
"Hey, you guys!" called out somebody to the rookie 9. "Do you seriously think this is like a fellowship of some kind? Geez, you guys are acting like a bunch of school girls after their secret crush or something." The Death Knight glanced at the tall male with glasses, his glance turned into a suspicious stare in a matter of seconds. This guy's chakra levels were way too high to be a genins. He knew that Neji and Sasuke had incredible amount of chakra and skill... but this guy was another level. Based on what Naruto just sensed, he had enough skills to be a jounin. Naruto decided to keep a close eye on him.
"Who are you anyway?" asked Ino. "Who are you to tell us what to do?"
"Before I answer that, why don't you look at the people behind you." The rookie nine took a glimpse at the room, everyone sweated in slight fear other than Shino, Sasuke and Naruto who remained emotionless. The expression the crowd gave certainly weren't a pleasant one. There was a band of people who had the worst looks. "Those are people from the Hidden Village of Rain, they are very short tempered. I advise you that to be real careful when you're around them."
"Why are those people giving us such cold stares?" asked Sakura confused. A lot of them had that same question in their minds, somehow, Naruto understood.
"You nine must be the fresh rookies from the academy. Like previously mentioned, this chunnin exam isn't something that's easy. A lot of people have failed it more than once and right now, they are really nervous. It's only natural for people to have a sense of tension before it. I'm warning you ahead so you won't get picked on later. I guess it can't be helped since you are rookies who don't know anything. You nine really remind me of my old self when I was younger."
"We don't need you to baby us like that, little human." spat Naruto giving a glare.
"You sound like a real know-it-all," said Sasuke. "Who are you anyway?"
"I'm Yakushi Kabuto," said the tall male. "Yes, you're right on the know-it-all part."
"Kabuto-san," said Sakura. "Is this your second time?"
"No," Kabuto answered. "This is my seventh time." Shikamaru and Naruto both raised an eyebrow with doubt. It wasn't that they didn't believe that this was his 7th time, it's the fact that why this is his 7th time. "This exam takes place every half a year, making this my fourth year."
"Does this mean you know a lot about the exam?" asked Sakura happily. Naruto on the other hand never ceased that glare he had. Hinata caught on rather quickly.
"So you must be an expert at this!" added Ino.
"Expert?" questioned Shikamaru with a bit of suspicion. "If he's so called the expert, why hasn't he passed? Really, if he did he wouldn't be here." The Death Knight paid very close attention to Shikamaru's words, all of them were correct.
"Yeah, that's right..." said Kabuto scratching his head with a chuckle. The silver hair shinobi's suspicion grew. This Kabuto person was mysterious. 6 times? He failed 6 times, that was impossible. Naruto did believe this chunnin exam wasn't an easy thing to accomplish but his eyes never failed him. He sensed his chakra was great, he should've passed the exam without much hassle.
"Is the chunnin exam actually that hard?" asked Shikamaru. "Man, this is turning to be a pain in the ass."
"Was it hard for you, Kabuto-san?" asked Naruto suddenly not looking at him but with a smirk. The remaining 8 gave Naruto a confused look.
"Yeah, to a certain extent I think it was." replied the male casually as if he was prepared for this kind of question. Naruto then opened his eyes with a icy stare.
"Are you so certain?" asked the Death Knight leaning a bit closer as he pierced into Kabuto with his eyes alone.
"If I failed so many times, it's gotta be hard."
"Or did you choose to fail?" The remaining rookies raised an eyebrow at that question, however some weren't that oblivious. Hinata, Sakura and Sasuke knew he did that for a reason. The Hyuga girl paid close attention to her boyfriend's eyes, the three soon realized what was going on. Naruto believed this guy was untrustworthy. The enthusiastic Sakura earlier now shared the exact same cold eyes as Naruto, the three definitely trusted Naruto's judgement. "Kabuto-san," continued the Death Knight breaking that silent tension. "After 3 years of experience, there's nearly no way that you could fail that many times. Are you a demented retard with no talent? You don't look like one to me or your instructor wouldn't nominate you this many times. However, I really don't see why he would spent so much time on a failure like that could fail 6 times. Is there something in this exam that you need and no one could know about it so you choose to fail all the time? Are you hiding something from us? Is there something that you can't expose to the light?"
"Well, no one chooses to fail."
"Really? Don't you sound prepared to tell me that." Hinata smirked a little to herself, she knew nothing could hide from Naruto.
"Hey, in the end it's the Hokage and the other judges to decide whether they believe a certain individual has what it takes to be a chunnin. I can't simply argue with them if they don't think I have the skills to be one. Trust me, if I begged for it, they would have a good reason to not allow me to claim that title anytime soon."
"Fair enough, why are you here?"
"I was just thinking that I could share some info with you cute rookies."
"What's the catch?" asked the Uchiha male. Kabuto then chuckled.
"There's no catch at all." He replied with a smile.
"Really?" asked Hinata coldly. "I could hardly wait." The Death Knight caught the sarcasm in her voice, he knew that his personality was rubbing off her. Then Kabuto took out a stack of cards out of his pouch. "What are those cards?"
"These aren't just your normal every day cards, they are nin-info cards."
"Nin-info cards?" asked Shino emotionlessly.
"In more simple terms, these are cards that has information saved in it using my chakra. I've collected information on this exam for the past 4 years, there are around 200 cards total." A smirk then came across Naruto's face, he found the answer he needed.
"Why?" asked Sasuke coldly. The Death Knight was impressed with his sharpness, not to mention Sakura.
"So I could review on the exam and watch out for any mistakes that I made."
"Think twice before answering me," ordered Sasuke. "You still failed with or without these cards. Tell me the real reason why you're collecting them." Sakura gave a grin to her long time crush, maybe now not really a crush but her admirer. Both were thinking the same thing, this guy was strange. The remaining 5 rookies stared at Sasuke with most confusion, they didn't understand why he did that.
"I'm collecting these cards so I would know what kind of people I should be expecting to face." answered Kabuto calmly.
"So what you're saying is that you have info on the people here?" asked Sakura.
"That's what I'm saying, I know it's cheating a little but nobody said that life was fair. In a ninja world, there's no such thing as fair game you know." That's the most logical thing Naruto has heard all day. However, Kabuto's wisdom also brought on more doubt. "Is there someone that you're interested in?"
"Yeah, there is one," said Hinata.
"Make that two," finished Naruto.
"Who do you want to check on, miss?" asked Kabuto kindly.
"Rock Lee from Konoha," replied the Hyuga heiress firmly.
"And I want to check on Gaara of the Sand." added the Death Knight.
"You have their names too, that shouldn't be too difficult." Kabuto said with a smile. Wait for a moment..." The older genin then generated chakra into the cards and swiftly drew 2 cards out of his deck. He placed the two cards on the ground so all the genins could see. "Okay, let's start with Rock Lee. He's a genin from Konoha and he's one year older than you guys. He has completed 18 C-missions and 28 D ones. His taijutsu has raised over the charts this year while his other abilities aren't all that impressive. Last year, he was regarded as a very talented shinobi by his peers and instructors. Even though he is one year older, he didn't participate in the exam last year. Like you guys, this is his first time. His sensei is Maito Gai and his teammates are Katase Tenten and Hyuga Neji."
"I see..." said Naruto. "What about Gaara?"
"Let's see now... I'm sorry, I don't have much info on him. He's from the hidden village of Sand. He has completed 10 C-missions and 1 B mission. Wow, I never expected a genin to complete that. His key weapon is that large gourd on his back and his stats and abilities are unknown. His sensei is a mystery person and his teammates are Kankuro and Temari. It also says here that he has completed all his missions without a scratch."
"Without a scratch?" asked Shikamaru. "Who is this guy?"
"Not your average day guy, that's for sure." answered Kiba feeling impressed. Naruto knew this guy wasn't what he seemed, he knew his demonic powers had something to do with it. Even so, he couldn't believe it was that strong to protect him completely. He made a quick note to himself, he must pay 120 focus when he fought him.
"Kabuto, there's one more person I would want you to check." Said Sasuke. "Can you check on Uzumaki Naruto?" 'Why would you want to check on me, Sasuke?' thought the Death Knight curiously. Hinata and Sakura seemed to like the idea. Kabuto agreed to Sasuke's request and drew a card out of the deck.
"Let us see here... Uzumaki Naruto... this is an old record..." said Kabuto. "Did I make a mistake?"
"Old record?" asked Naruto controlling his suspicion in his voice. "What do you mean?"
"This is the old stuff that was about you before you became a Konoha genin," The Death Knight narrowed his eyes in anger. "It says here that you're a Hidden-Nin of all the countries," 'He has info on that I am a Hidden-Nin?' asked the Death Knight in his mind but he wanted to see how much info was on that card. "Your sensei is Jiraiya-sama of the Legendary Three," Everyone gasped other than Hinata and Sakura. It was now understandable how Naruto was incredibly powerful. "Your partner was a girl named Kamishiro Rin, a female shinobi of Air. You left Konoha at the age of 5 due to an unknown reason and until now, you have completed 32 A-missions! 49 B-missions and 16 C-missions." All the genins this time gasped in surprise. Naruto was now irritated, Kabuto had too much information already. Without a second thought, he took out his runeblade and dashed at the older shinobi with much killing intent. Kabuto didn't have enough time to dodge for the Death Knight's left hand was holding his neck real hard while he was prepared to kill him right there.
"Naruto-kun!" shouted Hinata as she held on to his hand that was holding the blade. "Stop it!"
"To hell I will!" retorted Naruto now charging his blade with deadly energy. "Prepare to die!" he said with a sense of blood lust. Hinata suddenly feared that voice, it sounded very demonic.
"We're not here to kill him, Naruto-ni-chan!" said Sakura pulling him away from the genin in a helpless grasp. He was lacking the access of air, if he was held for an additional 5 seconds, he would've been killed. Naruto reluctantly released him but destroyed the card that had his info on it. It was burned into ashes with his chakra alone.
The Death Knight gritted his teeth angrily, how did Kabuto get hold of that information? This was highly classified information known to a few people. The Hokage, Jiraiya, Kakashi and Rin were the only people that should know. Not even Hinata or Sakura should know that he was a Hidden-Nin that worked for many countries to build peace negotiations or just to aid them to achieve prosperity. Naruto never recalled telling anyone this, who could've gave Kabuto such information. 'This guy is not trustworthy,' was what Naruto continued to tell himself. That guy was a dangerous character in this exam.
"So... what do you guys think?" asked Kabuto as he felt a bit better.
"We think that Naruto is scary..." answered Kiba honestly.
"He didn't mean that, Kiba..." corrected Shino. "He meant the people we just heard about..."
"I still think Naruto is scary!" Shino just mentally slapped himself for trying to understand his friend.
"There are so many strong people in this exam..." murmured Ino very quietly.
"Exactly," answered Kabuto. "Everyone in this room are just like Lee, Gaara and Naruto. They are all the best of the best and most experienced elites from their respected countries and village."
"I'm losing confidence already..." admitted Ino sadly.
"It's a little late to say that now, Ino." said Shikamaru.
'Naruto-kun...' thought Hinata sadly. 'How much more are you hiding from me? We are together... you can tell me anything, I won't tell a single soul if you say so. Please trust me, believe in me.' She then observed the remaining rookies, their confidence has certainly fell after hearing these incredible shinobi's abiliies. A taijutsu specialist, a shinobi who never received a single scratch from any missions including a B-rank and lastly a warrior who has completed over 30 A-missions and nearly 50 B ones. The odds were really against them, it wasn't everyday you get to encounter someone that experienced. Being with Naruto for 2 months, Hinata's observing skills have drastically improved, his influence was a lot higher than Naruto imagined.
"Don't worry about it," said Naruto calming down with a grin. "IF your senseis didn't think you guys were up for it, they would never have nominated you on this exam. Trust me, I'm sure that Kurenai-san and Azuma-san are here to send their students or a suicide mission. They have great faith in you, don't disappoint them."
"What about your instructor?" asked Sasuke. "You didn't mention him."
"I'm sure he just sent us here for the sheer fun of it."
"But, Naruto... there are so many strong people out there..." choked Chouji.
"Yeah, it really brings us down..." added Ino.
"Not only that, we are rookies among rookies..."
"Don't give me that load of crap!" ordered the Death Knight harshly. His voice startled everyone in the room. "So what if the people are strong? Do you know why they are strong? That's because they worked hard for it. Are you going to just avoid them and hope to find something easier? If you are, you don't even deserve the name of a genin! That's why we work as a team, the three person team is unity, we face obstacles together and overcome anything that stands in our way. There are just too many things in life we can't avoid, this is one of them. Sure, I am strong but in reality there are plenty of people who are stronger than me. 'Itachi-sempai... you are truly powerful...' Lee, Neji, Gaara, they're all strong but you don't see Hinata-chan, Sakura-chan or I backing down. We stand or fall together, we face every obstruction with another as a team."
"What if we screw up?" asked Ino.
"What if, what if... look, no one would blame you if you actually tried your best. So quit running away and face it like a real human being would. Have faith in yourself and each other." The Death Knight sighed a little after his long speech, he knew all they needed was a little more encouragement. The people in the crowd then calmed down a little bit after Naruto's words. His choice of words were powerful, it was good enough to wipe out some of the people's fears away. Ino was so relieved that she couldn't help herself to give the Death Knight a passionate embrace. "Ino-chan, what's wrong?" he asked while rubbing her back slightly.
"Thank you so much, Naruto-kun..." she replied with somewhat watery eyes.
"No problem, just don't make Shikamaru too worried, okay? I'm sure he doesn't want to see his beautiful friend cry like that."
"I'm crying because I'm happy," said Ino trying to hide her shade of crimson. Hinata gave her a warm supportive smile while Sakura couldn't believe her rival hugged her brother twice in the same hour. She was enraged. The guys were glad that Naruto lifted their burden but they soon sweatdropped at the scene in front of them.
"Ino-pig!" screeched Sakura. "What the hell are you doing to Naruto-nichan!"
"I was just thanking him..." answered Ino still embracing the boy gently with a blush.
"That's way too close for a thank you!" Sasuke and Naruto immediately sweatdropped without hesitation. 'There is a way too close for a simple gratitude now?' asked the mentioned two males to themselves in unison. Naruto sighed inwardly as the two rival began to argue again. (AN: Now to add some humor! If it's funny, good. If not, well bare with me.)
"He's charming..." said Tenten gazing at Naruto admiringly from afar. "I could fall for that guy."
"Hey Neji," said Lee. "Looks like you have a rival, ne?"
"Hey, it's not like Tenten would just fall in love with a guy who she just met half an hour ago." assured Neji. "Don't worry about it."
"You sure, Neji-kun?" teased Tenten. "I have to say that he's doing a very good job at it."
"Wait, he wasn't talking to you," said Neji surprised. "How could you like a guy who wasn't having a conversation with you?"
"Either were you, you really have no skills with women, not even to your girlfriend." she then pouted.
"C'mon Neji, cheer her up." said Lee in a demand. Neji simply shrugged and ended the conversation. 'Fine, time for the second approach...' "Tenten-chan," cooed Lee to his female teammate.
"Yes, Lee-kun?" responded Tenten with the same sweet emotion. Neji's ears twitched.
"Since Neji here didn't want to cheer you up, I thought I would!"
"Oh really?" asked Tenten dramatically with sarcasm. To the Hyuga genius, it sounded real. "You're so nice to me, Lee-kun!"
"I was hoping that you would go out to a movie with me, then a long walk in the park and silently enjoy the starry night. What do you say?"
"I would love to... but it's the chunnin exam though..." she then pointed her fingers cutely.
"That's such a shame... how about we make out then?" Tenten grinned evilly, she knew at this point Neji would lose it. It was a good thing that Lee was a really close friend of hers, they could really open to another. It was then that Neji lost it, he soon smashed Lee's head with his fist causing a bump.
"Tenten," said Neji rushing to her side immediately. "What ever Lee just offered... I'll make it double!" the female weapon master burst into laughter while Lee secretly did his nice guy pose which went unnoticed and laughed as well. The Hyuga boy could feel his eyebrow constantly twitching for he knew he has been fooled.
"Oh, Neji-kun," said the brown eye girl laughing. "You fall for it every time!"
"So you purposely set up a trap for me to step on?" he questioned.
"Yeah," replied Lee. "This is like the third time that it has happened!" That alone resulted in another punch on the head. "Ow..."
"C'mon Tenten, give me another chance." Neji was begging for forgiveness. The girl just gave him a sinister smile that caused him to drop a terror sweat.
"Of course I would, but there will be a cost to it though." She said a little seductively. Neji gave a gesture for her to continue. "You have to spend more time with me."
"Deal!" said Neji relieved at the low consequences. Meanwhile, the Death Knight signal for immediate help since he needed to get himself out of the conflict the girls were in. Shikamaru and Sasuke took one girl each and separated them from apart. They made sure that the distance was reasonable. Naruto gasped taking a breath of air while Hinata giggled at the look on her lover's face. He looked dead, dead from exhaustion. As soon the conflict was solved, a huge cloud of smoke appeared right in the front of the classroom. As the smoke cleared a bit, there was a figure in the middle with a long black trench coat, his face had two very visible scars that were vertical. Behind him were at least a dozen chunnins.
"Settle down you bastards!" barked the leader of the group. It was clear that that guy was a jounin. "The first part of the exam is about to begin!" 'Finally,' thought the 12 main Konoha genins in unison, they were prepared to take on any obstacle that awaited them, nothing would stand in their way. They knew that as this point, it was together they succeed or together they fall. However, that wouldn't be something that would stop them in achieving their goal. They looked at the jounin, his face certainly surprised some of them. His scars made him look even more intimidating. However, the Death Knight didn't fear him, he looked right into his eyes and snickered darkly. "I welcome you all to this year's Chunnin Selection Exam, I'm your first instructor, Morino Ibiki."
AN: (Runs back to take cover with another soldier but he got shot and fell down.) Shit, they got Johnny, you bastards! (Drags the friendly trooper back and lay him down while shooting back desperately) You guys are still here? C'mon, it's dangerous out here, get down! I can't believe you all made it to this part alive, am I glad to see you all. Anyway, I heard there's some kind of big stand off at a dam up ahead... it doesn't look like it's going to get better here that's for sure. I bet they could use my help. Before I leave, I hope you all like my story so far, I apologize if it's a little slow in development though. I hope I could do better. Now, if you review this chapter, I will be eternally grateful. Thanks again to all reviewers, I hope my next chapter would be out in another couple of days. (Takes out a grenade and throws it) Damn it, I need backup now damnit, now damnit now! (Runs out of cover and attacks. Then gets shot by a sniper.) Shit, I'm hit, I'm hit pretty bad! (Falls on the ground in a nearly dead state.) Damn, why does this always have to happen... this sucks...