Chapter Twelve: Chunin Exam (3)
It took all but five minutes before Minato decided to pull the two girls off of Naruto, giving Naruto the chance to breathe after they wrapped their arms around just a bit too tightly. When both girls let go they gave one another a look, a silent discussion being made with their eyes. Naruto looked at the two, confused with what exactly was going on. He cleared his throat, looking at the girls who snapped out of their conversation of thoughts.
"Uhm, how long have I been out?"
Minato put his hand on Naruto's shoulder, looking down at him with a somber look etched on his face. "You've been gone for about four hours. How are you feeling? What exactly happened?"
Naruto struggled to sit up right, his limbs stiff from the lack of blood flow in his body for so long. When he finally got up, he almost fell off the bed from the dead weight of his body. Minato was quick to grab him, helping him stay upright after he pulled a chair out for himself to sit on.
"Well, I was going about eliminating teams for the sport of it, not killing anyone of course. Then I went to find Yuna and her team to offer them one of the scrolls I had taken. Then we were ambushed by a snake summon, and retreated using my Shadow Flicker and-"
"No, not that." Minato said softly, giving Naruto a gentle squeeze. He looked at his son, and he looked back. Naruto knew what he meant.
"You're talking about what happened when I was dead, right?"
Minato nodded, keeping his grip on Naruto to help him stay up. The blood was slowly settling back into his veins and limbs, making it a bit easier to keep himself up. "Well, it's best I explain what happens when I die in general. When I am killed, I go to where my soul would rest if I stayed dead. I will go to the Pure World."
He took a deep breath, looking at Minato and the two girls who were standing there listening intently. He eyed the new girl, not too sure to trust her. But he had a feeling he could. "When I arrive in the Pure World when I die, I open my eyes to a never ending road through an ever expanding field. It's the representation that my path in life is not over."
"When I walk down the road I never see it's end in sight, nor can I really see how far I have walked when I look behind me. The first time I died I didn't stay in the Pure World for too long, the Shinigami was there with me as soon as I opened my eyes. So when I came back the first time, it was only about twenty minutes before my soul returned to my body. This time it wasn't like that. I walked down the road for hours, not sure why I wasn't resurrecting. Turns out it's because someone wanted to meet me and tell me a few things."
Yuna got a bit closer, sitting on the end of Naruto's bed and looking at him with worry. "Did the Shinigami want to talk to you again? What did he say?"
Naruto shook his head, looking at Yuna with a smile. "No, Lord Shinigami was not there to welcome me or talk to me this time. Instead, I met the newest summon I can now bring out from the Pure World."
Minato's eyes widened, looking at his son with shock in his eyes. He cleared his throat, letting a nervous smile form on his lips. "A…A Pure World Summon? Is that some sort of special contract?"
The boy nodded, looking out the window as he thought on how to explain it all. He spent some time understanding it with the Shodai Kuraikage, but it still was strange to him. "Yeah, it was a gift from Lord Shinigami about eight years ago at the last Celebration. He gave me a Gift people in my village started calling the Fifth. At first I was confused about how a contract would only allow one summon, but Lord First explained it to me. It's sort of why I was out for so long."
"He explained to me that I do not simply sign the contract and get all the summons it comes with because the summons aren't creatures like the Toads, Lizards, or Snake Summons. The summons the contract gives me are the spirits of those who -chose- to join the contract."
"So," Minato tried to cut in before he went further into this. "The Pure World Summoning Contract is not creatures of chakra like typical Summoning Contracts, but the spirits of those who want to be part of it?"
Naruto nodded, looking back to him with a slight smile. "Yeah, though I have yet to summon the first spirit that Lord Shinigami himself had joined the contract. And I just met the second spirit to sign the contract when I was, uhm…in the Pure World."
"So who is the second spirit?" The mysterious girl spoke up, completely lost and interested in everything her savior was talking about.
"The second spirit is the Shodai Kuraikage. And he is eager to see how I grow."
The room got quiet as the three absorbed all this information. Yuna was a bit shocked to hear that Naruto could now summon the spirit of the Kage that was before him, and if the Kage was truly powerful like any Kage should be, he could easily overrun his opponents by sheer power alone. Minato sat back in his chair, trying to think about all of this. He looked to his son, a sad smile on his lips as he saw him and the girls talking. He truly was different. No one, no clan, possesses this power. Which truly meant that Naruto is distant in relation to him like Yuna said he would be. That thought alone killed a bit of him on the inside, but still…he was his son, be it blood or not.
After the girls were asked to leave, and Minato left to take care of some things, Naruto was told he would be in the hospital ward til the end of the second phase of the exams. He tried to protest and say he wasn't injured anymore, but one look from the infamous Yellow Flash made him calm down. He now had four days to sit and think, and the thoughts of what happened kept playing in his mind.
He no longer was the only one with knowledge about the Shadow Flicker. Orochimaru was able to escape it, and understand its underlying meaning about how it worked. The only solace he had was the fact the snake bastard had no clue what the hand signs were. Even then, he was stunned to know someone was able to understand his technique. This made him question everything, looking down to his hands as he clenched them in his fists. What if the Uchiha copied that technique the few times he was with him when he flickered, what if Kakashi was able to copy it when he wasn't paying attention? What if he would no longer have a monopoly on the Shinigami Arts?
He shook that thought out of his head, taking a deep breath as he tried to collect himself. He was Naruto Shingami, Chosen of the Shinigami and the Nidaime Kuraikage. His bloodline let him combine both chakras that were exclusive to the clans of his village to make the Shinigami Arts. No one else can copy a bloodline. Atleast, no one he could know of. He laid back down, letting out a breath he didn't even realize he was holding in as he tried to think of a way to know for sure his nightmare wouldn't be coming true. That's when it hit him. He slowly got out of the bed, but quickly felt the breeze of the chilly room. He looked down to finally realize he was in a hospital gown. He looked around, letting out a sigh of relief when he saw his clothes sitting on the edge of the window. He took them, a frown on his face as he saw the blood from his injuries staining the white trench coat. He didn't have time to worry about that, and decided to put on his clothes before sneaking out of the window and climbing up to the top of the tower.
When he opened the window and climbed out, he didn't see the door to his room opening up. From the door the mysterious girl looked to see him leaving and leaping up towards the roof. She quickly closed the door behind her, moving to follow him. She needed to talk to him.
When Naruto got on the roof he saw that it was night time, making him look up to the clear sky and seeing the half moon in the sky. He took a deep breath, smiling as she got down on his knees and started making various hand seals. He had no idea that the girl was watching him from behind, peeking over the edge of the roof as she watched him work. It took him a good minute, but Naruto finished the hand signs on the six hundred and sixty-six hand seals for this jutsu. He slammed his hands down, hoping that he would answer as he kept his head low and waited.
And waited.
And waited.
Eventually the moon seemed to lose a bit of its glow, growing dim while the air around him grew colder. The breeze stopped, leaving him and his stalker in silence before an echo of the Shinigami was floating before Naruto. He looked down, seeing his chosen champion and spoke.
"Naruto Shingami…or should I say Lord Second?"
Naruto looked up at him, a smile on his face before stood up. "Thank you, Lord Shinigami. I am honored you answered my call, and that you chose me to lead the village. I promise you, on this life you gave me, I will never let you down."
The Shinigami waved his hand dismissively before looking at Naruto with more interest than before. "Enough of the pleasantries, Naruto. Why is it you called for me?"
Naruto looked up at the Shinigami, his blue eyes peering into the death god's yellow pupils. "I grew arrogant, my lord, and made a mistake. Due to my pride in my skills I foolishly underestimated my opponent, and in doing so he discovered the secret behind my Shadow Flicker. I fear he may be able to discover the proper hand seals, and in turn make the dangerous man just that much more powerful."
Shinigami nodded his head, keeping his eyes on Naruto as he spoke. "But that is not the only fear in your heart, is it Naruto?"
Naruto nodded, taking a deep breath as he kept his eyes to his Lord's. "No my lord. I fear that since someone was able to discover the secret behind that technique, I fear that they may discover a method of harnessing the Gifts of Chikyugakure. I truly fear that exposing my Kekkei Genkais any further could result in a great strike for the Hidden Earth. My lord…I humbly ask for your wisdom. Please, help this humble servant."
The death god looked at Naruto, his eyebrow raised with surprise before floating down and now standing truly in front of Naruto. "No one outside of the Clans and yourself may use the Gifts. The First, Second, Third, and Fourth Gifts are bloodlines, and can only be passed down through reproduction. Your bloodline, what the village is calling the Fifth Gift, is a manifestation of all of them, and in turn making it impossible to copy without being a descendant of your clan."
Again Naruto nodded, but shook his head when he replayed what he said. "So my bloodline can be passed down? It is not exclusive to myself?"
The Shinigami chuckled, which freaked out the girl eavesdropping into their conversation. "I promised you a reward for ending the civil war in the Land of Water, and the ability to pass on the Fifth Gift is that reward. I can see the plan you have of making your own clan, Naruto, and I approve of what you are doing here in these exams to fulfill that plan. However, I warn you Naruto. Be aware that I bestow this on you with trust. You have earned it, and I will continue to provide it as long as you do not stray from the road I laid before you. Now I must go, but one last thing before I do."
He turned his head, looking at the woman spying on them. The girl yipped, staring at the god of death that now looked like he was looking through to her very soul. Naruto turned to her, blinking a few times before looking back to his lord.
"I warn you that you must keep an open mind now. Enemies lie hidden in friends, and friends lie waiting among foes."
With those final words the Shinigami vanished, leaving not a trace of his existence as everything around them returned to normal. Naruto sighed, standing up and looking at the girl before motioning for her to come to him.
The girl listened, gulping as she came to him and stood before him. Naruto looked her over, smiling softly as he spoke up. "I trust you won't say anything about my talk with Lord Shinigami?"
The girl nodded, unsure what to say. But she would listen, she owed it to him. She cleared her throat, looking back at him. "I won't tell anyone…so you are Naruto? The legend?"
The boy blushed a bit, scratching the back of his neck. "I'm not a legend, I am just Naruto Shingami. Uhm, I never got your name miss?"
It was now her turn to blush, looking away sheepishly as she spoke up. "M-my name is K-Kin Tsuchi."
Naruto kept his smile up as he offered her his hand. "Well, it's nice to meet you Kin. Why don't we talk for a bit?"
~~Four Days Later~~
It was now time for the results of the second phase of the Chunin Exams. Naruto along with several others stood at attention of Anko Mitarashi. She snickered at them all, but everyone could see the bit of disappointment seeing so many made it through her trail. In total, there were about eight teams left including Narutos. Of the surviving teams, most were of the Leaf. The other non Leaf teams that made it were the team of the auburn haired boy, a team from the Hidden Mist. When Naruto looked at the group, he didn't see anyone he noticed from his time in the Land of Water. He looked over the others briefly before his attention was turned back to the stage where Anko was standing. He saw her, giving her a quick wink when she looked his way which only made her smirk, Kin blush, and Yuna to get a bit annoyed.
"Alright rookies, you all passed, but we have a small problem. There are too many of you for the next round! So-"
A man appeared beside her, coughing into his hand and looking at her. "I think it's better that I take it from here. This is my portion of the exams after all."
Anko looked to the guy, shrugging her shoulders before jumping up to the walkway overlooking the entire arena the genin were standing in. She kept looking at Naruto, a smirk on her lips. She was eager to see what he got.
The man coughed into his hand one more time before continuing. "Alright, like Anko said there we have too many of you left to progress into the finals. So, it was decided that the remaining genin will fight in one on one matches to thin the numbers. If anyone *cough* want to back out now, you may."
The genin looked at one another, none wanting to back out. All but one team. Naruto turned his gaze to the genin that had the information on him on a card. He didn't like the feeling he got from the guy, and it didn't help that he felt a familiar presence on him. Naruto made a silent note to talk to Minato about this when he got the chance.
After the group left the teams were told to head to the stands til they would be called in for their matches. Naruto simply jumped into his shadow, emerging from Anko's who quickly turned around and looked him over once more before speaking. "Well, it seems you did make it to the end didn't you gaki?"
Naruto chuckled, leaning on the railing overlooking the arena beside her. The two started talking while they prepared the first match. "So, Chikyugakure. Want to tell me about it?"
Naruto looked at Anko, the woman leaning back against the railing as she talked with Nartuo. "What do you want to know about it?"
She brought her finger to her chin in a thinking pose, which caused Naruto to blush a bit at the clearly intended cute act. She chuckled, thinking for a few more moments before she spoke up. "Well, what's it like? Is it like Konoha?"
He chuckled, looking back down to the area as he spoke. "No, actually our villages are drastically different. For one, my village is nestled into the caverns of a well covered island that leads deep underground. We did not have a Kage in charge for many years, the Clan Council ran things. Though recently I heard a new Kuraikage has been chosen."
Anko nodded along, pulling a stick of dango from what seemed like a thin area. "So a council ran the village? That had to be a drag. If they are anything like our council they probably got nothing accomplished that meant anything."
Naruto chuckled, shaking his head. "No, the Clan Council was greatly efficient. They made sure every little thing of the village was taken care of. From petty business disputes between vendors to the killing of one of the civilians. Everything is handled by the Council, and in turn the village welcomed their judgment. The Clan Council only has four members, the Clan Heads of the Four Gifted Clans."
She pondered this, thinking about it. "And are you from one of the clans?"
He chuckled, shaking his head. "You can say I am a part of all four of the clans."
"All four?"
Before they could keep speaking a large screen was revealed behind sliding panels on the wall overlooking the area. Naruto looked over, watching as various names were displayed on the screen. They kept rolling until they finally stopped on two names.
"Sasuke Uchiha and Sen of the Mist please come to the arena floor."
In all honesty the match that came from the two was anything but equal. Naruto watched as the Uchiha utterly thrashed the Mist shinobi, battering the poor guy baqck and forth with what appeared to be overwhelming force behind his attacks. Naruto sighed, watching as the proctor called Hayate called the match and proclaimed Sasuke the winner. Inwardly Naruto hoped at least the next match for the Mist group would be a winner.
How wrong he was when the next match was called, and the Mist kinochi lost against the chakra eating bugs of one Shino Aburame. This left only one left of the Mist. Naruto looked at the board, waiting for the next match to be made. And to his surprise it was his own.
"Naruto Shingami and Shikamaru Nara please come to the arena floor."
Naruto sighed, getting off the railing and slipping into his shadow once again before emerging from the shade that the stands were giving off into the arena. He looked across the arena, seeing his opponent had a rather odd looking haircut that sort of gave the impression of a pineapple. The Nara guy seemed tired, but after his encounter in the Forest of Death he learned not to underestimate your opponent.
Hayate raised his hand before jumping away and starting the match.
Naruto was the first to act, making hand signs but when he brought his hands together for the final seal he found himself unable to move. He looked around, trying to see what Shikamaru was doing. That's when he saw the dark line linking his shadow with his own. Naruto gritted his teeth, snickering as he tried to think of a solution fast.
"Just give up and surrender already, Naruto. This is a troublesome situation." Nara said, yawning slightly as he kept Naruto in place with his jutsu. Naruto kept thinking, thinking hard on what to do. But then a sly idea came from his thoughts. He struggled to move, but he was able to speak.
"I think now…You're not the master of shadows, Shikamaru. That title belongs to me." Naruto closed his eyes, taking a deep breath before letting out a very low, deep humming. He kept his eyes closed, focusing on the shadows. He hasn't tried this technique before, technically it was something he only thought of trying. However, if it worked, it would prove to be what he needed to break free from this.
The Nara before him looked at him confused, trying to figure out what he was doing. The humming felt…deep, like it was vibrating through the shadow. He was not sure what was going on, but his answer came when something popped out of the shadow of Naruto. Not even a minute after the humming did a large, ashen pale lizard come out and stand at Naruto's side. Naruto was quick to speak, a grin on his cheeks as his theory worked.
"Rika! Do not let him connect your shadow to his! I need you to make him break the link he has on me!"
The Lizard nodded, letting out a roar as she charged at Shikamaru. The boy tried to connect his shadow to the lizard's, but the stress and control it took to keep Naruto in place made his movements slow and unable to get to Rika before she jumped onto him, making him break the connection and letting Naruto free. Naruto went down on a knee, breathing heavily as he spent a lot of his chakra sending out the signal to open a connection to him and Rika. He was honestly surprised it work, and now wanted to experiment with this new technique. However, he saw Rika trying to actively claw and tear into his opponent.
Naruto got up, whistling to Rike who was now currently on top of Shikamaru with her jaw clamping down firmly into the boy's arm. Rika turned her head, seeing him whistling and knew that meant she needed to stop. She got off of the boy she had her fangs in, making sure she didn't pump any of her natural venom into the guy's flesh or else he'd be royally fucked. She went and stood at Naruto's side, his hand running up and down the spine of her back to praise her for a job well done.
Shikamaru looked up, seeing his opponent standing there with a smirk. He sighed. "What a drag…proctor, I surrender."
Hayate jumped down into the arena, looking at the Nara boy's bleeding arm. He grimaced and wondered how deep those fangs went in. "Shikamaru Nara has surrendered. Naruto Shingami is the winner."
Everyone looked on as Naruto turned and gave Rika a high five, her scaled claws smacking against his softer hand before the two of them started to make their way up to the stands. However, before he made one step up the door Shikamaru called out for him. He turned around, seeing some medical ninja tending to the bite.
"How did you break my Shadow Imitation Technique?"
Naruto thought about telling him how, but thought of another idea instead. "If you share that technique with me, I'll tell you how I was able to get around it. I might even teach you my Shadow Flicker technique."
Shikamaru's eyes widened for a moment before returning to his normal, uninterested look. "Hmph, troublesome…I can't teach you my technique. It is a Clan Jutsu."
Nartuo nodded in understanding, turning and leaving the Nara boy to be led into the infirmary as the next match was about to be announced.
The next few matches didn't really keep Naruto's interest, instead he spent the time talking and flirting with Anko a bit. He was actually finding he enjoyed her company, liking her bold-don't-care attitude and her interesting choice in grammar. The two kept talking, Naruto asking her about any good dango spots in the village before the next match was announced.
"Yuna Namikaze and Kiba Inuzuka please come to the arena floor."
Naruto smiled at Anko, looking at the arena. "Sorry, but hold that thought? I want to see sis be the shit out of that loud mouth prick."
Anko snickered, leaning against the railing beside him. She was actually enjoying her time with him. He was interesting, a mystery. He had an aura of power and dread about him, but his soft smile and welcoming eyes betrayed it. The two looked down at the arena, unaware that a raven haired woman with deep red eyes overheard what he said about one of her students. She went to Naruto, tapping him on his shoulder. Naruto turned around, smiling at her while Anko looked at her friend and wondered what she was doing.
"Excuse me, who do you think you are calling my student a loud mouthed prick?"
Naruto blinked, looking at Anko a bit confused. "Uhm, am I supposed to know who this is?"
Anko sighed, standing up and looking at him. "She is Kiba's sensei, Kurenai Yuhi."
Again Naruto blinked, looking at Kurenai and saw her with an annoyed expression on her face. "Sensais? Oh that's right, the other villages have four man teams right? Three genin to one jounin?"
Kurenai looked at him a bit confused now, ignoring her annoyance for the moment. "Yes. Does your village not do the same?"
Naruto shook his head, looking down at the arena as the two combatants prepared for the signal to start. "No. We don't even have an academy like the other villages. I am the first genin that was officially ranked in my village. We are just now adopting the ranking system of the Elemental Nations."
This caught both women off guard, Kurenai looking to Anko and Anko back to her. Anko was the first to speak up. "So…if you have no academy, and no sensei…how did you even become a genin?"
He smirked, keeping his eyes on the field as the battle started. "That's simple. I earned the respect of all four clan leaders of my village, and they are the ones in charge of the village."
The two girls just shrugged their shoulders, unsure where to take this now. So instead, they joined him in looking at the fight.
The fight itself was going well for Yuna. The girl dodges and weaves around Kiba's Fang Over Fang but barely does so every time. She was clearly outmatched when it came to speed. Naruto kept his eyes intently on the fight, watching as every time Yuna tried to set up for a ninjutsu she was just as quickly stopped by the rampant attacks of her opponent. It seemed she might lose this fight if she couldn't figure something out quickly. However, that's when Naruto saw it. He saw the condensed chakra swirling in her hand when she jumped back before heading head first into the Fang Over Fang. The two forces collided, battling for dominance. The chakra sphere won out in the end and sent Kiba and his pup flying into the wall, making the boy cough up blood before struggling to stand up. The coat he wore was in tatters, exposing the now tender and bruised skin underneath before he fell back down onto one knee.
Yuna stood over him, a grin on her face as she formed another sphere in her hands as she looked down at Kiba. "Do you give up?"
Kiba looked up at him, grunting before he looked down in defeat and nodded. With him injured and his animal companion out for the count, he couldn't hope to keep up with the Hokage's daughter. Hayate jumped down, calling the match before the medics came and took Kiba away and Yuna ran up in triumph to her team in the stands. She looked over to Naruto's direction, where he gave her a smile and thumbs up. Again that strange feeling found its way into her chest when he smiled at her, and all she could do was smile and wave at him before talking to the others.
Naruto sighed, leaning back over the railing. Kurenai wanted to go and check on Kiba, but was stopped when the next match was called out.
"Hinata Hyuga and Neji Hyuga please make your way to the arena floor."
Now this fight irritated Naruto far more than any of the others. He had to stand there and watch someone of the same blood mercilessly beat onto the other. He heard the words he spoke to her, calling her weak, pointless, that she was destined to lose to him and he was destined to win. When he stroked her and sent her down on the ground, his blood boiled over. He saw him looking down at her, the anger in his eyes clear as he went to end not just the battle but her life with a powered punch to her chest. Kurenai and a bushy browed jounin were about to jump down and stop him, but they were beaten as Naruto now stood at Neji's side and held the guy's wrist tightly on his own before pushing him back. He moved to stand in front of Hinata, eyeing Neji with venom in his eyes.
"You won the fight, there is no reason to go any further."
Neji eyed the man, snickering as he crossed his arms and looked at him as Hinata was carried away to the infirmary. "And what does it matter to you what happens to that weakling? This is a family matter."
That was the wrong thing to say to Naruto, who now let wisps of Death Chakra steam from his body. "I care little if it was a family matter or not. She lost, and from what I witnessed she was trying to get through to you the entire fight. She was trying to help you, but you decided to try striking her down for good. There is no honor in that, Hyuga."
Neji grew angry, stepping up and preparing to fight before Naruto leaned down, wiping the blood of Hinata on his hand before clenching it tightly. Everyone looked at him as he showed his fist to Neji.
"On my word as a proud shinobi of Chikyugakure, I will show you the sin you tried to commit and make you see that your way of thinking is flawed. I do not know what you believe in, Neji Hyuga, but pray to whatever deity you can that you do not face me in the final phase of these exams. Because if you do."
He closed his eyes, opening them to reveal his Desuaizu. The ghostly green pupils worked well for a fear factor, and the audience saw them and some quivered from the cold shiver those eyes sent down their spines.
"I will show you no mercy, the same way you showed her none."
Neji and Naruto eyed each other for a moment longer before Neji turned away, going up the stairs and to his team. Naruto watched him walk every step, not taking his eyes off of him before sinking into his shadow and reappearing beside Anko. He looked around, seeing that Kurenai was gone. Anko chuckled, looking at the guy that was slowly wooing her.
"She went to check on Hinata. She was another one of her students. So with two of her students in the infirmary she thought it best to be there for them."
Naruto didn't talk, only nodding towards her before returning his eyes to the arena. He sighed, slightly annoyed at himself for getting so angry. He didn't know the girl, but he thought about what he would have done if that was Yuna on the field. He couldn't let something so wrong go without something being said.
The final interesting match was when the auburn hair boy went up against a boy with bushy brows and bowl cut hair similar to the jounin that he was standing with. He hated the gaudy green spandex bodysuit they were both wearing, and orange leg warmers just looked wrong. He shuddered thinking what he would do if someone in Chikyugakure wore something like that.
He found out the auburn boy's name was Gaara, and the leaf ninja he was fighting was Rock Lee. He was amazed at the utter speed Lee showed when he took off leg weights he was wearing under the leg warmers, then when he saw him opening something called a Gate he was truly shocked at the guy's pure tenacity and agility. However, when he witnessed the boy's arm and leg being crushed by Gaara's sand, he frowned. It seemed that speed was nothing compared to a well rounded defense. When the match was ended, even being called the winner, Gaara went to kill Lee for leaving a scratch on the boy's body. This was seen by everyone, but once again Naruto was the first to act as she stood between the sand and Lee.
Naruto eyed Gaara, his gaze meeting the sand user's own. "The match was one, there is no need to continue."
Gaare returned to an expressionless front, looking at the intruder as his sand retreated into his gourd. "And who are you to interfere? His death will help prove my existence."
Naruto raised his eyebrow, not sure what the boy meant. He shook his head, staying put as everyone watched with bated breath. It was clear that Gaara was a cold blooded killer, but Naruto had no fear of it.
Gaara let a sinister snicker cross onto his lips, looking at Naruto. Naruto could sense something was going on with Gaara, as if someone was talking to him.
"Mother says you are a dangerous foe, that I should avoid you. But killing you will be the ultimate victory, the perfect death to prove my life is worth something."
Again Naruto looked at Gaara like he grew a second head. "Uhm, your mother?"
Before their conversation could continue Gaara's sensei, a jounin named Baki, came down and was able to get Gaara out of the arena and away from the others. Naruto looked up to the stands, smiling and waving at the girl that was in Gaara's team. The girl smirked, giving Naruto a mocked salute before following out with her sensei and teammates. This got a few reactions from select individuals. Anko grew a tick mark on her forehead, annoyed that some girl was absently flirting with -her- gaki. Though the smirk and salute might not have even been flirting.
Yuna growled to herself, holding the bars tightly seeing the cute little display. Again, she had no idea why it was bothering her so much. But it did, and she didn't like it one bit.
The final person to have a reaction was Minato, who was standing far away in a secret room looking over the exams. He snickered, seeing the situation his son didn't seem to understand he was getting in.
After the excitement died down, the winners of the matches were brought back down to the arena. All except Gaara. Hayate explained that the final phase of the exam will be held in one month's time, where the winners will compete in a tournament style competition. When he finished speaking he turned to the screen on the wall, where the matchings were displayed.
Matchings
Yuna Namikaze - Neji Hyuga
Sasuke Uchiha - Gaara
Naruto Shingami - Choji Akimichi
Temari - Kankuro
With that settled, the winners and their teams (those able to move) left the tower. Naruto sighed, moving to go outside and think of how to prepare himself for an opponent that really just rolled around like a supercharged boulder. As he walked out of the tower he was stopped when he heard his name being called out. He turned around, seeing Yuna coming up with her team behind her.
"Hey Naruto! Congrats on making it! Looks like we are heading for the top huh?"
Naruto smirked, bringing his fist up to bump against his sister's own when she offered it. "Yeah, looks like it. Though I wish it was me that was going against Neji. I really need to put him in his place. But I suppose I can let you do that since I have no choice."
She snickered, smiling up at him as Sasuke, Sakura, and Kakashi made their way to them. Naruto looked at Sasuke, the arrogant smirk on his face just like the night he demanded Naruto to tell him his jutsu.
"You, Shingami, I want you to teach me that Shadow Flicker technique you offered to Shikamaru. If you're willing to teach it to a second rate clan like the Nara, it would be better to use your time to teach it to an elite like myself."
Naruto had to roll his eyes, shaking his head. "No, because I offered a trade for his own technique for that. I am not going to just give you that jutsu with no good reason."
"What better reason than to help a highly respected clan like my own? Do you want ryo? I can pay you for it and anything else you can teach me. I'll make it worth your while."
At this Yuna frowned, turning to Sasuke. "Sasuke, he told you no twice now. It's clear that he doesn't want to teach you-"
Sasuke glared at her, making Yuna step back a bit seeing his Sharingan activate. "This isn't a conversation for you to get into, Namikaze. Why don't you go back to daddy so he can teach you."
Now it was Naruto's turn to step up, knowing moving and standing toe-to-toe with Sasuke as he activated his own Dojutsu. Sharingan looked into Desuaizu, deep red pupils into the ghostly green. "You will not speak to her that way, Uchiha. With these eyes I can peer into your very soul, and I can tell what kind of man you are. Yuo care only for power, no matter the costs. And I will never help you with something like that. I can understand the need for vengeance, but power you seek only corrupts."
He sighed, closing his eyes and reverting them back to his blue irises. Sasuke kept his sharingan out, gritting his teeth as he was about to attack Naruto before Kakashi put a hand on his shoulder. The Uchiha looked to his sensei, who shook his head before looking at Naruto.
"I apologize for him, Naruto."
Kakashi held onto Sasuke's shoulder tightly before leaving in a swirl of leaves. Naruto sighed, looking at Yuna while Sakura went off after the Ino girl she fought and tied with in her match.
"So," She asked as she walked down the path with Naruto "What are you going to do with the month before the finals?"
Naruto reached his hands back, thinking about it as they walked. He honestly knew he needed to train. There was a good chance he'll end up facing either her, Gaara or Sasuke in the second bracket of the finals. He was strong, insanely deadly at close range, but all three of them could easily keep him at a distance with their ninjutsu.
"I am going to train, maybe do some sightseeing in some of the other nations."
He looked at her, seeing her looking away nervously. "Something on your mind Yuna?"
She looked up at him, stopping on the trail as she rubbed her arm. "Uhm…if it's okay, could I maybe…come with you while you do the trip?"
Naruto blinked, looking at her. Why was she acting so shy with him all of a sudden? She was acting weird alot lately when he thought about it. He shrugged, putting the smile back on his face before nodding. "Yeah, as long as Mianto is cool with it I see no issue."
She smiled, leaning over and giving him a quick hug before they both made their way back to the village. One eager to get to see more of the world, the other eager to spend time with him one-on-one.
(Author's Notes)
Hello all you lovely shinobi and kunoichi! I hope you are enjoying the chapters so far! I wanted to take the time to explain a few things outside of the page that might be confusing since I haven't done a decent job at explaining them. That being the Shadow Flicker, the Gifts, and the Shinigami Arts.
The Shadow Flicker is -not- a Shinigami Art, and therefore -can- be used by others who understand how it works. Like how Orochimaru figured out that the fundamental of the jutsu is traversing the vast darkness in the world. What that meant was everything that casts a shadow is connected to what naruto calls the Shadow Network. And with Shadow Flicker he can traverse that network at great speeds like what was shown when he went from Chikyugakure to Konohagakure. The longer the distance, the worse the strain on his chakra, like what was seen in that same chapter.
The Gifts were originally only the Four, but with Naruto's new bloodline there are now Five. As you know the Shinigami bestowed the clans with their Gifts at the founding of Chiktugakure. Though they are bloodlines, there was never a successful combination between the clans of Chikyugakure, making Naruto the sole person in that village with all four Gifts, making his bloodline being called the Fifth Gift along with the Pure World Summoning Contract.
Lastly, the Shinigami Arts. Like I explained before, they are jutsu that combine both the Death and Spirit Chakra together, creating the unique school of jutsu. It's called Shinigami Arts for the fact that the jutsu that Naruto created could be said to be jutsu that the Shinigami could use. On top of that, when in unison, the jutsu could directly affect the living, more specifically humans and animals. Plants and vegetation can't really be harmed with anything of the Shinigami Arts unless Naruto used intense will power to force the chakras to do so. Though it should be noted, Death Chakra does not have this issue.
Hopefully this helps clear up some things from the peeps that sent me some private messages about them. If not, let me know so I can better explain it!
Peace out,
Vermillion Clover
