Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the characters and blah! So, nyah! You can't sue me now! (attempts to chuck demonic plushies at anyone who dares say otherwise)

Review Questions: Licht Sieger: Thanks for telling me. It's just that I'm not quite as far in the manga as a friend of mine, and she said that during the battle he does get it and finds out about Naruto's demon? Maybe she got confused, I don't know.

Fragile Bonds

Chapter 6: Tough Terms

It was still late at night, but a dream covered in red and black roused him from his sleep. He slowly opened his eyes as the wall between a dream and reality fell apart. Sasuke sat up in his bed and ran a slender hand through his dark, silky strands.

He didn't move from his spot and instead stared at the door to the hallway with a blank expression. Then it hit him. It came back in an overwhelming rush and he had to smack himself. He remembered the spar with Naruto and then the events that had taken place just last night. It wasn't anything serious, but it was enough to get the wheels turning in the Naruto's head. Not even he could be that dense and with how he's changed, Sasuke wouldn't put it past him to put two and two together.

Sasuke dragged his hand down his face in a rough manner from exasperation, letting it fall to the bed.

'What was I thinking?'

Had he had possession of a mirror at that time, Sasuke swore that he could probably be compared to the color of a ripe tomato. He could feel the blood rushing towards his cheek. He touched his heated skin, disgusted with himself. "Great, now he's going to think I've gone crazy! What..." he stopped and stared at his palms. "What are these feelings?" he whispered.

He couldn't explain it, but at that point in time, every fiber of his body was screaming at him to touch the boy. Sasuke chewed on his lip as he remembered the intense feelings that gave him the burning desire to feel the golden strands and supple skin that he knew would be soft to the touch.

And of course... Instead of ignoring them like a smart person would have... he had wanted to be an idiot and indulge them instead...

The powerful urge to bang his head against the wall several times was extremely tempting. Maybe it would knock some sense into him.

He paled slightly. 'Oh yeah,' he thought. 'He's still here. I better check on him.' The raven-haired boy stood up and quickly changed out of his clothing, deciding that he would just have to shower later on. First, he had to go find Naruto.

Contemplating whether or not he should talk to Naruto, he stood outside the door across from his own. He knocked once to let the other boy know he was there before pushing the door open. Instead of finding a blond curled up in white sheets, sleeping comfortably, he was greeted by an empty room. The sheets had been cleaned and neatly folded along with the blue shirt and black pant he had leant the boy. "I guess... he left already."

Apart of him was a little disappointed from the sudden feeling of loneliness, but then he was also grateful in the sense that he didn't have to face Naruto after what had happened. Yes, it wasn't anything serious, but it was awkward. He just hoped that he hadn't left because of what happened. Sasuke cursed himself inwardly.

He sighed, about to leave when he caught sight of a small piece of paper left atop the folded materials. He picked up the paper. "..." A frown etched his face as his eyes skimmed the note. "I can't even read this..."

Naruto took great delight in the beautiful morning that greeted him after the rain. The air was cool and moist. He loved walking around just after it had rained. Everything just seemed so fresh. Too bad last night's event was kicking the back of his head. 'Those strange feelings... I can't explain it.' He sighed. 'What's going on with me?' Slowly, his old feelings towards his rival began to appear.

"Damn it, Sasuke," he cursed. "What the hell's up with you, anyway?"

Naruto slumped his shoulders. "He's so damn unpredictable," he whined. "One minute we're fighting and the next he's... he's..." his visage scrunched up. "Well, I don't know what!!" he yelled, flinging his arms up in the air.

He shook his head. 'I don't want to think about that bastard right now,' he thought, settling on diverting his thoughts to his students instead. He smirked.

"Those three are going to have some time climbing trees after that kind of weather," he said, rubbing his palms together in sheer glee at the thought of torturing his students further. Oh, yes. Nothing gave the jounin more pleasure than the daily whining and pouting of the three.

He pulled out the key to his apartment, twirling it by the chain it was attached to. Naruto raised an eyebrow as he neared his home. A familiar figure was leaning against the railing across from his door, arms folded across his chest, and legs crossed.

"Good morning, Naruto."

"Hey, Kakashi-sensei," he bowed his head slightly before walking past the silver-haired jounin and sliding in his key. With a click the door opened. He opened the door and invited Kakashi in, but he shook his head.

"Nah, I'm fine here. Besides, I just dropped by to give you a message along with seeing how you were."

"Oh."

His smile faded and he eyed the boy. Iruka hadn't been lying when she said he had changed. It wasn't just his appearance, but his eyes told him that he wasn't the innocent, loudmouth that he was before. Actually, he kind of liked his loud student. "One question," he began. "Why didn't you inform me of your arrival?"

"I was planning to, just not today. I'm guessing Iruka told you?"

Kakashi grinned at Naruto's perceptiveness. "Yes, actually I did. So, where were you? I came here around nine last night and you were gone."

Naruto's body froze for an instant before returning to normal. Of course, Kakashi's keen eye caught it. 'I wonder what happened?'

"Nowhere. I was sparring with Sasuke before it rained," he stopped. It looked as though he couldn't find the right words to say. Either that, or he just didn't want to say them. "He let me stay at his place for the night."

Though his face was hidden behind that strange mask of his, from the way his visible eye formed a small arch, it would have been plain to anyone that he was smiling. "I see. Did you have fun?"

Naruto didn't like the sound of his voice. It may not have been apparent to someone else, but he knew better. His perverted teacher had been implying something else. "You really have to take you nose out of those stupid books." A light blush had tinged his cheeks. Kakashi was tempted to push the matter further and tease his old student, but thought it would have been a cruel way to welcome back his student. He had missed his loud presence and didn't want that to happen. Whatever happened between the two was for them to know... for now.

"Why do you always suspect that I'm talking about things like that?" The innocent act wasn't working. He took back his words when he saw the glare from his student. "Don't answer that."

"Exactly," he said. As annoying and strange as his teacher could be sometimes, he knew he wasn't much better when he was younger. It was pretty funny anyway.

"Does Sasuke know that you left?"

"He should. I left him a note before I left."

The jounin suddenly felt a lot of pity for his dark-haired student. 'Never can rely on Naruto's handwriting. Good thing it isn't important for missions,' he thought. 'If that happened, we all would have died fifty times over by now.'

"But forget about that. What did you want to tell me?"

Kakashi's lazy look vanished for a second as his eyes widened at the tone of the boy's voice. The playful glint in his eye had vanished, only to bring about an expressionless mask. "The jounin exams are beginning today. Tsunade-sama has informed me of your current position as a jounin, but you will still be participating, right?" He waited for a response for the boy and continued after receiving a quick nod. "In that case, go to the tower that held the third test of the chuunin exam as soon as possible. The exam will begin at 2:00 in the afternoon."

"Thanks," he said, smiling at Kakashi. "If you don't mind, I have to go freshen up a bit before heading out."

"Oh yeah, you're currently training a team of genin, eh? So, how goes it?"

"Heh, they're... amusing, to say the least. In fact, it's a lot like being with Team 7 again," he said, his voice slowly weakening. He looked at the ground sadly. He really did miss their group.

Kakashi's eyes softened in understanding of the boy's emotions. "Well, you better get going unless you're planning on arriving late to their new mission." He smirked.

"No, I don't plan on following in your footsteps," he said, laughing. Kakashi only smiled before disappearing in a puff of smoke. "Now that he's gone, I better go get changed," he said, closing the door behind him.

Naruto threw aside his jounin uniform. Seeing as he was about to participate in the exams today, he didn't want anyone else to know about it. He rummaged through his drawers for a decent pair of clothing before finally settling with a pair of black pants and a dark, gray shirt. Naruto untied the forehead protector from his arm and rested it on his pillow. "Until I pass this, you'll have to stay here." He slipped on his new clothing and slid either arm into his black coat, adjusting the neck portion. Naruto grabbed a black cloth and tied it around his forehead, the material hanging behind him in two folds falling past his shoulders. His hair fell loosely around his eyes, the black material, holding it back only slightly.

Remembering that the air was chilled, he quickly grabbed a gray scarf and just tossed it over his shoulders and around his mouth. He glanced back at his clock. 'I better get going,' he thought. He locked the door and walked down the hallway, making a habit of swinging his key around by its chain. 'Now for the fun part of the day!'

"You're late!!" screeched Reiji and Sachiko in unison. Naruto winced at the combination of loud voices. Daisuke only grunted and looked away.

"They're getting more and more like us everyday," he said to himself. Apparently he hadn't noticed that he said it out loud.

"Huh?" Reiji stepped closer. "Like who?"

"What? Oh," Naruto said, coming back to his senses. "It's nothing. You three are just kinda like my old genin team."

Reiji and Sachiko exchanged curious glances. "Who were they?" Reiji asked, tugging lightly at his sleeve. And as an added thought, "How are we alike?"

The blond laughed. "Well, you're a lot like me, actually. Maybe not quite as loud...hehe," he rubbed the back of his head nervously. He could get pretty damn loud back then... and he wasn't so sure that it was a good thing. "Anyway, Sachiko was a lot like my friend, Haruno Sakura. And Daisuke over there seems to have a stick up his ass just like Uchiha Sasuke."

"What?!" Daisuke yelled. Reiji immediately took the opportunity to irritate the obviously flustered boy.

Naruto mentally cackled. 'Mwahaha! I got a rise out of him! It must be a gift I have. First Sasuke, then Neji, and now this one.'

Sachiko had wanted to defend the boy, but found herself pushing back a giggle. She tugged gently on the sleeves of her blue outfit. It looked similar to the one Sakura used to wear except that one sleeve ran to the elbows and the other was short sleeved. Reiji fell to the ground laughing, but was cut short and squealed in horror as he found his posterior dampened by the still damp ground. Luckily, his shorts were black. "Aah, my ass!! IT'S COLD!"

Daisuke smirked. "Nice going, moron."

"Shut up, you bastard!"

Sachiko punched Reiji over the head. "Stop yelling! Geez, you can be so annoying," she said, rubbing her temples with her forefingers. "Why can't you be more like Daisuke?" Reiji muttered random incoherencies before sulking. It's not like he was about to argue with the blue-haired girl.

'They are definitely too much like us. It's kinda freaky...' Naruto thought, beads of sweat rolling down his forehead. 'It's a surprise that they're not related to any of us.'

"Before you tear each other apart, how about I introduce your new mission!" Naruto interrupted, praying to the gods that it would end their squabbling. From the look of things, Reiji was about to be eaten alive by a certain violent female comrade.

Daisuke frowned. "We don't have any missions today because of the jounin exam. Which brings us to the point. Why are we here in the first place?"

"Well, smartass," he said, grinning as Daisuke scowled in contempt. Sachiko joined in the scowling on Daisuke's behalf while Reiji pointed an accusing finger and laughed at the other boy... again. "Let me explain. First of all, you are correct. There are no missions due to the fact that the jounin exam will be taking place only a few hours from now. In fact, I will be participating."

"Why? You're already a jounin!" Reiji blurted.

"I have my reasons, now let me finish," he replied. "Since I have a bit of time on my hands and there aren't any missions today... I thought it would be a good idea to train you three."

All three brightened at the idea. Finally, they were going to do something that was worth their time instead of those ridiculous missions. Walking dogs, picking up trash, babysitting, and going grocery shopping for old people wasn't exactly what they had in mind for their 'missions'.

"All right!! Finally, some training!" Reiji bounced around like a mad fool. Naruto only smiled. It had only been a week since he began teaching the three, but he had to go through the same dull missions. He could remember how much he hated them at their age. They could be unbearable boring.

"So, what are we supposed to do?" Sachiko spoke up.

Naruto smirked. "I'm glad you asked!" He brought his hands together to form a seal and closed his eyes. A light gust of wind formed around his feet, before Naruto shoved his hands back into his coat pocket. "Now, watch." He casually walked up the tree at a vertical angle. The three gaped at him. "You see how I did that? This was done through proper chakra control." He continued his way up and perched himself upon a branch, squatting down.

"It can't be that hard," Reiji muttered.

"It may look simple, but trust me, it's not. To climb a tree, you must have a really accurate amount of chakra channeled to your feet. You three should be well versed in proper chakra control by this point. Now, go!" he signaled for them to begin with a wave of his arm.

Both boys shot glares at each other. "I bet I could get up to the top before you, Daisuke!"

"Is that a challenge?" Daisuke smirked. "Then you're on!"

The two mimicked Naruto's earlier moves and darted towards the tree only to fall within three to five steps. Naruto stifled a laugh when he saw the two fall to the ground on their bottoms, soaking their pants. Reiji had been wearing black, but Daisuke was a little less fortunate and had chosen to wear white instead. "Damn it!" the two yelled in unison.

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot. Since the wood is slightly damp from the rain, this only makes it harder to stick to the tree using your chakra." Naruto resisted the urge to cackle evilly as his students threw several obscenities his way.

"I don't see what's so hard about it."

"Eh?" Naruto looked to his side. His brow twitched. "What's with girls... and climbing trees?"

"Hee!" she smiled, giving the two boys below her a thumbs up. Although, they didn't look too happy about it. Well, aside from Reiji, that is.

"Wow, you're amazing, Sachiko!" She smiled at him and nodded. His bright, green eyes shone in admiration for his teammate.

Naruto sighed and folded his arms, standing up from his crouching position. "Well, how do you feel about that? You both got your asses kicked pretty badly. Out of this group, it's obvious that she's worth more than you two."

Reiji shook his fist in the air. "Asshole! Just you watch! I'll get up there!"

Daisuke flinched at the remark. 'Feh...' He spared a sideways glance at his 'rival' and smirked when he had gotten the boy's attention. Obsidian eyes met emerald. Reiji only clenched his fists and frowned. That was all they needed to know. It was now a competition between them.

Naruto had been intent on the idea of staying on that branch and watching his students fall into a pit of misery, but as fun as torturing the two boys seemed... he had to leave. He had sent Sachiko back home and insisted the boys do the same, but both were too stubborn. 'I wonder if they've managed to get to the top yet?' he thought. Watching them pout and whine was fun, but he held a large amount of compassion in his heart for them. The blond was silently hoping that the two would get done soon. He'd have to treat them to some ramen afterwards.

Naruto skipped through the trees. The jounin exam wasn't going to begin until a little above a half an hour, but he had planned on meeting everyone else here. Individual visits would have taken way too long and answering the questions he knew everyone would ask ten times over wasn't exactly the way he wanted to spend his time. The mixed feelings of anxiety and excitement tangled with each other leaving a rather uncomfortable sensation in his abdomen. 'I wonder what everyone's like now.'

The knot in his stomach only tightened as he neared the meeting point. "There's the tower," he whispered. He dove off a branch and landed gracefully in front of the gateway. He stood up and scanned the area. "Am I just supposed to walk in?" When he realized that no one was around, he shrugged his shoulders and pushed open the doors to the room. It was the same room that Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto had been in after the successful completion of the second test. Iruka had greeted them warmly.

The blond raised his hand slowly to the framed paper on the wall. Iruka had explained to them what 'Heaven' and 'Earth' had meant. Only with both, can you be powerful.

"What's your name?" A boy with eyes that held a soft shade of purple stepped out of the dark. His long, dark locks hung in a loose binding behind his back.

Naruto wanted to insult the boy for his stupidity at not being able to recognize him, but he had forgotten about the gray scarf he had pulled slightly over his mouth. It really did get cold after the rain. He laughed and walked towards his companion. "Can't recognize me," he stopped and pulled down his scarf. "Neji?"

Neji's eyes widened. "Naruto?" he stuttered. Before he could let himself be drawn to the conclusion that it really was his old friend standing before him, he wanted to make one last confirmation. "Byakugan!" His pupils whitened and veins tightened beneath his skin. His eyes widened further as his white eyes slowly returned to a faint purple. "It really is you."

"In the flesh!" He folded his hands behind his head and flashed the boy a grin.

Naruto raised an eyebrow, lowering his arms and shoving them back into his pockets. "What?"

"It's nothing. Come. We should go meet up with the others," he suggested, turning his back on Naruto. The questions were on the tip of his tongue, ready to be said, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. It wasn't the time and Neji was pretty sure that the guy was probably damned sick of answering the same questions over and over again.

Naruto nodded and followed, taking off his scarf and placing it on his shoulder.

The two soon entered the room where the preliminaries for the final test had been held. He scanned the room. 'Everyone's here...' All the leaf-nins that had fought beside him were there. There were fighters from several different villages.

Hinata, Ino, and Sakura stood off to one side, chattering away. Shikamaru and Choji were close by. The blond began to wonder if she had told them about his arrival, but then Sakura had promised that she would keep that a secret. He finally agreed with himself that he could trust her. After all, even if they hadn't exactly been the best of friends during their childhood, they had grown to develop a strong sense of respect for each other.

He continued to look around the room. Neji had now joined Lee and the two were arguing over something or another while TenTen just stood off to the side, ignoring her old teammates. 'Looks like Lee's up and running again. Still after Neji as well, I see,' he thought. He chuckled lightly. 'Things haven't changed.'

Asuma, Kurenai, Gai, and Kakashi were on the right side of the arena, circled around in the center area of the strip along the wall. Naruto wasn't sure if it was just him or not, but he could have sworn that they were glancing his way everyone now and then. Even Gaara was, accompanied by Temari and Kankuro. Naruto guessed that they were probably participating as well.

"Sheesh. Everyone is here. Even some of the jounin teachers," he whispered. The area was full with people from competitors to those who had merely stopped by to watch. Still, not just anyone could come in since there was a limit to space. It had been narrowed down to just a few people.

"Ah, there you are Naruto!" The blond turned to come face to face with none other than the Hokage herself.

He smiled. "Hey, old hag."

She punched his head. "I treat you nicely and this is what I get? Ungrateful brat!" She said, ruffling his hair affectionately. No matter how many times she insulted him, it was never out of spite. It was like watching a brother and sister squabble over who gets the bathroom first in the morning. Of course, the older sister usually won.

Naruto winced and rubbed his sore head. "Do you always have to hit me?! Look!" he pointed to the swelling at top of his head. "The damned thing hasn't even started and already I'm injured!"

She held a hand to her stomach and laughed. "Well, that's what you get for being rude."

He was going to make a witty retort when a strong hand clamped his mouth. "Shut up, kid. Unless you want another ten of those bruises," he said, releasing the boy from his grip. "And where's your forehead protector?" he questioned, looking at the black cloth around the boy's forehead.

Naruto smiled and stood straight. "None other than the perverted, old geezer." Jiraiya cringed at the nickname. "I've got that put away, but I'll bring it out soon. So, you two here to watch?"

"Yes, we'll be watching the fights. And if you excuse us, we'll be going to the front now," Tsunade said. Jiraiya walked ahead of her when she stopped and turned to him. "Good luck, Naruto."

He nodded her off and went about on his own. "Naruto!!" He winced as the name seemed to echo throughout the room.

'That just destroyed my plans of going around quietly.'

"Eh...hehe. Hi, Sakura," he gave her a nervous grin, rubbing the back of his head. Lee had followed close behind.

She smiled before pulling him into a tight embrace. Sakura had changed back into her usual red outfit. "I was waiting for you!" Sakura quirked her brows at his sudden nervous behavior. His eyes were darting from side to side, trying desperately to ignore the strange looks he was receiving. "Why are you so nervous? I didn't tell anyone about your secret!"

He let out a prolonged sigh and smiled at her. "Yeah you didn't. Until now." He laughed. Sakura looked around the room, and sure enough, all eyes were fixed on him.

"...Oops. I'm sorry! But," She said, slapping the side of his arm. "That doesn't matter! They were going to find out anyway," she said, beaming at him, obviously proud of her logic. It's true, they would have, but she practically advertised it to every single person in the room.

"Are you fighting in the matches, too, Sakura?"

She nodded. "Yes, I am! I've been training, so now I get to show my improvements. I think everyone is," she informed him. Naruto smiled. He had wanted to see how much she had grown since his departure, but he wasn't too happy that she would have to fight. Hinata, too. Even though she could be considered a worthy opponent, she was too fragile.

Finally speaking up, Lee studied Naruto's appearance before slinging an arm over Naruto's shoulder. "It's good to see you, Naruto! Where have you been?" He let his body relax under the boy's weight as he leaned against him. He mouthed a quick 'I'll tell you later'. Lee understood the boy's discomfort and nodded. "I look forward to watching your match Naruto, and if by chance we are against each other, then good luck to the both of us!"

Naruto smiled at the other boy's modesty. "Yeah."

"Why don't we go wait over there?" Sakura suggested, pointing to the spot that she had currently been before pouncing the unsuspecting blond. Lee and Sakura both turned, expecting the blond to follow suit.

"Nah, you guys go ahead. I'd like to walk around." Sakura had wanted to press the matter further, but Lee shook his head and dragged her away from her friend, much to her dismay. He sighed. "Close. I better go wait somewhere away from everyone's line of vision." Naruto settled for a dull, shaded area along the side of the wall that contestants and watchers could wait. He leaned against the wall, arms folded across his chest.

"Hey, Naruto!" Naruto groaned.

'Not again,' he thought. It wasn't that he didn't want to see everyone, but every time someone came up to him, it just had to be a squealing girl.

"Ino," he said, nodding to her as a sign of acknowledgement.

"Is that all you're going to say after disappearing into thin air and then just popping back here?!" she said.

"Guess so," he replied. 'Aah! Make the noises go away!' he silently prayed.

Ino was about to say something more when a hand caught her shoulder, holding her back. "Could you be a little less loud, Ino?" Shikamaru pleaded with the blond. At least someone else agreed that it was a bit too loud. Naruto was surprised to see that Ino quietly obliged.

"But I was just saying..." he gave her a bored look and she gave up. 'I'm not even going to bother...'

"You're too troublesome," he muttered.

"Fine!" she huffed. Shikamaru smiled at her and soon turned to face Naruto.

"I can bet a lot of people have been bothering you lately, so we'll just get out of your way."

Naruto didn't thank him, only nodded. Shikamaru returned the nod before dragging Ino off to where Choji stood, waiting for the two. "He's changed, Shikamaru. Those dark clothes and his attitude practically scream out that fact."

"I know, but now's not the time. I'm sure he'll tell us when he wants to," he said, trying to calm down the brooding girl. 'Ino really is tiresome sometimes. I can't do this anymore...'

On the other side of the room where all the Leaf chuunins stood, Kiba, Hinata, Sakura, Lee, Shino, and Neji discussed everyone's new topic.

"What's up with Naruto, eh?" Kiba asked.

Sakura only shrugged. "I know his appearance has change, but overall, he's still the same Naruto," she replied.

"I disagree," Ino spoke up. Shikamaru, Choji, and Ino joined the group. "It's not just that. His attitude. It's different. Since when does he stand in a corner and hide?"

Sakura turned her head and, sure enough, the said blond was leaning against the wall, obviously trying to avoid any attention.

The complete opposite of how he was...

"I'm sorry, Sakura, but she's right," Lee said. He knew that Sakura took note of these changes, but she was close to the boy. The thought of letting him slip through her fingers was a little more than she would care to handle. It was the same for Hinata. Naruto had been always been the source of her strength to move forward. Both hung their heads low.

The pink-haired ninja nodded slowly. Lee rested a reassuring hand on her shoulder, which she accepted gratefully. She reached over and touched his hand with her own. "Yes, there's no point in denying it." She didn't understand. It was true that there was a definite difference in his mannerisms, but his attitude had seemed a lot warmer when she met him back at Ichiraku.

Kiba grunted. "The least he could do is come over here and explain things to us." He knew about Hinata's affections for the boy and he wasn't planning on watching her grow upset over his strange behavior. But he himself was slightly worried. It wasn't like him.

"Just give him some time," Shikamaru droned out. 'Why are they making such a big deal? Geez... Just too damned troublesome...' Choji, of course, agreed with his friend. Shikamaru was always right.

"I believe he will speak to us when he wants to," Neji spoke up.

The others were a bit startled by his confidence in the blond, but nodded in agreement.

When he wanted to... but when was that?

Sasuke had arrived at the last minute, wearing the same blue shirt with the Uchiha symbol and the white shorts. He never really did care for fashion, but at least he didn't wear them every second. It was just with battles. Sasuke looked around the room and found everyone to have gathered. 'I thought he said he was participating? Where is he?' He let his eyes wander across the room until it came to a sudden halt. Naruto was casually leaning against the wall. It looked as though he was sleeping. He frowned. Wasn't Naruto supposed to be jumping around trying to be the center of attention?

"Sasuke! Over here!" He looked up at the pink-haired girl who was waving at him. He shoved his hands in his pockets and walked up to meet them.

"Hey," he said. He raised a hand in acknowledgement, but his expression remained blank.

"Where were you? You're late! The exam's already starting!" Sakura questioned. He casually shrugged his shoulders.

"I was looking for someone, but I arrived her in time for the matches didn't I? That's all that matters," he said coolly.

She hunched over and sighed. 'Again with that attitude. Still, you have to love him!' she thought. She had given up on ever reaching the boy and settled for acting as more of a sister towards him, but she still couldn't help but look at him longingly every once in a while. Her little crush hadn't completely faded quite yet. Lee, though, was helping to speed that process. He really was kind and warm to her. He sure as hell wasn't Sasuke, but Sasuke wasn't Lee either.

Sasuke looked around him and saw that everyone was staring at something or rather. Or someone. He followed their gaze and realized that they were looking at Naruto. No surprise there. He just appeared without a word.

'Yeah,' he thought. 'And completely changed...'

All eyes turned forward when, in a cloud of smoke, a jounin appeared below in the center of the arena.

"Can I have everyone's attention?" he called out. When all eyes settled on him, he continued. "Welcome to the Jounin exams. I am Genma and will be your examiner. I will begin explaining the exam." He cleared his throat and folded his arms across his chest. "In this year's exams, you will be fighting in a preliminary match before moving on to the final test. It is similar to that of the chuunin exam's third test."

Asuma snickered. "Creative aren't we?"

Kakashi smiled. "Creative or not, this will be exciting," he said, looking over at a certain blond. Naruto remained in the same, relaxed position. Kakashi couldn't tell, but he had a feeling that Naruto was aware of everything going on around him, though he didn't appear to.

'Now, show us your growth, Naruto.'

"There are some differences, though. In this test..." he stopped. The room's occupants shifted. Many of the fighters were itching for a fight and this only added to their torment. "In this test, you will be allied with one other contestant."

Sasuke raised his eyebrows. "What?"

Shikamaru finally snapped out of his daze to pay proper attention to the speaker. "Did he just say that we'd be allied with someone?"

"Don't worry, you guys!" Sakura said, trying to reassure them. "Whoever partners up with you two will surely win!" She herself wasn't too fond of the idea. Hopefully she'd be partnered with someone decent. Decent. Meaning someone who wasn't freaky. She eyed some of the odd looking participants along the opposite wall.

"The two are expected to work together and defeat their opponent. The winners of the match will then move on to the final match," he said. "In the final matches, you will not continue working with your partner. Instead, this is a way to halve the contestants. Once this is over, you will all be fighting on your own."

Neji looked over at Naruto. 'I wonder who you will fight beside.' The blond opened one eye and caught Neji's gaze. He looked up and smiled at him before returning to sleep. 'So, he was sleeping...' he thought.

"Also," he began again. "You..." he was interrupted as everyone broke out into a wild chatter.

"What, more rules?" Shikamaru frowned. 'What next? Hack of our legs and arms and tell us to fight that way?' The rules weren't that bad, but the thought of working with some sort of freak wasn't a pleasant idea. 'Why did I agree to do this stupid thing...?' he thought.

Genma quickly grew irritated with the interruptions, but smothered his anger and continued on. "As I was saying," he yelled. He lowered his voice once the room had quieted. "There is one other condition to this. If one partner, or both, is unable to continue battling at any time during the fight..."

Sasuke knew what was coming next and he wasn't too happy about it. He clenched his fist, his knuckles turning white. 'A handicap...'

"The match will be stopped and both will fail," he finally finished.

"What?! This is stupid!" yelled Kiba. A few of the others around his silently agreed. "Why should I get held back if some moron can't stay on his feet!"

There was no doubt about it. Everyone competing was bound to be powerful, but what would happen if the strengths of a team were unfair? Sasuke didn't like the idea, but there was still a chance that he'd be partnered with someone strong. At the very least, he hoped that he'd get someone who could protect himself.

Naruto's ear twitched lightly upon hearing the final part. He smiled. 'I see, so that's what this is,' Naruto thought. 'This handicap is to test, not only our strengths, but our ability to survive by working with teammates.'

As it can sometimes occur in missions, both fighters will now be forced to rely and protect one another to survive. If one member of the group is taken out, the others are weakened. It's an important aspect in being able to complete a mission properly. But it's not just for the sake of the mission and the team's strength, but also because of simply trying their best to keep one another alive and healthy. To care for one another.

He looked down and saw Genma exchanging a few words with Tsunade before standing off to the back. She stepped forward and raised her hand into the air. The clatter in the room died down. "Now that you know the terms, you may go home," she said. "But not before your partner is decided."

"What is the old hag goin' on about now?" Naruto whispered. Across the room from the blond, Sasuke was getting rather irritated with the news of their upcoming battle.

'First was the ludicrous rule and now she wants us to go back?' his mind screamed out in annoyance.

"As for those of you who are wondering why I'm sending you back," she began. "This is just so that you will at least have some knowledge of who your partner is and will be given the opportunity to fully understand the strengths of your team before the official beginning of the exam tomorrow. We already have the names of the participants. Your partnerships will now be displayed on that board," Tsunade said, pointing to the scoreboard that buzzed before coming to life. A list of names was on the board. The names shuffled for what seemed like hours before finally stopping and displaying the teams.

Yamanaka Ino and Nara Shikamaru

Hyuga Neji and Hyuga Hinata

Haruno Sakura and Rock Lee

Inuduka Kiba and Aburame Shino

Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto

Kankuro and Temari

Akamichi Choji and TenTen

Several other teams had been displayed on the board to create the total of fourteen teams. There were twenty-eight participants so, at the most, seven teams will make it.

Naruto closed his eyes after catching a few glimpses at the pairings. 'Those seem like they were handpicked...' He sighed. 'This is just beautiful.'

AH! Long chapter, long chapter! (screams) I think I got a little carried away. Oh well! It was fun to write, so whatever. This chapter was a bit dull. Sorry to take things slow. At this point in the story, I'm trying to get the exams over. Once that's out of the way, I'm going to try and get the real plot in. Well, let me know what you think.