Better Equipped

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of its characters.

Italics: Thoughts

Chapter 11 - The Chuunin Exam: I am Naruto!

Team Seven had finally entered the danger zone. Naruto made everyone stop a quarter mile away from the battle site. He didn't want Orochimaru to detect his teammates and use them as hostages. They saw that Sasuke wasn't fairing out well against the enemies and would be drained of chakra soon.

So, that is Orochimaru. I can't believe I am going through this. Even the hairs on my body are telling me that this guy is dangerous, and should be avoided. I've gone this far now, so I can't back away. In all the paths that were given to me, I have chosen this one. This is where I end up with all the decisions I have made. I cannot run away.

Naruto looked at his teammates once again as if it was going to be the last time he would see their face. "Remember to follow the plan to the end." With that said, he continued forward.

Naruto got closer to the battlefield and saw Orochimaru toss Sasuke off a tree. Channeling chakra into his right hand where his sweat glands were, he created webbing and shot them underneath where Sasuke was falling. In seconds, a good size spider web was formed and caught Sasuke. He shot a web line with the index finger on his left hand and swung in on Orochimaru. "Spider Swing!"

A pair of feet smashed onto Orochimaru's face. The Snake Sennin fell from the branch but quickly caught himself on a lower branch. He then faced the one who dared to hit him.

Sakura and Ino were very surprised to see the number one rookie of their class show up. In a few seconds, Naruto was able to save Sasuke from falling and hit the Grass-Nin successfully. Naruto is so cool, they thought.

"You dare hit me behind my back, you little snot!"

"Hey, I'm a ninja. Hitting people behind the back is part of the job description." Without waiting for a response, Naruto quickly threw a kunai attached with an explosive tag, directed above Orochimaru.

"You should really read a book that I'm thinking of writing. It's called Ninjas for Dummies."

"Who's a dummy? Your attack missed by a long shot."

"Chapter sixteen, explosive tags!" Naruto quickly shot out webbing and glued Orochimaru to the ground. The Snake Sennin was immobilized and was unable to avoid the explosion.

The smoked cleared a bit and a shattered log was visible where Orochimaru was standing.

Shit! He used Kawarimi no Jutsu!

The giant snake Orochimaru summoned earlier attacked Naruto out of nowhere. The blond Genin leaped away in a split second but was attacked by Orochimaru from above, who delivered an axe kick above Naruto's head as he was coming down.

Smoke puffed at the bottom of Orochimaru's leg as a log appeared. He pulled the same trick as me, he told himself.

I might need to take out the snake first.

"Kage Bushin no Jutsu!"

A single clone was created by the jutsu. The real Naruto pointed at his clone.

"I'll take the snake while you'll take on Orochimaru. Hold him off as long as you can."

Okay, the snake is very big. What can I do to stop it?

Naruto then noticed something on the ground. A scroll. It was the Heaven Scroll which is one of the set of scrolls required to pass this part of the exam. It gave him an idea. He sent a web line to it and quickly yanked it towards him with a strong pull. If he remembered correctly, those who open the scroll without its counterpart and not in the tower will be knocked out by the Chuunnin that is summoned by unsealing it. Naruto knew the danger he was in and would appreciate any help he could get. He began breaking the seal on Team Seven's Heaven Scroll and immediately toss the scroll open onto the ground a few feet away from him.

Please let it be someone worthwhile. Don't let it be Iruka since he won't be much help. Hopefully Jiraiya, Tsunade, or Hokage-sama will make an appearance.

To his dismay, the Chuunin that was summoned was Mizuki, the sensei at the ninja academy that was supposed to try and steal his father's forbidden scroll.

This… is so not good!

Upon being summoned, Mizuki knew something was wrong. He surveyed the area quickly to take in any information he could. A few Genins who recently graduated from the academy were present and a giant snake was coming his way.

Before Naruto could warn Mizuki, the would-be traitor was already snake food. The snake wrapped its tongue around the Chuunin and yanked him inside the mouth. On the way it, his leg was cut by the snake's fang, which was oozing with venom.

That was totally unexpected. Who would have known that he would die from this little episode? I'm shocked that he was the one chosen to appear and guide Team Eight.

Naruto continued to avoid being eaten by the snake by launching himself from tree to tree. He landed on another branch and stood still this time. As the snake opened its mouth at the young ninja, Naruto preformed a set of hand seals. "Katon · Ryuuka no Jutsu!" He aimed the powerful flame blast right into the snake's open mouth where it's not protected with scales.

The girls noticed that Naruto preformed the same ninjutsu Sasuke did awhile back. Only this jutsu seemed to be more powerful. They assumed that Naruto used more chakra than Sasuke had.

The snake was hurt bad. It thrashed around madly before it died.

D'oh! Now it's definitely too late to save Mizuki. Even if he was somehow alive, now he's just BBQ.

Orochimaru was furious that one of his snakes died. But he could always summoned more if needed. With a swipe, he finished off the shadow clone.

That young Genin was able to use Kage Bushin no Jutsu. He is a very interesting young man. His taijutsu is good from how his clone fought. Let's see what the real thing can do.

The Snake Sennin opened his mouth and used his hand to push something up from his stomach. A snake began to appear from his mouth. It opened its mouth to reveal a sword handle. Orochimaru took the handle in his hand and pulled out a sword.

"Kusanagi no Tsurugi?" Naruto didn't like where the fight was going. Orochimaru brought out the legendary sword which meant he was going to get serious. "Not good!"

Orochimaru came at him fast and waving his sword. He was amused that the young ninja was able to dodge his sword arts and even managed to counter attack.

Naruto waited for the moment. He looked for an opening, in which his opponent left his chest unguarded to deliver a special attack. He only needs a second for the opening to appear. His patience paid off. He counter attacked again.

"Kachu Tenshin Amaguriken!" He sent about fifty rapid punches to Orochimaru's abdomen and sent a front snap kick and connected to the jaw. I need to something to go against his sword, he thought.

He made some hand seals and then slammed his palm down. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu· Enkouou · Enma!"

Enma was the last thing that Orochimaru thought would be here. He was the special summon that Sarutobi sensei acquired. He's related to Sarutobi somehow, he thought.

"Orochimaru?" the old Monkey King asked surprisingly. "Sarutobi should have finished you off a long time ago."

I used up quite a bit of chakra summoning Enma.

"Enma, please help me out here. I need you to transform into Kongou Nyoi."

Before Enma had the chance to, Orochimaru swiftly ran at Naruto and succeeded to deliver some wounds. He continued to do so but the boy dodged again and kicked the sword in to the left. He cursed himself as Enma completed his transformation and was now in the boy's hands.

Each of the combatants showed great skills in using their weapons. Naruto seemed to have an advantage in long range battles since Kongou Nyoi was able to change lengths. The blond Genin made rapid strikes at the older ninja with one of the end of Kongou Nyoi.

Orochimaru blocked the strikes with his sword but found that he couldn't keep up with the younger brat. He jumped away from the battle to gain more distance. The staff extended once again, neutralizing the breathing room he just gained. He jumped on top of a branch and stabbed his sword in the trunk to free his hands to perform ninjutsu.

Naruto watched mini fireballs shot out from his enemy's mouth. He quickly spins his staff around which deflected the incoming projectile. "Whirlwind Cane!"

The Snake Sennin grabbed his sword again and jumped towards Naruto. This time, he also extended his neck to abnormal lengths to create a double attack. Naruto saw both attacks coming but knew he couldn't stop both attacks at the same time. The young Genin of the Leaf transferred his chakra towards his legs to make a powerful leap. Unfortunately, Orochimaru anticipated the jump since he greater experience in battles.

Orochimaru's long neck wraps around the blond ninja to secure the enemy from getting away. Then he used the Kusanagi no Tsurugi to knock away the Kongou Nyoi from Naruto's hands. Naruto quickly performed a Rasengan with his left hand and placed it on the Snake Sennin's neck that was wrapped around him while being careful not to hit himself. Orochimaru quickly unwrapped himself due to the sudden pain.

Damn, he could have bitten me if I didn't act fast.

Naruto's eyes widened as he watched Orochimaru slowly turn into mud.

It was a mud clone!

Naruto twisted around to scan for the Snake Sennin as he was descending from his earlier leap. As soon as he caught sight of the enemy, both of his index fingers from both hands shot out a web line at Orochimaru. Naruto then pulled the web lines towards him with all available strength so that Orochimaru would meet him in midair while he was traveling downward at a faster rate.

Blue chakra could be seen forming around Naruto's right fist. "Power Dunk!" Naruto traveled down faster with the burst of speed given from his attack. His blazing fist sailed right into Orochimaru who once again turned into mud. The blond ninja's eye widens a second time as he saw his mistake. There was a loud explosion after his fist connected to a tree. A huge chunk of the tree was obliterated from the impact.

Shit, that was another mud clone. My attack was futile and I think I fractured my right arm again. I'm starting to feel the pain even though I'm pumped with adrenalin.

While Naruto grasped his arm in pain, Orochimaru appeared behind him holding the Kusanagi no Tsurugi.

"You are right that attacking behind people's back is in our job description," said Orochimaru. An onslaught of sword swipes was released on the boy who dared to interfere in his plans.

Blood was dripping down Naruto like a river. Finally, the boy couldn't take it anymore and collapsed.

The rest of Team Seven were in debate on whether they should help Naruto. The fight between the two was extraordinary. It increased to a level where they could only hope to achieve. They knew it would be suicidal if they interfered. Seeing their teammate getting beat so bad was unbearable.

Please be okay Naruto-kun.

Hinata remembered back how shy she was when she first attended the academy. Naruto was the exact opposite of her. He was talkative, brave, and smart. One of the things she admires most about him is that he works hard. Even when he couldn't perform a jutsu, she remembered him practicing until he got it right.

Damn you Naruto! Why do you have to be a hero and put yourself through this? Hinata and I are really worried. If I was only stronger, we might not be in this mess.

Ino was in tears when she saw how much blood Naruto was losing. His face had gone pale. He risked his life saving them from a monster when he didn't need to. She couldn't thank him enough for it but she wish he would just give up. If he continued any longer, he would die. Ino tried her best to get back on her feet. She wasn't going to lose anyone close to her.

Sakura couldn't believe what was happening. Even their number one rookie couldn't stand up against that man. Naruto was sacrificing himself to save them. She wasn't that close to him since she was busy chasing Sasuke. She couldn't believe that he would go through so much for them. If only she was stronger, she could have helped Sasuke and Naruto. Naruto kept on fighting even when he got knocked down. She had to use him as an example of how a ninja should be. As she looked for her friend and rival, Sakura saw that Ino was also trying to get back up. They had the exact same idea. They can't let Naruto down.

I can't die like this. Naruto isn't supposed to die like this. There are a lot of things that I need to do. If I was only a bit taller and had longer arms and legs, things may be different. I don't want to die. Sasuke is out cold, while Ino and Sakura are injured. I don't have anyone to help me.

Naruto then heard some battle cries. It sounded like the girls. Their voice soon died off.

They were trying to save me, he told himself. His mind started to wander off. Bits of memories about his past flashed before his eyes. He remembered how he talked the Third in taking him in and trains him. Jiraiya and Tsunade who were like his parents also taught him. There were also the Jounins who took him under their wing. So many hopes had been put onto his shoulders. Flashback of his friends made him crack a smile on his face.

He heard Orochimaru laughed at Sakura and Ino's futile attempt to fight back.

All those heroes and superheroes had face this situation countless times and they never gave up. Naruto never gave up and now I am Naruto. That's right; it's not a game anymore because it's the real thing. I am Naruto and this is my world, my home. I've been given a gift and powers for a reason. With great powers comes great responsibilities right? I haven't even begun to use my jutsus yet. I still have a secret weapon. I won't give up because I can't. I can't give up because I am Uzumaki Naruto! Sakura, Ino, and even Sasuke need me to save them and I'm not going to let them die.

A loud growl could be heard deep within the chambers. A demonic creature was trapped within a sealed gate that could never be opened by normal means. It wanted to kill and destroy everything in its path. "Kid, where have you been hiding all these time?" Kyuubi asked.

Orochimaru continued laughing at the helpless Genins. He didn't expect the blond ninja to go above his expectations. The blond was actually more amusing than Sasuke. He even thought of raising the brat himself, and taking his body later, but the Sharingan was what he truly wanted.

Naruto got up from where he lay. Blood was still pouring out of him but not as much as before. Kyuubi's power had already started to heal his body.

The girls were glad that Naruto was alive.

"Sakura…Ino…are you both okay?" Seeing that they nodded their heads, Naruto slowly walked towards Orochimaru.

"I guess it's time to take this battle up another notch." His gaze returned to the girls. "If we all survive this, you girls should go out on a date with me."

Naruto got into a stance and began to concentrate on collecting his charka. A blue aura quickly engulfs Naruto making him look invincible.

"He's radiating so much chakra that it's visible," said Sakura.

The blue chakra quickly vanishes from sight as it is covered by red chakra that poured out from Naruto. The power of the red chakra healed all his wounds that he received during the first half of the battle.

"Such power!" Orochimaru said after being amazed.

This is no normal boy. I can feel the malice coming off from the red chakra. Chakra isn't supposed to be red. He must be the boy who contains Kyuubi.

"Let's see what you have FOX!"

"Don't mind if I do. Kage Bushin no Jutsu!" Naruto created four clones of himself.

"Do you think four is enough?"

Naruto smiled evilly. "Kongou Nyoi!" The power staff that Enma turned into returned to the real Naruto's hands. "Guys, let's show him that we're not that easy to take down."

Four Naruto clones circled Orochimaru. Each of them began attacking and got in some successful hits. Two of the clones synchronized their movements. The other two clones opposite each other fought him directly while the other two used hit and run tactics. Each of them moved beautifully, especially the two that distracted Orochimaru by moving in and out. They displayed extreme speed, flexibility and agility that looked almost impossible to accomplish. Once one half of the clones distracted Orochimaru enough, and left hits slightly aggravating, it was the other two who were suppose to deliver the devastating blows. His front and back were exposed for a second, and Narutos used that moment to thank him from the earlier punishment.

"Kachu Tenshin Amaguriken!" said the clone in front of Orochimaru. "Hyakuretsukyaku!" said the clone in the back of Snake Sennin. Rapid punches and kicks were delivered on both sides.

Orochimaru couldn't believe the predicament he was in. He had underestimated the boy's taijutsu abilities. He was taking in damage. Sending chakra into his legs, he jumped up and stuck his feet on the branch above them. He was standing upside down from the branch. His little moment of rest was very brief, because the real Naruto extended his staff and managed to knock the Kusanagi no Tsurugi from his hand.

The real Naruto leaped at the criminal with his staff.

Damn you little brat, he cursed the boy. "Fuuton · Daitoppa!" The powerful wind once again rushed out his mouth.

Three of the Naruto clones went and carried Team Eight out from the path of the wind. The real Naruto, who was still in mid air, pointed one of the end of his staff down towards the ground and extended it, so that he vaulted himself over the wind blast and continue his attack on Orochimaru. The Naruto clone that stayed behind grabbed the staff from the bottom and prepared to use it when his real counterpart let go.

Naruto formed two Rasengan in each hand and prepared to drive them into the enemy.

Seeing the attack coming, Orochimaru aimed his left arm at the kid and quickly extended it. His fist rocketed out and hit directly at the brat's face. The blond ninja didn't expect that attack to come. He was knocked off course and collided into the branch the below him.

That boy must also be connected to Jiraiya if he knows Rasengan, Orochimaru thought. The Toad Sennin was the only person who knows that jutsu after the Fourth died.

Shit! I forgot he had that kind of attack. He's like Mr. Fantastic, Plastic Man, Dhalism or even Stretch Dude when Bart Simpson got his powers in that Halloween special. Wonder if that jutsu can make any part of the body stretch. It could really be useful in bed. Damn, now is not the time to think about your book Naruto!

Naruto gathered chakra to his feet and began to run up the tree.

That brat's power and speed increased greatly. It is like he has a curse seal on him. He will be extremely dangerous in the near future if I let him live. He's climbing his up quickly.

"Burn Knuckle!" The attack helped increased Naruto's speed to reach the criminal.

The energy that surrounded Naruto's fist connected to the Snake Sennin's face. Orochimaru's teeth located on the back on his left jaw was shattered due to the strong impact and the sheer intensity of the chakra present. The blond ninja's chakra also burnt away part of the mask that conceals Orochimaru's true face. The hit knocked the Orochimaru away at a good distance.

Did that I him?

"How dare you!" That punch was hard and it came fast. He never saw a jutsu like that before. Blood was dripping from his mouth and his left eye became burry. He saw that there was no time to rest now because the brat's clones had regrouped. "I'll teach you what it means to be a Legendary Sennin." His eyes grew even scarier. He put his hands together to perform seals. He was running out of time and didn't want to play with the kid any longer. The air began to have strange currents running around which erupted immediately. The air became blades of wind and began slashing uncontrollably.

All the four clones were destroyed in an instant. Naruto wasn't lucky either as the wind blades reopens wounds on his body and cut his throat. He was desperately seeking for air and hope Kyuubi would heal him soon. The pain was really taking a toll and took away his control of Kyuubi's chakra. The demonic chakra faded to where it came from.

"Do you actually think you can win against me brat?! Well, I was only fooling around and you just happened to step over the line." He sent chakra to his fingers and ordered his sword to return. He then plunged his sword into Naruto's right leg. He loved every second of it. Seeing how the cut on his throat was already beginning to heal, he made another swipe at it.

Naruto would scream if he could but sound wouldn't come out his mouth. Blood was already filling it up, making it even harder to breath.

All of a sudden Orochimaru found himself being hit from the back. As he turned his head around, he saw Naruto standing there. "What is this? Aren't you supposed to be down?"

This was actually a secret shadow clone that Naruto made which hid himself during the fight. If the real Naruto ever got in a jam, the clone would come out and save him. Unfortunately, he was a bit late. Naruto sent another straight punch with his right arm which knocked the Snake Sennin off balance. He then shot a web line with his left hand and reeled the opponent to him. As soon as Orochimaru was traveling towards him, Naruto started one of his destructive techniques. "Kinjutsu – Shinku Hadoken!" Naruto pulled all energy from his body and the energy from the area into his hands. However, the clone dispersed from doing the technique. Its chakra level was already too weak in the beginning so Naruto's clone couldn't hold on any longer after it poured the remaining energy into the attack.

Orochimaru was in shock when the kid called out a kinjutsu attack, but he didn't have a chance to see what the jutsu does as the clone disappeared. "So that was a clone. This means the real you is right here. I'll commend you that it was a good idea to leave a clone behind in this situation. But unfortunately, your opponent is me." He then proceeds to plunge the sword at the boy's heart but something stopped him. He used the tip of his sword to see what stopped his blade and saw a weighted vest. "Wearing a weighted vest are we? You would have a better chance without it I suppose, but the outcome would be the same. So it saved you in the end by leaving it on." With a half circle swipe, he slit both of Naruto's wrists. He was about to have more fun when he heard the Anbus coming. "Time is up brat. I have to leave now. Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

Two giant snakes appear from the ground.

"Eat him while I'll deal with the Uchiha." Orochimaru walked to the where Sasuke was lying. "Sadly, you did not meet my expectations but I'll still give you a reward for keeping me entertained." Orochimaru brought Sasuke's neck in front of his mouth and bit him. He then watched a seal formed around the area where he bit the Uchiha prodigy. The seal formed Orochimaru's family symbol.

Sasuke couldn't take the unbearable pain and cried in agony.

"What did you do to Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked.

"We gave you our scroll already, so why don't you leave us alone?" Tears were running down Ino's eyes as like Sakura.

The Snake Sennin smiled cruelly at the girls. He jumped on one of the snakes and rode it off sight. The remaining snake wrapped its tongue around Naruto and brought him in its mouth.

"NARUTO!" everyone screamed.

Author's note:

Thanks for your reviews!

Once again, I want to thank Masiyuu for finding the time to proofread this chapter.

I was wondering if any of the readers knew I used the quote from The Incredible Hulk. Thanks Lost Dreams for catching that because I almost forgot I added that piece into the story. I also added a one word quote from a famous cartoon character in this chapter. Can anyone catch it? Small hint, you can watch this show on FOX and UPN.

Naruto wasn't possessed by Kyuubi or anger in this chapter. He maintained Kyuubi's chakra from concentration. Don't worry; I'll make him fox out later in another chapter. Got to save the good stuff for later right? Team Ten will make an appearance next chapter as well as Gai's team.

Yeah, that's the end for Mizuki.

Techniques:

Spider Swing: Spiderman from Marvel Superheroes Game

Kachu Tenshin Amaguriken: Ranma (Ranma ½) Rapid Punch. Chestnuts Roasting On an Open Fire

Hyakuretsukyaku: Chun Li's (Street Fighter 2) Lightning kicks

Whirlwind Cane: Billy Kane (KOF) Spins his cane in front of him to stop fireballs.

Shinku Hadoken: Ryu (Street Fighter 2) Energy Beam version from Marvel vs. Street Fighter or X-men vs. Street Fighter.

Burn Knuckle: Terry Bogard (KOF)

Power Dunk: Terry Bogard (KOF)

SUPER BONUS MATERIAL FROM FUTURE CHAPTER!!!!

Here is a sneak peek of a chapter that I may write as one of the chapters of Better Equipped. I was thinking that the characters will need to interact more to build a bond between them. So I came up with this idea. Our favorite Genins gather to a remote spot. Sasuke challenges Naruto to a fight to test his strength. Naruto declines but Sasuke is really pushing it. Seeing that things may get ugly, Naruto makes all the girls leave the area. The blond ninja used his quick thinking and came up with a plan to stop this fight from happening.

Naruto challenges Sasuke instead to a contest that tests all of their ninja abilities. This contest will test their skills in ninjutsu, genjutsu, and taijutsu. Whoever wins this competition will be declared to as the Man Among Men. Rock Lee gets excited about this competition and wants to enter. No matter what Naruto says, Lee still wants to participate. Sasuke doesn't mind that Lee enters since he has supreme confidence that he will not lose.

So Naruto stated the terms and rules of the competition. Both Lee and Sasuke want out but Naruto calls them a chicken. After further dialogue, both of the Genin agrees to Naruto's condition. The competition is going to be an all out panty raid. Whoever steals the most panties from sunset to sunrise will be the winner and be known as the Man Among Men. The other male Genins think the idea is stupid but agrees to be the judges.

Who will be the Man Among Men?