Hopefully all of you are well. With this chapter, is the start of the Chunin Exams. Which brings in some of my favorite characters, the Sand siblings. First, Thank you all y'all for supporting this. I truly did believe I would receive any attention so once again than you. Second, if you see a mistake, point it out. I appreciate everyone that is willing to help improve my writing. If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions, feel free to PM. I'm more likely to answer that than reviews. Once again, I appreciate all y'all for supporting this. Thank you from the bottom of stomach since its deeper than my heart. I do not own Naruto or anything that comes from the property.
Forest of Death
(Four months later)
Kakashi Hatake was an elite-level shinobi of Konoha. He has seen and done many things over his career in the service of his home village. He has spent more time as a shinobi than as a civilian. One could say there isn't much that the silver-haired jonin hasn't seen in his life. The sight before was something that not even he would have dreamed of before. In front of the jonin was his student performing an exercise of his invention. In the middle of the clearing was Naruto, blindfolded, as several of his clones threw kunai at the original. The purpose of the exercise is to train one's other senses in case one's sight is impaired. After ten minutes, Kakashi called for his student to stop. Beckoning him over, the cyclops spoke, "Ok, Naruto. That's enough. As you know, the exams start in three days. Relax until then, and I'll give you the details tomorrow. Ok?"
Naruto nodded and began to grab his gear. "Right. It'll give me time to get things ready for the exams."
"Good. Like I said, relax. Spend some time with friends. You're more than ready for the exams. In fact, I don't doubt that you'll make chunin. I'll see you tomorrow," Kakashi said before leaving via shunshin.
"What friends?" he chuckled mirthlessly. While Naruto did have the Ichirakus, Jiji, and even more recently, Iruka and Kakashi, they were more like family to the young blonde. Outside of the few times the other resident slackers of his graduating class skipped with him; he didn't associate with many people his age. Even though he occasionally participated in pranks and ditched class during the academy with Kiba, Chouji, and Shikamaru, it would be quite a stretch to say that the four of them were friends. Rather than continuing to think about his lack of social life with people his age, he put his hooded vest back on and left the same way as Kakashi to his home.
Hokage Tower
In the Hokage's office, the jonin sensei gathered to nominate their genin teams for the upcoming exams. Among them were the sensei for the latest batch of rookies from the academy, excluding Kakashi. As Hiruzen looked over the room, he wondered which sensei would nominate their teams. Clearing his throat, the Hokage gained the attention of the gathered group. "Now, all of you know or at least have an idea why you are here today. In three days will be the start of the Chunin Exams. Let's begin."
After the nominations were given, the meeting adjourned. As the jonin left, Kakashi walked in, reading his orange book. He heard a few comments about being late instead of spitting out one of his usual excuses. He says, "Actually, I'm right on time." Not allowing the others to respond, he closes the door and moves to stand in front of his leader.
"Nice to see you on time, Kakashi," Hiruzen said to his subordinate.
"I'm not late for important things like this meeting or the release of a new Icha Icha," Kakashi stated.
"Yes. Tell me about young Naruto," the wisened leader asked as he prepared his pipe.
Putting away his book, the silver-haired cyclops gathered his thoughts, "He has come a long way since graduation. If he received even a fraction of the attention, I gave him, who knows where he could be right now in his career?"
The Hokage nodded, saying, "If only I could have done more."
Kakashi shook his head, "All of us should have done more."
"Yes. However, we are making up for lost time now. Please continue," Hiruzen lit his pipe and took a draw.
"Right. Taijutsu is around low chunin, mainly because his body isn't fully developed yet, along with his lack of experience against true enemies. The closest he has come to engaging an enemy shinobi is his spars with Anko and me." Kakashi heard the older man chuckle slightly. "Genjutsu is a work in progress. He will probably never be a genjutsu specialist, but he can recognize and dispel up to some chunin level. I'm unsure if he could perform some of the Nidiame's genjutsu. We can talk about that later. He's made great strides in kenjutsu. Yugao and Hayate were incredibly strict on him, but through his clones, he can hold his own against mid-chunin to low-jonin opponents. Again, like taijutsu, once his body develops and he gains more experience, he'll be incredibly formidable in the future."
"Interesting," Hiruzen said as he enjoyed his tobacco.
"That being said, he'll really shine when it comes to ninjutsu and fuinjutsu. Nearly mastered both wind and water exercises. He's made steady progress with lightning. Anko and I, along with Yugao and Hayate, have drilled him to perfect any jutsu he knows. Hayate even taught Naruto his transplant escape jutsu," Kakashi continued.
Hiruzen thought and said, "Well, I have faith that Naruto would use that particular jutsu better than his godfather."
Kakashi rubbed the back of his neck, saying, "Well, let's hope so. I'm assuming you wanted to know all this because you wanted to see if he was ready."
The Hokage nodded, "Yes. Do you think he is ready?"
"Sir, in all honesty, not only is he ready, but I believe that he'll win the whole damn thing," he said in a tone that held immense pride for the boy that, in a different life, would be like a little brother.
"I can't wait to see," Hiruzen said while discarding the ashes from his pipe, "Now then, let's see which teams need an additional mem-"
"Actually, sir, I want Naruto to compete solo," Kakashi said.
"Kakashi, you realize what that entails. Not only for him but for you as well if things end poorly," the older man said in a stern voice, showing the severity of the situation.
"I know exactly what I'm doing," the silver-haired man said, "So does he."
Hiruzen sighed, "Well, there are certain things you should know about the teams entered into this round of exams. Particularly about the recent batch of graduates."
"Oh. What would that be?" Kakashi asked.
Streets of Konoha
Once Naruto made it to the edge of the village, he decided to see how everything was. As he traveled by rooftop, he noticed a commotion in one of the many alleys. He recognized several of the people gathered. One is the grandson of the Hokage, Konohamaru, and his two little friends, Moegi and Udon. The other is his would-be teammate, Sakura. He didn't recognize the others. There was an indistinguishable person in what appeared to be a black catsuit and carrying something on the person's back. He couldn't figure out the object because it was wrapped in bandages. However, what caught his attention was the blonde that was standing near the catsuit. She has teal eyes and sandy blonde hair, which is gathered into four consecutive pigtails. She wore a single light purple-colored, off-the-shoulders garment that extended halfway down her thighs, with a scarlet sash tied around her waist. In addition to incorporating fishnet worn over her shoulders and legs, specifically on her right calf and left thigh, she also wore her black forehead protector around her neck. The cute blonde also carried a giant fan on her back.
As he watched the events unfold, Naruto made preparations in case he needed to step in. As the person in the catsuit was about to punch the Hokage's grandson, he announced his presence. "Excuse me, miss. I would greatly appreciate it if you didn't beat my little buddy there." As he says this, he reveals himself to the group. The only one to recognize him was Konohamaru and his little crew.
"What did you say, you little punk?" the catsuit said gruffly.
Naruto looked at the person in slight bewilderment. "Good Kami, you're a guy!? I honestly couldn't tell."
The response was a round of laughter from the Konohamaru Corps, sputtering from the guy, and giggling from Sakura and the blonde. The guy from Suna began to see red and made a move to attack whomever he could. That was until he felt cold steel on his neck, causing him to stop in his tracks.
Dropping down in front of the Suna shinobi, Naruto took Konohamaru from the Bunraku cosplayer. "Now, that wasn't very smart. Kon, what's one of the first things I taught you?" He said this as he placed the young boy down. The two Suna shinobi couldn't move due to the kunai being set against their necks.
Answering the older boy's question, Konohamaru responded solemnly, "You told me always to be aware of my surroundings."
Naruto sighed and chuckled slightly, "Ok, Kon, why don't you and your friends go and play with a clone of mine while I clean this up?"
After creating a clone and sending it off with the Corps, Naruto turned to face the aggressors. "Now, what to do with you?" He says this as he points to the guy. "How bout this? You answer my questions honestly, and I'll let you go. No harm, no foul. If you don't, I'll personally escort you to the Hokage and tell him how you nearly beat his grandson." Looking at the two in front of him and hearing the gasp from Sakura behind him, Naruto figured they didn't know that little tidbit. "Let's get started. Let's start with something easy. What's your name?"
The guy in the catsuit gulped and answered, "My name is Kankuro."
"Good, next question," Naruto said, "What's your business in Konoha?"
"I'm here with my team for the Chunin Exams," the now-named Kankuro answered.
"Excellent," Naruto stated, "Now, this is probably the most important question."
Kankuro, being a little pissed off, being held at knife-point, asked, "Oh yeah, what's that?"
Naruto looked at the guy in front of him and gave his most serious-looking face even though the only thing he could see was his eyes, and asked, "Why are you wearing makeup?"
Time stood still for what seemed like an eternity. A soft breeze blew through the group, sending dust and a few leaves scattered about. The first to make any gesture or sound was the blonde with Kankuro. Naruto and the others heard her giggle. Kankuro, for his part, could only sputter at the implication.
"IT'S NOT MAKEUP! IT'S WAR PAINT!" Kankuro yelled at his captor.
Naruto looked at him and drawled out, "Riiiiiight. Anyway, that should do it. Both of you are free to go and stay out of trouble while you're here. Most of the shinobi in Konoha are not as lenient as I am. You guys might want to leave now. Also, don't forget about your friend up in the tree." As he said this, Naruto pointed to the redhead in the tree that was close by.
The redhead appeared next to Kankuro via sand shunshin, saying, "Kankuro, you are an embarrassment."
The catsuit wearer tried to plead his case, "Gaara, it wasn't my fault. The kid," was as far as he got before he was hit with a wave of KI by the now-named Gaara.
"Shut up before I kill you," Gaara said in an even tone that sent chills up the spines of everyone still in the alley.
"Well then, I'll leave you guys to it. See you at the exams," Naruto said to the group. As he turned to walk away, he heard the monotone voice of the redhead ask him a question.
Turning back to the redhead, our young hero states, "I'm sorry. Did you say something?"
Gaara's face betrayed no emotion except the slight twitch of his left eye. The others' reactions were far less subdued. Kankuro stood in place with a look that could best be described as a mix between reverence and pity towards the odd boy standing in front of his murderous younger brother. Temari had a look that was similar to her non-sociopathic sibling. However, she also felt sad that she couldn't learn more about the boy. He seemed interesting, and it also seemed like he wasn't afraid to make a joke at either of her brothers' expense. However, Sakura had a different reaction to the scene before her.
Since being sent into the Reserves with Sasuke, Sakura has spent her time training with the other Reservists, tutoring at the academy, and learning the medical profession at the hospital. During these moments, she also learned about the man that would have been her sensei. Despite most of her knowledge of the man coming from rumors and second-hand knowledge, such as the phrase, "I'm sorry. Did you say something?" being used, Sakura knew one thing for sure about the man. That was the fact Kakashi Hatake was the sensei to the idiotic blonde Naruto from her graduating class at the academy. The last time she had seen the loud blonde was the day of their genin test. Dealing with the purple-haired ANBU and failing the true genin test was the wake-up call that she needed to understand the life of a shinobi in the village service. Since that day nearly six months ago, Sakura started taking her physical training more seriously. However, she didn't hit her stride until she ran into some of her old classmates and their sensei. After Team 8 returned from their first C-rank, Sakura occasionally joined them to improve her skills. Over the following months, Sakura reached a level acceptable for a recently graduated shinobi. Despite all of this, she was nowhere near the level of participating in the upcoming chunin exams.
Now that she got a good look at the boy standing before her, only one thing came to mind. She asked, "Naruto?"
Hearing the pink-haired girl but not responding, Naruto continued, "As much fun as this is, I do have things to do, and I haven't been home in like four months, so if you'll excuse me." The two behind Kankuro and Temari disappeared into puffs of smoke. After the clones vanished, the main Naruto evaporated into smoke as well. The Sand Siblings and Sakura stood there wondering what had just happened. A lone figure watched the group's reactions while looking around and pondering the interaction. He received the memories from his clones. "Things are about to be interesting," Naruto muttered to himself. After a moment, Naruto decided to summon an owl to follow the trio from Suna. "Hane, I want you to watch the trio right there in the alley. Something doesn't sit right with me about them. Follow them for the next three days, and I'll meet you that morning. I'll make sure to have plenty of tasty mice for you."
Hane chirped in approval and took off the follow the Sand trio. After watching one of his summons fly off, Naruto sighed. "Why do I feel like my life will be even more complicated now?" Deciding not to dwell on the future, he opted to head to get some ramen. Little did he know that passing the Chunin Exams would be the least of his worries.
Yakiniku Q
(Later that night)
As Naruto was eating his beloved ramen across town, the rest of the members of his graduating class, save Sasuke, were meeting at Yakiniku Q for their weekly get-together. Something that started not long after Sakura began taking her training seriously. It started when she went to mend her friendship with Ino. After quite a bit of talking, the two did mend their friendship, although they continued to fight over Sasuke. However, the fighting was much more subdued. Eventually, Sakura was invited to tag along with Team 10, and once she started training with Team 8, Sakura convinced them to come as well. It soon became a weekly affair for most of the former classmates to get together to talk and relax with each other while not on a mission. Since the Chunin Exams were being held in Konoha this time, the two full teams were informed earlier that day that they would participate, which is the main topic of discussion for the group.
"So I take it that you're going to enter the exams," Sakura said to no one in particular.
Shikamaru muttered something about troublesome blondes while Chouji continued to eat.
"What was that, Shika?" Ino asked in a tone too close to his mother's for comfort.
Shikamaru chose not to say anything to avoid further wrath from the girl and slowly dined on his food.
Kiba decided to answer Sakura, "We are too. Kurenai-sensei thinks we could go far. Although, if we have to fight Naruto, I don't feel great about our odds."
Besides Hinata and Shino, the rest of the group looked at Kiba as if he had grown a second head, especially Ino. "What are you talking about? Naruto was the worst student. I don't even know how he was able to pass. Hell, I could probably beat him," Ino said incredulously.
While not fully agreeing with the platinum blonde, the others other than the members of Team 8 believed that Naruto couldn't have improved to such an extent in six months. Sakura was the first to respond, "I get that he's finally getting instruction, but to say that he could beat any of us, especially Sasuke. It's a little hard to believe."
Kiba shook his head, "You don't understand. Our team would be dead if it weren't for him and his sensei. Simple as that."
"What do you mean?" Shikamaru asked as his brain worked at the puzzle before him.
"Well, it started when we went on our first C-rank mission," Kiba began as he told the story of what happened in Wave with some clarifications from either Hinata or Shino. The others who were not there couldn't believe it throughout the account. By the tale's end, the others couldn't believe it, especially Ino. For someone as loud and obnoxious as Naruto, the very idea of him being even somewhat competent went against everything she thought about her fellow blonde. What really got to her was that Kiba said he could even beat Sasuke in a fight now. Taking exception to that fact, she voiced her displeasure.
"There is absolutely no way that that loser could ever beat Sasuke. One was the Rookie of the Year, and the other was the dead-last. I'm fairly certain Naruto wouldn't last five minutes," Ino stated with such certainty that if Team 8 hadn't seen Naruto decimate a small army by himself, they would have believed her.
Kiba simply smirked and said, "Alright, how bout you put your money where your mouth is then?"
"What are you talking about?" Ino said with narrowed eyes.
"How bout a bet?" Kiba said, "Chunin exams are coming up. When they fight cause they will. We'll have our answer. My money is on Naruto. If Sasuke wins, I think that's a big if; I'll cover your shifts at your family shop for a year."
That got Ino's interest. She nodded and said, "Alright, I can accept that. How about if, by some miracle that Naruto wins?"
"You abandon any and all intentions of being 'Mrs. Sasuke Uchiha'," Kiba stated. Everyone at the table turned towards him as if he had grown a second head. The next thing that came out of his mouth had Ino picking her jaw off the floor. "And you have to do one thing for Naruto. No questions asked."
Ino sat for a long while, weighing her options. On the one hand, she could have a year free of working in her family shop. Even though she enjoys the work, it would give her more time to indulge in her favorite activities, such as shopping and following the brooding Uchiha. On the other, she would have to give up any hope of marrying the man she believed to be the man of her dreams. She would also have to do anything for Naruto. After several moments, the resolve that the Uchiha could beat anyone won out in Ino. She stuck out her hand and stated, "Deal. Don't worry. I have this lovely frilly pink apron you can wear while at the shop for the following year."
Kiba shook hers, "Don't be so sure. Just remember you can't back out now. Too many witnesses. Plus, I doubt Sakura would ever let you forget about this."
After a few more minutes of bickering, the two loudmouths settled into more polite conversation. The others soon joined in until it was getting late. Shikamaru and Chouji left to escort Ino home, while Shino and Kiba did the same for Sakura and Hinata. After separating from the other team, Kiba quickly voiced his opinions. "Sakura, you pretty much have Sasuke all to yourself now. There's no way Ino is gonna win this bet."
"What do you mean?" Sakura asked as confusion was evident on her face.
Shino decided to answer this time, "Why you might ask? It's because there was one piece of information that we failed to mention before about Naruto and our joint mission to Wave."
Sakura asked, "What would that be?"
Hinata turned to Sakura, forcing the pink-haired girl to stop walking, "We didn't mention it earlier because we don't like to talk about it. What I saw on that bridge that day, I'll never be able to see him in the same light."
"What she's trying to say is that on the bridge, Hinata and I saw Naruto decimate a small army. Alone. By the end, he was soaked in their blood," Kiba interjected. He could tell that Hinata was having a hard time with it even though it happened months ago. Sakura could only stare at the trio with her mouth agape. For the first time in her life, she honestly wondered if Sasuke would beat Naruto.
Namikaze Estate
(Next Morning)
After having his fill of ramen and catching up with Teuchi and Ayame the night before, Naruto went home to relax. After four months of nothing but missions and training in the aptly named Forest of Death, it felt good to be home for the young blonde. Once home, he relaxed in the hot springs located on the property and finally got to sleep in his bed.
Waking up the following day and grabbing a shower, Naruto walked into his kitchen and began making breakfast. Just as he was about to plate the food, he felt the presence of his sensei appear behind him. Sighing, he made the plate and placed it in front of Kakashi, who hadn't looked up from his book. "Here, eat," Naruto said as he turned back to make another plate, "What do I need to know about the exams?"
Not looking up from his book and placing a single sheet of paper on the table, he answered, "First, you'll meet at the academy in two days. The exact details are on the form. You'll need to be there before the listed time. Second, as you already know, you're entered into the exams solo, meaning you will have no support. You will be treated as independent throughout the exams. You will be operating deep in enemy territory throughout the exams. This means you will have to treat anyone you come across as a hostile enemy. Got it?" During the explanation, he put away his ever-present book to show how serious this would be for the young blonde.
"Understood," he said as he finished his breakfast and sat opposite Kakashi.
"Now, you aren't the only rookie in the exams. Teams 8 and 10 will also be in, along with Might Gai's team. However, there is one thing you need to be made aware of. Due to some complaints by a few council members, Sasuke will also be competing, but he will join a veteran genin team with an indisposed member right now. On the other hand, Sakura will assist the medical corps throughout the exams. So as it stands, all of the members of your graduating class will be a part of the exams. Whether you tell them or not is up to your discretion," the older man said as he pulled down his mask to eat the prepared meal before him.
Naruto contemplated for a moment before replying, "Well, I'm not gonna go looking for them, but I guess I can't exactly avoid them outright, can I?"
"I guess not. Lastly, you can wear either your Konoha or your Uzushiogakure headband. It's one of the stipulations of being an independent in the exams. As long as you have something to identify you as a combatant. All these rules were set forth because someone from Iwa who entered solo teamed up with a friend of theirs during their exams years ago. To prevent this from happening again, specific rules were put in place. The various kage agreed upon these rules at the time. I know about that other headband of yours. I can't think of a better reason to bust that one out," Kakashi said as he nearly polished off the plate of food.
"I agree. Plus, I got a few ideas I want to use it for later on. I'll figure it out. Besides, there are some people I want to see today. I'll see you later, sensei," Naruto said as he finished his food and put his dirty plate in the sink.
Kakashi grunted as he returned to his book. 'Mhmm. Oh, Moka, you naughty girl.'
Hokage Tower
Hiruzen attempted to complete some last-minute paperwork when he felt a presence come in through the window. He continued working on the paperwork, paying no attention to the boy. After a few more minutes of neither speaking, the older man spoke first, "Hello, Naruto. It's been quite some time since I've seen you."
"Yeah, it has. You look even older now, Jiji," Naruto said with a slight smile underneath his gray mask. Then he strode to sit across from the other side of the Hokage's desk. The Hokage really did look older since the last time Naruto saw his surrogate grandfather.
Hiruzen gave the boy a deadpan stare. "As always, my boy, you make me feel so young." He finally got a good look at the young blonde before him. He was slowly being turned into a miniature, gray-colored version of Kakashi. The only differences are the red hooded sleeveless jacket and the absence of a little orange book. "Naruto, while I appreciate that you are dressing more appropriately for a shinobi, I would be remiss to say that I hope you don't pick up all of Kakashi's habits. At least the bad ones."
The boy chuckled slightly, "Don't worry, Jiji. After occasionally training with Anko and Yugao for the past four months, let's say I know which of Kakashi's habits to avoid. Of course, some are great ways to throw people off their game."
Hiruzen nodded, "Agreed, try to keep it to a minimum." Preparing his pipe, he asked, "Now then, to what do I owe the pleasure of you showing up today?"
Naruto slid his mask down, leaning back in his chair, saying, "Just wanted to catch up. It's been a while since we chatted. Figured I'd stop by before everything gets crazy, you know?"
He lit his pipe and took a puff, "Yes, I do believe I do. Tell me what you've been up to since we last spoke."
After catching the tobacco scent, Naruto began regaling his surrogate grandfather with all of his exploits over the past four months. Most of the tales revolved around the training he endured, mainly at the hands of Kakashi. There was also the occasional mission that Kakashi took him on to help improve his skills in a real-world setting and to help bolster his resume for the upcoming exams. The duo spent nearly two hours talking, and Naruto realized he was nearly late for seeing Iruka. Bidding the older man goodbye, Naruto left via the open window. Somewhere in fire country, about a week's travel away from Konoha, a lecherous white-haired man felt a surge of pride fill his chest. He grinned even more manically as he took notes for his 'research.'
Konoha Academy
(Two Days Later)
After catching up with Iruka and eating lunch, Naruto took care of some errands before retiring to his home to rest up. He then spent the next day going through a light workout and readying his supplies for the exams the following day. All told, the day before the first stage was uneventful. Naruto had the uneasy feeling that it was just the calm before the storm, which did nothing to ease his earlier worries. The following morning, he got up early to prepare for the day. He ate a full breakfast and got dressed in his usual mission clothing. After pulling on his facemask, he tied his Uzushiogakure headband around his right arm. He then affixes holsters to his thighs and lower back. Above the holster on his back, he placed the dual sheath of his tanto. After checking everything twice and realizing he had everything from his weapons to various supplies for making scrolls in the field, he left his estate to wait at the academy to gleam any information about potential opponents in the exam.
Naruto found himself waiting on the academy roof, reading one of the books he found in the Uzumaki scroll he received all those months ago. He had been at it for several hours when some of the first participants started showing up. This trend continued as it got closer to the designated time. He saw the Sand siblings walk in and his summon, Hane, come not too far behind them. Beckoning Hane to come to him, he spoke with the owl as he got any information she could glean from the trio. Much to his dismay, the trio did nothing out of the ordinary except for Gaara spending the majority of his time awake. The trio treated their time in Konoha as cautiously as possible. He dispelled his with the promise of treating her the next time he was free. Once he saw Team 8 enter, he figured he could catch up and talk with them before the start. He lept down from the roof and landed in front of a random team from Suna. Not paying attention to the shouts of irritation, Naruto walked into the building, still reading from his book. Walking up the stairs, he noticed the slight genjutsu. He then saw the crowd gathered in front of one of the doors. Deciding to avoid any unnecessary attention, he proceeded to the third floor, where the actual exam was supposed to take place. Unknown to him, two people caught sight of him with their respective dojutsu active.
Reaching the door for the first stage, Naruto noticed his sensei talking with a man with a bowl cut and green unitard. He recognized the man as Might Gai. Upon reaching them, he heard Kakashi respond with his typical response to any of Gai's queries. Not looking up from his book, Naruto heard Gai ask him how he was doing. Naruto responded in the only way he knew, "I'm sorry. Did you say something?"
Gai fell to his knees and started crying, "Oh, Kakashi. How could you spread that hip and cool attitude to your student? I know. I'll run around Konoha 500 times with a boulder strapped to my back. If I can't do that-". Gai ran off to complete his self-imposed challenges, leaving the student and sensei alone.
"Impressive work with Gai. Good luck. I know you'll become chunin once this is over. Also, I just want you to know that I'm proud of you, and I know they would be, too," Kakashi said as he put his book away and dropped down to look Naruto in the eye.
Feeling his eyes start to well up, Naruto waved him off, saying, "Thank you, sensei. I got this. Besides, I got a hell of a legacy to live up to, whether people know it or not."
"I'm glad you understand. Now, go on," Kakashi said as he patted the young boy on the head.
Naruto watched as his sensei left him alone in the hallway. Taking a deep breath, he walked into the classroom. He first noticed the decent attempt at using KI, if only for the sheer number of people performing the feat. He shrugged off the attempt and made his way over to a spot on the wall to continue to read his book while keeping an eye on the competition so as to avoid attention from both foreign and domestic shinobi. As he read, he saw more examinees enter until he saw Sasuke enter with his makeshift team. Not long after them, Team 10 joined, with Ino jumping onto Sasuke's back. Shika and Chouji followed soon after, with Team 8 joining the small group of Konoha rookies. Naruto thought about what could have been if his assigned team had passed fully. Would he have turned into the shinobi he is today? Would he have known about his heritage? The answers to those questions eluded him. To Naruto, the idea of wondering about what could have been done is no good for anyone. His mind tended to wander when lost in thought. He learned not to dwell on those questions, but his mind seemed to fixate on them in inopportune moments. Because of his train of thought, he nearly missed Sasuke asking an older Konoha genin with white hair and glasses about three particular examinees.
"I need you to tell me about three participants. Rock Lee of Konoha, Gaara of Suna, and the last one, I don't have his name, but he's standing about 15 feet behind me to my 7 o'clock," Sasuke said.
The white-haired genin spoke about having the challenge of finding the mystery examinee. He then went to list the stats of Lee and Gaara. Naruto couldn't believe the amount of detail this guy had on not only a Konoha shinobi but of a foreign ninja, regardless of whether they were an ally. Filing that information away for later, he listened back into the guy to see if his identity was compromised. Readying himself to destroy the card, Naruto heard, "Well, this is interesting. I don't have much. The only thing of note is that he's listed as being solo. Although, he considered a genin for Konoha. He must be highly skilled to do that. The last person to do that for Konoha was Itachi Uchiha." Realizing that he was safe for now, Naruto relaxed and focused back on his book. He could feel Sasuke start to walk over to him when smoke appeared at the front of the room and a loud, booming voice yelled, "Silence, degenerates." As the smoke cleared, a large man with several scars on his face stood at the center of the assembled group. He wore a dark gray outfit that resembled the uniform of the Intelligence Division, along with a black trench coat and gloves. His hitai-ate was worn as a scarf that covered his head. He continued, "I'm Ibiki Morino, proctor for the first test of the Chunin Exam. Let us begin."
Jonin Lounge
Not far from the assembled group of chunin wannabes, the various jonin sensei were gathered together in the jonin lounge provided by the host village to keep an eye on the jonin sensei from the different villages. It was a separate entity from the typical jonin lounge that was reserved for Konoha jonin, both special and regular. It was also an excellent way to gain some intel from foreign jonin, who partook in the bar Konoha graciously provided. It also provided the perfect venue for the favorite pastime for all jonin sensei with teams in the exams, gambling.
The other three could only laugh at Kakashi pouting like a child or as close to pouting as he could. Asuma was the first to control his peals of laughter, "Don't take it so hard. It's just a little surprising, is all. Although, I'm not sure why you showed up so soon. I thought the only open spot was given to that Uchiha brat." He then fished a cigarette out and placed it between his lips, much to Kurenai's chagrin.
After ordering a round for the table, Kakashi looked at the younger Sarutobi, "Actually, my student is competing solo." The various groups around Kakashi's table stopped talking as they gave the masked jonin a look that said he was crazy.
Everyone knew the stipulations concerning solos in the chunin exams. No sensei in their right would ever really consider sending their student into such a hostile environment, even if they were in their home village. Most had one of two thoughts going through their heads: one was that Kakashi Hatake was utterly insane, and the other was that his student was incredibly powerful. However, all could agree that something was off with the master student duo. Kakashi knew what he had just said would cause some ripples among the Konoha jonin and the foreign jonin. While he didn't care for what people thought of him, he knew what a reputation could do for a shinobi. Examples of himself, his sensei, the Yellow Flash, and Zabuza Momochi are just a few of the well-known shinobi with fearsome reputations. He was brought out of his musings by Kurenai.
"I've seen Naruto in action, but to have him compete solo is something else. I know he's good, probably even better than when I last saw him four months ago. However, you are his sensei, so you would know better than us," Kurenai said.
"You're right. I am his sensei. I know him better than anyone here. I, along with the Hokage, deemed him ready for it. If he weren't, he wouldn't be taking the first exam right now," Kakashi said as he grabbed his drink from the waitress as she brought the order.
Gai began to talk, "It's just that we don't really know the extent of his skills. Other than you, no one knows how competent he is. All we can go off of his reputation from the academy."
Asuma continued, "He's right, Kakashi. We all read his file from the academy. He had worse grades than one of my brats, but at least mine was too damn lazy to be bothered by anything."
"That file you mentioned doesn't tell the whole story about him. Did you know he was actively sabotaged by most of the instructors? They purposely taught him flawed taijutsu to get him killed in the field. Who knows where he could have been if he was just shown the right direction for the simplest of things," the masked jonin said as he finished his drink, then signaled for another. Once his next drink arrived, he started again, "Look; I know you all are concerned, but not only do I have faith in Naruto, but so does the Hokage. That alone should tell you about his skills."
Kurenai replied, "I'm not questioning his skills per se. I'm more concerned with the fact that he has operated either alone or with you. If he does become a chunin, he'll be expected to lead others on missions. How can he do that if he has no experience operating with a team?"
Once his second drink arrived, he looked into the swirling amber liquid. He sighed, "Because he's his parents' kid." He downed his drink and ordered another round for everyone at his table. "If you'll excuse me, I have to put a sizeable bet on my student to win this whole fucking thing."
As he walked away, Gai, Asuma, and Kurenai thought about what he said. Gai was the first to speak, "We should have more faith in Kakashi. It is most unyouthful that we don't."
"Agreed," Asuma said while finishing his cigarette.
"I guess so," Kurenai relented, "But what do you think he meant by that last bit about his parents? Do you think he knows how they are?"
"There are many things about Kakashi that even I don't know about. Maybe he knew them at one point. However, the only person of note that I remember me being around was the Yondiame," Gai said absently.
Kurenai and Asuma looked at each other for a moment and shook their heads, "Nahhh."
What none of them realized is that Kakashi was still within earshot. He simply smirked to himself, thinking, 'Good. Just a little bit longer, and then you'll show everyone how wrong they were about you.'
Konoha Academy
'Done. Easier than I thought. Now just to wait for the final question,' Naruto thought as he filled the final question. Once the exam started, it didn't take him long to figure out the objective was to cheat. Thankfully with his mastery over shadow clones and his unique henge, he was able to finish the test with minimal difficulty.
Naruto waited as the minutes ticked by until the physically imposing Ibiki Morino gave the final question. He heard about the man from his time training with Anko. She had called Ibiki a sadist in the truest form of the word. He earned his reputation as the lead interrogator for Konoha. While Anko dealt with the physical side of torture and interrogation, Ibiki dealt with the mental. Naruto sighed as he looked around the room. He could see a few of his old classmates filling out the exam. He also spotted Tenten from the weapon shop and that Temari girl from Suna. Then there was that white-haired genin. The amount of information that guy had on not only a Konoha member but also a Suna nin was staggering. No genin should have that kind of knowledge. It would be something to ponder after this stage of the exams is over. He thought that maybe he could have Hane spy on the suspicious man. He was brought out of his musings by Ibiki announcing it was time for the tenth question.
As he listened to the scar-faced man explains the nature of the last question, Naruto's mind wandered. He hated how he was becoming more introspective. He partially blamed Kakashi for it. While the man was quite the accomplished shinobi, he was a shit person to talk to about personal problems. The other part of it was the fact that he didn't trust anyone enough with his problems. Sure, he trusted his comrades to have his back on missions, but he just didn't feel comfortable confiding in others. He felt alone even when he was by others like Iruka, Jiji, or the Ichirakus. Hell, even now, in this room surrounded by all these people, including his old classmates, he's never felt more alone. He was brought out of his musings by the sound of someone coughing loudly, most likely trying to get someone's attention. He looked up to see Ibiki and most of the assembled genin staring at him. Seeing that all eyes were on him, he did the only rational thing he could think of. He said, "I'm sorry. Did you say something?"
Ibiki, along with the others that knew Kakashi or at least knew of him, face-faulted. The other genin looked at the boy like he was crazy, although Naruto could swear he heard a few giggles from a few different places in the room. Regaining his composure, Ibiki pinched the bridge of his nose. He began, "Gaki, I asked if you were willing to take the tenth question. Suppose you do take the question and fail; you forfeit any future chances to become chunin. If you choose not to take it, then you automatically fail, but you can choose to retake the exam at a later date. So what will you choose, gaki?" Ibiki then leaned in close to stare the boy directly in the eyes and said, "Or did Kakashi choose the wrong apprentice?"
Naruto saw the smirk on the interrogator's face and knew the man was baiting him. Doing his best not to show a reaction to the man's question, Naruto reigned in his emotions and responded, "Well, Scarface," Ibiki growled at the nickname, "if you know who I am, then you've already got your answer. I have too much to prove to others to give up now. So as far as I'm concerned, you can take your threats and shove them somewhere that most would consider quite unpleasant. Ok, Scarface?" After finishing his little rant, Naruto leaned back in his chair and stared at the older man.
Ibiki simply looked at the boy. He knew who he was and what he contained. However, unlike most, Ibiki knew the boy's parents. It didn't take the trained interrogator long to figure out they were, especially when he looked so much like his father and acted nearly identical to his mother. Putting his thoughts away for another time, Ibiki smirked at the kid with balls of steel. He walked back to the front of the room and continued, "Well, then. Is there anyone else who wants to quit?" Seeing that no one was going to raise their hand after the gaki unintentionally gave them a confidence boost against the proctor of the first exam. He thought, 'Even when he doesn't know it. He can inspire people like another certain blonde. I can't wait to see everything else you accomplish, Naruto.' He smirked and told the genin that was left, "In that case, for the first exam, all I can say is you pass!"
It seemed like forever before anyone in the room moved; however, it was, in reality, only a few seconds at most. The next thing to happen was a group of genin screaming, "WHAT!?" that could be heard all the way to the makeshift jonin lounge.
Ibiki continued to smirk, saying, "All of you that are remaining have passed the first exam."
Temari recovered first. She slammed her hands on the table and yelled, "What about the tenth question?"
Ibiki laughed and said, "There wasn't such a thing to begin with. Well, you can look at the choice you just had to make as the tenth question."
Temari could only say, "What?" before Ino chimed in with, "Hey! Then, what were all those nine questions for? It was just a waste of time!"
The scarred man only laughed and said, "Not a waste. The objective of the nine questions was already accomplished. To test your individual ability to gather information."
Naruto had enough of the Q&A session, "The purpose was to see if we could gather information in a hostile environment. We were expected to cheat to pass the exam. If a person failed to cheat here, the enemy would catch them while in the field." Ibiki looked at the boy and was amused. Naruto continued, "Do you want me to keep going, or do you want to explain the rest? This is becoming too troublesome."
That last bit caused a bit of a chuckle from Ibiki and elicited a groan of annoyance from Shikamaru. Ibiki then explained the true nature of the first exam and how information is more important than life itself, depending on the time and the situation. He accentuated this fact by revealing his deformed head to the group, showing how the lengths the enemy will go to retrieve information. He continued by saying that the tenth question was to see if the group were capable of taking the leap or not. The idea being to test the resolve of the test takers. Before he could continue further, a black ball broke through a window. Ibiki thought, 'Damn it, Anko.'
The cloth ball crashed through the window with two kunai flying from the fabric. As the fabric unfurled, it revealed the familiar form of a certain kunoichi. On the cloth banner, it read, 'The Sexy and Single Second Exam Proctor Anko Mitarashi.' Anko screamed, "This is no time for celebrations, you little punks. I'm the second exam proctor, Anko Mitarashi. The real test begins now!" She threw her fist into the air. Ibiki peeked around the banner and deadpanned, "Grasp the atmosphere, Anko."
Ibiki gave her a dry look and said, "Maybe this batch is better than you think. Plus, we got a funny one back there." After saying that, he pointed to a particular genin. One that Anko became very familiar with over the past four months.
Anko turned to face where her boss was pointing and found Naruto had produced a board that had the number 9.5 on it. She gasped at the board. "What the hell, gaki!? Why not a perfect 10?" she asked as she padded her way toward the boy that had become something of a little brother figure.
"Aww, Anko. You know I can't lie to you," he said, trying to soothe his older sister figure. "Besides, I know someone that would give you a 10. A certain chunin, maybe?" He said the last bit low enough for only her to hear.
Anko was fighting the blush forming on her face. Grabbing the boy, she yelled, "Everyone, meet me at Training Ground 44 in an hour. I have to teach this little gaki some manners."
As she left with Naruto through the broken window, the boy screamed, "FOR FUCK SAKE, ANKO. IT WAS JUST A JOKE. UNLESS YOU WANT ME TO TALK TO HIM FOR YOU" "SAY ONE WORD, AND I'LL GUT YOU LIKE A FISH."
Ibiki and the others were left in the room; all of them could only blink due to the scene that had just played in front of them. The scarred proctor recovered, "What are you waiting for? Get to it. If you're late, you'll be disqualified."
Ibiki and the others were left in the room; all of them had formed sweatdrops due to the scene that had just played in front of them. The scarred proctor recovered, "What are you waiting for? Get to it. If you're late, you'll be disqualified."
After all the examinees left, Ibiki started to pick up the test papers when he stopped at a particular spot. He looked over the exam, raised an eyebrow, and said, "Kid sure is interesting."
Training Ground 44
Just outside the fence that separated training ground forty-four from the rest of the village, Anko and Naruto were bickering like siblings. They continued until Naruto started to sense the first of the competitors approach the forest and were still quite a bit a ways away. Naruto spoke in a tone that told Anko that the boy was in business mode now, "Some of them are showing up now. Something felt off about one of the genin in the first exam."
"This genin. White hair. Black frame glasses. Wore a Konoha hitai-ate. The guy had information that no genin should have. The guy gave out the stats of two genin, including an evaluation of their skills and the mission record for the world to hear—one from Konoha and the other from Suna," Naruto told the purple-haired woman.
Anko frowned at the news that the blonde boy had told her. "No genin should know those things, especially about foreign shinobi. I'll look into this. Alright?" Her frown turned into a smirk, "Besides, you have to get through the forest now. You sure you're up for it?"
Pulling down his hood for a moment to let his hair breathe, he sighed, "I think so. I just hope I don't have to go up against my comrades. I'll summon Hane to follow him throughout the second stage. Nothing against the rules about that, right?"
Anko answered, "That's good. Also, it's not, but I would try my best not to be caught. Here is a little gift that might help. Open it once you enter the forest—also, you'll be placed at the gate behind me." She gave the young blonde a scroll that he placed in the holster at the small of his back.
"Isn't it illegal to help me during the Chunin exams?" Naruto asked, his voice filled with mirth. He knew Anko didn't give a damn about the rules if it meant that someone she cared about survived.
Anko shrugged, "When have I ever gave a shit about the rules?"
"True. So are you gonna ask him after this round?" asked Naruto.
"Absolutely. You two are good for each other. Plus, I've been around him enough to know that he mumbles about how good-looking you are." This got a reaction out of Anko as she had a slight blush forming on her face.
"Alright, good. Don't want to waste my time with someone who doesn't think I'm the sexiest woman in the village," Anko exclaimed. "Anyway, when are you gonna find you a girl?"
"Anko. I'm not even thirteen yet. Let's be honest. Who in this village would be interested in me?" Naruto said with a deadpan stare.
"Well, Nai-chan said something about her brat having a crush on you," Anko said as she put her hand underneath her chin.
"It would never work," Naruto said. Anko asked why not, and he proceeded to explain. "The Hyuuga elders would never allow her to pursue me. They would do whatever they believed necessary if she disobeyed them to keep the Byakugan safe within their clan. That means they would use whatever Kami-forsaken seal they have cooked up in their vaults. Hinata would have to choose between her family and me when it comes down to it. I would never ask anyone to make that choice. To pick me over their own flesh and blood is just wrong. Besides, I've got bigger things to worry about right now." He finished his little speech while looking into the older woman's eyes. She knew the boy was right, but that didn't mean that it would hurt Kurenai's student any less. She then heard him mumble something as he summoned an owl called Hane. "Hane, I need you to follow someone while in the forest. You'll know who it is when I mark him. Just keep track of him until you see him enter the tower in the center, ok? I'm counting on you, girl." Naruto then proceeded to create several shadow clones, nodding at them; they shunshined away to hide for what purpose Anko didn't know. Sensing what she was thinking, Naruto answered, "Just taking precautions."
"Right. Now scram. I don't want any of these lightweights thinking I'm soft, got it?" as she said this, she made a point to hold a kunai to the boy's neck. Naruto held his hands up placatingly and moved off the stage as the rest of the chunin hopefuls arrived at the forest. Once all of them came, Anko began the rundown of the second phase of the exams, in which teams had to retrieve two different scrolls before making it to the tower in the center of the forest. She continued the explanation of the rules until a minor scuffle broke out between Naruto and the boy that he spoke of having the classified information. After yelling at the two to break it up, to keep Naruto's self-imposed cover in place, she yelled at the blonde, who put back on his hood earlier, to hand out the waivers. After all the teams signed their waivers and traded them in for a scroll, Anko told the remaining teams to get to their assigned gates. Before she signaled the start of the second exam, she gave a final piece of advice-"Don't die out there."
At the sound of the horn, the gates leading into the Forest of Death opened, signifying the start of the second stage. About fifteen minutes after entering his 'home' of four months, Naruto felt one of his clones appear by his side as he was running. As the pair ran, the original asked, "Did you get it?" The clone only nodded while handing the original a Heaven scroll—the scroll he needed to pass the exam. Dispelling the clone, Naruto picked up his speed towards the tower. Because of his time spent in the forest, the boy knew the best way to proceed. By the time he reached the building, it had only been forty-five minutes since the start of the second stage.
After entering the tower and solving the riddle, Naruto opened the two scrolls. Recognizing the summoning array, he threw them away from him. Popping out of the smoke was his sensei, Kakashi. "Yo," the older man said as he was indulged in his questionable reading material.
The blonde boy removed his hood and sighed, "Really, sensei? What's so great about that book anyway?"
Kakashi looked at the boy and said, "Don't worry. You'll find out when you're older."
Naruto simply sighed again. The pair made off for the cafeteria to get some food. Naruto knew he had to wait until the time limit ran out before they proceeded to the next phase of the exams. His sensei informed him that he had just set the record for finishing the second phase. After eating, Naruto was shown to a room where he could rest for the foreseeable future. Seeing that he had time to kill, Naruto started to study some of his fuinjutsu books. He spent the remainder of the first-day studying. Naruto spent the next several days either studying fuinjutsu, going through exercises, or resting. In fact, the only thing that broke the monotony was when he met his summon, Hane. When she appeared on the third day, he was stunned to see her injured. After that, Naruto met with a contingent of the higher-ups from the village. Hane informed all that were gathered that one Kabuto was actually a spy for the snake sannin, Orochimaru. After Lengthy discussions, the group came up with several plans. Aside from the impromptu meeting, the remaining time during the second phase was uneventful. Once the time limit expired, all of the genin who passed the second stage were gathered in an arena in the tower.
Hiruzen looked over the assembled chunin hopefuls. He saw that in all, there were twenty-two genin left. 'Certainly makes the next part easier,' the Hokage thought. After explaining the nature of the exams and Hayate explaining the need for preliminaries, the exams moved forward. The first match was between the genin that made up Sasuke's team. While both were skilled, Hiruzen could see the two needed a bit more seasoning. His thoughts were confirmed with the pair knocked each other out.
The next featured Sasuke himself against a man from Kabuto's team named Yoroi Akado. Naruto watched the match with feigned interest as the Uchiha won without any real difficulty. Kiba was able to handle the arrogant Sound genin named Zaku. Naruto was pleased to see Kiba was getting better since Wave. The next several matches passed quickly. Kakuro beat the other teammate of Kabuto. Ino ran away from Shino once he released his bugs. Temari of the Sand took care of Tenten. It was a poor matchup on the weapon mistress's part against a wind user. Afterward, with minimal effort, Shikamaru took down the Sound kunoichi like a true Nara. The fight between the two branches of the Hyuuga family was, for lack of a better term, brutal. Both Hinata and Neji fought hard; however, Neji was the one to prevail. Naruto was appalled by Neji's actions after the match was declared over. The older Hyuuga had nearly killed his own cousin if not for the timely intervention of the proctor and some of the Leaf jonin. Naruto was so angry at the teen's actions that the blonde dented the railing where he stood with just his grip. Ignoring the looks from his former classmates, Naruto focused on the final three matches, one being his own.
Rock Lee gave it his all, but even with some of the Eight Gates being opened, it wasn't enough to take down Gaara. If not for Lee's sensei saving him, Lee would have been crushed to death by the sand of the Suna genin. What's worse is that the redhead showed no remorse for nearly killing an ally, almost as if the boy had no qualms about killing another in cold blood. The penultimate match was as lackluster as the one involving Ino and Shino. Choji, through the promise of unlimited barbeque from his sensei, rushed into the fight. The match lasted only a minute after Dosu was announced as the winner, leaving only Naruto and Kabuto.
Once the final preliminary match was announced, several things occurred. For the Suna shinobi, they finally had a name for the one that confronted them before the exams. The Hokage was eager to see how far his surrogate grandson had come since the academy. Anko and Hayate were ready to see how the blonde faced someone other than themselves. Asuma, Kurenai, and Gai couldn't wait to see how Naruto performed after Kakashi's boasting. Naruto's old classmates could hardly believe that the dead last had gotten this far in the exams, except Team 8.
Hayate called for the final two participants down to the arena, "Alright, you guys know the rules. Understood?" the man said through a fit of coughs.
The white-haired genin readied himself by slipping into an ordinary taijutsu stance and replied, "Ready."
Naruto, despite looking bored, although no one could tell, with his hands in his pockets, looked at one of his kenjutsu instructors and nodded. With a yell of "Hajime," the match began.
Neither was willing to make the first move, and everyone in attendance waited with bated breath. Kabuto was the first to break, surprisingly. Rushing toward the blonde, the spy asked, "Are you really the infamous loudmouth I've heard so much about?" Kabuto made to strike first, but Naruto dodged effortlessly.
The blonde showed little effort in avoiding the older genin's strikes. After tiring the bespectacled teen out, Naruto went on the offensive. The blonde made one hand seal, and mist started to form inside the lower arena while keeping the observation decks clear. No one could see into the haze, and Kabuto couldn't even see six inches in front of him. Not long after, Naruto started to tag Kabuto with strikes from the various shadow clones he made once the mist settled into the arena. The older teen was getting tired of becoming a punching bag for what was once the laughingstock of the academy. Kabuto tried to fight back, but because of the haze, he couldn't see anything, let alone his opponent, who was far more skilled than previously thought.
As the match came to an end, Kabuto was tired of the charade of his game. He was about to concede when he couldn't feel either of his hands. He looked down to notice that his adversary had used one of the swords on his back to slice off his hands. Not fully comprehending the situation, Kabuto did the only rational thing his brain he could do. He screamed as he stared at the bloody stumps. While this was happening, one of Naruto's clones sliced the back of Kabuto's knees, forcing the older teen to the ground. Another of the blonde's clones retrieved the white-haired genin's hands and placed them some distance away from the original and his foe. Naruto began to dispel the mist, and everyone saw Kabuto's bloody and bruised body. Right before the proctor called the match, the original threw a kunai with an explosive tag attached to it where Kabuto's hands were. The only thing that could be heard throughout the expansive room was the screams of the traitor. However, most were unaware of that fact. Before anyone could register that Naruto had slashed Kabuto's hands off and destroyed them, he had stopped his cries of pain. The blonde was now standing over the downed 'genin' with a kunai. Using the ring end of his kunai, Naruto slammed into the side of his opponent's head, knocking him out. Naruto stood tall over his downed foe and muttered softly, "Pathetic snake."
Everyone stood in silence as they eyed the floor below. The scene they had all witnessed was something most would never have dreamed of coming from the loudmouth blonde. Kakashi and the others who helped Naruto train were unaffected by the outcome. Hiruzen was filled with overwhelming pride for his grandson in all but blood. The other senseis were stunned by the brutality of Naruto. Baki, in particular, was sweating over what he just saw. He knew that Kabuto was Orochimaru's second-in-command, even if the teen was holding back. He was now second-guessing Suna's role in the upcoming invasion. A thought occurred to him. He wasn't particularly proud of it, considering it involved his best student. However, the love of his nation outweighed the care for his student, if only barely. Baki turned to his lone female student, "Temari, I have an assignment for you." The girl in question had a bad feeling emerging in the pit of her stomach.
"Winner, Naruto Uzumaki," Hayate announced as he was one of the few least affected by the display before them. He continued after the medics came and retrieved the unconscious Kabuto, "That concludes the preliminaries. Will the winners come down to the arena?" The other winners made their way, and Hayate and Anko explained the next exam stage. After explaining that the next round was a month away, the two proctors had the remaining examinees draw lots for the tournament. As Naruto and the others read off their selections, Hayate wrote down the contenders' names on paper. Lifting it to show everyone the bracket, Hayate said, "As you can see, these are the matchups for the tournament. Match 1 is Naruto Uzumaki versus Neji Hyuuga. Match 2 is Sasuke Uchiha versus Kankuro of the Sand. Match 3 will be Shino Aburame against Gaara of the Sand. Shikamaru Nara will face Temari of the Sand in the fourth match. Lastly, Dosu Kinuta will go up against Kiba Inuzuka, with the winner going straight to the finals. Are there any questions?"
Shikamaru asked if only one person could become chunin based on the nature of the final round tournament. After a brief explanation, Hiruzen congratulated everyone and wished them luck for the third round of the exams. Before dismissing the group, he pointed look at Naruto and Kakashi. The message was clear, 'See me as soon as possible.' Both sensei and student gave imperceptible nods. With that, the second round was over, and everyone left to prepare themselves for what would come in the next month.
Hokage Tower
After leaving the tower in the Forest of Death, Naruto and his sensei met with their leader in the man's office. The Hokage motioned for the two to get comfortable. Hiruzen prepared his pipe for a smoke, Kakashi brought out his book, and Naruto lowered his hood and mask to show his whiskered face. After taking a few puffs, the older man looked toward the two, "First, I think congratulations are in order. Naruto, my boy, I am so proud of what you've accomplished; not only have you made it to the final round of the chunin exams, but also for taking down a spy in the process. Regardless of what happens next month, your promotion is all but assured." Naruto sheepishly thanked the man. Hiruzen chuckled at the boy's mannerisms, much like his parents. "This leads me to Kabuto. Not long after the end of your match, he was taken by ANBU along with his teammates to a secure facility. It won't be long before we receive info about anything pertaining to my wayward student. Which brings us to our next course of action, Kakashi," the man turned toward the masked jonin, "you will be acting on this information. That means that, unfortunately, you will not be able to train Naruto this next month."
Kakashi and Naruto nodded, and the blonde asked, "What should I do for the next month then? I mean, I've mastered most of my jutsu arsenal already. I can only spar so much before I develop weird habits fighting myself."
The older man took another puff, "Don't worry. I have someone willing to take you on for the next month. In fact, if I'm not mistaken, he should be at the hot springs right now. Why don't you go and meet him?"
Naruto looked at the old man, confused, "I don't even know what that looks like?"
Hiruzen had a mischievous glint in his eye, "Don't worry. You'll know him when you see him."
Naruto gave the man a weird look before getting up and placing his hood and mask back on. He left to find his mysterious new teacher, although, in his gut, he felt he knew who the man would be.
After watching the boy leave, Kakashi asked, "When did he get back?"
Hiruzen replied, "Just this morning. I sent for him so that he and Naruto could get to know one another. It would be nice to have Naruto to have more family around. However, I have still yet to hear from his godmother."
"Right," Kakashi mused, "Well, with the woman's penchant for gambling, I wouldn't be surprised if she shows once she hears that he's in the tournament." 'Plus, it would be good to see her again.'
"Thinking of a certain medic, Kakashi?" Hiruzen said with amusement.
Burying his face in his book, trying to hide the blush that was peeking through his mask, Kakashi said, "I don't know what you're talking about, sir."
The older man chuckled at the younger man and said, "Anyway, we have much to do once Ibiki and Anko break Kabuto."
Konoha Hot Springs
Naruto decided to walk to the hot springs to clear his mind. He was going over his match with Kabuto. Naruto knew that the older teen wasn't going all out. The teen had a cover to maintain, especially in front of the old man. He also didn't miss the looks of his former classmates. Naruto sighed at the thought. He didn't want his comrades to be afraid of him. Naruto shook his head, trying to dispel the train of thought. 'At this rate, I might just be a Yamanaka.' He looked at his surroundings and saw that he was outside the hot springs.
The blonde looked inside and outside the establishment, but he couldn't find any sign of his would-be teacher. 'No point in sticking around. I guess I could see Tenten at her shop or get some more flowers for mom's grave. Wait, what's that giggling?' Naruto was brought out of his musings when he saw a white-haired man nestled in the trees above the fence overlooking the female side of the hot springs.
Following the feeling in his gut, Naruto slinked his way to spy on the man. Once in position to fully the man, Naruto noticed that the man was tall and well-built with fair skin. He had waist-length, spiky white hair tied back into a ponytail, with two shoulder-length bangs framing his face. Red lines under his eyes extended further down his face. His attire consisted of a short green shirt, kimono, and matching pants, under which he wore mesh armor visible at his wrists and ankles. He also wore hand guards, a black belt, traditional Japanese wooden sandals, and a red haori with two yellow circles on each side. He often carried a large scroll on his back and wore a horned hitai-ate with the kanji for "oil."
Before the boy could do anything else, he heard the man speak, "Not bad, kid. Not many people can sneak up on me like that. However, you're about a hundred years too young to get one over on me."
Hiding the surprise in his eyes, Naruto responded, "Guess I should expect nothing less from one of the Sannin, Jiraiya."
Jiraiya chuckled, "Ahh, so you've heard of me," he turned to look at the kid by him. He knew that his sensei was going to send the boy to him to train. It was the very least the Toad Sage could do, considering the kid was his godson. The man had quite a few regrets, like leaving those in Ame, failing to be in the village during the Kyuubi attack, and failing the woman he loved. However, at the top of the proverbial list was leaving his godson to fend for himself. Cutting off his introspection, the older man finally got a good look at his godson. The first thing he noticed was the distinct lack of 'kill me orange,' and the other was that he could only see the cerulean eyes that were so much like his father's. He continued, "You're not what I was expecting."
"What were you expecting?" Naruto asked.
Jiraiya mused, "More orange, for one thing. Maybe you yelling about being Hokage. Just not this. How about we go somewhere else and talk?"
"Alright, where to?" Naruto said.
The toad sage placed a hand on the boy's shoulder, and the two left via shunshin.
Training Ground 80
Training Ground 80 was like any other training ground in Konoha, except for TG 44. The Forest of Death was in a league all its own. TG 80 was a field surrounded by the forests of Fire Country. It had a medium-sized pond that was fed by a waterfall. Being on the outskirts of the village, the field went unused quite a bit. As the two stood in the middle of the grounds for a bit, Jiraiya stated, "I'm sure you got questions, right?"
Naruto sighed, pulling down his hood and mask, "Yeah, I do. Although only one stands out right now"
"Oh yeah? What's that?" the older man responded. He couldn't help but notice how the boy looked so much like his father that it was scary. Naruto was like a miniature Minato with whisker marks.
In a show of speed and strength, Naruto punched the older man in the gut before hugging the man's neck like a lifeline, saying, "What the hell took you so long?"
Stunned by the display, Jiraiya could only stare into the distance; after a minute, the man wrapped his arms around the boy. Silently, the Sannin vowed he would honor his godfather role from then on. He wasted too many years running from the past. Jiraiya knew he was getting a second chance that he didn't deserve, and by Kami, he would make the most of it.
Unbeknownst to the two, two sets of eyes watched the emotion-filled meeting.
This took me so much longer than needed to finish this chapter. Between taking care of grandma to my brother getting engaged to having my truck stolen and then recovered, sine the last update life has been hectic. I have a poll up so go vote for what you think. If by some chance I have to step away, I will post something on my page. I won't leave people in the dark bout this story. I hope I did well for this chapter and that y'all enjoy it. If you don't, well I'll try to do better next time. You can always PM if you have any questions, I'll try to answer them as best I can. As always, stay safe in this crazy world of ours.
