[Edit: 09-29-2016] Right, I just found out that those Omake's completely fucked up my chapter count, so now I need to go back and change all of them. This is gonna be rough.
Chapter 5 – Training completed, a Rivalry started, and a Friendship begun
It was, as it always is, a bright and sunny day in the oldest Hidden Village in the Elemental Countries. People could be seen bustling in the thriving village, off on various errands or simply out for a walk in order to enjoy the plentiful sun.
Ninja could be seen as dark blurry shapes, hopping from rooftop to rooftop. While customers coming to Konoha would be amazed at the speed and agility displayed by a hurrying ninja, the civilians knew better. Despite not being ninja themselves, they had lived long enough amongst their mass-murdering neighbours to know that for a shinobi, such a rapid trip across the rooftops was comparable to a relaxing stroll.
After all, a ninja who was in a hurry was a ninja who was either too fast or too crafty to be seen by mere civilians.
If we move towards the edges of the village, we come across several of the Training Grounds open to the ninja of Konoha. Protected with more than was visible to the untrained eye (and several trained eyes as well), these areas were generally used by the Jounin which had Genin teams, the Genin themselves, or by individual or teams of Chunin, hoping to hone their skills.
Jounin, of course, either had too destructive or too secretive techniques to simply practise out in the open, and instead made use of several hidden Training Grounds, the location of which wasn't known to the civilians.
Or a lot of the other shinobi forces, for that matter.
The ANBU, on the other hand, were rumoured to have entire training facilities hidden throughout (and under) the Village. Of course, the only ones who knew where they were even located were the currently active ANBU themselves, since this information is removed by a Yamanaka from the ANBU who decide to retire.
Not that that mattered to those ANBU who retired on a more complete and a definitely more… permanent basis.
It says everything you ever need to know about the ANBU that the last Operative a Yamanaka had to mind-wipe was Kakashi, despite the ANBU having had multiple changes of rosters since then.
But the focus of our story isn't the secretive facilities of the ANBU, or even the hidden training grounds of the Jounin. No, our focus lies with one of the more commonly used Training Grounds, which were open to all shinobi forces. It appeared like many of the other Training Grounds, consisting of a rather large clearing, surrounded by a small forest, and through which ran a small creek.
The majority of the Training Grounds were equipped in such a way. This was done in order to simulate a scenario most shinobi would encounter in battle, many of which would take place in Fire Country itself, given the fact that mostly Genin and Chunin trained here, who usually didn't leave the border all that much.
Of course, there were other, more specialised Training Grounds, which simulated the climates and surroundings of the other Elemental Countries, such as an artificial desert for Wind Country, or a rocky terrain, void of any vegetation, for Earth Country.
There were rumours amongst civilians that there was a gigantic out-door pool as a simulation for Water Country, but one was never found, and the shinobi neither confirmed or denied it.
But, once more, I digress. After all, we are more interested in one of the more generic Training Grounds, where the sound of flesh impacting wood could be heard clearly amongst the babbling of the nearby creek, and the chirping of the birds.
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
"…203!" "…204!" "…205!"
In the clearing of the Training Ground, three wooded poles were planted firmly in the ground. Each one was roughly as thick as a man's chest, and would come up to the average man's hip. All three were showing signs of obvious wear, criss-crossed with cuts and small burns and with pieces of wood even missing completely. The cause of these marks was currently abusing the middle post, leading to the sound we heard earlier.
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
"…206!" "…207!" "…208!"
A small boy, no older than eight, was relentlessly punching the middle post, little chips of wood springing away with every punch. The child had impossibly bright yellow hair, sticking out in a spiky pattern which appeared to not have been informed of the laws of gravity yet. The blonde boy wore rather standard clothing, consisting of a white t-shirt and blue pants, except for the somewhat shiny bandages that covered his hands up to hallway of the forearms, sans the fingers, which were left exposed.
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
"…209!" "…210!" "…211!"
Standing a little way off from the training child, with his arms crossed in front of his chest, stood perhaps the oddest man in all of the Elemental Nations. Clad in nothing but a green spandex jumpsuit, with vibrant orange legwarmers and a red sash on his hips, many would question not only his fashion sense, but if the man had any common sense at all.
And that's without even taking the man's eyebrows into account.
By Kami, those EYEBROWS. Gigantic things, they were thick and hairy in the most unnatural of ways, appearing more as particularly thick and hairy caterpillars than eyebrows. They were so eye-catching, for all the wrong reasons, one could easily be forgiven for missing the man's haircut, which was shaped into an impossibly gleaming bowl cut.
This man was Might Guy, the Beautiful Green Beast of Konoha, infamous Taijustu Master, Copy-Cat Kakashi's Eternal Rival…
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
"…212!" "…213!" "…214!"
… and, since about a year ago, Uzumaki Naruto's teacher.
Said child was still mercilessly hammering away at the unyielding wooden post under the watchful gaze of his sensei, either not caring or not noticing the way he was dripping in sweat.
Thwack! Thwack!
"…214!" "…215!"
Suddenly, Guy called out to his student, his exuberant voice easily rising above the sound of Naruto's training.
"YOSH, MY YOUTHFUL STUDENT! YOU MAY STOP YOUR INTELLIGENT HARD WORK NOW, YOU'RE FLAMES OF YOUTH HAVE TRULY BEEN FANNED INTO AN INFERNO OF YOUTH TODAY!"
"Hai, sensei!" Naruto called back with a relieved pant, before falling flat on his face.
Chuckling, Guy made his way to his student, who had managed to roll himself over, so he was now lying spread-eagled on the ground, looking up at the fluffy clouds serenely drifting by.
Unknown to him, several Nara had the odd feeling someone was muscling in on their monopoly on cloud watching. This could have become a major and sensational plot point in the story, as the Nara would rise up against whoever thought they had a right to stare at their clouds, causing much strife and drama in Konoha as a result.
However, the Nara were too lazy to actually get up and do anything about it, so they simply continued to lay down and stare at the clouds, opting to try to ignore the newcomer with a practise that came from years of saying "Yes dear, I'll do it tomorrow."
Needless to say, this practise sometimes got a raised eyebrow whenever a Nara wasn't, in fact, at home, but, say, in the Hokage's office.
But that's a tale for another time. For now, we return to Naruto, who is being helped into a sitting position by his sensei.
Guy handed his student a bottle of water, cooled with a simple jutsu used for… well, for cooling things. Naruto eagerly accepted the cool water, taking great gulps of the life giving liquid, though taking care not to drink too fast.
Experience was a harsh teacher, after all.
Waiting a little before his student had regained his composure, Guy started talking in a noticeably softer and warmer voice.
"So, Naruto, are you exited for tomorrow?"
Immediately the child nodded with such enthusiasm, he spilled a little from the water bottle.
"You bet, Guy-Sensei! I can't wait to go back to the Academy and show them just how much stronger I've become, dattebayo!" Naruto yelled boisterously, making his sensei laugh.
"That's good to hear, Naruto." The spandex-clad man said with a big smile. "But, remember, a Genius of Hard Work is never done. You must still try your best at the Academy, and try to learn as much as you can from your senseis. All of your sensei's, Naruto." The last part was said sternly.
Naruto's head dropped, as his face formed a stubborn pout.
"I'll try sensei." The child muttered, though it was obvious he wasn't pleased at all about it.
"And that's all I'll ever ask of you Naruto." Guy said with a warm smile.
Spirits lifted, Naruto happily nodded back at his sensei. Guy clapped his hands together as he stood straight again, a large smile on his face which literally sparkled in the sunlight.
"YOSH!" he said in his usual tone, "LET'S FINISH UP FOR TODAY, SHALL WE, MY YOUTHFUL STUDENT?"
Naruto simply looked confused, glancing form the sun high in the sky to his sensei and back.
"Already Bushy-Brow Sensei? It's still light out-"
"FIRST!" a finger suddenly appeared in front of Naruto's face, causing him to fall backwards with an 'eep!' of surprise.
"MY NAME IS STILL NOT BUSHY-BROW SENSEI! SECOND!" a second finger appeared, "TOMORROW IS A BIG DAY FOR YOU, MY YOUTHFUL STUDENT. WHILE I ADMIRE THE WAY IN WICH YOU WISH TO FAN YOUR FLAMES OF YOUTH TO EVEN GREATER HEIGHTS, A GENIUS OF HARD WORK SHOULD ALWAYS KNOW WHEN IT IS BEST NOT TO WORK!"
The short impromptu speech was capped off by a thumbs-up and another impossibly bright smile.
"Huh?"
Guy face-faulted. Standing up with a great sigh and dusting off his pristine green spandex jumpsuit, the oddest man in the world clarified himself.
"What I mean is, that in order for your big day tomorrow, you should make sure that you take plenty of rest, leaving you all the more prepared for when you truly need it."
"Ahhhh." Naruto said, as understanding lit up his face.
"So, that means, that today we won't be going on with training until the sun is coming up again, then go to bed, only to rise with the sun the next day?!" the child yelled excitedly, his hopeful face that of a dehydrated man who, after years of crawling through the unforgiving desert, finally stumbles across an oasis filled with food and drink and, more importantly, busty naked ladies.
Very… lonely busty ladies.
"Well, yes." Guy said, a little confused as to why his student appeared so relieved that he would be missing out on the greatest and most youthful of training regiment in the world, courtesy of yours truly.
Ignoring Naruto's whoops (and tears) of joy, Guy cleared his throat, patiently waiting for attention. He had to clear it several more times before he finally got it. By now, that patience was pretty much gone.
"Right, before I let you go home, Naruto, please preform your technique one final time, so we can see the results of your year of training under me."
"Hai sensei!" Naruto yelled excitedly, giving a sloppy salute, before falling into a now familiar stance.
Feed spread slightly apart, with one fist clenched at his side and his eyes closed. For a few tense seconds, nothing happened, before suddenly, Naruto started to glow, the glow quickly growing into a blue flickering shroud, appearing as if it was made out of an ethereal flame.
As a current of wind began to surround the young Uzumaki, the shroud started churning wildly around his body, carving deep grooves in the ground beneath his feet. As the shroud began swirling faster and faster around him, a more solid shroud sprang into existence around the boy's fist, rolling madly around his bandages, which started to glow in the same colour as the rest of the shroud.
Finally, Naruto opened his eyes, which were now glowing brightly with an inner light, and let out a yell which was audible to most of Konoha. Briefly he crouched a little deeper, coiling his body, before he pushed off, cratering the ground beneath him. Shooting forwards in nothing but a blur, creating a deep furrow in the ground, Naruto shot off towards his target; the wooden post he had been punching mere minutes ago.
BTOOOMMM!
Guy had to shield his eyes for a few seconds before looking back towards his student. What he saw made him smile proudly. A smile which was mirrored on his pupil's face, as Naruto stood grinning like an idiot at his bandaged fist, the wraps still faintly glowing blue, while his fist was still smoking slightly.
The wooden post was completely gone.
As were the two to the side of it.
Naruto still had an enormously bright smile on his face as he walked back towards the Academy. Sure, it sucked that he had to return there in the first place, but training under Guy had been so cool! Even though most of it had been rather boring straight-forwards stuff in trying to strengthening his body, just having a sensei who was trying his best to help him out and make him stronger was the greatest thing in the world to Naruto.
So, it was with lifted spirits that Naruto started his second time in the first year at the Academy. Those spirits became increasingly harder to lift as the months started to drag on though; he was starting to get bored.
In terms of the academic stuff, Naruto still wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed, and he knew that. Despite this, he still gave it his all (he promised, after all, and he never breaks his promises), but to his surprise found out that a lot of the basics he had either picked up in his previous year at the Academy, or under the tutelage of Guys-sensei. As a result, his interest in the theory of being a ninja plummeted quicker than his grades on the exams.
In terms of all the physical stuff though, he was one of the best of his class, a novel sensation to the young Naruto. His year under Guy, while focused more on just increasing his strength and stamina, had inevitably led to Naruto being instructed in taijutsu several levels above the Academy-level curriculum.
In fact, he would've been the very best in terms of taijutsu, if not for the few clan children in his class, who had had lessons from their clan, giving them a leg up on the other civilian children. The most notable of these children however, was one of those Hyuuga guys, the ones with the creepy eyes, the long hair, and the sticks up their butts.
Neji, for some reason, disliked him intensely, and took great pleasure in winning every single one of their spars. This of course, riled Naruto up, who was not only a pretty sore loser (a flaw which he was aware of, but had no idea how to handle), but also incredibly proud of his Hard Work, an attitude already present in the young Uzumaki and which had been polished by the work ethic of Might Guy.
Eventually, this all came to a head during one of their spars, about two months after Naruto had joined the Academy again. All day long, Naruto had been in a foul mood, due to Neji taunting him at every possibility.
Of which there agonisingly were many.
First there were of course their test results, in which the Hyuuga prodigy had surpassed Naruto's grade by a mile. Something the genius took great pleasure in pointing out in great detail.
Naruto, though annoyed, tried not to let to get it to him too much, reasoning that, since he hadn't Worked Hard at the theory, a Natural Genius was bound to do better than him. All he had to do was Work Hard next time on a test, and his Genius of Hard Work would surpass Neji's Natural Genius.
Sadly, this reasoning didn't help him when the class was taken outside, in order to practise the practical parts of the shinobi-trade. First came the accuracy-test, which is where the trouble truly began. Now, Naruto was by no means doing badly; he hit the target more often than he missed, and he even received a sort-of backhanded compliment from his sensei that his throws were very powerful.
Neji, however, managed to hit everything. Without even breaking a sweat. Predictably, another tirade followed, in which Neji dragged up every possible reason as to why he was inherently superior to Naruto, conveniently leaving out the fact that he was a year older than the blonde.
Naruto, of course, started to defend himself in the only way he knew how; by yelling. Loudly. It wasn't helped by the Kyuubi egging him on with its insidious whispers, apparently having a great time while the two children bickered, the harsher the insults the better.
Of course, it was Naruto who ended up with detention for disturbing the lesson, even though Neji had matched his volume insult for insult. This of course, did nothing to take away Naruto's anger, which was left to quietly stew as they were taken to the small arena the Academy used for spars between students.
As luck (or, as Neji would argue, Fate) would have it, eventually Naruto and Neji were paired up together. Naruto was well and truly seeing red now, due to the Kyuubi not relenting in trying to rile the child up.
Standing a few feet apart, not having made the sign of confrontation despite the teacher ordering them to do so, the two boys stared each other in the eye.
And then Neji started talking.
Later, Naruto couldn't be able to tell you just what it was that Neji had said to him, due to not really paying attention and the Kyuubi's unrelenting voice combining with that of Neji's. The end result though, became somewhat of a legend in the Academy.
At some unseen command, Naruto and Neji shot off towards each other, faster than any preteen had any right to move. Naruto of course, started with wild strikes, added with the few kicks, overall showing a bastardized and simplified version of the Goken. Neji however, was like water to Naruto's rock. The pale-eyed child either flowed around the attacks, or guided them away with what almost could be mistaken for gentleness, if not for the hate filled gaze of the Hyuuga.
All the while, Neji didn't stop taunting Naruto.
"So, this is what a year training under the greatest taijutsu master of Konoha does to your skills Uzumaki; they raise them from barely existing to barely recognizable."
A wide swing, followed by a brutal knee-strike, both of which are almost danced around, leaving them to hit nothing but air.
"SHUT UP!"
"Why, Uzumaki? Is the truth of my words that unacceptable to you? Does the fact that you can finally see that Fate will always hold you down finally register with your loser brain?"
Another kick, this time aimed to take his head of his shoulders, but it is caught and pushed away and above, making the attack go wild and miss.
"Face it Uzumaki, you are a loser, and a loser like you will never be able to beat a genius like me."
"SHUT UP!"
To the surprise of all present, not the least of which Neji himself, Naruto nearly exploded with a blue light. Covered in a shroud of blue flames, Naruto attacked once more. The difference was immediately visible though.
Naruto's speed was raised so he appeared little more than a blur to his classmates, shattering the ground every time he pushed off. He appeared to be stronger as well, because when Neji tried to deflect a punch aimed at his chest, he found that Naruto's fist simply ignored his guard, smashing into his solar plexus.
Jumping back, to create a little distance and buy himself some time, though if Naruto's new speed was anything to go by, it really wouldn't help all that much, Neji prepared himself, briefly closing his eyes.
Naruto, who admittedly wasn't really thinking straight at this point, thanks to the Kyuubi manipulating his anger to even greater heights, interpreted this as another insult form the Hyuuga, as if he was claiming that he could beat Naruto, even with his eyes closed.
'I'll show him! I'll show all of them!'
Naruto shot off, once more creating a furrow in the ground, chakra covering his form, and making the wraps around his hands light up in a blue glow. Cocking back his fist, the bandages glowing even brighter, Naruto prepared himself to launch his opponent straight into next week.
And the week after that, if he was lucky.
Just before the hit landed though, Neji opened his eyes, with a whispered command, only audible to the two of them.
"Byakugan!"
Veins stood out prominently on the prodigies face, accentuating the child's dōjutsu. Chakra blazed from his fingertips, as his hands blurred forwards, striking Naruto a few times in the torso, as Neji threw himself to the side.
BOOM!
Where Neji stood mere moments before was now a small crater, with Naruto's fist, wrapped in blue-glowing bandages, in the centre.
Both children straightened themselves, each carefully taking in their opponent.
'I don't know what he's doing, but dammit, my chest hurts. Like, a lot.' Naruto thought to himself, trying to hide a grimace, as he gently rubbed his chest through his shirt.
'That's the Hyuuga's Gentle Fist. Instead of hitting your outside, they use their Byakugan to hit your inside.' The Kyuubi spoke up, sounding uncharacteristically serious.
'Your inside? That's just… weird.' Naruto thought in confusion, keeping his eyes on his opponent.
'Scratch weird, little one, try dangerous.'
'How dangerous can be attacking the inside of you be?'
'You can train your outsides, small one, strengthen your muscles and harden your skin. But, can you train your organs? Can you train your heart, or your lungs, to take a hit and keep going?'
Naruto gulped as his imagination provided some gruesome images. That, or the Kyuubi did, Naruto wouldn't put it past the ancient fox.
'That's uhh, that's pretty scary.'
'I know. Which is why you need to stop dicking around little one. That one doesn't look like he's holding back; if not for your chakra shroud and natural toughness, those last couple of strikes could have done some serious damage.' The Kyuubi said grimly.
Naruto didn't say anything back, but he didn't have to. Setting his mouth in a thin line, Naruto sunk a little lower in his stance, while the chakra surrounding his body started to rapidly grow larger.
Naruto was ready for round two.
Meanwhile, Neji was also contemplating his opponent.
'My strikes were… not stopped per se, but definitely slowed, or muted. It must be that chakra shroud; my Gentle Fist can breach it, but it takes power to do so, leaving my strikes less powerful as a result.' Neji's brilliant mind concluded within seconds.
While no Nara, Neji's label as a genius wasn't banded about without reason; not only powerful, but incredibly smart, Neji lived up to his impressive reputation.
'Still, knowing how his defence works doesn't really help me much in overcoming it. The obvious answer of course is to simply use more power, but I'm not proficient enough to simply dump more chakra in the Gentle Fist without either harming myself, or killing Uzumaki.' Neji thought to himself grimly, though his face betrayed none of his doubts.
'Of course, if I can hit his tenketsu, then I can shut down his shroud, and finally put that loser in the place Fate has ordained for him. But his shroud is so bright, I cannot even make out his pathways!'
It was true; to Neji's Byakugan, Naruto wasn't a dark shape through which ran bright pathways to and from a central chakra core, like everybody else. No, Naruto appeared like a person, completely filled and surrounded by chakra, making it impossible to make out anything else but the silhouette of Naruto's body.
Naruto wasn't the first to achieve such a feat, though he was probably one of the youngest, and his method was certainly… unique. But in the history of the Shinobi world, there have been several ninja who had been both clever enough to find a way around the Byakugan.
Interesting fact about the Byakugan; it can see through almost everything with relative ease. Chakra, however, doesn't fall under ´almost everything'. While a Byakugan can easily see through a Genjutsu, this is only a very thin layer of chakra, which doesn't correspond with the shapes in the rest of the world; hence why a Hyuuga can almost always tell when he's placed under a Genjutsu.
However, a Genjutsu is a very thin film of chakra. Make the chakra film significantly thicker, and suddenly, the Byakugan cannot look through it anymore. Of course, this is also dependant of the skill of the Hyuuga.
For instance, if Naruto had tried to fight Hyuuga Hiashi, current Clan Head of the Hyuuga, then Hiashi would barely hesitate in shutting down every single tenketsu in Naruto's body, the Clan Head's greater experience and more powerful Byakugan winning it from Naruto's shroud.
Neji, however, had only received training in the Gentle Fist, in the sense that he had been taught how to strike at a person's innards and soft tissue. He had yet to be properly instructed in how to strike and close another person's tenketsu.
Neji, being the genius he is, had already managed to make some progress with this, despite not having been taught how to do so, but that wasn't sufficient enough to properly use it against Naruto now.
On top of that, while his Byakugan was hailed as the most powerful seen in generations, he was still a nine-year old kid; it simply wasn't matured enough to pierce Naruto's thick shroud.
'There's nothing to it then. I must use the Gentle Fist and try to strike hard enough to down the loser.' Neji thought coldly to himself.
Unspoken a message passed between the two combatants, unseen by their audience, but clear as day to the other.
'Bring it!'
And they obliged.
Both shot forward at the same time, Naruto covered in blue flaming chakra, Neji with chakra blazing from his fingertips. Naruto was still faster, his training under Might Guy and his shroud making him the swiftest eight-year old in Konoha.
As he reached Neji, his fist shot out, his bandages glowing dangerously. Neji ducked under it, however, striking at the arm and Naruto's unprotected side several times in the span of mere seconds. Naruto, however, gave nothing more than a grunt, and brought up a knee, in order to strike Neji in the chest.
Recognising the danger, and realising that Naruto was too strong to properly block, Neji jumped back a few feet. His opponent didn't let up though, closely following Neji's footsteps, letting out lightning fast jabs with his left arm, occasionally throwing in a kick or two.
Neji was forced back several steps, furiously dodging whenever he could, and gritting his teeth whenever he couldn't. Every strike of Naruto rattled his bones, despite only clipping him slightly.
Frowning, Neji thought to himself, 'I need to change my tactics. He's forcing me on the defensive and turning it in a war of attrition, which we both know he will win.'
It was the single thing that Neji would concede to his opponent; he had stamina. All of their fights ended in his favour because he shut the Uzumaki down quickly and harshly, as fast as he could. But he had seen the loser fight others in the ring before.
While the rest of the class were losers as well, it was still telling in the way his opponent would be forced to fight in three back to back matches and still have the most energy left out of all of them at the end of the day.
Having reached his decision, Neji intentionally lagged in bringing up his guard after having deflected one of Naruto's kicks. Predictably, Naruto saw the opening and without hesitation tried to go for another punch to the chest.
However, at the very last moment, Neji twisted around the strike and stepped forwards, inside Naruto's guard. Seeing his opponent's eyes widen in fear and understanding, Neji let out a cruel sneer and shoved both hands, still glowing with the effects of the Gentle Fist, into Naruto's chest.
Hard.
With a strangled yell, Naruto was flung back through the air several feet, before crashing into the ground and sliding a few feet further.
Neji barely managed to keep a sigh of relief from escaping him; everything was sore, both form pushing his own body to match Naruto's speed, as well as from the few glancing hits he had taken from Naruto's technique.
Fixing a sneer on his face, prepared to give another speech as to why his opponent was and always would be a loser, thanks to Fate, Neji opened his mouth. Before he could speak, however, he was cut off by coughing from Naruto's prone form.
'No, not coughing. Laughing?!´
Somehow, this enraged Neji to levels he didn't think he was capable of.
"WHAT'S SO FUNNY, LOSER?! HUH?!" he roared, shocking not only his classmates, but himself as well.
More laughter was his answer. Before he could shout again, Naruto cut him off, finally speaking up.
"I… win…" the blonde chocked out, before succumbing to another coughing/laughing fit.
"What-?" Neji started, but before he could finish his question, he had already found his answer.
He was outside of the white ring. Naruto had attacked so ferociously that he had lost sight of his surroundings. Naruto had forced him outside of the ring, engaging him with such tenacity that he hadn't even noticed.
'He tricked me?'
Looking from his feet, which were most definitely outside of the white ring of the arena, to the still laughing Naruto, who was now working himself to his feet, despite having been Jyūkend twice in the chest at full power, it finally sank into Neji's mind.
'He tricked me. I lost.'
In a flat voice, that somehow still managed to convey an immense fury, Neji answered his opponent, who was now standing on shaky feet, wiping away some blood from his mouth.
"So it would seem. Well done, Loser. Next time, however, Fate itself will show you the consequences of trying to defy it. Prepare yourself."
With that, he turned on his heel, hair swaying dramatically behind him, and stormed off into the Academy, not sparing a glance backwards at his grinning opponent.
'I didn't know I could even feel that much pain in so many places at once.' Naruto thought to himself with a groan, as he gently poked one of his ribs with a careful touch.
A dark chuckling, from the back of his mind was his only answer.
'You think this is pain little one? This is only a prelude to what is yet to await you.'
'Whatever. I don't care, I'm not letting that stop me, dattebayo!'
There was a brief pause, before the demonic fox finally answered.
'No, I rather thought that it wouldn't.' the Kyuubi said thoughtfully.
'What the hell do you mean with that, Fox?' Naruto yelled, but he received no answer.
Sighing, Naruto dusted himself of and straightened himself. Already, his wounds were healing, and not bothering him so much. Opening his eyes, Naruto fell back with an ´eep!'. Right in front of him, the two roundest eyes he had ever seen were staring at him unblinkingly.
Overcoming his shock, Naruto looked the child that was attached to the strange eyes up and down. He vaguely recognized him, but he had only been with his new classmates for a few months, and he didn't really interact with any of them, either training or getting in fights with Neji.
"Yes, can I help you?" he asked hesitantly, though he was a little distracted by the boy's face.
'It looked like the caterpillars on Bushy-Brow Sensei's face finally decided to have babies and those babies travelled to this guy's face!' Naruto thought to himself in equal parts horrified fascination and disgust.
The disgust part came from the fact that Naruto, being a young orphan in a tough neighborhood in a Village filled with psychopaths, knew in great detail just what process was involved in the creation of babies.
He'd rather not envision Bushy-Brow Sensei's eyebrows in that process, thank you very much.
He was shaken from his morbid thoughts by the boy in front of him, who looked at him admiringly.
"That was incredible, Uzumaki-san! You actually managed to defeat Neji, despite him being a Genius!"
Naruto swelled with pride. Having such few people in his life who genuinely cared about him, compliments were a rare and treasured thing to the young child.
"Heh, that's because I'm Naruto Uzumaki, dattebayo! I'm a Genius of Hard Work, and a Genius of Hard Work will always overcome a Natural Genius!" Naruto yelled proudly, thumping himself on the chest.
Somehow, the child's gargantuan round eyes managed to grow even larger.
"A Genius of Hard Work?"
Naruto nodded with enthusiasm.
"Yeah, my sensei always said that if you put everything you have in Working Hard, than you become an even greater ninja than any Natural Genius!"
A hopeful look overcame the other boy's face, his massive eyebrows scrunched up in thought.
"You can become a powerful ninja through Hard Work?" the child thought out loud, a desperate hope coloring his voice.
Naruto, picking up his companions voice, nodded wildly.
"Yep! I trained a year under him, and I'm gonna keep working as hard as I can to become the strongest ninja Konoha has ever seen, dattebayo!"
Naruto eyed the other boy, scratching his chin in thought. There was something about the kid with the weird eyebrows, something in his impossibly round eyes, that Naruto recognized in himself, back when he thought he was all alone.
A look of despair.
He hated that look.
Having made his decision right there, Naruto clapped the other boy on the shoulder.
"Hey, if you'd like, we can go visit Sensei and see if he wants to train us some more?"
The kid's face lit up like the brightest Christmas tree in the history of Christmas. This analogy would have been far more impressive of course, if people in the Elemental even knew what Christmas was, but that's neither here nor there.
Nodding so enthusiastically that it made his braid flap around wildly, the other child answered immediately.
"Yes! Yes, of course I'd like that! Thank you, Uzumaki-san, you shall not regret this, I swear!"
Naruto simply waved him off, making his way into the Academy as well.
"No problem. Just call me Naruto, dattebayo! By the way, what's your name?"
Hurrying a little in order to keep up with Naruto, the kid answered excitedly.
"My name's Rock Lee!"
About a mile away, lying on his futon, the newest Icha Icha in his hand, Hatake Kakashi felt a chill travel down his spine, despite the pleasantly warm weather. Grabbing a kunai from beneath his pillow in a white-knuckled grip, the Jounin lifted his headband, exposing a blood-red eye with three spinning tomoe in it to the world.
"Why do I feel like something terrible has happened?" he asked himself in a tense whisper, both mis-matched eyes flitting across his room.
"And, more importantly, why does it feel like it's somehow Guy related?"
Fun Fact: Shikamaru's IQ is over 200. To put that in perspective, Bill Gates is roumoured to have an IQ of about a 170. My own is somehwhat above 130.