Naruto - Life of a Dragoon Ninja

by MercenaryGrax

After one particularly harsh beating at the age of 10, Naruto awakens to find himself lost in a cave. Unknown to Naruto and the villagers that trapped him there, this was the resting place of one Rose, Dragoon of Darkness. What will happen once these two meet? One thing's for sure: the ninja world will never be the same again. Challenge presented by Dragon and Sword Master.

10. Chapter 9

A/N - Okay, the first thing you'll notice about this chapter is that it is long as hell! It took FOREVER to write! lol.

The second thing I want to mention is that this chapter has a LOOOT going on in it. It is an important chapter and a lot of big things happen in it. Some important information is revealed and some pretty interesting things happen in this chapter.

Anyways, please enjoy the chapter. I put a hell of a lot of work into it and I rather like how it turned out.

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Chapter 9 - A Talk with the Tsuchikage & the Chunin Exam Finals Begin!

As soon as Kurotsuchi spotted her grandfather, she rushed over and scooped him up in a great big hug. When he chuckled and hugged her back, she was more than happy that he would show her this kind of affection. After a brief moment, she set him back down and stepped back to join Naruto and Rose, immediately becoming professional as she bowed to him. "Hello Grandpa. I know we have a lot to talk about, and I'm sorry for my strange and sudden request, but I assure you that I wouldn't have asked if it wasn't of the utmost importance." she explained.

Onoki smiled softly at his granddaughter and shook his head. "You foolish girl. I've always encouraged you to follow your own path in life. I just want you to be happy granddaughter." he said sincerely. "But before I agree to your request, I want to know everything. So, if your friends will sit with me and fill me in on all the details…?"

Naruto smiled and took a seat on the couch with Rose sitting beside him, taking his hand in her own. Kurotsuchi went and sat in the chair beside her grandfather, a smile on her face. After a few, brief moments, Rose began to speak. "The first thing you should know is that I'm one of the original Dragoons from over 100,000 years ago…"

An hour later

The Sandaime Tsuchikage nodded in understanding and closed his eyes as he thought over everything he had heard. "Hmm, so you're searching for this Moon Child, as well as what your purpose is this time around, eh? Well I might be able to help shed some light on one mystery." he said, smirking at the trio of Dragoons.

Blinking in shock at this, the three Dragoons couldn't help but stare wide-eyed at Onoki. Unable to wait for the revelation, Naruto blurted out, "Please Onoki-dono, tell us!"

Chuckling, the old man nodded his head and closed his eyes as he thought over how best to explain it. "Have you heard the legend of the Sage of Six Paths?" he questioned.

Naruto nodded in confirmation while Rose looked on curiously, not having heard this tale before. Kurotsuchi on the other hand, seeing Rose's confusion, decided to speak up in explanation. "The legend is that the Sage of Six Paths is the founder of ninjutsu. He gave to the people the gift of chakra and taught us how to use it. However, rather than use this gift for peaceful means, the people abused his gift and began to use it as a means for war." she explained, a deep frown on her face. "It's horrible to think about."

Onoki nodded in affirmation, but frowned shortly afterwards. "That's not all to the legend though. There's more to it." he said. "You may not know this, but before he gave the gift of chakra to the people, he fought a great beast known as the Juubi and sealed it within himself, thus becoming the first jinchuriki. Later, when he realized that he was dying, he split the Juubi into nine parts: the nine bijuu that we know of today. The Ichibi, Nibi, Sanbi, Yonbi, Gobi, Rokubi, Nanabi, Hachibi, and Kyuubi. They were the 'soul' of the Juubi while the body became what we know today as the Moon." he explained.

Eyes widening in realization at what Onoki was getting at, the old man nodded. "That's right. I believe that the Moon Child of today is the "key", so to speak, to restoring the Juubi to life. If you bring its soul back together and use the Moon Child's power to connect the soul with the Moon, the Juubi would be restored. However, don't take my word for it. This is all just speculation. There's no way to know if this is correct or not." he said with a shrug.

Rose smiled at the Tsuchikage and walked over to shake his hand. "No, thank you very much Tsuchikage. This is the best lead we've gotten so far. It's far more to go on than we've had in the four years since I've been restored to life. So thank you for giving us some hope."

Smiling kindly at the woman, Onoki shook her hand once and turned to look at his granddaughter. "Kurotsuchi-chan? If this is what you truly want, then you have my blessing. I've already talked with the Hokage about transferring you to Konohagakure as a ninja in his service if that is what you desire. The choice is yours."

Looking down, the Golden Dragoon took a moment to seriously think it over before she let out a deep sigh and nodding her head once decisively. "I know I'm destined for great things Grandpa. One day I do plan to take that hat from you, but right now...I truly believe that being here with my fellow Dragoons is where I'm meant to be. So yes, I would like to transfer to Konoha. I'm really sorry Grandpa." she said sadly.

Chuckling softly, Onoki walked over and hugged his granddaughter close. "You have nothing to apologize for. Be proud of yourself granddaughter. I know I'm proud of you. I couldn't have asked for a better granddaughter."

As he said this, the pink-eyed teenager began to cry and clung tightly to her grandfather, unable to help herself. "I'm really going to miss you Grandpa. I love you so much." she choked out through her sobs.

Patting her back gently, the elderly gentleman just held her close and hummed to her as he let her cry it all out. "I love you too granddaughter. I'll miss you as well." he said sincerely. "Just promise me you'll take good care of yourself and that you won't take any unnecessary risks?" he cautioned.

Chuckling softly, Kurotsuchi hiccuped a couple of times before nodding slowly. "I promise Gramps. I'll be extra careful. And if it helps any, I have Naruto-kun, Rose-sama, and the others with me to watch my back. We're a team now and nothing will stop us. I guarantee it." she said enthusiastically.

Laughing, Onoki nodded his head and hugged his granddaughter just a bit tighter. "I'm glad to hear it. Now, I'm going to head to my hotel room and get settled in. I'll be here to cheer you on in the finals, but after that I'm afraid I'll have to head on home. Perhaps in the meantime I can help you with your training, hm?" he suggested.

Kurotsuchi smiled and nodded her head. "I would love that! Umm, if that's okay with you Rose-sama?" she questioned, looking towards the Darkness Dragoon.

Rose smiled at Kurotsuchi and nodded her head. "Kurotsuchi, he is family. I would never forbid you from spending time with your family. If you want to train with him, then by all means, you are most welcome to train under him. Just don't forget our lessons as well." she advised.

The Earth Dragoon rushed over and hugged Rose tight before blushing a bit and stepping back. "S-Sorry. And thank you Rose-sama. I really appreciate it."

The Dark Dragoon smiled and nodded her head once. "Now, if that is all, Naruto and I will be going. We, erm...we…"

Naruto smirked at his girlfriend and poked her in the side. "We have a date planned for today. She's just being shy." he teased.

Rose, not willing to take that lying down, bonked Naruto atop his head and closed her eyes, a scowl on her face. "You deserved that Naruto. Don't tease me like that."

Wincing in pain, Naruto nodded slowly. "Roger that. No more teasing my beautiful girlfriend in front of other people." he said.

Blushing at his words, Rose didn't quite catch his phrasing and simply smiled in acceptance of his promise. "Good. Now, let's get going. I want to go see that movie you promised me. It's supposed to be a good one." she said.

Chuckling a bit, Naruto nodded and waved goodbye to everyone in the office. "See you later everyone! Have a good day!" And with that, Naruto and Rose vacated the office and left to go and enjoy their date together.

After they had left, Hiruzen smiled at Onoki and decided to offer a few words. "Thank you Onoki. Truly. Though I must ask, do you have any idea who the Moon Child might be? Or maybe you might know about anyone that might be planning to revive the Juubi?"

Sighing, Onoki shook his head and frowned at his old rival. "I'm afraid I know nothing more than what I've already shared Hiruzen. But I do know this: if Rose has been revived and new Dragoons are being 'born', so to speak, then someone out there is plotting to revive the Juubi, of that I am sure."

Steepling his hands together, the elderly Hokage rested his chin atop them and closed his eyes as he thought over what he had heard. "Hmm…" he hummed as he thought about any possible threats that might be plotting against them. After a moment, his eyes opened wide and he looked Onoki in the eyes as he realized who their enemy might be. "The Akatsuki! Their goal is unknown, but what I do know is that they're a group of S-rank missing nin that have gathered together. I've had Jiraiya-kun working to gather information on the group, but so far he doesn't have any idea what their true purpose is. But…"

Onoki flinched at this and avoided the Hokage's gaze as he began to sweat nervously. "Heh...is this a bad time to mention that I've made use of the Akatsuki's services?" he admitted with a shaky voice.

The Sandaime Hokage sighed and facepalmed. "I'm not even going to ask why. But I'd recommend distancing yourself from them and keeping a closer eye on your jinchuriki. Keep them safe Onoki." he said sternly.

Nodding in agreement, the Sandaime Tsuchikage furrowed his brow and clenched his fists tight. "It will be done Hiruzen. If the Akatsuki come for Roshi and Han, they'll regret it. I swear to you that those two will be treated better if I have anything to say about it." he promised.

Smiling at Onoki, Hiruzen reached across his desk to shake his hand. "I'm glad to hear it...friend. If you ever need our help, you can call on us at any time. And, if you are willing, perhaps you would like to work out an alliance between our villages while you are here? I would very much like to put our differences aside and be friends from now on."

Onoki chuckled at this and looked up at his granddaughter to gauge her reaction. Seeing a bright smile on her face at this proposition, the short, elderly man smiled brightly and turned to his rival before nodding his head emphatically. "I would like that very much my friend. Perhaps we can begin our peace talks tomorrow? I would very much like to spend some time today with my granddaughter and see the sights if that's okay with you?"

Nodding in acceptance of this, Hiruzen said, "By all means my friend, feel free to do so. You are more than welcome here. Please enjoy your stay."

Kurotsuchi, excited about the good news, quickly grabbed her grandpa by the hand and, after bowing to the good-natured Hokage, rushed out of the office with him. She was more than eager to show him around and spend some time with him after not having seen him for nearly a month now.

After they left his office, the aged Hokage closed his eyes and shook his head. "You can come out now."

Chuckling could be heard as a rather tall man with a long white mane of hair dropped an invisibility technique and stepped out into the light of the office. After taking a seat in one of the chairs across from Hiruzen, he looked into his sensei's eyes and smiled at him. "I can never hide from you, can I sensei?"

Sighing, the Sandaime Hokage opened one of his eyes and looked at his student. "I would rather you not spy on my meetings with Rose and Naruto, Jiraiya-kun. I'm disappointed in you. There is very sensitive information that you are not meant to know. But now that you've heard it, you are not to repeat it to ANYONE. Do you understand me?" he questioned angrily.

Jiraiya flinched and nodded his head slowly. "Y-yes sensei. I'm s-s-sorry." he apologized. "I just…"

"There is a reason I kept you in the dark Jiraiya-kun. If you dare to go near Naruto-kun and Rose to hassle them with your ridiculous prophecy mumbo jumbo or you try to take Naruto-kun away from Rose for any reason, I will give her permission to maim you. Ever since you were told of that prophecy, you've become obsessed with it and I will not let you near Naruto-kun with that bullshit if that's the only reason you want to affiliate yourself with him." Hiruzen said furiously.

When Jiraiya opened his mouth to protest what his sensei said, the older gentleman held up his hand to silence his student. "I don't want to hear it Jiraiya-kun. You were named his godfather and you were trusted to take care of him. You neglected your duty and abandoned him. Instead, Naruto-kun had to suffer alone until the age of ten. I did what I could for him, but I couldn't always be there for him. I'm glad Rose came into his life when she did, or else I'm afraid he would have killed himself. But you wouldn't have cared about that, would you?" Hiruzen questioned angrily.

"That's not true! He's my-" Jiraiya began in protest, but he felt an immense amount of killing intent press down on him and he began to struggle just to stay upright. It became hard to breathe, even for him.

"He's your godson? No Jiraiya, I don't want to hear that from you. You've lost the right to say such a thing. I swear to Kami that if you go anywhere near him, you will regret it. From this point forward, I'm giving Rose permission to neuter you if you go anywhere near him. Is this understood Jiraiya-kun?" the Sandaime Hokage replied.

Nodding slowly, Jiraiya scowled at his sensei as the KI let up. Afterwards, he rose from the chair and left the office without another word. As soon as he was gone, Hiruzen let out a deep sigh and shook his head. He's not going to listen to me. Damn that foolish boy.

Naruto & Rose

Rose couldn't help but smile as she leaned her head on her love's shoulder, occasionally popping some popcorn into her mouth as they watched the movie together. They had chosen to watch an action movie that had been in theaters for a while now and wouldn't be in them for much longer, and they were really enjoying it thus far.

Ever since being revived, this had become something of a guilty pleasure of hers. Back in her day, there was no such thing as movies, so she had never experienced something like this before. So when Naruto first dragged her along to the movies and allowed her to experience a movie for herself for the first time in her life, she instantly fell in love with them. Romance movies, action movies, sci-fi movies, it didn't matter. Rose loved them all and wanted to experience them all.

Sure, some movies weren't all that great, but the experience was still an enjoyable one, and what made it all so much better was the fact that she got to spend that time with her beloved Naruto.

Naruto smiled as he wrapped his arm around his girlfriend and rested his head against hers. Rose was right about the movie: it was good. When it finally ended, he and Rose stood up and made their way out of the movie theater after throwing away their trash and washing up in the bathrooms. Holding each other's hands, they looked into each other's eyes and smiled happily before they began to walk towards a nearby park to enjoy a simple walk through the park and enjoy the fresh air and to bask in the warm sunlight.

As they entered the park, however, they couldn't help but feel as if they were being watched. Sighing at this, they looked one another in the eyes and nodded slowly. "If they bother us, we'll act then. Let's just try to enjoy our date Rose-chan." Naruto said.

"Whoever it is better not bother us or they're going to pay." Rose said grumpily before the couple began to enjoy a walk through the park together.

When they reached a bench near the center of the park, they sat down and just watched the animals play with each other around them. They watched as a couple of squirrels ran around, going up and down trees and chasing one another all over the place. They watched as a flock of birds flew around, occasionally landing on the ground to eat bread crumbs left by other people that had obviously been in the park before them. All-in-all, they just enjoyed basking in nature and, after a short amount of time had passed, closed their eyes as they rested their heads against one another.

Slowly, as they started to doze off thanks to the peaceful atmosphere around them, a certain someone began to sneak up on them from behind. When this person reached them, he reached out to grab Naruto's shoulder, but was suddenly stopped by a rock hard grip on his wrist. Wincing in pain, the man looked to see that Rose was glaring at him fiercely and that she was the one that currently had a vice grip on his wrist.

"You are Jiraiya, are you not?" she asked calmly. "Why are you here? What were you just trying to do with my Naruto?"

Jiraiya continued to wince in pain, but figured that he could smooth talk his way out of this. So, smiling at Rose, he began to speak. "Oh, nothing Rose-san. I just wanted to introduce myself to the both of you. After all, a beautiful woman like you? Who wouldn't want to meet you?" he questioned with a grin.

Before Rose could respond, Naruto opened his eyes and spoke without turning around to face him. "Bullshit. If that's all you wanted, you wouldn't have been sneaking around and you wouldn't have been spying on us back in Gramps' office either. No, you're after something else. You were practically radiating ill intent just now. So what do you really want Jiraiya?" he questioned angrily.

The Toad Sage frowned and yanked his wrist free from Rose's grip before stepping around in front of the two of them. "I'm here for my godson." he said. "He needs training so he can fulfill the prophecy and if he stays with you, he'll never reach his full potential. Thanks to you, he's been turned into something that he was never supposed to be. What if the prophecy's been screwed up because of what you've done?! I need to take him with me and fix what you've screwed up. So if I was you, I'd get out of Naruto's life and leave him alone from now on. Do you understand me Rose?"

Before Rose could say or do anything in response, Naruto snarled in anger and headbutted Jiraiya in the face. A loud crunching noise could be heard and the older man stumbled back clutching at his nose in pain as blood leaked from his broken nose. Before the sage could do anything in response to Naruto's attack, Naruto punched him in the crotch as hard as he could, causing Jiraiya to let out a loud shriek that echoed throughout the park, causing the animals to panic and run or fly off in fear.

"Shut the hell up Jiraiya! Never talk to Rose that way again! Becoming a Dragoon and meeting Rose is the best thing to happen to me!" he exclaimed furiously. Then something Jiraiya said registered in his brain and he became even angrier. "And you're my godfather?! What the fuck?! You rotten BASTARD! I should kill you!"

Jiraiya, who had collapsed to his knees clutching his crotch in agony, slowly got to his feet and stared down at his godson. "Just listen to yourself Naruto! You're not in your right mind! You were never meant to become one of these 'Dragoons'. You were meant for something far greater. Now give up your Dragoon Spirit and come with me. Leave Rose behind and I can take you in. I can train you to become the best ninja you could ever hope to be."

Rose, having enough of this bastard, drew her rapier and quickly thrust it forward, aiming for Jiraiya's privates. When he used his Needle Jizo technique to encase himself in his hair, protecting himself from her attack, Rose scoffed. "You're going to pay for ruining our date Jiraiya. I'm going to make you regret your words and for daring to ruin our moment together."

Jiraiya dropped his technique and glared at the Darkness Dragoon angrily. "You dare to attack me? I don't care if you are a woman, I'm still going to make you regret picking a fight with me." he said as he created a Rasengan and thrusted it forward towards her midsection.

Naruto, taking advantage of Jiraiya's distracted state, slammed his fist into his godfather's stomach as hard as he could, knocking the air out of him and forcing him to double over, bent over his fist. Once the older man's Rasengan had dissipated, Naruto performed a spin kick, hitting Jiraiya in the side and knocking him to the ground.

Unwilling to allow Jiraiya to resume his attack or even escape them, Naruto leapt upon him and did his best to restrain him before shouting to Rose, "Castrate this son-of-a-bitch Rose!"

Jiraiya's eyes widened and he began to struggle harder against his godson as Rose approached him. When Naruto wrapped his legs around Jiraiya's arms to keep them still and wrapped his arm around Jiraiya's neck in a chokehold, squeezing tight to cut off his air supply. The longer he did this, the more stars appeared in the Sage's vision and the quicker he began to lose consciousness.

Once Rose reached the Sage, she removed his pants and pressed her rapier against his manhood. Looking up into his eyes, she could see the fear present there as he stared at her. Ever so slowly, just to torture him that much more, she began to cut through his penis, slowly severing it from his body.

About halfway through, Jiraiya finally managed to throw Naruto off and screamed to the high heavens before he thrust his fist at Rose's face, catching her by surprise and nailing her in the face, sending her reeling backwards from the force of the blow. Looking down at his manhood, the old man began to sob in pain as he cradled it.

Naruto groaned as he pushed himself to his feet and shook the cobwebs from his head. "That's it. One way or another, we're removing what makes you a man. Then...and only then, we're going to kill you." he said, a furious look in his eyes.

Rose nodded her agreement to that plan and flicked the blood off of her weapon before touching her face where she had been punched. She hadn't been hit like that in a long time, and she really didn't like it. So, before anyone could react, she dashed forward in a blur and slipped past Jiraiya before turning around to face his back.

When Jiraiya went to turn around and face her, a deep gash opened up on his chest and he screamed out in pain once again as blood sprayed out into the air. Clutching at his new wound, he completely forgot that his privates were still out in the open for all to see.

Taking advantage of this, Naruto zipped forward and, with one quick swing of a kunai, severed Jiraiya's dick and ball sack, allowing them to fall to the ground at their feet. Quickly leaping away just in case Jiraiya somehow still had the presence of mind to retaliate, Naruto prepared to continue the assault if need be.

At first Jiraiya felt nothing but the sheer shock at losing his manhood, especially at the hands of his own godson. He was numb to the feeling and it didn't quite register in his mind. But then, as the shock started to wear off, that is when the pain kicked in and he began to scream out in mind numbing pain. Collapsing to his knees, he clutched at his hair, tugging on it and just continued to scream in sheer agony as he didn't know what else to do. The pain was just too damn much to bear!

Rose took advantage of this moment to dash forward with her Dragon Buster, ready to finish Jiraiya off so he could never bother them again. However, a group of ANBU soon surrounded Jiraiya and barred her path. Glaring at them, she pointed her sword at them and gave them a single order. "Move."

When they didn't budge, Rose was about to speak up again, but an easily recognizable voice spoke up and cut her off. "I'm afraid they can't do that Rose-dono. You see, I gave them the order to stop you and Naruto from killing Jiraiya-kun."

At hearing the voice, both Naruto and Rose turned to see the Sandaime Hokage step into the clearing from behind a nearby tree with his arms folded behind his back. Before either of them could say anything, the Hokage continued to speak. "As much as he might deserve it, the village still has need of him. His spy network is invaluable and he is one of our most powerful ninja. If he were to be killed…"

Rose growled and shook her head as the pointed towards the scumbag Jiraiya. "Do you think I give a shit about any of that?! If his spy network is so invaluable, have him train somebody else in how to run it in his stead. Do ANYTHING besides rely on this piece of human filth! And as for the firepower he might bring to the table? You've got plenty of other ninja that can work together to make up for the skills you'd be losing if you were to let this ONE ninja die. Teamwork is, after all, the foundation of this village, is it not? Besides, did you hear all the shit he's been spouting?! I won't stand for it!"

Hiruzen sighed and nodded his head slowly. "Jiraiya was spying on us during our meeting with the Tsuchikage. He heard everything. I knew he'd seek you out, but I didn't know how far he'd take things. I am truly sorry Rose-dono. But again, I do ask that you put aside your feelings of animosity towards my student and leave him be. At least for now, anyways."

Rose looked absolutely affronted and looked towards Jiraiya with an open mouth for a moment before closing it and gritting her teeth in anger. She wanted to start stomping towards him, but the blasted ANBU were still in her way. "No wonder this asshole was acting like that. He had no right! Just how often do you allow him to get away with things like this Hokage?! Why are you allowing him to get away with this?! I trusted you! And you let me down. You should have punished him immediately, but you allowed him to interrupt our date and pull this shit?! Never again Hokage. Come Naruto, we're leaving. It seems we can't even trust your Gramps anymore." she said, shooting a nasty glare at Hiruzen. Taking her boyfriend's hand in hers, she stormed off with him, the two of them never looking back at the aged Hokage.

Naruto couldn't believe it. His Gramps, the old Hokage that he believed in, had betrayed his trust for the second damn time. First he had lied to him up until his tenth birthday about not knowing his parents and not knowing why the villagers hated him so much. Now this bullshit?! "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice...shame on me." he said sadly under his breath.

Rose frowned and looked at her love sadly. "What was that Naruto?" she asked in genuine curiosity.

Shaking his head, Naruto wrapped an arm around her and just held her close for a while as they walked towards home. After a moment, he leaned in and kissed her cheek. "I just...I can't believe I trusted him to do right by me. I should have known better than to trust in him."

Hugging her boyfriend close as they neared home, Rose kissed Naruto's cheek and shook her head. "You couldn't have known Naruto. Nobody could have seen this coming. Besides, I don't ever want you to lose your trusting nature. It's part of who you are. And believe it or not, I love everything about you. So please, don't ever change Naruto. Okay?" she said before turning to him and leaning in close to kiss him passionately on the lips.

Blushing badly, Naruto returned Rose's kiss as he slowly wrapped his arms around her back, holding her closer until their bodies were pressed against each other as close as they could get. As they kissed, the young blonde slowly slid one of his hands down and began to caress her butt just to test the waters a bit and see how comfortable she was with the idea. When Rose moaned into the kiss and began to kiss him just a bit more heatedly, he knew she was perfectly fine with the idea and couldn't help but grin as he kissed her back.

After a few brief moments, they broke apart and began to giggle happily, their troubles forgotten as they rested their foreheads against one another. Turning towards home, they held each other close and continued walking on the path home.

A short time later, when they reached the front gate that led into their estate, they were surprised to see a rather familiar face there waiting for them. Walking up to her, Naruto offered her a wave and a smile. "Hello Tenten! What brings you here?"

Upon hearing Naruto's voice, Tenten turned to look at him with a smile on her face. "Hi Naruto! I'm here to deliver that spear you asked my dad to make. My dad was going to deliver it, but I volunteered to do it instead. So, here I am!" she exclaimed happily.

Blinking at this, Naruto tilted his head slightly, causing both women to think: Cute! "Don't get me wrong Tenten, as I mean no insult to you, but why'd you volunteer to deliver it? I thought you usually manned the store during your days off?"

Blushing ever so slightly, the fifteen year-old weapons mistress shuffled her feet a bit and bowed at the waist to Naruto. "I wanted to thank you for what you did during the preliminaries. You were very sweet."

Rubbing the back of his head with his free hand, Naruto smiled somewhat bashfully. "It was no problem at all. I'm just glad I could help. Plus, I'm kinda hoping we can be friends. If that's okay with you of course? I'm always happy to make new friends y'know?"

Tenten had mixed emotions about this particular response. On the one hand, she was happy that he wanted to be friends with her. On the other hand… Friends? He just wants to be friends?! Damnit! I was hoping he'd ask me out!

Rose narrowed her eyes at Tenten as she figured out what was going on. Great. Yet another girl with a crush on my Naruto. Why does he have to be so popular? She thought to herself exasperatedly.

Naruto motioned towards the wrapped package that Tenten was holding. "So, is that the spear? Can I see it please?"

Tenten nodded and walked over to him, placing the package in his hands. "Here you go Naruto. Hope it's to your liking."

Unwrapping it, Naruto took the weapon in hand and looked it over carefully before handing the cloth wrapping to Tenten. Stepping away from the two of them, he began going through the basic katas to test it out. Once he was finished, he returned to his companions' sides and smiled at them. "Your father does excellent work Tenten. I really appreciate this." he said.

Tenten blushed and looked at her feet before shuffling them a bit. "A-actually...I made that." she admitted. "I'm glad you like it Naruto."

Blinking in shock at this, Naruto soon broke out into a wide grin and hugged Tenten tight before stepping back and looking her in the eyes. "Wow Tenten! That's incredible! You're very skilled! Thank you so much!" he exclaimed excitedly.

Blushing more, Tenten smiled happily at the praise and hugged Naruto tight. "You're very sweet. Thanks a lot Naruto." she said before releasing him. "But I've seen your lance before and it's far better than this one. May I ask what you plan to use this one for?"

Blushing a bit, Naruto rubbed the back of his head and glanced away. "Well, it's for Ino-chan. She really wants to learn how to wield a lance like me for some reason. So I'm going to teach her how."

Hearing this caused Tenten's expression to deaden and she released a heavy sigh before turning away. "I see. Well then, I guess I'll just be off. Have a good day Naruto." and with that being said, off Tenten went.

Naruto blinked a couple of times, completely bewildered by her sudden change in demeanor. Turning to Rose, he just had to voice a question. "What did I do?"

The Dark Dragoon sighed and shook her head. "You can be so dense sometimes Naruto. She likes you. And yes, I mean in that way. Now let's go inside. We've got some training to do." she said.

Eyes going wide, Naruto froze for a moment as he watched Rose start walking inside. Quickly catching up to her, he asked, "But...but...we barely even know each other! Why the heck does she like me?!"

Sighing again, Rose looked into her boyfriend's eyes and shook her head. "Probably because you're too damn nice sometimes. I don't know. Now shut up and let's get to training." she commanded, feeling awfully frustrated at the moment after everything they'd had to deal with today so far.

Great. Juuust great. Rose is pissed. This training session is going to suck. Naruto thought as he went to prepare himself for training.

Three Days before Chunin Exam Finals begin

Naruto groaned as he thought about all the training he had undergone throughout the month thus far. It had been absolute hell. Between Rose and Kakashi's training sessions, he wasn't sure if he was getting any stronger or if they just enjoyed beating the ever loving shit out of him. Now that he was thinking about it, he wondered if maybe, just maybe, it was a strange mixture of both.

He had also gone on more dates with Rose, Haku, and Ino throughout the month, as well as a single date with Hinata to try and test the waters a bit. They didn't share a kiss, but they did hold hands and even spent the night cuddling together in the same bed, which they both enjoyed.

Right now he was getting dressed up for another date with Ino Yamanaka, as she had asked him out again a couple of days earlier after their training session together. However, she had been acting a little strange, so he wondered if everything was okay. Shrugging it off, he decided that he'd ask her about it when he saw her tonight.

As he proceeded out of the estate and through the village to the restaurant Ino had told him to meet her at, he couldn't help but think about his upcoming fight in three days. Neji...you're going to pay for what you did to Hina-chan. I'm far stronger now than I was before. There's no way you're going to beat me. And after I've beaten you, I'm going to move on and prove to everyone that I've got what it takes to become a Chunin. I guarantee it!

Rounding a corner, he saw the restaurant where Ino was no doubt already waiting for him inside and continued towards it. After I beat Neji, I'll either be fighting Kuro-chan or Gaara. According to Kiyoko, Gaara's the jinchuriki of the Ichibi. So I'm really not sure who will win that fight. After I beat the victor of that fight, I'll probably be up against Haku-chan in the final match. That will be a fun fight, but I aim to win. It'll suck fighting my girlfriend, but I hope she'll understand. Naruto continued thinking to himself as he walked into the restaurant and declared to the waitress at the front that there was a reservation for Naruto Uzumaki.

Being guided to his private booth, he was surprised to see Sakura sitting there instead of Ino. She was dressed in an exceptionally beautiful red dress and was all prettied up with some light makeup as well. If he had to admit it to himself, he would say that she was one of the most beautiful women he had ever seen right now.

When the waitress guided him to that exact booth, Naruto was a little suspicious, but sat down across from Sakura anyways and stared at her with a quirked brow after ordering a lemon-lime flavored soda. "So...did Ino set this up?" he asked with a smirk.

Blushing badly, the pinkette nodded slowly as she looked Naruto up and down, drinking in how he looked and storing his appearance to memory. All-in-all, he looked incredibly handsome to her and she couldn't help but want to leap across the table between the two of them and kiss him senseless. "Y-yes Naruto-kun. Ino-chan tricked you. I'm sorry. She knows how much I love you and...well...she felt it was high time you and I went on a date together. Ino-chan wants to share you with me. If...if you don't like it, we don't have to do this. I can just go home…"

Reaching across the table, the young Uzumaki took Sakura's hands in his and shook his head. "Stay Sakura-chan. I care a lot about you. I'm more than willing to give you a chance if this is what you really want. And...if you really mean that, if you really, truly love me, then I suppose it would only be fair to give you a chance. I can't say I fully feel the same way yet, but...I do care a lot about you. You're very dear to me Sakura-chan, you really are. I want to explore these feelings and see how deep they can become if you'll let me."

Smiling happily at this, Sakura nodded excitedly and gently squeezed Naruto's hands. "I'm happy to hear you say this Naruto-kun." she said. Before she could say anything more, however, the waitress returned with her love's drink and asked if they were ready to order.

Seeing as Sakura had already looked over the menu while waiting for Naruto to arrive, she was already ready to order. Naruto, on the other hand, needed a bit of time to look over the menu. So, while Sakura placed her order, the blonde across from her quickly looked through the menu until he found something he wanted and placed his order as well.

After the waitress left, Sakura spoke up again. "So, Naruto...how have you been? I heard that you've had a bit of a rough time since everything that happened in the exams so far."

Sighing, Naruto ran one of his hands through his hair while he squeezed one of Sakura's hands with the other. "It's been a rough month. Training has been hard, and Ino's dad says I have PTSD after what I experienced during the exams. I have to go to therapy once a week now, and he's been really helping me out with everything. Umm, let's see here…" Thinking for a while, Naruto tapped a finger against his chin and continued to speak. "Other than that, I've been on a few dates with my girlfriends, and yes, I'm in the CRA now, so I have to take multiple wives. I hadn't planned on doing that, but…"

The blonde Uzumaki hung his head and sighed. "At least I get to choose who I end up with and when I have children, or else I would've raised all kinds of hell." he said, chuckling dryly afterwards. "Other than that? Jiraiya, and yes, I mean that Jiraiya, showed up after spying on a private meeting between Rose-chan, Kuro-chan, myself, the Tsuchikage, and Hokage-sama. Jiraiya wanted to take me away from Rose-chan and said that me becoming a Dragoon was a mistake and wanted me to give up the very thing that allows me to be a Dragoon in the first place. And no, I can't tell you any more than that Sakura-chan, I'm sorry." he said, frowning sadly at his dear friend.

Frowning at this, Sakura was about to say something when Naruto held up his hand to silence her. "There's more. Rose-chan and I castrated Jiraiya and were about to kill him when Hokage-sama showed up and saved him. Jiraiya should have been punished, at the very least, for what he had done. But Hokage-sama...didn't do a thing to punish his precious student. Jiraiya should never have been allowed to leave the office without being punished after he spied on a private meeting where we were talking about such sensitive, S-rank information that nobody else should be privy to. But no...Hokage-sama betrayed our trust. We can't trust him anymore. And yes, that's why I'm no longer calling him 'Gramps'. I don't want him in my life anymore. He's betrayed me for the last time. After all, fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. There won't be a third time if I have anything to say about it." Naruto said angrily.

Saddened at hearing this, Sakura got up and walked around to sit beside Naruto. Wrapping him in a hug, she kissed his cheek before resting her head on his shoulder. "Naruto...I don't know what else to say besides: "I'm so sorry." I'm sorry you have had to go through all of that. You've suffered so much already, it's a miracle you haven't just broken down already. You're so much stronger than anyone I've ever met." she said truthfully.

"Naruto, I truly do love you. You're an amazing person. You shouldn't have to go through all of this. First Sasuke, then Kiba, now you've been betrayed by Hokage-sama in such a way? Just how much more will you have to deal with before the world decides to cut you a break? It's all just so...so wrong!"

Naruto chuckled dryly and shook his head sadly. "There've been so few good moments lately. Ino...getting Ino as a girlfriend was such a blessing. Then there's the dates I've been on with all three of my girlfriends. Those have helped keep me grounded to an extent. Inoichi-san took me to meet with Kiba's family, Tsume-san and Hana-san. They...they were wonderful people. Thanks to them, it felt like a huge weight was lifted off of my shoulders. But...that's really it." he explained.

Before Sakura could say anything in response, their food arrived and was placed before the both of them. Thanking their waitress, the two of them began to dig into their food. After a moment, however, Sakura began to speak after dabbing at her mouth with her napkin and swallowing the bite of steak she had in her mouth. "You know, I'm still a little shocked by how much those seals changed Ino's behavior and outlook on life. But, I'm also glad that she's so different now. And if she makes you happy, then I'm happy for you. Plus, if you accept us both as your girlfriends and future wives, then she and I can be sisters in a sense, and I really like the idea of that." she said happily.

Taking a moment to finish up her meal, Sakura dabbed at her mouth again and continued speaking. "And I'm glad Tsume-sama and Hana-san were so kind to you. I was worried they would be upset with you. I didn't want them to attempt to hurt you in any way. If they had tried, I would've done everything I could have to get them back for it." she said, clenching her fist tightly in front of her face.

After finishing his meal, Naruto chuckled a bit and nodded his head. "I'm just as shocked as you are by Ino's transformation. But I'm happy for it. And I know what you mean about Tsume-san and Hana-san. I thought for sure they'd want revenge against me. Instead they hugged me and told me it was all going to be okay. Tsume-san even joked with me about getting together with Hana-san and giving her grandchildren someday. I declined, of course, because I don't even know her. I'd like to start out as friends and get to know her better before there's ever a chance of something like that happening." he said with a tiny blush on his face as he recalled that particular experience.

Sakura giggled and shook her head in disbelief. "Only you Naruto-kun. Those kinds of things can only happen to you, I swear. Anyways, we should probably wash up, pay our bill, and get going. I want to go to the park with you. The pond is so pretty at night, what with the fireflies flying about over it." she said giddily before she hurried off to the restroom.

Chuckling, Naruto nodded his head and went to the restroom as well before going to the front of the restaurant to pay the bill. Afterwards, he and Sakura began taking a walk through the village on their way to the park. It was getting late and Sakura's parents were likely waiting up for her to return home. Still, the two of them continued on to the park where they walked to the pond and sat down at the edge where they watched the fireflies flit about, lighting up the area. "Beautiful." Sakura said breathlessly.

Naruto couldn't help but stare at Sakura in this moment under the moonlight and under the glow of the fireflies and nodded his head in agreement. "You are beautiful Sakura-chan."

This admission caused Sakura to blush brightly as she turned to face the love of her life. When they looked into each other's eyes, they both blushed just a tad deeper as they began leaning in closer. Sadly, just before their lips could touch, they were forced to dodge a hail of kunai.

Upon landing, the two of them turned around and glared at the ninja that attacked them. He was wearing a jonin flak jacket and had three swords strapped to his waist. This man stood at a large height of 6' 2" and was glaring directly at Naruto, showing that he obviously had some kind of problem with him.

Before the man could say anything, the fourteen year-old blonde spoke up, his tone one of pure anger. "Damnit! We were just about to kiss and you fucking ruined it! What the hell is your problem with me?! And why the hell are you attacking me anyways? I thought Rose-chan got her point across years ago not to attack me anymore?"

The tall jonin smirked and drew two of his swords and twirled them around for a moment before pointing them at Naruto. "A creature like you has no right to procreate. I'm here to stop you boy. As for that bitch you live with, do you really think I'm afraid of her? She's nothing but a tame bitch compared to the likes of Jiraiya-sama and Hokage-sama. No boy, I'm going to kill you and save the women you've brainwashed from your taint."

Sakura growled at this and clenched her fists tightly at her side. "You...you son-of-a-bitch! I'm in love with him! He's not some demon! He's not a creature! Naruto-kun is a person just like anyone else in this village! No, he's better than you monsters!" she shouted out as she began to advance on the jonin fearlessly. "I hope you're ready you bastard. I'm going to kill you for ruining my date. I was finally going to kiss the man of my dreams and you RUINED it!"

The jonin's smirk widened as he looked at Sakura and shook his head in disbelief. "Oh? And what's a weak little girl like you going to do to a jonin like me? The two of you together couldn't even put a scratch on me." he said cockily.

As Sakura began flipping through hand seals for a technique, the Naruto that the jonin was looking at exploded into smoke, showing it was just a Shadow Clone. Shocked by this, the villain began glancing around for any sign of the boy, but when he heard Sakura shout out, "Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique!" before spitting out a large number of fireballs that flew towards her opponent erratically, forcing him to try and dodge out of the way, only for him to scream out as the shuriken hidden within the flames buried themselves into his arms and legs.

As the man collapsed to one knee, he snarled and quickly ripped out the shuriken lodged in his knee before bringing up one of his swords to block an attack from behind him. Glancing over his shoulder, he could see Naruto pushing against his blade with a kunai. "Did you think I'd be that easy to kill you freak of nature?!" the jonin shouted out angrily as he performed a whirlwind sword technique to throw Naruto off of him.

When Naruto landed about five feet away and skidded along the ground just a few feet further, he scoffed and stood straight, glaring at the man. "If you want to play it that way, maybe I should step things up a notch. I hope you're prepared to die for your crimes."

Twirling his swords around, the jonin blocked a sneak attack from behind by Sakura before he zipped forward to assault Naruto. However, the fourteen year-old blonde was prepared for this and brought up his kunai, now enhanced with wind-natured chakra, and easily sliced through one of the man's swords, leaving him holding a single sword while the other one was now a worthless piece of scrap metal.

Furious at this, the jonin threw away his broken blade and unsheathed his third sword, quickly using it to block another attack from behind by Sakura. Not liking his odds if he stayed in close range with his opponents, he leapt backwards, away from the both of them, and quickly brought his blades up in an 'X' in front of him. Focusing lightning-natured chakra through his blades, the jonin swung his blades and sent an 'X' shaped blast of lightning forward that just continued to expand in size.

Eyes widening, the young couple quickly tried to move out of the way, but Sakura wasn't quite quick enough and her left ankle was hit by the lightning. As the lightning struck her, she felt an immense pain shooting through her system that caused her to scream out in sheer agony. When it ended, she collapsed to her hands and knees and began to pant, struggling to remain conscious.

Naruto, furious at seeing Sakura hurt in such a way, turned to the jonin and began to snarl as he got down on all fours. Soon enough, the Kyuubi's youki began to course through his body and he began to scream out in raw fury.

Before the jonin could react, Naruto had vanished from his spot and appeared with a clawed hand embedded in his gut. The next thing either of the two men knew, they heard Sakura shout out, "Fire Release: Fire Dragon Bullet!" Smirking at the man, Naruto slashed his thighs and forced him onto his knees. Immediately afterward, the blonde leaped away and watched as the flames engulfed the jonin.

Rushing over to Sakura's side, Naruto hugged her close and began to look her over. "Sakura-chan, are you alright?!" he questioned as the man's screams died out and the flames went out shortly afterward.

Nodding slowly, Sakura held onto Naruto and walked with him over to the charred corpse of the jonin. "I'm...I'm okay Naruto-kun...but I think it would be a good idea to get to the hospital just to be sure. But first...can we go get my parents please so they know what's going on?"

Naruto nodded and was about to guide Sakura away, but they were stopped by a voice, "There will be no need for that. I've already sent someone to retrieve both of your families so they can meet the both of you at the hospital." Hiruzen said as he stepped up to the two of them from the shadows.

Narrowing his eyes at the Hokage, Naruto pointed towards the jonin and began to shout out his frustrations. "What the hell Hokage-sama?! If you knew we were under attack, why didn't you send some help or something?!"

Looking away from Naruto and Sakura, Hiruzen sighed softly and shook his head. "I was busy Naruto-kun. When I returned to my office, I decided to check on you and saw what was going on. I came as soon as I could." he explained.

Sakura and Naruto shared a look and communicated through their eyes that they didn't quite believe him. Instead, Naruto lifted Sakura into his arms and leapt off to take her to the hospital without speaking another word to Hiruzen.

Left alone by the pond, the aged Sandaime Hokage sighed and shook his head. "I'm sorry Naruto-kun. I know you don't understand right now, but I really am just trying to look out for you in my own way…"

At the Hospital

Upon entering the hospital, Naruto and Sakura were met immediately by Sakura's parents: Kizashi and Mebuki Haruno. When they got a look at their daughter's condition and saw her electrical burns, they began to fuss over her even more than they already had been. Eventually Sakura had enough of it and shouted out, "Mom! Dad! Enough already! I'm fine! Can I please see a doctor? I could really use some medical attention."

Mebuki and Kizashi nodded in understanding before they guided Naruto and Sakura to the front desk where they quickly got Sakura checked in. When the blonde Uzumaki allowed the doctor to take Sakura from him, he wished her well and kissed her on the cheek before watching her and her parents vanish deeper into the hospital.

Returning to the waiting room, Naruto waited patiently for Rose and the other Dragoons to show up so he could explain the situation to them. Thankfully, he didn't have to wait long. When they entered the hospital waiting room and saw him, they immediately rushed over to him and all began to ask him questions at once. Releasing a frustrated sigh, the blonde raised his hand to silence them before looking into Rose's eyes and pointing at her. "Rose-chan, you go first. What were you saying?"

Sitting down beside Naruto, she placed her hand on his inner thigh and gave it a gentle squeeze to show her support. "What the hell happened? Why weren't we informed sooner that you were under attack?"

Grumbling to himself, the young blonde shook his head and chuckled dryly. "The night started off simple enough. Ino tricked me. She set me up on a date with Sakura-chan. I didn't mind. So Sakura-chan and I ate dinner together and then went for a walk in the park to watch the fireflies. While we were there, we were attacked by a Konoha jonin. A fucking jonin. Sakura-chan and I fought him off and eventually killed him, but she was hurt pretty bad, which is why we're here at the hospital right now." Naruto explained.

Sighing, Naruto shook his head again before looking around at everyone. "Hokage-sama…" he spat out with disgust, "obviously knew about the attack, because he showed up almost immediately after the jonin had been killed. I bet he had been watching through that crystal ball of his, but hadn't bothered to notify you guys that I was under attack for some reason. And he didn't come to save us himself, nor did he send any of his ANBU to assist. For some reason, he neglected to help us and I don't like it." Naruto explained angrily.

Kakashi frowned beneath his facemask at this and shook his head in disbelief. "But…" he began, only to be silenced by Naruto's glare.

Rose turned to the Dragoon of Thunder and shook her head in disappointment. "Do not defend his actions Kakashi. The Hokage has betrayed us. He can no longer be trusted. So I now ask you this: Do you stand with us, or with your Hokage? You can take as much time as you need to decide, but you will need to come to a decision. Just know that if you choose to side with the Hokage that I will take your Dragoon Spirit from you. By force if necessary." she threatened.

Sighing, the elite jonin nodded his head slowly and went silent as he began to think over what he had just been told and all that he had learned about his longtime leader. This is not going to be an easy choice.

Haku and Hinata quickly wrapped their arms around Naruto and kissed both of his cheeks to show their support. "We're glad you're alright Naru-kun." they both said as one.

"If something had happened to you because that old man had refused to act, I don't know what I would have done." Haku said angrily.

Hinata turned to Rose and gave her a determined look. "If you were to present the same question to me that you just gave to Kakashi-sensei, I know what I'd choose. I'd choose to stay loyal to the Dragoons and to you and Naru-kun no matter what. Especially now that I know Hokage-sama's willing to let such a terrible thing happen to my Naru-kun!" she declared vehemently.

Before Rose could say anything in response, Kurotsuchi walked over and gave Naruto a kiss on the cheek. "There. Now feel better Naruto-kun. It's no fun when you're upset." she said with a wink. Turning to Rose, the Earth Dragoon gave her a smile and pointed her thumb over at Kakashi. "Unlike him, I'm not loyal to the old man. After all, I'm not originally from this village. I'm here because of Naruto-kun and because I'm a Dragoon now. I'm with you guys until the very end. And if the old man has proven himself to be a threat to our kind, then I say he's an enemy we have to watch out for. It's as simple as that." she said before pumping her fist into the air with a grin.

Smiling at their responses, Rose couldn't help but feel a sense of admiration and respect for her fellow Dragoons in this moment. However, one thing was currently troubling her. Looking into her love's eyes, she just had to ask him, "Naruto...how is Sakura? Is she okay?"

Naruto lowered his head and shook it from side to side. "I don't know for sure. She was hit by a pretty powerful lightning release sword technique. I'm amazed she managed to stand up afterwards and unleash one final attack to finish the bastard off."

Haku frowned at this and hugged Naruto tight. "I'm so sorry. If only we had been there, you two wouldn't have had to go through such a thing all alone. We could have fought him together. We could have protected you. We could have done something!"

Rose frowned and shook her head. "Don't think about the 'what if's'. Right now, we're here for Sakura. Let us hope that the doctor returns with good news for us." she said.

Naruto nodded his head before leaning back in his chair and closing his eyes. After the night he had just had, he needed a nap. So he allowed himself to slowly drift off to sleep, the noises throughout the hospital slowly getting further and further away.

Naruto's Mindscape

When Naruto opened his eyes next, he found himself standing a scant couple of feet from the Kyuubi, or rather, as she liked to be called, Kiyoko. She was currently in her human form and was simply staring at him with a small smirk on her face as she did so.

As he looked her over, the teenage blonde studied her appearance. She didn't choose this appearance often at first, but she was starting to take this form more often these days when they met. She stood at a height of 5' 7" and had dark crimson-colored hair that flowed halfway down her back while her bangs oftentimes got in her eyes, which drove her a little insane sometimes. She also had beautiful amber eyes with slit pupils that Naruto thought was one of her most attractive features.

She was dressed in a yellow and pink floral patterned kimono that hugged her curves rather nicely and revealed a small portion of her cleavage. Kiyoko had teased him one time by revealing her cup size to him: she was a high D-cup. On her feet she wore red high heeled sandals. Finally, to top things off, she had on a light pink nail polish on her fingers and toes.

Once he looked into her eyes again, he could see that her smirk had widened, revealing a couple of her fangs. "Finished checking me out yet?" she asked teasingly.

Sighing, Naruto shook his head exasperatedly before simply offering her a smile. "I'm just wondering how you always seem to have a new outfit on whenever I come in here. I must admit, you do look beautiful Kiyoko-chan. No matter what outfit you seem to wear, you always look amazing." he complimented sincerely.

Blushing at his compliments, Kiyoko looked away and shuffled her feet a bit. "You're just saying that." she muttered.

"No Kiyoko-chan. I mean that. I wouldn't have said it if I didn't mean it." Naruto said. "But you didn't bring me here for that, did you? What's wrong?"

Sighing, the Kyuubi shook her head and walked up to Naruto before hugging him close and resting her head against his chest. "I'm glad you're okay Naruto-kun. I was scared for you." she admitted.

Frowning, Naruto held Kiyoko close and rubbed his hand up and down her back. "I'm okay Kiyoko-chan. I'm more worried about Sakura-chan right now." he admitted honestly.

Nodding her head in understanding, Kiyoko decided to voice some of her concerns. "Naruto-kun, I'm worried about you. The powers that be in your village seem to be conspiring against you and I don't like it one bit. I want you to be extra careful from now on. And...I think you need to start seriously looking into trying out that secret project of yours soon. I want to be out soon so I can better protect you, but I can't do that until you finish that fuinjutsu project of yours." she said.

Naruto sighed and nodded his head slowly. "I know Kiyoko-chan. I'm trying, I really am. I promise that I'm getting close. I'll have you out of here real soon. You'll never be sealed away again so long as I have anything to say about it." he promised.

Kiyoko nodded slowly before she looked into Naruto's eyes for a while, almost as if she was searching for something. After a time, she leaned in and pressed her lips against his, catching him off guard. However, after a short while, he closed his eyes and began to return her kiss.

When they finally pulled apart, they were both blushing fiercely, but they both had big smiles on their faces. Moving in again, they began to kiss each other passionately, unable to stop themselves from enjoying the moment. When the kiss ended this time, Kiyoko leaned in and began to nibble on Naruto's neck. Blushing fiercely at this, Naruto spoke up. "K-Kiyoko-chan, s-stop. We can't do this in here. I'd rather wait to do anything like this until you're free. Please?"

Realizing what she was about to do, Kiyoko stopped what she was doing and pulled back before slowly nodding to the love of her long life. "Sorry Naruto-kun. I...I don't know what came over me." she admitted uneasily.

"It's okay Kiyoko-chan. But I should really be going now. I want to see if Sakura-chan's okay." he said. "I promise I'll try to visit you more often, okay? Love you." he said before giving her a quick peck on the lips and then vanishing from the mindscape.

Blushing fiercely, Kiyoko said quietly to the empty space around her, "Love you too...Naruto-kun."

Hospital Waiting Room

When Naruto opened his eyes, it was to see Kizashi and a doctor walking up to Naruto and his group. When they arrived, Naruto was about to speak up before Kizashi shook his head and turned to face the doctor. "Naruto Uzumaki?" the doctor questioned. When the blonde ninja nodded once, the doctor continued. "Sakura's in stable condition. She suffered a nasty electrical burn to her left ankle and received a dangerous level of voltage throughout her body as a result of the technique she was struck with. It's a miracle she didn't go into cardiac arrest or have her body shut down on her as a result of what happened to her."

Sighing, the doctor adjusted his glasses on his nose before he continued to speak. "She's lucky that you got her here when you did. If she had been left like that for much longer, I doubt she would have survived for longer than an hour or two. As it stands, we've done everything we could do and she should be just fine now. She just needs rest. However, we'll need to keep her here for a couple of days so we can monitor her condition and to make sure she doesn't relapse. You are welcome to visit with her now if you want?" the doctor explained.

Kizashi frowned at this and shook his head. "No. No he's not." he said angrily. "My daughter wouldn't be in this state if she hadn't been out with him. From now on, you are not welcome anywhere near my daughter. Do you understand me Demon?!"

The doctor frowned at this behavior and was about to speak up in Naruto's defense, but the young blonde beat him to it. "So...you're one of those, are you? Peachy." he said with a sigh. "Sakura-chan and I have been friends for a long time now. We're very fond of each other you stupid prick. If she wants to be with me, well then, guess what: she's an adult now and it's her choice. But I'll respect your wishes and stay away from her while she's here in the hospital. Once she's out though? I'll spend as much time with her as I please. So fuck you."

Growling at the brat, Kizashi would have lunged at him, but Kakashi quickly lunged forward and pressed his fist against the pink-haired man's throat. "Let it go Kizashi. I won't warn you again."

Nodding slowly, Sakura's father stepped back and held his hands up to show he was backing off. Turning around, he walked off to return to his daughter's hospital room. However, before he left, he issued one final warning, "Don't be so sure you'll get to spend time with my baby girl anymore Demon. I guarantee you that once I talk to Hokage-sama, he'll do something about this." and with that he disappeared around the corner to return to his beloved daughter.

Sighing, the doctor looked at Naruto and his companions and bowed his head to them. "I'm terribly sorry. If I had known he would do that, I would not have agreed to bring him with me. Is there perhaps some message you would like for me to deliver to Sakura for you Naruto-kun?"

Blinking at this, not expecting for the doctor to be so kind, Naruto found himself smiling as he nodded. "Please. Just...tell her that I'm glad she's going to be alright. And that I'm looking forward to seeing her at the finals. Or at least...I'm hoping to see her at the finals. Who knows how hard it'll be to see her in the crowd, y'know? And...can you tell her I'm sorry that I won't be able to see her for a while? It's her parents, y'know?"

The doctor nodded in understanding before he turned and walked off to go and speak with Sakura. After he was gone, Naruto turned to his friends and loved ones and released a heavy sigh. "Let's...let's just go guys. I'm tired. I just want to get home and sleep." he said tiredly.

Rose nodded and helped Naruto up out of the chair before turning to Kakashi. "Kakashi, can you carry him? He looks like he's about to pass out."

Looking at his student, the cycloptic jonin nodded once before walking over and moving Naruto onto his back for a piggyback ride. "Come on Naruto-kun. Let's get you home." he said with an eye-smile.

Haku and Hinata watched as Naruto slowly fell asleep on Kakashi's back before they turned to one another and glanced back in the direction Kizashi had gone off in. They both seemed to share the same thought: You and your wife had best watch out Kizashi, because we're going to make you pay for hurting Naru-kun like this.

Kurotsuchi, meanwhile, just follow Rose and Kakashi out of the hospital, not knowing quite what to say or do. However, she did know that she was starting to seriously question her decision to join this village's ninja program. Things in this village were seriously fucked up and she couldn't help but wonder if she'd be safe here.

Three Days Later - Start of the Chunin Exam Finals

Naruto was feeling grumpy as hell. He wanted so badly to see Sakura now that she was out of the hospital, but her damned parents were doing everything they could to keep the two of them apart! Now, on the day of the Chunin Exam finals, as he looked around at all the faces he could see up above in search of her, he couldn't make her out! Clenching his fists tight, he figured that her damned parents were probably pulling some kind of bullshit to keep her away from him again.

Shikamaru, seeing his friend's distress, slinked his way over to him and placed his hand on his shoulder. "Dude, I don't know what's going on, but it's too troublesome to stress yourself out this much over it. You need to calm down and take a few deep breaths. If you don't calm down, you'll be at a severe disadvantage when you fight Neji."

At first, Naruto wanted to throw Shikamaru off of him, he was that pissed off. But then his friend's words registered in his mind and he started to take some deep, calming breaths and closed his eyes. Picturing some of the things that made him feel most at peace, Naruto soon found himself smiling and nodded his head to the Nara heir in thanks as he opened his eyes. "Thanks Shika. I appreciate it."

The teenager with the pineapple-shaped hair smirked at his friend and lightly punched him in the arm. "Hey, no problem Naruto. I just don't want to see you lose to a guy like Neji. I want you to go out there and bring that jerk down a few dozen pegs."

Chuckling a bit, Naruto nodded in agreement with that and patted his friend on the back. "No problem buddy. I'll kick his ass no problem. I'm more worried about who I'll be fighting in the second match. No matter who I end up facing, it's going to be a tough fight." he admitted somewhat nervously.

Shikamaru couldn't help but bark out a laugh. "Heh. I do not envy you Naruto. Not one tiny bit. Then again, I don't like my position either. Going up against Haku in the first round. I'll be lucky if I can prove to the judges that I'm worthy to make Chunin. If I somehow manage to win the match, then we know Hell just froze over. Either that or the world's about to come to an end. In that case...just know that I love you like I would my own brother man."

Naruto couldn't help but laugh as he heard this. However, he hugged Shikamaru and patted his back. "You know I love you man. The world just wouldn't be the same without you in it." he said honestly.

Before anyone could say anything more, the proctor, a new man that kept chewing on a senbon that went by the name Genma, began to speak to them. "Alright, you guys might want to be quiet now and take a look around you." Waiting a moment for the ten Genin before him to look around at all the people in the audience, nobles and commoners alike, Genma soon got their attention once again. "Now take a look at this." he said, unrolling a piece of parchment to show them the bracket. "As you can no doubt see, none of the matches have been changed. Take this moment to memorize this bracket, as planning ahead for any future matches you might be in can make quite the difference." he advised.

Shortly after rolling up the parchment that the bracket was drawn on, Naruto decided to voice a question that was bugging him. "So...what happened to the other guy? You know, the one that coughed a lot during the prelims? Is he okay?"

Genma frowned at Naruto and responded with a basic answer that he knew likely wouldn't satisfy the teenager's curiosity. "Hayate is currently indisposed. I am his replacement, Genma Shiranui. That's all you need to know."

Naruto frowned at this answer and, looking at his teammates as well as his fellow Dragoons in Shikamaru, Haku, and Kurotsuchi, could see that they had all figured it out too. Without speaking a word, they all nodded to show they understood completely. Narrowing their eyes at Genma, they all thought together, In other words, Hayate's been murdered and they're trying to cover it up for some reason. I don't like this. This just screams Orochimaru.

Their thoughts were disrupted when Genma scolded them to pay attention to the Hokage's speech. Tuning in, they listened as he began to welcome the many guests and rambled on about whatever else he needed to say. They didn't really care as they didn't deem it all that important. When he gave Genma permission to start, that's when they started to give a shit again.

"Will everyone except Naruto Uzumaki and Neji Hyuga please leave the field?" Genma requested.

As everyone began to vacate the field, Kurotsuchi, Haku, and Shikamaru stayed behind to speak with Naruto. Shika, deciding to go first, placed his hand on his buddy's shoulder and smirked at him. "You've got this Naruto. Hit the bastard hard and fast and don't let him touch you. If he tries to kill you, you know what to do. Don't hesitate like you did with Kiba, you hear me?" the Nara heir advised before he walked off to join the other fighters in the fighters' booth.

Kurotsuchi punched Naruto in the shoulder and grinned at him. "He's no threat to you Naru-kun. Beat him into the ground and make him regret ever hurting our precious Hinata-chan." Leaning in, she kissed him on the cheek and winked at him. "For good luck." she said with a giggle before skipping off to join the others.

Haku sighed at Kurotsuchi's antics before she looked into her lover's eyes. "Don't let him hit you Naru-kun. Keep your distance if you need to. And as Shikamaru said, if Neji tries to kill you, then you know what you have to do. Do not hesitate. Besides, Hinata will forgive you if you kill him. You know that as well as I do. Your life and your safety is far more important to us than Neji's. So look out for yourself Naruto-kun. Win this!" she exclaimed before leaning in and kissing Naruto passionately before giving his butt a little spank, causing him to jump in shock. Giving him a wink, she sauntered off, her hips moving in such a way that it kept his eyes glued to her ass.

"Damn." Naruto said with a grin on his face. "I really do love that woman." he admitted with a chuckle before he turned back around to face Neji. "You though? I hate you. I tried hard to find it in my heart to forgive you, but nope. It just wasn't happening. You're scum Neji, and you're not even fit to become a stain on the bottom of my sandal. No, you're something that just needs to be erased. But, y'know what? If you agree to apologize to Hinata-chan and you agree to change your ways, I promise I'll take it easy on you. What do you say?"

Neji scoffed at this and shook his head. "You are a bigger fool than I thought you to be Uzumaki. Fate has already decreed me the victor this day you pathetic wretch. You should just forfeit now and save yourself the humiliation of being destroyed by my hands. Unless, of course, you enjoy being made a laughing stock in front of an entire village worth of people?"

The blonde Uzumaki released a heavy sigh and shook his head in disappointment. "I see. So that's your answer then? How...expected." he said. Looking towards Genma, Naruto motioned with his hand towards Neji. "If you would start the match, I would very much like to crush my opponent now." he began.

The bandana-wearing tokubetsu jonin looked between the two of them and sighed as he already realized who would win this match. Raising up his hand, he swung it down and shouted out, "Begin!"

Neji, scowling at his opponent, activated his Byakugan and took up his Gentle Fist stance. "Come, you coward, and face your death like a man." he taunted.

Chuckling, Naruto decided to pose a question to Neji, the same one he posed a month ago. "Before we dance Neji, allow me to ask you something. Have you figured out the answer to my little riddle from a month ago?"

Clenching his hands into fists, the Hyuga prodigy quickly raised one of his arms and pointed at Naruto heatedly. "There is no way Hinata could have beaten me! None! I refuse to believe it!"

Hearing this, Naruto couldn't help it. He clutched at his stomach and began to laugh hysterically. Furious at being made fun of in such a way, Neji charged forward and began his attack. However, every attack he made was either dodged or deflected by one of Naruto's hands! When Neji finally let up just a bit, Naruto headbutted him in the face before performing a sweep kick and knocked the Hyuga prodigy off his feet and onto his back on the ground.

Unwilling to give the wretched Hyuga a chance to strike him back, Naruto gave up on the attack and flipped away from him, leaving Neji to struggle to his feet, cursing the entire time. "You really don't get it, do you Neji? All she had to do was activate the curse seal on your forehead until you either passed out or died and she would have won easily! She chose to fight you with her own strength rather than use your own weakness against you. Now she has true strength. You're just a weak little runt that doesn't know how to let go of something that happened in the past. No, you'd rather blame Hinata-chan when she did NOTHING wrong! No Neji, I won't tolerate you hurting her with your shit anymore. If you refuse to change your ways, then you will leave me with no other choice than to end you to keep her safe." the teenage jinchuriki said seriously.

Neji scowled at having such information thrown back in his face in such a way. Growling, he threw out all sense of self and charged directly for Naruto with full intent on killing the son-of-a-bitch. "I'm NOT weak! That bitch took my father from me! She was too weak! It's her fault he's gone! You...you know NOTHING! If you choose to protect her, then you'll die too!"

Sighing, Naruto took a deep, calming breath and watched as Neji grew closer and closer to him. And he's lost it. I'm sorry Hinata-chan. I know you hoped that he could be saved, but...I don't know. If he truly leaves me with no other choice but to kill or be killed, then he's a dead man.

Deciding to try and talk some sense into Neji, Naruto began dodging Neji's erratic and easily predictable attacks while deflecting any aside that came a bit too close for comfort. "Neji, she was only three years-old at the time. THREE! A three year-old child cannot fight off a fully grown adult JONIN ninja no matter what you may think! Could you have fought him off if it were you in that position?"

Neji, refusing to see reason, thrust his palm forward towards Naruto's heart in an attempt to at least damage it enough to end his miserable existence and shut him up, but Naruto once again deflected the blow away from him. "Shut up! I would have put up a much better fight than she did! I would never have been taken like that! She was WEAK! She deserves to die for what she's taken from me!"

Sighing, Naruto decided he'd try one more time, but after that, if Neji still refused to listen to reason, and if he continued going for the kill shots, then he'd start retaliating with lethal force. "Do you really think this is what your father would want from you Neji? From what I understand, he was a good man. A kind man. Yes, he was born second and was therefore placed into the Branch family, and yes, that frigging sucks, but there's nothing to be done about it now. There's no reason to wallow in misery and self-pity all your life. If you'd stop letting all that hate and rage, all of that misery and regret, all of it...if you'd stop letting it weigh you down, you could really make something of yourself. So please, just let it all go Neji. For your father."

Sadly, this had the opposite effect of what Naruto was going for. Neji flew even further into his rage and his attacks began to come even faster than before. Naruto quickly came to the conclusion that staying in close was NOT a good idea and used a quick Replacement Technique to swap himself out with a pebble on the opposite side of the field.

Once there, he looked across at Neji and shook his head. Damn it. I'm sorry Hinata-chan, but he's really trying to kill me down here. I might not have a choice soon enough… he thought sadly as he watched his opponent carefully for any sign about what he might do.

Neji, on the other hand, took this momentary pause in the battle to try and calm himself down. Taking a few deep breaths, he began to relax himself and finally got his breathing under control. However, he was still furious and just couldn't quite settle down. The Hyuga prodigy wanted nothing more than to rush across the field and tear his opponent to shreds right now, but he knew he had to be patient and wait. If he acted too soon or too late, then his opponent could easily win this and Neji knew it.

Naruto sighed as he realized that Neji was waiting for him to make a move. Great, it's one of these types of games. We're both waiting for the other to make a move. Well, we can't just sit here all day, otherwise the audience will get bored and nothing will ever get done. Fine then Neji, you want to play it this way? I can make the first move and test the waters a bit. I want to see what else you're capable of so I know what to do to win this little fight of ours. He thought to himself silently as he began to slowly walk towards his opponent.

After a moment, Naruto summoned up some wind and smirked as it danced around him. Pointing his finger towards Neji, he began to chuckle. "Let's see how you like the wind. Wind Sickles!" he exclaimed, giddy about using a new spell on Neji outside of his Dragoon form. He didn't want to transform unless he absolutely had to in order to maximize the amount of time he could stay transformed later on. Which was all well and good, considering the fact that he had spent a good portion of his alone time this month training to use magic whilst outside of his Dragoon form so as to lessen the immense strain it put on the user. This was the end result: a Naruto that was wide awake and full of energy to spare.

Neji, eyes widening at the strange attack, quickly called out, "Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven!" and began to spin, creating a dome of pure chakra around him that quickly nullified the sickles of wind. Breathing a sigh of relief, he began to slow down to a stop, only for his eyes to widen at what he saw when the chakra began to dissipate. There were over 20 identical Naruto's, each of them waving an identical seal tag in the air in front of them for him to see.

Frightened by what these seals could mean for him, Neji attempted to escape, but it was far too late. With a cry of "Cage of Light: Seal!" what appeared to be a prison cell formed of light wrapped around Neji, sealing him inside. Whenever he touched one of the bars of light, Neji's hand would be burned like it was touched by fire or acid.

Glaring at his opponent, Neji shouted at him, "You coward! This is how you fight?! By sealing me inside this glowing prison cage?! Release me at once and fight me!"

Naruto quirked a brow and looked at Genma curiously for a moment. "He does realize I technically just beat him, right? Right?"

Genma shrugged and shifted the senbon in his mouth around before pointing back towards Neji as if telling Naruto to deal with it. So, with a heavy sigh, Naruto approached Neji and decided to get this over with. "Alright Neji, here's the deal. I've captured you. Technically, I've won our little match already with this one move. However, seeing as the match has yet to be called in my favor, there's a little problem that needs to be addressed." Naruto began. "Y'see, this particular seal isn't meant to last forever. It will continue to shrink and shrink until it eventually implodes unless I get rid of it before then. Nooow, seeing as how you're currently trapped inside of this cage of light, I'm sure you can guess what's going to happen to you, can't you?"

Eyes widening in realization, Neji quickly grabbed onto two of the bars of light and ignored the hissing sound as well as the immense pain he was currently feeling from his hands. "Get me the hell out of here you rotten animal!"

Naruto sighed and shook his head while wagging his finger in front of his face. "Nope. Those aren't the magic words. If you want out of there Neji, you're going to need to take a good, long look at yourself and learn your lesson. And based on how fast that cage is shrinking, I'd say you've only got about three more minutes before your time runs out. Sooo...I'd get to learning that lesson real quick. Time's-a-wasting. Tick-tock. Tick-tock."

Neji's eyes widened in horror and he quickly began trying to think of any way he could get himself out of this mess he was in. Unable to think of a way out, he started thinking about everything Naruto had said to him throughout the course of their battle, as well as the riddle he had posed to him before their month-long break.

The more that Neji thought about it, the more he began to realize that maybe, juuust maybe, the blonde Dragoon might be right. He had been rather hung up on his father's death, and maybe blaming Hinata for it was wrong. But! That didn't mean there weren't still people responsible for his death. The main branch family elders and Hiashi Hyuga himself. They were the real enemies here. Well, them and Kumo. He would find a way to make them all pay if it was the last thing he did.

Sensing more dark thoughts from Neji, Naruto sighed and shook his head. Taking out another seal tag, he drew on it for a moment before slapping it against the cage of light. When it suddenly shrunk even further and singed some of Neji's hair, the Hyuga prodigy cried out in shock before glaring into Naruto's eyes. "If you're just going to plot your revenge against people, you can stay in there and die for all I care. That's called not learning your lesson. Now I suggest you try again before you lose your life. I'd say you've got about three minutes left before the cage shrinks just enough to slice you into Neji chunks." Naruto said as he began to pace around, waiting for Neji to learn his damn lesson already.

Slightly panicking at this point, Neji began to wonder what the hell the point was that his opponent was trying to make. What the hell does he want from me?! Somebody has to pay for what happened to my father! Nobody is innocent in this! He thought to himself furiously.

Naruto paused in his pacing as he looked at Neji's eyes. He could see quite clearly that Neji still didn't understand. So, looking up into the stands, he tried to pick out the Hyuga family to see if he could get some help from the clan head. When he finally spotted the Hyuga clan sitting amongst the crowd, he looked carefully for Hiashi and, upon spotting him beside his daughter, Hanabi, Naruto shouted out, "Hiashi-sama! If you've been hiding anything from Neji, I'd say now's the time to get down here and let him hear it! Especially if you don't want his stupid ass to die!"

Genma frowned at this before stepping forward. "If he does that, then I will have to disqualify Neji." he explained.

Turning towards the proctor, Naruto glared into his eyes and pointed towards his defeated opponent. "You should have already called the match in my favor the moment he was captured and disabled like this! So either you got orders not to, or you just don't want to see me win! Which is it Genma?!"

Before Genma could respond, Hiashi Hyuga appeared on the field in a swirl of leaves and looked harshly at the proctor. "Call the damn match already. I want to talk to my nephew in a private setting, not out in the open like this." he demanded.

Frowning, the proctor nodded slowly and called out, "Winner of the first match, Naruto Uzumaki!" After he called this out though, he looked calmly into Naruto's eyes, but on the inside he was not happy. He had just lost a huge bet he had placed against the damned demon, hoping Neji would crush him in this match. So yes, he had been delaying calling Naruto the winner precisely because he wanted Naruto to lose said match.

Sighing, Naruto released his opponent from the seal and went about collecting his seal tags while Hiashi dragged his nephew off to talk, but not before saying a few words to Genma. "I hope you know I'll be having a few words with Hokage-sama about your behavior, Genma. As proctor, you are supposed to judge things fairly. If you cannot do that, you do not belong down here. Do you understand me? Pull this stunt again and risk the life of another person because of your bias against Naruto and you will answer for it to me, if no one else." he said before taking Neji off to have a private conversation.

Naruto turned towards Genma after collecting the last of his seal tags and shook his head in disappointment. "I figured I'd actually have a fair shot in this tournament today. Instead I get you for a proctor. I didn't figure you for a demon hater when I first laid eyes on you, but you proved me wrong." he said before walking off to rejoin his fellow fighters up in the fighters' booth.

Rose & her fellow Housemates

Rose, Kakashi, and Hinata couldn't help but scowl down at Genma as they watched the match unfold. Neji had clearly been beaten, but Genma just stood there scowling at Naruto the entire time, refusing to call the match in their fellow Dragoon's favor. Kakashi had to physically restrain Rose from leaping down there and killing Genma, lest Naruto be disqualified for her interference!

When the battle was finally called in Naruto's favor, they waited until Naruto had vacated the field before Rose nodded to Kakashi. "Go." she said, watching as he vanished in a Leaf Body Flicker Technique to go and speak with the Hokage. She may not trust him anymore, but she'd be damned if she allowed this prejudice to continue any longer!

Hinata looked at Rose and shook her head. "What if the Hokage refuses to do anything? What do we do Rose-sama?"

Rose frowned at this possibility and shook her head with a sigh. "I don't know Hinata. I don't know."

Kakashi

When the Violet Dragoon appeared beside the Hokage, he wasn't surprised to see Hiruzen's bodyguards appear on either side of him with weapons drawn. However, upon seeing who it was, the Hokage waved them off and smiled at the elite jonin. "Kakashi-kun, what brings you here? Is something amiss?"

Frowning beneath his mask at his leader, not quite able to believe he didn't already know why he was here, Kakashi spoke up. "Genma needs to be replaced Hokage-sama. Now. That match should have been called in Naruto-kun's favor much sooner and you and I both know it. Genma's behavior is highly suspicious and I doubt he has the best intentions for Naruto or those close to him. If you allow this to continue, someone could get seriously hurt, or worse, because Genma isn't doing his job properly. Is that what you want?"

Sighing sadly, Hiruzen shook his head and looked Kakashi in the eye. "No Kakashi-kun, it most certainly isn't. Very well, I'll send someone to replace him posthaste. You should return to your seat now and try to enjoy the rest of the matches." he said.

"Thank you Hokage-sama." Kakashi said before vanishing in another swirl of leaves.

Once Kakashi had gone, the Hokage summoned one of his ANBU. "Get me Anko Mitarashi…"

Naruto

As Naruto entered the fighters' booth, he was caught off guard by Haku glomping onto him. "Great job Naru-kun! I knew you'd beat him!"

Chuckling a bit, Naruto nodded in response. "Yeah, but I'd watch out for that proctor. He's a demon hater and seems to have it out for me. So, by extension, as you're one of my girlfriends, he might take it out on you too Haku-chan." he explained.

Before Haku could reply in any way, Shikamaru sighed and muttered, "Troublesome." catching their attention. "So that's why he wouldn't announce the match in your favor until Hiashi entered the field. I knew something fishy was going on, but I wasn't expecting that."

Kurotsuchi frowned at this as she walked over and stopped in front of Naruto. "Does this kind of thing happen often Naru-kun?"

Sighing softly, Naruto shook his head in the negative. "Not so much anymore since Rose-chan came into my life and made sure nobody would ever hurt me again. But there's still the occasional bad seed that will do something like this. It's impossible to root them all out, you know? It's like weeds almost, they always grow back and need to be dealt with when they sprout up."

They would have talked more, but Genma announced the next match between Kurotsuchi and Gaara. Sighing, Kurotsuchi gave Naruto a hug. "Wish me luck Naru-kun, I have a feeling I'm gonna need it against this guy."

Feeling a little devilish, Naruto hugged his friend back and gave her a kiss on the nose just to tease her. "There. A kiss for good luck. Now go kick his ass Kuro-chan."

Blushing a fierce red, Kurotsuchi stammered a bit before she rushed off down the stairs, giggling all the while. When Naruto looked back into Haku's eyes, he saw her smirking at him. "What?"

"Ohhh, nothing. But is there something you'd like to tell me, maybe? Like, is there something going on between the two of you that I should know about?" Haku questioned, that same damnable smirk on her face.

Naruto chuckled and shook his head in the negative. "No, there's nothing going on between us Haku-chan. We've only been doing things like that to tease each other. Or at least, that's how it feels to me. But yeah, there's nothing going on between the two of us. As far as I'm concerned, we're more like a brother and sister duo than anything else." he said honestly.

Haku nodded slowly and folded her arms underneath her bust, pushing up her breasts just a bit, causing her boyfriend's eyes to stray there for just a moment, which caused her to smile ever so slightly. "Uh-huh." she said. "I believe you." she said, smiling sweetly at him. "Now, let's watch her match and cheer her on." she said before taking her boyfriend's hand and dragging him over to the railing so they could cheer on their fellow Dragoon.

Joining his teammates on Naruto's other side, Shikamaru leaned in close and whispered in Naruto's ear. "You absolutely sure there's nothing going on between you and Kurotsuchi? 'Cause she was giggling awfully happily after you kissed her on the nose just then."

Naruto shook his head and whispered back, "Fuck if I know man. I do it just to tease her, but I don't have a damn clue how she feels." he answered honestly.

Nodding his head in understanding, Shikamaru folded his arms atop the railing and leaned forward with his friend to watch the match that would soon be taking place down below them.

Kurotsuchi

As Kurotsuchi rushed onto the field, she was a little surprised to see Anko standing there in front of Genma, chewing into him about something. "...supposed to be fair and treating everyone equally you rotten piece of shit! I saw that stunt you pulled in the first match! Well guess what Genma!" Anko shouted.

When Genma went to speak, the Snake Mistress of Konoha punched him square in the face and knocked him on his ass. "Hokage-sama's named me the new proctor of these exams! You're fired! Now get the hell off my field." she commanded.

Snarling at this, Genma leaped to his feet and prepared to attack her, but he was soon restrained by a couple of ANBU before the three of them vanished in a swirl of leaves. Looking into Anko's eyes, Kurotsuchi couldn't help but ask, "Sooo, you're proctoring these exams now huh? Cool."

Anko grinned and nodded her head excitedly. "Damn right! Now, if the both of you are ready, let's begin! Kurotsuchi vs. Gaara, begin!"

And with that, the fight between the Golden Dragoon and the jinchuriki of the Ichibi had begun...

---

A/N - And that is the end of the chapter! Like I said before the chapter, a LOOOT happened. The Tsuchikage gave the Dragoons their first big clue about what their purpose is in this new world as well as a clue about the Moon Child.

Jiraiya was neutered and the Dragoons can no longer trust in the Hokage!

Naruto and Sakura were attacked and all kinds of other bad shit happened!

Like I said, I think it turned out to be a pretty darn interesting chapter. Sooo, what do you all think? Did you like it? Or do you all want to kill me for making a terrible chapter? Please tell me you enjoyed it, 'cause if you didn't then crap! XD