Chapter Two: Greatness

Naruto instantly frowned when he saw the Kuchiyose being performed. Ever since he merged personalities with Asura, he finally understood exactly how ninjutsu started. Apparently it was a corrupt version of Ninshū, a version that was taught to people so that they could kill other people, not understand them. Something of this nature made him sick. He hated ninjutsu now.

"I refuse to learn ninjutsu!" Naruto said, catching the Sandaime off-guard, "Ero-sennin, you know my stand on ninjutsu, so no. I will not learn that technique."

"Ninjutsu isn't evil Naruto…it's the people that use it that are the ones who are evil." Jiraiya replied.

"I know, you said that three days ago." Naruto replied, "But it was created as a tool to kill. It is not like Ninshū which was created to help people understand each other."

"And yet somehow you use this benevolent Ninshū art to help you fight…how is it different from Ninjutsu?" Jiraiya asked scepticism clear on his visage.

"As I said before Ero-sennin," Naruto put extra emphasis on Jiraiya's nickname just to aggravate the man, "My fath- the Rikudō's teachings were meant to inspire peace…what you saw me use right now was not Ninshū. I was simply manipulating chakra just as I had been taught by my father and others during my previous life."

"Well I don't care how you sugar coat it kid. The fact of the matter is that you use an art form that is probably more dangerous than Ninjutsu itself. I mean, being able to use all five elements with such ease that you can throw around A-ranked jutsu without weaving hand signs…what you use is like Ninjutsu, but on steroids." Jiraiya said.

"I told you, I don't use jutsu, so don't say that I throw around A-ranked Jutsu." Naruto warned the man.

"Whatever floats your boat, kid." Jiraiya replied casually, folding his arms over his chest.

Throughout the entire argument, Sarutobi Hiruzen had chosen to remain quite, silently observing the interaction with a keen look in his eyes. Throughout the debate he was able to pick up on something that Jiraiya probably did not. If he did pick up on it he certainly chose not to act on it.

As the duo continued to argue back and forth, Hiruzen cleared his throat, grabbing their attention instantly. Such was the presence of the Hokage that even Naruto, in his newly awakened state still paid attention to the man. It would be stupid not to pay attention to a man touted as God of Shinobi.

Seeing that he had their attention, the Sandaime Hokage spoke in a voice that had a dominant aura around it, "If I may say something…" The old man began, "throughout the entire argument, Naruto, you kept talking from the perspective of Asura…"

"So what of it?" Naruto asked, not really sure about where the old man was headed with this.

"I want to know what Uzumaki Naruto thinks about all of this." Hiruzen answered sagely.

There were a few moments of silence, before Naruto tilted his head slightly and said, "Huh?"

The Sandaime Hokage sighed internally. Despite Naruto merging with the son of the Rikudō, something he still found hard to believe even though he knew was true, the boy was still an idiot.

"When you speak up against Ninjutsu, you do so with the mind set of someone that only knows Ninshū teachings. You speak up against Ninjutsu because the dominant persona within you is that of Asura, but I can tell that you Naruto, the true you is in there, just like you said before when you said that the old you is slowly resurfacing and merging with this Asura. After all, you've used Ninjutsu in the past and seen how much good it can do." Hiruzen explained.

"So you're saying that I hate Ninjutsu because of Asura?" Naruto asked, already getting the gist of where this was headed. He also thought about the old man's last sentence about Ninjutsu performing good deeds, and his mind immediately rushed to Nami no Kuni.

"Precisely." Hiruzen said, before he added, "I want to know what you as Uzumaki Naruto thinks of Ninjutsu, and possibly learning the Kuchiyose no Jutsu. Think hard about this Naruto."

Naruto looked at the two men before him for a tense few seconds. He did not need to look into their eyes in order to see that they were looking at him expectantly. They wanted to know what he, Uzumaki Naruto, thought about all of this. Naruto wanted to say that he hated Ninjutsu from the knowledge he gained from Asura, but he quickly shot down that thought because he knew that the old him, the real him, would have jumped at the chance of learning such a technique. With that thought crossing his mind, Naruto had reached his decision. He internally smirked as he could now see why the old man was nicknamed the Professor. The man's mind was something else.

"Fine." He said with a pout, "I'll learn this Kuchiyose no Jutsu of yours, Ero-sennin."

Jiraiya beamed at that. The kid was going to become a toad summoner just like him. Oh happy days.

"One thing though…how will this help improve my chakra control and re-master Onmymōton (Yin-Yang Release)?" Naruto asked.

"The use of non-elemental ninjutsu, such as your Kage Bunshin no Jutsu and the Kuchiyose no Jutsu work on the principles of Onmymōton. What Jiraiya is hoping to do is to increase your control over non-elemental ninjutsu by having you learn how to summon."

"I see…" Naruto replied in understanding. He could see the merits of such a learning method. He silently wondered if his first father had knowledge of the technique.

"Alright then," Hiruzen said to the duo, "I've got to get back to my office. I will see you both…whenever it is that I get the time to do so."

And with that said, the Sandaime Hokage disappeared in a plume of white smoke.

As soon as the old man was out of the clearing, Naruto turned to Jiraiya and, with as much gusto as he possible, said, "Let's do this!"

xxXXxx

Two weeks ago

Konoha was a vast village. It spanned great distances, covered many acres of land and it was very safe place to be in. But it was not always like this. There was a time when the village was the most unsafe place to be in, for both adults and children. People disappeared from the face of the earth as if they had never been there before. Children were plucked out of orphanages without anyone seeing, and they would never be heard from ever again. Eventually though, the culprit responsible for this entire fiasco was finally discovered, after victim number sixty disappeared as well.

This culprit was the great Sandaime Hokage's prized pupil, Orochimaru of the Densetsu no Sannin.

Orochimaru, apparently, had used his victims in various experiments that resulted in all of their deaths. The experiment centred mainly on the use of the Shodai Hokage's DNA to try and use his fabled Mokuton (Wood Release). It was a good thing that all of those people died because if Orochimaru had been successful with his experimentation, there was no telling what kind of hell he would unleash on the world.

The man fled from Konoha, promising that he would one day return to burn the village to the ground. No one really knew why he wanted to do such a thing. Whether it was out of spite or something else entirely, it remained unknown. Orochimaru's base of operations was sealed off from the world, with no one besides those with strict clearance from the Hokage, being able to enter the madman's former lab.

What they did not count on unfortunately, was Orochimaru himself returning to his lab, because if they did, then the village would know of this by now since that is where the man was right now.

Orochimaru was currently going through some old files that involved his earlier studies in the Shodai's DNA. His greasy black hair acted like a curtain that obscured the dim light that existed in the dusty lab from illuminating his sickly pale face. He skimmed through file after file, moving from one section of the decommissioned lab to another section of it. It was clear that whatever he was looking for was not found yet.

"Orochimaru-sama." A voice suddenly spoke from the shadows, catching Orochimaru's attention.

"Ah, Kabuto…what have you got for me with regards to my next host?" Orochimaru said, not bothering to turn around and look at the person he was speaking to. This Kabuto person did not seem to mind though, because he stayed within the confines of the shadows and continued talking with the man that was regarded as the genius among the Sannin.

"Hatake Kakashi took him out of the village to a secluded area. I don't know where he is exactly, but finding him won't be hard." Kabuto said from the shadows, not a single piece of him was visible.

"That's what Kakashi is counting on…" Orochimaru let it hang at that. He was sure that Kabuto would know what he meant. With him (Orochimaru) after Sasuke, he (Kakashi) took the boy to a secluded environment that would allow him to watch over the boy properly. This also allowed Kakashi to be able to sense oncoming threats easier than before due to there being a lack of people around. It was quite ingenious, yet also risky because he could go after Sasuke himself, and then kill Kakashi…but that would raise too many red flags. Someone like Kakashi must have contingencies in place to make sure that Sasuke stayed out of his hands, or at least people would know the instant that he died.

Orochimaru's musings on Hatake Kakashi and Uchiha Sasuke stopped dead in their tracks when his eyes caught something. He took out a page that was in a file and put it on the table. He then proceeded to make gagging sounds, as if he was puking. After a few seconds of doing this, the man regurgitated a green scroll. The scroll was covered in his saliva and looked to be slightly worn out. Orochimaru flicked his hand that held the scroll, sending all of the saliva coating it flying and splashing on the ground.

Orochimaru unfurled the scroll on the table, and then he took the page that he withdrew from the file and laid it next to the scroll. He silently contemplated whatever it was that he saw on these two items, before he brought his finger up and illuminated it in blue chakra at the tip. He placed it on an empty part of the scroll and he moved it. Where ever the finger graced, it left a black mark. The black markings it left behind on the open scroll ended up looking like mathematical formulas. He kept on writing on the scroll, unfurling it further and further whenever he ran out of space, until he suddenly stopped writing with his finger.

There were a tense few moments of silence within the dark lab as Orochimaru did not bother to move. He looked at the page with an unreadable expression, before his face suddenly split into a grin so sinister that it would have made any person's skin crawl.

"Orochimaru-sama, what exactly was your purpose for coming here?" Kabuto asked from the shadows.

Orochimaru did not reply immediately, choosing instead to just stare at the scroll with a gleeful expression on his face. He then looked over his shoulder, specifically where Kabuto's voice originated from and said, "Kabuto…you felt it yesterday, did you not?"

"You mean that powerful chakra that no one could pinpoint where it originated from?" Kabuto asked. Seeing Orochimaru nod he said, "Of course I did…I think only genin would not have felt that powerful presence. Why do you ask?"

Orochimaru's grin faltered slightly for a second. He was disappointed that Kabuto had not figured out what he was here for. It was alright though; he would enlighten his perplexed underling, "A man of my position cannot afford to take chances. With what I have planned for Konoha within the forthcoming weeks I want to make sure that there are no mistakes, and with what I have found here, even that powerful presence, whether or not it belongs to Konoha, will make little difference in the grand scheme of things."

Kabuto nodded his head in understanding at that, but he still had one more question that had not been answered, "What is it that you have found exactly, Orochimaru-sama?"

When asked about his findings Orochimaru just chuckled, before he said, "What I have discovered Kabuto, is a way to bring Konoha to its knees."

With that said the man's dark laugh echoed throughout the dark and dusty lab.

xxXXxx

Training ground Zero, or better known as the Hokage's Battleground, was a training field that only the Hokage, or someone the Hokage personally authorised, could use. It was the only place in the entire village where only they could enter and it was the only place within the village that allowed for the Hokage to secretly train themselves far away from prying eyes. It had been created by Senju Tobirama shortly after he ascended to the position of Hokage, and after his untimely demise, it was used by his successors the Sandaime, and later on the Yondaime. Its location was highly confidential.

After the Kyūbi ran rampant through the village nearly thirteen years ago, the training field had not been put to good use ever again.

"Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu (Fire Release: Grand Fireball Technique)!"

Until now…

A giant fireball was launched by a shinobi garbed in black pants, a matching colour vest with grey upper body armour over the vest and matching colour arm guards. The shinobi also had a ninjato strapped to their back along with a white porcelain mask that was shaped to resemble a rat. The fireball he had unleashed blazed a path towards the lone figure of an old man wearing a black battle suit and samurai-like head gear.

The old man currently had his hands weaving through different hand seals until he clapped his hands together and said, "Doton: Doryūheki (Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall)!"

The old man spat out what looked like mud in a semi-circle. He stood on the mud and watched as it expanded towards the sky, and while it grew he weaved through more hand seals and said, "Suiton: Suiryūdan no Jutsu (Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique).

As the wall reached its apex, easily dwarfing the fireball, the man on the wall spat out his technique. The jutsu, which was water shaped in the form of a serpentine dragon, rushed towards the rat mask wearing shinobi, who quickly ducked out of the way of the attack by rolling under it. When he came to his feet he found that the old man he was fighting was no longer on the wall he had created. The old man's water technique splashed through the small clearing, wetting the ground.

Before he could have anytime to look for the old man, he suddenly felt electricity course through him with such ferocity that he blacked out in seconds, his body going limp and falling on to the wet ground he had made the gaffe of standing on. If he had looked back he would have seen the old man with his hand on the wet surface and electricity running through it.

Looking at the old man's face, one could tell that he was very annoyed right now. He looked around the training field, before his eyes settled on a couple of moving shadows in standard ANBU formation, ghosting through the trees that surrounded the Hokage, before they went into hiding.

"C'mon! Is this supposed to be the Hokage's personal guard?" Sarutobi Hiruzen said in a commanding tone, "Is this supposed to be ANBU? All I see are a bunch of sissies that I overpay to just die without accomplishing anything!"

The man was clearly looking to provoke them by the looks of things, and he nearly succeeded in angering them because one of the shadows moved a bit too hastily, allowing the Hokage to spot it instantly and unleash a hail of Kunai and shuriken upon it, but a last second substitution saved the shinobi's life.

"Was that supposed to be stealth? Uzumaki Naruto is stealthier than you all from the looks of it! And he can do it in broad daylight wearing nothing but bright orange!" Hiruzen shouted.

Why was he insulting and beating up his own personal guard? Hiruzen had just received a wakeup call two days ago when he felt a powerful presence within the walls of Konoha. He found out a few hours later that said presence was none other than Uzumaki Naruto unleashing a torrent of chakra upon the world, and apparently it was not even half of the chakra he currently possessed. How could Kage level reserves not be enough to even fill half the quota when it came to someone's chakra reserves? He could understand Bijū being this way since they were living chakra, but for a human? That was absurd.

And from what Jiraiya told him, the boy was able to keep up with him when he (Jiraiya) unleashed about three quarters of his strength. This had Hiruzen stumped, for the umpteenth time. Ever since Naruto had become a genin he had stumped Hiruzen at every turn. He learned a B-rank kinjutsu in a matter of hours, saved an entire country on his first outing in the real world, granted that he did not do it alone, which resulted in said country opening excellent trading routes for Konoha and Hi no Kuni. Now there was this…at his current rate of progression the boy would surpass him by the tie he turned fifteen, and that was a scary thought.

What if Naruto decided to cut all ties with Konoha? He would not have thought about it before, but with his new personality taking over he (Hiruzen) just could not be too sure. He could not have an underling that was stronger than him. This tended to create a lack of respect, and one wrong argument could see to Naruto leaving Konoha and become a missing-nin. If the strongest shinobi in his village was weaker than him, then who could stop him? He did not want thoughts like that dancing around Naruto's head, and as such he decided to take up training again, something he had not done in ages.

If he was honest with himself with his initial scrutiny of his current standing in terms of power and skill, it would be safe to say that Jiraiya was stronger than him, but only just. The ANBU he was fighting were actually giving him a tougher time than he let on. He was supposed to be a symbol of strength, yet here he was, practically withering away like an old man that was waiting for death to take him. This thought disgusted him. He was supposed to be the Shinobi no Kami (God of Shinobi), and yet he was more like a Jonin.

Things had to change.

He had to thank Naruto for reigniting his Hi no Ishi (Will of Fire), it seemed as if peace had made him complacent. He was no longer the shinobi that had fearlessly stared down the Kyūbi with nothing but a bo staff in hand. He wanted that shinobi to come back to the world.

Two ANBU operatives burst from the shadows from different directions. One came from the right while the other came from the left. The operatives drew out their swords and slashed at their Hokage. They had been told by their Hokage not to hold back in the slightest when attacking him. It was not like they were stupid enough to do it. After all, who would hold back against the Shinobi no Kami?

Sarutobi Hiruzen saw the slashes being aimed at him, one coming in high while other came in low. Instead of trying to squeeze himself into the small space the operatives left in the middle, like he would have done in his older days, Hiruzen simply jumped into the air and surprised everyone that was there by landing on the blade of the one from the left, who came in high.

Before either shinobi could react to his impromptu move, Hiruzen performed a backflip, kicking the man whose sword his stood on, and landed on the sword of the man that came in low while simultaneously grabbing the ninjato of the man that he had sent flying backwards into the dirt and used it to cut the bicep of the arm that held the blade he currently stood on. Just as the bicep he had cut caused the arm that held the sword that he stood on to go slack, Hiruzen jumped off the blade and landed back on the ground, ninjato still in hand.

The ANBU operative whose bicep he had sliced slightly looked at him through the small holes in his mask. He flipped the blade he held in his right hand onto his left hand.

'Ah, I almost forgot that he was ambidextrous.' Hiruzen silently mused.

Hiruzen then made the come hither sign with his free left hand. The man rushed at Hiruzen with his sword drawn back; clearly he had a personalised kenjutsu style since that was not the one Konoha ANBU were taught. The operative, Gachou (Goose), attacked Hiruzen ferociously with his sword, forcing the aged Hokage to backpedal and defending against the stabs, slashes and powerful strikes. Hiruzen continued to stay on the defence as Gachou piled on the offense. Their blades crossed paths and locked with each other after about two minutes of Gachou failing to land anything but one scratch on Hiruzen.

While their blades were locked with each other, Gachou's blade, which was slightly shinier than the one Hiruzen was using, allowed him to see something moving on the ground behind him, headed towards him. It was a long black tendril that crept up to him quietly. He now understood why kenjutsu specialists like Gachou and Fukurō (Owl) were sent out first. They were meant to distract him long enough that Kuma (Bear) would be able to use his clan's Kage Mane no Jutsu on him.

'Too bad their plan was foiled by a new shiny sword.' Hiruzen thought, before he substituted with the unconscious body of Nezumi (Rat), allowing him a small reprieve. He internally sighed at having to take a small reprieve in battle. This would not have happened a decade ago. He needed to get back to his former strength, or at least something close to it.

He saw Gachou rush at him and he internally sighed once again.

'Let's get this over with.' The aged warrior mentally intoned, before he got into a defensive stance with the ninjato still in his possession.

xxXXxx

Present Time

Being a person that had two personalities melded into one was something that Uzumaki Naruto found to be stressful for his psyche. He could not decipher who he was even after two weeks of trying to get used to the duel identities fighting for dominance within him. Right now he was currently lying on his bed after the end of another day of training. He was trying to incorporate some of Asura's skills into himself. He was having moderate success with that right now.

Many thoughts plagued his head as he tried to make sense of them. He was supposedly someone that could fight on par with a Kage-level shinobi, yet he was only twelve. His training with Jiraiya involved him learning the Kuchiyose no Jutsu from the man, but that created a conflict within himself.

He understood that ninjutsu dominated the current world, but he also wanted to know exactly what it was that caused humanity to leave behind the teachings of Ninshū and adopt the lethal art of Ninjutsu. It did not make any sense to him. The more he thought about it, the more he realised that he would never be able to figure it out on his own. He needed the counsel of someone older and wiser than him. He needed the counsel of someone that knew of the world's workings. Maybe someone like his Ji-chan.

He felt a yawn escape through his lips, signifying his tired state of mind. Seeing that he had nothing left to do, he just let the fatigue he felt from the day's training pull him into a deep slumber.

Naruto's eyes snapped open and he found himself standing in front of the gigantic jail cell that housed the Kyūbi. Right now though, there was nothing but darkness behind the bars of the cell. He wondered how he had ended up here, but then chose to ignore that thought. If he was here then he might as well make the best of it.

"Hey Kyū- Kurama!" Naruto shouted at the darkness that prevailed inside the cell.

There were a few moments of silence within the confines of the cell, before the entity that was inside the cell released a large amount of air. This caused Naruto's hair and clothes to flutter backwards for a few seconds, before it all went back to normal.

"You have not yet earned the right to even speak that name, human." Kurama growled out in annoyance.

Naruto saw two eyes float in the darkness for a few seconds, before they were joined by a group of razor sharp teeth. He stared down the monstrosity fearlessly, making sure to not even blink as he said, "Well it's better than calling you Kyūbi, that's for sure."

Kurama growled once more, before he said, "I don't care…you have no right to call me by that name."

"Oh, and Asura did? Was it because he was born before you were created? Huh?" Naruto asked vehemently. He would have asked if it was due to the fact that Asura was the Sage's son, but chose not to because he 'remembered' Kurama having a deep dislike for Indra.

"No. Asura is part of a select group of humans I would never devour…he treats me with respect just as I do the same for him. You, on the other hand, are nothing but an insect that I can crush under my paw!" Kurama replied in anger. He did not want to tell Naruto that the other reason was because Asura was more power than he was.

"Wanna bet?" Naruto said those words with a steeled expression, his eyes narrowing dangerously, staring down the Kyūbi.

Kurama felt insulted that a mere human child thought he could take him, the mightiest of the bijū, on. He wanted to laugh but could not because he was angry; really, really angry, "You better tread carefully brat…just because you have Asura's powers doesn't mean you can use them like he could…you're a long way away from using such powers. Pick your fights carefully."

Kurama's tone had an underlying danger to it that made Naruto want to take a step back, but chose not to. He was not going to be out chickened by a fox.

"I should say the same for you. Pick your fights carefully, Kurama." Naruto accentuated Kurama's name just to agitate the fox. He was showing it that he was not afraid of it any longer. Not when he had all of the information he needed to defeat the fox, all courtesy of his past self.

Kurama growled angrily at the blonde boy, his paw came out of the shadows and struck the bars of the cell really hard and really fast. This unexpected move caused Naruto to flinch slightly.

Okay, so maybe he was still afraid of the fox.

"I didn't come here to fight!" The blonde shinobi said.

"Then why are you here, boy?" Kurama said, punctuating on the word boy just to annoy Naruto.

Naruto, while a little miffed at being called a boy, stilled his rising anger and looked the fox in the eyes and said, "I don't know…I came here shortly after falling asleep…I was thinking about…ah, that's it!"

Naruto snapped his fingers together as a smile adorned his face and he said, "Kurama…" this elicited a growl from the fox, but he chose to ignore it and moved on to a more pressing matter, "you've seen the world evolve ever since you were created by the Rikudō…tell me, what caused the world to give up on Ninshū."

Kurama came out of the shadows completely and glared at the boy with so much hate that if it could kill, Naruto would have died a hundred and fifty times over, "You come here and insult me, and then you ask me to tell you why the world gave up on Ninshū?! You are beyond stupid, you annoying brat."

Naruto silently cursed his own lack of respect and stupidity. If he and Asura had merged into one being, then would he not have gained the holy man's persona…oh wait, he did. Asura's memories told him of the type of person the man had been growing up, and he was exactly like him in nearly every single way. The only difference was that Asura had family, and he did not.

Despite all of that though, he felt the urge to apologise to the great fox that stood before him in all of its glory, "Sorry…"

It was but a whisper shared between the two of them, but Naruto was pretty confident that Kurama heard it loud and clear. He silently looked at the great fox, hoping that he would accept his apology, but after roughly two minutes of staring into each other's eyes, Naruto got the gist of what the fox wanted. So without another word uttered between them, Naruto turned on his heels, and silently exited the mind scape.

xxXXxx

Training Ground Zero

The sound of a battle being waged would be the first thing that would greet anyone that dared venture off into the Hokage's Battleground. It was a very intense one if gauging by the sounds emanating from the training field. If one took a closer look they would have seen Sarutobi Hiruzen standing in a small clearing, with a host of unconscious bodies lying at his feet, and a snare marring his facial features.

"Three ANBU platoons, THREE!" Hiruzen shouted at the top of his lungs, "Are you all truly so pathetic that you can't even defeat an old man?"

Hiruzen had been training relentlessly every day, goin up against tough odds just so he could push himself past his limits. He wanted to make sure that he was back to being at a level he would have been proud of. His current level was almost at the level that he wanted it to be at. He wanted to see just how far he could go in battle. He would have been a senile old fool if he thought that he could match the prowess he had in his prime. He was really old now, but that was no excuse not to give it his all, and then some, when it came to his training.

The current number of opponents he faced were three ANBU platoons. He chose these three platoons because they had people that specialised in every single shinobi art that there was. Ninjutsu, Taijutsu, Genjutsu, Bukijutsu, Fūinjutsu and even a couple of Hiden Jutsu, which were largely Konoha clan's' secret techniques. Hiruzen wanted to face them all, see how far he could go before keeling over from exhaustion.

The ANBU platoons had been cut down as if they were nothing by the Shinobi no Kami. He had made light work of any taijutsu and kenjutsu specialists. The tough ones were ninjutsu specialists and genjutsu specialists. Those that used clan techniques were not that much of a challenge either for the man due to the fact that he knew how each of their clan's techniques worked, and he had long since developed a way to counter them all. He was not called the Professor for nothing.

Hiruzen saw a gigantic shadow looming from above his own, and he knew exactly what was going to happen. It was the Baika no Jutsu (Expansion Technique) of the Akimichi clan. Without even going through the necessary hand seals, Hiruzen slammed his palm on the ground and shouted "Kuchiyose: Enkōō Enma (Summoning: Monkey King Enma)!"

There was a small plume of white smoke that enveloped Hiruzen, before it disappeared a second later and was replaced by the image of a white haired bipedal monkey that wore a black suit with mesh armour underneath a sleeveless kimono with white fur trimmings and tiger stripes. The monkey saw the looming shadow and knew exactly what its partner wanted. Without being told what to do, he simply shouted, "Henge (Transform)!" and transformed into a black and white adamantine staff that was quickly pitched to the ground with one end, like a flag pole, while the other end faced upwards.

"Extend!" Hiruzen shouted, and the staff obeyed its summoners command and grew in length and intercepted the falling Akimichi right in the kisser, making every male that was watching wince upon impact. A hand came out of the side of the staff and quickly flipped the Akimichi over, changing his trajectory and making him land on his back, far away from Hiruzen. The man who was currently in a lot of pain simply shrunk in size until he was in his normal state, which was relatively on the plus side of the scale.

Before he could do anything though, he was suddenly surrounded by earth that moved to cover his entire body save for his head. He looked up in time to see the Sandaime land on where his belly would have been had it not been covered in earth. The Sandaime shifted his foot on the man's earthen belly and black markings appeared all over him.

"Now you're locked in place." was all the Akimichi heard his Hokage say.

Hiruzen, with Enma in hand, looked at the surrounding tree and sweat trickling down his brow. He had been at this for slightly over an hour now, if his guess was correct, but that meant nothing to him. As he scouted his surroundings, trying to see what his underlings might do, he suddenly felt a presence approach the training ground, one which he had not felt in a very long time.

Hiruzen looked towards the gate that sealed off training ground zero, before he held up the ram hand seal, which commanded the gate to open. On the other side of the gate stood a man that had shaggy black hair, a bandage wrapped around his forehead and his right eye, a face that had a bulbous nose and a few wrinkles here and there, and an x shaped scar on his chin. The man wore a white shirt, with a dark grey robe over the top of his shirt, and the robe went from his right shoulder down to his feet. His right arm, which was badly damaged during the Third Shinobi War, was now concealed inside his robes in a strap. His left hand held a cane that he used as a means of supporting himself.

The ANBU that had been fighting Hiruzen, the ones that were not restrained or out-cold, quickly jumped and stood beside their Hokage, while the other's remained hidden. Hiruzen quickly waved his hand, as if shooing the ANBU that stood beside him away, and they complied, scattering into the trees and staying hidden there. Hiruzen approached the man that had walked into his training ground, Enma still in hand. Once they were within five feet of each other they both stopped and stared at each other coolly.

There were a tense few moments of silence between the two old men. The only thing that could be heard was the gentle wind blowing through the area. The tension between them was steadily growing within the atmosphere of training ground zero. Even the hidden ANBU could feel the tension between the two old men. It was so thick in the air that you could cut it with a knife. The two men continued to look at each other for a few more seconds, neither saying anything to the other, before they both suddenly let small smiles grace their features. Their smiles did not destroy the tension that was there, but merely diluted it.

"Danzō, it's good to see you old friend." Hiruzen said with a small smile of his own.

"Hiruzen." Danzō responded with a curt nod.

"Too what do I owe this pleasure?" Hiruzen asked. Hiruzen may have been many things, but a fool he was not. He knew that Danzō was here for an important reason, one which Hiruzen could likely guess.

"Straight to the point, huh, old friend." Danzō said, using the same term to describe what Hiruzen was to him.

Hiruzen did not answer immediately; instead he chose to walk towards the gates that lead into and out of the training ground. He knew Danzō would follow him so he did not say anything. As he walked at a brisk pace, Danzō caught up to him, and they continued walking together in silence. It was less than a minute afterwards that Hiruzen reignited their conversation.

"You confuse the smile on my face as a friendly gesture, but we both know that it is anything but." Hiruzen said sagely.

"Then why smile if you don't mean it, old friend?" Danzō asked, his small smile disappearing from his face.

"Think of it as a courtesy to the man you once were. The man who was my best friend." Hiruzen stated calmly.

"We still are best friends…" Danzō said. It held some truth to it. Hiruzen was the only person Danzō referred to as a friend throughout the entire continent.

"Perhaps you are right, Danzō. We may still be best friends…but then again one could never be too sure when dealing with the devil." Hiruzen said, still keeping his calm tone.

"Oh, so I'm the devil now, huh?" Danzō asked with a hint of sarcasm.

"What else would you call yourself, Danzō?" Hiruzen said, his face finally losing the smile it once had, "I mean you have continuously gone against my back on numerous occasions and did as you pleased…you even tried to kill me, remember?"

Danzō scowled at that. He remembered having planned on assassinating Hiruzen once before, but it was thanks to that brat Hatake Kakashi that his plan failed. In all likelihood Danzō thought that he should be dead right now, but Hiruzen's naivety is the only reason why he was still alive today. Danzō hated being reminded of that incident because it was a great failure of his, and he let it be known that he did not like it by saying, "I can't believe that you of all people are bringing up old grudges."

"Yes, I am bringing it up!" Hiruzen said in a voice that dripped with authority, "You tried to have your so-called best friend killed just so you could have the one thing that has always eluded you. The title of Hokage. I realise now that I should have dealt with you differently than the way I did a few years ago."

Danzō was stumped by this. He had not expected Hiruzen to act like this. Seeing Hiruzen speak like this reminded him of their prime, when Danzō was somewhat afraid of Hiruzen. Now he was bringing up an incident that happened a little over a decade ago and he was saying that he should have either imprisoned him or worse. Just what was going on with his old friend?

As if he was reading his thoughts Hiruzen said, "My Hi no Ishi has long since diminished from what it once was…"

'Ah, that explains it.' Danzō rationalised. The Senju's falsified belief that has caused Hiruzen to make many mistakes in his rule over Konoha was the cause for Hiruzen's current mood. This was a classic example why he always stressed that the best shinobi were those with no emotion at all.

"…however, I have slowly been feeding the flames within me. Now, I know you had a purpose for coming here, old friend, so tell me what it is?" Hiruzen asked.

Danzō, having been shocked by his oldest friend into a slight stupor, regained his bearings and said, "The massive chakra that was felt throughout the village two weeks ago…what is it?"

Hiruzen felt like smirking. He had been on the money when it came to his guess. He had expected Danzō a lot sooner than today. He slightly wondered why he had not come to him before today. His oldest friend actually thought that the chakra belonged to a thing, or to be more precise, a bijū. He knew that the man thought that it was the Kyūbi, and he would be partially right if he had voiced his theory. The chakra did not come from the Kyūbi, but rather its Jinchuriki.

"The answer to your question is simple," Hiruzen began sagely, "what you search for is not a what, but rather a who."

Danzō was shocked by what he heard, although he did not let it show. Hiruzen was insinuating that there was a shinobi, that was currently within Konoha's walls that had the chakra level of a Bijū. It was with that thought that he quickly guessed who his old rival was talking about, "Uzumaki Naruto…so he's got control of the Kyūbi?"

That would be something, at such a young age no less. He knew the boy was being trained by Jiraiya, but still…

"You are right on one count. It is Uzumaki Naruto, but he does not have the Kyūbi under his control." Hiruzen said calmly.

"So the beast took over him?" Danzō asked.

"No…that was all Naruto-kun's doing." Hiruzen said calmly.

"What?!" Danzō could not help but blurt out.

"Yes, Naruto has somehow unlocked some part of his dormant Uzumaki genes, resulting in him gaining excess amounts of chakra." Hiruzen lied, but with Danzō not facing him, the man would never be able to tell. Danzō was no master at interrogation, but having been the leader of an off the books black ops division allowed him to pick up a thing or two. Thankfully for Hiruzen, Danzō was not good enough to sense voice fluctuations. Even if he was, Hiruzen had made sure that his voice was even, making sure to make it sound like he was telling the truth.

"So the boy was the reason for that powerful presence?" Danzō asked.

"Yes…but this is only known by you, me and Jiraiya…I told all the other shinobi not to investigate since I knew who it was." Hiruzen said.

"The less people that know the better it will be to conceal this information." Danzō said.

Hiruzen merely nodded his head in agreement to what Danzō said. Hiruzen then said, "Don't tell me you want to make a power play by going after the boy?"

"Do I look like some cheap, two-bit childish villain that has nothing better to do than cause trouble with underhanded schemes?" Danzō asked rhetorically.

Hiruzen merely laughed at that. It was true, while Danzō was a schemer, so was he; he did not make a power play every time something happened. Only a stupid person would do that, and Danzō was certainly not stupid.

"What of the Uchiha?" Danzō asked.

"If you are referring to Sasuke being mentally unstable since he gained the Curse Mark, don't worry. He's fine. I've had Kakashi keep a close eye on him." Hiruzen answered.

"I see…" was all Danzō said, before the two men continued to walk in silence until they reached the Hokage Tower. Enma, who was still in Hiruzen's hand, simply disappeared in a puff of smoke, while Danzō hobbled away in a different direction. Hiruzen merely shook his head and entered the tower; he had other priorities to attend to than worry about his old friend's machinations.

xxXXxx

Two Weeks Later

Naruto's eyes shot open as he was greeted by the sound of his alarm blaring at him. Its annoying sound was enough to make any sane man insane. He had half a mind to just take the darn device and chuck it at the nearby wall. But alas he had other priorities to attend to. Naruto jumped out of his bed, made his way to the bathroom in his small apartment, before he opened the door and quickly shut it behind him. He emerged a few minutes later, looking fresh and feeling clean. He wore nothing but a towel around his waist.

He walked back into his bedroom, put on some body lotion, before he slipped on a clean pair of underwear. He then walked to a small closet that housed his clothes. He opened it and he was immediately greeted by the sight of the fresh clothes he recently acquired at the behest of Jiraiya. He said the Chunin exam finals deserved to be marked with a new set of clothes, he said something about standing out and making sure the judges remember you. He slipped on an orange pair of pants, a matching colour shirt that had a giant black magatama etched on his chest and abdomen, along with a blue jacket with white sleeves. The cuffs of his jacket had magatama designs going all around them. He slipped on a pair of blue sandals and the blue headband he got from Iruka-sensei.

Once it was all said and done, he looked at himself in the mirror, making sure everything was in place, before he picked up a small pouch and put it on his lower back region. Once he was done with that, he made his way over to the kitchen, where he poured some milk in his cereal, ate it, and then left a few minutes later.

Today was the big day. It was the Chunin Exam finals. He was extremely excited about today's events. He could finally test his strength against the best genin from all over the continent, and see exactly where he ranked in skill. His training over the last month had been arduous to say the least, but he knew he was ready. In fact, he was ready from the moment he first merged personalities with his past self. Sure he had not quite mastered al of the emotional strains that came with having practically two personalities inside of him, but he was coping.

He had taken to meditating to help clear his mind. Asura's memories allowed him to view some of the teachings that he had learned from his father, and meditation was one of them. According to the Rikudō Sennin, meditation is the best tool to help you when you are gathering your thoughts, so that was what Naruto did whenever he was not training to master the powers that were in him, he simply meditated.

Another thing that had helped him in his pursuit to gather himself once again, was the Hokage. The old man had come to see him during his training, and he had suggested that Naruto have a Yamanaka delve into his mind. Suffice to say that Naruto disagreed at first, sighting things like the need for secrecy and a lot more other things. The old man was able to get him to finally agree when he said that he was only going to let Inoichi, Ino's father, delve into his mind.

Apparently the man was greatly respected by the old man and was very good at keeping confidential things…confidential. The man was able to delve into Naruto's mind, hoping to find exactly what the problem was, but when he came up empty-handed, Naruto knew that meditation was going to be his best bet. The old man helped him by teaching him stress relieving techniques, hoping that it could make his meditation easier.

While Naruto was not even closer to being a master of meditation, he was competent enough. He had to chalk it up to having an adult-ish mind. His meditation may not have helped one hundred percent, but he was still able to gain a sense of who he was better than before. He was back to using conjectures and being loud when talking to people, so that meant that he had made a lot of progress. He just was not sure how much.

As Naruto thought about this and more, he came across someone sitting at a bench near the park in Konoha. He immediately recognised who this person was and he was immediately riddled with guilt. Her short, indigo hair flowed seamlessly as she as she turned her head and looked at him with eyes that seemed like they had no pupil. As she looked at him, he noticed that her cheeks reddened slightly. Oh well, guess there was no escape for him now.

"Hey Hinata." Naruto greeted nervously. He noticed that the girl's cheeks became slightly redder.

'Great, she's angry at me…just like I thought.' Naruto morbidly thought.

"N-Naruto-kun." Hinata managed to greet back.

There were a few moments of silence; no one was sure about what to say to the other. Surprisingly though, it was Hinata who mastered up the courage to speak to Naruto.

"A-Are you ready, Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked nervously, thinking that Naruto did not want to talk to her.

"Uh- yeah…yeah, I'm ready." Naruto answered, before the atmosphere around them both screamed AWKWARD.

Naruto saw Hinata's head bow down, as if she was in shame, so he quickly asked, "Hinata, what's wrong?"

Hinata's head snapped towards him the second he asked that question, "N-Nothing, N-Naruto-kun."

"Oh…okay." Silence reigned between them, but Naruto grew tired of it and said, "Oh what the heck…listen, I'm terribly sorry for what I did to you!"

Hinata looked at him like he had grown a second head. Chalking it up to him gaining some semblance of adult understanding, because he saw that she was confused, so he said, "I mean…I'm the reason why you got so beat up during the exams. I kept on encouraging you to go at it...looking back now I feel terrible for doing such a thing."

Call it the slight sense of maturity in him, but Naruto had thought about what occurred between Neji and Hinata and he deduced that it was his fault that Hinata ended up hospitalised. If he had simply accepted that Neji was the stronger of the two, then maybe she would not have been put in hospital. Maybe if he had not merged with Asura yet, he would be talking to her about something else, maybe the fear that he once held inside his heart, the fear of disappointing everyone, and especially himself. He might have been too dense to see that he had practically put Hinata in hospital.

Hinata, when he finished speaking, just lowered her head and kept it that way for a few seconds, before she furiously shook it as if not accepting his apology, "I-I refuse." She said resolutely, "I refuse to allow you to think that it was your fault that I got injured."

She then looked up at Naruto, who had a shocked expression on his face, while she spotted a bright blush on her face and a fierce determination at the same time, as she said, "I-I got injured because I was not strong enough. I c-can't let you beat yourself up over it. A-After all, w-we have the same nindo."

I stand by what I say…

The words echoed throughout Naruto's mind, not really sure how he should go about using this information he just received.

"I-I'm sorry," Hinata continued, face still red like a tomato, "I-I'm s-sorry if I made you think that it was your fault that I lost. I-It wasn't your fault, N-Naruto-kun."

Naruto continued to look at Hinata with a shocked expression on his face, still not able to comprehend what she was saying.

"That's why…that's why I w-want to make a promise to you, a promise that…o-o-our shared nindo will force me to keep at no matter what." Hinata seemed to have trouble when she said the word 'our', not because she could not say it, but because the implications behind it meant something else to her.

"What is that promise?" Naruto asked after a few moments of silence, finally having found his voice.

Hinata could not believe that she was speaking so much with Naruto. Before, during her days in the academy, she would have killed to have the confidence that she now had, no matter how minuscule it was, to speak to her crush. Now though, the task did not seem so daunting. After he had openly cheered her at the chunin exam preliminaries, the confidence grew within her. His belief in her showed her that maybe, just maybe, there was a way to change her fate. After all, Naruto had been the dead last student at the Academy, and yet here he was, about to go head to head with her cousin Neji, who was the previous year's top graduate, in the Chunin Exam Finals. Now here she was, also using her new found confidence, to speak to him without fainting.

She drew in a lungful of air quietly, before she exhaled it and said, "I promise to get stronger…not just for me, but for y-y-you too." Once again, Hinata seemed to struggle with saying something, because it held a deeper meaning to her than Naruto realised, "You believed in me in my fight against Neji nii-san, so I want to return the favour by getting stronger…for the both of us."

Her words impacted Naruto like nothing before. He did not realise that his words had inspired Hinata so much. His nindo was her nindo, and she just swore on it to get stronger, for them both. Seeing her conviction also inspired something in Naruto. He looked at her and smiled. It was not his big, goofy smile, but a more subtle, yet even warmer smile.

"Arigato, Hinata…I did not realise that my words meant so much to you." Naruto said.

Hinata, seeing his smile, bowed her head slightly, her confidence slowly disappearing, "They do. T-T-They inspire me greatly."

"Then allow me to make a promise as well." Naruto said, "I promise to go out there and win, not only for me, but for you as well. That jerk needs to be put in his place for what he did to you."

And by jerk he meant her cousin, Neji. Hinata accepted his promise with a nod and a small smile on her face.

There was a slightly peaceful silence between the two of them, both thinking about something that involved the other. For Hinata it was the fact that she had taken her first step towards telling Naruto about how she felt, and for Naruto it was how he inspired her. Then he looked at her once again, her head still bowed down, before he suddenly had a bright idea. He put his hand on her chin and brought her head up, not realising the intimate nature of this gesture, before he said, "Hey Hinata…you were going to watch the matches at the stadium, right?"

Hinata, whose face was now filled to the brim with blood that rushed to it due to her mortification of being held in such an intimate manner by the blonde boy, could only nod her head in agreement and not construct a single word.

Naruto, Mister-Ever-The-Oblivious, simply said, "Excellent, well you could come with me!"

Hinata had to commend herself for not fainting on the spot. Naruto was practically asking her out on a date, but he just did not realise it. His denseness added the cute element to everything that he said or did, and this time was no exception. Hinata thought that she could not go redder, but she did, with so much blood in her face, one would think that she would faint, and she was close to doing so, but then one train of thought stopped her from doing so.

She was supposed to be turning over a new leaf, working towards being stronger. It would not bode well for her if she just fainted in front of him. Who knew what this moment signified for her, but she did know that she would be going back on her promise of getting stronger if she fainted right here. It would have been a sign of her weakness.

She wanted to change that perception of herself. She wanted to be strong, not only for herself, but also for Naruto. So that was why she answered with a timid, but very promising, "O-Okay."

Naruto beamed at her answer and said, "Yatta! C'mon, let's go."

Before Hinata could change her mind, Naruto grabbed her shoulders, turned her around and made her face the direction of the stadium, before he began pushing her lightly as if he was commanding a carriage and said, "This way…"

He then laughed at her when she squeaked out an, "Eek!"

"Let's play a game, I'll pretend to be blind while you lead the way, but you can't walk like you normally do…I have to push you all of the way." Naruto said excitedly.

Hinata could not help but feel excited, Naruto's atmosphere was contagious, so she also felt a bit excited and said, "O-Okay."

Naruto pushed her a bit faster and said, "You're my eyes, Hinata."

"H-Hai." She said in her soft spoken way. Hinata began directing Naruto by telling him to turn left or right or proceed straight down the path they were on. Hinata, having been barred from walking, was forced to lean back into him while he pushed her forward like a trolley.

Naruto noticed that a silence had descended upon them so he decided to break it.

"You know, I used to find you weird before. You were always so meek and shy; I never truly understood what type of person you are." Naruto said, still pushing her lightly, "But I've come to realise that you are a great person, meekness and all. I really like you now."

Of course Naruto had meant it in a platonic way, but that was not how Hinata registered it, and as such, she promptly fainted. Naruto did not realise this as he continued to push her. She just leaned back into Naruto's grasp some more, while the soles of her feet left a deep trench in their wake. She woke up about thirty seconds later, still in the clutches of Naruto, who was still oblivious to her fainting episode, and she simply straightened herself, face a little less red than before, and she smiled a small smile as she thought about the conversation she just had.

They got to the stadium twenty minutes before the fights began. Naruto wondered if he had not merged persona's with Asura, if he was going to be on time. Maybe he would have woken up late and then run into Konohamaru, before being chased by bulls around the village as he lost his sense of direction. Naruto quickly shook his head and internally laughed.

'Ha, like something that wild and random could ever happen?' Naruto inwardly thought.

When they reached the entrance to the stadium, Naruto and Hinata separated, but not before Hinata wished Naruto good luck, before she disappeared to the audience. Naruto headed to the competitors that were lined up in front of everyone at the centre of the stadium. Naruto was feeling anxious and excited at the same time at the prospect of competing in the finals of the chunin exam, but he was not just competing, he wanted to win. He wanted to win the right to be a chunin, and with his recent merge with a being that possessed knowledge passed down to him by the Rikudō, Naruto had the tools to win this tournament in his hands.

When Naruto made it to the centre of the exam arena he saw all of the contestants turn and look at him with a quizzical look, well at least most of them had that look, while the others, like Gaara and Neji, simply did not care. Naruto moved and stood next to the other competitors. He noticed that Sasuke was the only person that was not there yet. He chalked it up to Kakashi-sensei's tardiness.

As he patiently waited out the time remaining before the event began, he heard someone call out to him from the side. When he looked he saw that it was Shikamaru and he had a slightly quizzical look on his face as he said, "What's with the new look?"

"A suggestion by Ero-sennin." was Naruto's reply. Shikamaru did not know who Ero-sennin was, but he chose not to ask. He had already wasted his breath asking about Naruto's new look.

The time ticked down but still there was no Uchiha Sasuke. He seemed to be late. Naruto silently swore at his sensei. This exam would not be the same if Sasuke were not here. He did not want Sasuke to get disqualified due to two reasons. Number one was that he wanted to kick the bastard's ass, and number two was that he wanted the remaining members of team seven to duke it out in the finals of the exams.

When the time came for the exam to begin, Naruto heard some people talking about the possibility of Sasuke getting kicked out of the finals for tardiness, but thankfully it was not made official. The Hokage stood up from his seat in the Kage box and addressed the crowd that was made up of men and women from all walks of life. Once the old man was done there was a man that came up to them and said, "My name is Shiranui Genma, I'm the proctor for the finals."

"What happened to the other guy?" Naruto asked the question that was on most of the competitors minds.

"He called in sick." Genma replied, before he took out a piece of paper and said, "Now I want you to look at the way things have been arranged, because this is how the matches will be structured."

They all took a look at the piece of paper even though they knew how everyone lined up today. Once that was all said and done, Genma told everyone except for Naruto and Neji to leave and head to the stands. When they were all gone, Genma turned to the duo and said, "Are you ready."

Both boys nodded their heads.

Taking it as a sign to begin, the man said, "Hajime."

The Chunin Exam Finals were on.

xxXXxx

Chapter End

I could have released this chapter on Sunday, but I chose not to because of my own reasons.

Someone said to me that Naruto has 80% Asura and only 20% percent of himself, and they seemed kinda miffed about it. I want to let you all know that while Naruto acts more like an all-knowing man in the beginning, know that as the story winds down, Naruto's original personality will become the dominant one.

Just on a side note, this story is going to be a Naru/Hina Story. If you don't like it, then you can stop reading right here. I also don't do character bashes, so if you're hoping for something like that, then you won't find it here. I have nothing against any Naruto characters…okay maybe I do have something against one or two, but that doesn't mean I will bash them. It's just stupid.

On another note, this story will follow cannon up until chapter six, so from chapter seven it will deviate into my own unique plot.

With that said, Thabane has left the building.