The roaring flames spread throughout the forest spreading its fiery limbs through every patch of grass and every tree in sight. Sasuke stood stunned at the amount of damage he just created, he was responsible for starting a wildfire in the leaf village. He had no idea what the punishment for the crime was, but he wasn't going to stick around and find out. He had begun to leave the scene, but he heard a gasp for air and a splash which caused him to look in the direction of the noise. Sasuke frowned considerably when he saw Fu and Kenji poke their heads out of the pond. He wasn't trying to kill them, but he was hoping that he would have put them out of commission with his jutsu. A bit of the pressure he was feeling did subside when he realize that he didn't have to worry about being blamed for the death of his classmates.

Kenji and Fu pulled themselves outside of the pond and both gasped at the wildfire that was caused by Sasuke's jutsu. Kenji turned to see Sasuke staring at him and immediately pulled out a kunai. Sasuke went back into his battle stance. He was ready to continue where they left off but Fu stood in front of him with her hands stretched out.
battle

"We don't have time for this, we've got to get out of here before they send someone" Fu said trying to talk some sense into Kenji and Sasuke.

Kenji thought about it for a second before putting his kunai back in its pouch. A part of him was glad that Fu was thinking rationally as he was exhausted from training and the fight with Sasuke before. Sasuke was also tired and all his chakra was nearly consumed. Kenji grabbed Fu's hand and ran towards the training ground entrance while Sasuke trailed behind them.

They made it to the entrance where they saw Sarada waiting for Sasuke.

"SASUKE!" Sarada shouted as she ran to give him a hug. She had been worried that Sasuke could have been hurt but she was happy that Sasuke appeared to be fine. She hugged Sasuke who briefly returned the sentiment.

"This is all nice and all but we've got to get out of here" Kenji stated before grabbing Fu's hand.

"HEY YOU FOUR! HOLD ON" a voice in the distance shouted.

Kenji looked in the direction to see what appeared to be two Jonin rushing towards them in the distance. Everyone wasted no time in scattering into the village to lose the Jonin. They ran a few blocks from the training grounds. The streets were beginning to lose it's crowd due to it being late. Fortunately, the training grounds were near their apartment, so Kenji and Fu would be able to make it there soon. Not wanting to appear suspicious, they decided to stop running to be

Kenji noticed that Sasuke and Sarada were trailing behind them, so he stopped and turned to both Uchiha members.

"Why are you following us still, you got what you want and you almost screwed us over" Kenji said.

"Shut up loser, all of this is your fault!" Sasuke stated with a glare towards Kenji

"Yeah it's totally my fault, I am the genius who decided to light a forest on fire because I'm a narcissist who can't admit he lost" Kenji said sarcastically.

Sasuke clenched his fist but then calmed down when he realized that it would just lead to more bad news.

"Yo" A voice said behind them

Everyone jumped in surprised and turned to see a Jonin standing behind them. Kenji looked at him as he seemed familiar, but Fu instantly recognized him

"Hey, you're that Kakashi guy we met when we first came to the village" Fu said smiling.

"It's good to see you too Fu, how are you all doing?" Kakashi said cheerfully.

Fu instantly was reminded of the events that transpired and wasn't sure what to say in response but Kenji knowing that Fu wasn't good at lying decided to jump in

"We were hanging out with Sasuke and Sarada and are coming back from eating" Kenji said without a hiccup in his voice.

Sasuke gave a bewildered look at Kenji before regaining his posture.

"You don't seem to share the same sentiment do you Sasuke" Kakashi said picking up on Sasuke's reaction.

"No, he's right. I was giving Kenji tips on how to stop being a slacker in class. He practically begged me to help him to become a better ninja" Sasuke said dismissively.

Kenji eyebrows arched, and his face tensed despite showing a smile and this was something that Kakashi easily caught but he didn't mention it.

" Yeah Sasuke was giving us tips on how to be a better ninja, he showed us the importance of fleeing when the situation gets hot" Fu said which lead to Kenji smiling heavily trying to hold his laughter

"Listen here you little sh…." Sasuke began to say before Sarada cut him off.

"I'm sorry, it's really getting late and we have to get going" Sarada said with a hint of urgency.

"Yeah our apartment is at the end of the block, we really have to be getting to sleep" Kenji said agreeing with Sarada.

"Oh well I won't keep you waiting any longer. I think it's great that you've made some friends so close to where you stay Kenji" Kakashi said

"What are you talking about?" Kenji questioned not exactly understanding what Kakashi was referring to

"Oh you didn't know? Sasuke lives in the same building as you" Kakashi said in a giddy tone.

Sasuke and Kenji looked at each other with wild bewilderment before regaining their composure. Kenji wondered why Sasuke and Sarada would be living in the same apartment as he pretty sure when looking at a map of the village that there was an Uchiha compound somewhere in the village.

"Well I guess I'll take my leave… Oh by the way, you kids wouldn't know anything about the wildfire incident at one of the village training grounds would you?"

"No idea" they all said in unison

"Hmmm ok, you kids stay safe now" Kakashi said before disappearing in a puff of smoke

"Jeez that was a close one" Kenji said while wiping his forehead. It had been stressful thinking what would have happened if Kakashi found out that they were responsible for the wildfire. Kenji turned to see Sasuke and Sarada entering the same apartment complex that they lived in.

"Figures... Not even a thank you for covering his ass" Kenji said under his break.

"Be nice, at least the day is done." Fu responded legs still sore from all the running she had to do.

"Have you ever thought about cutting your hair" Fu asked while putting a sushi roll into her mouth.

Kenji ran his hand through his hair, his hair had grown in the last 6 months and he gotten a bit taller too. He liked where his hair was as it rested along right above his shoulders. Kenji was currently was at lunch with Fu, Karin, Naruto, Sasuke, Ino, Hinata and Sarada.

"Nah, I like the look"

"Careful now, cut it too low and Karin might lose her crush on you" Naruto said off handedly before a foot slammed down on his head. He immediately fell off the chair which made everyone else burst into laughter. Karin with a huge blush on her face went back to her miso ramen and everything became silent once more once.

"Are you guys ready for the graduation exams?" Naruto said once back on his chair

"Do you even have to ask? Pretty much all of us are at the top marks right now so it should be a breeze" Sarada replied

"If anything, I'd say you're the only one of us who isn't ready Naruto" Fu said with her tongue sticking out

Fu had a point since Naruto did not have as good as marks as everyone else. He wasn't a slouch at all, but he was more of a practical learner than a bookworm and that had some effect on his assignments.

"The better question is who's going to get the best marks" Ino said with a smirk

"It'll obviously be me" Both Sasuke and Kenji said in unison before scowling at each other.

"Why do you think it would be you? I'm better than you"

"Well I was the one who kicked your ass last week during Taijutsu training" Sasuke replied a smirk

"INO DISTRACTED ME!" Kenji shouted with a blush remembering the event.

"Don't be angry that I'm beautiful" Ino said angrily that Kenji tried to use her as an excuse

Ino furrowed her brow, she didn't intend to distract Kenji. In fact, she was trying to get Sasuke's attention by showing off her new sundress outfit that she brought to class but it had the opposite effect. Sasuke didn't even seem to glance at her whereas Kenji gawked at her. The momentary distraction allowed Sasuke to flip him over and hold his fist over his face giving him the victory.

She toned out their argument to just observe how chummy the two had gotten in the past 6 months. She first assumed that they would have grown to be the worst of rivals when she found out that the Uchihas were Kenji and Fu's next-door neighbors in the same pricey apartment complex, but something had been different almost immediately. Although they were still usually antagonistic towards each other, there was something off about them. She had been shocked to find out that they had been training with each other occasionally. Kenji however said it was to keep him in check whatever that meant but clearly, she saw that it was a mutually beneficial relationship when it was revealed that Sasuke helped Kenji with doing a fire style technique. She brought herself out of her mind when she heard they were talking about her.

"Real shinobi don't get distracted by stupid things" Sasuke said.

"Don't be a dick Sasuke" Karin said irritated that Sasuke was oblivious to the girl's feelings.

Kenji glanced at Ino and saw the shift in her mood when he said that, so he decided that he would try to cheer up.

"Real shinobi do get distracted by pretty girls though"

Ino immediately blushed after hearing Kenji's statement. She was not one to have such a reaction from a compliment as she always got them from academy students, but it felt a bit different hearing it from Kenji.

Kenji was going to say another comment, but he felt a sharp kick hit him from the bottom of the table

"Ow, what the hell Karin?"

"Oops it was an accident" Karin said with a smile although on the inside she was reeling a bit that Kenji gave Ino a compliment. Kenji was just as inconsiderate to people who liked him as Sasuke was. Kenji took her apology but the more he thought about it the more he realized that she didn't really apologize to begin with.

The bell rang which indicated that lunch period was over, and Kenji groaned at the fact that he would have to go back to class. He took one last bite out of his sandwich before following group back to the classroom.

Kenji slumped his head down on the table in despair after giving his written exam paper. A week had passed, and he was in such high spirits a couple of hours ago that he would ace the written exam. That was until Kenji got the test in his hand from Mizuki, the proctor of the exam.

'This is going to be a breeze' Kenji mentally said prepping himself for the question.

'Question One: Decipher the cryptograph above using the pictured cipher which was used by the Leaf Village during the Second Shinobi World War.' He read before immediately freezing up

It was like a kunai pierced the chest of his body. How the hell was he expected to know something like this when it was never covered in the class? Kenji's eyes darted around to see how the other students were fairing and was shocked to see that almost everyone was working through the exam. Even the weird sub-par Kiba seem to be flying through the exam pages. Sighing to himself, he tried to answer the 25-question test which seem to get excruciatingly difficult with every question. By the time he was done, he felt like he was broken.

Kenji stopped remembering what happened and put his head up when Fu started to walk towards his seat. She was just about to say something but Mizuki came up to him.

"Sorry to interrupt, Kenji do you mind I speak to you for a second outside?" Mizuki said calmly in his usual cheery manner.

"Uh sure, I was going to talk to you anyway" Kenji said before looking at Fu

"I'll talk to you after this"

"Ok" Fu said a bit saddened by the fact that she would have to wait to speak to Kenji.

Kenji followed Mizuki who seemed to lead him outside of the academy to the back of the building which Kenji found odd. He decided to bring up the exam grade.

"Hey Mizuki sensei, I think there was an issue with my exam. I don't think I…" Kenji began to say before Mizuki interrupted

"That's why I brought you here" Mizuki said before flashing a smile that Kenji found creepy.

"I'm disappointed in you Kenji, you got the worst scores out of the entire class. Now I can easily change the grade for you to give you a passing grade, but you have to do something for me first"

Kenji couldn't believe that he gotten the worst score in the class especially since his class had students like Kiba who all weren't that bright.

"Can you look it over again? I think that there was an error with the grading" Kenji said nervously realizing that he would have to repeat the academy.

"Make no mistake, this is just a courtesy I wanted to give you because of how much of a good student you've been but if you want to pass this offer then I will go to one of the other students who failed the exam" Mizuki said sternly.

Mizuki had begun to walk away before Kenji ran up to him.

"Wait! Ok I'll do it. What do you need" Kenji said dejectedly.

Mizuki gave a smile which looked sinister which was not lost on Kenji but he needed to past the academy with all his friends. He had heard stories about students who remained in academy for years and the usual trend was that these people had to retire because they weren't good enough to be Genin.

Mizuki pulled out a scroll out of one of the pockets from his chunin vest and tossed it at Kenji.

"At Midnight, you will have the task of obtaining a particular scroll called the scroll of sealing from the Hokage's Mansion"

"You want me to commit a robbery on the Hokage!?" Kenji said shocked

"Absolutely not, this is just a unique examination that is done for students who fail the written exam. We do this for the kind of students who excel in raw ninja skills as opposed to the more practical students who can excel in written exams, catch my drift" Mizuki explained.

Kenji knew that Mizuki explanation was complete garbage, but he also knew that Mizuki oversaw the grading and he was in a position where he could bury. He though about the options and made his decision.

"I'll do it, what does this scroll look like and where do I bring it" Kenji inquired

"That's the attitude I like, that scroll I gave you is the schematics to the Hokage's mansion, there is generally a perimeter of Anbu and Tokubetsu Jōnin but the shifts change at midnight and that will be your opening to getting in the mansion. The scroll should be locked behind a glass display and it's a giant scroll with green markings"

"I'll be proctoring from the outside to make sure no one interferes in your examination but you are absolutely required to not get caught by anyone or it's an immediate disqualification. You will meet up with me at the location marked on the scroll."

'This doesn't sound right' Kenji thought before realizing that he was curious about what was in the scroll.

"Yes Sir" Kenji said before beginning to walk away. He'd have a lot of preparing to do because he could not afford to fail this exam after failing the first.

"One more thing Kenji, you cannot tell anyone about this because it causes a huge ruckus in the academy and this exam is only for a specific set of students. Understand?"

"Yeah I got it. If that's all, I must go back to class now"

"No problem, good luck with the exam" Mizuki said before disappearing in a cloud of smoke.

Kenji walked back into the classroom and sat down. Fu noticed that he was deep in thought which was usually normal but the circumstances of talking to Mizuki made her suspicious.

"Is everything ok Kenji?" Fu asked with a deep concerned gaze.

Kenji delivered a smile before responding. "Everything is great, why wouldn't they be?"

A/N: Hello my fellow Naruto fans and readers, I guess I've got some explaining to do on why I haven't updated in months (maybe a year if we're being honest). Well the simple answer is that life works in mysterious ways and I've been going through a lot of change in my life. Everything seemed to slow down which means that I'll hopefully be able to update more. I am planning to get into a schedule of dropping 1 chapter per month for each story. I feel like 1 chapter a month for two stories is doable.

Now here is the good news, I'm already almost done with the next chapter so you get two chapters this month for this story as kind of a sorry for not updating sooner. The next chapter should be up the next week or so and don't forget to review, I read all of them regardless of whether it's praise, criticism, questions or just comments on the story.