I couldn't believe my eyes. People in the Elemental Nations have long speculated, but nobody has ever seen one. Only some of the summons have caught a glimpse. Even in the time of the Sage, it was merely thought of as a legend.

My eyes didn't lie though. Before me, floating as it gently flapped, was a scarlet and gold coloured bird wreathed in fire. A phoenix if I wasn't mistaken!

" Your eyes do not deceive you, child of the spiral. I am indeed a phoenix. My kind have never deigned to interfere in the affairs of mortals. Why should we? It has been a continuation of the same thing, since the time of the great beginning. "

" We thought we had seen and heard it all. Then, 10 years ago we felt it. Your birth. We have been anxiously waiting for you to summon us. No mortal has ever had the honour. Until you. Reborn from an old life into a new. Mastery of fire. "

" It is as if you were created solely to be our summoner. We too are reborn. Constantly. When our bodies die, we burst into flames and are reborn from the ashes. Our tears have healing powers. We can carry immense loads. Can appear instantaneously in any location we have been before and we are impervious to ALL fire. "

As he spoke my eyes got wider and wider. I was stunned. For all the time they've existed, they never had a summoner. Until me. They've chosen me, because of my similarities to them. I'm floored.

" You honour me immensely great phoenix...how exactly will this work though? "

" You are correct. It is a great honour. There is no summons greater than us. That being said, do NOT summon us for inane things. In fact, for now you won't be able to summon us at all. Only when YOUR life is in imminent danger. The reason is quite simple. Your features clearly mark you as an Uzumaki. Inside of you is the Nine Tails, Kurama and now you will have us as your summons. This will draw too many eyes to you. "

" Enemies you are not yet ready to face. You are to train your body to the brink. In 2 years time we shall reverse summon you. You shall then learn to harness the power of nature. Be warned though. As we are the strongest summon, so too is our Sage Mode the hardest to master. Upon completion of the training and upon using it in battle, just like us, no fire no matter HOW powerful can harm you and you shall grow wings. "

" As you can tell, our Sage powers will drastically alter your body while you use it. It is also longer lasting. But that will be explained when you come to us in 2 years. Now step forward child. "

I was amazed by what he was saying. I did have a couple of questions though. Nevertheless, I stepped forward. He was about the size of Fawkes to my eyes. Or a goose for those who don't know. I don't know how I knew, but I extended my left arm.

A moment later he landed on the arm and golden fire trailed down my arm. When he took off again, a seal in the form of fire circled my wrist. I decided to ask my questions now.

" I have a number of questions if you don't mind. Firstly, what is your name? Are there other phoenixes? Is this a summoning tattoo? And do I tell the leadership here about you? " He laughed. It sounded like music.

" Questions are good. How would you know otherwise. To answer them in order, my name is Tomoe. Yes there are other phoenixes. When we reach a certain age, we can alter the size of our form. I'll show you before you leave. Yes that is a summoning tattoo. "

" We are not like other summons though. More than blood and chakra is required. When you draw blood and thereafter mould chakra for the technique, you must use only fire chakra and you must call upon a flame in your hand and add the blood to it. Only then can we be summoned. And no. You may not tell anyone till we deem you ready. "

I bowed my head and nodded. Suddenly the flames around him grew brighter, and with it he grew as well. Larger and larger till I was stunned. He looked amused. He was larger than Susanoo. Larger than Kurama in fact. I'd say he was as large as that massive wooden construct with the 1000 hands, that the 1st Hokage could create with his Sage and Wood Style powers.

He looked at me and my body was wreathed in flames. It didn't hurt though. The light grew bright and I blinked. Suddenly I was back in training ground 9. Dazed.

" My youthful student! I take it you were successful?! Truly your flames bright! "

There's no mistaking that voice. I look up and there's sensei. I get my bearings quickly though. " Yes sensei, I was successful. My summons have made it clear to me though that I can't tell anyone about them. Not yet. Not till I'm strong enough to truly be their summoner in more than word. "

His teeth gleamed as he smiled and gave me a thumbs up. We made plans to meet up the next day then we went our separate ways. There's a couple of things I'd been thinking about. One of them is that I've decided to upgrade my look.

You see, I have waist length red hair and currently my outfit consists of a knee length white battle kimono with short sleeves that reach my elbow. I wear my Leaf headband around my neck and I wear the standard shinobi sandals but in black.

With my katana being inspired by the idea of a zanpaktou, I've decided to look to Bleach again for a signature look. Because I'm relatively short, because of my age and gender, I've decided to emulate the style of Sui-Feng. The only thing I'm iffy about is the white haori.

In this village, only 1 shinobi has ever worn a white haori, my father the 4th Hokage. I'm not prepared for the uncomfortable questions that will follow that yet though. Sigh. Anyway I have a few weeks to think about it.

I head home. As soon as I enter I'm tackled by a blonde blur that holds me fast like an octopus. I smile though. The hug I return is just as strong.

" Big sis you're back! How was it?! Tell me, did you have to fight any evil ninja? Did u kick ass?! " I smile fondly at his babbling. Once he calms down I tell him the finals are yet to come. I tell him we can go ask the Hokage later on if he can come with to watch me. After yet more excitement I open the door.

" Let's head over to Ichiraku Ramen to celebrate me coming back. Last one there has to pay! " With that said I race away. I can hear his cursing behind me. I laugh. It's good to be home.

Time speeds by. Before I know it, it's time to head back. I've been turning heads all around the village with my new hairstyle. The princess cut like Hinata, but with 2 slender ponytails running down the side, with a small black ring at the end of each tail.

I decided to add something extra though. Inspired by Lady Mito. I have a slender sealing tag attached to each ring. Most people seem to think it's just a fashion statement. All except the most intelligent ninja in the village that is.

They'd be right. Long hair is a liability, unless you're really strong. I don't have eyes at the back of my head obviously and guarding your back is the hardest thing for a shinobi to do. So I've designed a workaround for that.

The tags have a couple of features. Anyone grabs a ponytail, well my hair immediately spikes. Not unlike Jiraiya's hair jutsu and in canon when Guy sensei grabs Samehada's hilt and spikes erupts and stabs him.

Secondly, if anyone throws a weapon like a kunai or shuriken at my back, then my hair hardens and lengthens and bats the weapon away. Cool right? Not that I told anyone. I want to see their reactions.

After much cajoling, the Hokage has agreed to let Naruto come watch the finals. He won't be accompanying me and sensei though. He'll be part of the entourage of Leaf shinobi that will come to watch. Izumo and Kotetsu, I've found out will play the roles of Naruto's bodyguards.

Not that he or most people know that. They'll be accompanying him in civilian garb. I've decided once the exams are over that I'll confront the Hokage about the fox.

As I'm standing in the arena in the Hidden Grass, I can feel quite ba number of eyes on me. I've decided to copy Naruto's sage coat. Except the colours are inverse. The coat is predominantly black, with red flames on the hem and on the end of my sleeves which end by my elbow.

I've decided that when I make Jounin, I'll get a new coat. Same colours and decorations but sleeveless like my father's. I'm debating having Kanji run down the back. Meh. There's still time.

There are 10 finalists. They've decided to shorten the format. Instead of having 5 one on one bouts, they'll have two bouts of a 5 person battle royale. The winners of each bout will then decide the winner of the exam. Now, while winning the exam doesn't guarantee promotion, there are 2 things you are guaranteed.

The first and arguably most important, is bragging rights. You'll go down in the history books as the winner of the exam. I do mean that literally. We actually are taught in the Academy about the winner in each exam. The second thing up for grabs is prize money. 100 thousand Ryo to be exact. A veritable fortune for most Genin.

I'm in the first group that's going to fight. I smile when I see who's in it. The Inuzuka I want to cut down to size. He sneers when he sees my smile. Fool. I'm thinking though. How should I do this...

Hmmm I suppose I'll just use nintaijutsu against all my opponents in this 5 way fight. Its after all, both offensive and defensive. Besides him and his dog, which is about the size of a bulldog, there's a Hidden Rain Genin and 2 from Hidden Sand.

Based on the match ups I think I know how this is gonna go. I'm not wrong. As soon as the proctor starts the match, dog boy and his partner head for me. Even without removing any of the resistance seal levels I'm still faster than him. As soon as he comes within my immediate range, I dart forward and performan a spinning kick with fire trailing behind my leg.

He tries to dodge but my speed and his momentum with against him. He goes flying about 10m back. I perform a perfect handstand and dodge the dog, then I spin around and kick him towards his master. Without the fire this time.

While they're temporarily out I look at my other opponents. The 2 Sand kids double teamed the Rain boy but he's proving to be stronger than they thought by the looks of things. When I look back, Inuzuka is pissed. Seems his clothes protected him from any meaningful damage.

I see him taking out a pill and I know what's coming. Sure enough the dog swallows the pill and bristles. I can feel the chakra spike. That's when I decide to rain on their parade. Fire Style Phoenix Flower jutsu...I mentally intone. Out of my mouth dozens of fireballs the size of apples spew out, forcing them to split up and dodge.

I make 3 handsigns in quick succession, before they can recover I'm ready. Water Style Water Trumpet while simultaneously sending fire chakra through the stream of water. The end result is a near boiling jet of hot water. I controlled the temperature though. Didn't want to kill them. It hit the dog and I could hear him screaming.

Call me a hypocrite but the dog was ugly as hell. I felt no guilt for hurting it. Plus I did it deliberately to get a reaction. The Inuzuka didn't disappoint. " You bitch! I'm gonna make you pay for that! "

He starting spinning in his family's signature move. 2 Handsigns this time Water Style Water Wall and again I simultaneously mixed fire chakra into the technique. This time I made the water at boiling point. While he's spinning he can't see. They rely on smell in that form.

I let him pierce the water wall slightly and that's when his momentum stopped. Just like his dog he started screaming. With no handsigns I though Water Style Water Whip and flicked my arm in his direction. The whip flew in his direction and held him fast. That's when I sent lightning natured chakra through the whip. It's about the only thing with that chakra nature that I can do. He convulsed for a few seconds then he was knocked out.

I turned to my other opponents and took stock of what was happening. The Rain kid and 1 of the Sand kids was knocked out. They remaining 1 was panting lightly with a couple of small cuts visible. By unspoken agreement we moved away from the other combatants. He was fast. Nothing compared to me tho. He made a couple of hand signs them threw shuriken at me. Based on the speed they were flying at, I'd say he used the gale palm.

Too bad for him I finished my jutsu first Fire Style Fireball Jutsu. Our jutsus clashed then mine overpowered his and became bigger. It didn't hit him full on because he dodged, but it did hit his right arm. His dominant arm. Judging by the look on his arm it hurt a lot.

He looked resigned. He signalled the proctor and forfeited. " Winner of the first battle royale, Hikaru Uzumaki! " The cheers of the audience was deafening. I waved and walked off smiling.

POV Change

He'd been hearing she's a prodigy for years now. Seeing is believing as the saying goes. Hiruzen was now fully convinced. I'm not sure if many in the audience are aware just how impressive she is. For a Genin to simultaneously mix two chakra nature's and they don't have a kekkei genkai is unheard of. I doubt even Kakashi and Itachi could do it at 10. Hikaru, you remind me so much of your father. Such incredible potential. You have definitely earned a promotion to Chunin.

Amazing! I knew big sis was strong but wow! She always says I must start from the basics. I didn't really believe her. But she started with the basics first and look how strong she is! The other Genin didn't stand a chance. I promise I'll listen to everything you say from now on sis. Believe it!

I can't stop the tears from falling. I'm so proud. The FLAMES of YOUTH are BLAZING from my student! If only you could see your daughter Lady Kushina!

Normal POV

I go up to the competitors booth and await the next match. I wonder how it's going to go. I'd be lying if I said I genuinely paid attention to the match. Don't get me wrong, I kept track of the important bits but my mind was wondering.

Turns out that the calendar here is the same as in my old life. As in the fact there's 12 months. The names are the same. There's 7 days a week. Monday to Sunday. You probably wondering where I'm going with this.

The point is that in a year, there are 3 important events in the shinobi callender. The Genin graduation in January. The Chunin Exams in June. The Jounin Exams in December. I'm sure you realise where this is heading.

I want to take part in the exams in 6 months. I'd be the shortest serving Chunin in Hidden Leaf history. Nobody has ever been Chunin for only half a year.

To take part in the Jounin Exams require two things. Sponsorship from an Elite Jounin and the Hokage's approval. To be a Jounin you must show a proficiency in all shinobi skills. Don't get the wrong idea though. Proficiency is deliberately vague. You not expected to be a master in everything.

Basically you need to be able to use 2 different elements in ninjutsu. You must be able to detect, dispell and cast at least middling level genjutsu. You must be able to hold your own against another Jounin in a spar for taijutsu. You must have skills beyond basics in weaponry, again they determine this with a spar. Finally you must be proficient in at least making a storage scroll from scratch for sealing jutsu.

I can do all of that. The genjutsu was the hardest though. I've developed a workaround though. I use seals to cast genjutsu. The ingenious part is, it can only be dispelled by removing the tags from your person. Creating them is tricky though. For that reason I only have a few.

On the issue of chakra control, I've been thinking. I want to create a seal that regulates how much chakra I use. That's years in the future though. I have far too many things to do. Even with clones helping. Ah. A Hidden Rain boy has won the other battle royale. He had to expend all his senbon though.

He's given a half hour break before our fight begins. I'm not worried though. I doubt he can do more than inconvenience me at this point. I after all have huge chakra reserves. Even larger than my brother's. Turns out unlocking and using chakra at such an early age actually builds chakra capacity. Go figure.

Time passes in a blink and before I know it, he and I are standing across from each other. I've decided I'll let him take the first shot. Many times, the shinobi who acts first dies first. He goes through a couple of hand seals in a sequence I haven't seen before, my eyes are fast enough to track the sequence though, turns out you don't explicitly need a Sharingan.

An uneven matchup like this, where one shinobi's reaction time I way better than the other's allows you to memorize handsigns, if you pay rapt attention. For a moment nothing happens, then...it starts to rain. Black rain. Son of a ! I know this jutsu. Saw it in the anime. This black stuff is oil. He's smirking at me.

" I saw you like to play with fire Leaf girl. Play with this! " That's when he tosses a low grade explosive note on the oily ground. His jutsu btw doesn't cover a huge area. Just about 20m in all directions from where I'm standing. It catches fire and soon all around me is alight. Nobody sees me smiling, surrounded by fire as I am.

I've trained in such conditions before. Surrounded by fire. Using my clones obviously. All in an effort to improve my control of my primary element. I expel fire natured chakra and it infuses with the fire burning around me. It also creates a shield shaped around my outline an inch away from my skin, thus protecting me from the flames.

Once my chakra suffused all the fire, I snuff it out entirely. He looks stunned. As does the audience. The jutsu he used could have killed me. Or inflicted crippling burns. If I didn't have the control I do. Whatever restraint I might have had is gone. I go through 3 handsigns lightning quick and exhale my first original jutsu Vapour Style Searing Cloud. It moves faster than you expect.

He reacts as I thought he would. He screams. I'd cut the jutsu off but it's left it mark. He's laying on the ground, shallow breathing. He looks like he escaped out of the pot of some cannibal. His skin looks cooked.

" Winner of the Chuunin Exams, Hikaru Uzumaki ! " The cheers are deafening. I can see Guy sensei and Naruto jumping up and down. I raise my right hand and wave. I smile. I did it.

The leader of Hidden Grass gives a speech and I drone him out. Before long he comes down and gives me a scroll, which I accept. To the cheers of everyone in the stadium.

After that things wrap up pretty quickly. Within 4 hours we're packed up, our Genin that were in medical bay are mostly healed and everyone from the Leaf sets out in 1 big group. The Hokage's doing I presume.

The trip back is quieter than the one we took to get there. The Hokage's presence being enough to stop any childishness. Even Naruto behaves. Mostly. In this life, he isn't as close to us as he was to Naruto in canon. After all, Naruto has family looking out for him. Me.

When we arrive back at the Leaf, I'm told to appear at the Hokage's office in 2 hours. I manage to con Guy sensei into treating Naruto and I for celebratory ramen. At the end of the meal both Teuchi and Guy sensei were crying. For different reasons tho.

It's soon time to depart and I rush away from the madness at Ichiraku to the Hokage Tower. Standing before the man I can guess what's coming. He's not alone in the room. Standing behind him is the Jounin Commander. Shikaku Nara.

" Hikaru Uzumaki, for that masterful display of skill at the Exams I hereby promote you to Chunin. Tomorrow report to the missions control office at 8. It has been decided that where possible, you will still work with Guy, however now that you've been