Author's note: I don't own any of the characters. They belong to Masashi Kishimoto. The original characters belong to me.

Chapter 14: New Faces, New Enemies

At the Uzumaki household

Nashiko was ready. She had already been putting on her new clothes for her to use in the Chuunin Exams. It was quite similar to that worn by her mother during her teenage years, expect for the fact that she wore no gloves, as well as long boots. She wore black khaki pants and black sandals. Her forehead protector was tied on the top of her head, similar to how her mother wore.

While studying herself in the mirror, Nashiko could only grin at herself. She didn't realize it from before, but these new clothes had given her a more womanly appearance than her jumpsuit. She smiled as she gave her reflection a thumb.

"Now this…..is cool!" she declared while winking to her reflection.

"Nashiko, you better get ready for the Exams!" the voice of her mother called to her downstairs.

Nashiko slumped in anger. She was getting tired of hearing her mom always reminding her of things and nagging on her. But then again, this would be an exception, because today was the Chuunin Exams. She knew that there would be challenges ahead of her, but she would face them.

The door to her bedroom opened and Haruto came in, whose eyes were filled with curiosity. The blonde-haired boy with green eyes walked up to her older sister. Even though Nashiko usually hated when somebody entered her bedroom, today would also be an exception.

"Hi sis, I don't mean to interrupt you or anything, but I just came here to wish you the best of luck. I mean, both mom and dad have high hopes for you and so do I" he said his intention of entering her room.

Nashiko smiled and patted his younger brother's head. Haruto returned the smile he was given by his sister. He could tell that she appreciated it.

"Thanks a lot, Haruto! I will try my best, don't sweat it!" she said with confidence. Haruto nodded his head, knowing he would have to put his faith into her.

"How long do you plan on looking yourself in the mirror, young lady?" the voice of Sakura could be heard as she stood by the door to Nashiko's bedroom. But her stern look changed into that of a motherly smile. "I understand how you feel, Nashiko. Today's a big day for you" she said.

Something hit Nashiko's head and it revolved around her father. "Hey mom, where's dad run off to?" she asked Sakura about Naruto's whereabouts.

"Oh he's with the Hokage right now. As you may know, dad will act as a supervisor alongside Lady Tsunade in the Exams" she explained to her daughter. "He might get to see your fights" she added with enthusiasm in her voice.

Nashiko grinned by hearing Sakura's answer to her father's whereabouts. She always knew that he had an important job, considering the fact that he was to succeed Tsunade as Hokage once the Exams came to its conclusion.

"What about you two? Will you be able to watch me in the finals?" she asked Sakura and her younger brother. They both smiled at her question.

"Sure I will, sis! How can I miss the match where you kick butt and take names?" Haruto answered with a mischievous grin on his face. "But that depends on whether you make it to the finals, though" he added with a hint of concern in his voice.

"I have confidence in you, Nashiko. But just remember, don't underestimate every opponent you come across" Sakura advised her daughter. "And while we're at it, you will begin growing in your expertise as a kunoichi during the Exams" she added.

Nashiko fixed a so-called tough look on her face, even though it was uncertain if she took her mother's advice seriously. "I didn't quite understand the last one, mom. But I understood the first, so I will gladly watch my back during the Exams" she said with determination.

Haruto and Sakura didn't feel like keep Nashiko waiting, so they hugged her one last time before she grabbed her stuff and ran off for the building, where the first stage of the Exams were to be held. She had also hoped to meet up with Takeda, Shunsuke and Menma-sensei on the way.

On the way to the Exams, near a bridge

The young pink-haired kunoichi ran through the bustling streets, hoping to reach the river which could only be crossed by a bridge. The building where the first phase of the Exams was to be held was lying somewhere on the other side of the river.

"I can do this!" Nashiko panted while running. "I'll give it my best and then prove myself in front of Haruto, mom and dad. That will show them how talented I truly am!" she added with a grin on her mischievous face.

But before she knew it, she ran straight into Takeda and Arata, who had just appeared from an alley. Nashiko was too late to slow down and Takeda and Arata didn't even realize that someone was coming straight towards them. This resulted in a painful crash.

Both teammates groaned in pain and tried while rubbing their faces. But it didn't take long for them to start bickering against each other.

"Ouch! Hey….what's the big idea, Takeda!?" she asked while rubbing her left eye. "Can't you even watch both sides before walking straight into me!?" she asked angrily at her brown-haired teammate.

Takeda rubbed his nose and eyed Nashiko angrily in return. "Are you seriously blaming me for this!? You're the one who ran straight into me, you numbskull!" Takeda hit back at her.

Nashiko got up on her feet and picked up her bag where she had her stuff in. She could see that Takeda had a slightly large backpack with him. She noticed that some of his stuff had managed to drop out thanks to the crash.

"Aww, this is just great! Now look what you've made me lose" he said with irritation as he picked up the dog food lying on the dusty ground.

"What are you carrying around dog food for?" she asked dumbfounded. "Do you seriously eat dog food!?" she asked with disgust in her voice.

Takeda eyed her with annoyance and decided to calm her down. "No genius! Those are for Arata, duh!" he corrected with sarcasm at the end of her sentence.

Eventually both teammates got their dispute settled, and continued their way to the Exams, hoping to meet up with the others. As they neared the bridge, they started a conversation between each other.

"So….are you ready to get your panties in a twist?" Takeda mockingly asked her, only to be banged by Nashiko on his head in reply. "What the hell's wrong with you!? Can't you take a joke!?" he asked while rubbing his sore head.

Nashiko huffed in return. "Take a joke, my ass! How was that supposed to be funny!?" she demanded to know from him. "And if I didn't know any better, your sense of humour sucks" she added smugly.

Takeda ignored her and continued walking, though he didn't feel like backing down of this verbal confrontation. "Well excuse me for not being as dumb and bitchy as you are" he mockingly said, much to Nashiko's anger.

But something interrupted them before they could cross the bridge. They could see a sword being thrown in front of them. They both became extreme cautious, wondering who in the world would throw a sword at them.

"Well, what do we have here? It looks like we have stumbled upon two Leaf ninjas" a girly voice could be heard and both Nashiko and Takeda snapped at this.

Three figures sprouted up from the river and landed on the bridge in front of them. They became curious about who they were. It was a trio of ninjas at the same age as them, but they wore different clothing. The girl with red hair, which reached her shoulders, wore glasses, a purple uniform that exposed her navel black shorts and sandals. Her forehead protector was tied around her neck. But the most shocking of all was the fact that she owned the sword standing on the bridge and she reclaimed it and put it behind her back. One of her teammates was a young boy with brown hair that reached his shoulders. He wore a teal suit which covered his entire body and black sandals. His had his forehead protector tied around his forehead. But the other teammate was different. He had a spikey hairstyle which was coloured in orange. He was dressed in a grey flak jacket and black pants. He wore black sandals and his forehead protector was tied around his left bicep. But the most intriguing about him was the two scarlet dots on his forehead.

Nashiko watched the strange trio as they stood in front of him and Takeda on the bridge. What were they planning to do? She and Takeda had never seen them before. Hopefully they wouldn't try anything funny.

"Hey you, the one with the cherry blossom hair!" the girl carrying a sword on her back called out to her. "How come the water in this river is filled not clean? Where we come from, the waters our rivers are pristine and clean!" she stated while asking a question.

Nashiko was dumbfounded by this and so was Takeda. In fact, they didn't necessarily understand her question. But they had to say something, although the question mostly directed at Nashiko.

"What's that supposed to mean? Do you take me for a water expert?" Nashiko asked her. "I don't know who you are or where you're from, but you better stop messing with me, if you catch my drift" she added with confidence in her voice.

The red-haired girl only smirked in return at her warning. "No need to act all hostile here, Pinkie! Can't you take a joke?" she mockingly asked her, much to Nashiko's anger and irritation.

"DID SHE JUST CALL ME PINKIE!?" the pink-haired girl wondered in her head while gritting her teeth. "I'M SO GONNA PUNCH HER THE TEXT TIME SHE SAYS THAT!" she added while bumping her fists.

Takeda was getting tired of this nonsense, so he decided to butt in, even though he quietly mused over the red-haired girl's jab at Nashiko. "Look, four-eyes! We would love to stay here and chat with you and your weird-looking buddies, but we have an Exam to catch, so would you three be so kind as to mind your own businesses?" Takeda asked them while expressing his displeasure.

The one with the light-brown hair stepped forward to get a better look at Takeda and Arata. He smiled as he had just discovered something new, much to Takeda's confusion. Arata growled at him, but he wasn't intimidated.

"From what I can tell, your red markings, as well as your dog companion, indicate that you are an Inuzuka" he noted while studying Takeda's appearance. "But it's funny, I don't recall Inuzukas having eyes like those" he added as he studied Takeda's eyes.

Takeda snapped at what the boy dressed in a teal suit said of him. He couldn't believe how he could possess such knowledge about Inuzukas. But then again, all members of the Inuzuka clan were noted for their red markings, as well as their dog companions.

"I'll have you know, mister, that I'm technically half-Inuzuka and half-Hyuuga" Takeda said with a hint of irritation in his voice.

The boy in front of him eyed with surprise. "So you're from the Hyuuga clan? Now that's rich!" he remarked with a smug look. "If that's so then I suppose we should take caution to your Byakugan" he added, making Takeda even more irritated at the boy.

"C'mon Aoi, quit doing your encyclopaedic studies again!" the red-haired girl said in annoyance while calling out his name. "We aren't home, you know!" she added.

The boy with azure eyes turned around to face his teammate. "So you are allowed to act all immature and lame in front of anyone we come across, while I am prohibited from studying our future opponents?" he asked her sternly. "Get real, Kotone! We've got better things to focus on!" he retorted while calling out the girl's name.

As the red-haired girl began bickering with his perceptive teammate, Nashiko and Takeda couldn't help but to notice a similarity between them and those strange ninjas. However, they tried their best not to liken themselves to those two. But they could notice the boy with spiky orange hair only crossing his arms and focusing his attention on the blue skies.

"That boy over there doesn't seem to care about the bickering between his teammates, and I can fully understand that" Takeda thought in his head while eyeing him. "But there is something to him, I mean…what kind of ninja is he?" he wondered as he tried to find out an answer.

"Hey, Nashiko, Takeda, there you are!" the two young genins could hear Shunsuke's voice as he came running towards the bridge and stopped before them. Nashiko and Takeda waved back and returned his greetings. "I'm glad we met, I was thinking about whether we should walk to the Exams together" he suggested to his comrades.

Nashiko nodded but she fixed an awkward look on her face. "That's nice of you, Shunsuke. But we currently have our hands full with these three strangers. They won't let us pass the bridge" she explained while pointing her finger towards the trio before them.

"What?" Shunsuke asked as he got a better look at the trio before him. But something happened. While the two boys eyed him with curiosity, the red-haired girl began blushing once she caught a glimpse of Shunsuke's smiling face.

"Those eyes…..that smile…..the chakra that floats around him…he's…." the girl was lost in her own world.

Shunsuke got more surprised once he got a look at their forehead protectors. "Your forehead protectors…..are your ninjas from the Hidden Mist Village?" Shunsuke asked the four-eyed girl kindly. But he was unsure of whether she actually took his question.

The red-haired girl with glasses was still blushing by just looking at Shunsuke and his gentle smile. Both of her teammates expressed annoyance of her behaviour.

"What's up with that four-eyed tomato over there?" Takeda asked in his head as he watched her behaviour towards Shunsuke.

"She's been like this ever since Shunsuke showed up" Nashiko noted while eying her annoyingly.

The boy with long brown hair sighed in irritation by this. "Honestly, can't you control yourself?" he asked her dispassionately. He then eyed Shunsuke with a friendly glance. "Yes, we are from the Hidden Mist Village in the Land of Water. Like many other ninjas, we have travelled here to participate in the Chuunin Exams" he explained.

Nashiko and her comrades were intrigued about what they heard from the boy. "Hold on! Does ninjas from other villages participate in the Chuunin Exams!?" the pink-haired girl asked with wonder.

Shunsuke turned around to answer to her. "Yes. To strengthen co-operation between allied villages, a village may send their ninjas to participate in the Chunnin Exams hosted by their allied village" he explained.

Takeda mused at this after hearing his teammate's explanation. "Well, that pretty much explains why they seemed so…..unfamiliar to us" he said and Arata barked in agreement.

"You are quite the brainy here, aren't you?" the boy with brown hair asked Shunsuke, who nervously chuckled in return. "I take it you must be the smart one on your team" he added, much to the anger of Nashiko and Takeda. They couldn't stand being labelled as stupid.

"I am just stating a few facts I know" he said. "My name is Shunsuke. Shunsuke Uchiha" he added while introducing himself.

The three Mist ninjas were caught up by hearing him introducing himself. The one with the brown hair grew more interested, and the one with the orange hair eyed him with curiosity. But the red-haired girl stepped closer to Shunsuke, much to his confusion.

"Are you an Uchiha? But I was told that the student with the top scores at this village's Academy was someone named Inojin Uchiha" she said while pondering out something.

"Oh, he's my twin brother. And yes, he is definitely what you can call a brainy. His talents are incredible" Shunsuke told her and the girl was surprised to know it.

Suddenly both Nashiko and Takeda stepped beside Shunsuke, not wanting to be left out of this conversation. Apparently they didn't feel like being ignored by someone who could become their future opponents.

"I am Nashiko Uzumaki, the one who's gonna become a strong kunoichi!" Nashiko said with pride. "And I'm about to prove myself during the Exams" she added.

"Quit your heroic speech, already! It's embarrassing!" Takeda expressed his displeasure about his teammate's behaviour. "Anyway, I'm Takeda Inuzuka, hope we meet in battle someday" he added with sarcasm.

"I think an introduction is in order. My name is Aoi Terumi" he went on to introduce himself formally. "Most people back in the Mist tend to know me due to my aunt" he said with a hint of sarcasm in his voice

"M-My name is Kotone Hozuki, a proud member of the Hozuki clan!" the red-haired girl introduced herself.

The orange-haired boy eyed the three Leaf genins, in a manner that he wasn't necessarily keen to introduce himself. But he tried to keep his cool, considering how he knew it was for the best of him.

"I prefer not to be casual when introducing myself. You may call me Jurou, Jurou Kaguya" he said lowly while eyeing the three Leaf genins. "Kotone, Aoi, we best better return to Kaito-sensei. The Exams are about to start" he said to his teammates and they both snapped, knowing that he spoke the truth.

"Oh crap, the Exams!" Nashiko said once she heard Jurou speaking. "C'mon guys! We gotta hurry!" she said and the trio run past them and crossed the bridge over to the other side of the river. But Nashiko turned around to say something to the Mist ninjas. "See you around, weirdos! It was nice knowing ya!" she shouted and continued running.

Once they were gone from their sights, the three Mist genins spoke amongst themselves regarding their first "friends" made in the Leaf Village.

"So, what do you two think about them?" Aoi asked them. "In my opinion, all three of them seem interesting. But there's something about that girl which I would like to know more" he noted while thinking about Nashiko.

Kotone crossed her arms. "What's so special about her? To me, she sounded like a complete bitch with zero knowledge of the ways of the ninja. The same thing could be said about that boy with the mutt hanging on his collar" the kunoichi expressed her distaste of Nashiko and Takeda. "But I think this Shunsuke…..he just seemed so…" Kotone was blushing while thinking about Shunsuke.

"Maybe you should start focusing on defeating him in combat instead of asking him out" Jurou said sternly while closing his eyes, much to Kotone's anger. Aoi mused at this. "But then again, none of them stand a chance against me. From what I can tell, they lack confidence in their abilities" the orange-haired boy noted.

In the building where the Exams are supposed to be held

Once they arrived, they expected the building's interior to be filled with shinobis. But they were wrong. As they reached it, it was empty and no one was standing outside.

"Damn it! Have they already started!?" Takeda asked with frustration in his voice. "We shouldn't have wasted out time with those Mist Village ninjas!" he added and Arata barked in agreement.

"How about we just enter and see? I'm sure people are waiting inside" Shunsuke suggested. Nashiko smiled at this.

"I agree! Let's just bust in and take the Exams!" she said and the three teammates opened the door, hoping to find more people waiting in the hall.

But to their surprises, only three people stood there and they looked familiar. As the genins got a closer look at them, both Nashiko and Shunsuke realized that they had seen them before. They were the three genins they had met at the Combat Alley: Rock Guy, Hisoka Sado and Kimiko Inoue. Guy noticed Nashiko and her teammates and waved at her.

"Well look who it is, my friends, it's the sweet cherry pie and her friends!" he exclaimed while calling out Nashiko's nickname. She became infuriated about this.

"IT'S YOU AGAIN! AND DON'T CALL ME CHERRY PIE!" she shouted with anger while cracking her knuckles.

Kimiko eyed the team with gleefully eyes. "Oh wow! It seems that we're not the only ones waiting for our sensei to come" she said.

Nashiko and her teammates became confused at this. "Wait…..what?" the pink-haired girl asked.

"Are you telling us that you're waiting for your sensei?" Shunsuke asked her, and she nodded.

"That's right! Before the Chunnin Exams can start, a team's sensei must be present to introduce them to the examinees. The sensei may have a few words of advice to his or her students before they take the Exams" Kimiko explained to them. "Apparently, our sensei seems to be delayed for some reason" she added with a hint of nervousness in her voice.

"He does that on his own, free will! He doesn't even pretend to be late!" the voice came from Hisoka, who was crossing his arms while closing his eyes. "I for one am not so surprised by this at all" he added.

Kimiko huffed at him while pretending not to listen. "You're such a downer sometimes, Hisoka! Lighten up a bit, will you?" she encouraged him.

"She's right! Why don't you…. try exercising your body?" Guy asked as he was currently doing some push-ups, much to Team Mamuro and Kimiko's confusion. Hisoka eyed him as he didn't care or showed interest. "My dad used to say….that without exercise…..you are nothing" he added while continuing with the push-ups.

Hisoka sighed in annoyance. "Thanks for the advice, but I pass" he said.

"So all we have to do is to wait for Menma-sensei, right?" Nashiko asked her teammates. "C'mon! What could possibly be taking him so long`" she added sternly.

"Well, it was a coincidence that we would meet you guys" Shunsuke said while eyeing the trio before them. "Are you looking forward to the Exams?" he asked them.

Guy smiled smugly at this. "Oh you bet we are! We are all fired up and ready to show our talents for everyone to see!" he said with confidence. "Who knows, any of you three could perhaps be my opponent in during the Exams" he added.

"Don't push your luck, Fuzzy Eyes. If we fight, then I'm gonna beat you to a pulp!" she said while cracking her knuckles.

Guy smirked at his and suddenly prepared his fighting stance and moved his four fingers backwards to himself. "If you're so eager to fight then why not test me now?" he asked her. "You wanna give it a shot? I am interested in you, after all" he added with confidence.

Kimiko was about to protest and step in to stop this nonsense, but she paused once she noticed Hisoka grabbing Guy's right shoulder. The brown-haired boy snapped at this and to everyone's outrage was about to push Hisoka away, only for the black-skinned boy with dreadlocks to block the attack with only one hand. Guy smirked at this.

"Wow, you sure have improved with your reflexes, Hisoka" he remarked and delivered a kick, only for Hisoka to dodge it by jumping. Team Menma were surprised by Hisoka's talented reflexes. "How about we square up a little?" he asked with a little taunting directed towards him.

Hisoka closed his eyes. "Quit it, dumbass! We both know that each time we duel, you only end up getting your skinny ass beaten!" he explained with a hint of anger in his voice.

Kimiko was getting more concerned about this and decided to intervene for real. Team Menma only watched from the sidelines. They were curious about what they were doing and of Hisoka's strict and rude personality.

"Okay boys, let's put this bickering aside now, shall we? You're embarrassing me, for crying out loud!" she said while expressing her opinion of this.

"Hey Kimiko, get your big ass out of this! I'm trying to teach this fool here about manners!" he said while insulting her butt. She fumed with anger at this and was about to attack him, only to stop by the voice of Shunsuke.

"Hey, don't speak to your teammates with such disrespect. It's bad for the bonds you have between each other" the young Uchiha called out to him, who only stared at him annoyed in return. Surprisingly, he began laughing at what he just said.

"Bonds…..you gotta be kidding me! Don't tell me you're into that kind of thing! Are you a homo or something?" he mockingly asked Shunsuke, who was shocked by his foul language.

Suddenly, Takeda stepped up to Shunsuke's side and glared at Hisoka. "Do you always speak to everyone like that!?" he asked him. "I've met plenty of those serious, but whiny loners and you're no exception! You're nothing but talk!" he added with an insult directed to Hisoka who glared at him in return.

"You wanna run that by me again, girly boy? I think I misheard you or something" the black-skinned boy said in return and began taking a few steps towards him. "Well, spit it out!" he added while demanding to know what he said.

Takeda smirked and began taking few steps forward as well. "Are you saying you misheard me? Wow, you're dumber than you look!" he insulted him once again. "Seriously, did your parents spoil you so badly that you were left stupid?" he mockingly asked.

Hisoka gritted his teeth in anger at this. Both Nashiko and Shunsuke could see that he didn't take too kindly once Takeda said something about his parents. Guy eyed this with amusement while Kimiko gasped in shock.

"You ugly son of a bitch" Hisoka said and prepared his fighting stance. As he did, small bolts of lightning began forming around him. "Now I'm really pissed off! I'll show you what this so-called "stupid loner" is capable off!" he said with anger in his voice while eyeing Takeshi.

The boy with long, brown hair only eyed sternly at Hisoka, as he was stood there challenging him to a fight. As he watched the boy with dreadlocks standing there, he decided that he would gladly stand up to teach him a few lessons.

But before everyone knew it, a large, muscular black-skinned man dressed in black and white appeared beside Hisoka. He had long black-hair and had it tied to a ponytail. He also had beard on his chin and underneath his nose. He wore a black forehead protector with the Leaf-symbol around his forehead.

But what was the most thrilling, was the fact that this man punched Hisoka towards one of the many pillars standing in the wall. Team Mamuro was shocked by this. They wondered whether he could've survived a punch of that calibre. Kimiko gasped at this and suddenly waved her arms in the air.

"Hideki-sensei…..why did you…" she asked the large man by his name. "WAS THAT EVEN NECESARRY!?" she added with outrage.

The man ignored her, only huffing and eyeing Hisoka sitting by the pillar. The boy with dreadlocks slowly began standing up on his feet, and spit out blood from his mouth. He eyed the man with angry eyes.

"Tch, took you long enough!" Hisoka said with sarcasm. "Why the hell did you punch me anyway!?" he added with a question.

"Is that all you have to ask? How shameful of you, Hisoka!" the man said in return. "You know well that every time you do something stupid, you get a taste of my fist!" he added as his voice sounded like steel and iron.

Hisoka gritted his teeth. "I don't need your fists to teach me anything! You ain't my babysitter!" he said in return.

The tall man grinned at this. "You will never learn, brat! Not even if I punch you" he thought in his head while eyeing Hisoka.

"What took you so….." Guy said before stopping to eye Nashiko and her teammates. "Oh, I almost forgot! This is our strong-willed and awesome teacher: Hideki Sado. He's the strongest jounin there is here in the Leaf!" he said with pride while eyeing the tall man with gleefully eyes.

The tall man eyed Nashiko and her teammates sternly before chuckling to himself in amusement. "Hahahahaha, how cute and cuddly they look!" he mockingly commented. "Those kids you have sure seem wimpy to me, Menma!" he said while calling out to Menma, who approached his students from behind. Nashiko and her teammates smiled at him.

"Don't act all high and mighty here, Hideki! I'll have you know that my students will do an amazing process during the Exams" he said while smiling at his students.

Hideki grunted in return and began walking towards Hisoka, who was standing there with his arms crossed. Guy and Kimiko followed their teacher to their teammate.

"Do as you wish, Menma Umino! But mark my words: these Exams are not just my hunting grounds! They are also my students' hunting grounds! Let's see if those wimps of yours stand a chance!" he said before walking towards a door.

Before Hisoka followed them, he gave Takeda the finger. Takeda only ignored him and eyed somewhere else. Nashiko stuck out her tongue at him while Shunsuke only stared at him dispassionately.

"Hisoka! Get your ass over here!" Hideki called out to him and Hisoka reluctantly followed his team to the room.

To be continued…

Author's note: That was chapter 14. Nashiko and her friends met up with both a team from the Mist Village and Rock Guy and his pals. We also got to know Guy's sensei. I will try making the Chuunin Exams in this story different from that in the original Naruto.