A/N: Wow, there are 20 reviews on the last chapter. I'm impressed. I like reviews and comments, even if they are slightly negative. I mean, everyone is entitled to his or her own opinion, am I correct? Anyway, here are the review responses.
NarutoNineTails: I'm glad you think so. I am going to go straight to the chuunin exams, but I assure you that the battles will be different.
Trenchcoatgirl-Kyo: I'm glad you like my story. As a reward for not pulling any more Gaaras, I am giving you this. (Gives little plushie of Gaara) Enjoy!
Chidori vs Rasengan: Hmm, that is not a bad idea. Next time I describe the hand-seals, I'll use that Japanese names. Thanks for the suggestion.
Ecchi-Anbu: OH NO! I'm getting boring? This is bad, really bad, really really bad. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I'll try and make things more interesting this time around.
VFSNAKE: Hmm, let's see, in that order, Zabuza's sword was put over his grave when both Haku and Zabuza were given a proper burial. Zabuza's sword is left as a grave marker. I'm sorry; Naruto thought that taking Zabuza's sword/grave marker would be disrespectful to Zabuza. Kiba, Shino and Sakura did not see Naruto beat the living hell out of Haku due to the thick mist, but Shino knew that he did. Finally, I'm sorry; Haku did die from Kakashi's Chidori attack. I hope that clarifies things for you. I'm able to answer your questions anytime.
Mistassassin: I update relatively quickly unless the Document Manager is being stupid or I'm thinking about the story. I hope you stick around.
Japanese of Red Dog: I'm glad you like it.
Matt and T.K.: Thanks, Matt. The mask will break, I assure you. The thing is that the mask will probably not slip while Sakura and Sasuke are around.
Dragon Man 180: True, Naruto did beat the living hell out of Haku, but he was still able to move one last time to save his "precious person". I think I did a good job on the explanation, if I say so myself. I also like the little bit of fluff I placed in the story. I man, that is the only reason I had Team 8 come along in this mission.
Narut0-fan101: Thanks for the review. I appreciate it even if it is only a few words.
Anime girl987: Naruto's seal did not weaken earlier in the story. If it did, I don't know where I said that. Actually, I don't think the seal weakened at all, even when Naruto accessed Kyuubi's power in Wave Country. Anyway, I'm glad you like it.
Dragonzice: It did help him in chakra control and it did give a small explanation to why he was doing so poorly. If I saw someone doing that, I'd say it was genius at work. Also, yes; I am doing the chuunin exams.
Silver Warrior: Yeah, it's a good story, isn't it? I have to hand it to Tellemicus; he does a pretty good ob on his stories.
ShadowBack: I like to make my characters, no matter how minor, as realistic as possible. Even if a person only appears in one scene, it doesn't mean he or she was never there. Also, even I would have liked to be in Kurenai's place in that particular scene. That would have been so cute!
Spycon fighter: Don't worry; I will.
Alina11: I know. I'm actually making a few things up from my own head in this chapter and the next. Thanks for pointing that out, though.
Jules-Gemma: Thanks for your input. I'm trying to make this as original as possible without confusing the heck out of you. I hate it when you're reading and then suddenly you're lost because the author didn't clarify.
Anime-Boy07: Yeah, Mary is such a cute little puppy. Also, I am also a devout supporter of Naruto/Hinata pairings.
Kitsu Maharu: Thanks for your help in pointing out certain things. As much a as I go over my work, I sometimes forget to fix certain things. Anyway, did you get my gift at the end of my last chapter?
Samgurlalways: I'm glad you like it. Keep reading!
Anyway, I like reviews. They make me happy.
By the way, this chapter is what I call a "bridge chapter". There is really nothing here that is truly interesting (in my opinion). If you don't like it, I'm telling you, I don't like it either.
Here is the 13th installment of "Cheerfulness Incarnate"
Disclaimer: ROAR! Omegaguardian does not own Naruto! He… aw man, I can't do this. I'm just not naturally vicious.
OG: I'm not the one who told you to do that, Juniper. Now, go on home, you cute little kitty, you. (Pets Juniper the orange kitty)
Juniper: (Purrs then snaps eyes open) Hey, watch it! I'm still capable of clawing your eyes out, you know. (Walks off)
OG: (Laughs)So, yeah, I don't like lawsuits. Listen to what Juniper said a little earlier.
(Chapter Begins)
Naruto and the other genin were dismissed as soon as they got into the gates of Konoha. It was about 7:00 in the morning, but about half of the genin looked tired. Sakura, Sasuke, and Kiba were tired from the journey while Hinata, Naruto and Shino looked absolutely fine. Hinata was conserving chakra during the trip home and nobody could tell weather Shino was tired or not. Naruto was always the bundle of energy he always was and he basically bounced on every step. As soon as they got into the gates, Naruto immediately ran off, leaving Sakura and Sasuke in the dust. Naruto, still able to train, thought of something. He went to the nearest weapons shop disguised as another shinobi and bought a set of weights. He put them on under his clothes and went to the forest. Naruto frowned as he realized something. "Damn, I'm used to these weights already? I need to find a way to increase the weight on these things without spending any more money or else I'll go broke!"
He sensed someone behind him so he didn't go the clearing like he usually would. Naruto was about 80 pounds heavier since he put on the weights. To practice using the weights, Naruto started to do the chakra control exercises he did back in Wave Country. As he jumped down from about 60 feet, he saw a blue haired person hiding and peeking towards Naruto behind one of the trees. Naruto smiled as he landed. "She is really cute when she does that," Naruto thought before mentally reprimanding himself. As he positioned himself near the tree again, he spoke.
"Hi Hinata-chan, would you like to train with me?"
He sensed some shocked movement from behind the tree as Hinata moved into the light. She walked timidly towards Naruto as she started to speak.
"H-hello N-Naruto-kun; w-what are y-you doing?"
"Nothing much, I'm just training my chakra control. I know it stinks and I'm trying to improve it. Would you like to join me?"
Hinata shyly nodded as Naruto smiled. Naruto picked up a leaf and placed it on her head. Hinata looked up and stared at Naruto in confusion.
"This was what I was doing back in Wave Country. Try to run up the tree while focusing your chakra on the leaf at the same time. You have to pour the exact amount of chakra into the leaf so it will stay on your head while keeping a constant flow to your feet so you can run up the tree. It took me a while to figure it out and it's harder than it looks," Naruto said. After saying this, Naruto started to position himself to run up the tree again.
Hinata looked at Naruto with wide eyes as she heard what Naruto was saying. "So, that's what Naruto-kun was doing. That's why he had difficulty doing the exercise. I have one question, though."
Summoning an amount of courage, Hinata spoke again. "N-Naruto-kun, h-how would you do if y-you did the t-tree climbing e-exercise alone?"
Naruto turned to Hinata and smiled. "Well, let's find out, shall we," Naruto said as he bent down and removed his leg weights. He also took off his arm weights before taking the leaf off of his forehead. Hinata looked at Naruto with wide eyes once again. This time, Naruto noticed and said something.
"Just so you know; I just got these." Naruto casually walked up the tree and reached the top before he turned and walked back down. Hinata stared at him in awe while Naruto looked at his feet in surprise. "Wow, I wasn't usually able to go up the tree without a running start. The leaf thing must have really helped," Naruto thought as he reached the ground without breaking a sweat. He put on the weights again and looked at Hinata. She was now looking in awe as Naruto placed the leaf on his head. Naruto looked at her head to see that the leaf had fallen off. Naruto stood with another leaf and he put it on her head. Naruto smiled as he started to speak again.
"So, do you want to join me in training?"
Hinata gave a small smile as she started to climb the tree. Incredibly, Hinata mastered it within 4 hours. Naruto's jaw hit the floor as Hinata gave a bright smile. Naruto's thoughts began to wander as Hinata looked satisfied in her work. "She looks really happy about that. From the smile on her face, it seems as if she is truly amazed at her progress."
Naruto walked up to Hinata. Hinata looked at Naruto and Naruto could see the smile she had visibly drain from her features. Naruto looked confused for a second before speaking.
"Nice job Hinata-chan; it took me three days to master this. At this rate, you're going to be the best kunoichi in Konoha! Anyway, as a reward, I'm going to teach you something!" Naruto said as Hinata looked up in confusion. She never had much praise for her accomplishments. She was always the person that was "in the way" in all her team's missions.
As the words that Naruto said registered in her mind, she started to protest. "T-there's no need, N-Naruto-kun, I-It's o-okay."
Naruto smiled brightly at the girl in front of her. "Nonsense, Hinata-chan, you deserve it. Besides, I trust you enough to keep this a secret, right?"
Naruto turned around and started to walk off. Naruto signaled for Hinata to follow and she did. Naruto led Hinata to an area about 20 feet from his clearing. Naruto turned around and sat on the ground. Naruto then cut himself with his kunai on his leg. Hinata gasped as she pulled out a bandage. Naruto stopped her and he tried to begin to speak. He was interrupted by a loud noise.
"HEY NARUTO, what are you doing here with Hinata!" Naruto and Hinata looked up to see a gray and angry figure up in the trees. He was about to speak again as Naruto spoke. Naruto also noticed that his leg had already healed.
"Oh, hey Kiba, I'm teaching her something because she deserves a reward for mastering my chakra control exercise." Kiba began to speak again when Naruto interrupted him. "No, Kiba, I'm not going to teach you and I'm not doing anything perverted with Hinata-chan. If you must know, I'm teaching her this." Naruto then slashed his leg again and performed some hand-seals. Hinata gasped again as Kiba twitched, thinking Naruto was crazy. He placed his hands over his bleeding leg and the two genin present noticed the wound that was healing at an incredible rate.
"This is Kousei no Jutsu. This technique can heal minor to moderate injuries, may it be internal or external. It's the exact technique I used on you back in Wave, Hinata-chan," Naruto told Hinata. He turned to Kiba, and started to speak again.
"Kiba; I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to leave. When you gain my trust, maybe I'll teach you. Right now, I'm sorry to say; you don't have enough of it for me to teach you anything about me. However, I realize that you only came here to see where your teammate was and I respect that."
Kiba smiled and nodded as he jumped and left through the trees. He now knew that this Naruto person could be trusted, if only a little.
As soon as Naruto felt Kiba's chakra vanish, he turned to Hinata again. "Now, the seals are Ne, Tori, Inu, Saru and Tatsu, in that order (Rat, Bird, Dog, Monkey, and Dragon). You need incredible chakra control to do this correctly, but I don't think that'll be a problem for you. We'll use my body as your target. Don't worry about it, I heal pretty fast and I won't cut in lethal areas," Naruto said and responded as Hinata began to protest at the appropriate times. Naruto noticed her downcast look and spoke again. "Don't worry Hinata-chan; you should get this in a snap. You already have incredible chakra control."
Hinata smiled timidly as she started to practice. Naruto slashed his leg as Hinata began to work. Hinata did the seals in the order that Naruto said and copied his movement. Hinata saw instant results as her hands glowed green and the wound started to heal. They stayed in the forest until nightfall as Hinata healed wound after wound. Naruto walked Hinata to the Hyuuga estate and he walked to his own house afterward. Hinata was absolutely cheerful that night as she went about her nightly routine. She really was the meaning of her name as she went too bed with a smile.
Naruto, on the other hand, was confused about his actions. Usually, he would never give away his techniques that easily. Today, however, he felt that he could trust Hinata and Kiba to keep a secret. Naruto suddenly thought of something and smiled. "Maybe, just maybe, there will be a point in time that I won't need this mask in front of my friends."
Naruto was satisfied in that thought as he went to sleep.
(A few days later)
Naruto was confused. He was really confused. He had no idea what was going on and he was also a little annoyed. Kakashi had said something pretty weird and Naruto didn't know what the hell he was talking about.
(Flashback, after the day's training)
Naruto was somewhat winded from the day's training. Naruto's team underwent chakra control exercises, sparring matches and teamwork drills all day without sufficient rest. Sakura was almost unconscious from the strain and Sasuke was wheezing and leaning on a tree as Kakashi spoke.
"Okay, everybody, I'll see you two days from now after the festival tomorrow. I hope you enjoy it because we are getting back to work the following day." Kakashi said as he puffed away in a pillar of smoke. Sakura and Sasuke left soon after to get ready for the festival. Naruto was left wallowing in a pit of confusion as he wondered what was going on. "Festival, what festival are they talking about? I never heard about a festival." Naruto started to walk home as he thought about what was special about tomorrow. "Let's see, Thanksgiving is still a month away, Christmas is even further along, and the Hokage's birthdays are early in the year. What festival could they be talking about?"
Naruto walked home in confusion as he asked himself, "What festival are they talking about?" He went into a store to buy a few metal bands and started to walk off in the direction of his house.
(End flashback)
Naruto passed by his calendar and finally got a good look on what day it was tomorrow. Tomorrow was October the 10th.
"Oh, great, it's my birthday. I hate my birthday. It just gives the villagers the right to get drunk and try and attack me. I can't believe this. I might as well stay home or stay in my clearing tomorrow. I mean, I know exactly what will happen tomorrow." Naruto packed up all his prized and useful possessions and sealed them into his scrolls. He knew what would happen tomorrow and he was preparing for it. He then took a backpack and filled them with the sealed scrolls. He then left his house and headed towards his clearing.
As soon as he got there, he put down his items and lay on the ground. Naruto then looked up at the sky as he drifted off to sleep.
(The next day)
The morning was eerily quiet in Konoha. All of the villagers who were awake were wearing formal wear and traveling to memorials in the village. People on the streets were setting up various stands to sell items and souvenirs. The children were playacting as one child acted as the Kyuubi and other kids acted as the ninjas. One lucky kid in each of the plays was playing the part of the great Yondaime himself. Each one of the games portrayed the same story. The ninjas fight valiantly and the Kyuubi wreaks havoc. The Yondaime comes in later and kills the Kyuubi, saving the village from destruction. The people were preparing for the grand celebration that is about to take place; the defeat of the Kyuubi no Yoko.
During the day, most of the families in the village would go to memorials or graveyards to mourn for the people who died. For the ninja, no missions are given out unless it was a matter of national security. Since this was not the case today, almost everybody went out to mourn for their lost family members.
At night, the mood shifts completely. At night, people celebrate the defeat of the dreaded Kyuubi no Yoko. The streets are lined with shops and stands that are ready to sell you just about anything. The bars are stuffed to the brim with people who toast to the defeat of the Kyuubi. The streets are packed with happy people of all ages. The children run in on the roads, screaming in joy. Shinobi and civilian alike give loud cheers to the defeat of the Kyuubi.
Later on, there is one event that all people look forward to. The Hokage gives a speech praising all of the lives that were sacrificed to keep the village safe. Everyone listens as he retells the story of the defeat of Kyuubi. As he finishes, the people head downtown to witness what would described as a fire lover's dream. A great wooden statue about 50 feet high is brought into town square. A few selected shinobi then walk up to the statue on the four sides of the statue. Each one uses a high level fire technique to set the statue ablaze and the crowd roars in joy as the statue is burned to the ground. The celebration starts to wind down after that event, but everyone leaves town square, satisfied that the Kyuubi was "destroyed", if only for one night.
As it was mentioned earlier, almost everybody went to participate in the ceremonies. One of the most frequent exceptions is one Uzumaki Naruto. He always slept outside in his clearing the night before, considering what will eventually be done. He hears the cheers and screams of the night celebrations and he hears the soft sobbing of the villagers during the day. He is one of the few that never attends this ceremony. However, there is a reason for this.
The villagers never let him come within 50 feet of a graveyard, let alone a public memorial. The villagers always look at him on this day with glares that are several times worse than what he experiences on a daily basis. Instead of the glares saying, "Get out of my sight, you demon", they say, "Get lost, demon. You're the one who caused this. You don't deserve to be here."
There is also another reason, however. This one isn't as severe as the last, but it is still disheartening. He always sees this effect as soon as he gets back to his house.
(Later, after the day's ceremonies)
Naruto headed back to his home, dreading what he knew happened while he was gone. He used the rooftops to get to his home and used a genjutsu if he had to traverse on the streets. The people on the roads were only lingering around after the ceremonies. The people don't really care to notice because they are either too busy cleaning up the stands or too drunk to notice.
He dispelled his genjutsu as he walked through his doorway. The odd thing about it this time was the fact that the door wasn't closed and locked like he left it the night before. In fact, the door was embedded in the wall on the other side of the room. Naruto sighed as he surveyed the area.
"Let's see, the table's broken again. My bed is junk, my closet is trashed, and my kitchen counter is broken to pieces. My bathroom door is next to the remains of my kitchen table and the sink and bathtub won't hold water anymore. The windowsill is seared along with the area surrounding the window and the window itself is a charred mess right next to the remains of my bed which has the front door in the wall on top of it. My storage area is trashed and anything that I couldn't bring with me last night is either broken or missing. Great, I need to fix all of this before tomorrow. Right now, it's about 11:30. Well, let's get started. At least they didn't wreck it as bad as they did last year. Happy Birthday to me," Naruto thought as he swept and cleaned up what was left of his house. Naruto pulled out his money scroll and looked it over as he calculated what he needed to buy to fix everything. Naruto always did this. He always saved about a quarter of his pay from every mission to save up for what happens on October 10th. All of the places that sold furniture were closed until tomorrow so Naruto could only clean up and sleep on the floor, which was thankfully intact. Naruto finally finished around 4:00 in the morning and rolled out his sleeping bag and his makeshift alarm clock. Naruto then went into the sleeping bag and drifted into a deep sleep.
(Later)
About one and a half hours later, Naruto heard the noise that was his makeshift alarm clock going off. Naruto packed up his items and went out the door, making a mental note to buy more furniture under the Hokage's name.
He arrived at the usual meeting area to find that Sakura and Sasuke weren't there. He looked at his makeshift watch and saw that it was about 5:45. They weren't supposed to get here for another 15 minutes so he sat on the bridge and drifted back to sleep.
It was what seemed like a few minutes when he heard a loud voice and felt a painful spot on his head. Naruto groaned inwardly as he thought. "Ugh, I don't have the energy to deal with you today. Buzz off, will you?"
Naruto stood as he opened his eyes and started to act cheerful again.
"Hi, Sakura-chan, what's up?"
"Naruto, you needed to wake up! Kakashi-sensei is already here!"
"Huh? He is? Okay, I'll get up," Naruto said. "Damn, I've been asleep for about 2 hours already unless pigs sprouted wings and Kakashi actually came on time," Naruto thought.
Naruto groggily stood and Kakashi looked at him oddly. "What did he do yesterday? He looks exhausted," Kakashi thought.
Naruto spoke in a low whisper as he passed Kakashi. Kakashi only got more curious as his words registered in his head.
"Don't ask. I won't answer."
The day progressed smoothly even though Naruto was apparently exhausted. Naruto was able to get though everything he usually did and he was able to get and build his new items for his house. After building his bed, Naruto laid down upon it. He was asleep before his head hit the pillow.
(A month later)
Naruto and the rest of team 7 had just finished a relatively easy mission and the team was bickering as usual. Naruto had spent the last month training and developing techniques. Hinata and Naruto trained in the forest occasionally and Hinata practiced the healing technique she learned. Naruto was proud to say that Hinata had completely mastered the technique. Naruto had also developed a gravity seal that he placed on metal bands fastened to his wrists and ankles. This allowed Naruto to adjust the weight at any time and Naruto was happy about this since Naruto needed every cent he had for the essentials. Naruto also had another idea for a technique after he saw a leaf spinning in the air, caught between two contrasting winds. Now, they were walking back to give a mission report, Naruto limping without support as his teammates walked beside him.
"How could you hurt yourself with a pen? All we had to do was deliver a pen to a villager and you still manage to botch it up!" Sakura shouted as they walked back.
"Pens; plural; it was a three boxes of pens. Besides, I didn't see you carrying your box!" Naruto shouted back as he limped alongside his teammates.
"Of course you didn't! I was too tired to carry one of those boxes! Do you know how much we did today?"
"Yes, I do. I did them too. It doesn't mean you could throw your box at me!"
"You wanted to carry the box for me, Naruto!"
"That still doesn't mean you could throw it at me! Besides, I didn't see Sasuke saying anything about it."
"Don't drag me into this, dobe," Sasuke said.
"Shut up; you just don't want to admit that I'm stronger than you," Naruto said back.
"You're not; why aren't you?"
Naruto growled as Kakashi trailed behind them. Kakashi started to think as Naruto fumed and limped.
"Teamwork seems to be lacking a bit. I wonder if they're ready."
Kakashi started to speak as Team 7 turned to listen. "Hey, why don't we call it a day? I'll see you all tomorrow. I need to deliver this mission report."
The genin present nodded as Sakura and Sasuke jumped into the trees. Naruto started to walk off as he saw something behind him.
"A square rock with a couple of eye holes; this is probably the worst thing he has ever come up with!"
Naruto started to walk off again as he saw the rock following him in the corner of his eye. Naruto broke into a run and ran back and forth as the rock sprouted six legs and started running. Naruto then suddenly turned, making the rock stop in its tracks. Naruto then began to speak.
"Seriously, Konohamaru, what kind of rock has eye holes and perfectly straight angles? You have to do better than that," Naruto said as he sighed.
The rock puffed into a cloud of smoke revealing three children wearing goggles very similar to the ones he used to wear in the academy. Konohamaru was in the middle and he was flanked on both sides by two other children. One of them was a girl with orange hair who was dressed in a red shirt with beige pants. The other was a boy who was dressed in a blue jacket with beige shorts.
"Hey, Konohamaru, what's with the goggles?" Naruto asked in greeting.
"Nothing much; we're just copying the old you."
Naruto sighed as he answered. "I see. Listen, is there anything you need?"
At this point the girl stepped forward. "Naruto-nii-chan, are you busy? We want to play ninja with you."
Naruto smiled at the academy students as the two genin in the trees formed sweat-drops on the back of their heads while thinking, "What kind of respectable ninja plays "ninja"?"
The little children took the smile as an affirmative and started to run away. Naruto chased after them. He knew that "playing ninja" was really a game of tag. The three children ran around a corner as Naruto heard a loud thump and a groan afterward. As soon as Naruto rounded the corner, Naruto saw Konohamaru rubbing his head on the ground while a figure dressed in a full-black body suit stood in front of them with something tied to his back, wrapped in bandages. The figure began to speak as Konohamaru was lifted off the ground.
"That hurt, brat. Aren't you even going to apologize?"
Konohamaru only kicked the black figure's body as his grip tightened. Naruto started to speak.
"Put him down."
The black figure then faced Naruto. Naruto saw that his face was covered in war paint as he spoke in a cold tone. Naruto also noticed the headband.
"What are you going to do about it?" the figure asked.
"They're from the sand, I take it. Hmm, what are they doing here?" Naruto thought as he spoke again.
"I'll ask you one more time, put him down."
The figure only smiled and started to painfully pull Konohamaru's shirt. Naruto started to execute his plan when he saw that this was getting him nowhere. The other two kids were behind Naruto as Naruto fell into a battle position, extending his hand to protect the children. Naruto looked around to see something odd on the ground.
"Chakra strings, huh? I guess I can't move in for close combat unless I take him by surprise."
Naruto then created a clone and dashed forward, creating 5 clones in the process. The figure looked surprised as he used the chakra strings to ensnare them all. The figure tightened the chakra strings, making the clones puff out of existence. Naruto smirked and chuckled in his current position to the right of the figure. Naruto then punched the figure as he flew to a nearby fence and fell to the ground. Konohamaru was dropped to the ground right before his flight and he was currently behind Naruto. Naruto smirked as he pulled out a scroll. The figure stood as Naruto fell into position again. The boy then took the package off of his back as a voice filled the area.
"Kankuro, that's enough. Stop before you disgrace our village any further," the voice said as a swirl of sand materialized in between Naruto and the one called Kankuro. This person had a gourd on his back and his headband was tied around the strap that held the gourd in place. The kanji symbol for "love" was on his forehead. He started to speak as Kankuro acted as if the guy was the Grim Reaper.
"Who are you?" the person asked with a tone that could freeze water.
"I am Uzumaki Naruto. Who are you and what is your business in Konohagakure?"
"I am Sabaku no Gaara. This cretin behind me is Sabaku no Kankuro. I'm sure you've heard of the chuunin selection exam."
Naruto nodded as he turned to leave, taking the children with him.
Gaara started to think as Naruto left. "He was good enough to fight Kankuro. He will be an excellent opponent."
In the trees, Sakura and Sasuke stared in awe at the people that were there. Naruto was able to fight against Kankuro easily and he was able to keep a calm composure as Gaara appeared out of nowhere. They soon departed and followed Naruto throughout Konoha as he played "ninja" with the little children.
(Meanwhile)
"Now, as you know, the chuunin exams are being hosted in our village this time. I am now asking the sensei of the genin to announce whether or now the genin are ready for the exam. Now, I know that the genin that graduated last year are taking the exam, but I wish to address the sensei of the rookie genin. First, Hatake Kakashi, what do you say about your genin team?"
Kakashi stepped up to the Hokage and started to speak. "I, Hatake Kakashi, sensei of Team 7, on the honor of my clan, the Hatake, hereby nominate the genin team consisting of Haruno Sakura, Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto to take the chuunin exams."
The Hokage nodded and faced the next sensei. Kurenai started to speak. "I, Yuuhi Kurenai, sensei of Team 8, on the honor of my clan, the Yuuhi, hereby nominate the genin team consisting of Aburame Shino, Hyuuga Hinata, and Inuzuka Kiba to take the chuunin exams."
The Hokage nodded again as the next sensei stepped up. Asuma began to speak. "I, Sarutobi Asuma, sensei of Team 10, on the honor of my clan, the Sarutobi, hereby nominate the genin team consisting of Akimichi Chouji, Nara Shikamaru and Yamanaka Ino to take the chuunin exams."
At this point, Iruka started to address the people present. "With all due respect, Hokage-sama, I do not think the people are ready to take such a rigorous exam! I propose that we test the rookies to see whether or not they are ready. Is this acceptable, Hokage-sama?"
The Hokage nodded in response before starting to speak again. "Since Iruka makes a good point, I say we hold a preliminary exam. Now, we need to…"
(The next day)
Naruto waited for his terminally late teacher along with the rest of Team 7. It was around 9:45 when Kakashi was supposed to meet them at 7:00. Sakura and Sasuke still looked at Naruto oddly as Naruto stood with an annoyed expression. Sakura and Sasuke thought about their teammate carefully. The one apparent thought in both of their minds was, "Just how smart and how powerful are you, Naruto? Who are you?"
As if Naruto was answering their mental questions, Naruto thought as he noticed his teammates' stares. "I am much more than you think. If you wish to find out who I really am, gain my trust. Then, and only then, you will be able to see my true demeanor."
At that point, Kakashi came. On instinct, Naruto and Sakura jumped forward and started to shout.
"YOU'RE LATE!"
"I'm sorry, everybody. I got lost on the way here."
"Yeah, sure, Kakashi-sensei, let's just see what my spy has to say." Naruto said as another Naruto jumped from the trees behind Kakashi. Naruto spoke again. "So, Naruto, what was Kakashi-sensei doing?"
The clone started to speak as Kakashi's visible eye widened. "Well, he spent the time between 6:30 and 9:30 in a bookstore reading his perverted books."
The real Naruto turned to Kakashi with a, "What do you have to say for yourself," look as the clone vanished, its task complete. Kakashi's eye narrowed as Sakura began to yell at him. Kakashi simply ignored Sakura's rant as he pulled out 3 pieces of paper.
The three genin looked confused as they looked at the pieces of paper. Sakura was the first to speak as Naruto's face broke into a large smile.
"Kakashi-sensei, what are those papers for?" Sakura asked as Naruto's smile grew.
Kakashi's eye reverted to the shape of an upside-down "u" as he answered. "I have nominated you three to participate in the chuunin exams. Here are your applications. The choice to take the test is your individual choice. You are to meet at room 301 at 3:00 6 days from now for the first part of the test. You have some free time until then."
Naruto instantly cheered and started to run around as Sakura started to cheer. Sasuke smirks at the opportunity to show off his skills to the world.
Each one of them had their own individual thoughts.
"I am going to go and kick the butts of everyone there, especially that idiot who messed with Konohamaru yesterday and Sasuke-teme here. There is one problem, though. If I take this exam, I will have to fight with all of my ability alongside my teammates. If I do that, what's stopping Sasuke-teme from using my techniques?"
"Maybe, I'll get to fight that guy from the sand, Sabaku no Gaara. This will be an excellent opportunity to fight powerful opponents."
"I'm not ready. I can't even keep up with Naruto. How will I ever survive the exam?"
(Later)
"Oy, Naruto-nii-chan, do you want to play with us?"
Naruto turned at the familiar childish girl voice. He smiled as he saw the child trio that he ran into yesterday. Naruto started to speak to them.
"Hey, Moegi-chan, Udon-kun, Konohamaru; I have some free time today. The usual, I take it?"
The three children started to run as the game from the day before restarted. Before the children got 5 steps away, a mysterious ninja came and scooped up Moegi in his arms. Naruto and the others started to shout and follow him to the forest as Naruto formed a few Shadow Clones. As soon as Naruto got there, he saw the culprit in front of a tree where Moegi was tied. The figure began to speak as Naruto landed.
"That was pretty fast."
"Hey, what are you going to do to Moegi? Let go of her!"
The ninja pulled out a kunai and held it to Moegi's throat. "Just guess what I'll do to her."
Naruto acted terrified as he smirked inwardly. "This is going perfectly. I just need to stall a little longer."
The ninja began to speak again. "Get me to Forbidden Scroll of Seals or the kid bites the big one!"
Naruto immediately smirked as he spoke. "Do you think I care about that thing on the tree?"
The ninja turned around only to find a fist in his face. Moegi and the rest of Konohamaru's group ran away shortly after. Naruto walked up to the ninja and knelt in front of him.
"You can drop the disguise now, Iruka-sensei."
"So, you really have improved, Naruto."
"You know I was holding back, don't you?"
"Yeah, I do. If you weren't you would have blown me halfway to the Hokage's office by now using that wind technique of yours."
"So, why did you try and kidnap Moegi anyway?"
"You see, this is a test for the rookies that graduated last year. You do know that all 9 of you were nominated, right?"
"Awesome! All of us were nominated?"
"Yeah, you all were. If you excuse me, I have to test the others, now. See you later, Naruto."
Naruto waved in response as Iruka jumped and reset his genjutsu. He could see Iruka jumping away through the trees, looking for his next target.
(End Chapter)
Technique List:
Kousei no Jutsu: Resuscitation Technique; used by Naruto and Hinata. Naruto used this technique as a basis for Touboku Saisei.
(End Techniques)
A/N: I'm sorry it took so long. I was thinking about what to do during the chuunin exams and I know this chapter stinks. I promise to try to make the next one better. Please don't flame me.
(Posted June 30, 2006)