A/N: Hello again, I'm back with a (hopefully) better chapter than last time. I hope you like it!
Megaolix: Sorry, I didn't respond to your review last chapter. I am going to try and give the battles a little more detail. Thanks for the suggestion and sorry!
Chidori vs Rasengan: I know; it hurt just typing it up.
Underdark Ranger: OO Snake? Where did that come from? Oh well, I think a snake is a great idea! Just don't give the snake food that can bite back. Trust me; I know.
Dragon Man 180: I seem to have put Naruto into a very bad position here. On one hand, Naruto can reveal his true self and Sakura and Sasuke start to pester him about lying to them. On the other hand, Naruto can keep it a secret with much difficulty and have it all fall apart later in the exams. Then, Sakura and Sasuke will start to pester him about not helping them with these abilities in the past. Also, the technique did not just boost her confidence. I have plans for that specific technique…
VFSNAKE: Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on how you see it, Naruto likes the village too much to destroy it. Also, about Kakashi, yes, he's lazy.
Orbrey: You see, I made Naruto's perception of friends similar to mine, I hold friends in very high regard, but it is not easy to become my friend because I don't really trust anyone but my friends and family. I also like playing with little children so that little aspect may have leaked in. Also, the question isn't, "Who will he reveal himself to first?" It's, "To whom will he reveal his identity willfully and completely?"
Silver Warrior: That he will; my friend, that he will.
Japanese of Red Dog: Thanks for your input.
Hanlim80: I'm glad you like it. Stick around for what I write next. I don't even know.
Nania: Is it? Are you sure? I didn't think I did a good job on that chapter.
NarutoNineTails: This is only the beginning. The chuunin exams should be more exciting.
Tellemicus Sundance: Okay, I'll try. I don't know how my thought processes will react when it's put on demand, but I'll give it a shot. Thanks for the offer. Also, I appreciate you reviews but remember; I am not trying to upstage you. I'm just letting you know.
Anime-Boy07: I'm glad you stopped attacking my friends. I'm glad you like the chapter. I'm using the whole, "You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar" approach, but I'm running out of cute friends.
Locker87: Thanks for the compliment. I appreciate the little comment about the summer, but I will probably be in my room most of the time, trying to finish my summer homework. Summer Homework sucks! I hate it! I'm glad you like the story, though. I agree about the, "this should have been the real thing" kind of compliment, but I also agree with you when you say that the fact that it doesn't makes it better. In fact, if this was how they put it, I wouldn't have the fun of writing this, would I?
Conan98002: Thank you for the review. I'm glad you think so.
Disclaimer: (look below for disclaimer/conversation)
: Yay, go Tommy, go! Faster, run faster!
OG: Hey, can I get some help with the disclaimer, please? You and Tommy are the only ones around since everyone else wanted a vacation.
Mary: Wheeee! (Hangs on for dear life on Tommy's fur as he runs around)
OG: Whatever, I don't own Naruto. If you excuse me, I want to ride on Tommy, too! Wait up Mary!
Enjoy the 14th installment of "Cheerfulness Incarnate"
(Chapter Begins)
Naruto arrived at the academy proud and cheerful. This is his chance to show everyone what he was made of! The problem was the fact that he would probably have to fight against his friends or reveal his true strength to his teammates. If that happened, Naruto would be placed in a horrible position, especially with an Uchiha in the group.
Naruto sighed outwardly as he reached the outside of the academy building. Naruto looked around to see nobody within 30 feet of the front door. "Great, I'm early. That means I can get a good look at the competition as they walk in. Also, I can work on perfecting that technique of mine," Naruto thought as he performed a few four seals, Ushi, Saru, Tatsu, and Hitsuji.
Naruto was suddenly in the center of a large tornado-like wind. There were blades of wind coming out of random areas on the outside while Naruto sat calmly on the inside, frowning.
"It's not quite there, yet. There are still a few blades that are sticking out and that wastes chakra. I need to spin the chakra faster while controlling the chakra output."
The tornado calmed down as the first of the candidates arrived for the chuunin exam. Naruto still sat outside as he continued to think. He pulled out the notes scroll he used to make the technique.
"I need to master this technique before I am able to use it. If I don't do it right and something hits the outside of it, the technique may backfire, leaving me with a fatal injury, depending on how unstable it was. Now, the leaf was spinning because of two contrasting winds going in opposite directions. I needed to force the two winds together to create the small vortex and then spin the vortex to get the desired effect. Okay, now to review. The seals generate the chakra for the wind blades inside the technique and they charge the wind with my chakra, allowing me to control it. I need to spin the chakra to create the tornado and continue to control it to make it retain its shape. Now, what am I doing wrong? I know that I need to control it while it's spinning, but I need to focus in order to do it! This will never work in a battle situation unless I completely master it!"
At that point, Naruto saw his teammates looking down, trying to sneak a glance at the scroll. Naruto immediately got annoyed and shut the scroll quickly. He looked at them oddly as he stood up.
Retaining his cheerful mask by a thread, Naruto spoke. "Hey guys, should we go in now?"
The other two nodded while eyeing Naruto suspiciously. Naruto fumed inside his mind as he noticed something strange.
"I've been through this hall and I've been up these stairs over a thousand times. Something is off here," Naruto thought as he began to look around suspiciously. Naruto noticed something as he stepped up on the stairs.
"I've been up here a million times and this step always squeaked under any pressure. This is not the right staircase," Naruto thought as he looked to his teammates. Naruto proudly noted that they looked suspicious as well and it wasn't because of him. As they walked up to what appeared to be the third floor, they came just in time to see a person dressed in a green spandex jumpsuit being forced to the ground. As soon as a girl in a pink shirt blocked the way between the bully and the green kid, she was also knocked down. Team 7 walked forward and heard the conversation after the two got up.
"Listen, were doing you a favor. The chuunin exams are tough and some of you might not make it out alive. Quit whole you still can. The weak won't live until the finals."
"True," Sasuke said as he walked forward, "but, I'm not exactly weak. You can drop the genjutsu, now."
A burst of whispers came out from the crowd which was mostly remarks saying that they didn't know that there was a genjutsu in place.
"Sakura," Sasuke continued, "you probably caught on first, didn't you? Your perception of genjutsu is the most refined in our group."
Sakura immediately smiled and nodded while speaking. "Of course, Sasuke-kun, this mealy genjutsu won't fool me. I bet even Naruto here figured it out. We're on the second floor, even if the genjutsu on the stairs gave us the idea that we were on the third."
Naruto smiled as he played along. "It's nice that you noticed, Sakura-chan. There are so many flaws that you can't help but notice that it's a genjutsu."
The bully in front of the door smiled as the sign on the door changed from 301 to 201. The bully then began to speak.
"Well, you've passed the first test. Let's see if you can pass the second," he said as he charged towards Sasuke with a mid level kick. Sasuke tried to counter with a kick of his own as everybody saw a green flicker between them. Suddenly, the green person that was thrown to the ground before stood in between the kicks and held them in place. The two people fighting were startled by the speed and stood down. The girl in the pink shirt walked up to the green boy and started to speak.
"Lee, you were the one that said that we shouldn't make ourselves noticeable."
"But…," Lee said as he looked at Sakura.
"Oh, great," the girl said as Lee started to speak to Sakura.
"My name is Rock Lee; so, your name is Sakura, correct!"
Sakura only looked confused as Lee continued. "Will you go out with me! I shall protect you with my life!"
Sakura looked offended as she spoke in response. "Not in your life; you're lame."
Lee, at this point, looked downtrodden as he started to lean on the wall in embarrassment. Naruto looked over and saw the boy looking dejected. He immediately went over and asked a simple question.
"Hey, Lee, are you okay? That is your name, right?"
Lee looked up to see Naruto's face. Naruto mentally cringed as he finally got a good look at him. He had MASSIVE EYEBROWS and his smile could BLIND PEOPLE! The boy looked up and began to speak as cheerfully as he did with Sakura.
"Hello, yes, my name is Rock Lee! What is your name!"
Naruto had to suppress his urge to twitch and cringe at his voice. Along with his clothes and teeth, he was a nightmare to the eyes and ears! He wrenched out a response as he mentally squashed his urge to run away screaming.
"My name is… Uzumaki Naruto. It's nice… to meet you."
"It is an honor to meet you, also, Naruto-kun! I presume you are here for the chuunin exams, am I correct!"
Naruto's left eye twitched slightly as he answered.
"Yes, I am here to take the exam."
Sakura chose this moment to drag Sasuke and Naruto to the room. Naruto was greatly relieved as Sasuke started to tell Sakura to let go of him.
Meanwhile, with Lee and the others, a conversation took place.
"He's Sasuke from the Uchiha clan, huh?" a boy with long hair asked himself as they watched the retreating forms of Team 7.
"Are you interested in him Neji?" the girl asked.
Lee started to leave at this point. The girl noticed and asked him about it.
"Where are you going, Lee?"
"Don't worry! I will be back soon! I need to take care of something!" Lee said as he left.
(Outside room 301)
As they walked towards the door, Team 7 was interrupted by a loud and familiar voice.
"Hey, you with the dark eyes, stop!"
Everyone turned as a green figure jumped from the upper railing. He landed about 20 feet in front of Team 7 as Sakura had a horrified facial expression. Naruto just attempted to suppress a snicker and a twitch at the same time.
"My name is Rock Lee," he began to speak as Sakura held her expression, "If you want to know someone's name, you must introduce yourself first. Am I right, Uchiha Sasuke-kun?"
Sasuke only replied with a smirk and a small statement. "So, you know about me?"
Lee then sank into a battle position. "I wish to fight you, now. Do you accept? I wish to test my abilities against a genius like you."
Lee then turned to Sakura. "Also, I wish to prove myself to Sakura-san, for I am in love with her!"
Sakura then started to scream. "No, those eyebrows are disgusting, that hairstyle is horrible, and the lower eyelashes are just too weird!
Lee started to wink, sending a barrage of little heart-shaped projectiles towards her. Sakura dodged them efficiently, the last one almost hitting her as he ducked and bashed her head on the floor.
As Sakura recovered, she started to scream at Lee. "Don't throw stupid, weird things at me! I barely escaped with my life!"
Sasuke interrupted Sakura's rant with a simple phrase.
"I'll fight you."
Everybody in the immediate area turned to Sasuke as he repeated himself.
"I'll fight you, Lee. I want to test my abilities as well."
Sakura started to protest as Sasuke interrupted her. "Don't worry Sakura; this will only take a few minutes."
Lee smirked as Sasuke charged forward. As Sasuke tried to hit Lee, Lee vanished. Lee appeared behind Sasuke and attempted to hit him with a violent kick. Sasuke dodged it easily as Lee landed and tried to hit Sasuke with a mid-level kick. Sasuke saw Lee form a half-seal as he brought his arms up to block.
"I can't dodge this one; I have to block it, but what was he doing with his hands?"
Sasuke's thoughts were interrupted as a foot met Sasuke's face. He went flying as Lee stood and regained his position. Sasuke rubbed his face and got up while thinking.
"Was that ninjutsu or genjutsu? I knew I blocked that one, why did it still hit?"
Sasuke started to laugh as he lowered his head. He started to speak in a low tone as the others present listened in.
"Hmm, it seems I will have to test this new ability out on you. This is going to be a challenge."
As Sasuke lifted his head up, Lee smirked as Sakura stared in awe. Naruto only stood and thought as if he was reprimanding Sasuke.
"You idiot, all of his moves are just super-fast taijutsu moves. You are screwed here because you can't keep up with big brows' techniques."
Meanwhile, Sakura was thinking about Sasuke's newfound ability with awe. "Sasuke-kun has the Sharingan! How does he have it and why does he have it in both eyes?"
Sasuke looked closely as he charged towards Lee. As he charged, he was fairly confident as he thought to himself. "If it's genjutsu or ninjutsu, I'll see through it. There must be some kind of magic at work here."
Sasuke's thoughts and Sakura's mental praising of Sasuke were both interrupted as Sasuke was hit violently upward on the chin. Naruto smirked as Sasuke landed hard on the floor. Lee then spoke as the two combatants exchanged blows.
"I'm sure you've figured it out by now. My moves are all taijutsu techniques. Since you have the Sharingan, you are able to read ninjutsu, taijutsu and genjutsu moves. Since genjutsu and ninjutsu are both made by molding chakra, you have an advantage since you can see how the chakra flows inside the body. Taijutsu, however, is a little different. Even if you can see my movements, your body is still untrained to keep up with my speed, therefore, speed is your greatest enemy!"
Naruto stared with wide eyes as Lee landed on the ground and vanished. He reappeared underneath Sasuke's flying body as Naruto started to think.
"Whoa, that technique is really powerful! It just sent Sasuke-teme flying! If that is what taijutsu really is, I don't stand a chance when it comes to a taijutsu-only fight!"
Sasuke started to worry as Lee started to speak underneath him. This was Kagebuyo! "There are two categories in the world of great shinobi. There is the genius type and the hard-working type. Your Uchiha blood makes you the genius type, while I am the hard-working type. I will prove that genius can be defeated by hard work with this technique!"
Lee then flexed his hands, allowing the bandages around them to unravel. The bandages fluttered in the wind as Lee prepared to use his technique. Naruto watched in awe as he calculated how much damage he could do with that technique. Lee spoke again as he was about to use his technique.
"It's over; I win."
Suddenly, a pinwheel flies through the air. Lee spots it as his eyes widen. The pinwheel pins the bandage that was unraveled from Lee's hands to the wall as Lee smoothly aborts the technique and lands softly. Sasuke, however, wasn't as lucky as Sakura dove to save him from a rough fall. Naruto looked around as a voice filled the area.
"Lee, that's enough!"
Lee walked over to the source of the voice as Naruto looked in confusion.
"Is that a turtle?" Naruto asked himself.
Naruto then heard the conversation between Lee and the turtle.
"Lee, you know that move is forbidden!"
"So, you were watching our fight."
"Are you prepared for your punishment!"
Naruto held his look of confusion as he thought. "He's being scolded… by a turtle."
Lee only looked dejected as the turtle continued.
"Very well; it's all yours, Gai!"
A column of smoke appeared on the turtle's shell as Naruto's confusion rose to new heights. As the smoke cleared, Naruto couldn't help but cringe at the sight before him. The man on the turtle's shell was none other than… a larger version of Lee with bigger brows and a jounin vest. By this time, Sakura and Sasuke had stood up and they were facing the turtle along with Naruto. Naruto looked to his teammates to see that they wore a similar expression. The figure started to yell.
"I am the incarnation of youth! I am Maito Gai!"
"AHH, it's a lamer person than Lee! The eyebrows and goofy hairstyle are even bigger and he looks even worse!"
Lee turned around at that point and started to yell back.
"Don't make fun of Gai-sensei! He's the best there is!"
"Lee…" Gai said. Lee just turned to be met by a large punch from his larger clone. The three genin present looked appalled as they saw a backdrop fall, revealing a sunset on a beach. Lee and Gai hugged underneath the sunset as a wave washed up to shore. Sasuke started to think as Lee and Gai calmed down.
"I lost to this freak?"
Lee and Gai were ignoring their looks and continued to speak with Gai telling Lee to run 100 laps as a punishment. The turtle then stepped in as he spoke.
"Hey, Gai, the chuunin exams are today. Don't you remember?"
Gai moved as if he had just remembered and spoke to Lee again. "You will do your punishment after the chuunin exams, 500 laps!"
"Yes, sir!" Lee shouted in response as Gai finally took a look at Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke.
The genin in question cringed as they realized his gaze. Gai began to speak. "So, how's Kakashi-sensei?"
Sasuke was the first to recover and answer. "Do you know Kakashi-sensei?"
Gai smiled and brought his hand to his chin while speaking. "You can say we're…eternal rivals!"
Team 7 looked incredulous as Sakura and Naruto shouted a unified "No way!" This sent Lee into a rage.
"Gai-sensei is Kakashi-sensei's rival! Don't make fun of him!"
"Now, now," Gai interrupted. "Actions are much better than words."
The tree genin present saw Gai vanish, only to hear something from behind.
"The score stands at 50 to 49 with me in the lead. I am stronger than Kakashi."
Team 7 thought about the same thing. "He's really fast! I didn't even see him move!"
"You should get to the classroom, now. Good Luck, Lee!"
With that, he threw a kunai to dislodge the windmill and both Gai and the turtle vanished. Naruto looked at Lee, who was wrapping his bandages around his hands. He spoke before leaving towards the classroom.
"Remember, Sasuke-kun, the strongest genin in Konoha is on my team. You are one of my targets."
As he left, Sasuke clenched his fist. Naruto spoke as Sakura caught his attention.
"So, the Uchiha clan isn't all that great, isn't it?"
Sakura started to reprimand him as Sasuke spoke.
"Shut up; I'll beat him next time."
"Really, even if you had your butt handed to you this time?"
Sasuke got annoyed by this as Naruto spoke again.
"You saw his hands right? They were scratched and burnt like he was training day in and day out. He definitely trains more than you."
Sasuke released his fist and clenched it again. Instead of the scowl on his face before, there was a smirk. Sasuke spoke his mind as he caught their attention.
"Well, this is getting exciting. These chuunin exams are going to be good. Let's go; Sakura, Naruto!"
They opened the door to the room to 301 to face their opposition.
(Room 301)
Team 7 walked in only to see an incredible sight. Every seat in the large room was filled and some people were standing on the sides! True, there was a few people taking up more than one seat, but they all looked threatening. Sakura looked nervous and Sasuke and Naruto looked on in determination.
Suddenly, however, Sasuke felt an unwelcome weight on his shoulders as he saw a blonde-haired girl hanging off of him. Ino started to speak and mock Sakura at the same time.
"Hello, Sasuke-kun; why don't you get away from Big Forehead over there and come hang out with me?"
Sakura instantly got angry from this and started to yell. Naruto, hearing this constantly at the academy, moved over to the other two members of Ino's team.
"Hey, Shikamaru, Chouji; how is everything going?"
"Hey, Naruto," Shikamaru said plainly, "are you taking this troublesome test too?"
Chouji only acknowledged Naruto's presence before returning to his chips. Naruto nodded to Shikamaru in response as he saw Team 8 walking towards them. Kiba started to speak, getting the attention of all of the rookies.
"So, you all are here, too? That means that the Rookie 9 is taking the chuunin exam together this year. No matter what you say; you're not going to beat us!"
Naruto smirked as he responded to Kiba's arrogance. "Shut up Kiba, I won't lose to any of you, either. Be prepared if you have to fight me."
Kiba looked away for a second as Naruto walked up to Hinata. Hinata started to blush as Naruto began to speak.
"Hi, Hinata-chan; I haven't seen you for a while now. How are you doing?"
"I-I'm f-fine N-Naruto-kun. How are you?" Hinata asked.
"I'm okay. It seems we'll be taking the exams together, huh?" Naruto said.
"Yes, N-Naruto-kun, we are. I-I h-hope you d-do well."
"Thanks Hinata-chan; I hope you do well on yours as well," Naruto said while smiling.
After that last statement, Hinata smiled softly. Naruto stared at Hinata's features for a bit before both of them suddenly turned and blushed.
"I shouldn't think like that about Hinata-chan," Naruto thought.
"Naruto-kun was speaking to me! This is so embarrassing," Hinata thought.
At this point, somebody spoke.
"Hey, you guys; you should keep it down if you know what's good for you."
A boy with silver hair and glasses walked up to the rookies. Naruto had a bad feeling about this person so he kept his guard up.
"My name is Yakushi Kabuto. You guys are the rookies, right?"
The people all gave signals to the affirmative as Kabuto continued.
"I'm only saying that you should keep it down. Look around."
The rookies looked around to see everybody glaring at them. Each one of them was giving off a small amount of killing intent and it frightened some of them. Kabuto spoke again.
"This isn't a field trip. You should take this seriously."
Sakura spoke up after Kabuto finished. "Kabuto-san, was it? Thanks for the warning. This is your second time, I take it?"
"No, it's my 7th. The chuunin exams take place twice a year and this is my fourth year."
Naruto was really suspicious towards Kabuto because the chuunin exams couldn't be that difficult. Naruto grew even more suspicious when Kabuto took out a deck of cards.
"Now, I've collected some information over the years that just might help you cute rookies. These cards only work with the use of my chakra. They store the information that I've collected over the years."
Kabuto caught Sasuke's gaze as Sasuke asked a question.
"Can we get information on the participants?"
"They may not be complete, but I will give it a try. Tell me about who you want to know."
"I want to know about Rock Lee from Konoha and Sabaku no Garra from Suna. I also wish to know about Uzumaki Naruto, also from Konoha," Sasuke said. Naruto opened his eyes wide and glared daggers towards the Uchiha survivor. Sakura perked up at this statement and leaned in closer.
Kabuto ignored the glare that Naruto was giving to Sasuke and spoke. "So, you know their names? That makes things easy for me. Let's see."
Kabuto swiped his hand over the deck of cards and drew three cards. Naruto concentrated on the location in which Kabuto was placing the cards as he listened to the information.
"First, Rock Lee from Konoha; he is an expert on Taijutsu and Ninja tools, but everything else is unimpressive. His sensei is Maito Gai and his teammates are Higarashi Tenten and Hyuuga Neji. He has completed 20 D-class missions and 11 C-class missions."
Naruto made a mental note to check up on Hyuuga Neji since Hinata had the same surname as Kabuto continued.
"Next, Sabaku no Gaara from Suna; he is not well known since he is a foreigner, but he has completed 8 C-class and surprisingly a B-class mission without a scratch on any mission. His teammates are Kankuro and Temari, his siblings."
Naruto narrowed his eyes as he prepared himself as Kabuto continued.
"Lastly, Uzumaki Naruto from Konoha, he is…" Naruto interrupted his reading by placing his palm over the card. The people that could see what Naruto was doing were surprised as Naruto pumped chakra into the card, erasing the data. Naruto then used his chakra to create a single blade of air and cut the card into shreds. Naruto then turned to Sasuke with eyes that basically radiated fury.
"You are not going to get information on me behind my back. If you want to know about me, you must ask me personally. My response will depend on whether or not I trust you and by your actions; I will say that you are not going to get any information out of me for a long time. Do not let me catch you doing that again or I will destroy you! DO YOU UNDERSTAND!" Naruto said angrily, yelling at the end, getting the attention of all of the genin in the room. Sasuke actually flinched at Naruto's outburst and cold voice and all of the rookies were cringing at the change in the blonde boy.
All of the rookies were appalled by this, especially Sasuke. Sasuke and Sakura saw this as an opportunity to get a reading on Naruto's strength. However, all they managed to do was get Naruto angry.
Hinata was worried. She never saw Naruto like this. He was always a kind and cheerful soul around his friends. Now, however, she saw another side of Naruto. This side threatened to obliterate all who try to intrude in his business forcefully. She wondered what he was trying to hide from the people in this room. There are some things that even she, his friend, didn't know and he is determined to keep it a secret. "Naruto-kun, what did you prevent us from seeing? What are you protecting?"
At that moment, Naruto saw a large puff of smoke at the front of the classroom followed by a loud, booming voice.
"Settle down! I won't take any shit from anyone so sit down and be quiet!"
The people present immediately knew that they didn't want to mess with this guy. There was something about him that just screamed, "If you mess with me, you will regret it."
"Good; now, submit your applications at that table to pick up a seat number and your test. Sit at the seat which matches your number and wait for further instructions."
The genin did as they were instructed and they all managed to fit at the tables in the room, despite the large number of people. Naruto looked over the test paper and thought as he sat. "Okay, this is a paper exam? I thought that this exam would be more dangerous. I could answer some of these, but not a lot of them. Let's see what I'm up against."
Naruto looked around the room to check his surroundings. He looked to his left to see a proctor at the end of the long tables. He looked to the right and saw the same thing. The thing he noticed the most was the fact that he also saw a head drooped down on the table with blue hair. He made his presence known to one of his closest friends.
"Hi, Hinata-chan; I hope you do well on the test."
The person in question suddenly whipped her head up and looked at Naruto. She then stuttered a "Thank you Naruto-kun" and turned away blushing. Naruto was just confused.
"I didn't offend her, did I? She looks like she has a fever or something. I hope she's okay."
Naruto's thoughts were interrupted by the booming voice of the head proctor.
"Now that everyone is ready, we may begin. My name is Morino Ibiki and I will not tolerate any bullshit out of any of you. If you try to test me, I will have you disposed of. This test is a written test, as you have probably noticed. The grading system will be explained shortly," Ibiki said as he turned to face the board. He began to speak again as he wrote the summarized version on the board.
"This test's grading system is based on a basis of penalization. You all start off with ten points and each question that you get wrong will result in a subtraction of a point. Those who have no points are automatically disqualified. However, there is a catch."
The people in the room were slightly confused by the grading system. There was something behind it. The genin waited patiently as Ibiki continued.
"The catch is," Ibiki continued, "that cheating in any way shape or form will result in the automatic subtraction of two points from your score. That means that there is a chance that you will be disqualified before your test is graded. If you want to be chuunin you must act like shinobi! Those who cheat unwisely will be punished! Also, one more thing, if one member of a team fails, the other two members automatically fail as well."
Naruto could feel Sakura and Sasuke's glares on him as he took a quick glance at the paper. Naruto smirked as he saw a few questions he could answer. Maybe, he could keep his points and not worry about anything else.
Ibiki gave the hour time limit and started the test. Naruto immediately went through the test before answering any questions.
"Question 1; determine the possible trajectory of a kunai from the top of a 29 foot tree and determine the force needed to reach a target at point X approximately 20 feet away from the base of the tree with wind speed and resistance variations. Wow, that's tough. This question is definitely something not many people can answer. Even Sakura, the smartest rookie in our class, would have difficulty answering this. Let's see the next one."
Naruto then felt a variety of chakra surges throughout the room as he noticed a few people doing various things. He snuck a peek to his right to see Hinata's veins bulge near her eyes. He noticed the distinct signature of Sasuke's Sharingan. He saw a small cloud of sand traverse across the room and he noted a few other familiar chakra signatures. Naruto ignored them since he knew nobody would think to look at him.
Naruto looked down to the next question. Naruto smirked as he realized that he could answer this question. "Hmm, this one is easy. Question 2; determine the effect of the monkey seal in the seal order of Kuchiyose no Jutsu and describe the effects of the technique without the seal. That's simple. The monkey seal provides an amount of chakra to control the transportation of the summoned object or being. Without it, the technique, might fail or be ineffective due to a lack of chakra."
Naruto moved on as he looked the next question. "Question 3; what is the effect of a blood seal to a person who tries to open it, assuming that the seal is an infusion seal? Oh, man; if I didn't have a slight experience in this area to seal up a few of my valuable scrolls, I would have no idea what this was! An infusion seal would release a set stored amount of chakra upon the intruder. The chakra would seep through the seal as a blasting force and it would give the intruder a nasty explosion as a gift. The chakra could also sometimes be molded into a technique by the sealer and placed upon the seal as a defense mechanism."
Naruto paused for a bit as he felt his brain being yanked out by his ears. Naruto recovered quickly and continued through the other questions. Naruto was able to definitely answer 2 more questions and unsurely answer 1 other question. Naruto also figured out the true purpose in the middle of the test.
"They want us to cheat! Now, how do I do this? I can't use a bloodline like Hinata-chan and Sasuke-teme so that is definitely out. I can't answer all of the questions myself so I have to look carefully." Naruto looked up to see a series of mirrors above him. A picture of Shino's paper was clear as he looked upward. Naruto also looked at another mirror that was across from it. This one had a reflection of Shino's paper along with a reflection of the clock. Naruto looked closely at the clock to get the answers from Shino's paper and left it at that since Naruto knew that Shino was using his bugs for information. He smirked after getting the answers from the clock and calmed down considerably.
Naruto was confident, but he didn't want people to cheat on him so he placed a genjutsu on his paper. Naruto listened to his surroundings carefully as many people were disqualified and asked to leave. Naruto then mentally sighed as he made one last thought.
"Well, if I'm going to play dumb, now's the time to do it. This last question still worries me, though."
As soon as Naruto finished he picked up his test paper and started to look nervous.
(Meanwhile)
Hinata looked onto the paper in front of her and to her left. The paper was complete and the answers made perfect sense. Hinata checked the answers before writing them down. She didn't feel right since she knew she was cheating, but she saw it as a necessary evil to pass the exams. She deactivated her bloodline to see Naruto looking extremely distressed. His expression obviously said, "What do I do?" repeatedly so Hinata decided to give her long time crush a hand in the matter.
"Naruto-kun," she whispered softly, "you can copy off of me if you wish."
Naruto noticed Hinata's attempt at a friendly gesture and responded after a brief silence.
"Thank you Hinata-chan, but I must decline. I don't want you to get in trouble if I cheat off of you. I appreciate your concern, however. I don't need to cheat." Naruto whispered to Hinata with a bright yet hidden smile.
Hinata looked in shock as Naruto whispered one more thing.
"Use your Byakugan, Hinata-chan."
Hinata took his word and activated her bloodline. She saw all of the proctors around them, but Naruto's paper was astounding.
Every answer was there, correct and detailed. A few of them were extremely specific. The last thing on the paper made Hinata giggle softly.
"I hope Ibiki-san doesn't get too mad," Hinata thought.
Hinata looked up at Naruto and deactivated the Byakugan. Naruto looked as nervous as he was before she spoke, but she knew Naruto was faking it, regardless of how authentic it was.
Naruto and Hinata sat up as Ibiki started to speak again.
"Listen up; you all have probably noticed the last question. Before I ask it, however, there are new rules for the last question. You may choose whether or not to take this question"
All of the genin present held looks of confusion as he continued.
"Now, the last question is different from the others. If you do not answer this question correctly, you automatically fail, regardless of how many of the questions you answered correctly."
Looks of shock are spread throughout the room.
"Also, if you fail the last question, you will be barred from taking the Chuunin Selection Exams again. So, if you wish to leave and decline the last question, you may leave now. Be aware that your team will go down with you."
A suspenseful silence rose as many of the genin present stood and walked out of the room, taking their teams with them. Naruto was slightly pressed by the atmosphere, but he stood firm. Naruto was slightly surprised as Sakura shakily raised her hand, but left it alone until the last minute. At that point, Naruto raised his hand and put his mask to good use.
Naruto slammed his hand down on the table, shattering the atmosphere. Naruto began to yell as the confidence of many people was restored.
"Screw you; I won't run away from anything! Even if I'm stuck as a genin forever, I'll become Hokage anyway! So bring it on! I'll take anything you can throw! I am not afraid of you!"
Ibiki started to look around for any sign of doubt. "Damn, that kid washed away the atmosphere I created. There is probably nobody else that's leaving, even if I stand here for another hour. I might as well get on with it."
"Now, for the people that are still here… concerning the first test… I congratulate you for passing!"
Confused glances were exchanged here. Finally, Sakura spoke up with a loud, demanding voice.
"What do you mean we pass! What's the tenth question!"
Ibiki smiled. "You can say that the decision to stay or leave was the last question. The other nine questions were there to test your information gathering skills. You had to cheat in order to pass. As for targets, there were 3 chuunins in the room with the correct answers."
Naruto smiled since he didn't have to reprimand himself for cheating. He looked back at Sakura and Sasuke to see them with confused looks, not towards Ibiki's words, but towards Naruto's reaction.
"Those who cheated poorly were eliminated and the team suffered. Sometimes, information is more valuable than life itself. People risk their lives on missions and information can be the difference between life and death. People will do anything to acquire it."
Sakura spoke up again, asking the question that nudged at everybody's heads.
"But, what is the purpose of the tenth question?"
Ibiki smiled as he spoke again.
"The 10th question is the true purpose of the test. If you are given a mission with uncertain details, can you refuse the mission to protect the lives of you and your comrades?"
The genin sat intently and listened carefully to Ibiki's words.
"The answer…is no! There are some missions that you cannot decline, no matter the danger. You must have courage and stand up in the face of uncertainty and fear to succeed! You must face any hardship to assure the success of the mission. That is the way a chuunin captain should act. Those of you who are still here answered the tenth question perfectly. You stood up when I gave you a difficult question and you held your ground as I bombarded you with doubts. Those who say, "I'll try next year," do not deserve the title of chuunin! You who are present will be able to face hardships on your missions. The first test…is over. I wish you all good luck as you progress forward."
Naruto began to cheer as Ibiki finished. Ibiki smirked at the scene and looked at Naruto with a slight smile.
"Interesting kid; he grew up well," Ibiki said softly as a black object burst through the window.
All of the students went wide eyed as the black window breaker fluttered open and threw two kunai into the ceiling, pinning the black object, which is really a cloth, to the ceiling of the classroom. The figure started speaking in a demanding voice.
"I am Mitarashi Anko! I am your second examiner for the chuunin exams! Everyone follow me!"
People stared wide-eyed at the sight before him. Naruto started to think in his shocked state.
"This person sounds just like me when I put up the mask. This is creepy."
Ibiki emerged from behind the black cloth and started to glare at Anko. Ibiki spoke as Anko turned. "You had some really bad timing there, Anko."
Anko looked at Ibiki then looked at the people in the room. She then spoke as she turned back to Ibiki.
"You left 26 teams, Ibiki? The test wasn't that hard, was it?"
Ibiki smirked and spoke back. "Well, there seems to be a good bunch this year, Anko."
Anko smiled mischievously while speaking loudly so everyone could hear.
"Well, it doesn't matter; I'm going to cut them down to at least half."
Naruto raised his eyebrows and thought about the crazy lady's words.
"There is going to be a failure probability of at least 50?" Naruto thought as he smirked afterward. "That isn't all that bad. The failure rate for the genin exam with Kakashi was 66.6. We faced worst odds than that, especially me."
Naruto was ripped from his thoughts as Anko began to yell again.
"Okay everybody; meet me tomorrow for your next exam! You sensei should have this information so ask him or her for the place and time! You are dismissed!"
Naruto left quickly, unable to stand anymore of Anko's craziness.
(Later)
Ibiki stayed behind to collect the tests. He also stayed behind to yell at Anko for breaking his window in what was supposed to be the middle of the test. If she had come 1 minute earlier, she would have wrecked everything and he would really have grade these papers to see who passed. Now, Ibiki could grade them at his own pace and trudge to the Hokage's office, as long as they are there by the end of the month. Ibiki smirked as he walked by the table of the one who made everyone gain their confidence during the real test. He picked up the paper and almost dropped the others in his hand.
"He didn't answer a single question? Wait, there a trace of chakra here."
Ibiki cancelled the genjutsu and looked at the paper. Ibiki regained his composure as he smirked at the answers. Every one was correct.
"This kid really is interesting."
Ibiki was ripped from his thoughts as a spray of ink met his face. Ibiki's face was truly black, but the tests were all fine. After Ibiki recovered, he thought one thing.
"That kid better hope I don't meet with him again."
Meanwhile, across town, a blonde boy in the forest sneezed.
(End chapter)
A/N: Just so you know, the statement that Naruto said to Sasuke was my own words; it was a response to this one jerk who thought he could wrench information from my best friend. I must say, that is the best threat that I've said to a person and I'm proud of it. I'm not so proud of the way Naruto cheated on this exam. Sure, it was possible, but Naruto had to write pretty quickly and he would have to be able to read small characters on the clock 50 feet away from him. Unless you have 20/1 vision or you're a ninja, this is not going to happen. I hope you liked the chapter. The next one will be more interesting, I hope.
Revision Notice: Thank you Kitsu Maharu and Tellemicus Sundance for pointing out certain mistakes in my work. I appreciate your help!