A/N: Boredom is killer. I'm typing this in between writing my stuff for school so I hope you like it.
Before I continue, I have to say one thing.
STOP NAGGING ME ABOUT CHANGING THE STORY! I'LL DO IT WHEN I GET TO IT!
I'm sorry about yelling, but I'm getting pretty annoyed. I'll continue the story the way I like it until the big change takes place. It will be soon, trust me.
Anyway, besides the constant "change the story" reviews that were annoying me, I do like the improvements of the reviews.
Now, here are the review responses.
Setesh: I will stick to the plotline, but Naruto will have a little more on his hands. I thank you for not nagging me for staying too close.
VFSNAKE: Okay, then; in that order; first, Dosu was killed by Gaara, that's right. Secondly, Naruto will try to make a deal with Gamabunta about smashifying the pervert, but you'll see what will happen. Lastly, I love your idea! I'll try to get it in somewhere.
Nantukoprime: I'll explain. I was planning a 2-week intermission for me to finish this up in real life before I get back to the story. I wanted to write in a much as possible this time since I wouldn't be writing for a while. Also, to answer your question, Gamatora will not replace Gamakichi. Remember, Gamatora mentioned that he was Gamabunta's third son and he had two older brothers.
Hybrid thing: Thanks, I got the idea from Dragon Man 180. The sword stances were made up by me, though I haven't explained it in detail. The "Tenten's family" incident was my own design and it gave me an opportunity to express another idea (The, "What's dinner and what are we doing?" idea).
Saotome Kyuubi: You know, I haven't thought of it that way. He does have an ANBU lover, doesn't he? Well, it's a good thing that Keiko and Hayate are only close friends, huh? Also, I love twin blades. They are reliant on speed, but speed is deadly; especially in the ninja world. By the way, Denkô Dangan no Jutsu is similar to AD&D's Magic Bullet, but that's not where I got it from. I got the idea while reading a Yu Yu Hakusho Manga. I saw Yusuke's Reigun shots and thought, "Hey, I think I can pull that off." Just then, thunder crashed out my window since I was reading indoors during a thunderstorm. That's where I got the idea for a lightning attack. I get a lot of ideas from the things around me.
Conan98002: I like that phrase, too. The best part is I made that up myself! I knew "I can't trust him/her as far as I can throw him/her" was insufficient since Naruto and other ninjas can throw things pretty far. I used "spit" instead of "throw" because I knew that nobody could really spit a person.
Dragon Man 180: It was a good idea, but I have to learn how to incorporate it into my story. Now, about your suggestions; I know it's a long range ninjutsu, but I plan to not use it on Gaara. This is why. I see where you're coming from when you say lightning makes sand into glass, but it's really intense heat. Anyway, we know that Naruto is facing Neji next. I have a specific way to beat Neji with the use of Naruto's new techniques, including the one he wasn't able to use on Kiba. It would be nice if Kurenai would teach Naruto a genjutsu, but I think Naruto would be learning too much. Anyway, about the Higarashi family incident, I planned that. That was one of the ideas I wanted to give out to the public in the form of this story. Lastly, about what you said about Arashi, I'm not telling.
Ecchi-ANBU: AHH, stop my monkeys! Don't attack the reviewers! Attack the people over there! (Points to crowd of non-reviewers)
Kitsu Maharu: I don't think you're too sarcastic. You may be a little on the wacky side, but you're still a great person.
Chidori vs Rasengan: It's okay. Thanks for making the effort of checking.
1-eyed-jack: Thanks for the support. I like to be flexible, but I don't like to be stepped on, if you know what I mean. Anyway, thank you for your praise, but please don't say, "Believe it!"
Light of the Demons: Thank you; the fight took 45 minutes because of Naruto's incredible stamina. For him to be, "dead on his feet," he needed to be really tired. I would have made it longer, but you'll see why I didn't.
PinoyJas: Thanks for the review.
VenomLord: Thanks for your review. It would spoil everything if I tried to respond effectively to this review, if you know what I mean.
Silver Warrior: Naturally, Naruto will learn something about throwing weapons with his time at the Higarashi family.
Armanstay: Thanks for your review. I hope I'm able to keep this part up.
Midnight-angel-of-darkness: I like to shoot pervert's butt. It is fun, very fun.
Clone Daniel: I'm glad you're so patient. I hope I can write more soon, too.
Anime-Boy07: It's a good thing I don't have to pull off the monkeys. They are pretty hard to handle.
Tellemicus Sundance: I do plan to branch off pretty soon. It's really nice that you're one of the kinder ones that say this.
Trenchcoatgirl-Kyo: I'm glad you like them. They are a nice family, huh?
SekhmetDaCat: I'll tell you this much: the voice isn't Kyûbi.
NewSon: Yes, of course; if you hadn't noticed, he already learned a low-class wind technique. I'll let him learn some more, though.
ShadowBack: No problem; I really enjoy writing. Anyway, I had the "eating dinner at another person's house" idea for a while. I was just never able to factor it in until recently.
Biggestboss: I'm glad you think so. I think swordsmen are great and I didn't really like when Hayate died so early. Also, Naruto "felt something weird" which allowed him to summon Gamatora. You weren't a bastard in your last review. You're only a bastard reviewer if you flame me for no reason.
Amadeus: Read the PM I sent you if you didn't already. It explains everything.
Causeiambetta: I'm really sorry for blowing up at you like that, but I got my point across. You were only trying to help.
WarShadow: Indeed, he is. Gamakichi is Gamatora's older brother. Thanks for the tip about the anonymous reviews. You were the only person to address that.
Kyuubidaime: Oh, maybe that'll happen. You'll see what I've planned.
Dairokkan: I don't want to say it. Read my little "Reviewer's Warning" below.
Kyuubi-Dono: I'm glad you liked that little phrase. It was something I added in because I could.
Motto: See the "Reviewer's Warning.
Arganaut: You'll see what I come up with. I have a few things planned.
Lochar: I said two weeks minimum. I am posting it exactly on the two week mark, though.
Reviewer's Warning: Please leave a review that's actually worth something. I really hate it when I get an absolutely useless review. When I say useless, I mean a review that only has one short sentence or less. Thank you for listening/reading.
Disclaimer: OG: I've decided that Vivian would be the best for the job. Here you go, Vivian.
Vivian: Thanks; hi, I'm Vivian. If you say Omegaguardian owns Naruto, I'll personally go over to where you live and trample you. Is that okay?
Now, for the 19th installment of "Cheerfulness Incarnate"
(Chapter Begins)
Naruto left the pervert a few hours later and arrived at the Higarashi residence. Keiko taught him how to put more power in his chakra and he was able to take out bits of metal from the slab. Naruto practiced for a few hours and left around 4:00 PM.
Naruto left from the Higarashi residence and visited the hospital. He needed to see Hayate about his training since he was in the hospital. Naruto asked for the room and he went up 2 flights of stairs to get to the room of his sensei. Naruto entered the room to see a purple-haired girl holding on to Hayate's hand. The girl looked up, stood abruptly and pulled out a kunai.
"You've come to finish the job, huh? You'll have to get past me to get to him, though," the lady said in a commanding and accusatory tone. Naruto was too shocked to move as she charged forward. Naruto's eyes clamped shut as he waited for the woman to hit him when.
"Wait, Yugao-chan," Hayate said with a raspy voice which worried Naruto. The woman, who Naruto obviously presumed was Yugao, dropped her kunai and rushed towards him.
"Hayate-kun, are you okay? You should rest," Yugao said as Hayate was sent into a series of coughs. Naruto waited as Hayate spoke.
"It is fine, Yugao-chan, he was the one who brought me to the hospital after e found me injured. I should be thanking him."
Yugao looked at Naruto gratefully as she grasped Hayate's hand firmly once more. She patted his hand a few times as Naruto felt it was safe to walk over. Yugao spoke without taking his eyes off of Hayate.
"In that case, I'm sorry. I actually have to thank you for saving my fiancé. I'll find a way to repay you, I promise," Yugao said with a gentle tone which was the complete opposite of the threatening voice he heard from her not 5 minutes ago. Naruto smiled and responded.
"Oh, it's okay. You don't need to do that. I just like helping people when they need it." Naruto said as he placed his hands behind his head and grinned. Yugao faced him and smiled.
Naruto noticed Hayate's sword on the floor and he was reminded of his purpose.
"I'm sorry for this, Hayate-sensei, but I need to know what I need to do for training. You don't have to leave the hospital. You can just write it down and I'll take care of the rest," Naruto said, careful to not aggravate the woman beside him.
"Actually," Hayate said weakly, "I've arranged for someone to help you with that."
Naruto inwardly sighed. "Oh great, now another teacher ditches me. First it was Kakashi-sensei and now Hayate-sensei wants to get rid of me, too. The only reason I wasn't that mad at Kakashi-sensei was because I knew he wasn't that attentive anyway. Besides, I'll pay him back sometime."
Naruto inwardly snickered at the thought as Hayate continued. "I'll continue your training personally when I recover," Naruto perked up at this, "But, for now, Keiko-chan will resume your training while I'm incapable. She is slightly less skilled in the blade than I am, but she will teach you well."
Naruto smiled brightly and stayed true to his nature as his excitement poured out of him. Yugao chuckled slightly as Hayate formed a smirk. Naruto left the room moments later, leaving the couple alone. Naruto went to visit Kiba to see that he was released. He then went to Hinata's room and saw Kurenai sitting next to her bed as she was last time. Kurenai looked around and saw Naruto and Naruto alone. She smiled brightly as Naruto approached. She stood quickly and surprised Naruto with a single motion.
Kurenai was hugging him. Naruto felt warm for some reason and he also felt oddly comfortable.
"Uh, Kurenai-sensei, what are you doing?"
"Sorry, Naruto-kun, but I wasn't able to thank you last time. Iruka was with you and I wanted to do this when it was only you."
Kurenai released Naruto from the hug and Naruto, still confused, was already missing the warmth. She continued to speak as she sat down.
"I wanted to thank you for saving Hinata. I may have only known her for a few months, but she's like the daughter I've never had. I don't have any family left and she's the closest to one that I have."
Naruto was curious about what she did rather than why she did it. The motion was simple, but it was also warm and comforting. A person could feel totally safe in the feeling of one of those, but he didn't know what it was.
Naruto pushed this thought to the back of his mind as he saw Hinata shift in her sleep. Kurenai spoke.
"She's just sleeping now. You came at a pretty good time. She'll probably wake up tomorrow morning."
Naruto smiled brightly as he squashed the urge to jump up in joy. Naruto turned once more to speak to Kurenai, but she was gone. Naruto shrugged as he took the chair that Kurenai was sitting in before she left. He pulled the chair up to the bed and propped up his head with his arms. Naruto was hearing the mysterious voice again.
"What are you doing?"
"I'm just visiting my friend."
"What else are you doing?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, why are you staring at her?"
"This isn't staring. I'm just watching."
"Yeah, right; you're staring at the girl."
Naruto was indeed staring at Hinata. He was noting the way she wore a contented smile as opposed to the shy one she wore on a daily basis. He was noting the way that she looked, peaceful and serene, as opposed to insecure and unconfident. He was noting the way that she looked. It was different, but he liked it this way. She looked absolutely content and Naruto felt as if he wanted her to smile and be happy all the time.
Naruto brought his hand up to Hinata's and clutched it. Hinata unconsciously brought her other hand to surround his hand.
Naruto suddenly felt the exhaustion of the day's events and fell asleep peacefully.
(The Next Day)
Lavender eyes stayed shut as their owner awakened. She was awake, but she was till drowsy. Her hands were warmer than the rest of her body. She didn't know why, but she felt comfortable just because she was holding that particular object.
Hinata opened her eyes to see a blonde furry wall in front of her eyes. She was confused for a moment as she looked at her hand. She saw the object that she held within her hand which provided the great warmth. She widened her eyes as she finally realized what she was holding and who it belonged to.
Naruto was sleeping peacefully. She sat up, careful to not wake him and looked around. The room was dimly lit with streams of light were filtering through the windows. She instantly recognized the room of the hospital and the fact that the sun was still rising. She then looked back down at Naruto, who was waking up himself. She was still holding Naruto's hand with one of hers as he raised his head from his makeshift pillow made from his arm.
Naruto, still groggy, looked around and made eye contact with Hinata. Both teenagers withdrew their respective hands and blushed deeply. Naruto was the first to speak.
"S-so, Hinata-chan, are you feeling okay, now?" Naruto asked shyly.
"Y-yes, Naruto-kun, I-I think I-I have you to t-thank for that," Hinata said, her normal stutter regaining its place after her long sleep. Naruto and Hinata looked away from each other as a nurse came in. Noticing that Hinata was awake made her smile, but, surprisingly, noticing that Naruto was in the room didn't make the smile vanish. The nurse gently asked Naruto to leave and Naruto was a little surprised by that. Naruto gave one last wave to Hinata as he left. He didn't see Hinata's responding wave or the chuckling nurse.
(Later)
Naruto was getting really annoyed. Despite the great awakening he had this morning, he was getting more pissed by the second.
"Damn it, that stupid Ero-Sennin is late. Watch, I'm going to electrify him so much, he'll be able to turn on a light bulb by just holding it," Naruto thought impatiently as he formed the seals for Denkô Dangan no Jutsu.
Hours passed and Naruto started to train by himself. First, Naruto tried to get used to his weights, which were getting pretty heavy.
"What's going on? I mean, 2 days ago, I'm positive that I only increased it by 10 pounds each. Now, it feels like I increased it by 100 per band!"
Naruto furrowed his eyebrows as he did various training exercises to get used to the weight. Naruto thought about taking them off, but, for some reason, he couldn't. Naruto ran across the clearing many times to get used to the weight. The problem was, as soon as Naruto got used to the current weight, the bands felt heavier. Naruto eventually stopped and trained in other ways.
He trained with the slab of raw metal and tried to pull out pure metal. He practiced the water-walking exercise with a leaf on his head, and most importantly, he used a few trees to practice his aim for when Jiraiya showed up. The problem was…
…he never did.
Naruto was extremely annoyed as he stormed out of the area and headed towards the Higarashi residence. Imagine his rage when he was met with a white-haired man yelling one thing.
"YOU'RE LATE!" Jiraiya yelled as he whacked Naruto on the head.
"I'M LATE? I WENT TO THE MEETING PLACE AT THE RIGHT TIME AND YOU DIDN'T SHOW UP!" Naruto yelled back.
"I SAID THAT YOU NEEDED TO MEET HERE!" Jiraiya yelled as Keiko and Tenten walked to the front.
"NO YOU DIDN'T! I WOULD'VE REMEMBERED!" Naruto yelled as Keiko went back inside.
The shouting match continued for a few more moments when…
"Buki Ryûseigun (Meteoric Weapon Swarm)!"
Naruto quickly moved out of the way as Jiraiya was pummeled by a massive wave of weaponry. Naruto looked towards the source to see Keiko using a long staff to control them. She looked pretty angry as she retracted the weapons.
"Now, Jiraiya-sensei, didn't you say that Naruto-kun knew to come here?" Keiko said in a deceptively calm voice.
"Well, I told him, but," Jiraiya started as Keiko drew a large hammer from one of the seals in her staff. Jiraiya looked afraid as Keiko started to walk forward. She spoke again, this time, her voice with a hard edge to it.
"Don't think about lying to me, Jiraiya-sensei. I've done it to one man. I can do it to you, too."
Jiraiya gulped and stuttered out a response. "O-okay, I forgot to tell him. P-please don't kill me," Jiraiya muttered as Keiko put away her hammer. Everybody could hear his muttering.
"Geez, I had to train a team full of weapon masters, huh? She always had an overactive temper…"
"What was that, Jiraiya-sensei?" Keiko said angrily.
"Nothing, it was nothing."
"Good; now, Naruto-kun, it's time for me to train you," Keiko said gently, placing the staff behind her. Naruto smiled brightly and spoke loudly to get the attention of Jiraiya.
"Well, it's a good thing that you took him down before I did. I would've destroyed him in many different ways," Naruto said, emphasizing the last few words.
Jiraiya only cringed.
Naruto was taught how to attack and defend with a sword. Keiko was teaching him the footwork, the stance and the attack and defensive stokes by teaching him the simplest way possible.
She fought him.
Keiko relentlessly attacked in defensive lessons and she exploited weaknesses in Naruto's stokes and stance when he was on the offensive. Naruto automatically corrected his swordsmanship since she swung her staff pretty hard.
After Naruto was able to use the single blade effectively, he drew out the second blade and looked at Keiko, dropping into the normal stance for one blade. She smiled brightly and flew into an attack.
Naruto immediately felt the difference between single blade fighting and twin blade fighting. Even with just a single staff, Keiko was overpowering him. Naruto had to move quickly to dodge or block and he had to move extraordinarily fast to attack within Keiko's small (yet deliberate) openings. Naruto instantly saw the lack of control he had with his blades and that affected the power of both offence and defense.
Another problem with the blades was the fact that he was holding one blade in each hand. The sword was heavy enough in both hands, but it was almost impossible to wield effectively with one hand per blade. Naruto had to basically create a new stance from scratch to even defend with the blades.
Naruto jumped back from Keiko and dropped into his new stance. He placed his right foot in the back and his left foot forward. The sword in his left hand was held horizontally waist-level approximately a foot away from his body. The sword in his right hand was raised up near his head, the hilt hovering inches from Naruto's right ear. The blade of the right hand blade was pointed forward as Keiko and Jiraiya widened their eyes. Naruto's eyes showed pure determination as he awaited Keiko's attack.
Keiko was in a mild state of shock seeing Naruto's stance. Keiko saw Naruto's determined look and compared it to that of her late teammate. Keiko then saw the awaiting glance in Naruto's eyes and she charged forward and swung her staff.
As soon as the staff was about to strike Naruto, he blocked it with the blade in his left hand. Naruto then twisted to Keiko's right and attempted to attack with his right hand sword. Keiko saw the attack and quickly moved to block. The blade in Naruto's left hand, now freed from the block, dipped under Naruto's right arm and moved to attack Keiko's left side as she blocked.
Keiko was in trouble. Whenever she blocked one blade, the other came to attack. When she blocked that blade, the first blade retaliated. She could see various openings in his attacks, but she couldn't exploit them since she needed to block Naruto's next oncoming attack. This stance wasn't perfect, but it showed signs of extreme improvement.
"Damn, I'll have to get serious if I want to teach him anything. I'll have to use both of them. He's improved extremely fast; too fast."
Keiko jumped back and clutched her staff with both hands. In one swift movement, the staff snapped in the middle creating two short staffs. Keiko charged forward and relentlessly attacked with both rods. Naruto was instantly placed in Keiko's previous position as he was constantly dodging and blocking with his blades. Naruto wasn't able to pay attention to anything else but Keiko's attacks as she continued at the same lightning–fast pace.
Naruto gasped as his knee suddenly buckled. Naruto's focus broke for a split-second, but that was all Keiko needed.
Naruto was knocked down and Keiko reformed her original weapon. Keiko put down the staff and helped Naruto up.
"That's enough for now, Naruto-kun. Let's start training in the forge."
Naruto sheathed his blades and re-sealed them within his scrolls as he followed her into the house. Jiraiya vanished to resume his "research" in the middle of the lesson. As he followed Keiko, Naruto was receiving a commentary about his sword fighting.
"Now, your blade-work is below average with a single blade. You can defend yourself quite well, but you're lacking in the offensive department. You leave yourself too open for your opponent's attacks when you're on the offensive. Remember, offence is not only attack."
Naruto nodded, allowing her to continue.
"Now, your blade-work with twin blades is slightly above average. You were able to create a new, effective stance for yourself; in mid-battle, may I add; and use it effectively to corner me when I was using only one weapon. In that situation, you were able to defend excellently and use that opening to perform a counterattack. Also, when the counterattack was blocked, you were able to unleash a chain of attacks that pushed me back."
Naruto smiled wide as Keiko continued.
"When I used two smaller staffs, however, you had a lot of trouble since I had the same amount of weapons as you. You were able to defend my attacks, but you were unable to use any openings you found, if you could find any. Also, based on the end of the battle, it was taking up all of your focus just to defend so you couldn't break into an attack, even if I was wide open. You have to remember, the hands do count as weapons and each person is usually born with two."
Naruto looked down as Keiko started the last part of her speech/evaluation.
"But, remember, you just started to learn how to use blades so you did a really good job out there."
Naruto looked up as she finished and he broke into a wide smile at her words. Keiko smiled as Tenten bounced into the room, obviously excited.
"So, Okaa-san, are we going to get started?"
"What is she talking about, Keiko-sensei?" Naruto asked.
"Well, you can learn how to extract metal on your own time. Now, I'm going to instruct you on how to make weaponry. Tenten is going to help me teach you today."
Naruto sat down and smiled as Tenten moved towards a pile of medium-sized orbs that Naruto identified as being the same type of metal he was learning to extract. She picked up a few orbs and hobbled over. Tenten handed Keiko an orb and sat down as Keiko began to speak.
"Now, once you have the amount of metal you need, you need to melt it down. Usually, a person would put the pure metal in a pot and heat it to extreme temperatures. The reason there is a standard kiln is because my husband makes normal weaponry for civilians. But, we're ninjas. We need to do it a different way so we can make ninja weapons."
Keiko placed an orb inside of a black cauldron-like pot as she sat down. As Keiko spoke, Tenten showed Naruto how it's done.
"It gets a little tricky here. First, you perform the Tora (Tiger) seal and focus your chakra into your hands. You need to use a lot of chakra in this process because it requires you to use extreme heat to melt the metal."
As she said this, Tenten's hands glowed red and the she placed her hands on the orb. Silvery metal started to drip down into the pot as the orb began to shrink. Naruto's eyes opened wide. The orb shrunk gradually and, eventually, the orb vanished, leaving a pool of metal in the pot. Keiko took over as Tenten rested.
"The next thing you do is surround the liquid metal in chakra and form it to the item you want. Depending on the item, you will have to use more or less metal to form it. For now, I'll make a tantô (Japanese dagger)."
Keiko performed the actions as she said them. A bubble of chakra, filled with liquid metal, rose into the air above the pot as Tenten approached with a bucket filled with ice water. Keiko formed the metal into the shape of a dagger and dipped it within the ice water for about a minute. She then took the dagger out of the water. Keiko continued to speak as she wiped off the blade.
"Obviously, the dagger doesn't need to be perfect at this point. We still need to perfect the blade by tempering the blade, but this is the general idea. By the way, you're not progressing any more until you are able to do both the metal extraction and these two steps. I won't let you use the ready-made metal orbs for your practice so you'll have to master the process in order. We'll stop for dinner now, though. You can practice it tomorrow."
Naruto stood up from his position on the floor and followed Keiko into the dining area. He still wasn't used to the concept of a group dinner, but he liked it. The atmosphere was warmer as the family sat down at the table. Naruto was still a little alienated, but he still conversed and ate comfortably.
"I don't see how such a simple thing could feel so warm. It's just like what Kurenai-sensei did at the hospital the other day. I don't know why, but I like it. It just feels so comfortable," Naruto thought as he ate and talked with his new friend, Higarashi Toya. The little boy seemed to look up to Naruto in a brotherly way, not that Naruto knew.
They finished dinner as usual and Naruto went home. Naruto felt warm and fuzzy inside and he didn't need as much effort to put up his smile.
Naruto went back to his house and opened the door. Naruto looked around his apartment before he went in and stepped inside. Naruto noticed that, as soon as he went through the doorway, the warm feeling seemed to vanish.
"Typical; the moment I'm supposed to feel the warmth of home is the moment the warmth vanishes. Why am I not surprised?"
Naruto sighed as he got ready for bed. As he drifted off to sleep, he sighed deeply and thought.
"This isn't really a home."
(A week later)
Naruto mastered the two forging techniques that Keiko taught him with great difficulty. Now that he did, however, he was now allowed to make his own weapons. Naruto had re-forged his blades and he customized them and personalized them, complete with very unique chakra seals. Naruto had taken his training from Keiko extremely seriously and he was really good at his blade-work and forging.
Naruto took Jiraiya's training seriously when they sparred, but Naruto worked on other things when he was supposed to be working on Kuchiyose no Jutsu. Jiraiya wasn't really paying attention, anyway. During his training, Naruto got a lot of ideas for new weapons and techniques. Naruto didn't have enough time to actually create them since he made sure was completely alone when creating his techniques. The time that Naruto had when training with Jiraiya didn't really count.
Naruto was currently thinking of one of the weapon ideas as he walked over to the Higarashi residence.
"Hmm, let's see. If I make a normal-sized shuriken with curved blades like the Fuuma shuriken, the shuriken will be able to slash instead of pierce. Also, if I make it with near perfect balance, it should, theoretically, return back to the thrower like a boomerang. Let's try it. I'd love to see how it turns out!"
Naruto walked into the forge and waved to Tenten and Toya. Toya was watching Naruto's training closely and he was getting extremely excited about his own lessons two years from now. Naruto was now a constant visitor and basically worked for Keiko and the Higarashi family when it came to forging weaponry as payment for the lessons. At first, Keiko refused, but Naruto was extremely stubborn. Keiko finally agreed after she sternly insisted that he be paid for his work. Naruto made quality weapons with his skills and the Higarashi family sold them to other ninja and civilians. The Higarashi kept a little to pay for the metal Naruto used, but the rest went to Naruto.
Naruto went into the back room where Keiko was working on a custom knuckle weapon for Asuma. Keiko smiled at Naruto and he grinned and got to work.
Taking a small orb, Naruto melted it down and created his custom shuriken. Naruto then carefully shaped it and waited for the metal to dry with the help of the chakra method that Keiko taught him. Naruto then hammered the shuriken to perfection and then waited for it to cool in a bucket of room temperature water. Naruto took out the shuriken from the water when he heard a voice.
"OOH, did you make up a new weapon, Naruto-kun?" an excited Tenten asked as she rushed into the room and grabbed the newly made shuriken. She then rushed outside as she examined the shuriken.
"HEY, Tenten-kun, get back over here!" Naruto shouted as he ran after her. Keiko, now finished with her work, laughed as she calmly followed them.
As she stepped outside Tenten was excitedly throwing the weapon, amazed at the fact that it slashed the tree/target and returned to her. Naruto and Toya were trying to get the shuriken. Naruto was trying to get it because he wanted to show it to Keiko and Toya came outside after Naruto, wanting to give it a try.
Tenten threw the shuriken and it went up to the tree and slashed it. The shuriken, still spinning, kept moving as it started to come back. Naruto and Toya dove for the flying shuriken as Tenten noticed Keiko's presence. Tenten quickly grabbed the shuriken, leaving the two boys diving for air. Toya ended up landing on top of Naruto in a humorous position. Keiko laughed as Tenten approached her.
"Okaa-san, look at what Naruto-kun made! It's so cool! The shuriken actually returns to you after you throw it! I can't believe that such a thing exists! This is so awesome! I mean…"
BOOM!
Keiko and Tenten turned towards Naruto and Toya in shock. Toya was looking slack-jawed at a large, newly formed 4- foot crater. The crater was about 2 feet deep and something was rising unsteadily out of the crater. Naruto was holding his head carefully as he rose from the hole.
"What the hell happened?" Tenten asked.
"Tenten, watch your language," Keiko said, shocked.
They both walked over to Naruto at the same time and asked the same question, earning a laugh from Naruto and Toya. They looked that similar.
"What happened, Naruto-kun?"
"Oops, I tripped after Toya-kun got off of me. I guess I wasn't able to brace myself in time," Naruto said sheepishly while scratching his head. Tenten looked at Naruto's wrist and noticed something.
"What's that?" she asked, pointing at the metal band around his wrist.
"Um," Naruto said nervously, "Nothing."
Tenten looked slightly annoyed as she tackled Naruto, determined to take off the metal band. She noticed that he had one band on each of his wrists and ankles. Naruto could have sworn that he heard a chuckle as the band on his right wrist released. Naruto could instantly feel the difference as Tenten stood in victory, holding the band over her head. This was obviously a mistake as she felt the weight of the band a second later.
BOOM!
Tenten dropped the band and it made a six inch crater in the ground. Naruto groaned as he tried to dig for his band. Keiko told Toya that she was going inside for a moment to get something. As soon as she came out, Naruto was holding the band easily in his right hand as Tenten was shaking him back and forth, attempting to force the information out of Naruto. Keiko placed a small bathroom scale on the floor and she asked Naruto to place the band on the scale. Naruto, curious about how much weight he had on, did so gladly.
"I only have 100 kilograms (220.5 pounds) on each limb! I thought it was more!" Naruto yelled as he grabbed his band and replaced it on his right arm.
"You wanted more? That's almost as much as Lee's weights! Are you crazy!" Tenten yelled.
"I guess so," Naruto said simply, earning a dumbfounded look from Tenten and raucous laughter from Toya.
After a long bout of one-sided arguing from Tenten to Naruto, Naruto gave her the new shuriken after making her promise to not give it to anyone. It seems as if Naruto is as prideful about his weapons as he is about his original techniques. Naruto made himself a new set of weapons which included the new shuriken and a custom kunai before leaving
(1 week before the finals)
Jiraiya was actually paying attention to Naruto's training after catching him practicing his accuracy with his Denkô Dangan and his shuriken. Naruto hadn't truly tried to use Kuchiyose no Jutsu so he still inexperienced. Naruto had, once again, been forced to fight Jiraiya to the point of exhaustion and then forced to use Kuchiyose no Jutsu until he was able to summon more than just a tadpole.
"Okay, one more time. I can do this. I…can…do…this."
Naruto collapsed from exhaustion and Jiraiya turned from his peeping. Just because he was paying attention didn't mean he wasn't peeping. He picked up Naruto's body and started to carry him away.
"He needs to learn how to use that power! If a life-threatening situation is what he needs to learn, that is what he'll get. I hope you forgive me, Arashi."
(Later)
WHAM!
"Ow," Naruto groaned as he stood to meet the serious face of Jiraiya. He was confused for a moment as Jiraiya spoke.
"Your training ends here. If you don't learn to use your power now, you will die. Now is the time to see whether or not your power is a gift or a curse. Remember that," Jiraiya said as he poked Naruto's forehead protector, sending Naruto falling backwards into a giant ravine.
Naruto was only able to scream as the rushing air rushed into his lungs. Naruto was thinking of a way to get out of this.
"Okay, I need to get out of here. Maybe I can grab onto the walls," Naruto thought as he tried to grab onto a protruding rock. Naruto was able to attach himself on the rock for a second, but he slipped, sending him falling again.
"Damn it, maybe I can blast myself out of here with a big Fuuton: Toppû," Naruto thought as he made the Ushi Saru and Hitsuji (Ox, Monkey, and Ram) seals. Naruto thrust his arms downward, intending to blow his way out. Unfortunately, Naruto was unable to get more than a puff of air.
"DAMN IT, I can't die here! I need to kick Ero-Sennin's ass for pushing me into this ravine! I can't die here! I CAN'T DIE HERE!"
Naruto suddenly found himself inside a bland hall lined with pipes. The place looked similar to a sewer, but he saw that the water was clean. Naruto started to walk around when he heard a voice.
"SHUT UP! I don't need to help him!"
Naruto recognized the voice and walked towards it. Naruto could sense someone else moving inside the tunnel, but he was too occupied to think about it.
"This is the feeling. So, the chakra was…"
Naruto walked into a large room with a cage on the opposite side of the room. The cage was the size of the wall and it was kept shut by a long chain wrapping around the entire cage originating from a small paper that said "seal".
"…the Kyûbi's."
Naruto walked up to the cage and looked closely at the small paper and thought out loud.
"This is the seal that's keeping the Kyûbi in me? He mustn't be that tough if could be restrained by a piece of paper."
A claw suddenly shot out of the cage, catching Naruto by surprise. Red eyes appeared behind the gate.
"YOU IDIOT; I WOULD DESTROY YOU IN SECONDS IF I COULD GET OUT OF THIS ACCURSED SEAL! DO NOT INSULT THE GREAT KYÛBI!"
"So, you've been here this whole time, huh?"
"WHAT DO YOU THINK, YOU IDIOT? WHEN ELSE COULD I HAVE BEEN SEALED WITHIN YOU?"
"I see, so, as your jailer," Naruto said with a commanding tone, "I demand that you allow me to use your chakra at will."
The Kyûbi…started laughing. His laughter reached the corners of the room as he spoke.
"WELL, WELL, I SEE THAT YOU HAVE GUTS! I'll honor your request because of your bravery. Now, leave me."
Naruto was surrounded by red chakra as he was thrown from his mind and sent back into the real world. Naruto recognized the feeling immediately and did the first technique he could think of. Naruto bit his finger and started to perform a series of seals.
I, Inu, Tori, Saru, Hitsuji (Boar, Dog, Bird, Monkey, Ram)
"KUCHIYOSE NO JUTSU!" Naruto shouted as he thrust his hand downward and a large burst of red chakra appeared under his hand. Naruto landed on something squishy and he immediately looked onto the back of the frog.
"Alright, there's no tail! I've finally mastered Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Naruto shouted as Naruto slipped down the frog's nose. Naruto could see the frog's eyes as the frog spoke.
"HEY, URCHIN; I'm trying to enjoy my first breath of air! Stop bouncing on top of my head!"
Naruto stopped celebrating his victory and he looked at the giant frog. Naruto widened his eyes as he realized that this was probably the frog boss. Naruto immediately started to suck up to Gamabunta.
"I'm sorry, Gamabunta-sama, I didn't realize it was you."
Gamabunta looked in confusion as he spoke.
"Well, alright, then; I forgive you. Do you know where Jiraiya is?"
"Oh, Ero-Sennin; he's on the top of this stupid ravine. I'm sorry for summoning you to such a horrid place, but that bastard pushed me down here."
"You shouldn't lie; it's definitely not good for your health!" Gamabunta said before allowing his tongue to wrap around Naruto and squeeze him. Naruto still kept up the act of humility, though he was cursing inside.
"I am being serious, Gamabunta-sama. I've signed the contract and I have summoned you." Naruto said.
"This damn asshole… He's really lucky that I don't feel like trying to kick his ass right now. If I did, I'd…" Naruto thought.
Gamabunta, unable to talk, jumped out of the hole and landed outside of the ravine. Naruto was released and Naruto began to speak again.
"Thank you, Gamabunta-sama, now, if I can make a suggestion, will you join me in kicking Ero-Sennin's ass to Stone Country?" Naruto asked, anxious to start to kick Jiraiya's ass.
Gamabunta started to laugh as he looked down to see the contract. He spoke to Naruto as he stomped down on a bush. Something screamed as Gamabunta's foot crashed down to the ground.
"You really know how to get on a frog's good side, kid! Unfortunately, I think Jiraiya is just a smear against my foot! You can kick his ass later!"
"That's fine…Gamabunta-sama. It just…saves me the trouble," Naruto said as he collapsed.
"Heh, it seems the kid used up all his chakra to summon me. This guy is something else since no one has dared to ride on my head, since the Yondaime. I could give him some of my power, but it would be better if I…"
Naruto was mysteriously found outside the Konoha Hospital moments later next to a large frog footprint.
(Meanwhile)
Kyûbi changed into his "human" form and sat on the ground. He sighed before calling into the darkness.
"You can come out now, Yondaime," Kyûbi said as a blond-haired figure emerged from the shadows.
"Why did you leave me to deal with him?" Kyûbi asked.
"I just…can't," Yondaime said as he sat down on the ground.
"You can't speak to the guy whose life you messed up because of me, huh?"
"Well, just because I can't speak with him doesn't mean I can't help him out. Who do you think messed with his weights?" Yondaime asked.
"You did that too? I implanted a bit of chakra into the seal he made for the weights the last time he changed them!"
"I did too! I also increased the weight every time he got used to it!"
"Whatever, you coward; you can't even speak to a simple kid. How did you get in here anyway?"
"That's easy," Yondaime said, "The Shiki Fûjin technique I used was supposed to seal us in the stomach of the Death God, but I sealed us within Naruto here. Seeing as I designed the seal to enclose a nine-tailed shape-shifting demon that is usually taller than mountains and not a human, I was able to escape easily. Now, instead of fighting for all eternity, I can mock you until Naruto dies.
Kyûbi growled angrily as Yondaime laughed heartily.
(2 days later)
Naruto awoke to a warm hand to the right and a loud bang to the left. Naruto opened focused his eyes to the left as he saw Jiraiya being pummeled by Keiko by a freakishly large hammer. Hayate was also up and walking as he approached Keiko. Jiraiya was extracting himself from the wall.
"Keiko-chan, may I have a short staff?" Hayate asked as Keiko smirked and gave him one of her staffs as she continued to carry her freakishly large hammer.
Jiraiya was now staring down two very angry weapons masters as they started to pummel him; Keiko with her hammer and Hayate using the staff like a sword. Certain shouts could be heard clearly.
"I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU DID THAT!"
"DO YOU KNOW WHAT WE WOULD HAVE DONE TO YOU IF HE DIED?"
"YOU ARE AN IDIOT!"
Naruto smirked and chuckled as he spoke.
"I see everyone is getting a piece of him before I do, huh? I assume you escaped from Gamabunta's foot, huh Ero-Sennin?"
Keiko and Hayate looked up from their work and looked at Naruto. They both gave him a pleasant and relieved look as Jiraiya tried to escape.
"OH, NO; YOU'RE NOT GETTING OUT OF THIS ONE!" Keiko and Hayate shouted in unison as they continued to beat their sensei into a bloody pulp.
Naruto laughed as he looked to his right, where he was feeling warmer than he usually was.
Naruto turned to see Hinata's confused face as she looked at the fight across the room. Naruto smiled happily as he got her attention.
"Well, I didn't really expect you here, Hinata-chan. How have you been?"
Hinata immediately gained a deep blush as she looked down. She saw that she was holding Naruto's hand at the same moment Naruto did. Naruto blushed slightly as Hinata spoke.
"I-I have b-been fine, N-Naruto-kun. W-why are y-you in the h-hospital?" Hinata said as she continued to look down.
"Well, the idiot that's being pummeled over there shoved me into a ravine and I needed to use all my chakra to get out. It sucked to feel that weak."
The two sat in silence as Hinata continued to hold Naruto's hand. The silence wasn't affected by the massive weapon fight in the room, but it was shattered as soon as the door opened.
Naruto and Hinata widened their eyes and separated their hands as Kurenai and Shikamaru walked in the room.
Dodging various projectile weapons, they made it to the bed in one piece. Naruto smiled brightly as Shikamaru spoke.
"Hey, Naruto, what are you doing here in the hospital?"
Naruto chuckled sheepishly and spoke.
"Oh, it was nothing. I just had a case of chakra exhaustion. That's all. Why are you here?"
"Oh, nothing; I was only here to visit Chôji. You guys aren't the type to get visitors, so I thought I would pop in. Imagine my surprise when I walk in here to see a war zone and Kurenai-sensei."
"What's wrong with Chôji?" Naruto asked, worried.
"Oh, it's nothing much, but it's troublesome. He ate too much after the battles and got one big case of indigestion."
Naruto laughed. "That is just like him, huh Shikamaru?"
It was then when Shikamaru placed a fruit basket on the bedside table. Naruto noticed that there were two flowers on the table. Naruto gained a look of confusion as he looked at the flowers.
"Who would get me flowers?" he thought as Kurenai noticed his line of sight.
"Yes, Naruto-kun; they're flowers. I have no idea where they came from, though." Kurenai said with a playfully sarcastic tone.
Hinata blushed as Naruto sat up to be able to look closely at the flowers. Naruto then noticed Hinata's blush and he questioned it.
"Hey, Hinata-chan, are you okay? You look a little red," Naruto said as he felt Hinata's forehead. Hinata had to struggle to keep herself from fainting. Naruto removed his hand and smiled at Hinata, assuming that she was fine, despite her color.
A small discussion bubbled from the people in the room, excluding Keiko, Hayate and Jiraiya where the former two were still beating up the latter. Naruto was actually starting to get annoyed at the noise. He thought of something that would be sufficient as he started to perform seals.
"Now, Naruto-kun, don't do that," Kurenai said, "You're still recovering."
Naruto rolled his eyes and got another idea. Naruto turned to Hinata and started to whisper. Kurenai and Hinata were able to pick up what he said, and Shikamaru wasn't paying attention.
"Ushi, Inu, U, Saru, Hitsuji, Tori, Tatsu, Saru, Mi, Uma, Ne, Tori, Saru (Ox, Dog, Hare, Monkey, Ram, Bird, Dragon, Monkey, Snake, Horse, Rat, Bird, Monkey)"
Kurenai widened her eyes and then smiled as she watched Hinata. Hinata was confused for a moment until she realized that they were hand-seals. She performed them in order and looked inquisitively at Naruto, holding the seal of the Monkey. Naruto then gestured to Hinata to put her index and middle fingers of her left hand onto her right wrist. Hinata did so and focused the chakra into her hand. Naruto then gestured to focus the chakra into her finger and then he pointed to Jiraiya's backside (which was now in view since Keiko and Hayate were now stomping on Jiraiya's body) and flicked his wrist as if he was shooting off a gun. Hinata realized what she was doing and she aimed carefully. She mimicked the movements and released the chakra as a bolt hit Jiraiya's butt.
Being suddenly electrocuted, Jiraiya jumped up from the shock as Naruto and Kurenai laughed. Hinata looked surprised and Shikamaru gave a smirk. Keiko and Hayate were still laughing at Jiraiya's misfortune and Jiraiya was about to go and pummel the idiot who shot him. Jiraiya, despite the large beating, did not have any lasting injuries other than a broken arm and a smashed…well; you know what I'm talking about. Let's just say that Keiko hit it pretty damn hard with her hammer.
Jiraiya went towards Hinata, but he was blocked by Kurenai, Keiko, and surprisingly, Naruto, who was, despite Kurenai's suggestion, making hand seals to blow him away. Jiraiya instantly calmed down after staring down a genjutsu specialist, a weapons specialist and a kid with the Kyûbi sealed within him. Naruto calmed down and sat back down on the bed as he began to explain the technique she learned.
"So, Hinata-chan, do you like the technique? It's useful in battle, but I've been mostly using it for anti-pervert purposes. Ero-Sennin really loves electric shocks," Naruto said, angering Jiraiya instantly. Unfortunately for him, Keiko, Hayate, and now Kurenai are hell bent on keeping the boy safe.
Shikamaru bid farewell in the middle of this chaos and only Naruto and Hinata noticed. They continued their conversation as killer intent filled the room. Naruto continued to tell her the details of the technique while ignoring the intent from the three Jônin. Hinata drew in a breath to ask a question as Naruto tried to continue. Both recognized the other's attempt to speak and the following verbal exchange occurred.
"I'm sorry, Hinata-chan, you go first."
"N-no, n-no, N-Naruto-kun, you go."
"Go on, Hinata-chan, if you have a question, don't hesitate to ask."
"B-but, N-Naruto-kun, you w-was e-explaining it to me. M-my question m-may still be a-answered."
"I'm not saying any more until you ask your question," Naruto said stubbornly.
Hinata tried to speak when her mind went blank. Naruto noticed this and tried to speak himself, but his mind went blank as well. This moment created another awkward moment between Naruto and Hinata. A small silence rose between them.
Naruto broke the silence by rubbing the back of his head and speaking.
"What was I talking about?" Naruto asked. Naruto then looked around the room to see that the three jônin had calmed down and Jiraiya had taken a seat on a chair inside the room. Naruto saw Jiraiya writing down the features of the women in the room and he just saw him sneak a glance at Hinata before writing it down in his notepad. Naruto immediately got pissed and quickly made the seals for Denkô Dangan while speaking to Hinata.
"Okay, Hinata-chan, this is Anti-Pervert Operation #2. Watch closely."
Naruto finished the seals and suddenly jumped from the bed, focusing his chakra in his hand and releasing a shot into the field. Naruto threw his punch as Jiraiya looked up to look at more details. Naruto got him dead in the face and he flew into the wall as he still sat in the chair. The wall obtained a dent larger than the dent made by Keiko's hammer strike, earning shocked glances by everyone in the room.
Naruto didn't bat an eye as he took Jiraiya's notebook and burned it using the technique Keiko taught him for melting metal. Keiko smiled wide as Jiraiya wept at the loss of his research. Naruto smiled as he heard a voice in the hall.
"Hey, what are you doing?"
Naruto immediately went after the familiar voice, earning shocked gazes all around. Kurenai, Keiko, Hayate and Hinata ran out after him just in time to see Naruto punch Gaara in the face.
"What the hell are you trying to pull?" Naruto yelled indignantly as he punched Gaara. Shikamaru staggered like Gaara did and spoke to Naruto.
"Hey, Naruto; watch it! When I have Kagemane no Jutsu active, anything that happens to him, happens to me!"
Naruto fell back and apologized as he clutched his fist, allowing a shot to surround it in lightning-like chakra. Shikamaru was busy watching Gaara closely as he answered.
"I wanted to kill him." Gaara said simply.
"He's so calm. He should be paralyzed by my Kagemane, but…"
"Why do you want to do that? Do you have a grudge or something? You won your match!"
"No, it's not a grudge. I want to kill him because I want to kill, nothing more."
"DO YOU EVEN KNOW WHAT YOU'RE SAYING?" Naruto yelled as Shikamaru spoke.
"You really are twisted and selfish. This is really troublesome."
"How should we do this? This guy may be too much for Naruto and me to handle alone. I may have to try and pull a bluff."
"I'll kill you too if you try to interfere." Gaara said.
"I'd like to see you try!" Naruto said confidently as he dropped into a taijutsu stance with his right hand back. Shikamaru then noticed Naruto's right hand surrounded in lightning. Shikamaru smirked as he started to speak.
"We know you're strong. But, you see, Naruto and I are extremely capable fighters. We both have techniques that none have seen. You're at a serous disadvantage since we're both going against you. If you leave now, we'll leave you alone," Shikamaru said as Gaara stared impassively.
"I'll say it again; if you interfere, I'll kill you."
"YOU WON'T KILL ME!"
"Naruto, stop it already. This guy is monstrously powerful!" Shikamaru shouted as Naruto continued.
"Who cares? I have a real monster within me! I won't lose to anyone, especially not him!"
Gaara and Shikamaru looked at Naruto a moment. The small silence was broken by Gaara.
"A monster, huh; I have one of those too. I am "twisted" for a reason. I killed my "mother" during my birth. In order to create a super-shinobi, my father implanted an incarnation of sand within my body. I was born a monster!"
Shikamaru and Naruto looked in shock as Gaara continued.
"He is known as Shukaku, the spirit of a former Sunagakure leader sealed within a tea kettle."
"That's crazy," Shikamaru said, "There is no way that there is a sane human would use a technique to forcibly possess a fetus. Besides, what kind of a parent does that? That's really twisted love."
"Love? Don't judge me by your mediocre standards. Let me tell you what "family" means to me. "Family" is merely a set of hulls of flesh whose souls are connected by hatred and killer intent. My mother was sacrificed to make me the village's masterpiece and to make me the Kazekage's son, but he taught me shinobi skills on a constant basis; spoiling me while at the same time isolating and overprotecting me. I thought that that was love, at first. That is, until the incident."
"What are you talking about?" Shikamaru asked. Naruto, for once, kept silent.
"For the past 6 years, I have been the target of many assassination attempts led by my father. I've actually lost count of how many times I've been targeted."
"Just like me…" Naruto thought.
"What do you mean?" Shikamaru asked, confused and alarmed.
"I am a relic of something that my village wishes to forget, so they tried to do away with me. While living in uncertainty, I asked myself, why do I exist? I searched my soul and found no answer. I searched for a reason and I found one; if I didn't I might as well die."
"So, what have you found?" Naruto asked seriously.
"I found that I exist to kill all other humans other than myself. By killing my assassins, I found my reason of existence and justified my existence by killing them. I fight, now, for myself and I love only myself. As long as there are other people to kill, my existence will never vanish."
"I get it… He's just like me. He too knows the feeling of true pain. I felt it too, until I met my friends and Iruka-sensei. That is when I truly experienced warmth and love. But, Gaara is still living with the pain and he tries to quell it by killing others. He can and probably will kill us if be gets the chance! I will fight back, though!"
Naruto dropped deeper into his stance and prepared to fight as sand started to fill the room.
"Now, help me feel alive!" Gaara said as he prepared his attack.
"THAT IS ENOUGH!" a voice yelled, calling the attention of the people inside the room.
Gai stood at the door along with Keiko, Hayate, Kurenai and Hinata. Hinata was peeking out from behind Kurenai as she watched in shock and terror. Keiko had her staff behind her back and Hayate had his sword sheathed, but they both were ready to use their respective weapons at a moment's notice. Gai spoke.
"Unless you plan on becoming an inpatient 5 days before the finals, I suggest that you settle down."
Gaara collected his sand and turned to leave, but not without leaving a lingering threat.
"I'll kill you all, just you wait."
A stagnant wind was present in the room as Gaara left. Naruto broke the silence and bid farewell to the people in the room, deliberately praising Hinata for learning another new move.
(The Day of the Finals)
The only sounds he heard were the sound of his footsteps and the roaring of his nervous thoughts. He had improved greatly in the past month, but he still wasn't absolutely sure. In fact, he was a little nervous. He could use Denkô Dangan on the fly and his taijutsu and kenjutsu skills had improved dramatically. He also improved the move he was going to use on Kiba and he could now use it without the aid of his clones. Even with all of these improvements, he was still nervous.
"Hyûga Neji is supposed to be the best rookie of last year. He also is excellent at the Jûken and he could actually see the tenketsu. How can I win?"
"Ha," Naruto said, trying to ease his mind, "I can summon a frog now. I have nothing to worry about!"
Naruto continued to walk and he ended up at the training ground. The trees just outside the training ground still had the marks of his training. Naruto was slightly surprised to see Hinata next to one of the wooden poles.
"Hey, Hinata-chan, what are you doing here?"
Hinata squeaked and instantly hid behind the pole she was looking at. Naruto smiled at the scene and thought.
"That is really cute."
"N-Naruto-kun, w-why are you here? Aren't the f-finals today?"
"Yeah, they are. I'm just looking around here. You see, I became a genin here. This is where I passed Kakashi-sensei's stupid test." Naruto said.
Naruto looked down for a moment, allowing a silence to fill the area, if only for a moment. Naruto then broke it with a simple question.
"Hey, Hinata-chan, is Neji strong?"
Hinata looked down, recalling her past experience before responding.
"Y-yes, he is."
"I see…" Naruto said sullenly.
"B-but," Hinata said, making Naruto raise his head, "You, of all people, should be able to defeat him!"
"Yeah, I'm strong, too!" Naruto shouted, putting up his full mask in front of Hinata for the first time in years. Naruto then laughed semi-confidently until Naruto lost his mental footing and it slowly stopped. Hinata continued to speak.
"I-I'm sure you can beat him, N-Naruto-kun. W-when you c-cheered for me during the p-preliminaries, I-I felt stronger than before. A-after that, I-I was able to like myself a little more. I-if a s-stranger looked at me, t-they may think I haven't changed, but I-I think I changed, if only a little bit."
Naruto looked slightly shocked at this revelation as Hinata continued.
"And, it was all because of you, Naruto-kun."
Hearing this, he allowed the mask to drop as he said something that no other people usually hear from him.
"Hinata-chan, do you really feel that way?"
Hinata looked up in shock as Naruto continued.
"I may seem strong from your point of view, but I usually act that way to cover up my screw-ups. Also, I cover it up because I'm pissed at myself for being a weak failure."
"That's not true!"
Naruto raised his head immediately, noticing the lack of a stutter.
"Even if you fail, I think you are a proud man who accepts your failures and learns from them. The best aspect of you is the fact that, no matter what, you don't give up. I think true strength lies within that aspect. Naruto-kun, you are strong, at least, in my perspective."
Naruto was surprised at Hinata's words and smiled brightly.
"You know, I was feeling a little depressed and nervous, but I feel a lot better now. Thanks a lot Hinata-chan!"
Hinata looked surprised as Naruto started to walk away.
"Okay then, I'll be off to the main matches! Come and watch me kick Neji's ass, okay?"
Naruto walked about 7 feet away when he stopped and spoke.
"Hinata," Naruto said, getting her attention.
"You know, I once thought of you as a dark and timid person."
Hinata drooped at these words as Naruto continued.
"But, now, you've become my closest friend and I really like you."
Hinata raised her head and widened her eyes in shock as Naruto heard a set of fireworks. Naruto widened his eyes and gasped in shock.
"Oh shit; I'm late!"
Naruto focused his chakra and removed the seals on his weights (surprisingly easily) and ran vigorously, leaving a lingering phrase in the air.
"See you later, Hinata-chan."
Hinata was still thinking of Naruto's previous words and she really didn't notice that he was running extremely fast.
(Later)
The roar of the crowd was almost deafening as citizen and feudal lord alike anticipated to matches that were the finals. Hayate wasn't the proctor this time for security reasons as he was currently guarding the arena.
The people participating in the exam were now standing in the arena, looking at the crowd. Naruto looked around and saw somebody missing.
"Where's Sasuke? I thought he'd crawl here if he had to. He better make it here if he wants to fight me."
The proctor looked down at Naruto and signaled to him. Naruto turned his attention to him.
"Hey, stop fidgeting. Stay still and smile at the crowd because you guys are the stars of the show."
Naruto gulped as he looked forward. This was going to be a long day.
(End Chapter)
A/N: I hope you like the chapter. This was kind of a half-bridge chapter so it's not all that great. Anyway, please review. Say what you liked, what you didn't like and what you think can be improved. Ideas are always welcome. Anyway, review or… A STAMPEDE OF WILD OXEN WILL TRAMPLE UPON THEE!