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Chapter Four: Take it or Leave it!

A/N: Sorry for the delay in updating! My family and I just finished moving across the city and oh I'm sure you don't want to hear this. New chapters should be back on track and time from now on. I'm also going to start formatting the dialogue properly, since I've apparently been doinitrong this whole time, haha. To the story!

I--I

He hadn't expected her.

Her presence on the tree limb above caught Naruto in mid-yawn. When he sighted his grey-clothed classmate, she beamed in return, swinging her legs through mid-air and waving down at him. Her amiable smile crinkled the dark shadows beneath her eyes, sleepless marks which mirrored his own.

"You look..." he started absently, blinking once or twice to wipe the fatigue from his expression, "like crap."

"I haven't slept in thirty-six hours!" she replied, sounding proud of the accomplishment. "How'd it go?"

With a wide grin, Naruto thrust his fist into the air, holding his hitai-ate up in triumph. "Passed!"

"Oh, congratulations! How many clones did you end up getting away with?"

"A whole six of them, and they all worked and moved around and everything! That late night we pulled at the training field yesterday was totally worth the extra two, you know! Hey...where's your headband?" He put a hand against his forehead to shield his eyes from the sun and get a clearer look at her. "You passed too, right?"

"Sure did! I just put it away for now." She shrugged. "I don't want to get it all scratched up before I dye the band black."

"What is with you and black and grey, henjin? You're already black and grey all over...you look really depressing, you know."

Her expression flickered gently, surprised by such a remark. She looked down at her attire. "I thought Shinobi were supposed to wear discreet colors..."

"Yeah, but how are you ever supposed to stand out if you look just like everyone else?"

She blinked.

"Anyway, I gotta get going," he said, folding his arms behind his head. "Iruka-sensei's treating me to ramen tonight because of how hard I kicked his stupid exam's butt, you know. I'm going to have a bowl of the beef, then the chicken, then the miso, then the vegetable...ano, maybe the chicken after the miso but before the beef...definitely before the beef..."

"Have fun, Uzumaki-san! Be sure to catch some rest when you get home, though; registration's bright and early tomorrow, and you wouldn't want to miss that."

He scratched at the inside of his ear with his pinky. "You don't need to lecture me, you know. You need the sleep more than I do, anyway. You'll look a lot better in the morning."

She gave a small laugh and bid him goodbye.

With a wave and a smile, he was gone.

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He mulled over the words in his head, wondering if they'd have the same effect the second, fifth, tenth time around. They did, of course, but it wouldn't stop him from trying.

Iruka had been oddly quiet at Ichiraku that evening, right before he said it.

I don't think you quite understand how proud of you I am.

As he walked the path home through the heart of the village, Naruto realized he was still holding his graduation hitai-ate, tight enough for Konoha's symbol to leave an indent against his palm. He found himself more interested in this fact than the passing whispers of hatred everyone thought he didn't hear.

"Can you believe someone like him made it as a Genin?"

"The Academy's standards must have really dropped since last year..."

"I heard they did it on purpose because the school was sick of having him around all the time. You can't really blame them, I guess."

Naruto smirked at himself. So he attracted the village's ridicule whether he passed or failed. It helped him understand he had no reason to care what they thought any longer, because giving their opinions importance would be giving them importance, and they weren't people who deserved to be held in his regard. Not after the way they'd treated him his entire life. None of them mattered anymore, now that he knew.

All of your efforts have finally paid off, Naruto. Keep working hard, giving your all, believing in yourself...and I really do think you could accomplish your dream of becoming Hokage.

Iruka was the first person worth cherishing, and the only person whose opinion should have mattered at all. He was strict because it was the way he'd handle any subordinate who took their education lightly. He was harsh because he didn't want his pupil turning out to be the embodiment of what everyone expected. He was pushing Naruto onward because he believed in him.

The thought of this alone made the student's heart ache in a way he couldn't really explain.

I know I haven't been there for you as much as I could have. And I know how sick you must be of hearing your teacher asking you as a part of the class not to disappoint me, but I hope that what I'm saying now will prove a lot more important to you.

He glanced down at the Leaf in his palm, where his hand and his Sensei's had met.

"Naruto."

"Eh?" He shifted his attention up to see Mizuki standing before him. 'What's with all the people sneaking up on me today?'

The white-haired Chuunin smiled. "Congratulations on making Genin."

"Thanks, Sensei!" he said confidently. "I told you guys I'd pass this time! When I say I'm going to do something, I absolutely mean it, you know!"

"Right, of course," Mizuki chuckled. He fell silent as the look in his eyes turned more resolute, seeming both concerned and somehow reluctant. "Naruto-kun. I could get in a lot of trouble for telling you this, but...did you know that you tied with Uchiha Sasuke in creating the most clones out of everyone in Iruka's class?"

"No way; really?" Naruto's face lit up as he tightened his fists. "Just as much as Sasuke?!"

"That's right. Iruka and I were most impressed by your abilities."

"Awesome! Now all I have to do is train even harder and see if I have enough Chakra to make one extra clone, you know! That way I know for sure I've beaten Sasuke!"

"Oh, come now. Someone of your potential would be able to beat Sasuke at something far more important." Mizuki took the curious, yet fascinated expression on the Genin's face as a bid to continue. "I'm talking about a promotion."

"A promotion?" he echoed. "You mean...another one?"

"Of course. As you know, the traditional way of being promoted to Chuunin involves participating in the Chuunin exams."

Naruto folded his arms and nodded along sagely. 'I didn't know that, but sure.'

"It's a pity how far away the exams are, what with someone of your talents..." He snapped his fingers. "Tell you what. Only a few people in Konoha are privileged with the information, but there's a different way of becoming Chuunin that is still recognized by the government."

"A different way?"

"Yes, and it's much faster than going through the exam process, too," he claimed, still grinning. "If you wanted to meet me by the East Gate in an hour, I'll tell you all about it. Think of it as a kind of shortcut."

The word struck him to the core.

Naruto froze in place. He glanced back down at the hitai-ate in his hand as Iruka's final lesson rang clear through.

Don't disappoint yourself, Naruto.

He pressed the headband to his chest, firmly clenching his other hand.

"Naruto-kun?" Mizuki asked. "Are you okay?"

"In order to get where you wanna go..." he started, voice adamant, tone steady. "You have to give it a hundred and ten percent, or you shouldn't even bother trying! People who get lazy don't deserve the same as what other people train hard for, you know! I'm going to prove to everyone in this village, including you and Iruka-sensei, that I can become the greatest Shinobi ever without getting any kind of special treatment!"

"What are you trying to say?" A slight sneer had laced the end of his question as he crossed his arms and raised an intrigued brow. "That you don't want to become a Chuunin before Sasuke?"

"I'm saying that just because Sasuke can't handle becoming Chuunin the right way, that doesn't mean I can't, you know! I'm saying if that know-it-all wants to take the easy way out, he's making a stupid decision I don't want to have anything to do with! I'm saying there are no shortcuts, not to anything that needs real strength, real courage, real determination, and sure as heck not to anything that's worth working your best for! Mark my words, Mizuki-sensei: I'm going to become Hokage the old-fashioned way, even if it kills me!"

Naruto turned around and stormed off in a heated fit of determination to the training field, letting slip a notice that the expression on Mizuki's face had turned into a vicious scowl.

'So that's the way it's going to be, is it?' Mizuki scoffed. 'Don't get too comfortable with yourself, Naruto. There's always a Plan B.'

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