"Ow, that hurts!" I yelled.

"You're not doing it right," Streaks said.

I shook the leaves of my clothes. Streaks was teaching me the tiger head jutsu I did the first night I was in the Naruto world. He said if I could do the jutsu consciously I was good to go, but it hurt. Every time I messed he'd head butt me into a tree.

I did the hand signs for the hundredth time that day. My chakra spiraled around me and the tiger heads began to form around the training post. It took all my strength not to lose focus. The jutsu started working, but just when it should have destroyed the post it disappeared. Then I got head butted again. I shrieked when the tree shattered and I got splintered.

"Do it again," Streaks ordered.

After the long day of training, I decided to get some dinner from Ichiraku's. I looked like I had been in a train wreck, but I was really hungry. Waiting for my ramen, I started pulling out splinters. Man, I was going to be bruised tomorrow. Looking next to me there was man with a ponytail and scar across his nose. When he saw me he smiled.

"Aren't you Merisa," he asked.

"Yup," I nodded.

"Naruto told me about you," he said, "I'm Iruka Umino."

"Nice to meet you," I said.

When a bowl of ramen was put in front of me, I forgot our conversation and dug in. When I finished, I wiped my face the back of my hand and ordered another bowl.

"You're taking the Chunin Exams," Iruka asked.

I nodded.

"Well," Iruka said, "Naruto's a good friend, but be careful. Not everyone is."

I looked at him confused, then remembered the sand siblings. After he left I ate my bowl of ramen slower now. I could barely do the new jutsu Streaks was teaching me. Why did I even have to take the exams? I was going home soon anyway… right? I felt someone tap my shoulder, interrupting my thoughts. Naruto sat down beside me. Sakura on the other side. Sasuke sat next to Sakura, making her blush.

"We heard-," Naruto began.

"That I'm on your team now," I finished for him, "and that I have to take the Chunin Exams with you."

He nodded his head slowly.

"So what," I said, looking away.

"Don't screw up and ruin it for us," Sasuke said.

"Excuse me," I said defensively.

"If you don't take the exams," Sasuke explained, matter-of-factly, "we can't either."

"Oh," I said, angrily, "That's sounds like a personal problem."

I walked off, ignoring Naruto's calls. The Chunin exams were tomorrow. If I didn't show up, they couldn't take the exams. If I did show up I would take the exams flunk and embarrass myself. I thought about it all the way to my hotel room.

The next day I laid in bed till noon. When I got up I walked around the village. I saw families walking through the streets and ninja with their own families. I hadn't seen Streaks or team seven. They were probably waiting for me, or not. A little girl ran into me. She had big brown eyes.

"S-sorry," she said, stepping away. She had short hair and a dirty face. She had a paper throwing star in her hand.

"What are you doing little girl," I asked nicely. I knelt down to be at eye level with her.

"I'm practicing being a ninja," she said, "So I can be brave and strong." She ran off smiling.

Watching her disappear into the crowd, everything started to make sense. I ran towards the academy. There was still time. Sprinting as fast as I could I past Ichiraku's and the training grounds.

In the building finally, I saw team seven waiting for me down the hallway. Streaks looked at me and smiled(if tigers smile). Naruto smiled, too. Sakura and Sasuke looked at me surprised. Kakashi nodded in my direction. Streaks purred softly snuggling up next to me.

"Well," Kakashi said. "Now that all of team seven is here, you're ready to take the chunin exams."

Behind the double doors was a room full of ninja. They were all really tough looking. When I walked in most of them turned to look at me. Even when the rest of rookie nine walked in, the stares continued. Streaks yawned revealing all his teeth. I tapped his back and shook my head.

"They're already staring," I thought to him.

"Oh, right," he thought back, "A more proper form they're used to should be present."

He stretched his back out and silver rays of light shot from his stripes. His form got smaller and smaller until he was a cat again. Everyone watched amazed, even me.

"Couldn't have been a little more discrete," I asked him in a thought.

"Hey, I'm a cat aren't I," he thought, glaring at me.

"Can't stand cats," someone mumbled.

I looked up to see Kiba staring hatefully at Streaks. I rolled my eyes at him.

"Humph," Streaks thought, "and you thought this form would be better."

"It doesn't matter if someone likes you or not," I thought, annoyed, "only that we pass the exams, or at least try to."

"Hmm," Streaks thought, "You changed over night, huh."

I thought about the little girl with the paper throwing star and smiled.

"Oh," Streaks thought, "That's why."

"You've got to stop doing that," I said, out loud.

"What," asked Naruto.

"Nothing," I said quickly.

"Interesting pet you got there," someone said, "I'm Kabuto Yakushi."

A boy with silver hair pulled back into a ponytail looked at me curiously. He had piercing black eyes and glasses. I just stared at him. Streaks nudged my leg, interrupting my thoughts.

"Yea," I said, dreamily, "real interesting."

"Don't get any ideas," Streaks coaxed in my head.

I rolled my eyes. Everyone was talking and messing around. We still hadn't started the chunin exams, when someone yelped in pain. It was Kabuto. He was doubled over in pain clutching his ear. A ninja from the sound village was glaring at him holding his arm out. There was a metal shell on his arm.

I elbowed my way through the crowd that formed. Naruto stood defiantly in front of the sound ninja. They stood their in silence for a moment, then I stepped between them. The sound ninja looked annoyed.

"Look," I said, "I know you think you own the place, but we're all looking for the same thing here. You don't want to show off your abilities yet do you."

He studied me intently before turning away. I heard a low groan and turned to see Kabuto looking at the blood on his hand from his ear. I knelt beside him and studied the damage. I was about to start healing him when the examiner walked in. He made a speech about the exams and how we were going to be tested mentally and physically.

Our first exam was a test. I freaked out, not showing everyone else. I told Streaks and he said he could help. Apparently he had been a ninja once. I wonder if he was fish at some point, too. He seemed to have been everything lately.

The rules were weird though. We could cheat if we wanted as long we didn't get caught. Sakura and Sasuke would pass, I knew. It was Naruto I was worried about. He was loud and obnoxious and drew too much attention to himself. If he ruined it for all of us, I'd kill him. Literally. There is no way I'm backing out now.

When the test started, I linked with Streaks. I'd ask him the question and he'd give me the answer. He sat in my lap purring softly. When he looked up at something, I jumped a little. I looked up, too, to see an eyeball staring at me. When I saw the sand drooping from the sides, I knew who's it was.

Gaara sat there with a blank look on his face as always. I focused on his eye. Anger boiled in my blood. Something about him angered me. The eye started to crystallize. It was blue rock now and small with the veins red and molten. My eyes widened and the eye shattered, silently. I started to get busy with my test, praying no one noticed.

The examiner went to where Naruto was sitting. He asked him to answer the last question out loud. Streaks leapt onto my desk to get a better look. I looked around to see Sasuke and Sakura glancing at each other. If Naruto got it wrong we'd all be going home forever. He looked at the examiner defiantly.

"Even if I get it wrong," Naruto said, loud enough for every one to hear, "I'm still becoming Hokage."

At that moment, I didn't know if I wanted to throttle him or hug and kiss him. The examiner looked at him for a moment and nodded his head.

"You and your team pass then," he said.

Shocked, I almost fell out of my seat. Streaks told me I should act a little more like him instead of cheating. I ignored him, thinking of how I was going to congratulate Naruto with Ichiraku's.

"Don't get to excited," Streaks thought to me, "It's not over yet."