To all my faithful readers,
My most sincere apologies for not updating throughout this last semester. School made sure I had no time to work on this and I am not very good at time management. I was also highly unmotivated to write because of my lack of interest in writing fights for other characters aside from the Rookie Nine and Team Gai.
Hopefuly, I will come out with two or three more chapters before the begining of the next semester. It's going to be even harder to update. I am glad this chapter is over and I hope you all enjoy it.
R.I.P Jiraiya of the Legendary Sannin.
Your contribution to the Naruto universe will never be forgot.
Enjoy.
'Normal Thoughts/Flashback'
'KYUUBI THOUGHTS'
'summons thoughts/Inner Sakura'
"KYUUBI SPEAKS"
"Normal People Speak"
The Prelims.
They all started making their way to the tower to rest. After all, they had 3 and a half days before the second exam officially finished. They left the sound trio spewing curses at them.
It was a day of humiliation for the sound genin, and they swore that revenge would be just around the corner for the pompous leaf brats.
After all, it was either revenge against the leaf brats, or death by Orochimaru.
Orochimaru didn't take failures likely.
The three days had gone by uneventfully and without incident. Team Kakashi attributed it to their teammates condition. Naruto had yet to wake up even though his clones had been systematically dispelling themselves one by one to keep him informed even while he was unconscious. Well, it hadn't been totally uneventful. The leaf teams had met up again and had trained or gossiped about stuff. The gossip had mainly been between Ino, Tenten and Sakura, but Hinata listened in at times. Neji had sat down in a corner and kept his Byakugan activated to search for people who wanted to scope out the leaf's abilities and to keep an eye on Hinata. It was his job to look after Hinata after all and no matter how much he despised her, he couldn't go against Hiashi's orders until he was strong enough to face the older man in a one-on-one battle and win.
Hinata had stayed with her teammates to train, and would occasionally join Shikamaru and Chouji while they absentmindedly stared at the ceiling of Naruto's room and munched on chips respectively. She knew better though. They were worried about Naruto, because something just didn't seem right about him. It was like his life force just wasn't as strong as it used to be. The clones that had been protecting him at the time had told them it was a side effect of the Gogyo fuin, but their own worry was quite evident.
Sasuke and Sakura for the most part maintained the utmost confidence in their teammates ability to recover before the end of the second exam. The medics had come to check on him a few times and had healed his internal and external injuries. It angered Naruto's friends that none of the medics actually knew much about seals. Naruto's clones were hopeless in this endeavor as well, because it was one seal that Naruto never thought he would have any need for.
The Hokage or any other leaf ninja with sealing knowledge were not allowed to interfere with the proceedings of the exam until the preliminaries were over.
Speaking of preliminaries, Team 7 walked into the large hall where the jounin sensei's stood next to the Hokage and a few other jounin and ANBU. The real Naruto was currently leaning on two other Naruto's. All eyes turned to face Team 7 as they walked into the room, and both conscious Naruto's gave sheepish smiles as they looked around and studied the opposition. Their sheepish smiles turned into serious faces and they nodded to each other before one of them dispelled himself.
Most people who didn't know of the function of the clones snorted derisively, or merely raised delicate eyebrows as if to question the action. They were all shocked when the real Naruto took a deep breath of air and unhinged himself from his last remaining fuin clone. He fell to his knees and put his hands down for balance. Everyone watched in fascination as Naruto's breathing relaxed and he slowly started making his way back to his feet. His clone moved to support him and most of his opponents snickered at the weakness he was showing.
Opening his eyes weakly, Naruto nodded in the Hokage's direction. It seemed that the final participant was ready to partake in the festivities.
In truth, Naruto hurt all over, was depleted of chakra, was suffering from mental fatigue from the knowledge gained, and was very hungry. He took a moment to survey the competition though. Most of the teams he had expected to make it had come through and there were very few surprises. It seemed Orochimaru didn't intent to further partake in any of the proceedings. Naruto thanked Kami for that. His body already hurt enough just from fighting the sannin for a few hours.
Team Gai, the Rookie nine, Team Kabuto, Team Sand, and Team Sound all made it through. Naruto smiled slightly at the sound team as their eyes met. Their growls of anger directed towards him made him smile even wider. It seemed that their defeat at Sakura's hands and his clones interruption had cost them greatly. They looked frazzled and slightly disoriented, almost like they had just run through the whole forest to make it in time.
In all this time that Naruto had been looking around, the Hokage had been speaking and describing the true uses of the chuunin exams. It was old news to the members of team 7 who had tried to gather as much information on the exam as possible prior to the first exam. Naruto only half paid attention and merely glared at Kabuto's back when he decided to leave. His anger dissipated when he felt the chakra signatures of some of the Hokage's ANBU following Kabuto.
Naruto saw the Hokage giving him worried glances every now and then. He smiled reassuringly to assuage his fears. It seemed to work, because the Hokage stopped sending worried glances in his direction.
"The first match will come up onto the screen. All other participants please climb up to the catwalks and watch from there." The preliminary examiner who introduced himself as Gekkou Hayate said. The names started flashing across the board and stopped at two names. All the teammates of the first two participants wished their competing teammates good luck and got unto the catwalk.
"First match: Uchiha Sasuke Vs. Inuzuka Kiba. Hajime!" Hayate said as he jumped back.
Sasuke and Kiba stared each other down for a few seconds. Their staring contest was broken by Akamaru's soft whining. Sasuke looked at the dog curiously, but Kiba's eyes went wide with surprise.
"What do you mean by that Akamaru. You know we never quit no matter what." Kiba said. The look of defeat in his eyes, diminished the validity of his statement considerably. Akamaru whined a little more and Kiba's eyes widened even further. Kiba's eyes cautiously turned to Sasuke before turning to the Sand gennin who had decimated a very strong Kusa-nin team. Focusing harder than usual, Kiba saw a relation he would never have made previously. Sasuke and Gaara had the same eyes. Eyes that had seen more hardship than most people he knew. Suddenly, everything made sense.
Akamaru had been avoiding Sasuke since team 7 had arrived in the tower, but had not explained his reason. It was the reason Kiba had been forced to train away from Team 7, and the reason he had not been able to watch over Naruto with Shikamaru and Chouji. Because Sasuke was usually in one of the designated places and frequented the other regularly.
'Sasuke. Why is your chakra suddenly so menacing that it makes Akamaru just as scared of you, as he is of that sand kid? I had my own reasons for doubting my victory in this match, but I have to wonder what happened to you guys in that forest to bring about such a change. Which team was so strong that they could take out both you and Naruto.' Kiba gave Akamaru a gentle smile, before he started lifting his arm. A small frown adorned Sasuke's face because of Kiba's action. It was soon followed by a smirk.
"Don't you dare give up Kiba."
Kiba's hand stopped mid-air and he looked up to meet Naruto's fierce eyes. "Naruto?"
"You've come too far to give up so easily. What about all the training, the dangerous situations you have overcome. It will all be for nothing if you give up. The easy way is hardly ever the right way, Kiba."
All members of teams 7 and 8 shared small smiles because of Naruto's words.
"Hai, you are right. I can't give up so easily. Akamaru, you sit this one out. This is something I have to do."
Before Sasuke could attack, Kiba threw a smoke bomb onto the ground. Within the smoke, Kiba formed a set of seals.
"Shikakyu no jutsu"
A second later, a shocked looking Sasuke came flying out of the outer perimeter of the smoke. Kiba was only a few seconds behind him. Kiba displayed amazing speed by catching up to Sasuke and pounding him into the ground. Some of the more inexperienced shinobi in the room winced at the power behind the attack. No matter how thick Sasuke's head was, that would definitely count as a trip to the hospital.
If it had connected with the real person.
A few pieces of rock fell to the floor, after having been subjected to a substitution. Kiba sniffed around a little bit before looking upwards sharply. All eyes followed his, to see Sasuke standing on the ceiling with a thoughtful look on his face. Kiba grit his teeth and mentally ran through all the strategies he had for single one-on-one fighting. His options were limited and he made a mental note to try and increase the different areas of specialization he worked on.
His ploy to use Sasuke's superior eyes as a disadvantage within the smoke had failed.
"I know about the Inuzuka nose, Kiba. I will not be fooled into fighting you within an odorless smoke bomb." Sasuke said. Kiba growled lowly to himself and rummaged through his weapons pouch. Sasuke who saw the action before it happened commented offhandedly. "I see you have finally decided to get serious. About time."
Sasuke landed in a soundless crouch opposite Kiba as the Inuzuka tossed a soldier pill into his mouth.
'Does he know…..' Kiba started thinking.
"…the jutsu I am about to perform?" Sasuke replied.
Several eyebrows were raised in Sasuke's direction as he seemed to complete a random statement. The more experienced knew better, and Kiba's shocked expression confirmed it. Sasuke didn't seem to care about everyone else as his eyes seemed to bore into Kiba's. The three tomoe in each eye were slowly rotating.
'Did he just……'
"……..complete my thoughts?" Sasuke supplied.
Confused and a bit more wary of Sasuke now, Kiba took a step back. "How? How can you…."
"……read my thoughts?" Sasuke said while starting to smirk. "Because to me, Kiba…..you are like an open book. I am truly disappointed."
Time seemed to slow to a stop for Kiba.
Disappointment.
Was that all he had to show for becoming a shinobi?
Without even knowing it, Kiba was under the influence of Sasuke's eyes. Doubt flooded through his veins, questions about his own strength danced through his mind. Then the memories came.
Memories of his inadequacies since the day he was born.
The first few days when his mother had given him Akamaru and he had neglected to take care of his partner because he didn't enjoy the extra responsibility. The hatred he felt for his best friend whenever his mother scolded him about forgetting the dog somewhere.
His hatred for Sasuke who got all the girls in the class, and Naruto who didn't seem to have any responsibility. His ability to pick fights even when he knew he couldn't win them. He hated himself.
'Gomen Akamaru. You were right again. I should have listened to you from the begining. I am really nothing more than a disappointment and burden.' Kiba thought as he lifted his arm up slowly. He was about to give up before a sharp pain made him look at his other arm. There, biting down till the point that Kiba was bleeding was Akamaru. The dog let go and let out a series of barks towards his partner.
Kiba who was still trying to shake off the effects of Sasuke's genjutsu, absentmindedly threw Akamaru a soldier pill and watched in a semi-detached fashion as the dog grew several inches and turned red. The dog looked straight into Kiba's eyes and barked more times in a harsher and deeper manner than usual. The effect on Kiba was immediate, because his eyes refocused and his formerly fading will to fight started returning to him. The memories that had previously plagued him became his strength, because he remembered how much wiser and stronger he had become from those events.
"Hai Akamaru. I am ready now. Thank you for overcoming your fear of Sasuke and interrupting me before I quit." Kiba said while looking at Sasuke's feet. He acknowledged Akamaru's bark of approval and hunched his back so as to accommodate Akamaru on it. The faithful dog wasted no time in jumping on. "Tell me Sasuke, when did you get me in that genjutsu?"
"Since the moment you looked up at me on the ceiling. I commend you for getting out of it, even if it was with Akamaru's help." Sasuke replied nonchalantly. Despite using a sizeable amount of chakra for that technique, Sasuke knew he was still dictating the flow of the match and would still win.
"Well then, I will have to return the pain you have cause me." Kiba said "Jujin Bunshin"
Smoke obscured Kiba's form and when the smoke cleared, everyone was staring at two Kiba's. One was standing on top of the other and both looked very feral. They both jumped in opposite directions, before turning into cyclone that sliced through the air.
In the middle of all the commotion, Sasuke stood calm and collected. He noticed a pattern in their attack formation that said they won't be attacking together. One of the two would stay back and attack when the opening presented itself.
'A foolproof attack, except against someone with a stronger defense, more experience, or very strong eyes.' Sasuke thought. When the first cyclone got to him, he calmly spun on his heel and started running in the opposite direction. 'If I am correct in assuming this, then I should win this match very soon.
Pumping chakra into his legs, and pushing himself faster than the two swirling tornadoes. In no time, he arrived at the statue of the Buddha with his hands in a seal. Looking back and calculating the amount of time it would take Kiba to reach him, Sasuke focused on his task. Sasuke put one foot on the statue and one on the floor. He then performed a few seals and whispered the name of a jutsu. The Kiba closest to him was about a foot away when Sasuke kicked off both surfaces. His trajectory took him over the unsuspecting Kiba and into the path of the second Kiba. Sasuke wasn't done just yet though. He performed a set of seals and faced the incoming threat while still in mid-air. A loud explosion was heard throughout the arena and several rocks landing on hard ground signified the literal end of one of the Kiba's.
"Doton: Doryuheki." Sasuke said as he spewed mud from his mouth. It all landed in front of the remaining Kiba and stopped the spin momentarily. In that second pause, Sasuke was able to see the worry etched onto Kiba's face. Assuming it was Kiba. The spin was about to begin again because the power added was just to great for the improvised wall. Sasuke wasn't going to give them a chance though.
Landing on his feet and running over to the temporarily trapped Kiba, Sasuke gave a swift chop to the back of the Kiba's neck. He was disappointed and slightly worried to see a puff a smoke which in turn revealed Akamaru. Before Sasuke could turn and re-assess the situation, a kunai had found its way to his neck.
"You have now way to escape now, Sasuke. You underestimated me if you thought that a few rocks could keep me down. Heh, I guess you are not as good as you thought you were." a bloodied Kiba spoke from behind Sasuke.
Most of the rooms occupants were shocked at the turn of events. Even Kurenai turned to give Kakashi a smug look. "I guess it's over Kakashi-san, your student underestimated mine a bit too much."
Kakashi merely eye-smiled back to Kurenai. "Indeed it is over, but not with the outcome you are hoping for. My gennin shouldn't be able to fool you too, Kurenai."
Many turned their heads to question Kakashi's words but their attention was instantly drawn to Sasuke's silent chuckling. "I acknowledge your strength and will, but I must end it here."
"Your bluffing." was Kiba's angry reply. He was angry because Akamaru was unconscious and it was his fault yet again, in addition to Sasuke's insinuation that he was going to lose. Akamaru's fall would definitely not be in vain.
"Oh? Very well then." Sasuke said before closing his eyes. "Kill me."
Most were shocked at Sasuke's words and understood the doubt that filled Kiba's eyes.
"Doton: Shinju Zanshu no jutsu."
Most people blinked when Kiba was forcefully pulled into the ground up to his neck, and the Sasuke that he was holding melted into a pile of mud for the fatal injury it had received unintentionally from Kiba as he was being dragged down. The real Sasuke sat down gracefully in front of Kiba while holding Akamaru in his arms.
Hayate finally nodded, fully impressed by both contestants. "The first match goes to Uchiha Sasuke."
Respectful applause met the announcement. Sasuke also helped Kiba out of the hole he was in. The medics came out and recovered Akamaru from Kiba's hold. Kiba followed them to make sure that his friend was alright. Sasuke made his way up the stairs towards his teammates.
He was almost there when Rock Lee stood in front of him. Sasuke frowned slightly at the boy, wondering what he could possibly want at a time like this. Lee's eyes were serious and bore into Sasuke's. Even his teammates and sensei were surprised by his seriousness. Then the tense atmosphere was shattered when Lee smiled brightly, making Sasuke stumble back from being temporarily blinded.
"You did well Uchiha-san. The flames of youth burn brightly within you. I challenge you to a fight once these exams are over to prove that hard work will surpass genius. If I cannot defeat you, then I will run around the village one hundred times."
"And if Lee cannot do that, I will run around the village two hundred times on my hands" Gai added.
"Gai-sensei."
"Lee."
"Gai-sensei."
"Lee."
Everyone proceeded to ignore them after the sunset came into view. Lee and Gai stopped however when Sasuke walked past them. Lee looked towards the ground in defeat thinking that Sasuke believed he was not even worth enough time for a spar.
"I would like to see you try to do that Lee-san. Let me warn you though, I may be called a genius, but I also work hard. I will not be defeated so easily."
Lee was so shocked that he couldn't speak or turn around to watch Sasuke's back as he walked away. That was not what he was expecting at all. Gai gave a small smile towards his pupil. This generation was definitely going to be great.
Sasuke arrived back to his team and everybody looked up towards the electronic board again to see who was going to fight next.
Sabaku no Kankuro vs. Misumi Tsurugi.
The two mentioned fighters walked down from their positions. All people present payed close attention to the abilities of the two fighters and some were shocked with Kankuro's ability to use puppets. The fight was over a few minutes after it started and the disappointment was clear on the face of the last remaining gennin of team Kabuto. He shook it off rather quickly and continued looking around, and trying to gauge the strength of his would-be opponents.
Everyone turned their attentions to the board again as it started flashing.
"It shall be me this time Gai-sensei. The electronic board cannot continue to overlook my burning youthfulness."
"Indeed Lee. You will definitely…."
Aburame Shino vs. Akado Yoroi.
The two fighters calmly walked down to the ring, while a depressionn cloud formed over Lee and Gai. A second later, it was gone and replaced by a sunset and shiny teeth.
"The third match. Hajime." Hayate said as he jumped backwards to provide the two fighters some room.
The two fighters just stared at themselves for a few minutes before Yoroi grew tired of the silence.
"Give up now rookie. You have no chance of beating me and it would be a waste of time to try."
"…."
Yoroi waited a few more seconds for a reply from the stoic boy, before his impatience got the best of him. Throwing a few shuriken and activating his technique, he rushed after the throwing stars. Shino calmly sidestepped the shuriken but was unprepared for the speed of the follow up attack. Yoroi threw a punch at Shino who ducked low to the ground, and performed a sweeping kick which was jumped over. Flipping in mid-air, Yoroi was able to get behind shino and slammed his glowing hands onto Shino's shoulders. The effect was immediate, as Shino sank to his knees from the sudden loss of chakra.
"You cannot beat this technique. You should have definitely quit when you had the cha…. What the hell?"
Yoroi watched with disgust as several insects crawled up his arm slowly. They seemed weakened and tired at first, but once the got further up, they started to gain momentum.
"Interesting." Shino said from behind Yoroi.
With reflexes honed from years of being trained by Orochimaru, Yoroi pulled out a kunai and turned to maim Shino. Shino merely raised an arm and stopped the kunai. No blood fell however and Yoroi was starting to wonder what he was up against.
"You put very little thought into your attacks, so I will assume you either have a very good alternative plan that you have not revealed, or you are just a really bad shinobi." Shino said with an a absolutely calm voice. "It doesn't matter anymore, because this match is over. Give up, or I will surely put you in a hospital bed."
"I will never give up to a greenhorn….."
"Mushi Bunshin no Jutsu." Shino said from his comfortable position leaning against the wall.
The two clones around Yoroi burst into bugs that crawled onto him as he screamed. His screams soon grew quiet, as he had fallen unconscious.
"Shousa, Aburame Shino."
Shino nodded to Hayate in respect before walking back to his position on the catwalk, waiting for the next fights.
Yamanaka Ino Vs. Tsuchi Kin.
As the two contestants walked down the catwalk, they showed varying degrees of confidence. Kin had a wide smile plastered on her face like she had just won the lottery, while Ino had a confident gaze in her eye. The two girls stood opposite each other and Kin decided to speak before the match started.
"You Konoha shinobi are seriously weak, and against me, you stand no chance little girl." Kin said with disgust lacing her every word. Kin could see the anger in Ino's eyes flare at the disrespect she had just paid the entire shinobi populace of Konoha. All anger disappeared when two chuckles were heard from the audience. The chuckles were quickly escalating into full blown laughter.
Everyone looked to the source of the laughter that was becoming louder, and found the two Naruto's loosing their minds while supporting each other.
"She…she said Konoha shinobi are weak when…their whole team was beaten by one of us." Naruto said while his clone nodded in agreement. Sasuke couldn't help but join in Naruto's little joke.
"Ah, I do recall hearing something about that. The pride of the newly developed Otogakure, defeated by one of us lowly Konoha shinobi. Yare, yare….what is this world coming to?" Sasuke finished with a grin. By now, most of the other shinobi present were laughing.
"TEME…." Zaku and Kin mimed at the same time.
"Yare, yare. No need to get annoyed at us. Before you say something stupid and belittling next time, think about the consequences. I will not let me home be mocked right in front of me without retaliating." Naruto said as he leaned on his clone for support.
While Zaku was being forcefully restrained by Dosu, Kin thought to herself that the leaf brats would get what was coming to them eventually. She just had to play her part by beating this girl in front of her.
"Examiner, I am ready." Kin said as she took a fighting stance.
"About freaking time." Ino said as she slipped into her own stance.
Hayate nodded and raised his hand. "The fourth match of the preliminaries, Hajime"
Both girls dashed forward at respectable speeds with kunai in hand causing sparks to fly around. Ino went on the defensive because she was a lot smaller than Kin, but none of Kin's attacks were able to connect because of Ino's agility and greater speed. A few minutes after testing for each others weak points, both girls jumped back and prepared to use their trump cards.
Both girls reached into their pouches and pulled out their items of choice. Ino being slightly quicker threw her smoke grenades at Kin. Kin on the other hand threw her senbon needles through the smoke screen hoping to hit the wall on the other side. If she hit Ino, it was all the same. The same damage would still be done. Not wanting to give up the advantage she believed she no possessed, Kin started forming the seals to her exclusive genjutsu.
Ino had been thrown off the seals for her jutsu the moment the senbon needles flew through the haze created by her smoke bombs. She had dodged to the best of her ability and it proved good enough, because she had come out of the encounter unscathed. Just as she started performing the seals to her jutsu, she heard the slight jingle of bells. Confused, she looked towards where her opponent should have been standing behind the smoke, only to find nothing. No smoke, no opponent, no examiner, no friends watching her match.
'Impossible. This has to be a genjutsu.' Putting her hands in a seal to dispel the jutsu, she only managed to make the senbon strings with bells appear. With all her finesse in chakra control, she knew she should have been able to break through the jutsu easily. Kin's laughter started filling her ears and the pain of defeat was already beginning to form in her gut. Where Sakura had nearly succeeded in defeating Kin's whole team, she could not even defeat the weakest of the sound trio.
Time seemed to slow down and memories of all her training seemed to come back to her, but nothing seemed right at the time. No jutsu would be able to get her out of this predicament. Then a voice from so far away hit her. It was a voice she was not expecting, but the message was clear.
'Don't lose to someone like her Ino.'
Flashback.
"I will not let you guys down….I promise." were the words Ino heard come out of Sakura's mouth as all the teams met on the street next to the BBQ shop.
Everyone looked beaten up and tired from the grueling tests they had been put through that day to test whether they would actually become real gennin. It was obvious that different teachers gave different tests, but the main theme of the tests was to establish the importance of teamwork in the minds of the incoming shinobi.
If any team was epitomizing that need, it was Team 7. Ino watched as her former best friend shed her childishness and grew into a strong kunoichi.
Envy.
Sakura had what Ino wanted. Sakura had what Ino needed.
A team that was strong and would push her to surpass her limits.
'Why did I have to get the two laziest bums in our whole graduating class. I used to think Naruto was bad, but it seems he was holding back the entire time. From the joint training sessions our sensei's have had, it's obvious that Naruto, Sasuke and Shino are the best of us all.'
"Ino?" a voice said from behind her.
"Ah, what do you want lazy bum. If you don't want to train, go and watch the clouds somewhere else, Shikamaru." Ino replied without turning around to acknowledge Shikamaru.
Ignoring the jibe, Shikamaru voiced his concerns. "It's troublesome, but you have been acting down lately. You have strange reactions when we come into contact with team 7 and you've been spacing out more than usual." Shika said.
"What do you care?" Ino said. Without turning around, she knew he merely shrugged his shoulders and continued walking forwards. She sighed as he walked by her, hands in his pockets and eyes looking at the clouds in the sky. Unwillingly, Ino looked up as well.
"They are beautiful, aren't they? They always looks so peaceful." Shikamaru said. Sensing an apology coming from Ino, Shika decided to continue. "As troublesome as I find you Ino, I didn't come here because I am obligated to. I came here because I was worried about my friend. Before we were teammates, we were friends right?"
"Hai." Ino said not understanding what Shikamaru was trying to say. Noticing Shikamaru's head turning, Ino looked to see a smiling face.
"I will do everything in my power to never let my friends down. Let's make a deal Ino, you never let me down, and I will never let you down." Shikamaru said as he held his hand out, palm facing the ground.
Ino smiled as she put her hand on Shikamaru's "Hai, Shika."
One more hand descended upon the two already placed hands. Shika and Ino looked up to see a smiling Chouji.
"Troublesome. The other teams were having a little get together and invited us. Come on, lets go." Shikamaru said as he started walking towards the town. The other two followed closely behind.
All the way there, they had smiles on their faces.
Flashback end.
Ino was brought out of her musings by a senbon needle digging into her thigh. She resisted the urge to scream and merely pulled the needle out as quickly as possible. Before she could drop the senbon, Ino noticed a slight tug on the senbon.
'I see, so the wires connected to the senbon need to be tied somewhere after she has thrown them. Most probably because she has to have the bells and senbon connected before each fight. Then I will have to act quick if I want this to work.' Ino thought as tried to be as aware as possible.
'I have tired of playing games with this girl. I think it's time I ended our little game. I won't kill her though because she needs to live with the shame of knowing how weak she is. Regardless, she will die during the invasion.' Kin thought as she threw a few senbon with strings attached towards Ino.
The senbon all hit their mark and Kin watched in fascination as Ino gripped the wires to get the senbon out as quickly as possible. Her fascination increased as Ino's body slumped to the ground.
"She won't be getting back up, examiner." Kin said before she smiled wickedly. "I forfeit."
Kin then proceeded to drop to the floor and pass out as well.
Hayate looked at both contestants for a few seconds before speaking. "This match ends as a draw."
Medic-nin came and retrieved both girls from the floor of the arena and took them for treatment. The rest of the people where in shock and needed an explanation for the things that just occurred. Shikamaru decided to clue everyone in.
"Troublesome. When that sound girl threw those senbon, Ino transferred her mind with a variant of the shintenshin no jutsu through the connecting wires. The thing about that version though is that, it is a quick release with no seals, which means she is traveling with less chakra. She has a max of 10 seconds to get there. Once that time is over, she is forcefully dragged back into her own body. That jutsu also has the ability to knock out an opponent momentarily after use, so as to give the user a little time to re-orient themselves. Thus the reason that Kin girl passed out. Unfortunately, Ino was already knocked out while she was in Kin's body, so she could not rightfully claim Kin's forfeit as a win. Thus the reason why it was a draw. Troublesome." Shikamaru said while looking as bored as possible. Everyone looked a little more enlightened after that.
Most people chuckled when they heard Kin's screams of horror at the result of her match.
'Thank you Ino. For not breaking the promise. For not letting us down.' Shikamaru thought to himself as he finally let go of the railing that he had been holding onto since Ino had been caught in that genjutsu. "Women are so troublesome."
Haruno Sakura Vs. Sabaku no Temari
Naruto, Sasuke and Kakashi watched with growing frustration as Sakura's every technique was foiled by the sharp winds of the sand girl. In an enclosed area, Sakura's worst opponent was a mid to long range opponent who you could not hide from. Smoke bombs were useless, the meisaigakure no jutsu was useless, and it was a wide open arena that didn't give many hiding spots.
If in a situation like this on the outside, she could easily depend on her teammates abilities to either nullify her opponents range, or to give her enough time to hide properly and attck with genjutsu. Even her exploding tags on ninja wire didn't work and it seemed the sand girl hadn't even started fighting seriously.
'Kuso, my chakra reserves are still nowhere near Sasuke's or even Kakashi-sensei's. I don't know any doton techniques that would neutralize her fuuton attacks. Her fan make it impossible to fight from a safe distance and also makes close combat somewhat impossible. She must be very strong to be able to haul that fan around all the time. This woman was the worst match-up I could possibly get.' Sakura thought while narrowing her options. Sighing loudly to herself, Sakura closed her eyes and estimated the amount of chakra she had for this last technique. "It seems I am left with no choice but to use this technique if I want to progress to the next round."
The shock on Temari's face was apparent because she didn't expect Sakura to still be so calm. 'It seems I underestimated her. She has shown of a good amount of techniques, and against any other type of opponent, she would have won. How does she still have more?' Temari thought while straightening her facial features. "Then I will not go easy on you anymore. I will use all three stars."
Sakura watched impassively as Temari's fan opened as wide as it could. Temari then started to charge towards Sakura who started jumping back instinctively while performing her own set of seals.
'With the amount of chakra I have, I only have about 45 seconds to find out her worst fear. The greater her knowledge of genjutsu, the more impossible it will be for me to defeat her.' Sakura thought. Her eyes widened as a gust of wind hit her straight on.
Temari let out a curse as her opponent dissolved into cherry blossoms. "Sakura Bunshin? Pretty, but it won't get you anywhere now."
"Indeed. It was only here to give me time to complete this jutsu." Sakura said from behind Temari. Temari performed a 180 degree turn with her fan outstretched to smash Sakura's skull, but Sakura had already anticipated such a move and had crouched immediately after completing her sentence. Touching Temari's stomach lightly, Sakura whispered. "It's over. Ninpou: Kowagaseru no genjutsu."
Immediately those words left Sakura's mouth, Temari's world became blank. It was as if she was consumed by a void dark world. All she knew was nothingness.
"What am I doing here? Why do I feel so empty? Ah, that's right. I remember that I was at the chuunin exams." Temari spoke to no one in particular. Looking around, everything around her started to take shape and resembled the arena with people standing on the sidelines. Unfortunately, she could not make out their faces and she was having more trouble remembering who she had been fighting. It seemed as if the memory just mysteriously disappeared.
Almost immediately after thinking about who her opponent was, she thought about who she didn't want her opponent to be.
"I will kill you…." a voice said from behind her. Every muscle fiber in her body froze at the mere sound of his voice. It was like a vision out of her worst nightmares.
"Ga..Gaar..a." Temari said as sweat poured down her face. 'Im-impossible, I would have forfeited the moment I knew he was my opponent. Why am I here. Why am I about to fight Gaara?'
Sand rapidly started wrapping around Temari's form and she could do nothing but scream in fear of what was to come.
"Your blood smells sweet. Mother with definitely enjoy this sacr…." Gaara said only to be cut short.
Everything started contorting, and Temari let out a relieved sigh that she was still alive. 'Maybe the Hokage saved me. Father told me that he is very strong.'
Trying her best to regain control of her breathing, Temari looked around briefly. Dread filled her being when she found the Hokage sitting in his seat totally relaxed. Her dread was replaced by confusion as she looked up to the catwalk and found her brothers and sensei standing in relative apathy.
"Haruno Sakura is unable to continue due to exhaustion. Shousa: Sabaku no Temari."
Then the memories flooded back to Temari in a heart beat. Turning her neck from her undignified sitting position on the floor of the arena, she saw Sakura lying down in a heap beside her, obviously spent. Temari picked herself up and recovered her fan from its position on the floor not to far away before she began walking back to her teammates. Before she made her way over to them, she looked back at Sakura who was being tended to by medic-nin, with her teammates, injured and uninjured hovering close by.
'Such a devastating technique. If she had used it earlier, I would have been done for. How can they be so strong and still have such compassion for each other when even my teammates who are my siblings, do not share such a relationship. Even the lazy bonehead over there cheered his teammate on despite his obvious disdain at doing things like that. It's a pity such good people will not get to see much more in life.' Temari thought as she stalked over to her teammates to watch the next match.
Only Kankuro acknowledged her presence.
Tenten Vs. Nara Shikamaru.
The match started as it began, with Shikamaru complaining about how troublesome it was to fight girls. Especially girls who carried as many weapons as Tenten did. Shikamaru ended it by using his Kage Nui to catch all the thrown weapons and he easily evaded all her kenjutsu attacks by using his shadow to block and escaping when necessary. He finally got her with his kagemane no jutsu and told her to surrender unless she wanted to be impaled by several of her own tools.
After she had conceded, Shika had calmly returned all her weapons to her and gone back to the catwalk even though everyone was giving him strange looks. He ignored them and simply closed his eyes to take a nap until Naruto's or Chouji's match. Not like he could do that with some of the remaining contestants there.
"Next match: Rock Lee Vs. Sabaku no Gaara."
Shikamaru didn't have the time to rest as the two powerhouses known as Lee and Gaara went at it. Everyone present was in awe of the two boys, but none more than the members of the sand team. They had never seen Gaara get hit and were not expecting him to receive his first injury during the chuunin exams. Maybe from some high powered shinobi at the level of Hatake Kakashi and stronger, but not from an insignificant leaf brat.
In the end, it was a gruesome victory for Gaara, but everyone was in awe of Lee's determination and techniques. The extent of his injuries shocked many of the people present and most of the people there knew that they could not endure such pain. It would seem that the most painful parts of the chuunin exams were just beginning though.
Next match: Hyuuga Hinata Vs. Hyuuga Neji.
Worry clouded Naruto's eyes, but he knew that she had to do this. There was no walking out on something so important. Hinata had spoken about Neji several times and he understood Neji's pain, but he didn't understand the reason to take the pain out on anybody, let alone Hinata.
Hinata's confidence at the beginning of the match was virtually non-existent, but Naruto kept cheering her on and pushing her towards success. It looked like she had gained enough confidence to win, but the older and more experienced shinobi knew that her confidence came a tad bit too late. Many were impressed that she had come so far, but they knew it was the end for her. Many jounin even had to step in to hold Neji from murdering Hinata. Not like he would have ever gotten to her.
Naruto's bunshin stood protectively over Hinata as he laid her down at the door leading to the medic-nin room. The real Naruto stood on the catwalk, glaring down at Neji as the jounins left him alone.
"You should mind your own business, dead-last. Cheering for people is what stupid people do. I guess I shouldn't be surprised about it though. You do look really stupid." Neji said with disdain as he looked up at Naruto.
"Call me whatever you like, but if you hurt Hinata-chan again….I will kill you." Naruto said with a cold voice.
"You? You won't be even able to lay a finger on me. Heck, I doubt you will make it past this round to even have a chance to face me."
With fury etched into his features, Naruto looked towards the board. 'I am in bad shape right now, but I will defeat that teme, no matter what.'
Most people who didn't know what Naruto was capable of looked at the shape he was in, and nodded their heads thinking thee same thing. 'Idiot, he is clueless as to how outclassed he is to that guy.'
Kinuta Dosu Vs. Chouji Akimichi.
This was by far the shortest match as Dosu punched chouji with his melody arm and ended the proceedings as soon as it started. The leaf shinobi were a bit disappointed that one of their own had fallen so easily, but they showed sympathy because he could not have seen it coming after he performed his meat tank jutsu.
"Shousa, Kinuta Dosu."
"Che, too easy." Dosu boasted as he walked up to where his teammates were standing. The last to fighters knew themselves already and started descending the steps before their names even appeared on the board.
Uzumaki Naruto Vs. Zaku Abumi.
"Hahahaha, just my luck that I get to fight a cripple to qualify." Zaku said while looking hysterical. "Even better that you are that girls teammate. I am going to enjoy annihilating you."
"Whatever loser. Just don't underestimate me. You will definitely regret it." Both Naruto's spoke in unison.
"Ah, isn't that cheating? How can you have two people to fight against one?" Zaku said while looking at the examiner.
"The second Naruto is a bunshin, which can be passed of as a ninja tool. He is not cheating by having it out already. If you want, you can summon a bunshin of yourself to aid your fight as well." Hayate replied calmly.
"Hehehe. No, that's fine. Maybe one of them will put up a fight. Examiner, I am ready." Zaku said in a sing song voice. The Naruto's merely detached from each other. One kneeling on the floor and the other standing in a ready stance. They both nodded to signify their readiness as well.
"The final match: Hajime."
Zaku put on a burst of speed to close in on his target, before performing a feint to the Naruto that was standing, and going for the weakened Naruto. The Naruto bunshin moved quickly to intercept. He blocked the open palm strike that Zaku had aimed at the downed Naruto.
"Heh, stupid. Zankuha." Zaku said as that Naruto was blown away. The other Naruto used the time to jump backwards to a safe distance.
'Though it seems that he has lost a lot of physical strength and his body is weak from the beating he received from that hebi-teme, he still has his chakra. Though I am a bit surprised that the seal on his stomach is throwing off his chakra control so much. He nearly didn't go as far as he would have liked with that chakra enhanced jump.' Sasuke analyzed as he watched Naruto's fight.
'Kuso, this is bad. It will take some preparation to do some higher level techniques. I need a diversion.' Naruto thought as he watched Zaku carefully. His clone slowly stood up and Naruto was very grateful for the clones resilience. "Oi, don't worry about me. I can protect myself enough to stay conscious in this fight. You need to defeat this guy before you run out of chakra."
The clone merely nodded, and turned his attention to Zaku whose arms where already raised to finish off both Naruto's.
"With these arms, you cannot defeat me." Zaku said.
"Tch, say that after you have won teme." Naruto replied.
"Then I will end it quick. There is no escape from this technique. Zankukyokuha."
Everyone in the stands had to shield their eyes from the debris and raging winds going around the arena. As soon as the winds calmed down, everyone looked over to see Zaku panting with a victorious smile on his face.
"There, that should be enough to fin…"
"Wrong." a voice said from below Zaku. Zaku's eyes followed the sound and saw Naruto crouched under him, and ready to deal an upward blow to his chin. Remebering the technique because Lee had used it on Gaara, Zaku performed another Zankuha towards the ground. The kick from Naruto barely connected and Zaku seemed very pleased with himself at his success while escaping. Then he heard the second voice.
"Yare, yare. Forcing me to use the Doryūheki at such short notice to save myself. Thankfully, your arrogance has given me the time to prepare a new wind jutsu that I have been wanting to try out. Behold, my own creation." Naruto said from on top of the mud wall that he had created to protect himself with his palms clasped together.
Zaku instinctively grinned at the prospect of defeating a wind jutsu with his own and pointed his palms towards Naruto.
"Zankukyokuha."
"Useless. Fuuton: Migite no Kami."
Everyone watched in awe as Naruto extended his palm and an ethereal wind palm many times the size of Naruto also extended. The Zankukyokuha offered little resistance to Naruto's new jutsu and the air-borne Zaku was slammed ruthlessly into the opposing wall. Everyone looked from the panting Naruto to the bloody Zaku who was in the middle of a huge palm crater.
Hayate merely shook his head in silent amusement. "Shousa, Uzumaki Naruto."
Naruto merely nodded to his bunshin who disappeared without another word. Naruto then looked towards Neji, and gave him the coldest glare he could muster before passing out again from all the knowledge flooding his mind. In the process, his Doryūheki crumbled and he started falling towards the ground only to be caught by his sensei.
"Baka. He is lucky his chakra was off today, or he would have destroyed this whole building without knowing it." Kakashi said to no one in particular. "Sasuke, get the information concerning the finals and come and meet me at the hospital. We will talk about training over there."
"Hai." Sasuke answered. With that, Kakashi was gone from the arena and to the hospital.
All the contestants who passed walked down to the arena floor and picked out a paper each from a box. Everyone waited for the Hokage to speak.
"Well done on passing the preliminaries. All of you here will be representing your respective countries in the third and final exam in a months time. You will learn of your opponents now and you have a month to get stronger and defeat the person. It will be a knockout style tournament and there will be a greater number of people in the audience. Showcase your best skills and you will definitely become chuunin. Now please turn in your papers to Ibiki-san so we can learn who your opponents will be."
After a few moments of scuffling, everyone finally gave their numbers to Ibiki and he finished writing up the list.
"The list is as follow:" Ibiki started.
"Match 1: Hyuuga Neji Vs. Uzumaki Naruto."
"Match 2: Aburame Shino Vs. Sabaku no Kankuro."
"Match 3: Uchiha Sasuke Vs. Sabaku no Gaara."
"Match 4: Dosu Kinuta Vs. Sabaku no Temari."
"Match 5: Nara Shikamaru will fight the winner of match 4. He gets automatic qualification to the second round." Ibiki finished.
"Thank you Ibiki-san. You may go and begin your training. Congratulations again."
"Think about it like this Naruto-sama. Kakashi-sensei can't teach us anything useful enough for the exams in one month, so he decided to teach Sasuke full time alone." a clone said.
"It's not like he doesn't care. I think that is far from the truth. If he didn't care, he wouldn't have left so many scrolls for us to practice with." Another chimed along.
"I know, I know. It's just that I wish he was here in person. It feels kind of lonely without them, doesn't it?" Naruto said.
Upon closer inspection, there were several more clones in the area, all seated in the same position. One foot for balance and the other crossed over the balancing foot. Like sitting on a chair with crossed legs, only without the chair and while standing over scalding hot water.
"Che, I think it's time to switch feet." Naruto said as he stood up to full height. "It's sad that I have to go on with this stupid seal and re-learn chakra control because the Hokage is busy and Kakashi-sensei couldn't wait for me to wake up to release it."
While changing legs, a memory came to Naruto from a dispelled clone who had apparently lost its footing when it saw something. And just like that, the concentration of all the clones was lost and they each started falling into the hot water and getting dispelled.
"Kuso, I have to get to land before the memories overwhelm me. Damn that white haired pervert, and damn the bunshin that saw him." Naruto shouted as he made a dash for the dry land next to the hot springs where he was practicing. Unfortunately, he was in the middle, so he didn't make it before he was overwhelmed. "KUSO!"
Splash…
'Hee hee hee. I have been without research material for about a month because of word of Orochimaru's movement. It's good to be able to spy on these young girls again for inspiration for my next book.' Jiraiya thought to himself as he walked towards his favorite peeping spot. His musings were interrupted by a boy who had created several clones and they were all talking about the Hokage and Kakashi. Performing a quick bunshin to watch over the boy and get some information if need be, Jiraiya continued on to his destination.
While he was watching the naked women and giggling maniacally, Jiraiya felt the boys chakra spike, and several of the other chakra sources disappear. His clone dispelled itself soon enough to report the situation.
'The resemblance is uncanny. Could it be that the old man lied to me? If so, he has a lot to explain to Tsunade and I. Might as well go and help him out. Who knows, I may be ready for another student.' Jiraiya thought as he left his perch which gave him the view of beautiful ladies, to save a brat.
"Uh, I feel like burnt meat. Reminder to self: stay away from boiling hot water." Naruto said as he opened his eyes. "How embarrassing it would be for a shinobi to drown to death when there are no opponents around."
"Yes brat, that would be very embarrassing." Jiraiya said from a comfortable spot away from Naruto.
Naruto's response was immediate. He was up and forming the seals for a defensive jutsu as soon as he was on his feet. Noticing Jiraiya's lack of ill-intentions, Naruto lowered his guard slightly.
"You were just about to perform the Doryūheki right? It must be a relatively simple move for you to put your trust in it so much." Jiraiya said as he looked at Naruto.
"No, it is the most chakra expensive and ineffective defensive jutsu I have. But I wish to master it better because it is the only one that will work anywhere, and under any circumstance. After all, my opponents can't get rid of the earth, can they Jiraiya of the Sannin?"
"Oh, so you know of me. Konoha's academy must be doing well nowadays if they produced knowledgeable people like you."
"I guessed."
"Ah, it was a good guess then. Your clothes are over there, but answer me something. The person that put that seal on top of the Yondaime's seal, was Orochimaru right?"
Naruto was shocked at first before he calmly nodded his head in the affirmative.
"So that means he is planning something on Konoha in the near future. It seems like I will be here longer than normal. Brat what is your name?"
"Naruto, Naruto Uzumaki."
'Hm, there is no doubt about it now. It's the name from my story, Meaning Arashi used the name I gave him. The resemblance between Arashi and him is uncanny as well. My godson is still alive. Why would you lie to me, Sarutobi? Well, that doesn't matter now, he seems to need a teacher right now. Maybe I should offer my help…… Nah, he seems fine.' Jiraiya thought. "Ah, I see. I will see you around then."
"Jiraiya-san." Naruto said as Jiraiya was about to turn around.
"Huh?"
"Please train me for the upcoming exam." Naruto said with determination.
"Ah, no need to be so serious about it……and don't call me that. Call me Jiraiya-sensei, after all, it wouldn't do to have my student being so formal with me." Jiraiya said as he bonked Naruto on the head.
Naruto gave a sheepish smile as he scratched the back of his head. 'He is more like his father than he will ever realize.'
"I see you are progressing even with the seal on you. How about you practice for two more weeks like that before we remove it. It will help your control immensely. Then we can work on strategically fighting in the final two weeks. I see great potential from you brat. Don't let me down."
"Hai Jiraiya-sensei." Naruto said. "What will we be starting on then?"
Jiraiya smiled wide before he spoke the next few words. "Have you ever heard of Kuchiyose?"
"Hai, there are many Kuchiyose in Konoha. Mostly animal like Kuchiyose though. Like the Inu-kuchiyose that Kakashi-sensei possesses and the Saru-kuchiyose with the Sarutobi's. Your team has the greatest Kuchiyose combination in shinobi history. The Gama-Hebi-Katatsu combination." Naruto said as he listed off Iruka's lecture.
"Never pegged you as the book worm type." Jiraiya said, showing his shock at Naruto's brilliance. "This may be easier and more exciting than I previously anticipated. Well, seeing as I don't have to explain much because your such a capable shinobi, why don't you go back to your apartment and pack for a month. We won't need to come back this way for a while. Use this chance to also tie up all loose ends, because I don't expect you to get sidetracked during your training."
"Loose ends?" Naruto questioned.
"You know, tell your friends that you won't be around for a while. Meet me at the house on the other side of the eastern wall when you are done." Jiraiya said.
"Hai." Naruto said. Putting on his gear and creating about a dozen clones, who promptly went in different directions.
Hospital.
Naruto snuck through the window knowing that there was no way that the Hyuuga guard or the lady at the reception were going to let him through. He wanted to make this short and quick, so it was even better that she was asleep.
Putting the single white and lavender rose into the vase containing other flowers, Naruto walked and stood next to Hinata's bed. She was sound asleep and he couldn't help but sigh helplessly.
"Ah. It's usually me on the bed, so I am not sure what to say….I guess I should start with the fact that I am fighting Neji during the first round of the finals. I will make him pay for what he did to you. I promise. I have a new part-time sensei who is really strong and I will be gone for a little while. I hope you will be well enough to watch my match against Neji when I get back. Get well soon, and goodbye….Hinata." Naruto said, and in a puff of smoke, he was gone.
Academy.
"So you'll be gone for a few days to train with that man, huh?" Iruka asked as he looked over his desk to Naruto and Konohamaru corps who had been serving detention.
"Hai Iruka-sensei." Naruto said as he grinned at the children beside him. They had stars of awe in their eyes.
"Wow, boss is so cool." Konohamaru corps chirped in unison.
"I just came to say goodbye and tell you not to worry even though this is so sudden." Naruto said as he saw the worry in Iruka's eyes. "I was also wondering if you could get me some quality dai-katana for the final exams. Because off the abruptness of my training with Jiraiya-sensei, I will probably come back a few days early to pick them up and train with them for a bit. I will pay you back then."
"No need. Consider it a gift for making it this far in the chuunin exams." Iruka said with a smile.
"Hehe, I will have you know that I am soon going to be the same rank as you Iruka-sensei. Then the whole world will definitely know I am the better shinobi." Naruto commented offhandedly. He dodged a large book aimed for his forehead and dodged another school of books on his way to the door, while laughing the entire distance. Konohamaru corps could do nothing but watch in awe as Naruto dodged all Iruka's thrown books.
"I'll see you guys in a month." Naruto said as he reached the door. Iruka's last thrown book hit him squarely in the forehead and all the people present gasped. Iruka was the only person to notice the small smile on Naruto's face as he was hit. A second later, a plume of smoke signified the end of Naruto clone.
'Amazing. I couldn't even tell the difference. He really must have come a long way if his Kage bunshin are good enough to dodge those books.' Iruka thought with a smile. 'Maybe I need to get back to serious training myself.'
Looking up, Iruka noticed the lack of any other presences in the room.
"Kuso. I really need to start training again."
Yamanaka Flower Shop.
"Ah, I understand, Naruto." Sakura said. "Thank you for coming to tell me about your training."
"Sorry I can't stay Sakura-chan. Neji is too dangerous an opponent to pass up such an opportunity and Sasuke needs all the training he can get from Kakashi-sensei before he faces that Gaara guy. You should have seen what he did to that Lee guy. If Lee's sensei didn't step in, Lee would be dead."
"Yeah, Ino and I saw him when we went to see Chouji and Hinata in the hospital earlier. He was in bad shape, but he continued trying to do pushups." Sakura said as Ino nodded sadly. "I wish I could help him out, but I don't have the skill to do that."
"Then get stronger Sakura. So that you can help Lee, Sasuke, me, and everyone you hold precious. Get strong enough so that the pain of being helpless never comes over you again. You too Ino….maybe we could all have a friendly spar to see how far along we are after the finals." Naruto said while looking directly at the two girls in the shop.
They both smiled at Naruto and nodded in acceptance. Mopping around wouldn't do anyone any good. It was time to get up and work hard for their friends.
"Arigatou Naruto. Train hard with Jiraiya-sama." both girls said.
Naruto grinned back and waved before he dispersed in a cloud of smoke.
"When did Naruto get so wise?" Ino asked Sakura. Her previous smile never leaving her face as she stared at the spot Naruto was in last.
"My guess would be….he has always been like that." Sakura said as she also continued to smile.
Nara Compound.
"Training with a sannin? I was going to offer to train you and Shika for the upcoming exams since I don't have any missions until then. Well, I guess being a Sannin's apprentice is a once in a lifetime experience." Shikaku said as he moved a piece on a shougi board.
"Hai, Shikaku-tooji." Naruto replied as he moved a piece of his own.
"I don't blame you for wanting to train with Jiraiya-sama as well. You are indeed fighting a very troublesome opponent." Shikamaru added from his position against a tree. He was currently staring up at the clouds as his father and Naruto played shougi.
"Hai, and I will defeat him no matter what." Naruto said heatedly, remembering what Neji had done to Hinata.
"Don't get to heated up during your fight. Fights are usually won by the person who can think the clearest." Shikaku said as he moved another piece on the board. "Checkmate."
"Kuso." Naruto murmured under his breath. "Hai, Shikaku-tooji."
"Here are a bunch of techniques I am going to teach Shikamaru." Shikaku said as he tossed Naruto a scroll that was deftly caught. "With your current ability in kage jutsu, you should have little problems while learning those."
"Arigatou." Naruto replied as he put the scroll in his pouch. Standing up, Naruto started walking away.
"Ja ne. See you in a month." Naruto said. His uncle and cousin merely smiled at him as they watched him leave.
"Ah Shika. It's time we started with your training. Your going to have to work twice as hard while taking care of the deer too, now that Naruto is away." Shikaku said.
"Tch. Troublesome." was the reply.
House by the east wall.
Jiraiya was perched on a tree watching the beautiful women who usually took baths at the river close by when he heard the sound of footsteps close by. Turning around, he saw Naruto carrying a backpack and all the necessities necessary for a mission.
Putting away his telescope, Jiraiya turned and started walking deeper into the forest. Many things went through the minds of both men, but only one thing was prevalent. This was going to be a very interesting one month.
Next Time: Chuunin exam finals.
Jutsu List.
Ninpou: Kowagaseru no genjutsu. (Ninja art: Illusion of fear.)
An original technique from me.
Users: Sharingan users, Sakura and Kurenai. Mainly Sakura though.
A genjutsu-ninjutsu hybrid that requires physical contact for non-sharingan users. It causes the opponent to see his/her worst fear. Will cause opponent to lose consciousness after a while.
Fuuton: Migite no Kami. (Wind element: Right hand of god.)
Another Original Technique from me.
Users: Naruto only (for now)
Wind based attack that looks a lot like the buddha's palm from Kung fu Hustle.(the last attack of Kung fu Hustle.) Without the going up into the sky thing.
Inu- Dog.
Saru- Monkey.
Gama-Hebi-Katatsu--Toad-Snake-Slug.
Kuchiyose- Summon.
I believe those were all the new jutsu from this chapter. if you need further reference for something, it is probably in the previous chapters.
Again, Sorry for the delay.
Review please...
Ja ne,
the 6th fire shadow.