Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or anything associated with it.
I do own this particular fan fiction.
Sorry to all those that reviewed and didn't get replies. I have been busy with school and have had little time to do all else. I had written three quarters of this chapter over Christmas, so that shows you how much time I have had.
Thanks for being patient with me.
Enjoy the next installment of leaf Warriors.
'Normal Thoughts'
'KYUUBI THOUGHTS'
'summons thoughts'
"KYUUBI SPEAKS"
"Normal People Speak"
"Summons Speak"
Chuunin Exam finals.
As the sunlight seeped in over the horizon, many people began their daily lives. This was basically a daily routine, but today the people of Konohagakure woke up with urgency guiding their every step. It was barely sunrise and the merchants and residents of Konoha were already opening their stalls and selling their wares to the visitors that had come from far and wide to watch this occasional event.
The chuunin exam finals.
This year was truly something special. It boasted talent like the last loyal Uchiha, three of the Kazekage's children, the Hyuuga prodigy, and the Aburame prodigy.
Prospective customers of the shinobi villages had come to watch and see who would lead the next generation. This was essentially crunch time for the various villages and only the best participant would come out victorious. Guaranteed.
'Poor souls. They will not get to see another day. Fitting that such a big event would be their downfall.' Kabuto thought as he watched everyone on the relatively crowded streets. 'Children fighting children for village supremacy should be a sin of its own.'
Kabuto smiled serenely as he thought of the power his new village would have and the fact that he wouldn't have to constantly be cautious around people. After today, his life would be one step closer to his ultimate goal. Helping Orochimaru complete his ultimate goal.
'Ah, I have wasted quite a bit of time here. I have to go on and continue making preparations for the festivities. This will be an interesting day.'
In a swirl of leaves, he was gone.
House beside the east wall.
The clearing and house were untouched. It seemed no one had lived there or been there in a while. A few bugs flew in and out of the house and the occasional squirrel would run across the clearing looking for food.
Then two regular sized toads jumped into the clearing. Anyone watching would have passed it off as an everyday occurrence, until human limbs started appearing from the mouth of the toads.
Limbs led the way to the torso, which led the way to more limbs before a whole body had come out of each toad. Both men stood to full height and dusted off the dust and residue from their clothes.
The shorter of the two had blonde hair and whisker marks on his face. He was wearing a black short sleeved shirt over an orange long sleeved shirt. He wore standard black shinobi pants and shoes. On the uncovered space between his hands and feet, he had black bandages covering himself. His face was set in a scowl, showing his obvious distaste for something.
"I don't know why you didn't let me come back to get my dai-katana Ero-sannin. I would be that much better during the finals if I had them." Naruto complained to the man beside him.
The man who had a long white mane with red strips coming down his face, and a red black and white gi frowned at Naruto's words. "If I let you go, we wouldn't have finished your training. And don't call me that, gaki." Jiraiya said as he took a swipe at Naruto's head.
Naruto barely moved, but moved just enough to get out of range of the hit.
"Tch, if you are so concerned with my training, why don't you just give me a concrete strategy to defeat that Hyuuga." Naruto said while stretching.
"Because you wouldn't learn anything if you defeat him immediately. I won't always be there to tell you your opponents secrets. You have to learn to be flexible and adjust to the situation." Jiraiya said as he started walking away.
Naruto grunted in anger before looking up at the sun. "Ano Jiraiya-sensei."
Jiraiya looked quizzically at Naruto. "What brat? You only use that name when you are being serious."
"What time would you say it is?"
"9.40 a.m. Maybe later. Why?" Jiraiya asked as he looked towards the position of the sun. Looking back at the position Naruto previously occupied, he was surprised to see no one there.
"See you later Ero-sannin. Make sure you come watch me kick the Hyuuga's behind." Naruto shouted as he bounded from tree to tree towards the stadium. "The final matches start in roughly 20 minutes."
Jiraiya smirked before continuing his leisurely stroll towards the center of the town. After all, that was where he would be needed most.
'When the time comes to protect this village Naruto. Hold nothing back.' Jiraiya thought as he remembered Naruto's growth in the one month.'Show them Konoha's spirit of fire.'
Stadium.
Murmurs went through the stadium at the conspicuous lack of three of the participants, especially the golden boy Uchiha. Three quarters of the people would have skipped this chuunin exam if not for their love for their last loyal Uchiha. The other quarter who were mainly the shinobi populace sighed at the ignorance of the other members of the audience. Even if the Uchiha was the weakest person of his year, these people would have come out to cheer him on, just because of his family name. Talk about living in the darkness of your own family's shadow.
On the floor of the arena, seven figures stood. The most amazing thing about these individuals, was the varying emotions that they emitted. There was excitement, boredom, stoicism, confidence, blood lust and arrogance. What was most shocking, was that there was no fear being shown.
"Raise your heads and smile. Everyone is here to watch you perform." Shiranui Genma said as he looked at all the gennin in front of him.'They certainly are an interesting bunch.'
"Where is Hayate-san?" Shikamaru asked knowing no one else would ask the question.
"Ah, he is on a mission outside the village right now. He will not be able to make it here today. Also, there has also been an alteration in the fights. Nara Shikamaru will now be fighting Sabaku no Temari due to the mysterious disappearance of Dosu Kinuta." Genma said while chewing on his senbon.
"Weakling. He probably ran away with his tail between his legs." Kankuro commented offhandedly. Temari shook her head at that insinuation. After all, she had watched the arrogant sound-nin meet his demise from a safe distance.
"Seems like he was not the only one. Big mouth and the Uchiha seem to be too afraid to show up." Neji added with his arms folded and looking at his uncle in the stands with all the hatred he could muster. Hiashi's calm demeanor only served to further infuriate Neji.
"Heh, Nothing can make me miss wiping your smug face on the floor." Naruto said from behind Neji. Neji reflexively jumped forward while turning to face Naruto in a defensive stance. Naruto merely raised his hands in a placating gesture before pointing towards the referee. "He hasn't said begin yet."
"Flashy as usual, eh Naruto?" a voice said from behind them.
Everyone turned at the awed sounds from the audience. Naruto grinned as he looked at his best friend. "It wouldn't be me if I didn't do it."
Sasuke walked up to the other contestants and Kakashi gave a quick nod to Genma before he shunshin'd to the stands where he decided to watch the match with Sakura, Ino, Gai and Lee.
"Well, since everyone is now accounted for, let us begin." Genma began as he looked towards the Hokage in the kage box.
The Hokage stood up and gave a short speech. When he was done, all the gennin who were not fighting went up to the stands to watch the first match.
"The first match of the final round of the chuunin exams: Uzumaki Naruto Vs. Hyuuga Neji. Hajime." Genma said as he jumped back to give the fighters room.
Naruto and Neji stared at each other for a long while, before Neji decided to break the silence.
"You would like to say something, wouldn't you?" Neji said, as more of a statement than a question.
"Yes, I would. For what you did to Hinata, I will repay the favor tenfold." Naruto said as calmly as he could manage.
"I see. Birds of a feather, flock together. From your body language, I can tell you are ready to fight and nothing will dissuade you from this path. It doesn't hurt me to throw this option out there though. You cannot defeat me. Quit now or I will humiliate you." Neji said as he got into a fighting stance and automatically activated his Byakugan.
"Heh, I would rather die a gruesome death, than give up this fight. My dream is to be the greatest Hokage ever. Quitting goes against everything I stand for. Especially when I made a promise to defeat you. Kage bunshin no jutsu." Naruto said as he formed the seals and three clones popped into existence beside him. Without wasting any time, the clones ran towards Neji with kunai drawn.
"Don't attack him head on, Naruto." Naruto heard Sakura shout from the stands.
'Baka. Does she really think I am charging in blindly?' Naruto thought as he tried to focus on his fight. Watching as his clones were quickly dispatched, Naruto looked for openings in Neji's guard. 'He doesn't leave much room for me to attack, and he can see behind him. He definitely has a blind spot, but it's small enough to be negligible in this fight. I am not a long range fighter, so I can't capitalize on such a weakness. His problem is his arrogance. He probably failed to do any concrete research on me because of the fact that I was a dead-last and shouldn't pose any problems. Well, his loss. I know enough about the Hyuuga to write a scroll on their style. My problem now is finding out how much Neji knows in jyuuken without getting hurt and using up too much chakra.'
Forming more seals, Naruto created more shadow clones. Some charged forwards while some stayed backwards and attacked with kunai and shuriken. Naruto had climbed up onto the wall of the arena so as to watch everything that was going on. Neji was truly a prodigy with the ease he was flowing around Naruto's clones. Naruto was analyzing all his clones moves as their memories came back to him and he was awed by Neji's skill. Not that he would ever say it out.
Neji on the other hand was getting frustrated. Naruto was playing it safe and sending clones to do his dirty work. This wasn't the mindset of someone who was bent on revenge. They usually wanted to fight hand-to-hand and deal the finishing blow swiftly, but Naruto was patiently waiting for an opening. The worst part was that Naruto's clones kept getting better during the fight. It was almost as if they were memorizing his attack patterns and were forming counter measures to them. Which was why he was in this position now.
In the air.
Above the five remaining clones on the ground, who had attacked in sync to get him up there. Neji saw the real Naruto's eyes widen in understanding and withdraw three kunai before he threw them at the air-borne Neji.
"Useless." Neji said as he positioned his body so that he could grab all the incoming projectiles. Neji's eye's widened as Naruto performed another set of seals which made the thrown kunai multiply by 10. 'Kuso, there's no way I can dodge normally against those. I have to use it.'
"Hakkeshō Kaiten."
The Naruto's below were shocked at the sudden turn of events and were hard pressed to dodge the deflected projectiles and Neji's spinning dome of doom. Only two Naruto's came out unscathed, but were helpless as they watched Neji run towards the Naruto on the wall.
Naruto added more chakra to his feet and pushed off the wall, so as to fly parallel to the ground. Neji who had just arrived at Naruto's former location disappeared as soon as he got there. Naruto's eyes widened at the implications.
"Impossible. He knows the Kage Buyo?" Naruto said as he barely managed to look behind him.
Neji smirked at Naruto's knowledge of the technique. "Knowing the name of the technique cannot prepare you for what is to come."
Naruto's eyes widened as Neji's open palm infused with lethal chakra hit several points on his back. The last hit sent him rocketing down to the ground, and the resulting dust from the ground obscured all the Naruto's from Neji's view.
Neji landed gracefully next to the border of the dust cloud and immediately got down to one knee and put his hands into a seal that made all the Nara's present grin.
"Kagemane no jutsu. Success." Naruto's voice said from within the smoke. As the smoke settled, everyone saw two Naruto's within the smoke and a small crater that looked like Naruto's outline.
"I see. So you put a bunshin on the wall and fought with your bunshin and acted as a commander with adaptable troops, knowing that I would go after the bunshin that hung back. I may have underestimated you, but as soon as I get out of this jutsu, I will finish you off for sure."
"Ah, you forget it's two against one and I have you in a binding jutsu. Last I checked, there were only two ways to break out of this. I doubt you possess any of those." Naruto said, but inside he was praying. 'I hope he doesn't have that technique, or I will have to reveal some of my newer techniques before my fight with Sasuke.'
Neji's smile unnerved Naruto. "Kaimon: Kai."
"Kuso" Naruto said as he stood up to full height and barely managed to block the punch that came flying towards his face. Skidding back a few feet, Naruto noticed the dangerous look in Neji's eyes as Naruto's last clone was taken out. 'So he has something else up his sleeve. He is not going to fight me in that state. He wants to finish me off for good.'
Naruto's guess was right as Neji powered down from his celestial gate form. "Your eyes betray your fear. Good, because I don't have time to explain my next move to you. Against this technique, escape is impossible. Hakke Rokujūyon Shō."
A ying-yang sign appeared under Neji and Naruto, and Naruto was unable to move while Neji advanced.
"Two palms."
"Four palms."
"Eight palms."
"Sixteen palms."
"Thirty two palms."
"Sixty four palms."
Neji completed as Naruto was ruthlessly hit on various parts of his skin. A few seconds of suspense, and Naruto's body finally landed on the ground. With a muffled cry, Naruto spat out blood. Neji smirked as he de-activated his byakugan and turned around to go to the waiting area for the next match.
"Examiner, he won't be getting up again." Neji said.
'How does he know that technique.' were the thoughts of most of the Hyuuga present. 'He is truly a prodigy of our clan. That Uzumaki showed great potential, but he was no match for a true genius.'
"Teme. Don't turn your back to me." Naruto said as he stumbled to his feet. "After what you did to Hinata, I will never let you win."
"Big words coming from a loser who thinks anyone can become Hokage." Neji said. He smirked when he noticed Naruto's eyes narrow. "Only a few who are chosen from the moment they are born can become Hokage, and fortunately, trash like you is incapable of becoming Hokage."
Naruto was seething inside, but knew that he couldn't attack in his current condition. Neji still had his guard up and would easily notice any attack pattern. "I don't care about what you say, I will become Hokage no matter what. Nothing can stop me. If I am trash though, you are the ground that trash walks upon. Hinata is a great person that doesn't deserve your hatred. I will not lose to someone who is beneath me."
"Foolish words, foolish person. I guess they go hand in hand. I guess I should tell you the reason I treat your precious Hinata-sama that way. The reason for hatred between the Hyuuga families."
Now Neji had Naruto's attention.
"My father and Hinata's father were twin brothers born of the main family. They basically equaled each other in fighting skill and intellect, but because my father was born mere minutes after Hiashi-sama, he was branded with the cage bird seal and forced to live a life of servitude to his own twin brother."
Naruto was shocked, but managed to stutter out a few words. "Caged bir-bird seal?"
"Hai. A seal used to control the members of the branch house and keep us in line." Neji said as he removed his hitaite and undid the bandages under them revealing a complex seal. "That is not the only purpose of the caged bird seal. When a branch family Hyuuga falls in battle, his or her eyes will revert back to the normal kind possessed by non-Hyuuga."
Naruto didn't like where this was going but kept his mouth shut and allowed Neji continue.
"One day a few years back, a representative from Kumogakure no sato came to make a peace treaty with the leaf. All the clans of Konoha attended the festival, except one. The Hyuuga refused to take part in that celebration, because it was the birthday of the heir to the main house. Hinata-sama's birthday. It was also that night, that the kumo representative tried to kidnap Hinata-sama, but he was caught and killed by Hiashi-sama. Kumo was devastated and refused to listen to Konoha's plea of innocence in the matter. They called for Hiashi-sama's head or Konoha would probably face another war against Kumo." Neji said. Naruto's eyes already held a certain level of understanding in them. "As you know, there was no war. The cloud got a body that was exactly identical to Hiashi-sama's body, but with no Byakugan. As we all know, Hiashi-sama lives on….and I was left fatherless." Neji finished as he tied his hitaite back onto his head.
Naruto who was still exhausted from Neji's previous technique, fell unto his knees.
"You do not understand the type of pain that I have gone through to get here." Neji said as he looked towards Naruto.
"Gomen about your father, but that gives you no right to hate Hinata-sama." Naruto said as he struggled to his feet again and put his hands back into a chakra gathering seal. "And you are wrong, I know more about pain than most people will ever get to know."
Before Naruto could even gather his thoughts and pull out the chakra needed, he felt an open palm hit his chest. Right above his heart. If the medics didn't get there soon, he would surely die. At that moment, pain was all Naruto knew, and all he felt.
Many in the stands showed sympathy for Naruto as his screams reached their ears and fearful faces were all that marred some of the rookie nine. Naruto may be strong, but there was only so much one could take without succumbing to death. That last hit was just lethal enough to seal the deal.
"You cannot know my pain and still smile the way you do. You don't know what it means to live with a seal that can never be removed. Your ignorance made you weak, and your weakness would have cost you your life." Neji said as he looked towards the referee. Neji noted the referee's narrowed eyes and smirked inwardly. "Don't worry examiner. He isn't dead, but he probably won't be able to spout nonsense about becoming Hokage….because as I said, that dream is impossible for someone like him."
"K-kuso. I wasn't meant to lose to a teme like you. Gomen Naruto-sama." Naruto said, drawing several raised eyebrows all around the arena. "Guh, too many people have told us what is and not possible in his life. No matter how many boundaries stand in our way….. Uzumaki Naruto will become Hokage."
Poof.
All eyes widened to impossible sizes at the implication of one of the fighters being a clone. All Hyuuga's present had their byakugan's activated as fast as they could manage, searching for Naruto. All heads followed when Hiashi raised his head to the top of the stadium.
"Yare yare, that byakugan is really annoying. Can't even hide successfully when a Hyuuga is looking for you." Naruto said, mostly to himself. 'Well, there goes my chance of using only a hundredth of my chakra. It doesn't matter anymore anyway. This Hyuuga just jumped higher in my list of people to beat to a pulp.'
Naruto frowned when he saw the anger on Neji's face. He could literally feel Neji's eyes boring a hole into every part of him. Sighing, Naruto merely free fell backwards into his shadow. Neji who was feeling very insecure at that moment jumped high into the air to avoid any surprise attacks from Naruto. Sadly, Naruto appeared from under the shadow of the tree in the center of the arena.
Without even thinking, Naruto threw a shuriken at the airborne Neji who swirled to catch the projectile. Seeing Naruto's hands seals, he gathered chakra for his Kaiten.
"Shuriken Kage Bunshin no jutsu."
"Hakkeshō Kaiten."
Naruto performed a kawarimi with a rock to avoid the few shuriken that came back towards him. Neji landed and stared at the bored looking Naruto in front of him.
"I wonder how long you can keep up such chakra consuming moves." Naruto said.
"…." Neji had no reply for that one.
"Shinobi code states that one should not let his emotions control him. Here and now, I will disobey that rule. For what you did to Hinata." Naruto said as orange seals started to glow on his bandages. "For what you did to my bunshin." Naruto continued as his bandages were glowing brighter in intensity. "For what you intended to do to my dream. For all the people out there who were not born prodigies. For the people who work hard and take life's challenges in stride. Your father's death is truly a sad thing, but that doesn't give you any right to be a jerk about it."
Before Neji's superior eyes, Naruto disappeared and reappeared under him faster than Neji could even shift his weight. Naruto's kick to Neji's chin was enough to shatter a few of Neji's teeth even though he reinforced them with chakra. This also had the effect of making Neji woozy and without his byakugan.
In the stands, Lee and Gai were even more surprised than they were when they learnt that Naruto knew Goken from when Sakura visited Lee in the hospital. His speed was phenomenal and it didn't even seem like he had opened any of the gates yet.
Lee and Gai smiled. Uzumaki Naruto was strong for all the right reasons.
Neji didn't quite share their opinion. He was trying to focus his thoughts and gather enough chakra to prevent whatever follow-up technique Naruto was going to use.
'He may try to use the renge, or he may try to perform that jutsu that he used on that sound guy in the preliminaries. No, I doubt that. Unlike there, this area is not as enclosed, as that and may result in damage to the audience, or very little damage to me. Plus, the kaiten should be strong enough to keep me out of harms way. It will be hard though, because I have used it too many times already.' Neji thought while preparing to disable Naruto once he came in for the Ura renge with his Kage buyo. Activating his byakugan again, Neji saw a shimmer behind him. 'There.'
Just as Naruto came up behind him with the Kage Buyo, Neji moved his hand to hit a vital organ in Naruto's body. As soon as he hit, Naruto grimaced and exploded into a cloud of smoke.
'Kage bunshin again? Doesn't he ever run out of chakra?' Neji pondered in anger.
His internal dialog nearly cost him as more Naruto's appeared in front, above and below him. Neji dealt with all of them swiftly and precisely, and less than a second later all that remained were clouds of smoke surrounding Neji.
'It's now or never.' Naruto thought as he bit his thumb and started forming seals. 'Against someone as good as Hyuuga Neji, this technique will only work once, no matter how fast it is. But one chance is all I need.'
"Kuchiyose: Gama shita no jutsu." Naruto whispered as he slammed his right hand unto the ground, and seals appeared. Almost every leaf shinobi old enough to have witnessed the Kyuubi's onslaught straightened and prepared for anything. They were all further worried when Naruto almost looked like he wanted to throw up. Then everyone was surprised when he turned in Neji's direction with eye's that promised doom for all other parties concerned.
"Ninpou: Gama Baindo." Naruto said as he put his hands into the appropriate seal. With unimaginable speed, a tongue with no limits of extension shot towards Neji and hooked around his leg. Neji who was shocked by the sudden appearance of the longest tongue he had ever seen was pulled back to reality when his upward momentum was forcefully cut short by the taut tongue.
Then with a ferocity unknown to many present in the arena at that time, Neji was pulled back to the earth surface fast, and his connection with the earth was hard. Very hard.
Boom.
Everyone grimaced as the sound reached their ears. They watched as Naruto calmly retracted his tongue from within the dust cloud and stood in a ready stance. Most were confused to his actions. Most didn't think it was possible for Neji to survive something like that. Including most of the more experienced shinobi.
'The people of Konoha have really underestimated this Uzumaki boy. To be able to use Kage jutsu of that level, perform the Goken without opening any of the gates, and use a summoning technique on his own body. If not for my abilities in lip reading, I may not have even known that it was a Gama Shita. So Jiraiya-sensei helped him with his training. Understandable. Many will not even know which summoning contract the boy has. Many animals have the ability to extend their tongues, and Uzumaki was wise enough to whisper the name of his jutsu. Still, for someone of my level to not understand how he got so fast without opening the gates….simply incredible.' Hiashi thought as he appraised Naruto. 'This will be a humiliating but humbling defeat for Neji, but if he can get through this and learn from his mistakes. He will surpass even me someday. Hizashi…maybe today is the day to tell him. Forgive me brother, for I have truly been a bad father to your son. Hopefully, I can change that today if he gives me the chance.'
The dust settled and everyone noticed Neji buried in the ground of the arena. Everyone watched in awe as Naruto relaxed and regained his bored demeanor. He then created another clone who walked up to Neji and pulled him out of the ground without much effort. Setting him down, everyone was shocked to see Neji's eyes still open, even though they held a blank, faraway look. Naruto walked up to him and sat on the floor next to him.
"Hinata-chan was the only person to ever look at me without judging me; without the cold eyes; without the disgusted looks. I am sorry about your father, but taking it out on Hinata is not the way to settle your differences with the main family. She is an innocent in all this and she would never want to hurt you." Naruto said as he looked towards the sky as well. "She is one of my precious people, you know. One of the people who saved me from the darkness that would have consumed my heart. She is the reason for my strength. The reason I want to become Hokage….. That seal on your head. You said I don't know what it feels like to have a seal that you despise. Not knowing what direction your life is going in because of it. I know so well, that it hurts." Naruto said as he lifted his shirt and applied chakra to his stomach. "But I refuse to let some stupid seal control my life. I am the maker of my own destiny and no one else. Every obstacle destiny throws at me, I will grow stronger and overcome it. I will never give up, because that is my nindo."
Neji was shocked at the revelation and it showed as his eyes refocused to look at the seal. 'Such a complex seal. From my little study of sealing, I can tell that it holds something in. That thing has to be really strong though for such a complex seal to be used.' "Your seal, What does it do?"
"Maybe one day I will tell you. When we become nakama, if at all." Naruto said as he stood up to meet the examiner.
"Shousa, Uzumaki Naruto." Genma said as he looked at Naruto. The stadium erupted in cheers not a second later. It seemed people would get over their hatred if only to see a good fight.
Naruto gave a sheepish smile towards the audience and was just about to walk away when a voice stopped.
"Uzumaki Naruto." Neji said from his position on the floor. Seeing Naruto turn to face him, Neji continued. "Arigatou. You have put a few things into perspective for me."
An outstretched hand. Naruto looked like he was unsure of how to react to that, but a smile soon replaced the indecision, and he grasped Neji's hand. The medics then came and started attending to Neji. They gave Naruto a quick one-over, but realized that he didn't have a single injury on him. Soon, the arena floor was cleared away and many people were reeling from the battle they had just witnessed.
As Neji was being carried away, Genma added his own few words of advice. "Naruto-san is right you know. The caged bird will always try to pry open it's cage door, so that someday, it may fly free."
'Is that so?' Neji thought to himself as he saw many birds in the sky above him. 'I see many free birds in the sky today….tousan. Maybe I can join them someday.'
Elsewhere, many people were talking about the fights as they waited for the next participants to step into the arena.
"Uzumaki Naruto should definitely make chuunin. For being the underdog of this fight, he won without a scratch. He showed strategic ability, the ability to adapt mid-fight, patience, and he has some amazing jutsu." Izumo said in amazement.
"You overlooked one thing." Kotetsu chimed in with a smile. "Even after all that, he shows no signs of fatigue. His stamina is amazing and he has a power up that doesn't even affect him. Let's not forget he has sealing knowledge, if the seals on his bandages are any indication. Haha, we have to start working harder Izumo. That boy has the opportunity to become a special Jounin not even a year after becoming a gennin. He would also be our superior officer."
Both looked at themselves and shared another laugh, before getting very serious.
"Training starting at 5 a.m. each morning?"
"I was thinking four, but five seems fine."
The members of the rookie nine who were sitting next to them sweat dropped at the display.
"Hokage-dono." the Kazekage said.
"Hai, Kazekage-dono." the Hokage replied.
"After such an exciting match, maybe we should push the next match to the end. After all, my son versus the last Uchiha is sure to be a bigger fight." the Kazekage said. "Let the people calm down a bit before they get more amazing action."
"Ah, that sounds like a good idea." Sarutobi thought while keeping his guard up. Nodding toward his Jounin guard, the Jounin disappeared.'What are you planning Orochimaru.'
Genma twirled his senbon in frustration. The audience were just as frustrated as him at the Kazekage's request. Well, an order was an order.
"Sabaku no Kankuro Vs. Aburame Shino.
'Gah, I'm not ready to show Karasu's tricks yet. I am going to need them for the invasion. Kuso, what is father doing?' Kankuro thought before voicing his conclusion. "I forfeit."
Many were shocked at the pronouncement, some were happy that the Uchiha's match was that much closer again, and one was downright furious. Shino was brimming with anger at not having the chance to showcase his skills and fight someone he considered a worthy opponent. His calm demeanor didn't give anything away though. He could take it out on his next opponent.
"Shousa, Aburame Shino." Genma said with more of his annoyance creeping into his voice. "Next match: Sabaku no Temari Vs. Nara Shikamaru. Get down here."
Temari replied in kind by jumping off the ledge and using her fan to glide down. Shikamaru just stayed where he was next to Naruto and sighed.
"I didn't sign up for this when I became a shinobi. All I wanted was to make an honest living, meet my to-be wife, get married and have two children, one boy and one girl, retire once the girl gets married and the boy gets a job and live a happy life watching the clouds….but no, I have to fight troublesome women wherever I go." Shikamaru said ignoring the veins growing on several foreheads within the arena. "Tch, women are so troublesome."
"Ah, it can't be that bad Shika." Naruto said as he patted Shikamaru's back. The action sent Shikamaru over the railing, and onto his back on the arena floor. "Ah, gomen Shika. Sometimes I don't know my own strength"
"Such a troublesome guy. Can't believe we are actually cousins." Shikamaru whispered from his position on the ground, and looking at the clouds. "Anyway examiner, I was just about to qui…"
Shikamaru began but was forced to dodge the gust of wind that came at him.
"After all you said just now, I will never allow you quit." Temari said with righteous anger in her eyes.
"Tch, troublesome." Shikamaru said as he prepared to fight Temari. "But no matter how troublesome, I cannot lose to a girl."
And so it began.
A few minutes later, Shikamaru gave up after impressing the judges and trapping Temari. Naruto and Sasuke jumped the railing to meet him. Though Naruto came to berate him, and Sasuke came because he was excited about his fight and couldn't stay up there any longer. Gaara had opted for the longer route and was walking down the stairs.
Izumo and Kotetsu had analysed Shikamaru's fight as well, and had resolved that he was well worth the chuunin rank. They were less impressed at the end of the fight, than they were at the end of Naruto's fight.
Naruto nodded to Sasuke, sending the unsaid message across to his best friend. 'Don't lose. I want to fight you.'
Shikamaru merely sighed and started walking away. Naruto was soon right next to him and talking about how Shikamaru should train harder and increase his chakra reserves. After getting to the top of the stairs, they met Gaara who had just killed off two shinobi without any remorse. Both boys could smell the blood that filled the hall and it made them nauseous. That wasn't the only problem. Gaara still seemed to want more blood, because he turned to Naruto and smiled crazily while stalking towards them.
"Mother wants your blood Uzumaki Naruto. Those two back there had horrible tasting blood. Hopefully, Uchiha Sasuke's blood will be much better. After Uchiha Sasuke, mother will feed on your blood next." Gaara said as he walked by a trembling Shikamaru and a stone faced Naruto. No one said a word after that, and Shikamaru collapsed to his knees after Gaara's chakra pressure lifted from the halls.
Looking up at Naruto, Shikamaru noticed the faraway look in his eyes. "How can you space out at such an important time Naruto?"
"His chakra…" Naruto started as he looked towards Shikamaru with a smile slowly forming on his face. "It felt familiar. No matter who wins this match, it's for sure that I will be facing the most dangerous opponent in the chuunin exams next round."
"Troublesome. Your best friend could die out there, and all you can think about is the next fight." Shikamaru thought while climbing back to his feet and regaining his own bored demeanor.
Naruto's frown drew on Shikamaru's curiosity though. "What? Did you just realize something?" Shika asked.
"I don't think Gaara will be able to kill Sasuke." Naruto said. Shikamaru raised an eyebrow to that proclamation. "I mean, apart from the fact that Sasuke is strong, he is also Konoha's golden boy. In front of so many Konoha gennin, chuunin, and jounin, not to mention the Hokage; I don't think he will get far enough to deliver the finishing blow."
Shikamaru thought about it for a second before he realized Naruto had a valid point. 'Neither Sasuke nor Gaara can kill each other in this match. Knocking the other opponent out or a few months in the hospital is the most damage either can inflict on the other. But seeing that Gaara guy take out two high level shinobi so easily makes one wonder whether he is not crazy enough to just kill Sasuke. Well, we will act when the time comes for action. Sasuke is such a troublesome person as well. He wouldn't give up so easily.' Shikamaru thought as he and Naruto continued their walk back to the contestant box.
Shikamaru and Naruto finally made their way back to the participant waiting area, and Gaara finally made it to the arena floor. The match everyone had come to see was finally going to start.
"I will feed your blood to mother." Gaara said in a deranged voice. Sasuke's reply was a non-committal grunt to indicate that he had heard but didn't really care.
"Next match: Uchiha Sasuke Vs. Sabaku no Gaara." Genma said as he jumped backwards to make room for the two.
There were no pleasantries involved as Gaara's sand raced towards Sasuke. Sasuke made the slightest move to escape, but moved with such speed and agility that it left Gaara's sand at least 3 seconds behind.
Running from his spot, Sasuke got to Gaara and tested his defense with several punches and kicks. Gaara's sand reacted fast enough to protect him every time, until Sasuke decided that the warm-up was over.
'As noted from the preliminary rounds, his sand reacts without him being consciously aware of it. He just stands and puts on a crazy face as his sand does all the work. Well, I may have learnt quite a lot from Kakashi in the past month, but I would prefer to save that until I am truly in need of it.'
Activating his sharingan, Sasuke glared at Gaara as well. "Enough of these games. Allow me to show you the difference in our power, Sabaku no Gaara." Sasuke said as he pulled out his katana.
"Mother will definitely have your blood." Gaara said as his sand gathered in front of his feet. "Suna bunshin." A replica of Gaara formed and took a basic taijutsu stance.
Before the bunshin could even take a step forwards, its head had been loped off and it was already loosing form and falling back to Gaara who was in danger. Most people were surprised to see Sasuke within Gaara's guard delivering swift swords strikes to important joints. Gaara's sense of self-preservation kicked in as he removed himself from his relaxed position by jumping backwards.
Sasuke didn't press his advantage, but merely waited for Gaara to recover from the shock.
"You. You are just as fast as that green guy" Gaara said, as his suna no yoroi was replaced by the sand that came back to him. "You caught me off guard, and now mother wants your blood even more."
Sasuke merely looked at Gaara and smirked. "You underestimate me yet again, Sabaku no Gaara. That attack was just to get to know how deep I needed to cut to reach your skin. Now, I know. The perfect balance between the weight of the sand you can carry without being burdened, and the ideal amount needed for protection."
Gaara merely cackled insanely at Sasuke as his gourd turned into sand as well. All the sand then started to form a sphere around Gaara.
"What is he doing? He won't be able to fight from within that cocoon and he would be a sitting duck for me." Sasuke said to himself. "Well, it seems my interest in your fighting capabilities has expired Sabaku no Gaara. You disappoint me."
Sasuke ran full speed at the slowly closing cocoon and failed to notice the eye that was watching him from a safe location. Upon getting to the cocoon, Sasuke slashed at it, and dodged the spikes that extended with the intent of maiming him.
Noticing the futility of his cause, Sasuke wondered. 'My katana is not working and I don't want to use that technique just yet. Let's try some Katon jutsu then.'
Forming seals rapidly, Sasuke jumped high into the air, so that his opponent would feel the full effects of the jutsu without the audience being affected.
"Katon: Karyū Endan"
A long stream of fire exited Sasuke's mouth and formed the head of a dragon. It roared loudly, before slamming into Gaara's suna no tate. Sasuke landed and frowned. There was no scream from Gaara being burned alive, and he could still see the faint trails of chakra flowing through what he could only assume to be the suna no tate. When the smoke cleared, everyone else was shock to see several layers of glass covering the suna no tate. The outer glass shattered to reveal the rest of Gaara's sand untouched.
'Ah, so he has control of all the sand, and not just the one he carries in his gourd.' Sasuke analyzed. 'Then I guess that move is inevitable. After that Karyū Endan, I only have enough chakra for about 2 or 3 of these. Let's hope Naruto didn't get strong enough to make me use this more than once today.' Sasuke thought with a grin at the prospect of fighting his best friend again.
Jumping back onto the stadium wall, Sasuke concentrated while performing the seals for the jutsu. Everyone was surprised as they heard the sound of birds chirping coming from Sasuke's hand. Sasuke set his eyes on the suna no tate in the center of the arena and made a mad dash towards it. Most people could only follow the trail he left behind as his jutsu dug into the floor. Then just as he reached the cocoon Gaara was encased in, he thrust his hand out while avoiding the spikes that came at him.
"Chidori."
He silently thanked kami he had the sharingan. It would have been nigh impossible to dodge those had he not had his eyes.
Slowly, he tried to retract his hand, but something held fast. Something that didn't feel human. Thinking fast, Sasuke reapplied the lightning chakra to his arm with one handed seals. In shock, the arm let him go and he stumbled backwards while looking at the eye that was staring at him from the hole he had created. Then the eye disappeared and the scream came.
The most horrifying screams he had heard since his brother made him rewatch his own parents death. He cringed at the volume and tried to gather himself from the chakra pressure that was fluctuating wildly from inside the suna no tate.
He was so unfocused that he didn't realize anything else was going on until Genma landed beside him.
In the stands, Gai and Kakashi were having a heated glaring match as Uchiha Sasuke performed Kakashi's prized technique. Both turned to see the outcome once the Uchiha reached the Suna no tate. 'It worked, good. Then I don't have to jump in there to save Sasuke after all, if things got out of hand.' Kakashi thought as he ignored Gai's heated glare refocusing on him. Then, it hit them. Feathers started falling from the sky and all the civilians and inexperienced shinobi started falling asleep. Kakashi looked around and was surprised to find a good number of the Konoha gennin canceling the genjutsu. 'They are all better than average. They can be useful in this endeavor. Especially Naruto, Sasuke, Neji, Shino and Shikamaru. So the attack is about to begin. Might as well clear the arena first.'
Kakashi didn't have enough time to formulate a plan, as several enemy shinobi started releasing their Henge's and rushing for him and Gai. Feeling Gai's back against his, Kakashi felt it was prudent to apologize.
"Sorry for ripping on you that you taught Lee how to open the celestial gates. After reflecting upon it, I realized that I probably would have done the same thing, had I been in your position." Kakashi said. "Teaching Sasuke the chidori was to ensure his survival during this match. He is also the only person I can teach it to, and it would be useful when he is ready to take down Itachi."
"Ah, your flames burn brighter and brighter every passing day Kakashi. I accept your apology. Let us dismiss these people who don't burn with the flames of youth." Gai said. When no one responded to his youthful talk, he sighed ruefully. Lee was caught in the genjutsu and though Neji who had just been released by the medics had come back, his flames of youth didn't just burn as bright as Lee's.
Knowing Neji was not one hundred percent again, Gai sought to keep an eye on him and Tenten as they fought back to back as well. Gai couldn't help but notice that Neji had a small smile on his face though. Maybe it was something Uzumaki had said during their fight. Or maybe it had something to do with Hyuuga Hiashi going into Neji's room while he was being healed. Whatever it was, it made Neji fight with a vigor Gai had not seen in the boy before. The most surprising thing was the way he seemed to hover around the stick Hinata like he actually wanted to protect her.
Kakashi was also watching his students. Sakura and Ino were under the meisagakure no jutsu, and disabling unknowing opponents as soon as the came within range. Kakashi idly wondered whether they had gotten over their differences enough to actually teach each other jutsu.
Not too far away, Kakashi watched Naruto and Shikamaru in fascination, while stabbing his own opponent in the head. Naruto was using his Kage Nui to strangle opponents until they lost consciousness, while Shikamaru was using the Kagemane to hold opponents in place as Naruto's clones easily dispatched them. This left their opponents stumped on how to approach the two boys. Shika and Naruto had decided that it wasn't time to discriminate on whether or not to kill. In actuality, it was Naruto doing all the killing. Kakashi felt that Naruto would be able to handle death better than Shikamaru in any case.
Kakashi finally made his last observation. Sasuke stood in the ring staring at the sound Gennin and their sensei, with his sharingan blazing in anger. Genma stood beside him and could face down the other jounin, so Sasuke was in a very good position with Gaara being disabled. The other two gennin didn't compare to Sasuke at all, so Kakashi was confident he could concentrate on his own opponents. The sound people were small fry that were just being used as common fodder in great numbers. Most of them stood no chance against Naruto alone, because he was literally a one man army. Sasuke could handle two stronger level opponents while he intercepted all jounin level and above opponents. As long as Sakura stayed out of sight, she was sure to be fine. Kakashi smiled a bit at his teams capability. It was actually the only leaf gennin team that was complete while fighting.
Team 8 had Hinata unconscious from sickness, and someone must have put Kiba out of commission before the Genjutsu came down. Shino was nowhere to be found, but Kakashi was sure the boy was fine. Aburame's thought out their actions thoroughly before doing anything. Kurenai had left the stadium to help with the evacuation immediately the invasion had started. Maybe Shino had followed her knowing his other two teammates would be protected by the other teams present.
From team 10, Chouji was no expert with genjutsu and probably had little exposure to it, so he was still down. Everyone present also felt that his attacks would be too widespread in such a small enclosed area. They would rather not risk their lives, by waking someone who was not in danger. After all, in a shinobi battle, all it took was one lapse in concentration and your opponent would lob of your head.
Lee was down and out from Gai's team. Even if he was awake, he would have been dead weight because of the injuries he got from Gaara. Kakashi could tell Gai was feeling disappointed because his prized student couldn't be fighting beside his comrades.
The rest of the leaf Gennin weren't even awake. Most of them didn't make it past the second exam, so Kakashi was sure they would have been dead weight as well. No need to have someone awake when they couldn't protect themselves was his philosophy after all.
Then something happened that Kakashi couldn't fathom. A barrier appeared on the top of one of the buildings. What was going on inside there, he could see because of his Sharingan. He knew he wouldn't survive that fight if he was paired against that person. He just prayed everything thing else went their way.
"What is that?" Gai asked Kakashi as he took down a few more opponents with his Goken.
"Some barrier put up around Hokage-sama and Orochimaru." Kakashi said while killing more and more opponents. "The sooner we get done with this, the sooner we can help Hokage-sama. I am currently on 39 kills."
"Ha, you will not defeat me this time, my rival. That was my 40th just now." Gai said as he continued killing their enemies.
Kakashi cursed under his breath as things took a turn for the worst. The sand gennin jumped away without their sensei, in the direction of the forest. Sasuke had followed on Genma's order. From what Kakashi could tell, Gaara wasn't dead which would mean Sasuke was in trouble.
"Naruto, you are going to be the leader of a makeshift team of your peers for a while." Kakashi shouted. "Neji will be second in command if you get involved in a fight and need someone to take over."
"Hai sensei." Naruto said as he stalked closer to Kakashi to hear the details of their mission. He had switched up to using Goken to defeat the enemies that came his way while Shikamaru was supporting him with kage jutsu.
"Shikamaru, Tenten, Ino, and Sakura….you all will go with them. You are to follow Sasuke and help out with the sand gennin. If you come across any resistance on the way, use any force necessary and run if they are too strong. I want all of you to come back safely." Kakashi said with a tone that told everyone he was serious. Biting his finger and doing a few hand seals, Kakashi slammed his hands on the ground. "Kuchiyose no jutsu….. Pakkun." Kakashi said, while looking at he pug he had summoned. The dog gave a slight bow to his summoner and awaited instructions. "I want you to pick up Sasuke's trail and lead Naruto and this group to him. He may need help in the upcoming fight." Kakashi said as he put a piece of cloth down on the floor beside the dog. It sniffed it, then sniffed the air.
"Alright, I am locked onto his scent, let's get going." Pakkun said as he started running.
"Wait." Pakkun, Ino, Sakura and Tenten turned to Naruto, Shikamaru, Neji who had not moved a step. Surprisingly, it was Neji that elaborated. "We cannot leave our other comrades here."
Kakashi was just about to shout at the three people he thought would be the best to lead the team he had just put together, when Naruto spoke. "I have the perfect solution."
Biting his own thumb and running through the same seals Kakashi had just performed, Naruto slammed his hands onto the ground.
"Kuchiyose no jutsu."
A smoke cloud later, a toad the as tall as Kakashi appeared. "Ah. What would you have me do, Naruto-chan."
"Gamakatsu-niisan. I need you to protect my friends." Naruto said as he pointed towards his fallen friends.
"Hai." The toad said as he trotted over to Lee and swallowed him whole. He repeated the process with Kiba, Akamaru, Chouji, and Hinata. The toad then nodded towards Naruto. "Anything else."
"Ah, you might as well come with us since you are also very combat useful." Naruto said. At the toad's nod, everyone jumped out of the hole Gai had made from kicking someone through the wall.
"That boy keeps on surprising even me." Kakashi said to Gai as they continued fighting.
"He will be great someday. He has already shown he has what it takes. Now, how about we get really serious since we don't have to worry about any of our students getting seriously hurt in the near vicinity." Gai said as more enemies appeared.
"I say, get ready to lose to me." Kakashi said as he smiled underneath his mask, and his hands started blurring through seals at an incredible rate.
"I could not have said it better myself." Gai said as stray rocks started levitating around him. "Kakashi, let's explode with the power of youth."
Sasuke was not having a good day. Firstly, his fight was interrupted before he could be declared the winner. He had pulled out two simultaneous Chidori's and no one may have even been watching him.
All because of this invasion. They were invading his home. The place that his family had protected for so many years before Itachi's betrayal. The place that gave him a roof over his head, gave him a means to survive, and gave him friends he could rely on. He would kill anyone who tried to take away anymore precious things from him. It seemed the sand were involved in this invasion, which was why he currently held the sand girl by her throat.
"What is your name?" Sasuke said in the calmest, yet coldest voice he could muster. It was almost like speaking like Itachi. A voice Sasuke had practiced over and over before Itachi killed their family. He made himself more menacing by allowing his Sharingan to spin slowly.
"T-Tem-Temari." Temari managed to stutter out. 'Just what kind of power does this boy possess to be able to defeat me so quickly? It's barely been two minutes since Kankuro took Gaara away, and they definitely wouldn't have been able to go very far in that time. Kuso.'
"I have a few questions for you right now. You should know that I can tell when you are lying, and the cost of giving me false information could very well be your life." Sasuke said. He felt Temari gulp and knew he had gotten his message across. "Who sent you?"
"Orochimaru made a deal with my father the Kazekage."
Sasuke's eye widened but he quickly reigned in his surprise. Nodding, Sasuke continued his little chat. "Where is Orochimaru?"
"He should be in the stadium fighting the Hokage with my father. There was also the thought that one of the other Sannin might be around. Highly unlikely because Orochimaru said he knew where both of them were, and they weren't close to Konoha. But should they show up, my father would handle them because Orochimaru had a score to settle."
Sasuke thought about it and grimaced. With the other Sannin, the Hokage had a good chance of surviving, but without them….no chance at all. Sasuke tightened his fists in anger, thereby causing Temari to wheeze a bit more, and her eyelids started drooping. She was loosing consciousness, but Sasuke didn't relent. "One last thing. What is Gaara?"
" cough You cannot defeat him. cough He holds a true demon…….You are better of turning back now…" Temari said as she slumped forward.
Sasuke's ticking eyebrow would have been comical had anyone seen it. Dropping Temari to the ground, Sasuke turned around and started tree hopping in the direction Kankuro had left Gaara.
"Baka Inari. Why do you always have to get us in these situations? This is not wave country and you cannot become a hero in a village full of heroes." Tazuna said as he carried his grandson over his shoulder. He sighed as Inari continued to thrash around.
"But Naruto-nii and Sasuke-nii might need my help, I can't abandon them now Jiji." Inari yelled into the air.
"Are you speaking of Uchiha Sasuke?" An anonymous voice said from behind the duo. Both Inari and Tazuna froze at the tone of the voice. It didn't sound friendly at all. "Why would Orochimaru-sama's future container need any help from you, brat?"
Tazuna's head turned slowly to see the men that had snuck up on them. His grandson had picked the best time to go out and try to see Naruto after his fight. Unfortunately, they had gotten lost in the inner maze that was inside Konoha's stadium. Then the fighting had started and they had taken every path to avoid getting caught up in it. Tazuna was sure that a lot of people would have died there. The life of a shinobi was very hard indeed if they faced things like this on a regular basis. They had finally found their way outside of the stadium, only to see Uchiha Sasuke bound of the stadium was in pursuit of some of the enemy shinobi. That's when it had all gone down the drain. Inari had figured that wherever Sasuke was, Naruto would surely be close behind or ahead of him. He had run straight into the looming forest.
Thus, the reason why they were lost and now currently surrounded by shinobi that didn't care about status or even humanity. It was unfortunate that no one even knew of their presence in Konoha. They would have surely protected him and Inari. Konoha shinobi were good people and definitely wouldn't let innocents die if they could help it. Dropping Inari unto the floor, Tazuna ruffled his hair affectionately.
"I am sorry Inari, but I need you to run as fast as you can and hide. I cannot allow you die here. You are the next generation and your life is far more important than mine." Tazuna said as he heard the soft sobs of his grandson behind him. He put his eyes down to the ground to steel his resolve and pray one last time in a last ditch effort to save Inari. Maybe these shinobi would respect his sacrifice and leave the boy alone.
"G-grandpa?" Inari managed to choke out. He didn't know what to do. The situation was so useless again. He couldn't help but get the people he loved most in trouble. He broke into a quick run in the opposite direction, tears running down his face. Maybe if Naruto heard his cries, he would come and help. He didn't even have to time to gather his breath and scream before he hit the ground. The tendons in his legs severed from the shuriken that one of the shinobi had thrown with startling accuracy.
"I commend you, old man. To have stopped eight of the ten shuriken I threw at the boy. You may have actually been fun to play with, if you had any real shinobi training." Inari's head whipped back as soon as he heard those words to see his grandfather fall onto the ground face first obviously no match for these shinobi. More tears filled his eyes at the prospect of losing another loved one, until he felt it. A slight tug on his consciousness that he had felt on numerous occasions when Naruto and the other shinobi were training.
Flashback.
"Okay Inari. You want to help us train right?" Naruto asked as all the other people looked down on the boy who had been pestering them all day.
Inari stubbornly nodded in the affirmative.
"Firstly, your mother said we couldn't train you, because she didn't want you getting hurt." Naruto said with a frown that Inari mirrored. "But you can always be the client, and you get to see the kind of moves that we shinobi perform, and it may help you learn them easier in the future."
Inari was skeptical at first, because he knew how boring a clients life could be. He just wanted to play Ninja. Naruto cleared things up though. He would just have to hide somewhere in the forest, and then the three different teams would come to protect him from the other team. There would be a series of jutsu used on him as well, but everyone was to do their best to protect him from harm.
It all started with Inari going to hide in the forest, then team 8, team 7 and team Kiri, would go off in different directions. When a certain alarm went off, all teams were to find Inari and keep him under their protection for the longest amount of time. Kurenai had decided to oversee it because Kakashi and Zabuza had been doing other uncouth things. Kakashi actually stayed close by to make sure Inari really didn't get hurt, while Zabuza was roaming the borders and making sure that hunter-nins were not patrolling the area.
The war to protect the client almost always started with team 8 finding Inari, then team 7 stealing him from them, and then team Kiri stealing him and holding him inside a case of ice for the rest of the day, with both Haku and Tetsu standing guard. There were a few deviances from this, but they were far between.
"What is that technique you used to get me out of the way of that water jutsu, Naruto-niisan?" Inari asked Naruto who was currently sprawled on his back after taking the full effects of Sasuke's misplaced jutsu. It was part of the plan to get Inari away from team Kiri, but it had come at a painful cost. "It's probably the only technique that I have seen everyone perform."
Standing to his feet gingerly and watching as several Sasuke's and clones of himself fought off the competition with Sakura protecting Inari and himself under a genjutsu until Naruto recovered, he replied. "It's called the…."
Flashback ends.
"Kawarimi no jutsu." Inari said with a small smile that raised curious eyebrows from all the remaining shinobi present, who had thrown several more projectiles to kill Inari. The curiosity level was further raised when they all exhaled and realized they could see their breath.
"A friend once told me that only worthless people try to kill the innocent, who cannot protect themselves." All the sound shinobi present turned their heads to see a boy standing in the middle of their ranks in a sword stance with no visible weapons.
"Tch, what can you do to us boy?" the leader said as he attempted to turn and face the mysterious newcomer that they couldn't sense.
"Boy? Haha, don't make me laugh trash. Worthless people like you wouldn't even know death, if it had already consumed you. Slow in life, slow in death, is what I always say." The boy said as he stood up to his full height. All around him, the sound shinobi started dropping, eyes wide in disbelief and fear.
'How can one boy…. No man, decimate a whole platoon of chuunin level shinobi so easily?' The leader asked himself as his vision became blurry.'He does hold an uncanny resemblance to Kimimaru-sama. It would definitely explain a lot. He must be the one Orochimaru-sama has been searching for.'
"Brutal as always, Tetsu." A large man said from on top a tree while viewing the massacre.
"Is there a problem, Zabuza-sama?"
"No, I like the way you work, that's all." Zabuza replied as he looked to another tree where Haku was healing Tazuna and Inari. Inari looked absolutely downcast as he gazed at his grandfather. Haku comforted him as best he could without losing concentration on the healing process he was performing.
Zabuza took one look at Haku and jumped to the top of the tree foliage, with Tetsu following close behind.
"Konoha is losing too much ground. At this rate, by the time they are able to counter attack, they will have very little left to fight for. Your friends live here, so I expect that you are going to help them. Do not get caught and if you do, ask to see Kakashi immediately. He is probably the only person who will be able to save you from prosecution. I will also help, by eliminating the cowards who attempt to run after this invasion fails." Zabuza said with a straight face. Turning to face Tetsu, Zabuza noted the fierce look in Tetsu's eyes and thought it prudent to let him go. With a wave of his hand, both men moved in separate directions.
"Naruto, there are many different smells of non-shinobi scattered about, and in possible danger." Pakkun said as he looked back at Naruto. "The Suna and Oto forces are vast and widespread. They have put the evacuation on a temporary halt. My guess is that Orochimaru knew of all these procedures, and decided to exploit that knowledge. His summons snakes are also wreaking havoc. Jiraiya-sama seems to be neutralizing the threat on the east and north side, but may be unaware of the threats from the south."
Neji and Shikamaru both looked at Naruto to see how he would react to this news. He was just a gennin and should not be expected to take up so much responsibility. Even Shikamaru was stumped with the magnitude of the invasion. Numbers helped a lot during wars. They were both surprised to see Naruto give a small smile.
"I guess it's time to test my own capacity." Naruto said as he shunshin'd away from the other gennin before performing several hand seals. "Kuchiyose no jutsu: Gama Kenzoku."
Everyone watched in awe as six huge toads popped into existence wielding various weapons. Naruto stood panting atop the head of the biggest toad.
"Ah Naruto, it's good to see you again. What would you have us do for you?"
"Suna and Oto are attacking Konoha. There are some snake summons on the south side of the village. We are close, so I need you guys to disable them. You are free to leave once you are finished." Naruto said with seriousness coating his words. He used shunshin to appear on the ground at their feet.
"Hai." The six chorused as they jumped away. The rest of the shinobi jumped down to congratulate Naruto on completing such a complex summoning, before realizing that he was summoning more toads.
"Kuchiyose no jutsu: Gama Kenshiki." Several smoke plumes later, and a small wind jutsu to clear the smoke showed several battle ready toads. "This is where we part ways. Shikamaru, Neji, take some of these toads with you and liberate the citizens of Konoha who have not been able to evacuate. These toads can't talk, but they are very smart and will listen to your command. Sakura and I will go ahead and complete our own mission. They will also swallow anyone who is injured, and I will be able to get that person out once the invasion is over. Keep yourselves safe. Gamakatsu-nii, I need you to look after them for me." Naruto said as he grabbed Sakura and Pakkun and then used shunshin to close in on Sasuke's position.
"Kuso." Shikamaru said as he saw Naruto leave. "He always puts too much responsibility on himself. Dad would never forgive me if he ran out of chakra and got seriously injured."
"Why would your father be angry?" Neji questioned. Tenten moved closer to hear the explanation as well.
"Troublesome Naruto. Always getting me into these kinds of situations. Grabbing Ino's hand, Shikamaru proceeded to jump in the direction of the closest part of town. About a dozen toads bounded after him.
Neji merely shook his head and took off in the other direction, Tenten following close behind. The other dozen toads followed them as well.
Demon was the right word. Everything had been going according to plan. He had caught up to Gaara but Temari had caught up with him again. Kankuro had therefore stepped up to protect his siblings, but Shino had stepped in demanding to fight his opponent from the chuunin finals. Sasuke had been mildly grateful because he didn't want to give Gaara more time to recuperate.
That had all gone to hell when he had finally caught up. Gaara had transformed into a feral beast made of sand, and no matter how many times Sasuke destroyed it, it came back. Frustration had led to desperation, and desperation had led to a waste of chakra. He had fought but now it was a losing battle. Even the sharingan had left his eyes. Gaara was just about to finish him off for good when his teammates had arrived. Naruto had savagely kicked Gaara away and landed on the branch Sasuke was currently kneeling on.
"You didn't have to enter all flashy." Sasuke said as he looked up at his best friend. Naruto stood with his back to him, as Sakura scurried over to heal his injuries.
"It wouldn't be me, if I didn't make that entrance." Naruto said as he looked back a frown on his face. "Can you fight?"
"Baka, you must have forgotten who I am." Sasuke said as he gingerly stood on shaky legs and activated his sharingan. Naruto didn't look convinced and Sasuke's wince as the curse seal attempted to overcome him, all but cemented Naruto's thoughts. Sakura reached him and had a look of pity on her face from all the bruises he had received. All Sasuke saw were the looks of pity he got when Itachi betrayed him and the rest of the Uchiha. Pity that was not needed. Uchiha Sasuke would never be helpless again. Roughly pushing away Sakura's hands, Sasuke stepped forward.
"Sasuke-kun…" Sakura said as she was pushed out of the way.
"Ah, what are you doing? Let her heal you, while I hold Gaara off. Once she is done, we can take him out together." Naruto said with a slight narrow of his eyes.
"Who the hell made you the leader and where do you get off telling me what to do? I don't need your help or your pity. I can take on that freak by myself." Sasuke said while his sharingan was spinning at the now aware Gaara who had picked himself out of the tree trunk that Naruto had kicked him into.
"Freak? Is that what we are to you? Just a bunch of freaks. What happened to you this past month? Just because we haven't been together, doesn't give you the right to push Sakura away when she was only trying to help you." Naruto said, venom coating his every word.
Naruto's tenacity momentarily stunned Sasuke. He looked puzzled for a second but was only treated to Naruto's back. "I never called you a fre….."
"Gaara and I, we are the same. I found out they call us Jinchuuriki. It is said to be the power of human sacrifice, because someone usually dies when we come into the world. Gaara is a product of the hatred of his village. Just like me." Naruto finished with a hint of sympathy in his voice.
Sasuke's eye's narrowed as he remembered all the times that people had tried to harm Naruto. It was what really drew him to Naruto and cemented their friendship. Naruto's will and power to endure, was beyond anything Sasuke had ever seen. Even the ice-cold Itachi would have cracked under such open hatred displayed by the people of Konoha.
"Fine." Sasuke said as he sat down and de-activated his sharingan.
"Huh?" Both Naruto and Sakura replied.
"This is your fight anyway. With the amount of chakra he is giving out, it is obvious that only you can match him. Plus, you have to show him what it means to fight, for the sake of protecting others. Like a true Hokage." Sasuke said with a smirk, but internally even he was confused. 'Because even I don't truly understand why you continue.'
"Arigatou Sasuke." Naruto said as he turned to face Gaara who was cackling gleefully to himself as more sand covered his body. "I won't let you guys down."
Jutsu list:
"Kuchiyose no jutsu"- Summoning Technique.
Requires user to have a certain summoning contract with a certain group of species. The greater the size, maturity and fighting ability of the summon, then the greater the amount of chakra needed to summon them.
"Kuchiyose no jutsu: Gama Shita no jutsu."- Summoning: Toad Tongue Technique.
(Leaf Warriors: Original jutsu) Summons a tongue that can extend very far distances and moves at amazing speeds once the summoner learns how to control it. (See Gama Baindo for follow up.)
"Kuchiyose no jutsu: Gama Kenzoku."- Summoning Technique: Toad Family.
(Leaf Warriors: Original jutsu) A jutsu that is exclusive to only Naruto and Jiraiya, but only likely to be used by Naruto. Jiraiya is a lot more conservative with chakra so he won't call on these toads. The six younger siblings of Gamabunta, and all powerful on their own took a liking to Naruto and decided to teach him more about toads while he was training. To call on all of them during battle would likely cost the summoner twice more chakra than summoning Gamabunta.
Kuchiyose no jutsu: Gama Kenshiki"- Summoning Technique: Toad pride.
(Leaf Warriors: Original jutsu) A group of low level toads that were almost discarded as nobodies even in the toad society. Naruto found them sulking during his training, and personally helped all of them become more competent. They regard Naruto very highly from saving them, and it takes very little chakra to summon them. Because they were personally trained by Naruto and his clones throughout the month, they are clever and witty against shinobi opponents. Would rank to about mid-chuunin in strength for each one. Have excellent teamwork because they all share a common bond and have a common goal. Their goal is to help Uzumaki Naruto become Hokage by making sure he never loses a necessary fight.
"Katon: Karyuu Endan"- Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Missile
B-rank, Offensive, Short to mid-range (0-10m). This technique exhales a long stream of incredibly hot fire from the user's mouth, not unlike that of a flamethrower.
"Ninpou: Kagemane no jutsu"- Ninja Technique: Shadow Imitation jutsu
The signature technique of the Nara clan, this jutsu allows the user to control their own shadow and merge it with their opponent's shadow, combining them. This links the movements of the user with the target; the target is subsequently forced to make any movement the user makes.
"Kage Nui no jutsu"- Shadow Sewing jutsu.
The user of this jutsu can extend their shadow and create multiple tangible tendrils for various purposes. Such purposes can include using them as stabbing weapons, rope for binding an opponent, or extra appendages for throwing weapons.
"Chidori"
This jutsu is Kakashi's only original technique, though he now uses an S-ranked version known as the Lightning Blade. He created it around the time he was promoted to Jonin, and later taught it to Sasuke. This jutsu channels a large amount of chakra into the user's arm. The amount of chakra is so great that it becomes visible to the naked eye.
"Suna Bunshin"
This jutsu creates a clone of Gaara out of sand. Perhaps the most versatile of all clones, this variant does not disperse when hit. When attacked, the affected area turns back into sand and snags the opponent. Major damage must be caused to actually disperse the clone (destroying its head, for instance); otherwise, it can simply reform.
"Ninpou: Gama Baindo"- Ninja Technique: Toad Bind.
(Leaf Warriors: Original jutsu) Naruto and or Jiraiya can extend their tongue's much like Orochimaru and use it in the same way. Can also release poisons through the glands in the tongue. B-rank offensive for the sake of this story. Also similar to the sage toads technique, but Naruto and Jiraiya can use it without going Dai-sannin.
"Omote Renge"- Initial Lotus.
"Kage Buyo"- Leaf Shadow dance
"Hakkesho Kaiten"- Eight Trigrams Palms Rotation
"Hakke Rokujuyon Sho"- Gentle Fist Style: Eight Trigrams 64 Palms.
Hey again everyone.
Gomen for the late update. Gomen again for the fact that I probably won't come out with a new chapter in a while.
I used to think Susano was a speed based technique, but I guess I was wrong. Sasuke better have a few willing, sacrificial snakes that he can use to protect himself. If not, he is done. lol. And we all know that if Sasuke dies, the whole Naruto series is over. I mean...thinking about it, why didn't Kishi-sama just call "Naruto", "Sasuke" or "Uchiha brothers: Fight for world Domination".
Sorry y'all...I'm ranting a bit too much. I just feel it's time we actually saw the fruit of Naruto's training over those 3 years. It would be pitiful for Jiraiya to die while only teaching Naruto summoning (He didn't do a very good job, because Naruto doesn't summon), Rasengan, and how to cancel genjutsu's. I mean, Naruto is 'that man's son' after all. No living person should be able to stand up to him. Or that's just how I feel.
See you all next chapter.
Ja ne.
the 6th fire shadow.
(Next time: Fire)