Chapter 3
"…Uzumaki Naruto."
Sasuke and Naruto gave no reaction, but on the inside each were fuming. Sakura, on the other hand, was announcing her joy to the world.
Sarutobi continued, "Team 8, led by Yuhi Kurenai, is Hyuuga Hinata, Aburame Shino, and Inuzuka Kiba."
Hinata and Kiba nodded, while Shino gave no indication of having heard the Hokage say his name.
"Team 9 is still active. Team 10, led by Sarutobi Asuma, is Yamanaka Ino, Akimichi Choji, and Nara Shikamaru."
Ino looked horrified at being on the same team as a slouch and a boy whose stomach was a black hole. Choji just nodded while loudly munching on his twenty-eighth bag of chips. Shikamaru was still sawing logs, a bit of drool leaking onto the desk.
As the Hokage looked around the room at the new generation of ninja, he said, "That is the teams. Your sensei will arrive over the course of the remaining day. You may take this time to get to know your teammates better. I hope you all have a wonderful day and-"
"Hokage-sama." Naruto interrupted with a slightly raised hand.
The old man blinked and asked, "Yes, Naruto? Is something the matter?"
Naruto crossed his arms and answered, "Apologies for interrupting, but I have a minor complaint about the team listing for Teams 7 and 8." Sarutobi motioned for him to continue. "I believe that it would have been best if Haruno was placed on Team Kurenai, as her near-perfect chakra control would allow her to become an excellent genjutsu user, perhaps even a medic-nin if she so chose."
"If it were to be," Sarutobi said. "who would you have had on Team 7 amongst the three of Team 8?"
"The Inuzuka heir." Naruto stated simply, "His family's techniques would allow for Uchiha, me, and Kiba to perform a multitude of devastating combos. Just as effective," The Jinchuuriki shrugged as he continued. "Haruno would be able to decapitate the enemy with a genjutsu while Hinata kept the enemy on the defensive with her Byakugan, and Shino used his bugs to suck the chakra straight from the enemy, leaving them defenseless."
Sarutobi nodded along with the explanation.
"I had considered those points." He said. "But before I was able to bring it to light, Kurenai had already picked Kiba for her cell, leaving Kakashi with Sakura."
Naruto bowed his head and said, "I understand, Hokage."
The old man turned to the small crowd and said, "I hope you all have a wonderful day and that you all succeed as ninja."
The Third Hokage bowed and left. After a few seconds of silence, the newly crowned Genin started conversing with their teammates. Well… most of them, anyway.
~~~(((0)))~~~
"Why don't you show us how it's done, sensei?"
Team 7, along with Kakashi, were on the roof. They were there to give information about themselves.
"Very well." Kakashi said as he crossed his arms. "My name is Hatake Kakashi. I always forget my dreams when I wake. I have no desire to tell you my likes and dislikes. …Well I have a lot of hobbies. Pinks, you're turn."
Naruto blinked and thought, All he told us was his name.
"My name is Haruno Sakura. My dream is…" She looked at Sasuke with a blush. "I like…" Another look and blush. "I dislike Ino-pig! My hobbies are…" A third look and blush.
Kunoichi at this age are more interested in the opposite sex than learning ninjutsu. Kakashi thought.
"Next, Mr. Broods."
In a deadpan voice, Sasuke said, "My name is Uchiha Sasuke. I have a lot of dislikes and I don't really like anything. And… I can't really call it a dream. But I have this ambition: The resurrection of my clan… and to kill a certain man."
He's so cool! Sakura thought with a blush.
Naruto scoffed and thought, As if he would have any chance of defeating Uchiha Itachi, much less killing him.
Kakashi's eye looked dead serious as he thought, Just as expected.
"Lastly, ice-eyes on the left."
Naruto glared at Kakashi for the nickname, but quickly resumed his blank mask and said, "My status is somewhat similar to the Uchiha's. My name is Uzumaki Naruto. I dislike a lot of things, am neutral towards most others. I wouldn't call it like, but I respect those that don't judge me on the first contact. I don't have many dreams, but when I do, they are filled blood and flames. My hobbies are enhancing my current abilities and coming up with new ones."
Kakashi mentally sighed. Oh Minato, your kid truly doesn't deserve all that has happened to him. You must be rolling in your grave right now.
"Well, now that, that's out of the way," Kakashi stated. "Tomorrow is when our duties as a team of Konoha shinobi begin."
"What kind of duties, sensei?" Sakura asked innocently.
Kakashi looked at her and spoke, his voice void of emotion.
"Survival training." He noticed the girl opening her mouth and quickly resumed. "This isn't like the training you received at the academy." Her mouth shut. "Out of the 27 graduates, only six will be made into shinobi. The rest will be sent back to the academy for remedial training. This test is extremely difficult as it has a failure rate of over 66 percent."
Sakura looked horrified, while the boys just stared ahead blankly.
When no one spoke, Kakashi said, "Show up at Training Ground 7 tomorrow at 5 a.m." He stood up and popped his back. He made a single handsign and said, "Oh, don't eat breakfast, you might puke."
He then disappeared in a flurry of leaves. Sasuke immediately stood up, put his hands in his pockets, and started walking towards the stairs with Sakura hovering over him like an annoying insect. Naruto just stood up and made the same handsign as Kakashi, then suddenly disappeared in a white hot flame.
~~~(((0)))~~~
Naruto walked towards the same tree that Sakura and Sasuke were currently underneath. When they looked over at him, they were surprised at his sudden transition of clothing.
He decided to forego his normal robe-like attire for something that resembled a shinobi instead in a monk. He wore a simple dark red t-shirt underneath standard shinobi flak jacket, not even caring that Genin weren't allowed to have one. He switched his simple loose robe bottoms for a pair of armored pants, with the armor being within the stitching. On his feet were normal shinobi sandals. He wore a red trench coat with black flames along the trim above his flak jacket. Finally, he wore fingerless gloves and continued to wear his hitai-ate around his waist like a belt.
It had been around three hours when Kakashi suddenly appeared on top of a branch above them, his eyes glued to an orange book.
"Yo." He said without looking at them.
"You're late!" Sakura yelled as she glared at her sensei.
Kakashi jumped down from the tree branch and landed in front of them. He turned to his soldiers and rubbed the back of his head.
"Sorry about that," He apologized. "I got lost on the long road of Life."
"Excuses!"
The copy nin held up his hand defensively. When she calmed down he said, "Now let me explain to you three how this is going to work."
He reached into his pocket and rummaged around for a few seconds before pulling out two silver bells tied together by a thin piece of twine no more than three inches long. He jingled them for good measure.
The white haired Jounin eye smiled then said, "You guys have to try and get these bells from me."
Naruto's eyes narrowed as he questioned his sensei. "What happens to the Genin that doesn't manage to get a bell?"
His sensei pointed an index finger upwards and exclaimed, "Astute as always, Naruto! As you pointed out, there are only two bells, but only three of you. The one that doesn't get a bell is sent back to the academy."
"What?!" Sakura yelled in shock.
Naruto and Sasuke just looked at each other then narrowed their eyes. Kakashi, meanwhile, just pulled out an alarm clock and set it. Then, he placed it on top of the closest of three logs that were imbedded in the ground.
"You have until noon to attempt to get a bell."
The three Genin stood up.
"Ready…"
They tensed their muscles.
"Set…"
Sasuke popped his neck. Sakura looked nervously at her teammates. Naruto was a blank slate.
"…Go!"
Three blurs and the three of them were gone. Kakashi checked for chakra signatures and sighed when he immediately sensed Sasuke's and Sakura's.
Where is Naruto?
After several seconds of nothing happening Kakashi shrugged and opened his orange book again, a blush growing on his cheeks. He was about to turn to the next page when a twig snapped. He spun around, kunai in hand.
Ah! There's the fire user!
Naruto stepped through the underbrush, the lid to his main container wobbling rapidly, as if the contents inside were eager to burn something. He walked across the clearing until he was standing just in front of a river that ran through the training grounds. He put his hands into the ram sign. An increase of chakra output later and seven clones were standing alongside him.
Shadow clones? Kakashi thought as he readied his kunai. If they have the same fire defense as the real Naruto, I could be in trouble. I better keep my KI down too; I don't need him to go Feral, especially front of Sakura and Sasuke. They might not like what they would see if he did.
"Lesson One," Kakashi said, just loud enough for the two other Genin to hear. "Close-quarters combat."
He then suddenly ran forward, with the seven clones running towards him to cut him off from attacking the real Naruto. The white haired Jounin stabbed one in the kidney and thrusted his fingers into the throat of another, making them disappear in an explosion of smoke. He ducked below a stab from a katana and smashed his foot into the attacker, making him disappear as well. He then leapt into the air, upper cutting a clone in the process. When he landed he quickly looked around, counting the number of clones left.
Four down.
He dodge rolled to the side and stabbed one in gut and broke the neck of a second. He back flipped over the other two. Before his feet hit the ground, he threw multiple shuriken at the clones, and they too disappeared.
Kakashi caught his breath and thought to himself, That was easy. His eyes narrowed. Too easy.
He spun towards the river, his right hand on the bells, his left hand holding a kunai. His eye widened when he took in the sight. Or rather… the lack thereof.
Naruto, the real one, was gone.
Kakashi shunshinned out of sight, heading towards Sakura's chakra signature.
~~~(((0)))~~~
Sakura was running frantically through the wooded section of Training Grounds 7, trying to find her "Sasuke-kun".
"Lesson Two: The Trickery of the Mind."
Sakura turned around and stared into the eye of her sensei. Her world then suddenly faded in a swirl of summertime leaves…
~~~(((0)))~~~
Sasuke was busy setting up the last of his traps when he heard the leg trap that was next to a tree go off. He turned around, kunai in one hand, shuriken in the other, only to get annoyed when he saw Naruto hanging there, his arms crossed and a scowl on his face.
"Get. Me. Down." The blonde growled. Killing Intent leaked everywhere, sending shivers down Sasuke's back.
The last Uchiha smirked and shook his head. He turned around to go and finish his last trap when-
"Lesson Three: Elemental Jutsu."
Sasuke leapt backwards when the ground beneath him suddenly caved in, revealing a slightly dirty Kakashi.
The young Genin smirked and formed several signs. Recognizing them, Kakashi's only visible eye widened in shock.
Impossible! No normal Genin should have anywhere near enough charka for that jutsu!
Sasuke disagreed.
"Katon! Goukakyuu no Jutsu!"
A large bout of flame spewed forth from Sasuke's mouth completely surrounding Kakashi and Naruto. When everything settled, Naruto was leaning against the same tree where the trap was placed without a single burn on him. Kakashi, on the other hand…
Where is he?! Sasuke thought wildly as he looked around in the same manner. Above? The side?
"Below."
A hand suddenly came out of the ground.
"Doton! Shinjuu Zanshu no Jutsu!"
Within a second, Sasuke found himself up to his neck beneath the ground. A smiling Kakashi in front of him just bopped him on the nose and shunshinned away. Naruto stepped forward and started digging Sasuke out with a kunai, much to Sasuke's chagrin.
"I don't need your help, Dobe. I can dig myself out."
Naruto did nothing but drop the kunai blade first a mere breath from Sasuke's face, stood up, and walked away without a sound. Somewhere a distance away, sitting on a log, a timer started ringing.
~~~(((0)))~~~
Naruto and Sasuke were sitting next to Sakura, who was currently tied to a log, with Kakashi looking at them in disappointment. He lowered his head and sighed.
"And here that this bunch would be different." He muttered. He lifted his gaze to look at the three Academy graduates. "I am willing to give you guys another chance…" They all looked at him. "You have one hour to try and get these bells. If one of you manages to get a bell, then you all pass."
There was a flash of black steel and the ropes that pinned Sakura to the log were cutting, allowing her to fall gracelessly to the ground. Naruto roughly grabbed her arm and forced her to her feet. He gave her a small shake and suddenly disappeared in a puff of smoke. Kakashi's eyes widened at that.
He was a clone the whole time?! He turned and looked around, not even noticing that the other two kids had already disappeared as well. Where are you hiding, Naruto?
Little did he know that all three were already forming a plan to get the bells.
~~~(((0)))~~~
"So what's your "plan," Dobe?" Sasuke asked with evident sarcasm.
Naruto gave no expression of having heard him as he sat there in silence. After several minutes of nothing happening, he opened his mouth and spoke.
"This is what we're going to do. Sasuke," the broody pre-teen looked at the Jinchuuriki. "You and Sakura are going to do joint attacks to keep him occupied and on his guard. The less he worries about me the better. When the timing is best, I move in with my part of the plan."
"Which is…?" Sakura made a 'keep going' motion with her hand.
"You'll see." Naruto stood up. "Just get into position and do your jobs, and I'll do mine."
~~~(((0)))~~~
Kakashi was disappointed as he had been standing there, reading his book, for nearly thirty minutes and he hadn't been attacked once.
Until Sasuke and Sakura leaped out from the bushes, kunai at the ready. Kakashi frowned from behind his mask as he shut his book and used its spine to block a stab from Sasuke, and kicked Sakura in the stomach.
It's good to see that they've caught on to the reason behind the bell test, but where is-
Before Kakashi could finish that thought, the two students disappeared just as quickly as they had shown up, leaving the Jounin tense and on guard.
"Where are they…" He muttered beneath his breath.
A presence suddenly appeared behind him, so he readied his Kunai and spun, his arm outstretched for a stab to the neck, but a feminine hand stopped him cold.
Anko looked shocked for a brief second before she smirked and said, "No wonder you can't get a girl, Kakashi. You're too tense for anything fun."
Kakashi lowered his arm when she let him go, and asked, "What are you doing here, Anko?"
The Snake Mistress shrugged. "Checking out the possible newbies. Why else would I be within fifty feet of your perverted self?"
Kakashi said nothing as he put his Kunai up, but stopped when he remembered something from the files on Naruto.
Is known to be crafty with Henges.
Kakashi's eye widened when he realized what was going on.
Very clever, Naruto. He thought. I'll give you that. But not clever enough.
The man threw the kunai at Anko, who ducked in surprise. She turned to look at where it went, to see it embedded in a tree down to the hilt. She slowly turned back to the one who threw it, an inferno in her eyes.
Before she could say anything, Naruto came running out from behind a few trees, katana unsheathed and ready for blood. He stopped short when he saw the pair, however.
Naruto blinked a few times. "…What's going on here, Kakashi?"
Kakashi's eyes contracted down to the size of small dots and his skin paled to that of arctic snow. He rapidly looked between a confused Naruto and a pissed off Anko.
He turned to look at the Kunoichi and said, "I can explain…"
He didn't get the chance to as Anko punched him hard enough to knock him unconscious and crack the ground where his head landed. Anko just gave a nod to Naruto as it puffed back into the clone, and that too disappeared into a puff of smoke.
Naruto walked forward and took the bells from Kakashi's waist while Sakura and Sasuke came out from hiding to stand next to him. Sakura snorted at the idea that the plan worked.
"Can't believe that a Jounin fell for such an easy trick." Sasuke stated.
After he finished speaking, Kakashi disappeared in a puff smoke, along with the bells. The three of them immediately got into a defensive formation that left no room for blind spots. The real Kakashi suddenly appeared in the center of their self-made circle, an eye-smile on his face.
"You three pass." He said cheerfully.
Sakura cheered and was jumping for joy. Sasuke just smirked in acceptance. Naruto just remained stoic and gave a barely perceptible nod. The Jinchuuriki sheathed his katana and started walking away.
Kakashi called after him, "Be here at 7 'o clock sharp tomorrow!"
The young Genin gave no sign that he had heard his sensei.
~~~(((0)))~~~
The Third Hokage leaned forward in his chair and said, "Status report."
"Team 1, fail."
"Team 2, fail."
"Team 3, fail."
"Team 4, fail."
"Team 5, fail."
"Team 6, fail."
"Team 7… pass."
Everyone started at that. Kakashi just smiled wide. Sarutobi nodded. "Continue."
"Team 8, pass."
"Team 10, pass."
Sarutobi nodded as the last Jounin, his son, Asuma, gave his report.
~~~~~(((0)))~~~~~
Annnnnnd finished! I've had a busy month lately, and turned 17 during that time.