Yo!
Back Again!
Guest: Thanks for your kind words!
Guest (Austin): I already explained about a Kawarimi with Kunai in the 5th chapter. The story would go till Shippuden. Stay tuned.
Now, onto the chapter; only advice: some snippets may seem cannon but trust me it's different.
Don't skip.
Consciousness suddenly made itself known as if a switch had been turned on.
The back of her eyelids getting brightened, Haku slowly opened her eyes.
As the eyes fluttered while getting accustomed to the light, her face scrunching up, she was soon greeted to the white colored ceiling.
Slowly, she took heed of the surroundings.
Only a moment later, her mind supplied the name to the building.
Hospital.
And not just any but Konoha hospital. She could easily recognise the only hospital she had ever visited as well as began working in.
Immediately, the events of the mission flashed in her mind and relief trickled through her being that she had managed to push Naruto out of the attack's path.
But the feeling remained only momentarily, and was quickly replaced by dread. What had happened afterwards?
Had her effort been ultimately successful?
However, even the fear was short lived as two chakras registered in her immediate vicinity.
Slowly, she turned her head to the right to see a mop of brown hair; the Uzumaki had his head placed over his bent arm kept on the bedside.
Haku softly sighed in relief.
"He has been here for three days."
Heeding to the words, the girl couldn't help but be surprised. Three days…! That was an inexplicable period of time considering everything.
At the very most, she should have been unconscious for a couple of hours, especially when the attack, in a way, had originated from her.
However, she knew it was not the right time to mull over the issue.
Not when her comrade on the mission — who could share the details — was sleeping, and the only other company she currently had, had not been a part of the mission.
"And, how long have you been here, Hatake-san?" She asked, shifting her vision towards the other side where atop the window sill, crouched the copy ninja, the orange book as usual in his hand.
He really likes the windows, huh? And this book… how many times is he going to read it? The ice user mused, though not showing any reaction outwardly.
Shinobis coped differently, and it wasn't her place to point out if the white haired shinobi read smut in public.
Kakashi 'hummed', apparently thinking for a moment or just for appearances — one couldn't know with his antics — and then lowered his book a bit. "A few hours less than him."
Again, the girl felt a sliver of surprise. On learning that even the teachers had tried to sabotage Naruto, she had rationally assumed that the shinobi populace either hated him or at the very best, was neutral to him.
And, she had put Hatake Kakashi in the second group.
Clearly, Naruto didn't trust the man with his secrets but there was a sort of camaraderie present. The Uzumaki had saved the jonin from Zabuza, after all.
But, it seemed she was wrong. Hatake Kakashi definitely cared for Naruto. Well, gratitude needed to be given where due. "Thank you, Hatake-san, for looking after him."
"Mah, you hurt me, Haku-san; I was totally unbiased in looking after both of you," Then, the copy ninja cocked his head for a bit before eye-smiling in a sheepish manner. "Well, for a moment or two, I might have thought of Naruto more… "
As the older man trailed off, Haku felt a bit stupid. Even if the jonin's original intentions had been for Naruto, he clearly ended up looking for both of them.
"My apologies," She muttered, nodding as much as the prone position allowed. "Thank you, Hatake-san."
The jonin flipped the page of the book. "Don't think of yourself as an extra baggage; I was concerned for your well being too."
Ignoring the fact that he had managed to read her thoughts accurately, she realized the copy ninja was really trying to help, even if to sort things between them.
It seemed she was wrong again. Nodding once more, she replied. "I understand, thank you."
"Hmmm…"
A moment passed in silence.
"Do you, now?"
The response throwing her off, Haku raised an eyebrow, a frown paving its way on her face, but before she could say anything, Kakashi audibly shifted.
The man took a seat in the window, back supported by the left edge, one leg bent inside the window frame, and the other dangling outside.
The orange book had disappeared along the way.
The copy ninja directed his sole eye at her solemnly. "I have begun to care for Naruto, not just as his jounin sensei but as a friend."
"Very few are there for whom I will do anything. My genin team is there on the list. And, Naruto is special than others; I deeply respect him for not giving up despite all odds."
"You saved his life," The sole eye flashed intensely. "I will always have your back for that."
The jonin had a genuine inflection. Haku found herself speechless. This wasn't what she had in her mind. At the very best, she had thought they would be comrades due to fellow leaf shinobis.
However, clearly, Hatake Kakashi seemed to value her more than that. She really didn't know what to say.
"Mah, you don't have to reply," The lazy cheerful tone was back. "Anyway, let's talk about the mission."
The sudden shift in conversation halted her musings, but she embraced it as it was better than the conflicted feelings she was currently experiencing.
"You did good; they will make you a med chunin once you're cleared for active duty."
The ice user nodded.
The jonin then chuckled, eye glancing at the Uzumaki. "Naruto left quite an impression on Asuma; he has been pestering me about how a deadlast became an expert in strategy making in just two months."
Haku also glanced at the boy, a small smile appearing on her face. Truly, the twelve or so year old was an enigma.
In the modern world where being a shinobi had become equivalent to just flashy and head on, the Uzumaki preferred deception and in a surprisingly efficient manner.
In the mission, though she and Asuma-san had contributed too, most of the plan had been devised by Naruto, and that too in the span of a few minutes.
"Now, I believe you are aware of Naruto's tenant."
Once again, the sudden shift in topic left her dumbfounded. He must enjoy doing it. Still, she looked towards the older man and whispered. "Kyuubi."
Kakashi offered a nod. "After you were attacked, he accessed its chakra."
The ice user frowned but didn't show any other reaction.
"Not much though; just his eyes flashed red. We believe it was due to the turmoil he experienced at that time."
'We' meant the news had reached the hokage — as was wont to happen — and they wanted her as well as Naruto to know. "I will let him know."
"It doesn't bother you," The elder shinobi voiced as a matter of factly.
"Should it?"
After a moment, as if searching for something on her face, Kakashi eye-smiled. "He seems to be waking up. Ja ne," Giving a two fingered salute, he left.
Mentally sighing at his weird antics, Haku directed her entire attention towards the shuffling Uzumaki. He must be really tired to sleep through the entire conversation.
Meanwhile, she mulled over the new piece of information. Naruto had accessed Kyuubi's chakra — clearly due to her uncertain situation.
Was it a worrying prospect?
She contemplated for a moment, and after that, found herself surprisingly calm about the happening overall.
Jinchuuriki were supposed to access the bijuu's chakra — it was as simple as that.
No, there was no need to worry.
If anything, she felt a bit guilty for being responsible for the situation. She had made him worry—
"Haku-san! You're awake!" Naruto exclaimed, sitting a bit upright on the chair but still leaning on the bed.
Pushing aside her thoughts, Haku smiled fondly at the boy. "So are you."
Naruto opened his mouth, paused and then began rubbing the back of his head, a sheepish smile appearing on his face. "Sorry for that; I didn't know when—"
"It's alright," The ice user interrupted him, still smiling. "Thank you for looking after me."
"Anytime," Then, his expression turning serious, the Uzumaki directed a slight disapproval at the girl. "That was careless of you; you gave me quite a scare."
Despite gaining an apologetic look, the words again enticing guilt, Haku shook her head. "Sorry but you did the same."
"That was different!"
The girl only raised an eyebrow.
Naruto maintained the look for some moments before deflating with an audible sigh.
The look on his face made her heart churn, and the girl immediately placed her hand atop the Uzumaki's. "As a consolation, the attack was not lethal."
Confusion immediately flashed on his visage, and the disguised blonde cocked his head. "What… do you… ?" He trailed off in the end.
Haku took some moments to organize her thoughts. "That man attacked me for revenge…"
"The attack was aimed at me," Naruto corrected, confusion augmenting.
"Senbon… is a bit tricky to use even for experienced shinobis for the first time. Most likely, the attack was aimed at me but got deviated."
Not pointing out that the attack was still successful, the Uzumaki frowned. "You didn't kill them."
That much he had gained from the ice user in the past week. She would refrain from killing till the very last moment.
"No," Haku replied, voice barely above a whisper. A similar frown appeared on her face.
"I don't want to say the obvious, Haku-san," Naruto's tone was devoid of any inflection as well as his face.
The ice user immediately gathered what the 'obvious' was: the enemy attacked her only because she spared him in the first place.
However, she had a different perspective which was proven right, and with confidence, she nodded in acknowledgment. "But I survived showing kindness begets kindness."
The Uzumaki simply cocked his head, eyebrows furrowing slightly.
After a couple of moments, realizing he just wanted to listen, she continued. "The toxin I used was a non-lethal one aimed to induce only lethargy as well as nausea-like symptoms."
"To make it appealing, I seized his vocal cords additionally. His luck though, where the senbon penetrated my neck, the point caused immediate unconsciousness."
"The man used my senbon against me; I survived due to that — my point: kindness begets kindness," She concluded with a smile, tone indicating she did not regret her actions.
Naruto's frown easened. He understood what the girl was aiming at: If she had used a lethal toxin in the first place, she might not have survived — try as he might, he couldn't just contradict her point.
"Drop it off, Naruto-san; either perspective is rational depending on the situation, but I prefer kindness; this world already has enough hatred."
The Uzumaki couldn't help but agree with that. Both of them were the victims of hatred as well as obliviousness. "Ain't you a sensor though?"
"I am but an average one just like many. Besides, the man masked his chakra by hiding among the others in the boat."
His query answered, Naruto nodded.
"What escapes me," Haku began, face reflecting confusion. "How I ended up unconscious for three days when it should have been some hours; did any of you use something?"
After a moment's pause, Naruto wordlessly produced a small transparent pouch before offering it to her.
Haku received the pouch, eyes zoning towards the remaining little amount of green powder. Parting the pouch, she took a sniff before glancing at him in astonishment. "This is kosi herb - very rare! Where did you get it, Naruto-san?"
"Before we get to that, did this herb have any effect?"
"Most likely. It's almost a panacea for various if not all poisons. It definitely reacted with my toxin, inducing a potent unconsciousness."
"... Oh," The Uzumaki lamely replied. Knowing that he was in a way responsible for the girl's situation, left him feeling like an idiot, the only consolation being his lack of knowledge about the cure.
"C'mon Naruto-san, stop worrying about the past. Please tell me where you found this rare herb?!"
The girl's eyes were slightly wide in wonder, the words were dipping in amazement. In the end, Naruto found her enthusiasm winning over his thoughts.
A smile appearing on his face, he replied. "From very special friends."
The girl simply tilted her head.
"There are some secrets about me, Haku-san, you still don't know."
"Of course. Why else would you – who is… hated by the entire village, sorry – be friends with a rich businessman to the extent that you have an exclusive lounge for you?"
"Your skills were also a giveaway. In our situation, one doesn't get strong simply by reading from the library," An amused smile finished her response.
'Our situation' translated to their almost lonely-and-spent-on-the-streets lives. Chuckling a bit, Naruto leaned back into the chair. "By luck — I call it that — there have been some events…"
"No!" Haku slowly shook her head to pronounce her response.
"But I am speaking the truth!"
The reiteration of words — again — made her pause. After a moment's worth of consideration, she continued. "Naruto-san, I can believe you killed Gatou as a seven year old — no matter how absurd that sounds too… "
Gatou had contacted them for their services but was killed before they even had a chance to meet.
Services for Gatou meant money, after all; she could vividly remember how furious Zabuza-sama had been on learning about the rich man's murder.
A couple of unfortunate souls from Nami had been tortured, reconnaissance had been done, and whispers in the winds had spoken about a blonde haired boy.
With Naruto's original appearance, unique henge and shadow clones, the story held weight that he had traveled to Nami with Haru-san, and ended up killing a business tycoon.
"But you cannot be Yurei — the legendary conqueror! I simply refuse to believe that!"
Haku concluded, again shaking her head.
Everyone worth their salt knew who Yurei was.
The man, the myth, the legend who could bankrupt casinos in a go — of course, these could be highly exaggerated too, but the presence of legendary conqueror was definitely confirmed.
They had also tried to look for him multiple times in the hope the man could win them money to aid Kiri's rebellion but the gambler had lived up to his reputation of being hard to find.
In the end, they had simply stopped. And, now, this twelve and half year old boy had just announced the legendary conqueror was nothing but a shadow clone in henge.
Admittedly, the tale corroborated with the events as Yurei had gained widespread recognition only five years ago and that too after appearing in Konoha, but snippets of information had always been there even from earlier.
Further, this would mean this genin was a self-made millionaire having a stake in a major business chain in Konoha and around.
A laugh escaped from Naruto's throat, finding the situation more amusing than difficult. This was the first time he had seen such vivid emotions from the girl.
Controlling his laugh while taking note of the little shrug she gave, with a smile of course, he simply raised his hand.
A puff of smoke originated.
Catching the emerging scroll, he offered it to the girl. "During our mission, while my clone was exploring Furui kawa, he came across the sannin Tsunade."
Haku's eyes widened.
"He henged into Yurei and helped her win her debts. Apart from gaining an ally in her, I got two techniques for you; this one is chakra scalpels."
Amidst the myriad of emotions — from awe, surprise, excitement and disbelief — that emerged, immediately, on taking the scroll, Haku's eyes zoned onto the small leaf shaped red colored wax in which kanji for 'sannin' was carved.
This was the official seal of the sannin — she recalled a similar one when Zabuza-sama had once been hired by some agents of Orochimaru.
The leaf traitor hadn't changed the seal apparently due to the image it provided.
Or, he just liked to mock Konoha, she really couldn't tell.
As she finished taking in the elegant scroll, she opened it.
'The Chakra Scalpels technique' — reading the title, she quickly perused the contents and found herself becoming happier with every passing moment.
This was a really powerful technique; the user was able to inflict internal damage with nary a sign on the outside — quite useful in surgeries as well as battles.
"The other one is mystic palms — you are already going to learn it in hospital, I know, but I had to take what she was giving," Naruto shrugged, still smiling at the blatant joy on the girl's face.
"Thank you, Naruto… kun," She added the honorific after a pause, a grateful smile on her face, noting that he didn't react outwardly to the change in address.
"If you want, I can give you the other scroll."
From the slight drop in his voice, it seemed that a more endearing honorific did have an effect. Still, she pushed it aside, shaking her head. "Later, Naruto-kun. Thank you again."
Naruto nodded, then slumped in his seat. "I hope you believe me now," the tone also came off as slightly exhausted.
With a small giggle, Haku replied. "I will still need a demonstration, and I still can't grasp that you are a millionaire…" But gave a nod. "Alright."
The Uzumaki let out a chuckle at the response, knowing if he were in her place, he would have done the same. "As for the… kosi herb, I got it from my… summons."
The ice user blinked. Did she hear it right—
"Kaiza gave a scroll to me for saving him; he couldn't open it. It happened to be a contract for the Owls."
"Owls?" She repeated, hearing about them for the first time, while simply accepting the fact that this genin was a summoner too.
She decided not to get surprised anymore. It was already established that this-two and a half years-younger-than-her-boy had accomplished more than most veterans.
If somebody told her now that he was the son of a Kage, she would gladly accept that too.
"One of the oldest clans there but loners — only have two summoners so far; the previous one died centuries ago. They have become my family; taught me everything."
"Except taijutsu," She remarked immediately. It was not hard to figure that the owls were not a species oriented with taijutsu.
Naruto nodded. "They helped as much as they could though. Anyway, they keep an eye on me especially during the missions; when you were attacked, I was at my wit's ends."
"Suddenly this pouch fell on my lap and a hoot was heard," He gave a small grin. "Had to lie to Asuma that you always had it in your pocket."
Having already gotten over her surprise, she thought about the part that owls kept an eye on him on missions — that filled her being with assurance.
Unlike Zabuza-sama, Naruto-kun would not be vulnerable. Mere availability of summons meant an easy escape — in the form of reverse-summoning — in case of a tough situation.
"I also asked them if you could sign the contract too…"
Eyes flowing open and mouth parting in shock, she began to form a response but halted, the look on the boy's face providing her an answer. "They refused, didn't they?"
That really shouldn't have come off as unexpected. One couldn't get everything. Still, she had already gained a lot of things by agreeing to the offer of joining Konoha. And, she was grateful as well as content with that.
"Yeah. But I believe they will arrange something," Again gaining her attention, Naruto continued. "There is a clan of snowy owls; I haven't met them but if they agree, you will get a permanent partner without signing the contract."
Despite her previous thoughts, she couldn't help but feel excited. A permanent partner would be the next best thing to a summon. And if 'snowy owls' really lived up to their name, her abilities would only be supplemented.
"Thank you, again, Naruto-kun," Haku sincerely replied. More and more she was beginning to think that the Uzumaki was the best thing to happen in her life, even surpassing Zabuza-sama. "Could you summon one, now?"
"Sure."
Rubbing the head of the small white owl named Pochi, Haku smiled as it hooted in glee, before glancing at the brown-haired boy. "I didn't know fuinjutsu could be this diverse."
Hand seals originally being written seals, then seals to perform ninjutsu ranging from the basic three to elemental ones, gravity seal — all this really seemed to be special even for their world.
However, she was interested in the last one. "Naruto-kun, you have already done enough for me, but would it be possible if I get the genjutsu seal?"
As soon as she finished the question, Haku blinked. What is he… She was expecting a simple 'Sure', a delayed 'it is difficult' or even an outright 'No', but not for the boy's cheeks to gain a pink hue.
Confused, she asked. "Naruto-kun?"
A couple of moments passed.
"Uh…" The Uzumaki began, scratching his cheek while gazing sideways. "You see ninjutsu… it can be used from a single tenketsu… just push chakra and… "
While confused at the answer beginning with ninjutsu, the ice user still nodded, showing her attention.
"But for genjutsu… you see… " He again paused.
After a moment, Haku again nodded, urging him on.
"Uh… genjutsu has five aspects: smell, sound, taste… " Naruto again halted, but this time due to the barely contained amused expression appearing on the girl's face.
He sighed, finally giving up. "We can cover the smell by drawing the seal around the tenketsus on nose, vision around the eyes, sound around the ears, taste from mouth but for touch…"
He took a breath. "It can happen… uh… all over the… uh… body…"
He again trailed off, even his voice had dropped in the end, but Haku had heard enough to contemplate. The other senses were explained confidently by him but the touch — there he paused again.
She repeated his words in her mind: One needed to draw a seal around the tenketsus specific to that sense, and touch could happen all over the… body… oh.
OH!
Pink also covered her cheeks and she averted her gaze too as understanding dawned. In the end, just to cover the touch aspect, the seal needed to be drawn over the entire body.
It meant one needed to get naked!
"Uh, I can give you another one," Naruto began, breaking the awkward silence. "It was inspired from Zabuza's water wall."
That did the trick.
The girl immediately met his gaze.
He mentally sighed. "Zabuza could create water walls by merely tapping the water surface; since we need to be on a water body for that, I, instead, drew seals for an earth wall as earth's everywhere."
"I would like that," Haku muttered. There was no need to even consider. She could already use wind and water; a third element would be very useful. "I would still have to train for earth chakra, right?"
"Yeah. My clones are already doing that with the Owls."
She couldn't help but regain the smile. Uzumaki Naruto was nothing but tenacious. "Could you update my storage seal too? It has always been slow to operate."
"Sure."
"Also, you told me Kyuubi's chakra grants you healing properties?" Receiving a nod, she continued. "Would it be possible to incorporate that in seals too? Like healing seals…"
"I will have to discuss it with the owls, but I will definitely give it a try."
"I am grateful." That you came into my life.
Knock! Knock!
From his place at the table, Naruto shared a glance with Haku before squinting his eyes a bit.
A puff of smoke happened and a clone appeared. Immediately, the clone gave a stink eye towards the original. "Lazyass! Make yourself useful sometimes!"
Naruto's eye twitched.
The clone at the kitchen counter snorted.
Haku gained an amused smile.
The door was opened, and the clone dispelled itself.
"Yo!" Greeting, Hatake Kakashi lazily strolled inside the house, orange book as usual in his hand.
Following him were the other members of team seven.
"Naruto-kun/Haku-san!" Sakura greeted the duo with a smile after taking in the small but tidy lobby area.
Mito did the same while dipping her head a bit.
"Hn."
"Greetings!" Haku replied with a smile before motioning them towards the table. "Please."
Naruto simply nodded, a bit curious why his team members had decided to visit their house.
As they took the seats around the table, Sakura glared a bit at the jonin. "We tried to have the meeting on the grounds, but he didn't budge."
"Yeah. Something about an exquisite herbal tea," Mito supplied, gazing at the ice user. This was the first time since the mission, she was meeting the girl.
Hair in a bun with two bangs around her pale face, the ice user was clad in a white kimono with light blue floral design.
From the content look on her face, she seemed truly happy.
"Those herbs are not cheap, you know."
The copy ninja lowered his book a bit, and his eyes began to roam around the room – clearly making a show of finding something, before he looked towards the ceiling. "Huh, thought, I heard something."
Then, he shrugged and looked at the ice user sitting opposite. "How are you, Haku-san?"
The clone gave an unimpressed look.
Naruto snorted.
The unimpressed look was turned at him.
"Better," Haku replied with an exasperated smile. While it was amusing to watch Naruto's interactions with clones, sometimes they really became a bit difficult to deal with.
Even now, as usual, she would have to step in. Looking at the clone, she gave a slightly pleading gaze. "Would you please… ?"
The clone immediately relented.
No later, cups of tea were placed before the guests.
The pink-haired girl muttered a 'thank you' before quietly inhaling the vapors. "This smells good," and offered a smile.
"Tastes even better," Kakashi added, flipping the page of his book.
As if that was the cue, Sasuke slowly took a sip, and his eyes minutely opened wide. Looking at his fellow genin and his house mate, he stated. "I am willing to pay for the recipe."
The Uzumaki raised an eyebrow before glancing at the black-haired girl.
"There is no need," Haku replied to the Uchiha. "I will write it down," She gave a small smile, really not having anything against the Uchiha despite the mission; both had been just doing their duties.
"Anyway," The jonin voiced, gaining attention of everyone. Placing the book on the table, he withdrew two papers from his vest. "These are declaration forms for chunin exams; sign them and your nomination will be complete."
Giving one to Sasuke, Kakashi handed the other to Naruto.
The Uzumaki began reading the contents. Eyes immediatey zoning on the 'Village will not be responsible in case of death' clause — written in bold.
After a moment's pause, he looked towards the column of signature where his name as well as Sakura's were written.
"It only has Sasuke-kun's and Mito-chan's names," Sakura voiced her confusion, leaning a bit towards the Uchiha to see the form.
"You're bifurcating the team," Sasuke remarked, glancing at the jonin beside him.
The copy ninja nodded. "Sometimes 'more the merrier' can backfire; three men cells balance each other, but a four man one? Unnecessary responsibilty on each member."
Naruto perfectly understood where the jonin was aiming at. While two man teams would result in decreased manpower, it would also provide more freedom in decision making.
And, the teams had been bifurcated properly. He could already envision himself and Sasuke getting into arguments, in one of the arrangements.
With Mito, there would have been a lot of awkwardness and unnecessary questions. Sakura though, would be relatively easier to work with.
"Can I?"
Heeding to the soft voice, the Uzumaki handed the form to Haku.
Sasuke also handed his to Mito, after signing.
Sakura directed her gaze, expectant, at the ice user while waiting to receive the form.
The clone also leaned over the counter to peruse the contents of the form as it was grasped by the red haired girl.
"Thanks for the tea."
Every pair of eye immediately shot towards the cup of tea placed in front of the copy ninja.
It was empty now.
Sakura and Mito audibly groaned while Sasuke's eye began twitching.
Haku and Naruto shared a sigh.
The clone pouted.
Kakashi simply gave an eye-smile. "Don't forget to reach the academy at eight a.m. sharp; room number 301, day after tomorrow."
"Naruto-kun!" Sakura greeted with a smile as the disguised blonde reached the academy.
"Sakura," Naruto replied, nodding his head a bit before allowing a ghost of a smile to appear on his face. "Are you ready?" And asked, while walking past the girl towards the academy.
The pink-haired girl fell in step with him, the smile dimming a bit. "I think I am; just a bit nervous."
As they entered the main door, he glanced at the girl. "Fairly normal. A small amount also helps in keeping our wits sharp," He reiterated the elder owl's words.
"That too," She replied, gaining back her smile.
The duo took to the wooden stairs. After some moments, even before reaching the final step, they could see a group of genin hoarded around a room, the entry to which was prohibited by the two konoha shinobis.
While finishing climbing the stairs, as they halted, one of the door guards punched a girl with buns.
"Weird," Sakura muttered, taking in the number of the door that read '301'. "This is the first floor; three hundred series should be on the second… "
"That's a genjutsu," Naruto replied, registering the minute flaring of the seal on his shoulder. "I am only able to see '201'."
The pink-haired girl's eyes slightly widened as she recalled her teammates' immunity to genjutsu. After a moment, she asked, giving a sideways glance. "We should move, then?"
The Uzumaki immediately nodded, glad the girl realized that the genjutsu might help in filtering a team or two.
Quickly and quietly, they both took to the adjacent stairs.
Reaching the second floor, they took head of the rooms bearing the ending numbers of the two hundred series. Following it, they came across a turn and halted.
Towards the other end of the corridor, stood Hatake Kakashi, the usual book absent, and behind the man was a set of white doors.
They could easily make out the '301' boldly written atop the doors.
Still, Sakura glanced at the brown-haired boy in case this might also be a genjutsu to throw them off.
Naruto nodded, and both began to amble towards their jounin sensei.
Meanwhile, the Uzumaki took heed of the situation – a habit long since drilled by the elder owl.
The exam would be conducted in an unknown room that translated to an unknown territory that would begin just past the door ahead.
He did not like the thought of that.
"Many a times you would have to venture into lands unknown; if you are unable to construe what lies in there, at the very least, take precautions before entering."
The elder owl's words resurfaced, and he began scanning his surroundings.
To the left was just the wall with a display board – not much to use, but fortunately, towards the right, there were a series of windows.
Contemplating only for a bit, he took a turn towards them.
Kakashi simply watched as the brown-haired Uzumaki walked to the windows and actually leaned towards one, hands coming to rest at the window sill.
The way the kid's eyes began to take in the outside scenery, as well as from earlier when his gaze had flickered at the opposite wall, the copy ninja at once gathered what was going inside the kid's head.
This was not a genin barging into the exam room with excitement, over confidence or nervousness.
No, this was a paranoid but practical shinobi planning and mapping out escape routes before venturing into an unknown territory.
He couldn't help but mentally chuckle, not at all surprised after working with the kid for more than two months.
If anything, the opposite would have surely left him surprised.
"Naruto-kun?" Sakura voiced her confusion.
Immediately, the Uzumaki straightened, turned and resumed the walk, nodding at the pink-haired girl.
But, the copy ninja's sole eye was fixed at the single senbon — left by the Uzumaki on the window sill — that blended almost perfectly with the white colored frame of the window.
The kid hadn't thought of just an escape plan but also provided for the situation in case he ended up getting stripped of his weapons.
Kakashi mentally shook his head in amusement.
Though, it seemed like Haku was already beginning to grow on the Uzumaki if the senbon had anything to say.
As the duo came to halt before him, the jounin eye-smiled at the both. "Mah, I thought you went chicken on me."
"Kakashi-sensei/Sensei!" Sakura greeted with a wide smile while Naruto's lips stretched just a bit — the sensei counting the latter as an achievement.
Beginning as an emotionless twelve year old, in just two months, the kid had come a long way. The smiles were small as compared to what the Uzumaki gave to Haku, but progress was there.
"This room," The copy ninja pointed over his shoulder. "Marks the beginning of your exam; just keep your head straight, I have full confidence in you."
"Thank you sensei," Both replied in unison.
"Good luck."
They entered the room.
Sakura let out a silent gasp, eyes widening as she saw a lot of shinobis, and not only from Konoha, though, a majority were wearing Konoha headbands.
If she were to give a number, they would be over hundred, and she knew theirs was not the last team to enter.
Her nervousness only augmented.
"Sakura."
Heeding to the voice, she looked at Naruto and blinked.
The Uzumaki had just the same emotionless neutral expression on his face as if he had just entered into a park.
She was beginning to doubt he was bothered by anything.
"I will be around."
Before she could even open her mouth, he was already walking away.
She could only sigh.
Ignoring the left side which was a plain wall, as well as some eyes that followed him, Naruto walked towards the right side of the room.
There were a series of windows present along the length of the wall. Near them were wooden chairs.
He let his gaze wander ahead. In the front was a black board around which some papers were stuck on both sides.
Contemplating for a moment, he glanced at the ceiling.
Apart from fans, several lights were installed and each was surrounded by four mirrors, clearly to reflect the light.
Hmmm…
"Get off Sasuke-kun! Ino Pig!" Sakura glowered at the blonde girl who had just jumped on the Uchiha's back, encircling her arms around his neck.
Though, the pink haired girl surprised herself by feeling a comparatively lesser level of emotions than she used to whenever, in the past, Ino showed her affections for the Uchiha.
At the same time she was also aware of the reason.
Uchiha Sasuke had made himself clear, quite painfully too, what he thought of her: pathetic, weak, useless fangirl.
And, unless she actually showed some promise, the status quo would remain the same.
Heck, Mito had the best chance than any of them; their only reprieve being, the girl hadn't shown any signs of romantic interest.
Her thoughts were cut off as Ino audibly mocked her while pulling an eyelid down before sticking her tongue out too.
Glaring, Sakura opened her mouth…
"It seems like everyone's here," Kiba's voice along with a boisterous laugh announced team eight's appearance.
Huffing, the pink haired girl turned her attention towards the three members of team eight. Appearance wise, they looked the same.
"And, if it isn't Mito-chan!"
Namikaze Mito suppressed a sigh before giving a clipped smile to the dog owner. "Kiba-san."
Thankfully, the feral looking boy only flashed her a smile — which, no doubt, he considered as charming.
"Where's the dead last though?" Kiba looked around for a bit before grinning, canines naked for anyone to see. "Don't tell me he chickened out," And laughed again.
Ino joined him.
"Troublesome," Muttering under his breath, Shikamaru shared a glance with Choji at the words but refrained from saying anything else.
"You guys should tone it down."
Taking heed of the smooth calm voice, the group looked towards the approaching gray haired, bespectacled teenager wearing a bit darker shade of gray and blue garbs.
A smirk appeared on his face as he pushed his glasses upto his nose.
"Who the hell are you to tell us?" Ino rudely asked, eyes narrowed while cocking her hip towards the left side and also placing her hand on that.
"Yakushi Kabuto," The teenager replied, the smirk still present. "A fellow genin of Konoha."
"How many times have you given this exam?" Sakura asked, again taking in his appearance. He seemed to be at least eight to ten years older than them.
Were the chunin exams really that hard?
"This is my seventh time actually."
"You must have a lot of experience then," The pink-haired girl again stated.
"Or he must be a lousy one," Kiba pointed out, again laughing. Once again, Ino joined him.
Kabuto still didn't lose his smirk. "I am not the one you should worry about," Voicing, he sidestepped a bit, allowing the genin to gaze at the others in the room.
The rookies lost their mirth immediately. Gazes, predatory, annoyed, amused and even angry, were directed at them.
The genin couldn't help but shuffle a bit closer to each other.
"There are many strong teams here," Kabuto began, regaining their attention and breaking the silence. Now, there were cards in his hands. "I have collected the stats of each team participating here."
He took them all in. "If you want to know about any team or any genin, state so. It might help you in future."
"Rock Lee."
The immediate response made Kabuto look at the Uchiha, smirk widening.
A moment passed.
Sasuke's eyes narrowed.
The bespectacled teenager quickly crouched while pushing his glasses closer to his nose. Singling out a card, he placed it on the floor. After a chakra poke to the card, stats were displayed.
"Rock Lee," He began, reading the information. "A member of team ten along with Hyuuga Neji and Tenten under Jonin Might Guy. He is a taijutsu expert… hmmm," Surprise appeared on his face. "He graduated last year as a deadlast."
The Uchiha immediately clenched his fist. What the hell was happening? He, the Uchiha heir, had been usurped by two dead last shinobis.
First Uzumaki Naruto who had suddenly become an expert in everything but taijutsu, and now Rock Lee who was expert in taijutsu only.
Where was he lacking? Why these deadlasts were suddenly surpassing—
"Team seven."
Musings halting as his own team was asked for, Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the Nara heir who was gazing at the card holding genin.
"Team seven," Kabuto muttered while shuffling his cards before channeling chakra into one. "Hmmm… consists of Uchiha Sasuke, Namikaze Mito, Haruno Sakura and Uzumaki Naruto?"
He glanced at the Uchiha and Namikaze heirs. "A four man cell?" And muttered while cocking his head for a bit.
Then, he glanced back at the card. "Ah. Uzumaki Naruto managed to graduate just barely; of course, they put the deadlast in the strongest team for balance."
Kiba and Ino snorted.
Sasuke, Mito and Sakura exchanged knowing glances.
Shikamaru, though, barely prevented himself from rolling his eyes; outwardly, giving a nod for appearances.
He would have definitely believed the whole deadlast thing if not being a firsthand witness to the chaos that the Uzumaki had brought on their enemies.
Impeccable strategy in a couple of minutes and flawless execution later on; Uzumaki Naruto had proved in the mission that he was anything but a deadlast.
Still, how he managed to hide his skills — because learning them so quickly was impossible — eluded him.
"Now—"
"Silence!"
The booming voice halted Kabuto mid-speaking, and then, there was a loud poof.
Every eye focused towards the front where, amidst the rapidly waning smoke, stood several shinobis. While the others were clad in light gray to dark gray uniforms, the one in the middle stood out.
Though clad in the same gray uniform, the man was wearing a black long overcoat along with a bandana. He also had scars on his face.
"I am Morino Ibiki," The scarred man introduced, standing at the same position. "Proctor for the first part of the chunin exams."
Then, he raised a numbered badge for all to see. "You will take your seats according to the numbers on these badges. Submit your paperwork and receive yours."
Naruto sighed as his grandeur plan just crumbled before his eyes.
Here, he had made preparations for an ambush-escape situation but for nary a moment, had he thought that the first part of the exams would just be a written test.
He glanced at the question paper — an innocent piece of paper containing nine questions — seemed a bit ordinary.
However, if only things were that simple in life.
Look underneath the underneath.
Kakashi's words also flashed before his eyes, cementing his thoughts that there must be something implied about the entire exam.
Still, he had to at least try answering the questions.
Looking at the first one, he immediately recognized it as a decipher. Using the experience from various tests by owls, he applied his mind.
A couple of minutes and many calculations later, he arrived at the answer. However, there was no way to check its authenticity.
Mentally shrugging, he took in the next one, and immediately, on reading the question, realized that this whole 'find the angle of the trajectory of shuriken' was beyond his mental ability.
After a moment, he continued with the next one only to find it too difficult to solve also.
A few minutes later, on reading the ninth question, he simply placed his pencil on the table.
It had become clear these questions were way out of the skills of mere genin. Though, he didn't pride himself as a genius but owls had made him efficiently accomplished in various fields.
So, if one couldn't solve these questions, what was the purpose itself?
As he recalled the proctor's expalanation about the 'If caught cheating five times', the hunch he had formed then, once again made itself known.
But, before acting, he decided to observe.
Ibiki was bored.
Considering his position as the head of TI , this was to be expected as there was no fun in playing with the minds of genin.
Still, duty was duty, and he was not a shirker.
Ignoring the team that was being escorted out by the chunin sub-proctor, he decided to do what he had been doing since the job of proctor had been given to him for the very first time.
Observe the genin and the method employed by them to cheat, or in other words, gather information.
Obviously, there were some who were using totally discreet methods of cheating which, without direct involvement, could not be ascertained.
However, there were still many to watch and pass time.
As usual, to begin with, he took in the dojutsu users of Konoha — the lone Uchiha and two Hyuugas.
As expected, they had their dojutsus active. Already familiar with their way of cheating — finding it to be hardly interesting — he shifted his attention to others.
His gaze landed on the Nara heir who was inactively sitting, eyes closed. A few places behind, Choza's son was also in a similar position, eyes open though.
He smirked, well acquainted with their way of working. The Yamanaka would gather information and then, with her mind transfer, pass it on to the Nara who would then, by linking his shadow, pass it to the Akimichi.
Clearly, the information had not reached them so far. Musing, he found Inoichi's daughter just in time to see her using the mind transfer jutsu at the unsuspecting pink haired girl.
The action brought memories upto the surface when Yamanaka Inoichi had used the same jutsu during their chunin exams.
Time really flew by fast.
Relishing in the good old times for some moments, while ignoring yet another team getting thrown out, he decided to focus on the present and—
"Gotta use the washroom."
Heeding to the voice, the Konoha jonin took in the costume-clad Suna shinobi, mind immediately supplying the name.
Subako no Kankuro.
Yondaime Kazekage's second born — an up and coming puppeteer.
As one of the chunin sub-proctors stood up, handcuffed Kankuro and began to walk towards the door, Ibiki smirked.
Honestly, he had been waiting for this.
The kid had successfully and flawlessly managed to slip his puppet amongst his chunins. And, this excuse of washroom break was also well executed.
Definitely, the scenario left his interest piqued.
Boredom alleviated to some extent, he decided to go for another of Subako siblings, eyes finding the Kazekage's first born.
Subako no Temari.
The girl was waving a miniature fan at her face, clearly blowing air. After some moments, she suddenly made a sharp pulling motion with the fan.
Next moment, the question paper of the genin, to her right, actually flew towards her.
To her credit, though, the girl, only sparing a glance at the paper, looked towards the ceiling.
Ibiki again smirked. When most of the answers were one word, a glance could very well be equivalent to a minute's worth.
Though, the girl was an efficient wind user — knowing and using just the right amount of wind chakra and that too at a certain distance proved her worth and—
The door opened with a creaking sound.
Ibiki's eyes were immediately drawn towards the door only to see Kankuro entering, followed by his puppet chunin proctor.
The scarred shinobi suddenly had the urge to shake his head. It seemed he had been rather early in showering accolades at the puppeteer.
The suna genin had planned well, started the execution well too, but the finishing was simply poor.
If he had been in the brat's place, he would have at least made the washroom break appear acceptable by using some minutes to show the time consumed.
The brat had though not even used more than a few seconds.
Ibiki was a bit displeased and he always made his displeasure known. "I hope you found your washroom trip enlightening."
Kankuro's eyes slightly widened before he composed himself. "I recalled how to solve one of the questions; thought the washroom could wait."
The konoha jonin didn't react, simply continued to look neutrally.
After a moment, the puppeteer slowly ambled and took his seat.
So did the puppet chunin.
Mentally sighing, Ibiki checked the time. Five minutes still remained before the tenth question. Having nothing better to do, he glanced towards the ceiling.
And, was not surprised to see the mirrors – surrounding one of the lights – showing movement in a pattern.
Every time, at least, one of the genin used this trick. He traced the movements to the genin and found his target.
A Konoha genin with twin buns. She was—
The door opened again.
Who? Ibiki looked at the entrance and his eyebrows shot up.
Standing at the door was another Kankuro along with a puppet chunin.
A bit surprised, immediately, he glanced towards the far left where Kankuro — from before — was already sitting.
Besides him, the puppet chunin was also there.
"The hell?! Who are you punk?!"
The shout, full of anger and confusion, made it certain that Kankuro – at the door – had also noticed that there were two of them.
Everyone immediately whirled around, taking heed of the scene, confusion and surprise also appearing on their visages.
A couple of chunin sub-proctors had stood up by now.
Kankuro — at the door — growled and began striding towards his seat—
Poof!
Ibiki found himself leaning a bit forward in interest as the suna genin — on the seat — dispelled into smoke.
As did the chunin puppet beside him.
Before, the jonin could even think of anything, there were a series of dispellings at the windows, rapidly waning smoke appearing at the top side of the window frames.
Ignoring the disorder that ensued as the genins tried to take advantage of the situation, and the Chunins that reacted in response, Ibiki directed his whole attention towards the dispellings.
True, the method was a bit attention-gaining but, ultimately, no different than others. And he was sure, without any effort on their part, the responsible genin would go unnoticed.
However, for the first time in years, Ibiki felt excitement, and just for the sake of it, decided to find out the one behind the doings.
He let his mind run wild.
The dispellings at the windows could be a jutsu, a seal or a device — he really didn't know — but that had provided the one responsible a clear view of at least twenty genins and their question papers.
However, the manner in which Kankuro's doppelganger and chunin puppet had dispelled, simply pointed at the use of an all-too-familiar Konoha jutsu.
Kage Bunshin.
The jutsu alone eliminated almost all the participants due to simply being a heavily chakra intensive jutsu. Further, not many Konoha shinobis knew it and even less used it.
Thus, the only ones to remain were Namikaze Mito — being part Uzumaki, Uzumaki Naruto — their resident jinchuuriki, and Subaku No Gaara — Suna's jinchuuriki.
As it was a closely guarded jutsu, the genin of other villages could also not be considered.
Besides, the reports had made it clear that Suna's jinchuuriki only preferred sand based jutsus, not even wind.
That eliminated Subaku No Gaara too.
He would have gone for Namikaze Mito if only the redhead hadn't directed a look — full of surprise and recognition — at Uzumaki Naruto.
Interesting… Interesting, indeed.
Having turned to look at the door, for the sake of appearance, Naruto slowly moved to look at the front.
Only to meet the gaze of Akimichi Choji.
The plump boy was looking at him in surprise, awe and recognition.
Ignoring him, but getting a bit perturbed, the Uzumaki continued with the motion and received a similar look from Namikaze Mito.
Slight despair reared its head, and he quickly glanced at the Uchiha and the Nara — both also giving him a similar looks, albiet, with lesser intensity.
He didn't even need to see to confirm Sakura's gaze — the girl was the most expressive out of them.
Naruto mentally groaned.
Choji and Shikamaru aside, one would think, having trained under Kakashi, his teammates would show some level of subtlety and not openly gape at him.
But that wasn't the case.
Sighing, and with some trepidation, he glanced towards the front, and his fears were confirmed.
Morino Ibiki was looking right at him.
The kid met his gaze.
Despite the poker face, he immediately detected the shadow of trepidation.
Poor kid. Ibiki mused in amusement. It was really not a good feeling that your plan was given out by your team mates, even if inadvertently.
Though, he would have to give credit to the Uzumaki. The plan had been perfectly executed.
Still, for amusement, he decided to poke some fun at the gaki.
Ibiki smirked at him.
It was a peculiar smirk — one that gave the feeling that he was just a prey whose plan was detected by the predator.
Naruto did not like that smirk.
The kid narrowed his eyes.
Oh? Ibiki chuckled to himself at the look of defiance and—
Poof!
"Ow!"
Thoughts halting, the scarred jonin glanced at the chunin sub-proctor that had fallen to the floor on his rear — wooden chair nowhere to be seen; in its place, wisps of smoke were visible.
While trying to ascertain the cause of disappearance of chair, concealing his surprise, he looked back at the kid.
Uzumaki Naruto returned his smirk.
As he began walking towards the door, following other genin, Naruto saw Ibiki looking at him.
The scarred jonin nodded with a look of… approval?
Confused, he could only nod back.
Sakura quickly strode over to the Uzumaki leaning on the wall in the coridoor. Reaching him, she immediately voiced her surprise. "I get it what you did, but how? Did you plan about the exam in advance?"
Straightening, Naruto began ambling towards the academy exit. As the pink-haired girl fell in step, he glanced at her. "I planned for an ambush, escape or a hostage situation; not for a written exam."
Eyes widening, Sakura faltered mid-step.
Then, she let out an amused giggle. You don't do simple, eh, Naruto-kun?
So, what's the verdict?
Did you enjoy my take?
Please review!
Some clarifications:
The idea of snowy owls came from reddit.
If it isn't clear, the senbon left by Naruto outside the room was a clone in henge which impersonated Kankuro and his puppet.
Naruto also put some senbons — clones in henge — in the window frame inside the class and received their memories.
Ibiki didn't know of Naruto's solid transformation.