99 reviews. OMGYES.
imsabbel: To be honest if I was the Hokage I wouldn't want Sasuke to be tampering with the Cursed Seal. And you bring up a valid point, but unfortunately it is about 16 chapters too late.
Pyr00tje: Brilliant idea, indeed. I'll definitely be trying to incorporate it into this! :)
Thanks to Akatsuki no Kyara, imsabbel, Charrmed and Pyr00tje for the reviews!
Naruto glared hard at the hot spring.
He wanted to take a dip in it, but reminded himself that he was here to train.
Itachi had told him all about water-walking, saying it was somewhat similar to tree-climbing, and instructed him to practice his chakra control by doing water-walking in the hot springs.
Summoning chakra to his feet, Naruto stepped onto the water. He took a few successful steps, and then, to his horror, his right foot sunk under.
Despite this, Naruto's left foot was still fixed firmly on the surface, and it was a particular sight to see the young Genin's right body half dangling between the air and underwater.
Getting out of the hot springs, Naruto was about to try again. He turned, and was mortified to see a white-haired man with a telescope, peeking through a hole.
The blonde instantly realized through the hole was the opposite side of the hot springs, where the women bathed in.
Who is this man? Naruto frowned. What a pervert!
Forming his hands into a familiar hand seal, he thought, this guy could be a ninja. Charging in could be unwise.
A Naruto clone appeared, and nodded towards the original, who went into hiding.
"Oi! Old pervert! What are you doing?"
Said pervert turned and put his telescope down, glaring angrily at the Naruto clone.
His glare turned to widening eyes.
"M-M-M-Minato?"
"Huh?" The clone questioned.
"Minato? Is that-"
No! Minato is dead! Then... who is this boy?
"Who's Minato?"
"Bah," the large man's glare returned. "What is a young brat like you doing here? Go play ninja or something and leave me to my work."
"Your work?" Naruto snorted. "Are you a full-time pervert, then?!"
Drawing a sword, the clone attacked.
This brat can use a weapon?
"Go away, brat!" There was a puff of smoke, and a toad appeared. From his hiding spot, the original Naruto's jaw hung open. The toad rammed itself into the clone, destroying it.
The old pervert was on his feet instantly, as the toad disappeared as soon as it'd appeared.
A Shadow Clone? Who exactly is this brat?
Naruto emerged from his hiding spot.
"Who exactly are you, and what are you doing in Konoha?" He demanded, noticing the peculiar symbol on this man's forehead protector.
"Very well, since you asked..." The man smirked. "I am...!" Another toad appeared below the summoner, and he did a pose. "... the great Toad Sage, Jiraiya!"
"Toad... Sage?" Naruto rolled his eyes. "More like the Pervy Sage!"
"What did you call me, you brat?" Jiraiya growled.
"The Pervy Sage!" Naruto repeated, drawing an angry look from Jiraiya. "Say, those toads you can summon are cool. How do I do that?"
Jiraiya chuckled, and turned around, going back to his little peephole and picking up his telescope.
"I've no time for a brat like you unfortunately! Need to do my research, you know!"
"Bloody pervert," Naruto groaned.
"I am not a pervert," Jiraiya said seriously, turning to face Naruto again. Then his lips curled into a goofy grin. "I am the... super pervert!" Laughing, he turned back to his 'research', making Naruto shake his head.
"You look like an old man but you're more immature than me," Naruto remarked.
Chuckling at the comment, Jiraiya focused in on a particular brunette who had just stepped out from the baths. Giggling slightly, the Toad Sage started taking down notes.
Maybe I should just ignore this old guy, Naruto sighed. But those toads he could summon were cool! They could help me against that Gaara guy! What should I do? Aha, I've got it.
"Oi, Pervy Sage."
"Do not call me that, you brat!" Jiraiya lowered his telescope and turned again. "What do you want this time? Not gone home yet?"
"Check this out," Naruto smirked. "Sexy Jutsu!"
Jiraiya's mouth formed a huge O as Naruto demonstrated his perverted technique. Changing back into his normal self, the Jinchuriki shot the Sage a victorious smile. "Well, how about it? Teach me how to use the toad!"
"Y-Yes! Of course I'll teach you!" Jiraiya screamed in passion.
"Hmph," Naruto grinned.
"Before I teach you this, maybe you can do that... Sexy Jutsu for me one more time?" Jiraiya's eyes sparkled.
"No," Naruto refused. "Not until you show me how to do a cool toad trick!"
Jiraiya hung his head in sadness. "Fine."
Biting his thumb to draw blood, Jiraiya launched his hands into a few hand seals and slammed his palm on the ground.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
Naruto watched on in awe as a green toad appeared in a puff of smoke.
Behind the toad was a scroll. Taking the scroll off the toad's back, Jiraiya unrolled it. He paused for a moment, debating on whether to tell the boy that toads weren't the only animal that could be summoned, and if he wanted to think about it before signing the contract.
However, his desire for the Sexy Jutsu took over, and grinning, Jiraiya presented the contract to Naruto.
"You sign your name in blood here," he pointed to a blank space. "This will give you the ability to summon toads."
"Gotcha!" Naruto bit his thumb. "Na... ru... to... Uzumaki!" He declared, as he wrote his name down.
Jiraiya chuckled.
Yup, definitely the son of Minato and Kushina alright. The old man told me about him taking his mother's name. I see... so he's the one.
When the toad and the scroll disappeared, Jiraiya nodded. "Alright. You've seen me summon the toad earlier. Now, you do it."
Nodding, Naruto did the same hand seals that Jiraiya did earlier, after biting his thumb to draw more of his blood. Slamming his palm onto the ground, Naruto yelled, "Summoning Jutsu!"
A small red toad appeared.
"Heeeey! I've been summoned!" The toad exclaimed. Then he noticed the white-haired man. "And by the great Toad Sage, Jiraiya! What an honor!"
Naruto stared at Jiraiya suspiciously. Is this 'Toad Sage' really that important?
"Ah, Gamakichi," Jiraiya smiled. "It wasn't me, but this guy who summoned you."
"Yo!" The small red toad, Gamakichi, turned to face Naruto with a big grin on his face.
"Why can't I summon big toads like you?" Naruto whined.
"Well, because you aren't as great as me!" Jiraiya proudly announced. Naruto smacked his face with his hand.
Still, to summon a small toad on his first attempt, and I didn't even give him any instructions! I was expecting something like a small tadpole. Has he inherited your skill, Minato? Jiraiya smiled at the thought of his late student.
"Hello there," Naruto grinned at Gamakichi. "My name is Naruto Uzumaki, and I'm going to become the next Hokage!"
Gamakichi frowned. "Oh, right. Anyway, I'm Gamakichi!" He introduced himself. "Nice to meet ya!"
"Naruto," Jiraiya interrupted. "Is that your name?"
"Yeah."
"Okay, Naruto." Jiraiya nodded. "Try using the Summoning Jutsu again, and maybe, um, a bigger toad this time."
"Hey!" Gamakichi shot, and Jiraiya laughed.
Following the same things he did earlier, Naruto slammed his palm on the ground. "Summoning Jutsu!"
A green toad appeared, much bigger than Gamakichi this time. This toad briefly nodded at Jiraiya and disappeared again.
"Rude fella," Gamakichi commented, and Naruto nodded in agreement.
"Alright, good job. Now try again."
Sasuke panted wildly. It had been three long weeks, and finally, he was making some progress.
"I'm ready to continue," he informed.
Itachi nodded.
"Sharingan," Sasuke activated his dojutsu. The burning pain on his neck returned, but Sasuke had gotten so used to it now that he didn't even flinch. "Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu."
"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu."
Both fireballs blasted into each other, creating smoke. Sasuke emerged from the smoke, now with the black marks covering half his face. Pulling his fist back, Sasuke prepared for a punch, but Itachi ducked with ease.
A second later, Itachi had been thrown back by a knee crashing into his face.
"You are a lot faster than you were before," the older Uchiha commented, throwing a few shuriken.
"Yeah," Sasuke nodded, beating off the throwing stars with his kunai. "I feel like I can lose control of myself any moment though."
"Well, at least you've made progress." His hands flying into a set of hand seals, Itachi cried, "Fire Style: Dragon Flame Bomb!"
"Fire Style: Dragon Flame Jutsu!"
Both fire techniques collided with each other again, but Sasuke's was stronger. Itachi was taken aback by this, as the dragon-headed fireball surged towards him.
Forming a Tiger seal, Itachi proceeded to knead chakra in his stomach.
"Water Style: Liquid Bullet."
Spewing three bullets of water at the flame, Itachi easily extinguished it, and more smoke covered the area. Like before, Sasuke jumped out of the smoke again and engaged Itachi.
Sasuke threw a punch and then another, but his brother was easily dodging his attacks, despite their enhanced speed. Finally, the younger boy was thrown a meter away with a strong kick to the chest.
"That hurt, brother..." Sasuke groaned. The marks on his face faded, and returned to the original mark on his neck.
"These three weeks have paid off." Itachi brushed the dirt off his clothes. "It seems you can now control the Cursed Seal to a certain extent. We'll practice for one more week, and then I'll be introducing you to your Lighting Style instructor."
Sasuke nodded. "Sounds good."
"So, Sakura. Tenzo tells me you can do five Earth Style jutsu now," Itachi said admiringly.
"He told me you mastered seven Fire Style jutsus and seven Water Style jutsus in the same amount of time," Sakura chuckled.
"Well, that is true," Itachi laughed. "But still, for a Genin fresh out of the academy, to learn five ninjutsu in just a month is quite an accomplishment."
Sakura nodded, smiling. "Yeah!" Then she looked up. "Itachi-sensei... how is Sasuke-kun and Naruto doing with their training?"
"Oh... Sasuke and Naruto?" Itachi smiled. "Sasuke is doing well. He's already learnt how to control himself if his Cursed Seal tries to take over. We didn't have time to master it, but to be able to fully control himself so well already in just a month is already pretty incredible."
"He's Sasuke-kun after all."
"Yes," Itachi chuckled softly. "He's going to meet the teacher that's going to teach him ninjutsu today. If you ask me, he's definitely going to beat his opponent."
"What about Naruto?"
"Well, I haven't been seeing Naruto much this past month," the Jonin admitted. Then his lips broke into his usual smile. "But from what I've been hearing, he already has a very good teacher. But, like you, he'll be meeting me in a few days to do that kenjutsu mastering we talked about."
"I see. Anyway, I think I'm ready."
"Alright." Itachi got up, and looked around their surroundings - the Tenth Training Ground in Konoha. "As you know, today, we're going to learn a genjutsu." He produced a book, simply titled 'Genjutsu'.
"Where did you get a book like that?" Sakura asked, inspecting the blue-colored cover.
"It's in the Uchiha Library," Itachi explained, turning the book open. Flipping to a particular page, he nodded. "This one is perfect." Setting the book down, Itachi placed his hands into the Tiger seal.
"Genjutsu: Infinite Darkness."
Sakura blinked, and soon the surroundings of trees, grass and Itachi had disappeared, replaced by a world of pitch black.
Before the pinkette could scream, Itachi released the genjutsu.
"That was scary."
Itachi smiled wryly. "This is an A-Rank genjutsu that will help buy time for an attack. When under this, the enemy will basically be blinded, and a sitting duck. Only a physical attack will pull them out of the genjutsu, or if the user decides to close it."
Sakura nodded slowly.
"When do I start?"
Sasuke sighed. He was finally at the top of the mountain.
Tossing his backpack to the ground, Sasuke looked up, to see a silver-haired Konoha shinobi standing in front of him. He turned, to reveal a masked face and a tilted forehead protector, covering one of his eyes.
"Good afternoon. I am Kakashi Hatake."
I'm sorry if this was a lame chapter, but I couldn't just skip to the third exam with every one having those cool jutsu and new skills. And I know I'm overpowering Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura a bit, but I just had to. Especially Sakura, because Kishi makes her so... useless in the manga. And I can't write about a Sakura in battle who only knows how to use her fists, kunai and shuriken. In the next chapter, time is finally brought forward to the day before the third exam. Until next time!