Normal speech
Thought
Nine-tails/Other big voices
InnerSakura
A/N:
Disclaimer
I do not own Naruto in any way, shape, or form. This is merely for my, and hopefully everyone else's, enjoyment. Thank you!
Naruto: … Ok, I've decided!! I'm going to be a ninja in my own way!!
It was quiet for a little while. The only real reaction to Naruto's vow was Kakashi smiling through his mask…
As the Konoha shinobi prepared to depart, they were thanked for their help. Then they were off…
Tazuna: That boy changed Inari's heart… and Inari changed the people's hearts… He gave us a bridge to "hope", called "courage". Sooo… how about we name the bridge… "The Great Naruto Bridge"...?
Leaf Meets Sand
Naruto woke up, got himself some breakfast, and bolted out the door when he was done. Kakashi had scheduled a team meeting. As he arrived, he noticed that Sakura and Sasuke were already there, but no Kakashi sensei.
Naruto: GOOD MORNING, SAKURA!!
Instead of addressing each other, Naruto and Sasuke turned away from one another…
Sakura: Not again. Ever since we got back, these two have been acting weird… Kakashi sensei… please hurry!!
When Kakashi finally arrived, two hours late, he greeted his team and was about to tell them the reason he was so late. Naruto and Sakura weren't having it however. Before he could finish, he was cut off…
Naruto: Hey, hey!! Kakashi sensei!! Lately our missions have been too easy!! I want a more, you know, challenging one!! One where I can really shine!! That follows my ninja path!! ! and my heart like…!!!
Kakashi: Yeah, yeah… I already know what you're gonna say… so let's get to why I called you here. As of late, we've been receiving many missions, but since we've come back from the Land of Waves… teamwork's been rather low, particularly with the boys. Now I don't mind your little "rivalry" as long as it doesn't interfere with team progress…
Naruto: Progress…? But we're all getting stronger…
Kakashi: Yes but not as a team… On some missions individual effort is ok, but on others… acting on your own could end up harming the team. Since there will be a slow in incoming missions, I want you to work on increasing your teamwork ability… but since I have other matters to currently attend to, you're free for the time being to do as you please…
Sakura: We won't be going on as many missions…? Why is that?
Kakashi: An upcoming event will take place in a short while and during it… the rate in which missions are brought to the village, and many others, gradually slows. I'll tell you more about this later… *disappearing*
Sakura: … Whatever this event is, it must be pretty big…
Sasuke: What kind of event could be big enough to put a halt on missions for the entire village?
Naruto: Hmm… Something big… that's coming up… I think I remember overhearing my grandpa talking about something like that… but I can't remember what it was… *scratching his head*
Sasuke: You're hopeless…
Naruto: WHAT WAS THAT!!?
Sasuke: I said you're hopeless. It figures that you would have information on what's going on but not understand what it means…
Naruto: HEY!!! YOU'RE TRYING TO CALL ME STUPID AGAIN, AREN'T YA!!!? SAY IT ONE MORE TIME AND I'LL CLOSE YOUR ARROGANT MOUTH, YA JERK!!
Sakura: N-Now, now… there's no need to get so bent out of shape. Calm down Naruto…
Sasuke began to walk away…
Naruto: WHERE'RE YOU GOING SASUKE!! Kakashi sensei said that we're supposed to be working on our teamwork… *watches Sasuke walk away* … YOU'RE THE ONE RUINING OUR TEAMWORK!! Always trying to hog the spotlight… What a guy, right? *to Sakura*
Sakura: Grrrrrrr… IDIOT…! YOU'RE AS MUCH TO BLAME FOR OUR LACK OF TEAMWORK!!
Naruto was appalled. How could she say such a thing to him? She soon followed after Sasuke trying to get him to wait for her…
Sasuke: You're one to talk Sakura… at least Naruto can manage to get himself out of any scrape he's in without any need for someone else. Stop playing the damsel in distress because others won't always be there to save you. If you ask me, you're just as bad as him… And Naruto, if you want me to stop making you look like an idiot… then stop being one and become stronger than me… There are tons of guys stronger than me out there, and yet, I have to do these stupid missions. *continuing to walk away*
Naruto: If you say so, then let's find out which of us is stronger, RIGHT HERE RIGHT NOW!!...
Sasuke ignored him and continued on his way…
Naruto: I don't believe that jerk…! *looks at Sakura* ... Don't listen to him Sakura, I think you're a great ninja… even if you may need rescuing sometimes… not that that's a bad thing, I mean… I wouldn't mind saving you, we're teammates after all… and...
InnerSakura: As bad… as Naruto… As Bad… As Naruto…!
This hit Sakura like a ton of bricks. She even knew herself that Sasuke was completely right. On all of their missions she tended to do the least. Naruto was about to suggest that they train together, then maybe they could help each other with their troubled areas, but he noticed that something was a little unusual…
He turned around to see…
Naruto: Are those… what I think they are? *with a look of disbelief*
Three monkeys sat against the wooden fence… and by the sound of it… they were sleeping. By the way they were snoring, they could have woken the dead.
Naruto: You gotta be kidding me… What kind of lame disguise is that? *mumbled to himself*
He knew exactly who it was but decided to ignore them in hopes of them getting bored and leaving. He turned to leave but realized that something changed. He looked back and they were even closer. Annoyed, he just walked away. That didn't seem to work because every time he made a move, the monkeys did as well. They also seemed to be trying to pounce on him, but when he would look back they would be sleeping again. Feeling annoyed, he turned to confront the little nuisances troubling him…
Naruto: What do you take me for, an idiot!!? I see right through that… Konohamaru!!
Suddenly there was an explosion and in the place of the "sleeping monkeys" were pint-sized ninja wannabes. Naruto wasn't too surprised, he could sense Konohamaru a mile away. He also wasn't surprised to see that he and his little friends seemed to be copying his old style…
Naruto: (Sigh)… I'm just the kind of person little kids can look up to. Sometimes it's hard being a role model…
Konohamaru: Hehe… I knew we couldn't fool a great ninja like yourself cuz… I've never been able to get the drop on you.
Naruto asked what they wanted from him, figuring that they were up to no good. Udon mentioned something about trying to track and trap Naruto but was quickly silenced by Konohamaru. Moegi told him that they wanted him to…
Naruto: Play ninja… with you guys… I don't know, I'm supposed to be training, but I guess I could. This way I get to show you guys some of the cool new jutsus I've been practicing…
Sakura saw this entire act…
Sakura: … A ninja… playing NINJA! Why would a ninja… play ninja?!... *looking at a nervously smiling Naruto* … And I'm… below him?!!...
Naruto: Well, ya see… the way I see it… play for young, future shinobi is important because they can learn how to be a true ninjas from a real one, and they get to have fun at the same time. Pretty efficient, right…?
Sakura: Th-That may be… but it doesn't exactly help you become a better shinobi. Plus it seems like you can only manage to impress little kids that don't really know much about being real shinobi. Either that or you like to pick on smaller, less experienced ninjas. All your big talk already shows how immature you are, but this proves that you wouldn't be a match for…
She was then interrupted by Konohamaru and his big, fat mouth with a misunderstanding of the whole situation…
Konohamaru: Hey Naruto! Why don't you be a man and tell your little girlfriend to butt out and mind her own business…!?
Before he could say anything to clear up this misunderstanding, and Konohamaru's idiocy, Sakura rolled Naruto into a nearby fence with a brutal punch to the face. Konohamaru and his gang were shocked to see the way Naruto was just treated. Looking at her, Konohamaru knew that she was far from done…
Konohamaru: Guys… we have to get out of here. If that ugly girl is willing to beat up on her loving boyfriend for nothing... then just think what she'll do to us…!
Kakashi was turning in his reports to Iruka, who seemed to be a little antsy at the moment…
Kakashi: Is there something you want, Iruka?
Iruka: Oh!... Uh… yeah… I was just curious… is Naruto doing well with his teammates?
Kakashi: Well… he's doing fine…
Kakashi was obviously stretching the truth a little as he wouldn't even look Iruka in the eyes, not that he noticed anyway…
Iruka: That's good… It's just… I've been so busy lately… I haven't seen him since he got back. I was a little worried…
Kakashi: As you know, he's on a team with Sasuke Uchiha. He sees him as a rival and they argue a lot, but both of them are improving greatly. He's improving so rapidly that he may become as strong as the one he respects most… you…
Iruka: … Is that so…? *chuckles like embarrassed*
Both Naruto and Konohamaru were just recovering from the beating of a lifetime. Done with the two idiot brothers, Sakura went on her way, but she could still here Konohamaru spouting off. She heard him say something about her being ugly with a big forehead. She also heard him question her gender. That was the last straw, Naruto and his little crew were gonna die today…
She turned around immediately and gave chase to Konohamaru's gang, leaping over Naruto while in full stride. They were running for their lives as Sakura, with Naruto not too far behind, gave chase.
Sakura: How the hell can you say that someone with dainty features and feminine beauty and charm like myself looks disgusting man…!!?
Konohamaru: I… I didn't say that you looked like a man… I said that you hit like one… a big muscled man's man…!
This pushed Sakura over the line and she was rapidly closing the gap between her and the munchkins. Fearing for his life, Konohamaru ran faster than he could ever imagine. He would probably never run this fast, no matter how hard he tried, again.
Out of nowhere Konohamaru had run into something solid and fell on his behind. Not knowing what he had hit, Konohamaru opened his eyes to see what looked to a guy in a black full bodysuit with purple face paint along with a bratty looking girl with four short, spiky pigtails standing before him…
Konohamaru: What… is the circus in town? *groggily picking himself up*
"What was that pipsqueak?... You know that hurt right?" the clown questioned in an annoyed tone.
He grabbed Konohamaru by his collar and lifted him off the ground. He then proceeded to threaten him with a severe beating while the bratty girl warned him not too get so carried away. Sakura tried to accept responsibility for everything, but it fell on deaf ears…
Naruto: HEY YOU FAT CLOWN!!! PUT HIM DOWN, IT WASN'T HIS FAULT SO LET HIM GO!!!
The "clown" then noticed that the guy that was yelling at him like a madman was indeed a Leaf shinobi. Not liking the pampered shinobi, he began feeling a little more agitated by all this and tightened his grip. He said that he was gonna have a little fun with Konohamaru…
This angered Naruto and he rushed at him blindly. Before he knew it, Naruto had lost his balance and fell to the ground. The only problem was that he didn't know what the cause was, but he had his suspicions.
When he "fell", he noticed that there was some kind of chakra being used that tripped him up. That must have been the answer. He came up with a way around this, but it would remain to be seen if he could actually pull it off…
Naruto had made his decision. He was going to put a stop to this, here and now… with his newly learned technique. He pulled himself up from the ground and took a bizarre stance. It was like he was a defensive lineman getting ready to sack the quarterback.
The makeup wearing "clown" and the bratty girl could see the determination in Naruto's eyes as he looked up and prepared to attack. The bratty girl knew that things were about get bad, and to stay out of it herself, took a few steps back… just in case.
Naruto got an intense look in his eyes as he was about to charge, but a rock hit the "clown's" hand, forcing him to drop Konohamaru. Everyone looked to where the pebble had come from, and there sitting in the tree was…
Sakura: SASUKE!!!
Sasuke: What are you bastards doing in our village?
The two foreign shinobi just looked at Sasuke…
Naruto: I had things handled you know…!
Everyone turned their attention to Naruto who had a crying Konohamaru beside him. They all couldn't help but wonder how and when he had grabbed him…
"You Punks!! I'll get you and your little brats too," the "clown" stated.
Naruto: That's fine by me! Let's pick up where we were when we left off!! *returning to his crouched position*
He charged but it seemed like the same thing as before when he ran in blindly, so the "clown" figured that he owned this pathetic Leaf ninja…
That however, was not the case. The "clown" tried the same trick again, figuring that it was too easy, but he was shocked at what he then saw… or didn't see. Naruto seemed to have frozen in place or something. He wasn't moving an inch. Unsure of what was going on, he raised his free hand but looked surprised…
"Something's wrong here! Is that some kind of "Clone Jutsu"?!!" he frantically asked.
"It-It couldn't be. Where's the real one?... Something's fishy here!" the bratty girl remarked.
Sakura: That's no "Clone Jutsu". Naruto doesn't use a regular "Clone Jutsu", so what is this...? Where is Naruto…?!
Naruto: … And just who are you supposed to be…?
Once again, everyone looked for where the voice had come from and found Naruto standing on top of the fence looking into the tree.
"How did he get behind me without my knowing," the "clown" pondered… "And what is he…" stopping as he realized…
Everyone saw that Naruto was looking up in a tree, so they decided to find out what was so interesting…
Naruto: … I asked you who you were!! Are you deaf?!! *scowling* … What's with you?… This guy… he has a lot of chakra… like me...
"That's enough Kankuro. You're an embarrassment to our village," came a toneless voice.
Everyone could now see who the voice belonged to and Kankuro, the "clown", and the bratty girl, looked to be uncomfortably nervous all of a sudden…
Kankuro: G-Ga… Gaara… Whe… When…
Sasuke: When did he…? He snuck up better than Kakashi usually does …
Gaara appeared to be a boy around Naruto's age wearing a black short sleeved shirt and pants with a giant gourd strapped to his back.
Gaara: Losing in a fight is pathetic… Why do you think we came to this village…? We didn't come to mess around… *looks at the girl* … You were supposed to keep him out of trouble, Temari…
Temari: I-I'm sorry Gaara, but you know Kankuro…
Kankuro: Listen Gaara… they started it and…
Gaara: Shut up…. or I'll kill you myself…
This sent chills down everyone's' spines, including Gaara's teammates…
Kankuro: Ok, I'm sorry… I… I was totally out of line…
Temari: I'm sorry too… really sorry…
Sasuke: So this one's the leader… He has an evil look in his eyes… *analyzing Gaara*
Gaara: I want to apologize to you guys for any harm the idiot caused… He stopped Kankuro with only a pebble and made it look easy… what a guy… He's someone to keep an eye on…
He then disappeared in a stream of sand and reappeared on the ground between his two teammates…
Gaara: It looks like we got here too early… Let's go.
Sakura: Wait…!! Judging from your headbands, you guys are ninja from the Sand Village, right?! Leaf and Sand may be allies, but… it is forbidden for shinobi to enter each other's village without permission. State your purpose… depending on it, we may not be able to let you go…
Temari: Heh, that's funny… Talk about clueless… Don't you guys know anything...? *taking out a pass*
She explained what they were doing there, the Chunin Exams…
Naruto: … Chunin… Selection… where have I heard that before…?
Temari: Jeez, you really don't know anything… The Chunin Exam is where outstanding Genins from any and every other Hidden Villages assemble to take an exam to become Chunins… The main purpose is said to be improve relationships between the allies and to raise the shinobi level, but also each country likes to maintain a power balance and…
Naruto: THAT'S IT!!! That's what I'll do!! Taking this exam may just give me the challenge I'm looking for!!
Temari: HEY DON'T INTERRUPT ME LIKE THAT!! I WAS TRYING TO EXPLAIN THINGS TO YOU, YOU BASTARD!!!
Sasuke: Hey, you… what's your name?... *jumping from the tree*
Temari began to blush as she pointed to herself, questioning if he meant her. This just upset Sakura as she could understand the thoughts behind the blush…
Sasuke: No… the kid with the gourd…
Gaara: …Gaara of the Desert… I'm also interested in your name…
Temari looked disappointed as Gaara and Sasuke traded information. Sakura on the other hand was happy that Sasuke didn't seem to be interested in this other girl.
The Sand trio then turned to leave when Naruto inquired…
Naruto: Hey what about me?!! Don't you wanna know my name?!!
Gaara: Not interested… Let's go…
As they left, Naruto seemed to be having a fit. His flailing about soon resulted in him falling through the fence he was standing on top of. While he laid there cursing under his breath, everyone else, except Konohamaru, ignored him and his "antics".
Sasuke: Heh… this is getting interesting…
While all of this went down, they were all being watched by three other figures from the cover of the trees…
"So, what do you think?" one asked.
"Well… nothing serious, but… that black haired Leaf and the Sand brat with the gourd… let's keep our eyes on them," came one that was wrapped in bandages head to who knows where...
A confrontation between Leaf and Sand with a third looking on...
More confrontations to come...
Next chapter: The Chunin Exam...