A/N: Sorry for the wait, I was planning my next chapters to my Vampire Knight and my SasuHina story :)
Disclaimer: No Naruto characters belong to Kishimoto-sama.
A Little Advice
She felt uneasy looking at this guy,
She trusts her instinct
And her instinct told her not to trust him.
Naruto half dragged Kari along as he marched, right arm linked with her left. Kita was sniffing the variety of scents that came from a whole load of different people, she walked between Kari's two other team mates. Sasuke seemed to be brooding, so he was left to it, though Sakura remained at his side, ever faithful. Naruto babbled on about his forthcoming victories, cheery grin in place.
"Hey Kashi!" Kari cried suddenly, noticing the silver haired jonin waiting for them in front of a door.
"Glad you came Sakura" Kakashi said, looking over at the bubblegum kunoichi. Offended, Kari pointed at herself. Didn't he love her? Had Sakura replaced her already? He chuckled. "I'm just as happy to see you Kari" he reassured her. Kari smiled in contentment. "For your sake and the others" he finished. The team shot him a puzzled look. "Now you can all formally register for the chunin exam."
"Why? What do you mean?" Sakura questioned.
"You see, only groups of three are allowed to apply for and take the exam" Kakashi explained.
"NANI!?"
"That means one of us can't take it!" Naruto cried.
"Who's the weakest on the team?" Sasuke said, his eyes darting to each of us. His eyes finally settled on Sakura and Kari felt the overwhelming urge to defend her.
"Guys! If anyone's going out it's me!" Kari cried, breaking the tense atmosphere.
"What?!"
"Kari-chan you don't want to do the exams?" Naruto cried, his hold on her arm tightening, making it perfectly clear he was not letting go, not even for a steaming bowl of his favourite ramen.
"Come on, I'm hardly ready. I've only been here a month! I've got so much to learn. Sasuke you're the strongest, Sakura you're the smartest, Naruto you're the one who always believes in yourself bringing the team up with you, you don't need me but you need each other" Kari said. True, she really wanted to do these exams and the selfish nature in every human said that she deserved it, but seriously. She wasn't even from this world. She hadn't been training her whole life to be a ninja. She knew how much this meant to Naruto, she knew Sasuke wanted this, Sakura… well she might just be there for Sasuke, but still.
"But you're the heart of the team, the one that keeps us together" Sakura said, surprising everyone. Kari's heart turned to goo and she felt her eyes become moist. That was the sweetest thing Sakura had ever said to her.
"IF KARI-CHAN DOESN'T DO IT, NEITHER DO I! DATTEBAYO!" Naruto hollered without hesitation. Kari bit her lip as her eyes became watery. Naruto-kun…
"…hn." Sasuke agreed. Kari's moment of appreciation was ruined by that small grunt. He could have at least pretended he cared.
"Hey, you didn't let me finish." Kakashi said, catching everyone's attention. "The Hokage's sorted it all out, it's just as equal if not more difficult you've got an extra person to look out for and due to Kari's inexperience she'll most probably be more of a hindrance than a help."
"Kashiii!"
"I'm proud of you all and your team spirit. Kari, you really are the heart of the team" Kakashi said smiling, placing a hand on her head. "Oh? The ears are gone" he said surprised and seemingly saddened.
"But sensei you said the decision to take the exam was up to the individual, did you lie?" Sakura said, cutting off Kakashi's train of thought.
"Well… sort of. I didn't want the boys pressuring you, though I'm sure Kari would have supported you whatever you did. I didn't want you to feel obliged to participate because of any feelings you might have for Sasuke, Kari or Naruto. I wanted you to come to a decision of your own free will" Kakashi explained.
"See! You do care Kashi-kun!" Kari said happily.
"Don't call me that."
"Wait a minute, do you mean if the others had shown up, but I decided not to come with them-" Sakura began.
"It would have been the end of the line. I couldn't have let the others in" Kakashi said. "But you're all here and for the right reasons, Sakura, Naruto, Kari and Sasuke I'm proud of you. I couldn't ask for a better team" Kakashi said.
"Couldn't ask for a better sensei" Kari said happily.
"Good luck" Kakashi said.
"We won't let you down sensei believe it!" Naruto cried.
"Sasuke, Naruto, Sakura, make sure you take care of Kari. Remember, she isn't as wise in the ways of the shinobi as you are."
"See ya Kashi!"
And with that, Kakashi felt pride swell inside his chest, as he watched his four young genin (and Kita) take the first step to the next level.
"W-what's this?" Naruto asked.
Holy shit.
"Gee… I guess we're not alone" Sakura said with a gulp.
So many people.
Kari shuddered. She wasn't a big fan of crowds. Especially crowds of people she didn't know. All those glaring eyes made her stomach turn.
"Man I had no idea there would be so much competition" Sakura said awkwardly.
Don't worry Okaa-san I'll protect you! Kita cried through her telepathic link with Kari. Reassured, the blonde kunoichi relaxed, cooing to Kita in her mind.
"SASUKE-KUN! WHERE'VE YOU BEEN?!" Ino screeched, popping out of nowhere and attacking Sasuke from behind. "Boy you had no idea how much I wished you'd be here! I've missed those brooding good looks of yours!" Ino cooed, hugging the Uchiha tightly. Kari shuddered at the glare Sasuke gave Ino, but the girl didn't seem at all phased.
"GRRR! HEY YOU PORKER! BACK OFF HE'S MINE!" Sakura cried. Not wanting to be caught in a bitch fight Kari glued herself to Naruto's side for protection.
"Miss Forehead, they let you in? Heh, still got those frown lines on your billboard brow I see" Ino said haughtily.
"LEAVE MY FOREHEAD OUT OF IT!" Sakura screeched as Ino spat her tongue out.
"Oh it's you guys. I knew this thing would be a drag, but I didn't know it'd be this lame" Shikamaru said rolling his eyes.
"Shika!" Kari cried, bounding over to him. "You're actually awake?"
"So all three stooges are here" Naruto said scowling, having found Shikamaru's previous comment insulting.
"Hey! You know what pipsqueak— ah, forget it. You're a waste of time" Shikamaru said, losing heart half way through. Kari sniggered at him next to the large boy whose name she couldn't remember.
"Chouji" he said, swallowing the food in his mouth. Kari blinked, was it that obvious she was forgetful?
"Sorry but Sasuke-kun's all mine" Ino said smugly, as Sasuke's face darkened by the second. Kari inched slightly behind Chouji, reasoning he would be a pretty good shield against Sasuke's wrath.
"Well, what do ya know? It looks like the whole gangs back together again" a loud voice called over the crowd. Kari's ears managed a miniscule twitch underneath the confines of the ribbon. That sounds like…
"Kiba-kun!" Kari cried, shooting past Chouji.
"Hey Kari-chan" Kiba said with a large grin, holding his arms out expectantly. Stopping an inch or so in front of him, Kari reached forward and pulled Akamaru out of Kiba's coat.
"Aka-kun! It's been so long!" she cooed, rubbing her cheek against the puppy's furry head. Akamaru 'Arf'-ed in delight, his little tail a blur of wagging.
"ALWAYS the dog..." Kiba said with a depressed sigh. Kari placed Akamaru on the ground, so he and Kita could have puppy talk. She then pulled Kita into the tightest hug she could manage.
"Hinata-chan!" Kari cried, catching sight of the shy girl. She abandoned her tight hold on Kiba and bounced over to Hinata, who was blushing at an oblivious Naruto.
"Onee-chan" she greeted warmly.
"Go on, say hi, he won't bite" Kari whispered, giving Hinata discreet little nudges in Naruto's direction. "And if he does ill bite him twice as hard." Hinata giggled, then looked back to Naruto.
"K-konnichiwa Naruto-kun" she said quietly, blushing furiously. Sadly, Naruto didn't notice her. Kari sighed in defeat, Hinata patting her on the arm in comfort. The Hyuuga heiress didn't seem to mind it should have been the other way round.
"Hikari."
"Eh?" Kari said, looking round. "Oh Shino, hey!"
"As promised" the bug user said, handing something to her. Kari blinked, looking at the black sunglasses. The light reflected off them, making them seem highly polished. Kari took them carefully; afraid a sudden movement might cause them to shatter.
"Shino-kun… thank you!" Kari cried, remaining perfectly still as so not to damage her gift. "They'll bring me luck in the Chunin exams, d—!" Kari just managed to stop herself saying 'dattebayo'. Geez… the circumstances of actually listening to Naruto.
"So you guys too? Man everyone's here for this stupid thing" Shikamaru said grumpily.
"Yep here we all are the ten rookies" Kiba looked round at Kari and grinned. She smiled back, glad he had remembered her. He then laughed with excitement. "This is gonna be fun! At least for those of us good enough to make the cut, right Sasuke?"
"Kiba careful, you don't get overconfident" Sasuke said smirking.
"Pshh, Sasuke you're the definition of overconfident" Kari mumbled, her comment going unnoticed by all but Team 8.
"Just wait, we're gonna blow you guys away! We've been training like crazy!" Kiba said cockily. Now this may annoy most people, with Kiba being loud and confident and slightly rude, but for some reason, Kari finds him loveable. Sort of like with Naruto. But Naruto was the lord of being adorably stupidly lovable, if only to Hinata and Kari.
"What d'you think we've been doing? Sitting around picking daisies? You don't even know what training means!" Naruto cried defencively.
"Anou... don't mind Kiba-kun, I don't think he really meant anything buy it" Hinata said softly. Kari bit her tongue in an attempt to stop herself gushing. She blinked, feeling the length of her canines. What the? They're so long!
"Oro?" Naruto said looking round at Hinata. Hinata's face flushed a deep ruby, as Kari's heart was nearing failure. He noticed her! The beginning of a beautiful—
"Yo Kari-chan! Anyone home?" Kibba called waving a hand in front of her face.
"Ne?! Hands off our teammate Dog-boy!" Naruto shrieked, dragging a puzzled wolf girl behind him. The fox-boy and dog-boy were locked in a battle of glaring at one another, Shino seemed to be telling off Chouji and pointing at the floor, Ino and Sakura were still arguing over a patience-thinning Sasuke, when…
"Hey you guys!" A guy called, distracting the rookies. "You might wanna try keeping it down a little. I mean, no offence, but you're the nine rookies right fresh out of the academy right?"
"Ten" Sasuke corrected, as Kari's eyes scanned the new-comers appearance.
Mid-length silver hair was tied back, his bangs kept out of his face by a Konoha hitai-ate. He had dark eyes, and Harry Potter glasses. He was wearing a purple outfit a bit like a male version of Ino's. He seemed a few years older than the rookies judging by his height and his face. But there was something Kari couldn't quite put her finger on, something not right about this guy…
Untrusting, Kari picked up Kita and brought her close to her chest, instinctively trying to protect her. A low, quiet growl escaped the young pup, who then looked up at her mother meaningfully. If Kita disliked this guy, he couldn't be any good.
"I wouldn't go making a spectacle of yourselves, just cool it. This isn't a class field trip."
"Oi! Dare motomedesu ka?! Daredesu ka?" Ino snapped. Kari sighed. The return of the confusing Japanese language... Where for art thou little voice? Translations are appreciated.
'Hey, who asked you!? Who are you?' The voice replied at once.
"I'm Yakushi Kabuto, but really, look around you. You've made quite an impression."
Looking round Kari shuddered. Piercing, scrutinizing, loathing, irritated, amused, curious eyes glared out at her, stripping her down and examining her, looking for weakness, for the most painful way to destroy her. Never in her life had she felt so naked. For comfort she moved an inch or so closer to Kiba, so their arms were pressed together. The dog boy's overbearing confidence was comforting when you felt your own confidence was about to die.
"You see those guys? They're from the rain village they're very touchy they all are" Kabuto said, pointing out some rather pissed looking ninja. "This exam makes everyone tense and you don't wanna rub them the wrong way right now."
"That sounded so wrong" Kari mumbled causing Kiba to snort. Already feeling as though they were in a den of rabid, angry, hungry lions, Kari covered his mouth.
"Well, you can't help it. I mean how could you know how things work? You're just rookies. You remind me of myself a while back" Kabuto said smiling.
"Kabuto is that your name?" Sakura asked. Kari resisted the urge to pull her team mate away and scold her in hushed whispers for talking to him. He was dangerous, she knew it!
"Yeah" he replied.
"This isn't the first time you've taken the exam?" Sakura asked curiously.
"No it's... my seventh" he said. Kari whistled in her mind. Boy must he suck…
"Well they're held twice a year so it'll be my fourth year" he said.
"Wow, veteran you must really be an expert by now" Sakura said with the air of sucking up. Kari was unable to hold in her cringe.
"Yeah sort of" he replied.
"Osoroshii! You can give us all the inside tips!" Naruto cried excitedly. Kari looked at him solemnly. That's why she hid with Kiba, Naruto would end up poking the angry lions in the eye.
'Osoroshii translates to awesome.' The little voice popped up.
"Yeah, some expert. He's never passed" Shikamaru scoffed, voicing Kari's earlier opinion.
"Yeah well seventh times the charm, that's what they say eh?" Kabuto said, smiling awkwardly and rubbing the back of his head in the way Naruto did when feeling uncomfortable.
"So I guess all those rumours about the exam being tough are true... Oh ma,n I knew this was gonna be a drag..." Shikamaru moaned.
"Hang on, don't give up hope yet, maybe I can help you kids out a little" Kabuto said pulling out a deck of cards.
"Snap?" Kari asked. Kabuto chuckled, sending chills through Kari's spine and causing her tail to bristle under Kiba's jacket.
"No, with my ninja info cards" he said pulling out a deck of orange cards with kanji printed on the back. The voice decided to let Kari guess, leaving her mind silent.
"What the heck are those?" Sakura asked, allowing kari's opinion to once again be voiced.
"It's hard to explain, but these cards have been chakra encoded with everything I've learned over the last four years, I've got more than 200 of them, so you can see I haven't been completely wasting my time." He turned the first card over to reveal a completely blank card. "They might not look like much to the naked eye, in fact they appear blank. Don't want just anyone seeing this stuff" he said placing his index finger on the blank side.
"What are you doing?" Sakura asked.
"You see, I'm using my chakra to reveal their secrets. Like this for example" he said. As the blank side of the card became a map. Kari tilted her head to the side, she never thought of the Naruto world's continents being all messed up. Looks like she can't go look at where the UK should be for clues on why she was here.
"Awesome, a map... of what?" Sakura asked.
"The geographical distribution of all the candidates to take the chunin exam" Kabuto said. Kari sighed sadly. Geography had been her worst subject at school. She couldn't figure out one end of a map to another. And what's with the long words? Sure she was pretty good at English and had an inkling what they meant but still! He could have made it more simple. "The villages they come from and how many from each village." Never mind. "Why do you think the come here together to take the exam at the same time?" he asked.
"Speed dating?" Kari said sarcastically.
"Anou... Iie. To foster friendship between nations of course! International brotherhood and all that, it's true enough as far as it goes" Kabuto explained.
"But there's another reason" Sasuke said, appearing at Kari's other side. He dodged her reflexive punch, giving her a disbelieving look. One that clearly said 'You're a ninja you pathetic baboon, don't let your guard down.' And yes, just for the record, Sasuke did indeed once call Naruto a pathetic baboon in Kari's presence.
"I thought you were with Ino!" Kari hissed. Sasuke shot her a nasty glare.
"Yeah, you see this way they can carefully regulate the total number of shinobi that are in each village therefore maintaining the balance of power" Kabuto said in answer to Sasuke's comment.
"Oh yeah, balance of power" Naruto said nodding. Kari smirked. Her fox brother didn't have the foggiest what they were talking about.
"Balance of power, big deal, what a drag" Shikamaru said in his typical lazy manner. Kabuto retracted his chakra from the card.
"If the balance isn't maintained, one nation could end up with many more shinobi than it's neighbours and be tempted to attack them. So they try to maintain the status quo. Makes sense I suppose" Kabuto said with a shrug.
"Do those cards of yours have any info on the candidates individually?" Sasuke asked. Kari shot him a look. Who was the Uchiha interested in?
"They might, you have someone special in mind?" Kabuto asked.
"I might" Sasuke replied.
"Well I can't promise my information is accurate, but I got something on just about everyone, including you guys of course. Except… you" he said, pointing at Kari. She tensed then forced a smile.
"Yeah, I'm not exactly interesting" She said, shoving the topic aside. Kabuto gave her a deep stare, sort of creeping her out. He turned back to Sasuke.
"So which one is it, tell me anything you know about them, a description, where they're from, whatever, anything at all."
"He's Subaku no Gaara and Rock Lee of Konohakagure" Sasuke said. Kari automatically searched for the two mentioned chakra signatures. Both were with their teams. Lee and TenTen were discussing something, while Neji was watching the other participants. Feeling Kari's gaze he looked round at her, the message in his eyes clear.
Stay alert. Be careful. Trust no one.
"Man, that's no fun, you even know their names. That makes it easy" Kabuto said. He pulled out two cards. "Ok, first up is Rock Lee, looks like he's about a year older than you guys, mission experience 11 C ranks and 20 D ranks. His squad leader is Gai and in the last 12 months his Taijutsu has radically improved. But his other skills are pretty shaky. Last year he got a lot of attention as a genin, but for some reason he chose not to participate in the Chunin exam. This will be his first time as a candidate same as you guys. His team mates are TenTen and Hyuuga Neji" Kabuto said.
"Oro? Hyuuga?" Naruto said, the name seeming familiar. Kari smiled at Hinata, who seemed a little tense at the mention of Neji's name. Kari knew she was quite scared of him and she had good reason to be. If a calm Neji was ruthless and scary, Kami forbid what an enraged Neji would be like.
"Ok, now for Subaku no Gaara. Mission experience 8 D-Ranks and get this 1 B-rank as a genin. There's not a lot more information on this guy. He was a rookie from another land, but there is this. He survived every mission without getting a scratch on him" Kabuto said.
"The dude's done a B-Rank as a genin and he's never even been injured?" Shikamaru said surprised.
"What's the deal with this guy?" Naruto cried, as Kabuto once again brought out the map.
"Konohagakure no sato, Sunagakure no sato, Amegakure no sato, Kusagakure no sato, Takigakure no sato, Otogakure no sato, by the looks of it they've all sent exceptionally gifted candidates this time around. Of course the Oto, the Sound village, is pretty small. It sprung up recently and no one knows anything about it. These guys are a mystery, well you get the point all the competition is going to be intense this year."
"So it would seem it's almost enough to make you lose your confidence" Hinata said sadly.
"It's a fine time to start talking like that--Eep!" Ino cried, Kari's murderous making the Yamanaka feel as though her stomach had just fallen out of her.
"D'you really think it's gonna be tougher this time?" Sakura asked, oblivious to the scene going on behind her.
"Oh yeah, in the four years I've been coming I've never seen a crop of candidates with this much potential before. We've got our work cut out for us" Kabuto said. Naruto was shaking, his eyes on the ground.
"Hey don't worry Naruto we'll be fine" Sakura reassured, mistaking Naruto's excitement for fear. After a moment of tense silence, Naruto exploded.
"MY NAME IS UZUMAKI NARUTO!" Naruto screeched at the top of his lungs, making Kari duck and cling to the back of Kiba's jacket. Then, just as she thought it was over, Naruto made things a hell of a lot worse. He turned and pointed at his best friend grinning."AND THIS HERE IS MY BEST FRIEND KARI-CHAN! AND WE'RE GONNA BEAT EVERY ONE OF YA! DATTEBAYO!"
"HEY! WHAT'S THAT BAKA TRYNA DO, GET US KILLED!? TELL YOUR BOYFRIEND TO KEEP HIS BIG FAT TRAP SHUT!" Ino shouted at Sakura.
"WHO'S BOYFRIEND!?" Sakura screeched.
"OH I FORGOT YOU CAN'T GET ONE!"
"WHAT DID YOU SAY!?"
"YEAH! I FEEL A LOT BETTER NOW!" Naruto cried stretching. Sasuke smirked at Naruto's stupidity and Kari's horrified expression. Had he been the type to, he would have laughed.
"Er… could you say that again a lil louder didn't quite catch it" Kiba said sarcastically. Kari jumped on his back, her hands slamming over his mouth.
"DON'T ENCOURAGE HIM!" Kari hissed.
"You moron are you trying to get everybody in the place to hate our guts or what?" Shikamaru said, motioning to the other ninja, all glaring intensely at the little rookies.
"NARUTO YOU JACKASS!! WHY'D YOU GO AND SAY SOMETHIN LIKE THAT YOU OBNOXIOUS LIL-" Sakura hollered pulling him into a headlock and strangling him. She then happened to notice the shinobi glaring at her. "Oh. Konnichiha minna, don't mind him, sometimes he says these things he doesn't really mean, he just got to… let 'em out. He's got this er… condition ya know, kinda a psychological thing, he really should be on medication" Sakura said awkwardly, she turned back to Naruto and resumed screaming at him. "NOW YOU SEE WHAT YOU'VE DONE NARUTO?! YOU'VE HURT EVERYBODY'S FEELINGS! THEY THINK YOU DON'T RESPECT THEM! BUT THAT ISN'T TRUE IS IT NARUTO!?"
On reflex, Kari immediately grabbed a kunai. Her eyes darted through the crowd, her ears straining through the fabric. She caught sight of three ninja moving in a way to attack in the direction she was in. Two boys, one girl. A little older than them, the boys smelt rather metallic, and one was heavier on their feet than the others. Her eyes locked onto them and caught the music note engraved onto each of their headbands. Unsure of their motives, she decided to wait, but keep her kunai ready.
"WOULD YOU FOR ONCE IN YOUR LIFE THINK ABOUT WHAT YOU'RE DOING, THINK ABOUT THE REST OF US!" Sakura cried still having a go at Naruto.
"Fine" Naruto said annoyed. Kari's eyes caught the movement of one of the male sound nin's arms. At the sound of scraping metal, her eyes sharpened to see two kunai heading straight for them. She through her kunai immediately, hitting both off target, which judging by their angle was directed at Kabuto. Now alert, the rookies saw the other sound male appear in front of Kabuto, aiming a punch at him. Kabuto dodged but Kari could feel waves radiating from his attack through the air. Heat waves?
Kari gasped as a high pitched ringing entered her ears, it seemed to echo and grow louder and louder with each passing second. She grimaced and slammed her hands over her hidden ears. Kabuto's glasses cracked.
"Oh I get it so it was that kind of attack" Kabuto said.
"Hang on… I saw it all, he dodged the attack. How did that happen?" Sasuke murmured, he looked accusingly at Kari, who was still clutching her throbbing ears. She looked at him and shook her head, trying to explain it wasn't just how it looked. But she didn't open her mouth in fears she would throw up. "What's wrong with you?" Sasuke mumbled, his eyes narrowing in suspicion.
"It must have come closer than it looked KEH! Look at him acting like it was nothing real tough guy" Shikamaru said. Kabuto then fell to his knees and threw up.
"Nani?! Did he just-?" Naruto cried confused.
"Kabuto what's wrong? What is it?" Sakura asked worriedly.
"Hey Kabuto?" Naruto said he and Sakura running over. Kari wanted to tell them not to, but she was holding her head together, the splitting headache she had was cracking her skull.
"Are you ok?" Sakura asked.
"Yeah I'm fine" Kabuto said.
"Are you sure?" Naruto asked.
"Not such a tough guy after all I guess but maybe that's why he's on his seventh try" said one of the boys. His hair reminded Kari of Kakashi's somewhat, only brown. He had a cocky air to him. The other looked like a hunchback, fur tied to his back. His whole face was covered in bandages except for one eye. "Put this on your little card punk. The genin from Otogakure will be chunin when this is over, guaranteed."
A cloud of smoke appeared scaring the life out of Kari and making Kita jump. It cleared to reveal a man and several other ninja.
"ALL RIGHT YOU BABY-FACED DEGENERATES PIPE DOWN AND LISTEN UP!" The man's face was scarred, his eyes cold and hard. His smirk was rather scary, it was far from friendly. "Its time to begin. I'm Morino Ibiki, your proctor, and from this moment on, your worst enemy."