Ok well here's the next chapter, hope you all enjoy it. Before I continue I wish to thank Dragon Man 180 and THE HEE-HO KING who helped me come to a decision on the Team listings. Thanks again guys. This chapter is a VERY long one so I hope you all enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Neverwinter Nights 2
Chapter 3
12 Years after the Kyuubi's attack...
Naruto deflected Tarek's downward slash with the kunai in his right hand, and then he spun around aiming to stab Tarek in the side with the kunai in his left hand. Tarek recovered enough from Naruto's deflection however to block the incoming kunai with his Katana. Pushing the kunai away, Tarek slashed downwards once more. Naruto however managed to jump backwards just before the blade struck. Brandishing both kunai, Naruto watched Tarek calmly searching for a weakness. Tarek was standing in his favoured sword stance, doing the same as Naruto. After a few moments of searching, the two sprang to action at the same time. Naruto jumped into the air and tossed the kunai in his left hand at Tarek. Tarek sidestepped the throwing knife, and blocked the strike to his head. Naruto had used the kunai he had thrown as a distraction, aiming to strike him with the kunai in his right hand. Tarek used Naruto's weight against him, throwing him away with his sword. Naruto spun in the air and then landed on the floor head first. Stunned from the impact, Naruto struggled to get back up. At some point during the fall, he had lost the kunai in his right hand. Naruto's struggle to get up was all the time Tarek needed. He thrust his sword into the ground and began to focus chakra into the blade.
"Sword Art: Climhazzard!"
Naruto's eyes widened as he saw the line of chakra rushing towards him, and he barely managed to jump out of the way in time. He watched in awe as the line of chakra struck the tree's that were behind him, destroying three of them completely and ripping the bark off the others. Naruto then suddenly felt cold steel pressed against his throat and knew that the battle had ended. Sighing, Naruto held his hands up signifying that he recognised the battle had ended and his own defeat. Tarek pulled away the sword that had been pressed against Naruto's neck and slid it back into the scabbard on his back. Naruto turned around just as Tarek was putting his heavily tinted sunglasses back on.
"You do realize that had my reactions been any slower, you could have killed me with that jutsu right?" Naruto asked peevishly.
Tarek shrugged "I knew you were fast enough to dodge it, so no harm done right?" Tarek said smirking at him.
Naruto growled deeply in his throat at this and began cursing his friend.
"Hey now don't be like that, it was a good practice session, hell, you nearly had me several times with those blasted kunai of yours." Tarek said trying to calm his friend down.
Naruto gave him a droll stare "Yeah, well unlike you, I don't have my grandfather inside of me ready to call upon a Silver shard barrier if I'm close to getting killed."
"Grandfather wouldn't interfere in our practice sessions, you know that." Tarek said placidly.
Yeah right, I heard that one before Naruto thought. Tarek had told Naruto all about his grandfather four years ago on the same day that he had talked to him. At first, Naruto found it a little hard to believe, but then, Tarek started carrying a Katana around with him and was using it like he had had years of practice. Naruto knew that Kakashi had not been teaching him, so that meant Tarek had been telling the truth. Tarek's face suddenly zoned out, signifying that he was talking to his grandfather. Tarek then shook his head and looked back to Naruto.
"Grandfather says you did very well, and that your speed is getting a lot better. However, he says that you need to control your strength a little more, you used unnecessary force and that is what allowed me to toss you with my sword."
Naruto grunted in acknowledgement of the praise and criticism. He then placed his hands behind his head and gave Tarek one of his foxy grins.
"So that is 139 wins to me, 140 to you, and 10 draws. Damn, I'll just have to beat you next time."
Tarek returned Naruto's grin "Yeah, yeah, we'll see."
Naruto grinned evilly, knowing that what he was going to say next would annoy Tarek big time.
"So, since I lost, it's my turn to pick where were having our after workout meal." Naruto pretended to ponder.
"I know, how about Ichiraku's Ramen stand."
The effect was immediate, as Tarek slapped his forehead and groaned in disgust.
"Naruto, how many times have Kakashi-sensei, grandfather, Lord Hiashi, Hinata and I told you about eating Ramen all the time!" Tarek shouted glaring at his friend.
"Hey, we made the agreement that the loser gets to eat where he want's to when we started these practice sessions, don't blame me just because you won" Naruto said knowing that Tarek couldn't argue against that.
Tarek growled, causing Naruto to smirk.
"Ok, now let's get going!" Naruto shouted happily as he took off, heading back to town.
Tarek sighed and then chased after him. Within ten minutes, Naruto and Tarek were sitting at Ichiraku's eating their ramen, both favouring the Miso Ramen. After a few moments of silence, Tarek looked towards Naruto.
"What do you think they will ask us to do in the Graduation exam this year?" He asked.
Naruto thought about it a few moments. In all honesty, he didn't know what they were going to ask, but he hoped to Kami they wouldn't ask them to do the one thing he couldn't do.
"Honestly, I'm not sure, it could be anything. However, I hope that they won't ask us to do Bunshin's." Naruto said shuddering.
Tarek nodded knowing that Naruto could not make a clone to save his life.
"I guess we will soon know the exam is tomorrow after all." Tarek said quietly, returning to his Ramen. Suddenly the curtains parted and in stepped Hinata. Naruto's face lit up at the sight of her.
"Hey Hinata, how are you?" Naruto shouted, grinning at her.
Hinata turned bright crimson and began to twiddle her fingers.
"H-hello N-Naruto, I a-am fine thank y-you." Hinata stuttered as she took a seat between Naruto and Tarek.
"Good, so you think you're ready for the exam tomorrow?" Naruto asked.
Hinata looked down at her twiddling fingers. "N-not really, I-I know I a-am going to f-fail." She said sadly.
Tarek frowned at this "Why do you think you are going to fail Hinata?"
"W-well, I-I know I am too w-weak." She said in a barely audible whisper.
After hearing this, Naruto stood up angrily and stared into her face, which she turned away from him, not wanting to meet his eyes.
"Hinata look at me." Naruto growled at her.
Reluctantly, Hinata looked into Naruto's eyes, her face turning an even deeper crimson colour.
"Hinata you are not weak, you are one of the strongest females in the academy. Hell, you even beat Sasuke that one time, so don't believe a single word that bastard Neji says to you. Tarek and I know your strong so don't ever think differently, you will pass that exam tomorrow." Naruto said, knowing exactly who had upset Hinata.
Hinata's eyes began to tear up at Naruto's words of encouragement; she then suddenly jumped out of her seat and embraced him tightly. Naruto looked down at her startled.
"H-Hinata?"
"T-thank y-you s-so much Naruto." Hinata sobbed into his chest.
Naruto, rather awkwardly, patted her back. "You're welcome Hinata" he said baffled.
Tarek just stared at them keeping his mouth covered with his hand to prevent himself from laughing out loud. Naruto had still failed to see that Hinata had a crush on him and Hinata was too shy to tell Naruto herself. He had told Hinata that he would tell him if she wished, but she had given him a horrified look and told him quite firmly not to say a word. His amusement however turned to anger as he thought of the words Hinata had uttered. Ever since her mother had died three years ago, Hinata's confidence had decreased a lot more, it also didn't help that her cousin Neji and even her little sister Hanabi kept telling her she was weak and wouldn't amount to anything. It made both Naruto and Tarek's blood boil, and if Hinata hadn't insisted that they ignore it, both boys' would be at the Hyuuga estates right now battering the shit out of Neji and Hanabi too if it weren't for the fact that she was only nine years old.
He turned his attention back to Naruto and Hinata as Hinata finally let go of Naruto and sat herself back down in her seat, her eyes red from crying and her cheeks stained with tears, however, she had a bright smile on her face, Naruto's words of encouragement obviously still going through her mind.
"Hey old-man, three Miso Ramen please." Naruto shouted to the chef of the Ramen stand.
"Coming right up Naruto!" The chef shouted back to him. After a few moments, the chef's daughter, Ayame, placed down a bowl each in front of the three. After saying thank you to the two of them, the three began to eat.
Naruto glanced at Hinata to see her eating her ramen slowly; she had a bright smile on her face and seemed to be deep in thought. Naruto grinned to himself.
She's cute when she smiles; she should do it more often Naruto thought, and then shook himself mentally.
Where the hell did that come from? Naruto thought puzzled. After pondering it for a few moments, he shrugged his shoulders and continued to eat his ramen. Ten minutes later, after Naruto had finished his fifteenth bowl of ramen, the three left the ramen stand. It was getting late, and the two boys' insisted on walking Hinata home. They slowly made their way to the Hyuuga estates, chatting about anything that crossed their minds and laughing with each other. They finally reached the Hyuuga estate a few moments later.
"Well, guess we will see you tomorrow right Hinata?" Naruto said giving her a foxy grin.
She returned his grin with a shy smile of her own, her face flushed crimson. "Y-yes, g-good night T-Tarek, good n-night N-Naruto." She stuttered.
"Good night Hinata." Both boys said at the same time.
Hinata waved and then turned and walked through the gates of the Hyuuga estates. After standing there a few moments, Tarek broke the silence.
"We had better get going; we have a big day tomorrow."
"Yeah, let's go" Naruto said grinning, walking away from the estates.
Hinata entered her room and closed the door behind her before running to the bed and embracing her pillow. Holding it close to her face she let out the squeal that she had wanted to let out since she hugged Naruto.
I hugged Naruto, I hugged Naruto! She thought excitedly, her face turning a bright crimson. She could still feel the warmth that emanated from his chest where she had placed her head on his chest. She clung to the pillow tightly, her mind still on the moment she had shared with Naruto. Ever since the first day she had met Naruto she had had a crush on him. He and Tarek had been the first friends she had ever had. At first, she had thought they were only being nice to her because of her mother's request, but she soon realised that they were both being nice because they genuinely wanted to be her friend, so she had slowly allowed them to get to know her. For the past four years, the two of them had been there for her, comforting her when she was upset, giving her encouragement when she thought she couldn't do something or felt weak. She had even been trusted enough to be shown Tarek's silver eyes. She hadn't been scared of them; in fact she had thought they were beautiful and couldn't understand how anyone could be scared of him when they saw them. When her mother had died, she had been so depressed. Her father had tried to comfort her, and Hinata would give him a fake smile so as not to worry him. Not even Tarek had seen through it when he tried to give her his own comfort. However, Naruto had seen right through it. He then embraced her and told her everything would be fine, and that she didn't have to hide her pain. She had broken down then and cried into Naruto's chest. He had held her until she had cried herself to sleep. When she had awoken, she had found herself still lying on Naruto's chest; she had looked up to find him asleep. The memory, despite it being slightly painful brought a smile to her face. Smiling to herself, Hinata finally placed the pillow back and then looked up at the moon from her window. She clasped her hands together and closed her eyes.
Mother, please help me to pass the exam tomorrow, and please, allow me to be on the same team as Naruto Hinata prayed in her mind. After she was done praying, Hinata began to get ready for bed, thinking about the exam the next day.
Naruto and Tarek walked into the classroom the next day only to findSakura and Ino literally coming to blows over who would sit next to Sasuke. The boy in question was just staring moodily at the wall, not paying any attention to the two as they fought. Taking in the situation quickly, Naruto and Tarek pulled the girls apart, Naruto dragging away Sakura while Tarek held Ino where she was.
"Let go of me you freak!" Ino yelled smashing her elbow into Tarek's face. The blow caused Tarek's glasses to fly off. Everyone froze as they saw the glasses land on the floor. Hinata who had just entered the classroom saw what had happened and gasped in horror. Tarek, his nose bleeding from the blow had his eyes squeezed shut to stop his classmates from seeing his eyes. Naruto let go of Sakura and made a dive for the glasses. Before he could get to them however, Ino had slammed her foot down upon them, breaking them instantly. Naruto looked up to see Ino looking down at him with a sadistic smirk on her face.
"Oops." She said sweetly.
Naruto glared at her with hatred. This was going too far, even for Ino. Ino just smirked at him before turning to face Tarek.
"I have always wondered why you wear such heavily tinted sunglasses even inside, so how about you enlighten us. Open your eyes."
Tarek remained completely silent and his eyelids didn't even twitch. Hinata and Naruto made a move towards the two, but several of their classmates held them back.
"Let go of me! Ino Leave him alone!" Naruto roared.
"P-please, l-leave him a-alone" Hinata stuttered loudly.
Ino continued to smirk "I will…once he has opened his eyes. For four years he has worn those glasses, he has never shown his eyes to anyone apart from it seems you two. I think the rest of us all have a right to know what he's hiding."
Naruto growled and struggled against the people holding him back. Hinata kept asking Ino to leave him alone, but she paid no heed to her. Ino waited a few moments, but as soon as she saw that Tarek would not willingly open his eyes, she growled in frustration.
"Fine, if you won't show us willingly, then I'll force you to show us." She put her hands into a weird hand sign.
Sakura gasped. "Ino-pig, stop it, you can't use the Mind body switch jutsu!"
"Shut up forehead girl!" Ino roared not taking her eyes off of Tarek.
Everyone could feel her chakra flowing into her hands. Just as she opened her mouth to use the jutsu however, a black cloud flew towards her. Shrieking, Ino lost her focus and moved away from the black swarm. Naruto looked in the direction where it had come from. He saw a boy wearing a heavy grey jacket that covered a part of his face, with brown 3/4 trousers much like Hinata's blue ones. His hair was a spiky brown, and he wore heavily tinted sunglasses much like Tarek did.
Shino Aburame Naruto remembered. He also remembered that the clan used chakra bugs, which explained what the black swarm was. Shino's chakra bugs returned to him as he walked towards Tarek. When he finally reached him, he pulled a pair of heavily tinted sunglasses out of his pocket and held them against Tarek's hand.
"Here, use these" Shino said in his emotionless voice. Tarek took hold of the glasses and then slowly put them on. Once they were on, Tarek opened his eyes and looked at Shino.
"Thank you Shino, I owe you one." Tarek said in relief.
Shino inclined his head and moved towards his desk beside Shikamaru Nara whom had slept through the whole incident. The students holding Naruto and Hinata let go of them and they both walked towards Tarek and stood either side of him facing a disgusted Ino. Tarek glared at her.
"Remember this Ino, you try something like that ever again, and I will not hesitate to draw my sword. You have been warned." Tarek said ominously before turning around and walking to his desk leaving a frightened Ino behind him. Naruto and Hinata followed close behind him. As they passed his desk, Sasuke glanced towards them. After staring at them for a few moments he turned his attention back to the wall. Naruto frowned at this. Ever since the entire Uchiha clan were killed by his older brother, Sasuke had become a loner, not socialising with anyone, not even the people who had considered themselves his friends. The Sasuke that Naruto, Tarek and Hinata had once considered a possible friend had become nothing but a cold shell of his former self. Taking his thoughts away from the Uchiha, Naruto sat down in front of the desk he shared with Tarek and Hinata. A few moments later, Iruka walked in to the classroom closely followed by Mizuki, another teacher at the academy who sometimes helped Iruka during exams.
"Morning class, now would you all kindly return to your seats, the graduation exam is about to begin." Iruka said cheerfully. As he looked around the class he looked up towards Naruto, Tarek and Hinata's desk. His eyes widened and his smile faded as he saw the blood dripping from Tarek's nose.
"Tarek, what happened to your nose?!" Iruka said in a loud concerned voice.
Naruto and Hinata looked at Tarek. They had both forgotten that Ino had smashed her elbow into Tarek's nose. Ino turned back to stare at him, her eyes wide in fear. Tarek remained silent a few moments before finally replying.
"I tripped over and smashed my nose on the floor Iruka-sensei." Tarek said calmly, not even glancing at a surprised Naruto and Hinata or a baffled Ino. Iruka stared at him for a few moments, his eyes showing his disbelief. Finally, he sighed and shook his head.
"In that case Tarek, would you please go see the academy nurse? You can do your exam as soon as your nose has been fixed up."
Tarek nodded and stood up. He had walked past Naruto and Hinata before turning around and grinning.
"Good luck you two." He said cheerfully before continuing out the door. Ino watched him every step of the way, her expression one of confusion. After a few moments of silence, Iruka cleared his throat, bringing the class's attention to him.
"Ok, when I call out your name you will follow Mizuki-sensei and I into the next room where you will be asked to perform a few tasks that have been set for the exam. Do any of you have any questions?" Silence followed this. Nodding Iruka looked down at his list.
"Shino Aburame." Iruka called. Shino stood and then slowly walked towards Iruka and Mizuki. As he passed Naruto and Hinata's desk, Naruto gave him a thumbs up sign.
"Good luck Shino." Naruto said quietly, giving him one of his foxy grins.
"Y-yes, g-good luck S-Shino" Hinata managed to stutter out.
Shino inclined his head to both of them before finally walking out of the room with Iruka and Mizuki.
It was two hours later, and the only people who were left to be tested were Naruto, Sasuke and Tarek who had just returned from the Nurses office with his nose as good as new. The people who had been called to do the exam had not returned which meant that they weren't allowed to tell the ones who have yet to take the exam what they had to do. The three stood by their desks, Naruto and Tarek on one, Sasuke on another. They were all completely silent; Tarek and Sasuke were contemplating what the possible tasks could be, while Naruto had his thoughts on Hinata.
She was so nervous, I hope she has done well; she has worked really hard for this Naruto thought, remembering how nervous she had looked when her name had been called out. As she shakily had gotten up off her chair, Naruto had taken her hand then told her that she will do well, and gave her one of his foxy grins. Though her face had turned crimson, her eyes and smile showed her gratitude. Then a sudden thought came to him.
Why does Hinata's face always go bright red when she is around me? Naruto thought puzzled. At first, he had thought she had an illness, but then realised that couldn't be it. Now he contemplated it once more, nothing came to mind on why she would act like that. Naruto was interrupted from his thoughts suddenly when Iruka walked into the classroom once more.
"Tarek Swordstalker." Iruka called, staring up at him. Tarek seemed to pull himself back to reality and made his way to Iruka. He had obviously been talking to his grandfather. Before he exited the room, Naruto shouted "Go show them what you can do Tarek!"
Tarek grinned up at him and nodded his head before leaving the room. Now the only two left were Naruto and Sasuke. The room had returned to silence as Naruto finally turned his thoughts to the exam. He thought of all the possible tasks they could be asked to perform when his mind suddenly turned to Bunshin's. He paled and his eyes widened.
Oh Kami, please don't be so cruel, please do not ask me to perform a Bunshin He thought, his mind in a state of panic. Five minutes later, Iruka returned to see Naruto pale and wide eyed. He winced. It looked like Naruto had figured out what they were going to be asked to perform.
Oh please let Naruto perform the Jutsu right just this once Iruka prayed in his head as he looked at one of the two students he had always thought of as a younger brother, the other being Tarek. He finally called out the next name on the list.
"Sasuke Uchiha."
Sasuke slowly got up, his face as stoic as ever, and left with Iruka. Now Naruto was all alone. His panic had taken over all his thoughts and he began to pace.
Kami! Why would fate be so cruel, why Bunshin's! The one goddamn Jutsu I can't do! Naruto thought continuing to pace. His thoughts chaotic, he didn't realise that Iruka was calling him.
"Naruto Uzumaki." Iruka called. Noticing that Naruto was in a panicked state, Iruka tried again.
"Naruto Uzumaki" Iruka said a bit louder. Naruto still continued his panicked pacing. Sighing, Iruka grimly walked up to Naruto.
"Naruto!" Iruka roared in his ear.
"Gahhh!" Naruto cried as he suddenly looked up at his sensei.
"Naruto I have called your name twice, it's your turn to take the exam." Iruka said staring down at him sympathetically. Naruto nodded, forcing a smile onto his face. He followed Iruka to the classroom where the exam was taking place. As he walked in, Naruto noticed that Mizuki was leaning against the desk, writing on a clipboard. He looked up as he heard Iruka and Naruto enter.
"Ahh…Naruto, You Nervous about the exam?" Mizuki asked him, grinning.
Naruto put on a false smile that no one could see through and shook his head.
"Hell no, I'll pass this exam no problem!" Naruto yelled out.
Mizuki chuckled while Iruka looked at him baffled.
But a few moments ago he was pacing in a panic…Iruka thought baffled. Shrugging it off, he watched Naruto closely.
"Naruto, you must perform the Bunshin Jutsu. To pass you need to make three clones identical to you." Iruka said. He noticed Naruto's smile falter slightly.
Could it be he is putting up a mask? But why would he do that? Iruka thought puzzled.
"You can begin now Naruto." Mizuki said watching him.
Naruto took a deep breath. He began to focus his chakra and put his hands together in the Ram sign.
I can do this. I can do this. I can do this Naruto kept saying in his head.
"Bunshin Jutsu!"
A large amount of smoke suddenly filled the whole room. It slowly faded and Iruka and Mizuki saw Naruto's 'attempt' at the Jutsu.
Oh Naruto Iruka thought sadly.
Naruto had only managed to form one clone…if it could even be worthy of being called a clone. It was completely white, and looked so sickly that it wouldn't be any use in a battle situation.
Iruka looked at Naruto sympathetically. "I'm sorry Naruto, but I cannot let you pass, the clone just isn't good enough."
"Well he did manage to form a clone; surely it could serve as a distraction." Mizuki said glancing at the hopeful look on Naruto's face.
Iruka sighed "No, it wouldn't be fair on the other students. I'm sorry Naruto."
Naruto didn't say a word. He just stared at them stoically, then turned around and left the room. Iruka watched him, sadness evident in the way he stared at Naruto's retreating form.
Forgive me Naruto…
Tarek and Hinata were waiting by the academy exit for Naruto, their forehead protectors shining in the bright midday sun. Tarek wore his forehead protector on his forehead, while Hinata wore hers around her neck like a choker. Though they were both filled with joy at passing, they both also felt apprehension. They knew how bad Naruto was at forming clones.
Come on Naruto, you can pass this! Tarek thought.
"I doubt it Tarek, he has worked on that jutsu for a long time and he still can't do it…" Raven said to him in his mind.
Tarek glared at his grandfather with his minds eye.
He can do this! I know he can! The three of us all promised that we would become ninja together, and Naruto never breaks his promises! Tarek said to him, not being swayed by his grandfather's opinion. Raven sighed. He admitted, the boy had grown on him, and he hoped that he did pass, but he knew that the likelihood of it happening was very low.
Hinata had similar thoughts to Tarek. He promised we would pass this together, oh please let my Naruto pass Kami Hinata prayed. The two were pulled from their thoughts when Iruka suddenly came out of the exit. Tarek and Hinata immediately noticed that Naruto wasn't with him. Iruka glanced at the two of them sadly a few moments before finally speaking.
"Congratulations to all of you, you have now officially graduated from the academy. Tomorrow you will be put into your teams, so please com here tomorrow bright and early at nine o'clock. That is all; you have the rest of the day free." Iruka said smiling. Most of the students cheered at this and those who had parents to come to get them began leaving with them, talking about their new careers as ninja. Tarek and Hinata however made their way towards Iruka. He noticed them coming, and his expression turned to one of sadness. That was all that Tarek needed for his suspicions to be confirmed. He bowed his head in sadness. Hinata gasped and tears began to slowly form in her eyes.
"Iruka-sensei, w-where is he?" Hinata managed to choke out. Iruka and Tarek both looked at her startled that she had hardly stuttered.
"I don't know, he left after he failed, I thought you might have seen him." Iruka said in a barely audible whisper.
"He didn't come out. This means he is ashamed to see us." Tarek said and then cursed mentally.
Damn idiot, were your friends Tarek thought angrily.
"Like you said, he made a promise to you, and knowing that he wasn't able to pass the test makes him think that he has broken it." Raven said in a matter-of-fact tone of voice. Tarek looked thoughtful for a moment before finally staring back at Iruka. Hinata stood beside him, trying her best to stop her tears that were falling on Naruto's behalf.
"Iruka-sensei isn't there any other possible way for Naruto to graduate." Tarek asked desperately. Iruka sighed and shook his head. Tarek's facial expression then changed from desperation to determination.
"In that case, I won't pass either; we can take the test again next year with him." Tarek said his voice strong with conviction. Hinata nodded, signifying that she thought the same way as Tarek.
"And how do you think that would make Naruto feel, knowing that you stayed back for him? Don't you think that maybe he will feel extremely guilty if you do that?" Iruka questioned softly. Tarek and Hinata looked at each other and then looked down at their feet. Iruka sighed again and patted the two on the shoulder before walking back into the academy. After a few moments Tarek turned back to face Hinata.
"Hinata, can you use your Byakugen to search the area for him?" He asked stoically.
Hinata nodded and then activated her bloodline ability. After about five seconds she deactivated it and looked back at Tarek.
"He's sitting on the swing in the yard. The one we always hang out by." She said sadly. Tarek nodded and was about to head in that direction when Hinata's father, Hiashi, and Kakashi, Tarek and Naruto's guardian, walked towards them.
"Ahh, I see you both passed, congratulations both of you." Kakashi said happily, showing that he was smiling by closing the right eye that was visible and arching the eyebrow up.
"Yes, well done Hinata, Tarek." Hiashi said embracing Hinata, smiling slightly, a rare thing to happen these days.
Kakashi looked around them then, puzzled. "Where's Naruto? Surely he would be with you both celebrating, after all the three of you are Genin now."
At this, both Tarek and Hinata stared down at the ground. Noticing this Hiashi looked at their sad expressions before cursing.
"Naruto didn't pass did he? This means they asked you to perform the Bunshin Jutsu." He said cursing Naruto's luck. Kakashi had a sad expression on what was visible of his face.
"Where is he?" Kakashi asked.
Tarek pointed in the direction of the swing. Hiashi turned his head in that direction and activated his Byakugen. After a few moments he deactivated it and gave Tarek a puzzled frown.
"He is gone now. He wasn't in the immediate area either."
Tarek looked at him puzzled. Where could Naruto have gone?
"He has probably gone back home. He will need some space so leave him be. Anyway, you had better say goodbye to your guardians and Hinata, remember, you still have to perfect the new jutsu." Raven said sympathetically. Tarek nodded mentally and then sighed.
"I have to get going, so I'll see you tomorrow Hinata, and you Kakashi-sensei. It was good to see you Lord Hiashi." Tarek bowed before leaving without giving them the chance to say goodbye. Kakashi watched him go.
One day I'm going to find out how he gained such mastery with a sword and even learned some of his clans own jutsu. He thought turning back to face Hinata and Hiashi.
It was midnight and Naruto was jumping from tree branch to tree branch, heading towards the clearing where he was supposed to meet Mizuki. On his back was the forbidden scroll that Mizuki had told him to steal so he could become a Genin. Normally he would have been suspicious of such a request, but he had been so desperate to become a ninja that all logical thoughts were dashed. All he could see in his minds eye were Tarek and Hinata's surprised faces when they saw him with his forehead protector. After a few more minutes of jumping through the trees, he finally arrived at the clearing. It was a fair sized clearing with an abandoned shed at the edge of the clearing. Naruto walked to the centre of the clearing and looked around for a few moments. Noticing that Mizuki wasn't here yet, Naruto took the scroll off of his back and eagerly opened it. Inside the scroll was a huge list of forbidden jutsu. If he could learn some of these, he may be able to become a Chunin or even a Jounin. Excited, Naruto stared at the first two jutsu written on the scroll.
Hmm...The Shadow Clone Jutsu and the Exploding Shadow Clone Jutsu, maybe I'll have a better luck with these cloning jutsu Naruto thought He then looked further down and saw a Jutsu that caught his eye. The Burning Rave, well that sounds cool, I'll try that as well Naruto thought. With his mind made up, he began to read how to perform all three jutsu.
Iruka searched frantically at the places he knew Naruto was known to frequent. Not finding him at any of them, Iruka frantically searched for Tarek. He had to find Naruto quickly, before some of the other ninja called to search for him did. If the others found him, they may kill him for something that wasn't his fault. After searching for Tarek for half an hour, Iruka gave up and headed towards the Hyuuga mansion to see if Hinata or Hiashi knew where both boys were. Suddenly he heard a loud explosion coming from the Konoha forest. Stopping his frantic run, he looked in the direction where he thought the explosion had come from. Sure enough, there was another explosion. Deciding to investigate, Iruka sprinted off towards the explosions.
Please don't let those explosions mean that either Naruto or Tarek are in danger Iruka thought as panic began to grip him. Moving faster than he thought possible, he arrived in a clearing. There in the centre lay Naruto, panting from exhaustion but none the worse for wear, the Forbidden Scroll lying beside him. Around the clearing were huge craters where the explosions must have taken place.
Did Naruto do all of this? But how could he possibly…Iruka thought puzzled. Putting it to the back of his mind for now, he walked towards Naruto just as he was getting back up.
"Naruto what the hell do you think your doing?" Iruka demanded in a tone mixed with anger and relief. Naruto spun around to see an annoyed Iruka behind him. He gave him one of his foxy grins.
"Perfect, now you can pass me and I can become a Genin right?"
Iruka looked at him in shock. "What?" he asked baffled
Naruto stared at him, his smile faltering a little "If I show you a Jutsu I learned from the scroll you will make me a Genin right?" Naruto asked.
"Who told you that Naruto?" Iruka asked, now understanding why Naruto did what he did. His eyes suddenly widened and he pushed Naruto out of the way just as shuriken and kunai struck him. Staring at Iruka shocked, Naruto turned to stare at the tree where the kunai and shuriken had come from. His eyes widened as he saw Mizuki standing on a tree branch with two Huge Shuriken on his back.
"Ahh good Naruto, you have done well, now come here and give me the scroll." Mizuki said, giving Naruto a sadistic smirk.
"Don't listen to him Naruto! He was using you to get the scroll!" Iruka shouted desperately. Mizuki glared at Iruka for a moment before his eyes lit up.
"You can't listen to Iruka Naruto; after all he hates you for what you did to his family." Mizuki said pleasantly.
"What? I never did anything to his family?!" Naruto shouted in bafflement.
"Mizuki, that is an S-class secret, you can't tell him!" Iruka roared, wincing in pain as he removed the kunai and shuriken from his chest and legs.
"You see Naruto." Mizuki continued ignoring Iruka. "Twelve years ago the Kyuubi was defeated by the Fourth Hokage, or so the Third Hokage had you believe. As a matter of fact, it was impossible to kill it, and so the Fourth did the only thing he could and sealed it into a newborn baby. Naruto, you were that baby, you are the Kyuubi reincarnate; you are the monster that killed Iruka's family! Now I will do the village a favour and kill you, you monster!" Mizuki roared in glee. Naruto could only stare at the ground, shocked at hearing the reason that the village hated him. Mizuki removed one of the Huge Shuriken from his back and prepared to toss it at him.
"Sword Art: Crimson Wave!"
Mizuki jumped off the branch just as a blood red wave of chakra struck the tree branch he had been standing on, cutting it off cleanly. Mizuki turned and looked in the direction where the wave had come from.
"No one ever calls my brother a monster and get's away with it." Tarek stated as he walked out from the shadows, wearing his grey jacket which was open showing his white t-shirt which was soaked with sweat. He had taken his glasses off and stared at Mizuki, his silver eyes shimmering faster, showing his anger. His Katana was out and Mizuki realised it was covered in blood.
Mizuki stared at him in fear. He had never known about Tarek's silver eyes. They chilled his soul. Out of fear more than anything else, he tossed his shuriken straight at Tarek. Tarek held his blade up calmly and then focused his chakra into the blood on the blade.
"Sword Art: Crimson Wave!"
Tarek swung his blade and a blood red wave shot from it cutting the incoming shuriken in half and continuing towards Mizuki. Mizuki managed to jump away in time and began performing hand seals.
"Fire Art: Great Fireball Technique!"
Holding his hands to his mouth, Mizuki shot the huge fireball directly at Tarek. Tarek managed to jump out of the way in time, but was too late to stop the shuriken that Mizuki had thrown from hitting him in his leg. He fell to the ground, the huge shuriken protruding from his leg. Tarek tried to get up, but it was impossible, the pain was too intense.
"Tarek are you ok?!" Raven shouted in Tarek's mind. Tarek couldn't answer the dumb question as Mizuki began to walk towards him, kunai in hand. As he got halfway, he was suddenly stopped by Iruka as he slashed at him with his own kunai. Mizuki blocked it with the one in his hand and then tried to stab Iruka in the face. Iruka blocked it barely in time. This kunai fight continued for a while, both Chunin fighting ferociously. Then, just as Iruka made to stab Mizuki in the chest, Mizuki kicked Iruka's legs from under him. As Iruka began to fall face first, Mizuki plunged his kunai into Iruka's back. Iruka gasped as he felt the cold steel penetrate his body.
"Noooooo!" Naruto yelled as he watched all this happen. All of a sudden he felt anger, anger at Mizuki for hurting two of the people that Naruto cared about the most. He didn't even feel his hands develop into claws, his whisker marks getting more pronounced. Tarek, who was looking at Naruto, gasped as he saw Naruto's eyes change from azure blue to blood red, the irises becoming slits like a cat's or a foxes. Mizuki was also staring at Naruto, fear coursing through him as he felt the killing intent waving off of the boy.
"You will pay for that you Bastard!" Naruto roared, forming the ram hand sign.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Smoke filled the whole clearing. As it faded away, Mizuki, Iruka and Tarek all gasped as they saw hundreds of Naruto's filling the clearing and the surrounding trees.
He performed the Shadow Clone Jutsu and produced this many clones?! Iruka thought weakly in disbelief. Mizuki watched in fear as suddenly all the clones charged towards him. He was no match for so many clones. By the time the clones were all finished and Naruto had cancelled out the Jutsu, Mizuki was lying on the floor, barely alive, having been beaten to a bloody pulp. Iruka and Tarek were just staring at Naruto in astonishment as he made his way towards, his body returning to normal. Naruto bent down as he reached Iruka and examined the kunai in his back. He was no Medic Nin, but the kunai hadn't penetrated too deeply so Naruto decided pulling it out would be safe enough. Iruka yelled in pain as Naruto yanked the kunai out of his back. Naruto then made his way to Tarek and examined the wound on Tarek's leg. All the while, Tarek was staring at Naruto in astonishment. Naruto ignored this and pulled the shuriken out of Tarek's leg, causing him to hiss in pain. Obeying his silent request, Raven used some of the Silver swords power to heal the wound. After a few moments, the wound was fully healed and Tarek was able to stand again. He pulled a cloth out of his pocket and cleaned his sword before sliding the blade back into its scabbard. No one had said a word to each other as all this was going on. After a few moments of silence, Naruto finally spoke up.
"So that's why everyone hates me. I am the Kyuubi reborn. I'm a demon just like the villagers say I am." Naruto said sadly. Hearing these words made Tarek furious. He walked straight up to Naruto and punched him in the face. Naruto recoiled and fell on the floor. Rubbing his mouth where Tarek had struck him, he stared up at Tarek waiting for more. He was surprised however when Tarek lifted him up and pulled him into a brotherly hug.
"Don't you dare call yourself that, you are no Demon; you are Naruto Uzumaki, future Hokage of Konoha." Tarek said quietly. Realising that Tarek wasn't going to forsake him because of the Kyuubi trapped inside of him, Naruto smiled and embraced the one he called brother. After a few moments, Iruka managed to get to his feet, wincing in pain from his many wounds as he did so. He then stumbled towards Naruto and Tarek and gripped both boys' shoulders. They both let go of each other and turned to face Iruka.
"Firstly, Naruto what Mizuki said was a complete lie. I never hated you. I hated the Kyuubi who attacked the village and killed my parents. You are not the Kyuubi, like Tarek said. In fact, I see both of you as my younger brothers." Iruka said looking at them both with unshed tears. Naruto and Tarek both remembered all the times Iruka would take them to eat Ramen and smiled. Iruka had become like an older brother to them.
"Secondly," Iruka continued "I am proud of the two of you, especially you Naruto, you managed to learn that Jutsu in only a few hours, that is amazing, and the amount of clones you produced I think qualify you as a ninja." Iruka reached up to his forehead protector and untied it from his head. He then placed it around a shocked Naruto's head and tied it in place.
"Congratulations Naruto, you are officially a ninja of Konoha an-oof!" Tarek stated proudly before getting grabbed by both Naruto and Tarek. They stayed like that for a few moments before finally letting go of him and staring up at him with wide smiles. Iruka grinned back at them.
"Let's head back to Konoha boys' we have to see the Hokage to return the scroll and to hand over Mizuki." Iruka said. Both boys nodded. Tarek took the scroll and slung it on his back while Naruto used his Shadow Clone Jutsu and had three of his clones carry Mizuki. Naruto then helped Iruka walk since he was wounded deeply. The three then turned and headed towards Konoha.
The Hokage smiled warmly as he watched the three of them heading back to Konoha through his Crystal ball. He had called off the search as soon as Naruto had defeated Mizuki. Pride for the two boys' was rushing through him. He was right to have placed Naruto and Tarek in the same home with Kakashi as the official guardian and Hiashi as the unofficial one. They had both developed into extraordinary boys' and knew that they could only continue to grow.
"The Silver Sword Wielder and the Demon Container, what a remarkable pair." The Hokage muttered to himself before stopping the Chakra flow to the ball and awaiting Naruto, Tarek and Iruka's return.
Naruto and Tarek walked into class the next morning, both exhausted from lack of sleep but still with wide smiles on their faces. Hinata looked sadly down towards the door expecting only to see Tarek. Her eyes widened as she saw Naruto standing beside him with a forehead protector on symbolising he was a now a Genin. When the two finally reached the desk, Hinata jumped up and pulled Naruto into a hug. Naruto was completely taken aback for a moment before finally embracing her. She then stared into his azure eyes and asked the one question that she wanted an answer to.
"How?" She asked without stuttering.
Chuckling, Naruto and Tarek told her the whole story, omitting the facts about the Kyuubi. When they had finished, Hinata was staring wide eyed at Naruto.
"What's the matter Hinata, lost for words?" Naruto teased lightly, giving her a foxy grin. Then they both suddenly realised that they were still holding each other, and the fact that the whole class was staring at them in silence. Tarek couldn't hold back his laughter and let it all out. Naruto, who had finally let go of Hinata, was blushing furiously and he glared at Tarek as he held his stomach in pain from laughing so hard. He only laughed even harder when Hinata, face crimson from embarrassment, promptly fainted. Naruto had grabbed a hold of her before she could fall to the ground. The whole class just stared at the three of them as if they were crazy. A few moments later, Iruka limped into the classroom, only to see the whole class staring at a glaring Naruto who was holding an unconscious Hinata and a laughing Tarek. Iruka sighed heavily.
"Good morning class." Iruka said deciding to ignore what was going on. Tarek finally stopped laughing, but he had a huge grin on his face, and every time he turned to look at Naruto and a just woken up Hinata, his face would twitch as if he was trying to suppress his laughter. Naruto grumbled under his breath while Hinata just twiddled her fingers, her face still crimson.
"Well class, again, I want to congratulate you all on passing the graduation exam. I hope that you will all uphold the honour of a ninja, and maybe someday, become great ninja that will go down in history." He paused to let all that sink in. After a few moments he continued.
"Now it is time to assign you to your Genin teams. Each squad will be a three man cell with a Jounin instructor, though there will be an exception, but I will explain when I come to that. These teams were chosen by myself and the Hokage and they cannot be changed, so please do not ask me to change them once you have been set in your teams." Iruka paused once more to look at all of them. His gaze lingered on the three in the back and he smiled widely. He then looked down at his clipboard.
"Ok, Team 1, Fenrir Rayoku…"
As Iruka begun to list the teams, Hinata put her hands together in silent prayer. When she had seen Naruto with a forehead protector, her hopes had been renewed.
Oh please, please let Naruto be on me and Tarek's team, please…She prayed.
Naruto and Tarek were both thinking on similar thoughts, and they held their breath as Iruka got to Team 7.
"Team 7, Kiba Inuzuka, Sakura Haruno and Sasuke Uchiha, your Jounin instructor will be Kakashi Hatake." All the girls apart from Hinata suddenly glared at Sakura, who was whooping for joy. Sasuke just stared at the wall broodingly while Kiba was yelling at Iruka to change the team. Naruto and Tarek felt a surge of disappointment as they realised that neither of them will have Kakashi as an instructor.
"Kiba, Shut up, Sakura sit back down." Iruka yelled angrily. He then looked back at the clipboard, and his smile returned.
"This years Team 8 will be a little different. Because we have an odd number in the class, it was decided between the Hokage and I that this years Team 8 will be a four man cell. Now listen closely." Iruka paused for a few moments leaving the class in suspense.
"Naruto Uzumaki" Naruto looked down at Iruka, his mouth suddenly dry.
"Tarek Swordstalker" Tarek looked at Naruto and gave him a thumbs up. Naruto grinned at Tarek.
"Hinata Hyuuga" Hinata just stared at Iruka in shock. Naruto and Tarek whooped and embraced her. She soon came out of her shock and gave a squeal of delight returning their embrace, not caring that the class was looking at them open mouthed.
"And Shino Aburame, your Jounin instructor will be Kurenai Yuhi." Iruka looked up at them and smiled as Naruto ran over to Shino's desk and literally dragged him to their desk. Shino's eyebrows were arched up in shock as he stared at his three team mates who had pulled him into their group hug. As Iruka looked down at his clipboard, he couldn't help but wonder what fate had in store for the Team in the future.
Hope you all enjoyed that chapter, Please review and tell me what you think of it. If I don't release another chpater before hand, Happy New Years!