AN: Here is my updating schedule for that one person who was interested: Whenever I have the time, and whenever I am interested. Lovely schedule, right?

Anyway, going to focus a bit on this story now for a while, so yeah. Ohh, this chapter is going to generate some hate, I just know it...

LET'S START!

~Scene~

"Will everyone but the participants of the first match please leave the arena?"

A month came and went for the elemental nations, and the closer the final test of the Chuunin exam came, the slower the world seemed to move. The genin had used the month to gain new skills, dust off the rust off old moves, and generally trying to scout their opponents, and finally the day had come.

Naruto let an unseen smirk graze his lips as he gazed across the arena towards his opponent, the Hyuuga Heiress Hinata, the princess of Konoha. It was almost poetic, seeing as he, the 'demonic' peasant was going to fight against the 'pure' noble. Oh, but he was not going to be tamed or destroyed by this so-called goddess on earth. He had heard the rumors that spread around the village, and he laughed hard that night, so hard that he almost ruptured his spleen.

Iruka didn't train him, and he could actually understand why. His stealth was as good as any Jounin, He already had several earth techniques, and a wind one he had mastered during the break, so that was not what he needed. They would occasionally spar, but Iruka was no master of the sword, so he had asked for some help. Who knew the man had some contacts in ANBU?

His smirk gained a somewhat giddy tinge to it as he thought about his swordsmanship teacher. The man, just like himself, used a great-sword, and that was when he had learned something important about the larger than average hunk of metal he carried around. Despite the fact that he had at the very least a proficient grasp on the basics, that meant almost nothing in a real fight. He was disarmed in under a second, and if it was an enemy he was fighting against, he would have died there and then.

And that was what they used most of their time on. Physical conditioning, spars, and sword training. He had been told that his learning curve with the sword was unheard of, but definitely a pleasant surprise for the ANBU, since that meant they ramped up the training even more, something which Naruto didn't complain about. Maybe that was the aspect he absorbed from Angmar... Maybe, but somehow, he knew that was wrong.

The ANBU, Panther, knew exactly what he did. Iruka couldn't hold a candle against that man's way of teaching, but that might stem from the fact that Naruto was more of a physical learner, and Iruka's teaching techniques was much more theoretical. Still, Naruto definitely liked Panther's methods more than Iruka's at the moment, that was for sure.

Naruto gave an absentminded nod when the proctor asked if he was ready before he snapped his attention on the girl opposite him. His smirk widened at the shivering girl.

"BEGIN!"

As the proctor jumped away, neither contestants moved a muscle. Lavender eyes stared into the hood where she knew that the blue orbs of her love would reside.

She couldn't do this, she couldn't fight against Naruto, her one true love. She just couldn't fight against her sun, her light in a dark world, her paramour.

"Well, isn't this just lovely." The mirth in the voice blew away her mental rambling, her attention now solely on the rusted-orange-and-black clothed individual in front of her.

"W-What?" Damn her stuttering.

"Come on now, don't say you can't see the irony in the situation? The forever-hated demon-brat against the venerable princess of Konoha, who also is the heiress of the 'pure-blooded' Hyuuga clan. It's almost poetic." Hinata could almost envision a cruel smile on the blonde's face.

"Then again, I don't really care about that." He settled into a basic fighting stance, a dagger being summoned in his hand.

"Fight me Hyuuga! Show me the so-called undefeatable hand-to-hand style you are so proudly tottering around with!"

Naruto watched as the shy girl shivered, fear clear in her eyes and stance. A small amount of disgust couldn't help but arise within him, a small bit of arrogance that he had attained from the almighty dead king rearing it's ugly head.

"Pathetic." He uttered before he took the initiative. The girl had barely registered that the boy moved before she was forced to dodge the knife. The boy didn't let up though as he intertwined several jabs and kicks in between his swings. Several times the girl had defended against his arms and feet, and at least once he had been blocked by her hands, yet he didn't feel any pain.

The girl was holding back.

A growl left him before he suddenly raised his effort, ducking within her guard before back-handing her hard, sending her to the ground.

"Weak. Why are you so weak?" He said so the entire stadium heard him. The crowd was silent, and the girl's father sat with his clan, a small bit of worry clear in his eyes and posture.

"Father, how can a mere commoner manage that against Hinata?" A small girl that sat beside the man said, signifying her as his daughter.

The man was silent though as he watched the scene unfold before him.

"Get up." Naruto said as he glared at the still and crying girl.

"I said, GET UP!" Before the girl knew it, she was yanked up by her hair, her face mere inches from her love's own hooded face.

"For being someone who admires me, you are fucking fast to give up I must say." He growled as he stared at the pathetic sight of his stalker.

"An entire month has passed, yet you are just as weak as when you fought against Tenten. Oh, how I wish I fought against her instead right now, at least the fights back."

A sob was the only answer he got before he threw the girl away, a single hair still touching his hand. A frustrated sigh left him as he watched the sobbing girl.

He couldn't help himself, he walked over to the girl and kicked her hard, sending her skidding for several feet.

"Pathetic." He uttered once again as he walked over to the girl before kneeling down.

"Tell me." He began, his voice barely loud enough for her to hear. "What is the one thing I never do?" All that left her was another sob, something which grated on the blonde's nerves.

"ANSWER ME!" He screamed, punching her face. He yanked her head up again. "I said, what is the one thing I never do?"

He watched as the girl continued to cry, but before he could punch her again, a choked voice left her bruised mouth.

"G-G-Give u-up. Y-You n-never give u-up."

"Exactly. Now tell me, what makes you think that I will ever like, heck, even notice someone who gives up without even trying?" He felt himself smiling predatory down at the girl as the look of understanding and horror slowly spread across her face.

"Now you understand." He whispered, letting go of the girls hair before taking several steps away from her, entering the same stance which he started the battle with.

"Fight me." The girl laid unmoving, which finally emanated a growl of aggression that everyone heard from the boy.

"FIGHT ME YOU RETICENT PIECE OF SHIT BEFORE I RIP YOUR SPINE OUT!"

The silence between them grew, but in the distance Naruto heard the angry shouts from Kiba, though Naruto ignored him. He sighed in frustration and was about to finish the match when he caught movement from the girl. Slowly, but without a single shiver or sob she stood up, her hair shadowing her eyes. As she finally stood straight, she entered the stance of the gentle fist, signifying that she was finally going to take the match seriously.

"I hate you." The whisper that left her was barely loud enough to be considered a sound, but somehow the entire stadium heard it.

"Byakugan." With that single word she raised her head, the veins around her eyes increasing the scornful visage she sported towards the one who she once loved.

At the sight Naruto leaned his head backwards, just enough so the hood fell away from his head, showing that he had an eye-bind made of the same material as the hood. He smiled at her, mockingly.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Come at me, princess of scorn."

"... As you please."

Speeding faster than against Tenten, she came upon Naruto faster than he expected. Not fast enough though as he dodged her initial strike, which was quickly followed by more dodging and parrying. Truly, the girl must have held back against the weapon fanatic, as Naruto found himself somewhat hard-pressed to keep up. He was suddenly happy for the harsh training during the month-long break.

Looking for an opening, he quickly found one. The girl overextended one of her attacks just barely, but the slight disturbance of her form was enough for Naruto to swipe his dagger across her arm, earning a slight grunt from the girl. With a kick that missed, she managed to gain distance from the pale boy.

"The kid knows at least the basics of psychological warfare, seeing as he could crush the girl mentally any moment if he wanted to." One of the chuunin examiners said, earning a thoughtful nod from his partner.

"Yeah, and by the looks of it, the kid is holding back. If I'm not wrong, he's using weights, though not heavy ones since his form is not that limited or restricted. I would guess a good forty pound on each limb, maybe a bit extra across the waist."

"Yeah. Not enough to do anything big if he removes them, but definitely enough to gain the slight boost one might need in a tough spot."

Back at the arena, the two pre-teens looked at each other, one with a smirk, the other with a scowl.

"Looks like I got first blood." He said, raising his dagger, watching the blood drip from it. He quickly had to dodge though as the girl launched herself on him, sending a flurry of strikes towards him.

'Even a glancing blow is enough, and by the looks of it, she wants me hurt.' His thought was proven correct as he barely managed to parry a blow to his stomach, earning another jab that managed to graze his side.

Naruto saw his chance though and grabbed the offending appendage before digging his dagger deep into her biceps, almost piercing his knife straight through her arm. He let go of the dagger as he jumped back, barely dodging a potentially crippling blow.

'As expected, the gentle fist hurts pretty badly, but she missed anything vital, probably only bruised some muscles it feels like.' Happy with the result, he summoned another dagger, entering his stance once more.

Hinata on the other hand was not a happy camper. Her arm hurt like all hell, and she could barely move it thanks to Naruto's dagger that severed several muscles, and most likely pierced her bone. Definitely problematic for someone who relied heavily on their hands.

Gritting her teeth she grabbed the offending object before tearing it out in a vicious yank, a scream leaving her lips at the sharp pain. With a flick of the wrist she threw it at the boy, her scowl deepening as he dodged the thrown object.

Naruto raised a golden eye-brow when he saw the tell-tale signs of chakra being focused around ones feet, and he found himself pleasantly surprised when he was forced to dodge several chakra-enhanced kicks.

'They can use their feet too? Okay, now I am interested in learning how to do this.' He found himself growing a bit bored though as he weaved around her somewhat futile attacks. In the end, he had enough.

With a flare of his chakra he speed forward, faster than Hinata had anticipated. Smacking her futile attempt at blocking aside, he gave a palm-thrust at her chin, disorienting her before twirling his dagger around his hand, feeling the cloth around her stomach give away as he forced the slightly curved blade inside her body.

Silence. That was the only thing that Hinata managed to understand of her surrounding. Suddenly, an extremely sharp pain tore away from inside of her as she found herself staring at a cold, blue eye, the cloth having been raised by the blonde as he wanted her to look him in the eye.

'Why do I feel nothing? She was my comrade, my friend, and also a person that admired me... So why do I feel not a shred of guilt, regret or sympathy?' He found himself asking questions he hadn't thought about since he killed Mizuki, and despite everything, just like back then, he felt slightly disturbed by the pure lack of... Anything. He felt nothing, and it scared him, if only slightly.

He felt a hand on his cheek, and he once again focused on the girl in front of him. Her words, barely recognizable, but the boy still heard them clearly, was filled with the tenderness that they held before the fight.

"What are you afraid of? I see in your eyes the same fear which I see in the mirror every single day... No, it's different. Why are you afraid of yourself?" She took in a raspy breath as the medics finally had begun to rush towards them.

"Embrace who you are Naruto, that is after all what you taught me today." He gazed impassively inside her lavender eyes, morbid curiosity filling him at her words.

"Even after all this, you still love me..." He mumbled as he moved his hand a little, earning a grunt of pain from the girl at the moving dagger.

"How does it feel?" He muttered, still holding the dagger, still keeping it inside of her stomach. "How does it feel to know that your life is in another person's hands? What does it make you feel? I am honestly curious." A cough and a glob of blood that hit his face was the reply he gained.

"It makes you feel helpless, doesn't it? I have felt this several times already, the helplessness, the weakness that we both have." He leaned closer to her face, their noses almost touching.

"Become stronger with me, let us take away what makes them rule over us. Help me rule this world, and you will never be weak again."

A moment of silence, then a small smile filled her face.

"Spoken like a true king." She mumbled as she closed her eyes, falling backwards, forcing the blade out of her.

As she hit the ground, he heard the match was called in his favor, but his attention was on the medics that was closing in.

"I made sure to hit no immediately lethal spots, but you should probably hurry. The stomach acid will still damage her, and she still risks bleeding out." A small nod from one of the doctors was his only answer as they rushed her on a stretcher, trying their best to stabilize her with their medical techniques.

Naruto took one last glance at the pale girl before turning towards the stairs, putting his hood back in place.

~Scene~

"Do you believe that was smart?" Shikamaru asked the moment Naruto entered the concealed staircase. The blonde shook his head at the man's question.

"Probably not, but this was our best chance... I feel... Something, about what just happened, about what I just did, but I'm unsure exactly what... I guess you're right. I don't feel remorse anymore, and it kinda scares me, if only slightly."

Shikamaru only let out a sigh at the words, somewhat predicting them even before the match started.

"Man, what a drag. You know there's going to be consequences, right? The Hokage isn't just going to let this pass. Your change is too obvious, too fast, too... too cruel, just like Orochimaru was rumored to have snapped."

"You don't think I know that? Look, all I have to prove is that despite everything, I am loyal to Konoha. The man has never managed to look past my true lies before, and I do not expect it to happen now."

"I know..." The pause between them told Shikamaru everything he needed. Naruto was a perfect liar. If anyone could deceive the old man, it was him.

"What shall I do with Kabuto? I'm not as good in hand-to-hand combat as you, and his main skills seems to be in his close-combat skills."

"Kill him." The cold tone told Shikamaru that Naruto had a reason behind everything. It was strange, just how easily he could read the blonde. "The man... He has spied on me, on us. I managed to not show any of my better techniques or skills, nor did I mention my motives, but it's obvious the man is a spy. For who, I do not know, and I do not care. Just kill him."

"Dammit Naruto, you know I don't like killing!"

"Yeah, and yet you have thoughts about experimenting on people! Kinda hypocritical, don't you think?"

"Naruto, stop tempting me." He snarled, sending a pointed look towards his teammate.

"Hehe, why? It's kinda fun to do." He lost his smile as a shadow threatened to pierce him, yet there still seemed to be a small amount of mirth dancing around his face, evident by the twitching lips.

"Remember our deal Naruto. Whoever wins between us gets their wish fulfilled. You already know mine, and I can guess quite accurately what your desire is... And that will never happen unless you prove you are stronger than me, and I really do not believe you can beat me." The wry grin he showed increased in size when he saw the almost invisible frown on his partners face, the shadow-tendril merging back into his own shadow.

"Underestimating me is never a smart thing to do Nara. It would be best for you to remember that if you want to keep your feeble attempt of a life."

"We shall see Uzumaki, or shall I call you pseudo-king?" He lost his cheery disposition when he felt a sword touch his throat, the large dark-blue blade drawing just a drop of blood.

"It would be well to remember Shikamaru that you still owe me a favor. I gained you access to the lab, and I got you notes on the experiments done there. If you continue mocking me, that, along with your head will vanish from existence."

"Tsk, let me guess. Killing Kabuto is that favor?"

"Exactly. I do not care how you do it. A fast, clean kill, a bloody mess, torture-killing, making him brain-dead. Do whatever you feel like, but if he isn't a corpse by the end of your match, then you still owe me something."

"... Fine. You want him dead, then I'll kill him. I actually have to agree with your point of view though. The man is too dangerous to leave alive, seeing as he is obviously a quite skilled individual... That, and he's pretty twisted."

"Oh?" The blonde asked, finally removing the clone from him. "Explain."

"You remember that I can sense a person's darker emotions?" A quick nod was his reply. "Well, let's just say that Kabuto is filled with bloodlust... He seems lost though. I can feel an emptiness inside of him, like he's confused about himself..."

"... I see... Change of plans. I want you to try and read him this fight. Talk to him, find out what brings out his anger, depression, despair, sorrow, sadness, anything. I want this man under my thumb. Give me something which I can use to leverage him to my side, and I will give you a clean slate... Of course, remember to win. Our bet is still going on."

"...You know, for a moment there, I saw exactly what kind of man you will become, and it was certainly interesting."

Naruto just gave a smirk before he clapped the shadow-master on the shoulder, throwing a last-minute comment over his shoulder as he began ascending the stairs.

"And it will certainly be interesting having you as my right-hand man."