A/N: The first chapter with a flashback. And now we get to pick things up and move a bit faster…I'll follow the manga a little more closely than the anime from here on out. Either way, do read and review would you kindly?

…

[Ichiraku Ramen Stand, roughly six months later…]

Another night, another dollar so they say…and Ayame was busy with her father in preparing more ramen for people that would come to the stand. The stand was small, but still had enough room for a living space behind it. Due to their original careers as ninja, the Ichiraku family of course kept weapons on hand…their specialty weapons were the infamous kusarigama. True, they were not on par with the legendary Sanshouo no Hanzo, nor were they as versatile as the late Kikuchi Mina, but they were highly proficient in the use of that weapon. Upon hearing the curtains moving, the two of them faced the entrance…it was their favorite customer, Naruto and Meilan was not around! The interesting thing about him however, was that he seemed to be scuffed up…and there were marks of chakra usage all over his body, but the strange thing was that he had a smile on his face.

"Hey there Naruto, how may I take your order?"

"One Naruto Special, and six bowls of miso…I have people I want to celebrate with coming in soon."

There was a puzzled look on her face…a little dolphin had told her that Naruto had failed the Ninja Academy, so why was he even smiling in the first place? He should be frowning what with all the teachers sabotaging his education—and then she'd get the chance to comfort him, much to her giddy and girly pleasure as she tried to smother him with lots of love and her decent-sized breasts. All thoughts aside, she "What're you celebrating for?"

"I'll tell you when they get here…"

…

[Ninja Academy Training Grounds, earlier in the afternoon…Taijutsu finals…]

Naruto stood at the ready in the arena…his opponent was none other than that evil prick Mizuki. Even though he kept on hearing that cheerful voice of his, and that very much pretentious way he tried to comfort him, he knew that that was nothing but a façade…and that the asshole had something planned. What it was, he didn't know—he just knew that it didn't sound good. Why couldn't it have been Iruka-sensei? At least the man was sincere in his actions, unlike the weak, pathetic, and very much prejudiced fool before him. Unfortunately, Iruka was busy handling with his share of students, and so that left him and Mizuki at the ring.

The rules to the student-teacher taijutsu final were simple—if you were knocked down or out of the ring, you lost; you didn't even have to bring down the teacher you were fighting, all you had to do was last five minutes. As he stood at the ready to fight, Naruto noted that Mizuki's steps were heavier than normal; Mizuki should have been at the appropriate weight for a Chuunin of his age, if not a little heavier due to his time as a teacher, so why would a normal-sized man be this heavy without any muscle-gain? It was then that Naruto realized the exact reason of why as he increased his chakra senses past 60GHz…the cheater was wearing sandals reinforced with highly dense plates of what he assumed was iron on his soles. That was so low…and the kunai the man hid in a holster on his back didn't improve his opinion of him. But then again, if he wanted to pass the taijutsu exam, he needed to beat this scumbag down.

"Hey, Mizuki-sensei!" he called out, lowering his chakra senses, "I've heard rumor that you've been raped by a lot of enemy ninja, is that true?"

Mizuki's first reaction upon hearing that was an imitation of a fish gulping for air—how dare that demon brat? Oh he's so gonna die right now! Before he could charge in to teach that evil fox a lesson, he paused as he had just remembered that Naruto's unarmed and chakra-efficient fighting style actually revolved around making people angry first! It was then that he started calming down—that was close! As he calmed down and started happier thoughts, he simply chuckled…no way, no how is the demon-brat going to make him angry! "A little fox told me that you've taken so many rape attempts by said ninja that she questions whether or not you're actually straight! And the sad thing is none of those ninja were women!"

It was getting harder and harder for Mizuki to remain in control—Naruto knew this and grinned…just a little more and he'll turn that asshole into a moaning pile on the ground. "Since you're not answering, I'm betting those rumors are true! And what's worse, you enjoyed getting raped by them!"

That did it! Mizuki didn't even bother letting out the 'hajime!' to denote the beginning of the match—he simply started the match with a roar, and charged in to begin his assault. Surprisingly though, in his vengeful haze, Mizuki's strikes were still rather accurate—as if his rage fuelled his attacks. Naruto knew this as he narrowly dodged each strike, waiting for the perfect opportunity. Once he saw that opening, he ducked under a roundhouse kick before he drove his fist forward and hard! His timing was just right…as was his form and the power behind the punch…it's just that the place that his fist hit was so very wrong that it hurt! The match was already won when Mizuki crumpled to the ground, his voice raised to a higher pitch, and his face contorted and locked in pain as he fell to his side in a fetal position.

"What happened?" asked Iruka, and he walked on over to the scene in front of him…he tried not to laugh at the humiliating position his friend had found himself in. Unfortunately for Mizuki, he failed. "Mizuki-sensei was hit in the groin," began Naruto, "I started it by making him real mad."

Iruka's laughter was broken and melted into shock when he heard how Naruto won his match—granted, due to his blindness, he needed that advantage to fight better when he is unarmed…but to make Mizuki angry was a real challenge, and this was because he had a rather level head on his shoulders with a high tolerance for insults. In order for him to have done this, Naruto must have pushed the right buttons. "Okay then, since Mizuki is incapacitated for the moment, I'll be doing the rest of the spars."

…

[Ninja Academy Classroom, half an hour later…]

It was actually good that this final was taking place—now Iruka could help put ice in that area Mizuki was hit in…to be honest, the past six or so months was actually quieter. For some reason, Sakura had been grinning beatifically while in the presence of both Uchiha twins—she wouldn't say what happened, although it was likely that whatever happened was very much related to the collar around her neck. And this wasn't the kind of collar for fashion, oh no…it was the kind of collar meant for those masochistic people that were into BDSM with the spikes and all. There was even a tag that read 'Property of the Uchiha Clan'. He could only wonder as to what it was that happened between them…

Eh, who was he to look a gift horse in the mouth? At least her physical tests had gotten better…and her theory tests were consistent—hmmm…maybe whatever happened to her was actually a good thing. And what was also good was that now he didn't have to deal with that horrible scream the majority of her family was known for…thank Kami that none of them made it as singers—Haruno Sayuri however, was the only exception to that, as she had a wonderful singing voice whenever he was in to have some sake. Yeah, it was also fortunate that her dango stand was right across from his favorite ramen stand, so he could listen to that beautiful voice all day…and then look at that pink hair wondering whether or not it was hereditary…and even wishing he could ask her out so that eventually he could…

His train of thought was interrupted as he looked up at the clock…it was time to end the test. "All right then students, the written test is over…please put your pencils down, and pass your papers towards the stairway—we'll get to the Jutsu Finals in a bit." It was here that he started walking up the stairs, collecting every pile of testing papers along the way. Once he arrived at Naruto's row, he found the boy finishing the markings on his test paper before returning it to the teacher with Meilan's…and he could tell this was Naruto's test paper because the characters were in Braille. Well, at least he had a table to aid in reading those answers…that, and he was also thankful that the words were written in kana to accommodate teachers who were not blind as well. But either way, and Iruka had promised that he would be impartial…those bigots that called themselves teachers didn't realize that their eyes were covered from having their heads so far up their own asses.

Once he collected the last of the tests, Iruka went back down to the desk and then sat down with Mizuki who had just recovered. "Okay then class, we're going to do the Jutsu Final now. In order to pass, you must perform all three jutsu to at least acceptable levels: the Henge, Kawarimi, and Bunshin no Jutsu. We'll start with the Kawarimi…Shino, would you please come on down?"

The kawarimi portion of the finals went without a hitch—Shino had replaced himself with a chair, Ino with a log, Sasuke with a pile of rocks, Tsukiko with a desk, all the way up to Naruto who had replaced himself with a certain orange book…that he had pickpocket from a certain one-eyed jounin by accident. Said jounin screamed at the injustice of the world that his beloved 'Icha-Icha' book was stolen…and ran home crying.

"Okay then, now that that's over with, let's go on to the Henge exams. Choji, you're first!" Everything was going fine—most of the students had transformed into different iterations of Iruka himself…some had even transformed into the Hokage…the only ones who did anything different were Hinata, turning into her father, and the twins transforming into each other. As soon as he led Naruto down the steps, he had a funny feeling something was going to happen that was going to be a mite interesting…than he generally liked. Once he led Naruto to the stage, he sat at his desk with his clipboard at the ready.

"Naruto, you're up. Perform the Henge no Jutsu." The second those words left his lips, Iruka began to regret it as he watched Naruto turn to face him with an evil-looking grin on his face before he moved his hands into the proper sequence…once done, the telltale 'poof' had sounded off with steam being blown in all directions. Once it cleared, he found himself seeing a…pair…of…large…breasts? He then looked up and saw that the breasts belonged to a tall, blonde girl with whisker marks on her cheeks, a pair of long ponytails on her head, and a blindfold over her eyes—grinning lustfully at him…and it didn't help his situation that the girl was naked, and that her breasts were right in front of his face as she leaned forward with both hands on his desk, holding back her C-sized breasts with her. And the voice she had spoken in was what sealed fate as she said, "Hey there, cutie."

Iruka could only scream in shock before a fountain of blood sprayed from his nose…and many of the boys had their brains fried from the sight right after their noses bled. Mizuki had the worst nosebleed of all, as in addition to the girl being naked, she was bent over and showing her ass to him…a very tight and firm-looking ass mind you. Ami and the other Sasuke-loyalist fan girls called the jutsu 'perverted' and 'evil' in addition to accusing Naruto of being the 'enemy of all women' despite the wish they secretly had of having those attributes so that they'd have an easier time of seducing Sasuke…but the Naruto fan-club only had fried brains as they puzzled on the concept as to where Naruto got the idea for that girl? It wasn't long until Iruka regained his senses and performed his infamous Dai Onikubi no Jutsu. "GET SERIOUS YOU DUNCE!"

This immediately dispelled the jutsu as Naruto left the stage laughing out loudly as he found his way up to the desk nearest the stage, and going up another six desks before he found his seat. He could not help but feel as if a good amount of killing intent was directed his way…if the cold feeling he was picking up were any indication—yep, this was going to haunt him later. It wasn't long until Iruka was finished marking everyone for their transformations. "Very well then, all joking aside, let's get to the final part of the exams: the Bunshin no Jutsu! You need to make two functioning clones to pass."

Upon hearing this, Naruto was not pleased at all…whoever wrote the exam he was currently taking was out to get him. The reason for this was that the Bunshin no Jutsu was actually the worst jutsu he tried to learn—Meilan seemed to get the concept behind it naturally—her Doppelganger technique worked on a similar principle after all, as did Hinata, Sasuke, Ino, and Tsukiko; hell, he was pretty sure everyone else got the concept. But Naruto did not understand why his Bunshin didn't come out properly…he worked so hard on that jutsu and yet it seemed to come out wrong. His mood seemed to darken even more when he felt that everyone else performed the technique well—in addition to the smug feelings he was picking up off each of them as they passed him by. When his turn came, he let out a sigh as he was led back down the steps by Meilan and onto the stage.

"Remember Kit," said a certain soft and silky voice reverberating across his ear, turning from sultry and seductive to firm and intense, "instead of making two like that strapping, nose-scarred teacher of yours said, use up as much of your chakra to make many." That's exactly what she told him yesterday, but he was nervous about it now. Once he took a calming breath, Naruto moved his hands in the proper sequence, and did as he was told…as he let out a lot of chakra for the technique. Before long, a loud 'poof' filled the air as the jutsu was completed…something felt wrong.

"Uh, Iruka-sensei, I can't see anything…what's happened?"

The sound of regret in his voice told him all he needed to know. "Naruto, I'm sorry, but you failed—you only made one clone, and it's barely alive."

Failed? How could that be? Naruto could only think back as to what happened. "That's odd…I'm pretty sure I used a lot of chakra, so I should have made more than just one. How can you be sure that I failed…unless someone is sabotaging me right now?"

Actually, Iruka could not fault him there—he knew every teacher, save Namida, was actively sabotaging his education. The only reasons he discounted Namida was because one—Naruto was not a girl, and two—because she was one of the people who didn't hate the boy. But still, he had to make sure everything was fair. "Be that as it may, you still fail the exam unless you can provide proof that your Bunshin no Jutsu was in fact sabotaged as you say."

Naruto was about to retort until he was interrupted. "Don't bother Kit, he's not going to believe you," said the voice, "and the evidence you're about to use will be disproved instantly. Besides, I have a pretty good idea who sabotaged you…and as soon as class is over, you will have a chance for justice—I guarantee it." Upon hearing that, Naruto let out a sigh of frustration, facing Iruka with a look of disappointment on his face. "Fine, you win—I failed the whole final, happy now?"

…

[Outside at the swings, after school…]

Meilan walked towards the boy sitting in one of the swings with her hitae-ate tied around her neck. Naruto had a disappointed look on his face…yes, he definitely needed a shoulder to possibly cry on. Along the way, she heard the whispers behind her back.

"Why is she even with him in the first place? Doesn't she even know what he is?"

"So it's true, demon whores are decided when young…"

"Keep your little girls away…I hear the demon can seduce them with music."

"I'm glad he didn't become a ninja…how would you feel if…"

"Shh…don't say it—the law is still in effect."

Yes, she's had her share of whispered hatred directed at her, but that was no excuse for them to do what they did to Naruto-kun. Yes, she was aware of what he was—he told her after all, but she loved him anyway in spite of the real demon-whore he was containing in his arm; some part of her wanted to spank that bitch for what she caused her Naru-kun. And as loathe as she was to admit it…yes, Naruto could seduce and attract a lot of girls with his music, albeit unknowingly—she knew it because she was among the girls who was getting seduced by his skills with a guitar.

As she neared him, she noted that the other girls in the fan-club were there—Sasuke being the only apparent boy in the fan-club. No doubt they were there to comfort her Naruto-kun with her. It was then that she turned her attention towards the boy of her affections only to see that Mizuki was leading him away and into an alley. This was odd, because she knew that the white-haired teacher was one of the people actively sabotaging Naruto's education…what could he want with him?

…

[The Alley…]

"So sorry about your failure Naruto," began Mizuki as he lied through his teeth, "but do you know why Iruka is so hard on you?"

The look of faux curiosity was clear on his face. "Gee, I wonder why—in fact, why don't you explain to me why Iruka-sensei is so hard on me even though it's pretty clear I've been sabotaged by the teachers since day one of my…educational experience."

"I don't know…"

Before he could say anything else, Mizuki was cut off when Naruto raised his hand. "Cut the bull Mizuki; five years on the road works wonders in beating the stupid out of you—and when you're blind, it becomes child's play to tell when someone is lying so don't even bother doing so; it insults my intelligence and makes you look stupid when you do. I know that it was your chakra pulse that sabotaged my test…and I know that you brought me out here because you want something from me. Tell me what you want before I show you how much more dangerous I can be when angry."

The imitation of a fish gulping for air returned on Mizuki's face. He'd been figured out…but maybe he can turn this around to his advantage…yeah, all he had to do now was to choose his words carefully. "Very astute—since you've figured me out so easily, I have a bit of a proposition for you; a bit of…extra credit if you will."

Naruto faced the teacher with suspicion written across his face. Perhaps it was worth it just let him live for a moment longer…after all, it would be child's play to kill the man later. "I'm all ears."

The smirk on Mizuki's face had widened to a grin…hook, line, and sinker! "Oh nothing, it's just that I want you to do something for me…"

…

[Training Ground 23, three hours later…]

It's been almost three hours since the theft of the Forbidden Scroll at the hands of Naruto…the Hokage wouldn't say how it was stolen from him when he had just walked into his office, but judging from the tissue papers shoved in his nostrils, Iruka had a very good idea of what happened to make the theft so easy. But all joking aside, he needed to find Naruto quickly—before one of the jounin found him and decided to kill him…assuming of course that the worst-case scenario had happened where they were Naruto-haters. He could only shudder to himself as to the fate of the poor boy. It wasn't long until he had finally arrived on the scene to see Naruto, looking a bit more tired than usual and sitting at the base of a tree with all four of his weapons out. Was he expecting trouble? As he continued to study his appearance, Iruka had noted that the blind boy had been working hard—at what, he couldn't tell. But he had work to do…and a boy to be angry at. "Naruto! What the hell are you doing here?"

Naruto was startled upon hearing the yelling of his teacher. It was then that he stood up turned to face Iruka with a proud grin on his face. "Oh hey Iruka-sensei. How're you this fine night? Are you here to test me again?"

"Don't play coy with me…do you have any idea how much trouble you're in? And what do you mean 'again'?"

"Trouble? How can I be in trouble? Mizuki-sensei said that someone would come by for my re-test…and that part of the re-test was to steal this scroll from the Hokage."

"Naruto, there's no re-test. If there were, I'd know about it."

"Oh really? Because Mizuki-sensei promised that if I stole the scroll for him, that he'd make me a gennin easily."

Wait a minute…Mizuki 'promised'? All this time, Naruto was being offered a chance to graduate that never existed? How could this be? Before he could retort, the sound of a large blade spinning in the air…reacting quickly, Iruka jumped forward, and pushed the boy down to dodge a giant shuriken that whizzed overhead and embedded itself in a nearby tree before a couple of kunai embedded themselves in the back of his calves. "This is actually a surprise," said a voice nearby, "I never actually counted on somebody beating me to the brat, but I suppose it all works out…once I'm done here, then everything goes as planned!"

Iruka turned to find the owner of the voice—to his horror, it belonged to Mizuki, and he was dressed in his war gear. He also had two large shuriken strapped to his back. "Mizuki, how could you?"

"Oh it's easy Iruka…just one thrust was all it took! But enough of this banter…Naruto, give me that scroll, and your graduation will be assured."

"Don't listen to him Naruto! Mizuki's a liar…he used you to steal the Forbidden Scroll for himself."

"Look who's talking? Who's the real liar when everyone else has been lying to you from day one? By the way Naruto, do you know why everyone hates you so much?"

The look on his face was blank—Mizuki hated it…that cold look that said 'I'm a better man than you!' Maybe it was time to take that brat down a notch! "I suppose it can't be any worse…go ahead, tell me why."

Iruka knew where he was going with this…he was not going to allow him to say a word. "No Mizuki! Don't say a word!"

"The Hokage lied when he said that the Kyuubi no Kitsune was killed on October the tenth…but the fact of the matter is that there's no way you could kill a tailed beast. So the 'Honorable Third' had passed a law…a very special law punishable by death that concerned the people of this village letting a particular secret out!"

Naruto's expression had not changed one bit. "And what pray tell is that secret?"

"Mizuki, don't! It's forbidden!"

"The secret is that you in fact art the Kyuubi no Kitsune!"

That did it! Mizuki had unveiled the one secret that should not ever have been let out. He then grinned even wider as he watched Naruto's mouth open as he took in a breath. "Is that all?" This surprised both men…they expected him to break down…cry…anything but that deadpan voice that came out of his mouth. "If you really think I'm the Kyuubi no Kitsune, then you're probably dumber than I thought. If I were the fox, I wouldn't even be a boy you dumbass!"

Mizuki could only look in befuddlement as he took in what the demon-brat said. "What the fuck are you talking about? YOU'RE THE KYUUBI NO KITSUNE!"

"No you fucking idiot! I met the Kyuubi no Kitsune long before you came up with that stupid-ass plan! The fox you are so scared of is a woman!"

Iruka could only think of the implications. A lot of people believed that the fox was male because of its power…to hear that Naruto not only met the fox personally, but confirmed that it was a woman was enough to freeze him with shock. Mizuki however, got over his shock rather quickly. "Who cares? Man? Woman? You're still the fox in my eyes!"

Naruto let out a sigh of frustration. "There's no reasoning with you is there? Looks like I'm going to have to bring out the pain."

The look of confidence had not left Mizuki's smug features. "Oh, well bring it on Kyuubi! I'm a chuunin, and you can't beat me when you're not even a gennin! And I'll bet all your techniques were flukes because you're still blind!"

"Wrong." It wasn't long until he put both hands in a hand seal, and a smoke screen had appeared. Before long, multiple copies of Uzumaki Naruto were swarming the forest. All of them had grins on their faces…and it didn't help the feeling of foreboding he had as each copy of Naruto was brandishing a different weapon—some were wielding the Kumo-standard short sword in a reverse grip, others were wielding that menacing-looking tetsubo that seemed too heavy for practical use. "If you're so shocked that you can't come to us…"

"…then we're coming to you!"

Mizuki could not stop the onslaught that came—for every clone that he dispersed, another one appeared and managed to land a hit on him…some stabbed at him with short swords, others slashed at him with katana, but the most frequent attack that hit him was the bludgeoning he received from the iron maces. By the time the assault was over, many of the clones had been dispelled willingly—and Mizuki was found barely standing and with many bruises all over his body. The real Naruto simply stood and watched with a smirk on his face, as he sheathed all his weapons. "Ready to give up yet?"

At this point, Mizuki was panting for air…it was then that he started grinning maniacally! It was then that he reached into his flak jacket, and pulled out a syringe containing an ominous-looking fluid. "You may have beaten me in round 1, but I guarantee you won't survive round 2!" As soon as he finished that sentence, Mizuki jabbed the syringe into a vein in his elbow. Once the fluid was injected into his system, Mizuki pulled the syringe out and started to kneel down in throes of pain…before long, his muscles started exploding in size, turning the average-built man into a hulking monster with tiger stripes. "With this power Orochimaru-sama gave me, I'll make you watch helplessly as I have my way with your girlfriends…one by one!"

The smirk on Naruto's face had melted into a frown. Oh, he was not amused—nobody threatened his friends and lived to tell the tale! At this point, his voice had become cold and grim. "I was hoping you'd say something stupid like that. You're so pathetic, that Kyuubi thinks that you're not even worth raping…so pathetic in fact, that I think only one will be sufficient for you. You should feel honored, Mizuki-teme…it's not often that I start fighting seriously…"

Iruka could only look in confusion at his student…what did he mean by 'one will be sufficient'? His silent question was answered when Naruto shot his hand up into the air, and charged some chakra into it—the result was that a glowing blue glyph of some kind had appeared above his hand before it disappeared and started orbiting around his head. Once that was done, Naruto got into a horse stance, and drew his katana from its sheath. "Come and get me dumbass!"

"If you insist!" He didn't need to say any more—Mizuki charged with his claws ready to strike down Naruto. The boy himself simply stood at the ready…but Iruka noted that the glyph had disappeared from Naruto's head, and that his katana had started glowing in the same color as the glyph. Mizuki was barely a few feet away from Naruto when the latter brought the sword up in both hands and then swung down and hard as he called out "Return!", causing a glowing orb of energy to fly forward and impact against Mizuki—the tiger-man was pushed back slightly as the orb started grinding away at him for a few moments before it finally exploded, and sending him flying and screaming into a tree…the force that he was hit with was enough to break his back—assuming of course the shockwave caused by the explosion didn't kill him by disrupting his nervous system first.

Naruto sheathed his katana, and bowed. "Rest in peace Mizuki-teme…may whomever you prayed to in life have mercy on you."

He could not believe his eyes…what the hell kind of training did Naruto go through for five years? As he watched the boy pull out the kunai and shuriken embedded in his legs, Iruka could not help but grin at what he had just seen…if this was but the tip of the iceberg of what it was that he learned in that time, then it would most definitely be a good idea to do this…

…

[Ichiraku Ramen Stand, present time…]

Naruto sat around at the stand…waiting for the people he had called for to arrive. Oh this was good news! It wasn't long until he heard multiple footsteps coming to his direction. "What's up Naruto-kun?" asked Tsukiko, bewilderment clear in her voice. Sasuke had walked in with his sister, with the same amount of confusion clear on his face.

"Yeah…what's new?" The voice that asked belonged to Ino…she was half-annoyed that Naruto had brought her out of bed…but at the same time, she was also glad to see him.

Meilan had walked in shortly after with Hinata following her. "Did you do it?"

"Oh yeah…it's done."

Hinata was not the only one who had a raised eyebrow as to what Naruto meant by that, as even Ayame was listening intently with her father, but she was in fact the first to ask. "W-what d-do you mean N-Naruto-kun?"

The girls could only continue wondering as to what had put their friend-slash-crush in such a good mood…before their looks confusion had melted away and become looks of surprise when they saw Naruto pull a hitae-ate out of his pocket! "I had to deal with a traitor to the village, but I finally got it. Iruka-sensei gave me his…and so now it's official—I'm a gennin, same as the five of you."

The five friends could only run up to Naruto and hug him…he had finally made it! "And now to celebrate!" As if on cue, Ayame and Teuchi had walked on in with smiles on their faces and five large bowls of chashu-men in their arms for Naruto, and six bowls of miso for the others. Once the trays were put down, Naruto picked up one of the miso bowls while the others were handed to the others.

"A toast to our future successes!" he began, as he raised his bowl, and the others held their bowls gingerly, before they all found the confidence to raise their bowls a bit higher, "As we drink our bowls of miso, may each of our careers as ninja be fruitful…and may we also remain friends from this day forth!"

The toast was done when everyone's bowls touched! Nothing would stop them now!

…

[Elsewhere…]

Sitting in his office, Shimura Danzo could only think to himself that this was his opportunity! Now that the Kyuubi-brat had graduated that pitiful excuse of an academy, he could work towards getting the weapon he had always wanted! In spite of the fact that his former student Kushina was like a daughter to him, he had to put the needs of the village first…a fact that seemed to turn the poor girl, Kami rest her soul, from a good daughter to a rebellious one. It was also no wonder as to why she never invited him to the birth of her son, nor did she label him as the child's legal guardian…after seeing his dedication, Kushina wanted nothing more to do with him. A real shame—he really did love her like a daughter…and it hurt him to know that his 'daughter' had come to hate him, but he felt that she'd thank him later in the long run…

But all other thoughts aside, Danzo began to think back on the possibilities with using Uzumaki Naruto as a weapon; from what he'd heard of the boy's training before he attended the academy, he would likely be the best swordmaster in all of Konoha, beating out Hayate and his fiancé Yugao. Oh, he'll have a part in the boy's life…just not directly. And judging from the fact that he technically qualified for the Clan Restoration Act, he'll have even more opportunities to get that weapon he'd dreamed of owning.

Now if only he could figure out how to make more weapons…oh wait, he just found another candidate for the CRA! Yes, this would actually kill a lot of birds with one stone—figuratively-speaking of course. "Somebody get me Kikyo," he called out, "I have a mission suitable for her particular skill-sets…"

…

A/N: It seems we have a representative from ROOT in Naruto's harem now…and said representative will be the team's resident medic (being a Nen Master, Meilan has limited healing capabilities) and long-range specialist. Also, as it stands, I'm still debating whether or not Ino is included in the harem…although since it's still early, I might consider pairing her up with Shikamaru, Choji, or even Sai. So many possibilities…and as to Kurama's orientation, I'd say that being locked up as long as she has would probably make her so horny that she wouldn't care if she was doing the deed with a man or a woman.

…

Dungeon Fighter Moves:

Taunt—Brawler

Wave Manifestation Brand—Asura

Ghost Orb—Asura

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Songs Used:

"Cornered" by Sugimori Masakazu from "Phoenix Wright: Ace Attourney": Taijutsu exams

"Afternoon of Konoha" by Toshiro Masuda from "Naruto": Written and Jutsu exams

"Darksiders Theme" by Chris Velasco and Mike Reagan from "Darksiders": Mizuki gets his ass kicked by Kage Bunshins

"Victory Fanfare" by Nobuo Uematsu from all "Final Fantasy X": Celebrating graduation

"Nine-tailed Demon Fox" by Toshiro Masuda from "Naruto": Danzo's idea

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Vocabulary/Culture Notes:

Kusarigama—a small scythe (kama) with a chain (kusari) that has a weight on the other end. Can be used to disarm opponents, hit them from long range with the weight, or pull them in to be hacked apart by the scythe

Sanshouo no Hanzo—this is Hanzo's full title in Japanese…it means "Hanzo of the Salamander"

Braille—contrary to what you think, there are different variations of the raised dot letters everyone knows as Braille to accommodate for their respective languages; in the case of such languages as Japanese or Chinese, the position of the dots are based on phonetic sounds

Chashu-men—this is ramen noodles with barbecued pork called 'chashu' (in its native tongue of Cantonese, it's known as 'chasiu')