DISCLAIMER: No matter how much I want it, I do not own Naruto. I am still only borrowing the characters and promise to return them in good condition – well, maybe slightly battered!

Chapter Forty-Eight:

The Road to Chunin: Uzumaki

I can't feel the way I did before
Don't turn your back on me
I won't be ignored
Time won't heal this damage anymore
Don't turn your back on me
I won't be ignored

~Linkin Park~

"Naruto of Konohagakure and…"

Excitement raced through Naruto so swiftly that he didn't even hear who his opponent would be. He grabbed the rail, ready to leap down when someone grabbed his arm. He looked back with a curious expression on his face.

Sasuke stared at him with a concerned look. Softly, he ordered, "Just don't do anything stupid."

"Agh!" throwing his hands on his hips, he demanded in exasperation, "Why does everyone keep saying that to me?"

"Because you are rash and impulsive." Sasuke looked quickly around, gave a hint of a smile and added lowly, "And because you always let your heart lead your path."

Naruto stood frozen, rendered speechless for a second and then joked, "You know, Teme, I think you just may be one good stabbing away from a decent personality."

"Tch, better shinobi than you have tried before, Baka... Just be careful."

He grinned broadly. "I don't ever remember you being this reasonable before. Are you alright?"

"Everyone has different definitions of 'reasonable.' Mine is just misunderstood, that's all," he replied with an affronted sniff.

Naruto laughed and slapped Sasuke on the back. "I think you must be 'misunderstood' a lot! And besides," he thrust his thumb at himself and arrogantly proclaimed, "I got a fight to win and then it's you and me!"

"Like I said before, Baka, better shinobi than you have tried."

"Mah, much as I hate to interrupt this touching moment, but shouldn't you be down there now, Naruto?"

"Oh crap!"

~o~O~o~

The Kusa genin watched the blond-haired boy leap down into the arena and run over to her enthusiastically. He was shorter than her and had chubby cheeks, making him look younger than he probably was. She guessed he was around the same age as her.

She couldn't help but feel a little trepidation. As she stared into his guileless, blue eyes, she reminded herself that things were not always what they seemed. She took another look - a harder look and frowned. This, Naruto of Konohagakure, had a lot of chakra... a lot more than she'd expected.

She knew she didn't exactly have the strongest battle skills. Her talents lie in something different. She was a sensor ninja, and a very good one.

~o~O~o~

As Naruto faced his opponent, he couldn't help but wish his teammate wasn't still being treated by the medics. He had no idea what this girl's skills were even though he was pretty sure Sai had already told him. He stared at her, racking his brain for any scrap of knowledge.

Shaggy red hair...

Glasses...

Kusagakure headband...

Red eyes...

I have absolutely no idea who she is. Damn, why didn't I pay attention?

Well, he would just have to do what he always did – wing it until he could figure it out...

"Sorry, I didn't catch it...who are you?"

"Seriously?" she scoffed, "What kind of shinobi are you? You didn't hear him announce Karin of Kusagakure?"

"Hey, I was a little distracted by my thoughts of winning." Naruto proudly stood tall, pointed to himself, and proclaimed, "I'm the future Hokage!"

The redhead stared at the blond and snorted. "Future Hokage? You're nothing but a little boy."

Naruto bristled in exasperation. He was not a child... he was a shinobi. He never took his eyes off the girl as Zabuza repeated the rules as he had done for the other matches. Naruto knew he would just have to show her what she was up against. As soon as the man was finished with his speech, he was ready. He shouted, "Well this little boy is gonna kick your ass!"

A vicious smile spread across Naruto's face, and he lunged forward in a fury of fists and feet.

When he fought, everything around him slowed down rather than sped up. Without the resistance seals on, he moved so fast everything blurred. Rock, trees, dirt, and shadows flew past him in a wild mixture of patterns and shapes, and still he could see so clearly. All the details seemed to jump out at him, as if lit by exactly what should make them hard to distinguish. He could even close his eyes and fight. He was that much in tune with everything around him, that much aware of where he was. That was exactly what he did.

The girl dodged and blocked with all her might, but couldn't quite seem to get a return punch or kick to connect at all, Naruto was just too fast. She reached into her pouch, snatched a handful of kunai with paper tags attached, and threw them.

A murderous barrage from the chain of explosive tags, seven or eight tremendous blasts, perhaps more than that – he didn't count them, couldn't count them – one right after the other, without a significant pause between them. Each fierce boom overlapped the one before and after it, yet each clearly louder than its predecessor. It was so loud that they made his teeth and bones vibrate. Each detonation thundered discernibly closer to him than the one before it.

The flash-bang was a surprise for some shinobi. The blinding light and explosives sounds would have these disorientated them, but not Naruto. Jiraya had seen to that. He taught him how to combat the effects.

He closed his eyes and breathed deep. It was like he was traveling blindfolded with Jiraya again. He instinctually dodged the hurling kunai and brought his hands together… Shadow clone jutsu. He hadn't wanted to bring them out yet, but he had no choice until he could get his sight back and the ringing in his ears stopped.

There… To the right…

After a few precious seconds passed his sight mercifully came back, he had to shake his head at the pitiful sight. Karin was running away from his clones, screaming like a banshee.

And he dispelled them with an annoyed a shake of his head. He put his hands on his hips and announced, "You really should forfeit now. I'm ready to get serious." Unfortunately, he wasn't able to prevent the annoyance from creeping into his tone.

Karin's face reddened in embarrassment and anger. She shouted, "I don't know who the hell you think you are little boy, but I'll defeat you if it's the last thing I do!"

"Mmm… Okay," he said doubtfully and then raised his hands, flying through the seals he had spent weeks memorizing until he could practically do them in his sleep.

Karin jumped back in expectation of something fierce, but instead, a gentle wind caressed her face.

"So that's it?!" she laughed, "That's all you got? It'll take a little more than that to beat me."

Naruto didn't comment. Instead he looked past her and smiled in accomplishment.

Something shoved her – hard. Karin stumbled a bit and looked back. No one was there, but a ferocious wind had begun to blow, followed by stinging droplets of water. They circled faster and faster past her to surround Naruto. Soon he was standing in the center of a violent maelstrom. It spread wide, roaring louder and louder.

Naruto was in his true element. Pure joy was etched across his face as he commanded the winds around him. True, he felt the slow drain on as chakra levels as he used the powerful jutsu, but it was worth it. He grinned at Karin.

~o~O~o~

"Oh Kami, Karin. Don't panic. Just… don't… panic…"

There was nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. She had no earth techniques to combat it with. She threw another kunai, her last one with an explosive tag attached. She wanted to weep with relief when it detonated right at his feet.

An ominous dark shape rose from the explosion, a tornado, spinning straight towards her. An unrelenting gale of wind pounded and thrashed at her body with a viciousness that terrified her. Loose leaves from the few trees that dotted the arena were stirred into a frantic, dervish-like dance, accompanied by the cacophonous music of the storm he had created.

Sucking in a deep breath, Karin pressed her hands to her heaving stomach and studied the twister that was coming towards her. Fear turned her muscles into wet rags. The vortex of wind-blown leaves and other debris whirled across the surface of the water and directly towards her. It was a big one; a column about five feet in diameter and ten or twelve feet high.

It stopped very near her, writhing, churning, hissing, changing shape. Feeling threatened, Karin jerked to her right.

The tornado matched her movements, looming over her, gathering in size and shape. She could feel its pull – trying to pull her into its destructive path. Panic once again reared its ugly head.

Thinking quickly, she released the chakra keeping her afloat and dropped like a stone into the murky depths. She could feel the hurricane pass her overhead, churning the water around her, but for the moment she was safe. It provided her a few precious seconds to think.

Knowing he wouldn't have the chakra to keep it that much longer, she didn't wait long before climbing out of the water and standing on the surface. Visibility was reduced by the curtains of mist and gray water that wavered and whipped and billowed in the windy arena. The boy was nowhere to be seen. So focused on his jutsu, Karin completely lost sight of Naruto. She sensed him too late. As she turned, she was slammed with a blue swirling ball of chakra.

"Rasengan!"

Shock barely registered in the girl's eyes as she sailed across the water, slammed into the arena and slid down the wall. Blood speckled across her chin as she weakly coughed. She quickly jumped to her feet and scanned the battle ground. Where is he?

A knee slammed into her back from behind. She stumbled, groaned and thought, "This guy (what was his name again?) can really jump!" She twisted about, brought her fists up, and used a scissor action to block a powerful incoming punch aimed at her throat.

Her agile enemy changed position with ease to sweep Karin's feet out from underneath her. She crashed sideways to the water, forced to use her arms to break her fall. Panic was no longer merely rearing. It was thundering through her at full throttle.

The wind was still howling, but with less force than it had extended a moment ago, for the whirling columns of leaves and dirt subsided to the ground, where they lay in piles, fluttering and quivering as if exhausted before sinking in the water.

Seeing Karin's guard down, Naruto pounced, dropping on top of her and revolving nimbly to elbow her hard between the eyes. The force of the blow jolted her head back. The arena around her instantly grew hazy. Suddenly the air was oppressively heavy - hot and thick, as if it were not air at all but a bitter and poisonous gas of some kind. She tried to breathe, couldn't. There was an invisible crushing weight on her chest.

She tried to rise. Her limbs were numb. She gasped, realizing that her attacker's cunning nerve-strike had paralyzed her. She was an easy kill now. Karin willed her feet to move. They felt dead. Naruto loomed over her, studying her.

"He's only playing with me," she thought with a grimace, "Like a big, fat cat with a tasty little mouse."

~o~O~o~

Naruto walked slowly and cautiously towards the prone redhead. He wanted to make sure she was all right and yet he was no fool… all girls could be tricky. There was a slim possibility that she was feigning her injuries to get him to come close.

He saw her flinch as he came closer. He shook his head in disgust. How could he prove himself worthy of the rank of chunin in by fighting her? He grudgingly admitted to himself; however small the possibility, that she might beat him if she had some sort of powerful jutsu hidden up her sleeve... after all, girls were crazy.

Then again, weren't most shinobi?

He stopped a few feet away, his kunai poised and ready for any eventuality. "Hey Karin," he said, "I know you're faking it. Just give up OK? I really don't want to hurt you. You know you can't possibly win against me. Please, just give up…"

Naruto nimbly sidestepped the hail of shuriken sent his way and tried to ignore the imagined snickers of his teammates from the pathetic counterattack.

"I must say… you're really not being very co-operative," said Naruto with a sigh. With a casual flick of his fingers, he sent back his weakest jutsu.

The rushing water of the water dragon bullet jutsu pounded her against the wall. Pinned, she couldn't breathe, couldn't move.

~o~O~o~

When Karin hit the wall, she knew she was finished. She quickly exhausted her strength by attempting to fight the water dragon jutsu. She acknowledged to herself that this boy was just too strong for her to defeat. She was a sensor ninja damn it, not a fighter. She cursed her Sensei for forcing her to compete. As she slid down the wall and came to rest on one of the few spots of earth in the arena, she thought to herself that she just knew it would end this way.

"Why couldn't that stupid ass just give me a field promotion if he thought my skills were so valuable? Agh, I hate grass country," she thought venomously.

She sensed him…Naruto of Konoha. He was coming closer. He was going to finish her. She curled herself into a tight ball, more frightened than she had ever been. He seemed like such a nice boy, but there was darkness deep inside him…

Sweat mingled with the drops of water streaming down her face. She squeezed her eyes shut in despair, prayed that he would be quick about it, and then shouted sullenly, "If you're going to kill me, just do it already!"

Naruto gave her a chagrined look and shook his head. He was beginning to feel bad about beating her. It just didn't seem right. Without thinking, he blurted out, "Now this is just embarrassing. How did you even get past the other two trials? It feels like I'm kicking a puppy for Kami's sake."

"Puppy?!" Karin felt the sting of his insult hurt her more than anything he had done to her. "Are you implying that I am so small and helpless that it's beneath you to even bother with me?!" she yelled in outrage.

"That's not what I said," he protested. He jogged closer and pleaded, "I just want you to forfeit before I you get hurt. This isn't a fair fight. Please just tell Zabuza that you want to quit."

She didn't answer. A light glow began to spread over her body.

~o~O~o~

When that boy's first jutsu, Karin near without a doubt that she would lose. She couldn't understand how a mere genin could create something so destructive. She had resigned herself to that fact, but when he insulted her, she got angry... Really angry.

Her one burning thought was that she had to make him pay. Incensed and feeling more than a little irrational, she just wanted to shove him down to the ground and wipe that pitying look off his face for good. She was no puppy!

Karin knew her face it must have gotten as red as her hair because she felt heat spread across it. Tingles raced down her arms to her fingertips and there was a curious burning sensation throughout her body.

Suddenly, she screamed out and arched her back as though in great pain. Then, to her utter shock and amazement, something wondrous happened. Five translucent, whip-like shapes burst from her body and solidified.

~o~O~o~

Before Naruto could even form a surprised thought, golden cables fashioned from chakra burst from her body. The links noisily weaved around her threateningly. He came to a sliding halt on the water's surface as she launched the rotating chains at him.

They flashed past him in a blur. Naruto dropped into a crouch as the spikes lashed just above his head and its chains snapped taut. He flicked up the edge of his kunai, trying to tangle the chain, but it was quickly yanked out of range. Karin reeled it in then started the spikes spinning again.

He leapt backwards, using the Shadow Clone jutsu to create a diversion, but chains were relentless. Although the day had begun relatively clear and fog free for once, it was no longer. The battleground filled with mist as the clones were systematically destroyed.

Then he heard the metallic whine of a shuriken closing on his head. One of the clones spun around, his kunai swishing past him to block the shuriken with a loud clang. The spent throwing star spun away in a high arc, plunging into the arena wall.

Naruto just couldn't get close enough to the girl to take her down. He thrust his hand into his pouch, pulled out a small, round ball, and threw it at her.

The smoke bomb went off with a low hiss. Naruto threw several shuriken as Karin spun her chains faster. He vaulted into the plume of smoke as it quickly expanded along the wall. In seconds it was a dense white cloud.

He heard Karin give a sharp cry of pain. His stomach knotted hard. Had that last shuriken found its mark? Through the cloud came two heavy thuds as spiked chains hit the wall nearby. The white cloud grew larger still, and Naruto could tell his bomb's smokescreen powder was about to run out. Suddenly Karin loomed in front of him. With gritted teeth she pulled a shuriken from one shoulder.

"You know," she said with a furious scowl, "Not all little boys are annoying… Some are dead."

The chains speared forward, wrapping around him and depleting his chakra. Pain lanced across Naruto's body as he struggled to free himself from the relentless, crushing pressure of the golden links. His vision went grey from lack of air and he fell.

He somehow managed to wiggle his hands out from his sides and put them together in the cross sign. Twenty shadow clones was all he was able to create as his chakra was slowly and steadily being drained from his body.

The converged upon him, pulling at the chains and attempting to keep her away. Naruto watched helplessly as they were unable to free him from his unyielding confinement. The spikes slashed through the clones one by one until he was alone once again.

Naruto face contorted as desperation fueled the rage bubbling within him… Kurama's rage.

His nostrils flared, eyes flashed, and closed into slits. An unintelligible howl was torn from his throat as his hands closed into fists.

~o~O~o~

Karin had never been so confused in her life. First she was almost killed, and then chains burst from her body. Chains! She felt an incredible sense of strength as they responded to her unspoken commands. She just might win this round after all! Maybe... just maybe, she could win the whole thing...

Then she watched as her opponent's chakra was overcome by a malevolent and evil one. It was so vast and so dark. She had no idea where it had come from. She became frightened, thinking that the chains from her body had somehow changed him. But that wasn't possible... was it? Who knew it would be possible for golden chains to suddenly erupt from her body.

It was unnatural. It was… Inhuman…

This Naruto… he was shrouded in mystery. His presence was now ominous and brooding. She knew, without any doubt whatsoever that his ferocity would be lethal when unleashed. The darkness within him was almost complete now. She sensed he could effortlessly lay waste to her with casual ease.

~o~O~o~

The coppery taste of blood permeated his mouth when his elongated canines bit into the tender flesh of his lips. It awoke something within him.

When he was very young, Naruto would get sad and depressed because of the way people treated him. Kakashi had taught him that being a victim was often a choice people made. He didn't understand for the longest time why so many people chose suffering but as he got older he recognized their self-hatred, masochism, and weakness.

Not all or even most suffering is at the hands of fate; it befalls us at our invitation.

So he had chosen not to be victimized, to resist and fight back, and to hold onto hope, dignity, and faith in the future. But victimhood was seductive, a release from responsibility and caring. It was easy to want to just give up.

Now he trembled on an emotional high wire, not sure whether he would be able to keep his balance or allow himself to fail and fall.

He felt the last of his chakra drain away. He shook his head and shakily pulled himself upright; because it would seem… he just wasn't capable, after all, of simply giving up. It was his nindo.

"Don't you ever… Don't you ever underestimate me!" Suddenly the unnatural rage was gone and Naruto grew calmer. The malevolent shroud of chakra that overtaken him receded and his normal beautiful, blue chakra was back and with more blinding force than before. Chains exploded from his body and wrapped around hers.

"Wh…what's going on?" they both stammered in confusion.

"Who are you? What are you? "

They were almost nose to nose. The ends of their chains were the only difference between the two. Naruto as ended in a three pronged shape while Karin's were shaped like a regular kunai. They weaved about, clashing indiscriminately as though they had minds of their own. Karin winced as a shower of golden sparks rained down on them.

The sharp ends locked together with a dull ring, then slid noisily down each other's lengths, clanking together. Karin found himself face to face with Naruto as each of them tried, leaning in hard, to force the other one back. He knew they both had the same plan: push the foe off, free the chains, and strike at close range.

"I told you already," panted Naruto heavily in effort, "I am Naruto Uzumaki, the future Hokage of Konoha."

Karin was stunned. "Uzumaki?" She stared for a second and then snapped out angrily, "I am Uzumaki not you, little boy!"

Naruto sighed. "We're the same age… Wait… your name is Uzumaki too?" Stunned at the possibility of a relative, he said gently, "See we should stop fighting now, you know, because we might be family. We can and should be friends."

"Are you nuts?! Why would…? What the…? I don't get you." Karin blinked with confusion. "Why? Why do you care?"

"We shinobi live lives," Naruto nodded his head and said slowly, "that ordinary civilians invent tales about. But we are like anyone else, really. We too need friends." He paused, searching for words. "Otherwise our paths… powerful as they are… wind up being empty… and lonely."

Naruto shoved away one of the chains trying to wrap around his hand and put it on her shoulder, biting his lip, unsure what to say or do next. Karin cleared her throat and shrugged. She slowly managed to free her arm and raised it high in the air.

Staring Naruto straight in the eyes, she said quietly, "Proctor… I forfeit."

~Kirigakure- The Omake~

Kakashi was walking casually down the street towards the inn where he and his team were staying. He had Naruto's misplaced bag slung over his shoulder when something interesting caught his eye and made him halt. "Bitch," he read the sign with a chuckle.

The teen nodded frantically as the copy-nin looked over the boys' recent work. They had Shēn strapped to a long board in nothing but his boxers. His mouth was taped shut with a piece of two inch white medical tape. Someone, probably Naruto or Kiba, drew a big happy face on his stomach. To top it off they leaned Shēn against fence with the sign tapped across his hips for the entire world to see. He knew that had to be Kiba's work.

Kakashi gave him an eye smile as he studied the teen for a moment. "That looks uncomfortable," he finally said as he set the bag down.

Shēn tried to shrug against his restraints.

"Mah, sometimes I'm little embarrassed to be their Sensei." He gestured to Shēn's predicament. Shēn nodded slightly. "So juvenile." He shook his head in disgust and bent down in front of the teen. Shēn tried to look down to see what Kakashi was doing, probably hoping that he was getting a kunai to cut him down.

Kakashi stood up with an aerosol can in his hand, absently shaking it. "I tell the boys if they're going to do something, do it right the first time. We take a lot of pride in our work as team seven, but this," he gestured lazily towards Shēn, "has amateur written all over it. I'm sorry, Shēn, but as their leader, I do have a reputation to protect." With that Kakashi sprayed green spray-paint on Shēn's brown hair.

After a few minutes Kakashi stepped back to examine his work. "Hmm, better, but not quite what I'm looking for." He shook his head and bent down to retrieve something else from the bag. This time he stood up holding a red marker.

Shēn watched as the marker came closer to his face until his eyes crossed. He felt the pen press against the tape covering his lips. He looked up to see Kakashi smile. "There, that's much better." He stepped back to examine his work. The green hair and full pouty red lips worked for him.

He picked up his bag and gave Shēn a smile. "You really need to work on your escape skills. I'll see you inside." Kakashi walked away while Shēn tried to scream against the tape.

Kakashi walked into his team's room and sighed, feeling a headache coming on. "Very disappointing work, gentlemen, very disappointing," he said, shaking his head in disgust.

Naruto ran a hand over his spiky, blonde locks as he said, "Come on, Kakashi Sensei, we had to rush it. Kiba and I are going to the market."

"What for?" asked Kakashi suspiciously.

Kiba and Naruto's eyes met and they exchanged smirks. "The market game!" they exclaimed in unison.

Naruto began to laugh. "Oh, and it's so on! I'm going to win this time."

Kakashi felt a shiver run down his spine. Anytime Kiba and his son had those looks on their faces, it meant trouble… on an epic scale. "Just what is this market game and will there be any casualties?"

Kiba snickered. "Nah. You just have to buy some stuff from the market."

"Yeah, you have to buy three things that will freak out the shop owner."

Ino, who was lounging on a chair next to Sasuke, began to laugh. "You guys are morons!"

Kiba snorted, "So I guess that means you don't wanna hang… anyone else in?"

"No way," said Sasuke. "That Baka got me banned last time."

"Hey that was all you, Teme!" yelled Naruto. "You were the one that bought the bag of live goldfish, the salt, and a sushi cookbook."

"No, that was Sai. I bought the dog collar, leash, and little knee pads."

Ino giggled. "For some reason, I just can't picture you doing something like that. So why did you get banned for that?"

"I was nine." Sasuke pointed at Naruto. "I got banned because that Baka asked me if I was sure the collar would fit snugly around a toddler's neck."

"Hey, I clearly said hypothetically!"

"Mah, just try not to get us kicked out of Kirigakure. Oh… and someone please go untie Shēn."

"Do we have to?" Ino whined, making him chuckle. "I think I'll go along with them just to see what happens."

Sai glanced at Ino and hastily said, "Well, I believe I should probably go as well… just to insure that nothing untoward happens."

~o~O~o~

Kiba and Naruto came trudging back to the inn two hours later. Sasuke smirked. "So what happened?"

"We got banned," groaned Naruto while Kiba dismally flopped on the bed.

Sasuke couldn't help but roll his eyes at that little announcement even as his curiosity got the better of him. "How exactly do you get banned from a little shop at the market?"

"Hey, don't judge me! Those bastards had it out for me."

"Hn."

"Alright, alright since you insist on hearing the details… Kiba bought a pregnancy test, a garbage bag, and a wire coat hanger and I bought a cooking apron, a butcher's knife, and a Beginner's Guide to Anatomy book. The shop owner was not amused."

Kiba laughed. "Yeah, but you should have seen his face. That guy now probably thinks everyone from Konoha is nuts! But that's not why we got banned. Shēn showed up."

Sasuke sighed heavily and waved his hand for them to continue.

Kiba happily spilled the details with relish. "He called Ino a psychotic harpy."

"Yeah," grinned Naruto, "and Sai got so mad, he grabbed the jerk by his throat and shoved him into the shelves, knocking everything over. Then Ino got mad because she said she was capable of taking care of herself and shoved Sai into more stuff."

"You know," added Naruto thoughtfully, "Sai calls her that at least once a month and I've never seen her get that mad."

Kiba's mouth dropped open in disbelief. "You're kidding right?" he asked while Sasuke just rolled his eyes and shook his head. "You do realize that the Hokage put a restraining order on them for a reason, right?"

"I thought she forgave them for almost burning down the academy. It only destroyed two classrooms… oh wait, I forgot about the paint. They only destroyed three classrooms. It was an accident."

"I think it was when they caused that riot in the Lady Hokage's favorite restaurant."

Naruto shook his head sadly. "Yeah, strange how everyone reacted by a couple of measly worms."

"Well she did force feed them to him," reminded Kiba, "And there where a whole lot more than a couple of them."

"Ah yeah." Naruto laughed and added, "Good times, good times..."

"Hn… you are all idiots."

AN:

Just To let everyone know, this is pretty much the last chapter. All that's left is the epilogue. Thank you to everyone that has read my story and followed/favorited/commented on it! I believe that it truly has helped me become a better writer a little at a time. Also, my beta just wouldn't get back to me - so hopefully the action parts are good enough!

Ja Ne,

AZFAERYDUST