Eternal Legends: Konoha's Transcendent Ninja
Chapter Twelve: Birth of Squad Seven
What's up everyone? I present to you the twelfth installment of Eternal Legends! It finally happened! I finally crossed the two hundredth review mark! :D Thanks Gaaraxx33, your 200th review that crossed that threshold was well appreciated.
This chapter is likely going to be shorter than chapter eleven for a plethora of reasons. For one, I decided against to make this chapter the "monster" one. Second, chapter thirteen will be an exclusive chapter focusing on the societal, economical, political and military vicissitudes in Kumogakure. I was originally going to include it in this chapter, but after much planning and outlining I realized that the chapter would be unnecessarily colossal and it wouldn't flow as well as the other point-of-view switches from chapters four through eight. I have so much to cover on that front that I guarantee that even with breaks, this chapter would've been a complete chore to read due to the obscene length of both sides of the continent.
So, consequently, you're getting your third consecutive Konoha exclusive chapter. They'll return in chapter fourteen where the main meat of the story the both follows and diverges from the manga (heh, like I haven't already, :P) as well as a twist in the Wave arc that will pretty much set the foundation of the entire story till the bitter end.
WARNING! As you can probably already tell if you paid close attention, I have a LOT of this story already planned out; it's just that I have to fill in the meat to get there. There are some things, although relatively minor and few, that were, admittedly, made up as I went along (Mikoto being alive and their sensei being the biggest), but for the most part, I have this story planned out from when they were eight, all the way up to climax of the final showdown with the Hidden Cloud.
As such I feel I should tell you this. If you're an astute reader, you should already have a guess to just how big of a scope everything is going to get with the Hidden Cloud, Akatsuki, the Lords of Alchemy, and Europa, itself (hint, hint). In fact, when I calculated it all in my head of what I wanted to do and where I wanted this story to go, I can almost guarantee that this story, when I eventually get to the infamous three-year time skip that this story will be split up into two (yes, you read that right, two)stories running parallel to each other in the same universe in the same time frame, more or less. Why? The answer should be obvious if you paid attention.
So, why exactly the "warning" label, you ask? Simply put, this story is going to get big, dare I say, epic in scope. Meaning there will be a lot of characters, both original and familiar, a lot of plot, backstory, character history and development and lots of battles. While there will be light-hearted moments and tongue-and-cheek humor, it's going to get very dark and tragic.
I'm not like most authors who will just spell everything out for you like you're a child. No, I expect you to take me seriously and it's only fair that I extend that same courtesy to you. I will foreshadow future events with even the smallest of details, imply certain things about the lore in my story where I don't directly say, and give you believable, sympathetic villains that you can relate to. No stupid black and white morality here.
So here's what that means to you: I will make callbacks to even the smallest points in the story; some subtle, some completely obvious, and some not really quantifiable in either category, meaning that everything I write will assume that you've read the fine details from beginning to end and will treat you as if you're a hardcore fan of the story.
Of course, considering that by the time I get to the war, I will be well over 600k words in total that you can't remember everything, so I will, at some point in the future, be creating a guide on my profile explaining all the various factions and bios of all my OCs to jog that noggin of yours in case you forget. Am I stretching myself thin? Maybe, and then again, maybe not. I don't know. And I won't know until I try. Ever heard the saying: The bigger the risk, the bigger reward? Trust me, if I pull what I have in this noggin of mind, I guarantee you that this story will be in everyone's top ten, if not top five favorite fan fics of all time. Ultimately, I hope that someone or a group will make a TVTropes article for this fic, which I would most definitely cry tears of goddamn JOY if I saw.
If you think you're up to the challenge of having a Fanfic that takes you seriously and you think you can make educated guesses as to where the story will go and you can handle your brain being overloaded with pure badass, then, by all means, continue with eagerness. If not…well…see how long you last until the scope becomes too large that it obstructs your view.
Sorry for the overtly long author's note, but you most definitely need to know what you're getting yourself into. So without further ado,
Full Disclaimer: Naruto is the property of Masashi Kishimoto, Shonen Jump, ViZ media, and all other related companies. I make no claim of any characters from the manga and anime and own all OCs that may appear from time to time. I also make no claim of elements used from certain video games such as Ninja Gaiden, Call of Duty, Uncharted, Warhawk/Starhawk, Halo, Killzone, God of War and Resistance which are under the copyright ownership of Team Ninja, Infinity Ward, Naughty Dog, Incognito, 343 Studios, Guerilla Games, Sony Santa Monica, and Insomniac as well as the publishing rights of Tecmo, Activision, Microsoft Game Studios and Sony Computer Entertainment America/Europe, respectively.
(-x.0.0.x-)
(Konoha Ninja Academy 1300)
Naruto couldn't help but grin as Sakura came out of the back room with a Konoha headband adorned on her forehead. The rosette haired girl was the last of the Golden Trio to take her graduation exam and she, like Naruto and Sasuke, scored a perfect one-hundred points. Unsurprisingly, they all had to share the title of rookies of the year.
Sakura gave him a smile back as the three best friends walked out of the Academy with their heads held extremely high. They were one step closer to their collective and individual goals.
Collectively, all three of them wanted to not only surpass the Densetsu no Sannin as the most powerful shinobi team Konoha had produced, but they also wanted to become the most powerful shinobi team in the entirety of the Elemental Nations. However, it was still a long ways off. Even if they were Jounin-class in terms of skill and overall ability, there were still, undoubtedly, ninja that they looked like mere ants in comparison. On the other hand, in turn, that also meant that they were the strongest genin to come out of Konoha since the Yondaime's generation (who was even more powerful than Itachi when he graduated).
Deciding to not want to go home just yet, the triad of siblings in all but blood decided to watch the village from atop of the Hokage monument. Naruto and Sasuke stood with their arms crossed on the edge of the Fourth's head, while Sakura sat blissfully with her legs dangling off the edge.
"So it seems we're one step closer…" came the voice of Naruto as he stared into the setting sun with calculating eyes.
Sakura nodded with a smile. "Indeed so. Though, I can't help but wonder who our sensei is going to be," she wondered aloud.
Her two friends shrugged.
"Hard to say," Sasuke commented. "Technically, any number of Jounin can be pulled to be a genin sensei. Honestly, I hope it's someone who's stronger than we are."
There was no arguing there. The three had to hold back when sparring Iruka, Mizuki, or any Academy instructor. They could've beaten them with relative ease if they truly wanted to. The only reason the three had chosen not to was because Mikoto had forbidden it. Otherwise, they'd have outright stomped them each and every single time.
"Oh, crap! I almost forgot!" Naruto cried suddenly, his body language changing instantly to one resembling panic.
"Huh? Forgot what?" the raven-haired Uchiha inquired with a raised brow.
"No time to explain! I'll meet you guys home!" he replied before jumping off the monument and vanishing using the Shunshin no Jutsu.
Sighing a bit, Sakura, in one swift motion, pushed herself up from her sitting position and back-flipped to stand next to Sasuke. "By the gods, I'll never understand what he does sometimes."
"Neither will I, Sakura. Neither will I," he agreed as he shook his head. Sakura was about to reply when she heard a prideful roar in the distance. She shifted her head around to where she thought the growl came from. Her eyes widened a bit as she recognized that area immediately even from the highest point in the village: Training Ground Forty-Four, also known as the Forest of Death.
The black-haired genin looked at Sakura in confusion. "Um…Sakura…what's wrong?"
She whipped her head back to him in disbelief. "What's wrong?" she inquired incredulously. "You're telling me you didn't hear that!?"
The Uchiha stared at her with a blank look on his face followed by a nervous laugh. "Uh…no?" he replied cautiously. He truly had no earthly idea what the kunoichi was talking about.
"You mean to tell me you didn't hear a roar just now? I half-thought I was in a savannah with apex predators for a split second!" Sakura alleged.
Sasuke's eyes narrowed a bit. 'She heard a roar? That I didn't? I mean I want to call her crazy, but…' Flashbacks of the creature he saw three years ago came flooding back to his mind. He never told either his mother or his friends. He had been doing research in his spare time of trying to find out just what exactly…whatever it was, was. Dead end after dead end convinced the Uchiha to stop his frantic search for clues to the identity of the mysterious creature.
Even though he hadn't seen it in person for over three years, at least once a week, those chilling red eyes he saw bubbled up in his dreams, in what he assumed were visions. All of these dreams consisted of various settings and towns burning to the ground in what seemed to be either genocide of some sort by an unknown enemy or event—a fact that he wouldn't likely admit to Sakura or Naruto, much less anyone else was the cause of it!
Some of the various landscapes and cities seemed inherently familiar, as he could tell they were various shinobi villages and towns from sporadic parts of the Elemental Nations. However, in some of the visions the architecture looked completely alien to him, showing him various towers that seemed to stretch toward the sky with glass windows, people traveling in some sort of machine that they rode on, as well as machines that flew through the air at hundreds of miles per hour with a person sitting in a "pit" in the front covered by glass in a dome-like oval shape. These cities were also on fire, but it seemed as if these humans were the cause of it with those strange machines he had absolutely no idea were.
Could his visions and what Sakura heard be connected? It was pretty farfetched, he had to admit, but in hindsight, three years ago, he was the only one who saw that creature's judgmental eyes as he felt his entire body go numb as his muscles failed to move. It was only a few seconds real time, but to Sasuke, it felt like an eternity.
"I see," Sasuke finally acknowledged. "Sakura…I think I might know…vaguely at least…but I think it'll be best to wait until after Naruto gets back."
Sakura nodded faintly to his suggestion. "All right, then, Sasuke-kun, you've got me interested," she admitted.
'Not the only thing I wish you were interested in…' he thought sadly before dismissing such solemn thoughts from his head. "Yeah, this is something both of you need to hear. Let's get home."
Sakura nodded and made a ram seal. She vanished from the top of the mountain that oversaw the entire village courtesy of the Hanachiri Shunshin (Flower-Dispersing Body Flicker).
Sasuke grunted a bit as he watched the swirling storm of cherry blossoms encircle her form, in some minor form of envy. "Gods, damn it…I really need my own unique Shunshin," he muttered. With a long sigh, he simply vanished in a puff of smoke.
If Sasuke would've turned around he would've seen the same eyes of the creature he saw three years prior. It nodded to itself and vanished, the sunlight both blocking its true form as well as its disappearing method…
(-x.0.0.x-)
(Training Ground Forty-Four, dubbed "The Forest of Death")
A calm, ominous air swept through the dense training ground that served as the second stage of Konoha's Chunin Examinations. While it wasn't even close to as diverse as some of the creatures that were in the jungles scattered across the Elemental Nations, it still held a myriad of unique flora, insects, and animal species. The civilian taxonomists within the village had estimated they only discovered roughly half of the various species within the forest.
The red-eyed creature suddenly appeared on a branch high up, glancing down at a cave hidden strategically from the residents of Konoha. A snarl was heard from the cave, as the footsteps were loud enough to make ripples in nearby puddles. The beast within the cave stopped before the exit and the only thing the red-eyed animal could see was its exotic, silver eyes with a black slit in the middle.
Its voice was masculine and in a deep baritone. "So you finally return…Kikōō…."
Sasuke's mystery creature, apparently named Kikōō, nodded his head in affirmative. "I have, Baiū. I've been observing the three for quite some time…especially the young Uchiha who Xelos-sama is most interested in."
Baiū nodded. "Was the girl able to hear my mighty call?" he inquired, with a bit of boasting lanced in his query.
Kikōō resisted the urge to snort at Baiū's thinly veiled ego. "She was," the red-eyed creature confirmed, ignoring his minor annoyance. "She heard it plain as day and, as expected, the young Uchiha couldn't hear a thing."
"Of course not. Those whose hearts that are in tune with my kind can only hear the call. Though, I must say, I'm quite impressed she was able to hear me. I had been calling sporadically for the past three years, in the hope that she would hear me. I had almost given up hope," he confessed.
"Indeed. Normally…we would've waited at least another three years…but you know we couldn't afford to. Not with what's at stake here," Kikōō spoke in a somber tone.
If Kikōō could've seen Baiū frown, he would have. "You've already shown the Uchiha the visions?"
Kikōō bobbed his head in confirmation. "I made the link with him when I judged his heart to see if he was worthy of my clan's power as Xelos-sama said he was. I was skeptical, I'll admit, due to his relations with such a prideful and haughty clan. Surprisingly, I found his heart free from the arrogance that lead to their eventual destruction. After I deemed him worthy, in my eyes, I passed on the dreams of my race to him. The visions are unclear, even to Xelos-sama and myself…but…one thing is for sure. These three will play a vital role in the future if this world is to be saved from the madness of the summoner of the Thunderbirds and who wields infamous Raiunsou (Thunder Cloud Talon)…"
Venom and disgust traced the mythical summon's words as he practically spat out with unmistakable enmity.
The vigilant, silver eyes narrowed. "It's ironic a man once thought to be able to bring the world into a new era of peace would be the root cause of its destruction. A shame, too…
"He could've, or, if we're honest with ourselves, would've had one of our kind's powers…but we all know how that went…" he sighed sadly. Kikōō frowned, but said nothing further. "Speaking of Verandan-sama…has he made contact, indirectly or not, with the Namikaze boy? You and I both know the special relationship between his clan and his kind."
Kikōō shook his head. "No. Outside of having some of the younger kind watch over him, he has not. His bloodline is still maturing and he hasn't even begun to tap into its full potential."
"…I see," he neutrally intoned. "It seems the time draws even closer for them to have our power and allegiance."
"They will need it to survive the coming storm. The plans have been put in motion. The arduous roads that these three young shinobi shall take will shape and change this world."
"The Namikaze boy, especially," Baiū added in. "He has tremendous potential, both in terms of his ability in power and as a natural leader."
"Considering he comes from such a regal lineage and bloodline, that should come as no surprise." A frigid chill went down his spine. "Such power…his clan makes the likes of the Senju and the Uchiha seem like mere ants in comparison. The boy truly has no idea just how potentially powerful he can become."
"Even surpassing his father?" Baiū asked in wonder.
Kikōō paused for a bit, weighing on his exact answer. "I'm not sure," the majestic creature admitted. "…his father was truly in a tier of his own, surpassing even his clan members." Baiū glared at him as if telling him to correct his statement. "Okay…most of his family, then," he amended, "but, you knew what I meant."
Baiū simply shrugged. "In any case, as I said before, the time draws near before our clans seek them out to give them our power. We have much to teach and prepare them for and not a whole lot of time to do so," he gravely remarked.
The beast on top of the branch slowly nodded. "Their familiars haven't even been born, yet, which brings further cause for concern. But, alas, we must have faith in Xelos-sama, Verandan-sama, and Byakko-sama."
The summon within the caverns bobbed its head in agreement. "I do believe so. With that being said, I bid you farewell, old friend. I, as well as you, have much to prepare for. I wish you luck."
"As do I," came his curt reply. With a screeching cry of his flight call, Kikōō vanished in a blazing pillar, leaving black char marks in his wake. Baiū retreated back into the caverns, newfound determination in his eyes. He had seen the visions of the potential future this world had. So long as he drew breath, he would walk through hell, itself, before he allowed them to come to pass.
But first…he needed a nap; a good eighteen-hour one, at that. Chuckling to himself, the beast circled around an open spot in the darkness of the cave—which he could see through perfectly, mind you—and laid down on all fours. Resting his head on his left paw, Baiū drifted into a dreamless sleep.
(-x.0.0.x-)
(Uchiha Estate, 1330 hours)
"Oi! Kaa-san, we're home!" Sasuke called out as he and Sakura came in through the front door. They both kicked off their sandals and left them near the threshold, now walking barefoot towards the kitchen.
Mikoto currently sat at the table reading a book as a distraction from everything that happened this morning with the Third Fire Shadow. She was so absorbed into her reading that she faintly recognized the chakra signatures that came into her home, let alone that her surrogate children had audibly announced their presence.
Hearing the two walk in with enormous grins on their faces, her mood perked up a bit. She put on a weak smile. "Sakura-chan, Sasuke-kun," she acknowledged them.
"Guess what, Kaa-san…We passed, cha!" Sakura told her pointing at the forehead protector on each of their respective heads.
Mikoto blinked for a few seconds, as her mind started to process what she was just told. It wasn't long before squealing, "Oh, my gosh," momentarily forgetting her stature and her depression. She pulled the two genin into a near-bone-crushing hug in glee. "I'm so proud of you all!"
Despite nearly being suffocated, the duo grinned like madmen, still in euphoria of finally getting out of four years of what was essentially redundant training. "Kaa-san…can't…breathe…" Sasuke heaved out, choking a bit for emphasis.
The Uchiha matriarch gave a sheepish laugh before letting go of the two. "Sorry 'bout that," she apologized while rubbing the back of her head. "You know how I get when you guys do something incredible." They both smiled and nodded in understanding.
"Wait a sec," she began as confusion swept through her, causing her to turn her head in multiple directions to find the missing element that remained out of place. "Where's Naruto-kun?"
"Beats me," Sasuke answered as best as he could, halfheartedly shifting his right shoulder. "He left shortly after we all graduated, saying he had to do something."
"This morning all over again, I take," Mikoto reasoned with a sigh.
"More or less, yes," Sakura replied, shrugging before she and Sasuke sat cross-legged next to one another at their foot-and-a-half-tall dinner table.
"You know I was doing a favor for a friend, you know," came the all-too-familiar voice of the blond genin as he walked into the kitchen with a smirk, apparently overhearing their brief conversation. There was a medium-sized red fox near his right pant-leg who glanced at the Uzumaki's family with twinges of annoyance and morbid curiosity.
Mikoto either didn't notice the vulpine creature or honestly didn't care as, true to her nature, she squealed and embraced the blond tightly, too. "Naruto-kun! I'm so proud of you!" she told him, her voice swelling with pride. It was times like these where Mikoto was reminded of why, despite all of the hardships, she kept moving forward: her three children. Were it not for them, there wasn't a doubt in her mind that she would've contemplated suicide after the massacre three years ago.
Naruto grinned at his mom and hugged her tightly in return. "Thanks, Kaa-san. We couldn't have done it without you." Both the onyx- and jade-eyed genin smiled in mutual agreement with their blue-eyed best friend. Mikoto could only smile even harder.
Sakura perked up, somehow finally noticing the fox that seemingly decided to accompany Naruto back to the Uchiha estate. "Um…" she began hesitantly, blinking for good measure before tackling the proverbial elephant in the room, "Naruto-kun…what's with the fox?"
Both Sasuke and Mikoto's face traced bewilderment. The Uchiha widow let go of her son and glanced down to the floor to where the fox was, sitting on its haunches.
Naruto grinned sheepishly. "So…you guys remember the deal in exchange for having the Suppression Seal destroyed from my body?" The question came out in a rhetorical fashion.
Their jaws dropped to the floor as realization dawned on all three of them near simultaneously.
"You…mean…THAT…is the Kyuubi?" Sasuke asked, still a bit dumbstruck. The fox, now known as the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox, simply scratched his ears with his right leg, fighting off a sudden itch.
There was a pause before the dam burst…
"OH, MY GOSH!" Sakura screamed like a schoolgirl. "He's so cuuuute!"
Naruto and Sasuke deadpanned, while Mikoto chuckled, shaking her head in clear amusement. Now, that was certainly the reaction he wasn't expecting.
The vulpine growled a bit, audibly. "I am the Kyuubi no Youko, girl! I have powers that dwarf even the strongest mortal! One of my tail-swings can flatten mountains and cause tsunamis! I am the strongest of the nine biju and there is no beast on this earth that comes close to my—"
The demon fox's rant, which only Naruto could, naturally, understand, was cut short as the rosette-haired kunoichi picked him up and cuddled him, his furry body nearly mushed close to her developing breasts. Naruto blinked heavily, too surprised to even see the humor in the situation.
"Take your paws off me, woman! I'll have your head for this before I…I…I…." He trailed off as the kunoichi caressed his back with a soft gentle touch of clear affection. The gesture sent a pleasurable chill down the fox's spine, making him shiver. However, it came out as more of a purr than anything. Sakura sat back down, cross-legged, and still kept her strokes even and gentle. She even scratched his ears for good measure.
"Oh, wow," Naruto guffawed as he started fall over laughing. Sasuke followed suit; he too, was clearly entertained at the Demon Fox whose malevolence had nearly flattened the village thirteen years ago was reduced to acting more like a common housecat. Even Mikoto had to admit that it was pretty amusing, to say the least. Her laughter was simply reduced to mere giggles.
"God…damn…you…" the Kyuubi drawled out, trying his best to put back his façade of being an evil vulpine. He was failing miserably. "This is so wrong…but feels sooo goooood! By the gods, yes! Right there!"
Seeing as Naruto was the only who could understand him, he laughed even harder, tears streaming from his eyes. After a good two to three minutes, the blond jinchuuriki finally composed himself, wiping the liquid from his eyes. "Oh, gods, that was amazing," he commented, breathing out.
'You know this is something I'm probably never going to let you live down. You know that, right?' Naruto telepathically told the kitsune, smirking a bit.
All he got in response was the fox equivalent of a small snort. 'Brat, if you knew how utterly godly this girl's touch was, you'd be acting the same way,' he sneered. "It's too bad that this is only temporary, a fox could get used to this." He then looked at his tenant with what seemed to be a mischievous, perverted grin. 'Besides, I'd be willing to bet six of my tails you would want to find out just good her touch is, hmm?'
Naruto's eyes widened a bit in both half-anger and half-embarrassment at the implication. His cheeks pinked a bit as his eye started to twitch in annoyance. "Stupid, perverted fox!" he bellowed, pointing his accusatory right index finger at him.
The rest of the three human occupants in the room stared at the Uzumaki strangely, as if he had grown a second head. He blushed a crimson red in embarrassment.
"Well….um…you see…" he tried to explain, but words were starting to fail him at the moment.
Sasuke shook his head. "You and that link you have to the fox, I'll truly never understand." Sakura and Mikoto silently agreed, while the genin kunoichi continued to stroke the fox's ears, much to his delight. "Speaking of things I'm not understanding, I have to tell you all something." The tone of urgency in his voice was not lost on the other shinobi. Every lodger in the room straightened up. Mikoto grimly nodded and stood up to pour everyone a cup of hot tea. She had a feeling that this would be a long conversation.
"What's up, bro?" Naruto inquired, clearly interested in what he had to say. The Fox had a curious expression on his face, as well, clearly noting his interest.
The Uchiha scion took a sip of his tea before taking a breath. "Okay…you two remember about roughly three years ago when we were having lunch at the academy? You recall that I took off out of nowhere because I saw something, right?" Naruto and Sakura both nodded, but Mikoto was confused. However, she figured she could piece it together well enough, and decided not to interrupt.
Sasuke sighed again. "Well…I never told you all this but…ever since that day. I've been having dreams. Hell, I wouldn't even call them dreams. More than likely visions," he explained. The two females blinked in surprise, while Naruto's eyes narrowed ever so slightly, his augmented mind processing this new information at a rate that would put the Nara clan to shame.
The Kyuubi's eyes widened completely. 'Visions? He saw visions after he saw that creature? But there's only one race in the entire world that could give him that kind of precognition,' the fox thought to himself. The potential implications of what he just heard were…incalculable. If it was true that they had given him the gift of seeing into the future like their kind could that meant only one thing: Shit was about to get real, fast.
"Visions?" Mikoto inquired, not quite understanding. "Like what? What did you see?" She was skeptical, truthfully, but she had to hear her son out. Considering the crazy things she had seen Aisu, Minato, Kushina, the Third, etc. had done in her childhood, she'd learn that practically nothing was impossible anymore.
"I saw entire villages, yes, even ours, being burned to the ground," Sasuke replied dropping the bombshell. Everyone, including the poker-faced blond, eyes' widened completely.
"Wait, couldn't this be just a nightmare? I mean, we all have bad dreams every once in awhile," Sakura tried to reason, though there was a small part of her that just knew that this wasn't the case. Mikoto and Naruto concurred in agreement.
Sasuke almost looked smug as he was about to hit the kunoichi with a dose of reality. "Actually, no. Tell me Sakura…would you write off a dream that you have had every three days for the past three years as a simple once in a blue moon nightmare? With the only difference being a different point-of-view and new perspective, but otherwise roughly the same? Hmm?" he asked her semi-rhetorically with a sarcastic hum to boot.
The three sat there in stunned silence at that particular revelation. Kyuubi, however, was mentally going haywire. 'There's no mistaking it! It IS them! But how?! And why?! They only give their power to mortals only when the other two races also want-' Kyuubi's thoughts trailed off as he froze completely. He gazed, discreetly, at both the female holding him and his tenant. His jaw dropped to the floor as realization hit him like a Bijudama (Tailed-Beast Ball). 'By the fucking gods…you've got to be shitting me. So, Verandan, Byakko, and Xelos…you've decided that my vessel and his friends to be your masters.' The Fox needed time to process this information. He wasn't going to let his tenant know just yet, he needed more intelligence.
"Sasuke-kun…why did you wait until now to tell us this?" Mikoto asked, concerned for the mental welfare of her biological son.
"Because I thought I could handle it," Sasuke explained with a bit of a regretful frown. "At first the dreams did scare me, admittedly, but soon, after awhile, I got so used to it that I sometimes actually went to sleep thinking 'What's going to burn down, this time?' I had researched thoroughly and found nothing that would make any logical sense as to why I was receiving these visions. Some of the buildings and places I saw were completely off to me. They had buildings and machines that I've never seen before."
"Alien architecture?" Sakura hummed aloud in thought. "Could it possibly be Europa?" she suggested.
Naruto cupped his chin in deep thought as his mind processed the possibility. "It is possible. But what would the wonders of Western Civilization have anything to do with us? As I recall from the brief geography lessons from the Academy, the frontier region that separates it and the Elemental Nations essentially isolate us from the rest of the continent. No serious contact has been made in the past one-hundred years. For all we know, every single country there could be at war vying for control or having other regional conflicts and geopolitical issues."
"That's true," the Uchiha butted in drinking her tea with a small sip. She then asked Sasuke the million-ryou question. "Sasuke-kun…these visions. Do you think they're of the future?"
"Not necessarily," he replied back. "It's just…" he went through a series of unknown and indescribable hand motions trying to figure out the best way to explain this. "A potential future…you know? Like this could potentially happen if I, specifically, don't do something."
"What would the welfare of countries thousands of miles away have to do with you? Sasuke-kun, you're nothing more than a genin, just like Naruto-kun and I. We're barely important, in the grand scheme of things, to our village, let alone on a global scale," the pink haired kunoichi reasoned, still petting the fox in her lap. Said fox was truthfully no longer even registering her strokes of affection as his mind was completely occupied by the conversation being told at hand.
"That is…assuming what he saw was Europa," Naruto skeptically uttered. "Assuming what you saw was the West...then that would imply that our two civilizations will somehow meet….the question is…how…and why?"
Mikoto felt a twinge of guilt consume her. 'Naruto…you truly have no idea. Truth of the matter is...Europa has more to do with you, then you realize. I just hope when I tell you the truth, you won't hate me for it.' Mikoto honestly wanted to tell Naruto about his real parents, but just couldn't bear the idea of her son hating her for keeping it from him for so long. She had spent the past four years building up a trust and bond with the blond that was as deep as one could possibly get for a mother and son. The sheer thought of that bond shattering, the instant he found out, terrified her to the core. Her heart had already been broken twice, once by the Sandaime Hokage's manipulations and the other by Itachi, who both had essentially killed the men she loved.
"In any case…I'm really not to sure where to go from here," the Uchiha told them earnestly. Solemn frowns contorted on to their faces.
"I'm not either," Naruto admitted. "But…we'll figure something out."
Mikoto nodded in agreement with her surrogate son. "For now, I'd say that from now on, when you have one of those…." She paused momentarily, part of her still coming to grips with the reality of the situation. "…visions…I'd suggest that when you wake up you immediately write down as much of the details as possible," she suggested, eyeing her son carefully.
Sakura perked up and blinked her eyes as she immediately caught on to what Mikoto was suggesting. "I see!" she exclaimed with glee. "If we analyze Sasuke's notes over a period of time…say…one month, then we can start to look for common patterns."
The older woman gave her a satisfied grin. "Astute as always, Sakura-chan," she praised. While Naruto was, unquestionably, a borderline tactical genius and was highly intelligent in his own right, overall, the jade-eyed kunoichi's intelligence still surpassed him in spades. Naruto's mind was more suited for combat and tactical situations. Sakura, on the other hand, was token definition of book smart. While it was questionable to whether or not her brain was on par with Shikamaru or any of the Nara clan, her IQ test of being one-hundred and eighty proved she was pretty damn close all things considered.
"I see…then that's the plan then," Naruto finally decided. "Sasuke…from now on, you'll describe in detail what you dream about so the four of us can find clues to move us toward the truth," he practically ordered, further cementing his leadership role. Sasuke bobbed his head in acquiescence. "In the meantime, we still have to meet our sensei tomorrow. The three of us are likely the only ones aware that the Academy exam was a ruse for us to let our guards down and the real test comes tomorrow. We need to be ready for anything. I want us rested up and ready to kick ass tomorrow, all right?"
"Hell yeah!" came the enthusiastic response from them both. Mikoto smiled and dismissed all three of them for the rest of the day, to prepare for tomorrow. She knew what the test was going to be, but she was confident that'd they'd figure it out easily. Sakura carried Kyuubi in her arms back to the boys' room.
Meanwhile, the fox looked at the blonde with even more newfound respect. He a personality and charisma that could make even the most cynical person want to follow him to hell and back. Sasuke and Sakura trusted him completely and utterly, not once questioning his orders or suggestions. It was a bond that went beyond sheer loyalty. It was borderline devotion, in which the only thing keeping it from being called that was that the two didn't worship Naruto as a god or anything less. To them they were practically siblings.
'Though, considering the pheromones these two give off when they are around the girl…' he grinned, amused at such a prospect. As much as he respected his vessel, he still was, at his core, a malevolent and conniving being. On that note, the idea of the two clashing over such a senseless emotion amused him to no end. A dark, evil smile made it's way on his face.
The trio was none the wiser.
(-x.0.0.x-)
(Konoha Ninja Academy, 0800 hours, next day)
Anxiety and anticipation swept through the room, as nearly everyone was excited at the prospect of meeting their sensei and finding out who would be in their squad. Ordinarily, the process would've had the genin know their teammates on one day and in the next they'd meet their sensei. However, this was another minor change in the way the Academy did things thanks to the reforms from the upper echelons all the way down. Now the process was cut in half, in a single day.
"So….think we'll be on the same team?" Sakura pondered aloud. Although the triad's reputation and teamwork was widely known, there was still a shred of doubt in the kunoichi's mind on whether or not they'd end up on the same squad.
"I have little doubt that we wouldn't be," Naruto answered evenly, still waiting for Iruka to come in from backroom ahead. "But…" he then glanced at both of them with a serene smiled. "Even in the off chance that we don't…remember this guys: You'll always be the best friends a guy could ask for. Sasuke you're the brother I've always wanted and you too Sakura, being the little sister," he grinned. Sasuke returned the expression tenfold as the blonde and brunette bumped fists, showing the feeling was entirely mutual.
Sakura smiled and hugged the blonde in gratitude, but that still didn't stop her from inwardly frowning. 'Just…a sister, huh, Naruto-kun?' she thought doleful.
The sound of their dolphin-named instructor broke her out of her thoughts. Everyone, as usual, quieted down in an instant. Iruka looked at the class impassively while standing at parade rest with a sheet of paper in one hand. There was no doubt that the squad assignments were written on them.
"Good morning, everyone," he began cordially. "Once again, I'd like to congratulate all of you for your hard work over the past four years. Believe me when I say that I'm proud of each and every one of you," he told them with a smile.
"Thank you, sensei," a few in the class chorused, while the rest simply smiled as their prides swelled at the praise.
"Now, enough introductions, I'm sure you all want to know what squad you're going to be on, no?" he teased playfully.
"Yeah!" they all cried in unison, causing the chunin to chuckle, briefly amused.
Iruka gave them a grin and pulled the parchment out in front of him to read off the names of their new teammates. "All right now…Squad One will be…." And so he named them off, one-by-one. Naruto's heart couldn't help but beat a bit faster as some sweat came down his brow in anticipation. 'This is it…for the love of the gods…please let us be on the same team!' he pleaded as he crossed his fingers, hopefully. Sasuke and Sakura were impassive, but he knew them well enough by now that they too were just as nervous as he was.
"Now, we come to Squad Seven…." Iruka began, as he made a subtle look at the blonde jinchuuriki. "It will consist of…" there was a dramatic pause. The tension was so thick you could cut it with a kunai. "Uzumaki Naruto…Haruno Sakura…and Uchiha Sasuke."
All three let out a breath they didn't know they were holding and stood up and cheered. "Hell yeah! Cha!" Sakura cried out in bliss. The rest of the class smiled and clapped, showing their congratulations. Even though they outclassed them in, literally, every way possible, the newly formed Squad Seven always lended a helping hand when someone asked for it, earning the genuine respect of their classmates. They could only be happy for them.
Near the back, a female with opalescent snow-white eyes gave a small grin at the trinity of friends. 'Congratulations, Naruto-kun, I'm happy for you,' Hinata thought, joyfully. Like some of the others in the class, the Hyuuga heiress was one of the few who were offered some assistance, from the three. While it was primarily her blonde crush and Sakura, Sasuke did help her out from time to time as well, knowing her circumstances all too well back at the Hyuuga estate.
As a result, Hinata became far more bold and outgoing, growing out of her shy shell. Interestingly, along with her newfound confidence, came a change not only in overall personality, but to her fighting style. At first glance, one would think that the Hyuuga heiress would've been graceful, gentle, and free flowing like the rivers of the meadows.
That wasn't the case, at all. As it turned out, Hinata's chakra nature wasn't water as everyone imagined it would've been. No, it was the exact opposite: Fire. That surprised practically everyone, Hinata included. In light of that tidbit of knowledge, the three decided to teach her some Katon jutsu, including the most basic: the Goukakyuu. Unsurprisingly, she was able to pick up on it much faster than even the three of them did when Mikoto taught it to them.
Adapting to her newfound element, Hinata began to become more aggressive and dominating, both during battle and social outings. While, yes, she was still a polite and well-mannered young lady, when she needed to be assertive and lay down the law, she did so with fantastic results. She was still hoping to somehow add her element into her family's Juken (Gentle Fist) Taijutsu style, but so far she was having little luck.
The girl still had a small crush on the blonde to this day, a fact that she would wholeheartedly admit without shame, she was ever so surely accepting the fact that he would likely never see her in that light and only as a comrade and friend.
Sending a small knowing and envious glance at the top kunoichi in the class, she frowned. 'Sakura-chan…I hope you don't take those two for granted. They care about you far more than you realize. I just hope you choose before the situation tips to a boiling point.' How Sakura hadn't realized the two boys' feelings, she'd never understand. Heaving a sigh, she simply shook her head and hoped for the best.
"Squad Eight….Inuzuka Kiba…Hyuuga Hinata…and Aburame Shino…" Iruka called out, earning a raised eyebrow from heiress.
"Interesting…" Hinata uttered aloud with curiosity. She looked at both boys, who nodded to her, which she returned. 'A team full of trackers, eh? Seems a bit overspecialized for my liking. But...then again…I'm perfectly capable of switching between assault and reconnaissance due to Naruto-kun and Sakura-chan's pointers. Maybe they took that into account?' Hinata then gave a half-hearted shrug. Oh, well. It didn't matter at this point.
"And finally we come to Squad Ten...Yamanaka Ino….Nara Shikamaru…and Akimichi Chouji…"
Ino gave an annoyed sigh. "Are you kidding me now? I get stuck with the lazy bum and Chouji? Gods, kill me now please," she prayed, deadpanning on the desk.
The Nara heir, who was coincidently sitting beside her, gave a lazy yawn and shifted his gaze on her. "Quit your yapping, Ino. It's not like I'm enthused about this whole team arrangement myself, yet you don't see me complaining," he grunted in annoyance.
"Besides…our 'rents were on da same 'eam," Choji butted in, talking with his mouth full of his favorite brand of potato chips. Ino huffed in slight disgust, but said nothing further.
Hinata, seeing the whole scene from above them, shook her head amused. 'I guess some things never change.'
"All right, everyone, now that you know your squads, I'd use this time to get to know one another if you haven't done so already. Your sensei should be here within the next half-hour or so, give or take. Until then, you're all free to wonder around," he permissed with a nod. The students didn't need to be told twice as they all stood up and went to greet their new team members and to socialize in general with each other.
The brunette instructor gave a smile before he made his way towards the door to the hallway. Taking one last glance at the class, he gave a small grin. 'Good luck to all of you, I can't wait to fight along side you in the future someday.' With that final thought, he excited the room, shutting the door gently behind him.
(-x.0.0.x-)
(Academy, Two hours later)
The infamous 'Golden Trio', were upset at the moment. No, not just upset, borderline pissed off was probably a far more accurate assessment of how the three collectively felt at this particular moment. Why, you ask? It's because their sensei still hadn't arrived yet and they were the only ones still stuck in the classroom!
Naruto gritted his teeth. "Okay, this is pissing me off!" he growled out, spinning some shuriken in his hand to keep his mind occupied.
Both of them scowled in agreement. Squad Eight and Squad Ten's sensei had all picked them up relatively on time, give or take a few minutes. Squad Eight's sensei was a beautiful Jounin by the name of Kurenai, who, if Naruto recalled, specialized in genjutsu. He genuinely wondered how Sakura's illusionary techniques stacked up against the scarlet eyed kunoichi. True she was a Jounin, but the three of them all were on that level as well, so it stood to reason that Sakura could probably give the Genjutsu Mistress a run for her money, with only her experience giving her the slight edge.
As for Squad Ten, their sensei was the son of the Sandaime Hokage, Sarutobi Asuma. He was once part of the Twelve Guardian Ninja and taught Naruto some wind technqiues, as a favor from the Uchiha matriarch. He was an all right guy in Naruto's eyes, if not a little out there. The man sure did love his cigarette, that's for sure. The blonde never understood the appeal, but to each his own.
Naruto gritted his teeth in frustration and went up to the chalkboard in the classroom and picked up an eraser. Both of his best friends looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "Um…Naruto…the hell are you doing?" Sasuke questioned, dumbfounded by the jinchuuriki's actions.
"I'm bored okay!" Naruto irritably cried out, walking towards the door. He pulled it open ajar and set the eraser on top.
"Naruto-kun…you don't expect that to work on a Jounin, do you?" Sakura rhetorically quipped, disapprovingly. Sasuke sighed, too annoyed to say anything, really.
The blonde grunted. "No, not really," he admitted. "But I honestly have nothing else better to do but-" he stopped as all three of them perked up simultaneously, sensing a presence behind the door. It slid open and the eraser fell on the person's head and landed on the floor with a thud.
The male crossed the threshold and picked up the eraser that just hit him and dusted some of the chalk out of his silver hair. His headband covered his left eye and he gazed at the three lazily.
Sasuke's eyes narrowed suspiciously. 'This guy is supposed to be our sensei? Then how in the blazes of hell could he have fallen for such a cheap trick? Something's off here…'
"Hmm…my first impression of this group…you're all a bunch of idiots," he told them flatly. The trio of friends, deadpanned at the thinly veiled insult. Before any one of them could retort, he continued on. "Meet me on the roof in two minutes, we'll get started from there," he instructed, before vanishing in a puff of smoke.
"Let's go everyone," Naruto ordered out, not in the mood to bitch, just yet. They both nodded and vanished.
(-x.0.0.x-)
(Roof of the Academy, 1015 hours)
Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura sat on steps made out of solid concrete while their sensei leaned against a railing, his right eye still having the detached lazy look.
"All right, why don't you introduce yourselves…one at a time," the cyclopean Jounin suggested.
"What exactly do you want us to say? That can be done any number of ways," Naruto pointed out, crossing his arms. "Why don't you go first, seeing as you are our sensei and it'll give us a format to introduce ourselves."
Kakashi's mouth gave a small twitch of wanting to smile. "Very well then. I'm Hatake Kakashi. Things I like and things I hate? I don't feel like telling you. My dreams for the future…hmm…never really thought about it. As for my hobbies…I have lots of hobbies." He smirked a bit, amused, as his eye closed to give a "U" shape.
"How useless…he only told us his name," Sakura muttered under her breath. The Uchiha and Uzumaki silently agreed.
"Since I went and you know what to say, then let's get started. Blondie, why don't you go first," Kakashi suggested.
Said blond's eye twitched in annoyance at the nickname, but he put it aside for now. "All right…my name is Uzumaki Naruto. I like my two best friends, my kaa-san, kenjutsu, shogi and military history. I hate bigotry, close-mindedness, and most of all, anyone who would dare try to hurt my family," he replied in a voice so cold it sent shivers down everyone's spines. "My hobbies include spending time with my kaa-san, Sakura-chan, and Sasuke, training and trying out different kinds of ramen flavors!" Sakura had to shake her head. She should've seen that one coming a mile away.
"As for my dream…no…it's not a dream, because I will make it reality. My dream is to become the strongest shinobi this village has ever seen and become its Hokage. That way, I can protect those who are precious to me as well as gaining the respect of this village despite what they hate me for."
Kakashi couldn't help but smile. 'Just like sensei…wanting to protect others. You'll make a great shinobi, kid. You got guts.' "I see. Interesting. Next."
Sasuke inhaled slowly, before starting. "My name is Uchiha Sasuke. I like a lot of things, mainly Sakura and Naruto. Like Naruto, I enjoy Shogi. I enjoy meditating, practicing with my kusarigama, and having a good time within reason. I hate fangirls, idiots, and those who don't train to better themselves when they have potential. As for my hobbies, I training, sparring, reading, and…thinking. My dream is simple…to not only change my clan's image but…to kill a certain man…" he uttered darkly as his Sharingan flared to life.
Kakashi could feel the waves of killer intent coming from all three of the ninja in front of them. The ashen-haired veteran gulped a bit. 'So…they collectively want Itachi's head. I'll back off for now…but…if they obsess over it, then I'll step in.'
"Very well, then. Lastly?"
"My name is Haruno Sakura. I like my two best friends a girl could ever ask for, reading, writing, poetry, calligraphy, training and gardening. I utterly detest perverts and those with sick fetishes," she spat out in disgust and contempt, clenching her fists. Even though she had lived with the Uchiha for the past three years, that still didn't stop her from wanting revenge on her stepfather. In fact, the animosity only increased with time. "My hobbies are the same as my likes, honestly. I have two dreams…one is to become the most powerful kunoichi in the world and the other…well…that's completely personal, sensei, and I don't trust you enough yet to reveal it to you," she said coldly with narrowed eyes.
Kakashi cringed a bit, that last tidbit hurting more than he expected. 'It seems these three have colossal chips on their shoulders. Ah, well, we'll see where this goes. After all, I am dealing with the top three genin in this graduating class.' After heaving a small sigh he got up from the railing. "I see. How interesting. Well, I'm here to tell you, now, we've got survival training this afternoon."
"In other words, the true test to see if we'll be genin, and not that poor excuse of an exam we took, yesterday. Am I right?" Naruto inquire smugly, while Sasuke and Sakura gave smirks of their own.
The only indication that Kakashi was surprised was his eye widening for a fraction of a second. Naruto's razor sharp visual acuity caught the gesture. His visual acuity was leagues ahead of practically anyone. There was no human gesture that he couldn't detect, no matter how faint. That's why he was a virtual walking lie detector.
"I see…so you've already figured it out, then," Kakashi stated evenly. "Good, that makes this a lot easier to explain. To put it simply, this exam has a sixty-six percent failure rate. In other words…out of the twenty-seven graduates, only nine will actually become full-fledged genin. The other eighteen will be sent back to the academy," he explained.
"So essentially…this is do or die, make it or break it, huh?" Sasuke intoned with an excited glee. "Well, then, I say bring it on Kakashi-sensei."
"Yeah, you can throw anything you got at us and we'll pass, cha!" Sakura exclaimed excitedly.
The Copy Ninja chuckled at their enthusiasm. "Meet me at the Third Training Ground at noon and bring your ninja gear. Oh, and by the way, I wouldn't eat lunch if I were you. You'll puke," he stated flatly. "That's all I have. I'll see you this afternoon. You're dismissed." Without even having the decency to say goodbye, the Copy Ninja had already vanished from sight.
"Don't eat lunch...who does he think he's fooling?" Sasuke pondered aloud, rhetorically.
"It's obvious he's dealt with idiots for students in the past and somehow thinks we'll take his advice," Sakura added indignantly, crossing her arms.
The blonde stood up as his eyes traveled into the direction of the training ground, Kakashi had specified. "Call it a hunch, but I figure he's going to be late again. So I say we get a decent sized meal and spend the rest of the morning setting up traps."
"Traps? Why would we set up traps if we're doing a survival exam?" Sasuke asked, curiosity latent in his voice.
"Think about it. If Kakashi-sensei really was going to give us survival training, he would've taken us to the Forest of Death. We're technically not allowed out of the village yet. So that's the only logical place to meet if he wanted some real survival training. Kaa-san took us to both Training Ground Three and the Forest of Death. The difference between them is night and day."
Sasuke's eyes narrowed as his mind started racing. His eyes started swing back and forth before finally widening a bit, as realization dawned on him. "I see, then. So, that's it, then."
"What is?" Sakura inquired, intrigued at what was on the Uchiha's mind.
"Sakura, this whole exam seems fishy to you right?" She nodded in confirmation. He then continued, "Well, think about it…this exam has a sixty-six percent failure rate and from his tone there's no reason to not assume this isn't consistent with every graduating class. Now tell me…what would be the primary reason that sixty-six percent would be entirely consistent for freshly graduated genin, in light of our overall manpower, hmm?"
Naruto already knew the answer, having figured it out during the conversation with Kakashi, as his augmented mind was processing the information while simultaneously engaging the Jounin in casual conversation.
It took the pink-haired girl awhile, before her eyes widened in surprise. "Teamwork! Of course! They didn't pass because they failed to work together!"
"Exactly," Naruto confirmed. "Why else wouldn't they pass? It's hard to believe that genin would fail year in and year out based at a consistent percentage without some underlying reason. While yes, there is the possibility of different sensei giving different exams, I dismissed that almost as quickly as the thought came to me. One consistent thing about the Hidden Leaf was that we always universally adopt proven methods. If a method is found to be better than a current standard, we adapt and apply. The Academy was an exception to this until recently, an outlier if you want to call it that. But then again, there are exceptions to every rule."
Sakura bobbed her head. "I see. That's why the failure rate is so high. They couldn't work together because they didn't know how to adapt to each other skills in such a short amount of time."
"It's actually ingenious when you think about it. In our career field, there's a one hundred percent guarantee that we will eventually have to work with comrades whose skills are completely unknown and alien to us and yet, we'll have to work together to complete the mission. Those who were able to overcome the relatively unknowns of their teammates passed, naturally, and moved on to the next step. The others…well…" Sasuke trailed off, leaving it hanging in the air.
"In either case, let's get something to eat, I'm starving! I vote ramen!" Naruto shouted out with a grin, causing the other two to sigh. That sure as hell didn't take long in a change of subject. Smart as he was, sometimes the blonde's stomach overruled his brain.
"Ugh, fine, ramen it is," Sakura replied unenthusiastically. It wasn't that she didn't like ramen; the exact opposite actually, it was just that she didn't enjoy eating the same foods for an extended period of time, no matter how good. "But before we go there's something we need to establish first."
"What's that?"
"Are we going to go all out or no?"
There was a pensive silence among the trio. They honestly had no idea. They had been holding back for so long that the idea of using their full abilities almost seemed like an alien concept to the three.
"I say we go all out," Sasuke suggested. "This is Hatake Kakashi…one of the village's Elite jounin. We're jounin-level ourselves. I don't know if you picked up on it or not, but it's clear he doubts our abilities as our records say."
An evil smile marred Sakura's natural beauty. "Well, then. We'll just have to kick his ass and show him how he has no idea who he's dealing with, won't we?"
Smirking, Naruto turned back to the village. "Yeah, we do don't we? Let's do it. All out it is. I've been itching to use my full power and what better way to do so then right now? But first…ramen! Wooo!" he excitedly exclaimed before leaping off the rooftop and vanishing. Sasuke grunted at being left behind and chased after the blonde.
"Hey, Naruto-kun, Sasuke-kun! Wait up!" Sakura called out before disappearing too in a swirl of cherry blossom petals.
(-x.0.0.x-)
(Training Ground Three, 0155)
True to their predictions, Kakashi hadn't arrived at noon like he said he would. Taking advantage of their sensei's lack of punctuality, the three began setting up traps all over the grounds. With the Chakra Hankyouteii (Chakra Echolocation), they were easily able to detect and not fall prey by setting them off prematurely.
Having seen through the Copycat's deception easily, they ate a full-blown meal at Ichiraku's and spent the last two hours preparing for their survival exam. The meal had digested and the three were now full of energy and ready to go. Standing still as statues they waited for him to arrive, patiently.
That wait didn't last long, as Naruto had foretold, he arrived exactly at 1400, two hours after the designated time. A khaki colored backpack was strapped across his shoulders, carrying what could only be assumed to be shinobi gear.
"Your late," Sakura offhandedly commented, with a bit of disinterest. The two boys were unusually silent, their faces completely stoic and impassive.
His eye turned into its "U" shape. "Oh, I'm sorry, a black cat passed by me, so I had to take the long way. Back luck and all. You understand right?" he humorously quipped. His only response was a half-hearted glare from the kunoichi and a sidelong look of annoyance from other two. He shook his head while heaving a sigh. Man they needed to loosen up.
Ignoring his slight irritation, he pulled out an old fashioned clock and set it on a nearby tree stump and held out two bells that jingled. "The clock is set for 1900 hours. Your objective is simple. All you have to do is take two bells from me before the alarm goes off."
"Why are there only two bells?" Naruto asked with narrowed eyes. He had an idea of why, but he wanted to hear it from the horse's mouth.
Kakashi chuckled. "It's quite simple Naruto. Only two out of you three will be able to move on to become genin. The one who doesn't get a bell will, of course, be sent back to the academy. Then again…there is also the possibility of none of you getting a bell and all three of you being sent back," he explained.
'And that's where the statistic comes from. Idiots taking what he said at face value instead of looking for a deeper meaning. It's a wonder the village has survived this long considering how utterly incompetent most of these shinobi have turned out to be,' the Uzumaki thought indignantly. He shared a glance at the other two who nodded and smirked a bit.
Kakashi raised a brow at their behavior, before tying the bells on his waistline. "Now, before we begin, I'd like to warn you three now. If you don't come at me with the intent to kill, then I assure you, you'll never get these bells, understood?"
"Is that so, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura inquired, a devilish grin contorting on her face.
"Of course, I'm a jounin. You're genin. Anything less than your best and your simply wasting you're time."
'Oh he is so going to regret saying that,' the three collectively thought as they got into half-hearted stances to further throw the elite jounin off.
"All right, start whenever you're ready," he told them taking not of the auras. So far, he wasn't impressed. 'Just as I feared, all that talk was just all fluff. Oh well, then. There's always the next batch.'
Naruto smirked and all three surrounded the jounin in a triangle equidistant from each other, with impressive speed. Kakashi's eye widened to its greatest extent in shock, caught completely off guard by the display. They didn't give his mind to register as they each went through six very familiar hand seals.
"Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu! (Fire Release: Grand Fireball)," they collectively shouted sending three massive conflagrations towards Kakashi at high velocities. The three jutsu met each other and combined into a massive blazing pillar that was thirty meters high.
When the massive fireball finally put itself out, the foliage was seen to be burnt to a crisp as well as the earth had remnants of steam from the intensity of the heat caused by their respective fire jutsu. Unsurprisingly, Kakashi was nowhere to be seen. Naruto immediately put his right index finger on the ground. He located the jounin, relatively easily. He was nearby, observing them from a high position in one of the taller trees.
He vanished using Ibitsuyumi (Distorted Step) and appeared behind him with his katana at his neck, almost in an instant. Kakashi's eye widened again. 'What the hell?! What incredible speed. He knew exactly where I was and came to my location almost in an instant. Not only that, these three executed a perfect C-ranked elemental technique simultaneously. Just what the hell am I dealing with, here?'
"I'll say this one time, Kakashi-sensei…underestimating us will prove to be your undoing," Naruto coldly uttered keeping the katana close to his neck.
"Is that so, Naruto? Well, I have to say, you really surprised me," he told him earnestly. "But alas, you forgot one thing."
The blonde's eyes narrowed. "Enlighten me."
"You can't tell me apart."
Naruto's eyes widened as 'Kakashi' puffed out of existence. 'Kage Bunshin!' he alarmingly thought, before he dodged several kunai on pure reflex. He jumped out of the tree tops and back into a clearing where Kakashi engaged him with a slightly larger kunai and the two had an all out skirmish. Naruto's kenjutsu was obviously superior, but Kakashi was no slouch at all, even keeping up with Naruto's enhanced reflexes.
About a minute into their impressive battle of showmanship, Naruto jumped backwards one-hundred meters throwing the jounin off guard. His eye widened a bit as he blocked a strike from one of Sasuke's kusarigama.
"Don't tell me you forgot about us, sensei!" Sasuke growled, spinning the other side with impressive skill and talent. The Uchiha scion sent the other double bladed weapon spiraling towards him.
Rather than block, Kakashi opted to simply jump out of the way, but in that very moment Sakura appeared suddenly with her Hanachiri Shunshin (Flower Dispersing Body Flicker). Her staff was fully extended and she gave a war cry before swinging it down with all her might.
While certainly not expecting this, the copy ninja dodged at the last second while they were mid-air and grabbed the staff's tip as leverage and kicked the kunoichi away. Not even a second later, she vanished into cherry blossoms. A sharp blow from behind sent him pluming all the way into the lake with a giant splash.
The rosette-haired girl landed on the lake, proud of her handy work. "How do you like that Kakashi-sensei. That's what I call the Hanachiri Kawarimi (Flower Dispersing Substitution), cha!" she exclaimed with a huge grin. Naruto and Sasuke appeared on either side of her, all of them ready to do battle in an instant.
The Copy Ninja surface himself and stood on top of the water completely dumbfounded on what was clearly happening in front of him. While it was true, he wasn't even showing half of what he was truly capable of, these genin were tossing him around like a rag doll. He always told his past teams to come with the intent to kill, simply for them to go all out. Now it seemed at these three had the given him the very real possibility of dying! Kakashi couldn't help but chuckle and smile at the three.
"So, it seems the rumors were true after all. You three were holding back the entire time during your academy days. Not only that, but you all nearly bested me when I had genuinely underestimated you. I'd say now you won't need those traps you set up."
They all collectively went wide-eyed. He knew!?
"Surprised? Come on now, I may have a quirky personality, but I'm not stupid. Believe it or not, I actually watched you three the entire time you were setting them up."
'And we didn't detect him!? But how?!' Sasuke thought bewildered. He clenched his fists. Guess their sensing abilities, still needed improvement after all. Naruto had a slight down casted look at the revelation and Sakura simply sighed in reluctant acceptance of their error.
"It seems you all figured out the basic premise of the mission so…in that case…you all pass," he told them with his trademarked grin.
Once again, they were bewildered. "We pass? But I thought we had to get the bells?" While they understood they needed to use teamwork, they still thought they would fail if they didn't get any of the bells from the cyclopean jounin.
"The bells were never truly the objective. All I wanted to see is that you three had the capacity to work together even under dire and stressful situations. You proved that in spades. You have what it takes, so I officially name you all official genin of Squad Seven!" he announced.
"Wow…this seems a bit…anti-climactic," Naruto admitted. "I was just getting warmed up."
"Really, you want to keep going, Naruto?" Kakashi asked, already knowing the answer. Truthfully, it'd been a long time since he felt the adrenaline rush he was feeling outside of missions.
"Hell yeah I do, Kakashi-sensei!" he exclaimed getting back into a stance.
"I take you two feel the same way?" he inquired. They responded by getting back into a stance and smirking. He returned the gestured. "Well, if that's the case, I might need this," he told them lifting up his headband and opening his left eye to reveal…the Sharingan.
Sasuke's eyes narrowed a bit. 'So this is the Sharingan that's possessed by Kakashi Hatake…the man who was said to copy over a thousand jutsu. We'll see who's Sharingan is better. Yours…..' he flared his own Sharingan for dramatic effect. '…or mine!'
An ominous wind passed by them and the four shinobi sped across the lake and clashed in an all out battle royale, each shinobi enjoying the thrill of fighting an opponent that was on their level at the basics.
At last, Squad Seven was born, and thus, this was beginning of their transcendence.
(-x.0.0.x-)
(Kaze no Kuni, thirty kilometers away from Sunagakure, Orochimaru's hidden base)
In the desolate lands of the Land of Wind, was a facility that hidden in plain sight, only those who actually knew what they were looking for could ever hope to find it. This was one of the Snake Wizard's many bases scattered all across the elemental nations.
This complex went deep, around three-hundred feet, underground with narrow passageways and multiple rooms an laboratories. The Snake Sannin wasn't present at the moment, as he had other things to take care of. However, his right hand man, Kabuto, was here. It had been difficult to find an excuse to leave Konoha, but he wasn't Orochimaru's second-in-command for nothing. He always had a plan.
Besides, he was the only one Orochimaru trusted to handle this project. It was inarguably the sannin's most closely guarded secret, known to only him, Kabuto and a very select few in the base.
Kabuto walked towards a colossal reactor that held a single amethyst colored gemstone in the heart of it. It was connected to several wires and held up by a small pillar. The stone was oddly shaped, exactly like a Yin-Yang symbol, but it was missing the other half. The amount of chakra the gem was radiating was enormous even with the reactor doing its best to mask the sapient energy. That's why this facility was in the middle of nowhere and it was so deep underground. The energy it gave off would've attracted far too much attention for the Sannin's liking.
"Such power…I wonder how you came across such a stone, Orochimaru-sama," Kabuto pondered aloud.
"A stone, you say? There should be a rule on those who are ignorant to what they are dealing with to not try and control things beyond their comprehension," a voice said from behind him. Kabuto's eyes widened and turned around to see a man in strange gold armor with a red robe and an opera mask on his face. His voice didn't sound even remotely human, and he had an accent that was completely alien and unfamiliar. Surrounding him was four men dressed in dark blue robes, black military combat boots, and hoods on their faces. Their hands glowed blue.
"Just who are you? And how did you find this place?" Kabuto asked, trying to hide his inner panic.
"An alchemist, of course! You may call me the Regent of the Mask," the Regent replied sadistically. "As for how I found this place, you'd be surprised at what modern technology can do against you primitive animals," he told him in disgust. "But that's neither here nor there. Hand over the jewel and I'll think about letting you live to report to that sniveling snake of how much of a failure you are."
Kabuto's eyes darted toward the panic button that would alert the entire base, but it seemed the masked man already had that covered. "If you're thinking about alerting everyone in this base to our presence, then I suggest you reconsider. After all…we've already killed them all," he darkly intoned, causing the white-haired teen to go wide-eyed. Before he could leap into action, the Regent had stabbed him all the way through his sternum with a sword shaped like a rapier.
"Stand in fear shinobi…for the Lords of Alchemy shall purge you of your sins," he sadistically intoned before kicking Orochimaru's right-hand man away.
"Orochi…maru…-sama," he stuttered out before everything went black.
"I intentionally missed his vitals. Ensure that he lives. Someone needs to send a message to the Sannin about what transpired here," he ordered. They nodded and grabbed Kabuto's unconscious form and vanished, leaving the Regent and one of his underlings alone.
The Regent approached the gemstone as his arm crackled with raw power. He took a hold of the jewel and it's power was nearly causing the entire complex to come crashing down on top of them. The two alchemists were unperturbed at the disturbances and vibrations beneath their feet. Finally after a minute or so of force, the masked man finally was able to pull the stone from the reactor.
"My Lord…" the alchemist to his left began. "If I may be so bold…what exactly is the importance of this jewel?"
The Regent of the Mask gave him a dark chuckle. "It's quite simple, Haschwald…this is no ordinary jewel as you've already probably learned. This is, quite possibly, the most important item in our overall goal. This is known as the Ryuu no Magatama…or as it translates in our language…." He paused.
"The Eye of the Dragon."
(END)
Oh, snaaaaap. What's is the significance of this Jewel and how will Orochimaru react when he finds out his most closely guarded artifact has been stolen by the Alchemists?! Sasuke also has been having visions of a terrible future, that in store for the world. What does it all mean? Well, read on to find out.
At this point, it should be blatantly obvious as to what Sasuke and Sakura's future summonings are. I mean, damn, how many hints do you need?
Next chapter, is Kumo exclusive, so….yeah. I've been itching to write that, so that should be interesting. Team 7 shall return in chapter fourteen, but for now we need to see what's been happening on the other side of the continent as the Village Hidden in the Clouds prepares for all out war!
BTW, any mistakes I've made, please forgive me, because I posted this at 2 in the morning central European time and I was not about to go back and read all of it. I won't have time to post it tomorrow, so I'm posting it tonight. I will fix any mistakes I made as soon as I possibly can.
Until next time,
Arashi.