You guys are the best!
This chapter has a lot of fight scenes in it, with character growth and how characters are thinking mixed in. I rather enjoyed writing this chapter, given that not only was I able to include a fight scene that I have been envisioning for a while, but I was able to turn a character that I enjoy reading about into something both unique and awesome (more in the AU section about that). All in all, this chapter was a blast to write.
There is a few AU changes this chapter. The main one is Gaara's behavior and actions. This was hinted at in Chapter One when it was said that people don't attack other jinchuriki without cause. And as such, Gaara is both more and less crazy then in Cannon. Given that HotE takes a more realistic and cynical take on the Naruto-verse, there's quite a few changes to a few characters because of that. Temari's character is the second big change. I don't want to spoil it, but you'll be able to spot the changes made.
Without any further delay, here's the next chapter. Chapter Sixteen: Defying Fate
Not having chakra sucked, Naruto decided as he sprinted along the ground. While his speed was well above any other civilian; compared to his normal speed it was but a walk, and a slow one at that. The blonde Uzumaki wished, and not for the first time, that he could summon enough chakra to dispel the seal Orochimaru had put on him. At this rate of speed, it would take over a day to reach the tower; and that was if they weren't attacked again. The blonde shook his head before speeding up even more, pushing his body further.
The shadows began to lengthen as evening approached. Knowing it would be hazardous to continue to travel at night, Team Eight began to prepare for nightfall. As Hinata checked the surroundings, Sakura began to unseal the food Haku had prepared for them. As for Naruto, he plopped down and began to carefully examine one of his sealing scrolls. A few moments later he grunted in dissatisfaction as he came to the grudging realization that he needed chakra to access anything in his sealing scrolls. "Sakura-Chan," Naruto shyly asked, feeling slightly embarrassed by the fact that he couldn't open any of his own scrolls, "Could you grab the tent out of this scroll?"
"Sure Naruto-Kun!" Sakura nodded as she made her way over to Naruto. The pinkette quickly unsealed the three-person tent, making sure to minimize the time she spent channeling chakra. It wouldn't do for Naruto to feel useless after all. "Naruto-Kun," Sakura discretely flashed a few complex hand signs to Hinata before handing the blue-haired girl the small scroll containing the three-person tent. "Could you tell me why you were examining the scroll a little bit ago?"
Naruto grinning, happy to share his knowledge with Sakura-Chan. "Well, I have built into most of my scrolls a blood seal. It uses less chakra to activate. I thought," Naruto glanced down in slight shame, "That I could manifest enough chakra to active the storage scroll." Naruto shrugged. "I guess that I couldn't pull enough chakra to do even that..." Naruto's eyes brightened as he suddenly considered something. "Wait! I wonder if, " Naruto pulled out a blank scroll from his pouch before also grabbing a pencil. "Maybe I could avoid this in the future! Perhaps if I figure out a way to have molded chakra inside a special seal, I could eliminate any seal that stops me from using chakra!"
Hinata breathed a sigh of relief, relaxing as she turned away from Naruto-Kun and Sakura-Chan. Naruto-Kun was busy, and thus not thinking about how he couldn't protect them. Hinata was confident that she and Sakura could defend themselves - And Naruto should he need it - from any threat the forest could offer. The blue-haired girl quickly moved to an open area near the tree Team Eight had picked. Hinata still marveled at the sheer ingenuity of the seal Naruto had created to house the Team's tent.
The sealing scroll wasn't a normal sealing scroll by any means. Unlike a normal sealing scroll that simply unsealed the item in the exact same dimensions that it was sealed in, the tent scroll would unravel the bunched up tent and then activate the seals lining the tent itself. The tent would then alternate between becoming taunt and loose, literally setting itself up. There was a verity of other seals laced in the tent, such as seals that repelled water and cold. But the greatest, and perhaps the most tactically useful one, was the numerous seals that camouflaged the tent from any normal eyes. While it couldn't defeat the Byakugan or any sensory techniques yet, Hinata was confident that Naruto-Kun would soon be able to defeat even the all-seeing eye. The quiet snap of the canvas informed Team Eight that their tent was set up.
Given that they couldn't risk setting up a fire, the team of three decided to place a few strategic traps around the camp, each trap designed to fool an enemy into thinking their pray was elsewhere. After one last scan of her bloodline, Hinata entered the tent with Naruto, followed quickly by Sakura. As Naruto rolled out his bedroll, he quickly realized that he had a problem. Several problems really. The first was he would get very warm while sleeping. Normally this wouldn't be an issue, given that he normally just slept in loose sleeping pants, but Sakura-Chan and Hinata-Chan were in the tent. Given that he wasn't supposed to change in front of others, the blonde was at a loss at how to change.
The second was the fact that his nightmares had gotten worse over the last few weeks, his dreams of both angry mobs and blood drenched fields. Normally he didn't care about the nightmares, reasoning that he was better off training then sleeping anyway. However, not only could he not train himself into utter exhaustion right now, but Sakura-Chan and Hinata-Chan would be sleeping next to him!
And therein lay the third problem. Naruto had grown increasingly aware of Hinata-Chan's and Sakura-Chan's...physical attributes. And given how his body reacted to them sometimes, he would normally switch out with a clone to train his body back to normal. However, given that he couldn't create a clone, let alone switch with it, he was stuck here. "It doesn't matter." Naruto reprimanded himself, "Sakura-Chan and Hinata-Chan want to sleep next to me for warmth. I won't deny them that, no matter how hard it is to avoid letting them know I like them!"
"Hinata-Chan and Sakura-Chan," Naruto's voice seemed loud in the tent, "I need to change. Could you two turn around?" The two girls spun around quickly in an attempt to hide the bright blushes that had erupted on their faces at the thought of Naruto-Kun changing just a few short feet in behind them.
"S-Sure N-Naruto-Kun." Sakura stuttered, her face still turned away, "Let us know when you are done changing." Beside her Hinata nodded, the blue-haired girl not trusting her voice. Sakura swallowed slightly as she heard Naruto slide off his shirt, the fabric hitting the far edge of thetent. Hinata fought the urge to turn on her Byakugan as she heard the jingle of the blonde's pants hit the floor. Both of the girls' cheeks began to burn as they listened to Naruto slide his sleeping pants on.
"All done!"
"N-Naruto-Kun," Sakura half-demanded, half-requested, "Turn around! Hinata-Chan and I are going to change ourselves! D-Don't look!" Naruto nodded, turning around to face the door of the tent. It was only fair after all that he wait for them to change. The blonde found his cheeks reddening as he heard the whisper of fabric as his teammates changed. His ears caught the sound of their clothes slowly piling beside the girls. Naruto focus on the sounds outside, ignoring that part of him that wanted to listen closer to the sounds behind him. It was sweet torture to hear Sakura-Chan and Hinata-Chan change only a short few feet behind him. Naruto determinedly kept his eyes firmly on the tent flap, not wanting to betray his precious people's trust.
After what seemed like a lifetime, Hinata finally spoke, her voice only holding the smallest traces of her blush, "W-We're done Naruto-Kun! Y-You can turn around now!" Naruto turned around and was momentarily struck by the site of how...cute the two girls were. Hinata had on a dark blue silk sleeping outfit, while Sakura had on a pink cotton one. In an effort to hide his slight blush from the two, Naruto hastened to flop onto his bedroll. Sakura and Hinata quickly followed, each taking a side of Naruto. All three Genins lay quietly, the day's exhausting events allowing Naruto to quickly drift off to sleep, confident that his seals would protect them as they slept.
Sakura heard Naruto's breath even out as he slept, and the pinkette leaned upwards to look across at her friend/rival. Hinata's lavender eyes met her own green one. Hinata glanced down at Naruto's arm that was laying innocently next to her before glancing back at Sakura. Sakura's eyes narrowed. With a speed born of many hours of training, the two kunoichis of Team Eight latched onto Naruto's arm. Sakura smirked silently in triumph at Hinata, having grabbed Naruto's nearest arm before Hinata could do the same to the arm near her. The blue-haired girl was only a split-second behind the pinkette, but it still counted as a victory for Sakura. Flushed with her victory, Sakura hugged her Naruto-Kun's arm closer and began to slowly drift off to sleep, unconsciously snuggling close to Naruto's warmth. On the opposite side of the Last Uzumaki, Hinata conceded victory to Sakura and lay down beside her Naruto-Kun, slowly moving to rest her head on the blonde's shoulder as sleep claimed her.
It was still dark when Naruto awoke, gradually hearing the pre-dawn sounds of the forest. As the blonde awakened more, he quickly became aware of the status of his two arms. Sakura-Chan and Hinata-Chan each clutched an arm close to them as they rested their heads on his shoulders. Naruto was intensely aware of what was pressed into his arm as the girls held his arms to their chests. "Control!" Naruto chanted in his mind, "I will control myself!" Naruto slowly closed his eyes and breathed out slowly, his breathing deepening as he attempted to slip into a restful mediation or failing that, falling back asleep.
Sakura awoke to the light of early dawn. The pinkette slowly released Naruto's arm as she set up, already missing the warm comfort of the blonde's shoulder. She slowly stood, stretching after she rose. On the other side of Naruto, Hinata blinked, awoken by the sounds of someone else moving in the tent. A cute yawn whispered out of the blue-haired girl's mouth as she reluctantly released Naruto's arm before standing herself.
Naruto opened his eyes, his normal nightmares seemingly banished. As Naruto sat up, wondering if he had somehow just forgotten the nightmares that he had most likely had. The shirtless blonde slowly pushed his way to his feet in absentmindedly as he pondered this new situation. Now that he thought about it, this wasn't the first time he had slept without any nightmares. In fact, now that he put thought to it, each time Sakura and Hinata slept beside him he didn't have any nightmares.
If Sakura had known what Naruto was currently thinking about she would have never interrupted. "Naruto-Kun," The pink-haired girl broke the Uzumaki out of his thoughts. "We are going to change." Naruto nodded and quickly headed for the tent flap. "W-Where are you going?" Sakura shyly asked, inwardly cursing herself for sounding so shy.
"I'm heading outside to wait for you to finish changing. Come get me once you are done." Naruto opened the flap, heading outside. After all, he was sure that they didn't want him watching them change, given how they didn't like any scenes in Kakashi's Icha Icha books that involved people changing clothes. The blonde remembered the last time the girls had caught Kakashi attempting to read Naruto a scene for one of the grey-ninjas books. Naruto honestly thought for a moment that he was going to be a witness to a murder, given how red the girls' faces were; after all, all of that red was brought on only by their anger, right?
As Naruto waited, he quickly stripped and changed, modesty being something that he never really learned growing up. Soon a call from Hinata informed the blonde that he could enter. As he entered the tent, both girls skillfully hid their slight disappointment at Naruto's clothed form. They shook their heads, banishing those distracting thoughts. Now was not the time to be thinking about that! They were still in dangerous territory.
Team Eight quickly ate a high-energy breakfast and packed up camp. They quickly headed towards the central tower that rose in the distance. Suddenly, without warning, a dozen earth spikes erupted near the team of three. Hinata and Sakura twisted out of the way with chakra enhanced grace. Naruto, with his near inhuman reflexes, pushed himself backwards, one of the spikes skimming an angry red line on his forehead.
Turning his dive into a roll, Naruto sprang to his feet, his sword already drawn. Spotting movement in the bushes, the Last Uzumaki rushed them, hoping to take one of the Team's attackers off guard. The blonde burst through the bushes, only to twitch of out the way of a thrown kunai out of pure reflex. Naruto twisted out of the way of two more kunai as he closed with the increasingly desperate Iwa Ninja. The Iwa Genin drew his last kunai, desperately blocking Naruto's first strike.
Naruto, despite having lost a substantial amount of speed due to his blocked chakra, quickly struck out at his enemy, each strike designed to bring the kunai further and further away from the Iwa Genin's body. A twist of his wrist knocked the kunai away, and Naruto surged forward to impale the Genin on his sword, perfectly executing one of the moves taught to him by Yugao-Sensei.
Hinata was still for a moment as she watched the surrounding area for the ninja had had attacked her team. It was only a scant few seconds before she spotted the three chakra signatures. The first was being taken care of by Naruto-Kun. The second and third were off to Hinata's left and right respectively. Given that Sakura-Chan was off to her left as well, Hinata directed Sakura towards the Genin on her left. "Sakura-Chan! Position nine at fifty feet!" Sakura dashed off to deal with her opponent. Hinata ran forward, eager to fight the person who had dared to hurt her Naruto-Kun.
Sakura quickly found her opponent. Given that Naruto had his chakra sealed and they needed to reach the tower as soon as possible, the pinkette quickly withdrew a glass vial from her specialized sealing pouch. Sakura wove through the hand signs for a small localized directional mist, breathing in as she held the final seal. She breathed out, a light mist of water quickly moving forward. As she breathed out, she flicked open the sealed vial and added its contents to the mist.
The Iwa nin breathed slowly and calmly as the mist rolled past him. He was a proud Genin of Iwa and he would not be intimidated by any conjured mist! With a thump the pink-haired Konoha ninja dropped to the ground ten feet from him. The Iwa Genin smirked and began weaving the hand signs for his favorite technique.
Before he could finish, a bubbling wet cough forced its way out of his throat. The Genin's hand automatically flew up to his mouth, catching the cough. Something wet and thick splattered his hand. He pulled his hand away and stared at the dark red blood coating his hand. Sudden weakness drove him to his knees, his mind going hazy. A moment later his head snapped back as a kunai slammed into his skull, driven deep into his brain.
Sakura lowered her hand from its throwing position as she moved out, seeking Hinata's position.
Hinata allowed a frown to grace her face as she destroyed another rock clone. The Genin she was facing was talented, she would give the Iwa kunoichi that. She would switch herself with a rock clone each time Hinata was about to strike her. However, Hinata was confident that her opponent would run out of chakra quickly, given that the Iwa Kunoichi was being forced to create multiple clones quickly.
The Iwa Kunoichi quickly created another rock clone, the drain on her chakra reserves leaving her panting. "Let's see how you like this one, Hyuga bitch!" She mentally snarled, hiding her fear with anger. Hinata closed in again, and just before her blow hit, the Iwa Genin switched places with her rock clone. Hinata's strike hit the clone center mass. It promptly exploded.
Shards of deadly shrapnel burst into the area. It indiscriminately tore into trees and flesh alike. Hinata blocked and dodged all she could, but several of the spikes burrowed deep in her shoulder and legs. Several feet away, the Iwa kunoichi sank to the ground, staring at the large spike of rock buried in her chest. "So that's why we are forbidden to use that technique at close range..." She thought distantly, her thoughts already becoming muddled and wispy. Darkness welcomed her.
"Hinata-Chan!" Naruto sprinted up beside her, "You're hurt!" Without any enemies to hurt; without anyone to punish, Naruto was at a loss of what to do. Sakura joined them a minute later, and began healing Hinata without a word needed. Naruto turned and faced outwards as Sakura healed her precious teammate. Every small whimper of pain Hinata gave as Sakura removed a rock shard made him flinch. Shame filled the Last Uzumaki as he realized that outside of fighting he could not help his teammates.
If only he could learn medical jutsu, he miserably thought to himself. It took all of his mental strength no not buckle at the rich iron smell of Hinata's blood. "What am I saying?" Naruto thought to himself, his helpless rage pointed inwards, "Since when did I let anything stop me from learning things to better protect my precious people?" Naruto's expression hardened in determination. "So what if medical jutsu requires perfect chakra control? I'll find a way to make it work anyway! Or I'll find another technique to use to heal! My precious people won't suffer because of me!"
Sakura carefully pulled the last rock shard from Hinata's leg, wincing in shared sympathy at the look of pain that passed across Hinata's face. The pinkette's hand glowed green, the hole that was slowly leaking blood sealing itself shut. A few minutes later there was only unblemished skin where there had been wounds before. A small water jutsu cleansed the bloody area.
The two kunoichi from Team Eight moved towards their third member. "Sakura-Chan," Naruto began, utter determination etched in every inch of his tone, "When we have time to train, I want to learn medical jutsus!" Sakura blinked. She had thought it would be impossible for Naruto to learn those techniques; after all they required perfect chakra control, something Naruto could never have due to his ever increasing chakra coils.
"Naruto-Kun," She began hesitantly, "Medical techniques require perfect chakra control. How will you learn them?"
"I will find a way!" Naruto's voice was firm, as if he was stating fact. And in his mind he was. He would find a way to learn medical techniques. He would accept nothing less. He would help his precious people.
A more cautious Team Eight headed back towards their original destination, Hinata keeping her bloodline on continuously to avoid any more ambushes. When they had reached the tower base, the team pulled out the two scrolls, thankful that they had a few extra Earth Scrolls, given that Naruto couldn't access his tattoo-like storage seal. Several seals caught Naruto's interest on the two scrolls they had to acquire. Upon closer examination, the Last Uzumaki quickly realized that each seals on the scrolls held half of a summoning technique. Given the simplistic nature of the scrolls, it looked to be a short-range summon. It would also sample the three genins' chakra. While the design was rather simplistic as far as seal making went, it opened up a whole new world of possibilities for Naruto. What if he could create seals that could come apart and go back together again without destroying the seal?
While normally Sakura and Hinata would be more than happy to let Naruto study the seals to his heart's content, the blonde needed the seal blocking his chakra removed from him. "Naruto-Kun, how do we activate the scrolls?" Hinata asked, making sure to keep all of the worry and impatientness from her tone.
"Well," Naruto went back to studying the outer lines of the scroll, "It looks like there's also a barrier seal that detects how close we are to a location. Given the importance of the tower, I'd say that we need to do..." Naruto clasped a scroll in each hands before unfurling them with a flick of his wrists, making an 'X'-like pattern with the two opened scrolls. Once he had done that, the blonde Uzumaki tossed the scrolls a few feet closer to the tower."...This!" As soon as the two scrolls hit the ground, a puff of smoke announced the short-range summon. When the smoke cleared, Kurenai was standing on top of the two scrolls, a proud look on her face.
"I'm so proud of you all!" Kurenai smiled warmly, "I knew you would succeed! And you are the first team to reach the tower!" The team's Jonin teacher gestured for the three to enter the tower. "Now that you have reached the tower, you can rest. " Kurenai focused on Naruto, emphasizing her words. "And what I say "rest" I mean 'rest'; not 'go train' or 'having your clones train'. The third phase of the Chunin exams is the most taxing, and each of you need to be in top shape for it."
Sakura, spotting the verbal opening, quickly spoke up. "Kurenai-Sensei, there was a seal placed on Naruto-Kun that won't let him access any of his chakra. We need it removed!"
Kurenai blinked. She hadn't thought any non-Uzumaki Genin would be so skilled in Fuinjutsu. "Who was it?"
"It was Orochimaru, the Snake Sannin."
Team Eight's Jonin Sensei stilled. "Tell me everything."
When Team Eight had finished their recounting of the last two days events, Kurenai leaned back and closed her eyes, thinking furiously. Had there not been the shocking and dire news of Orochimaru's appearance, the black-haired Jonin would have realized that Sakura had glossed over the night Team Eight had spent together. As it was, the news that the Snake Sannin had infiltrated the Second Exam was extremely worrying, not to mention that he had known about the Kyubi. Even the fact that he had placed a seal on Sasuke was not good, but Kurenai would let Kakashi handle the Last Uchiha.
"Come!" Kurenai began to quickly walk towards the stairway that into the upper area of the tower. "Kakashi isn't here, but the Hokage might know how to remove the seal!" Team Eight quickly followed their visibly worried teacher into the upper level of the tower. The black-haired Jonin quickly knocked on the door in front of them that read "Back-Up Headquarters". An ANBU in a raccoon-styled mask opened the door after a moment. "Hokage-Sama will see you."
"I see..." Hiruzen steepled his fingers as he thought. "So Orochimaru, you have decided to finally come out of hiding. And you marked Sasuke-San with your cursed seal. What is your goal my old student?" But despite everything, Hiruzen was slightly happy. After all, he could help Naruto for once. The Five-Prong seal was a seal Minato designed when he was a Chunin to temporally disrupt a person's chakra. Being the Hokage, Hiruzen had been able to learn the seal from the blonde Namikaze. Somehow Orochimaru had learned it as well.
"Naruto-San," The Hokage stood up, "I can remove the seal Orochimaru placed on you if you wish." Naruto thought for a moment, carefully weighing the odds, before nodding. Hiruzen slowly went through the hand signs for the counter seal. "Five-Prong Unseal!" Blue flames ignited on each finger on the Hokage's right hand. Naruto pulled up his shirt enough to reveal the Five Pronged Seal standing out in stark contrast to his skin. It burned slightly as Hiruzen slammed his hand on Naruto's stomach, the Five Prong Seal created from Orochimaru's chakra not wanting to be removed. In response, Hiruzen pushed even more of his chakra into the counter seal. A moment later Orochimaru's seal broke, disintegrating into nothing.
A visible wave of dark blue chakra blasted out from Naruto as his chakra erupted from his body, the pent-up extra chakra that he normally excluded lashing out all at once. For Naruto, it was like he could finally take a deep breath, like he had been only breathing at half-lung capacity before. For everyone else, the Last Uzumaki gain a blue haze for a moment, his escaping chakra filling the room. A moment later Naruto breathed deeply before exhaling. As he breathed out, the chakra haze dissipated, it's need to be free sated.
"Now," The Hokage gained the attention of everyone in the room, "If the presence of Orochimaru was known to the general public there would be a panic. Therefore," The commanding aura of the Hokage filled the room, "I am making his existence in the exam a village secret!" Everyone in the room nodded, understanding the need for the secrecy. The Chunin exams, after all, brought in a tremendous amount of revenue for the village that was hosting it. "With that said," The grandfatherly image was back, "Please enjoy yourselves for the next three days as the other Genin teams arrive!"
The next Genin Team to show up was Team Sabaku. The Sand trio had apparently blazed a trail directly through all opposition to the tower. The reason for their choice of routes was simple. Gaara wanted to meet Naruto Uzumaki. Unlike anyone else he had met, Naruto sparked some foreign emotion inside of him. The red-head remembered his Mother telling him to stay clear of the blonde...
Gaara was intrigued by the blonde. Normally when he was intrigued by someone or something, whatever it was died shortly thereafter. However, it was different, as if the feeling to kill was absent when he looked at the blonde Konoha ninja. It was almost as if...
"Stay away from that one!" The dry voice of the entity that called itself Mother ordered, it's normally bloodthirsty voice filled with an emotion Gaara couldn't identify. "It's stronger than me!" Gaara almost balked at that. For nothing was stronger than Mother. She protected him, kept him safe from his...father's assassins, allowed him to kill those who hated him; who wished him harm. And all she asked in return was for him to kill; to prove his existence. And he gladly fulfilled Mother's request. The only person he could not kill was his father. The only person he would not kill was his sister. All the rest would die if they attacked him. For Mother would protect him. And he would give her the gift of blood in return.
So for Mother to request for him to not kill someone, Gaara couldn't help but want to know more. And as such, he blazed a path with his team towards the tower, eliminating any team that cross their path. The red-head knew that anyone who could make Mother feel different would not have trouble in the woods. It was a stroke of luck that Team Sabaku ran across a team from Ame who attempted to ambush the sand trio in a desperate effort to gain a scroll that would allow them to continue in the Chunin exams.
Unfortunately for the Ame Genins, they had no better chance in defeating the Sabaku Trio as they did Naruto. Soon they were captured. A few muttered words from the leader of the Ame team brought Gaara's full attention directly onto them.
"What did you say?" Gaara's slightly raspy voice demanded as his sand brought the bound Ame ninja closer to him.
"I-I said we had no chance against you, just like that blonde ninja."
"What does he look like?" Gaara brought the now terrified Genin within a few inches of his face, allowing the Ame ninja to see the lurking madness within the red-headed sand Genin.
"H-He h-has blonde hair, it's really spiky and messy. He has a b-black forehead protector! He was wearing black pants with an orange stripe! He had on a t-shirt with some kind of spiral on it!" The Genin racked his brain for more information, instinctively knowing that his life depended on it. "A-And he used wind chakra!"
"It sounds like him Mother." Gaara commented to himself. After listening to something no one else could hear, Gaara turned back to the Ame Genins. "Mother wants your blood. Tell me the name of the Konoha ninja and I'll make it quick."
"H-He said it was Naruto Uzumaki!"
"Naruto Uzumaki..." Gaara mused, his fist absentmindedly tightening, all three of the Ame Genins vanishing within the sand, the terrible sound of crunching bones reaching his ears. "Naruto Uzumaki, you are different. You will tell me why." Gaara turned to his teammates. "We will continue towards the tower. Kill those who attack us and search them for a heaven scroll. If they do not have it, leave the scroll and the bodies."
Gaara brushed past Baki, their Jonin teacher, as the red-head walked into the tower; determined to find Naruto Uzumaki. Baki turned to the two other members of the Sabaku Trio."What is going on with Gaara-San? Is he becoming unstable again?"
Temari and Kankuro exchanged glances. Temari shook her head at Kankuro, not wanting one of the first times Gaara had felt something other than bloodlust to be squandered. "Gaara found someone he is interested in..." Kankuro reluctantly revealed, not wanting to go against his brother and sister, but realizing that he was a Genin, and a Jonin was asking. Spotting the look Baki's face, Kankuro hastened to reassure their teacher. "But it's nothing serious! It's just some random kid named Naruto Uzumaki!"
Baki nodded in understanding. "If this...Naruto Uzumaki is distracting Gaara-San, perhaps then Naruto should be...convinced that he should not communicate with Gaara-San." Kankuro nodded, before turning to Temari, expecting for her to agree with him. However, his sister's face could have been carved from icy stone.
"What a very loyal thought, Kankuro." Temari's voice was quiet, with only a ghost of her bitter outrage tracing her tone. "It's exactly something Father would say." Kankuro froze in shock, looking like he had been slapped. Temari slipped past the two, ignoring the look of shock from her brother and the calculating glare from Baki.
Only when she was sure she was alone did Temari let the bitter tears fall, the feelings of utter betrayal threatening to pull a heart-wrenching sob from the normally strong girl. "Why does it have to be this way? Why can't we be a normal family who loves each other? Why does the village have to come first? And why...why Kankuro did you tell him? Why did you tell him about Gaara's plans to meet with Naruto? It could be the first time Gaara could learn about something other than death! He even ignored the Skukaku!"
Temari scrunched her eyelids shut, holding the bitter tears inside. After a what seemed to her like a lifetime, the blonde girl slowly opened her eyes, swiping off the stray tears with the back of her hand. She took several deep breathes, rebuilding the mask that she showed everyone. She had to be strong for Gaara, because no one else would. Temari Sabaku strode towards the center of the tower, intent on finding her little brother and insuring that he would get his chance to talk to Naruto Uzumaki.
"Are you Naruto Uzumaki?" A dry voice questioned the blonde, prompting Naruto to look up from his latest version of a multi-part seal. A red-headed boy with a gourd filled with what smelled like sand stood only a few feet from him. As Naruto looked at Gaara Sabaku, a dozen expressions flashed across the sand Genin's face. It was almost as if the red-head didn't know what to feel.
"I am Naruto Uzumaki." Naruto confirmed as he wirily rose to his feet, a gut instinct pushing at the edge of Naruto's mind, cautioning him to be ready if Gaara attacked.
"What is the emotion you cause in Mother?"
Naruto blinked. "Huh?"
"What is the emotion you cause in Mother?"
"Uhhh..." Naruto scratched his head, wondering if Gaara had taken a blow to the head recently. "Who...exactly is your Mother?"
"Mother lives in my head and protects me. In return I give her blood." Gaara's tone sounded like he was discussing the weather or something that was readily apparent to everyone.
"I'm fairly certain mothers aren't supposed to ask you that." Naruto rubbed his chin in thought. "Or at least the one mother I know doesn't." The blonde Uzumaki smiled in remembrance. "Sakura-Chan's mom, Mebuki, is really nice! She made me food tasty food a bunch of times!"
Gaara tilted his head. "That does not sound like Mother. Perhaps your Sakura-Chan's mother is the odd one?"
Naruto tilted his head in thought. "Maybe..." Naruto shrugged. "Either way, It's nice to have people who care about you."
Gaara nodded. "Indeed." The red-headed Sand Genin shook his head, bringing his thoughts back to his original question. "What emotion do you cause in Mother?"
"Beats me." This was probably the oddest conversation he had ever had, Naruto reflected. "What does it feel like?"
Gaara shook his head in frustration, ignoring the urge to crush the object of his frustration with his sand. "If I knew that, I would have never asked you."
"Well," Naruto scratch his head in thought, attempting to figure out the problem like Sakura-Chan would. "What emotions do you know of?"
"I know of bloodlust, fear, and that feeling I get when someone tries to hurt Temari."
"Temari is your sister right?"
Gaara nodded. "When she is in danger, I feel like I would do anything to make sure she is not. Killing those attacking her makes the feeling stop."
"Ah!" Naruto snapped his fingers, knowing exactly how Gaara felt. "That feeling you are getting? That's protectiveness. I feel the same way about my precious people!"
Gaara nodded again, feeling surprised that someone felt the same way he did. "So that feeling is protectiveness?" Gaara's thoughts drifted away for a moment. What that what Mother felt towards him? It must be, given that she protected him.
"Gaara," Naruto's voice brought the red-head back to the present, "Does the feeling you are getting from your...'Mother' feel more like bloodlust, fear, or protectiveness?"
"Hmm..." Gaara stopped for a moment, ignoring the headache that was forming as he tried to think. "I believe it is closer to fear than anything else."
"Is it like fear fear or is it like sorta fear? Like you think you should check before entering your house because something bad might be inside?" Naruto did his best to attempt to decipher what Gaara was feeling. He didn't know why, but he felt a certain kinship towards the sand nin, as if he knew him a very long time ago.
"It feels like the last option." Gaara finally decided after several long moments.
"That's a feeling of caution." Naruto explained to the red-head.
"So Mother feels caution towards you?" Gaara wanted to confirm, the thought that Mother would feel caution towards anything almost unbelievable.
Naruto shrugged again. "That's what it's sounding like."
"Why is Mother cautious of you?"
"Dunno." Naruto scratched his head. "I've never met your mother so I don't know why she wouldn't like me."
"I see." The red-head promptly walked off, both less and more confused than when he had first talked to Naruto. Still...in the back of his mind he wondered if Naruto was right...if Mother was different from other mothers... "No!" Gaara shook his head, "It doesn't matter! Mother protects me! She always will!"
Temari watched as Gaara moved off, her younger brother going off to undoubtedly talk with his "Mother" who really was the Shukaku; the One-Tailed Demon Tanuki. After mother died, Temari had attempted to take over her mother's role, but the blonde girl was far too young to prevent any of the assassination attempts against her even younger brother. Eventually she and Kankuro were the only ones who believed Gaara was still sane, and not the puppet of the Shukaku who was sealed within Gaara from before he was born. "But now even Kankuro chose the village over Gaara." Temari thought bitterly, feeling so utterly alone. "I hate the plan Father has! I wish he had never allied himself with that village!"
Over the next three days six more teams made their way to the tower. Promptly at noon on the fifth day the Second Phase of the Chunin exams ended. The eight teams that passed were quickly escorted to an arena that had been specifically built to house the final phase of the exams. The Genin teams quickly lined themselves up, eager to begin the next portion of the exams.
Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage of Konoha, walked forward to address the Chunin hopefuls. "Welcome!" The Third's voice was calculated to sound warm and wise. "Let me congratulate you all on making it this far!" The Hokage's voice took on a more professor-like tone. "Since so many teams passed the second phase, we will be holding preliminary matches before the main matches. Each Genin will be matched up against another, with the winner moving on to the next round. Each fighter will be randomly chosen to fight another Genin who also passed the second exam." The Third gestured to one of the Jonin standing behind him. "This is Hayate Gekko. He is the proctor of the Third Phase of the Chunin exams."
"Thank-you Hokage-Sama." Hayate bowed before moving in front of the group. "In all of the matches you will be facing another Genin who had also passed the second phase in one on one combat. You are free to use any and all techniques. Killing is discouraged, but allowed." Hayate paused, letting his words sink in before continuing. "In order to win a match you need to knock your opponent out, force them to yield, or render them unable to continue." The swordsman pointed to an area on the grandstands that surrounded the arena. That area is where you all will wait for your turn to fight. The first fight will commence in two hours, giving the people who are paying to watch the fight enough time to find their seats. This is the last chance to forfeit if you do not wish to fight."
A grey -haired Genin raised his hand. "Proctor, I forfeit!" Hayate nodded. Seeing the curious glances from his fellow Konoha Genin, Kabuto felt the need to explain himself, shoving his hands in his pockets as he elaborated. "I've never been really cut out for fighting. It's one of my weaknesses I guess."
As the grey-haired ninja walked towards the exit, Hayate addressed the group, gaining their attention once more. "Anyone else?" The brown-haired Tokubetsu Jonin waited for a minute to see if anyone else wanted to forfeit. When no one did, he continued. "In that case, please move to the area where you will wait for your turn to fight." The Genin teams quickly moved towards the area set aside for them in the arena.
Over the next two hours the stands steadily filled with people, each person eager to see a match between the best and brightest of the next generation of ninja. Many of them slowly made their way to their seats, carefully guarding the refreshments they had brought from the stands outside. The general din of sounds from the stands made conversation all but impossible for the gathered Genin. Not that many of the Genin attempted to talk to each other. Each Genin was quiet, carefully examining the other Genin present, looking for a sign of weakness to exploit or to glean additional information.
Hiruzen walked forward to the balcony at the edge of the Kage's seating area. "Welcome..." The Third's chakra enhanced voice boomed, "...To the Preliminary Fights of the two-hundred and third Chunin exams!" The crowd cheered, eager for a good show. All eyes were drawn to the sign board which flashed rapidly before scrolling through the names of the Genin who would be fighting. After spinning for a tense moment, the scroll board stopped, two names appearing on it.
Hayate walked out into the center of the area. "Would Sasuke Uchiha and Yoroi Akado please make their way down to the area?" The brown-haired swordsman's words were easily heard by everyone present due to the enhancement of his voice by the chakra seals applied to the stands that transmitted the words that were spoken down on the arena floor.
Sasuke quickly moved to take his place in the center of the area, far too busy with preparing himself to win to bask in the praise that many in the stands directed towards him. Yoroi, by contrast, moved at a normal pace to the area floor, the cloth mask that covered the lower portion of his face not giving any clues to his disposition.
The two Genin made stood twenty feet from each other, the tension beginning to build between the two as they gathered their chakra for the fight ahead. "Are you ready Sasuke Uchiha?" Hayate asked, eyeing the two Genin.
"I am was ready since you announced the fight!" Sasuke's cold smirk sending a small warning bell in Yoroi's head.
"Are you ready Yoroi Akado?"
"I am ready!"
Hayate slowly back away, raising his hand in the air. "Hajime!" Hayate's hand slashed downwards.
As soon as the match started Sasuke exploded into action. He flung several kunai towards his opponent, seeking to distract and maneuver his opponent closer. Yoroi rolled to dodge the deadly projectiles. As soon as the masked Genin's shoulder hit the ground, Sasuke charged his opponent, knowing that Yoroi was locked into a singular direction.
Yoroi completed his combat roll only to take a punch, his head snapping back as Sasuke's right fist rocketed forward. The two kicks Sasuke that sent at Yoroi's midsection and head were too fast for the masked Genin to use his technique. Yoroi attempted to leap back, to disengage for a moment, needing but a few instants to concentrate. The masked Genin was sure that if he could activate his chakra absorbing technique, he could easily win the match.
But Sasuke wasn't giving Yoroi even a moment. The Last Uchiha had pushed himself to be strong enough to defeat his brother as well as Naruto Uzumaki. Sasuke cursed the fact that he couldn't use his chakra, having been warned by Kakashi that any chakra he used would cause the cursed seal to activate again, forcing Kakashi to intervene, thus causing Sasuke to lose the match by default. And that was something that Sasuke would not allow. He would beat Naruto here, in this area; in front of all of these people; in front of Naruto's so-called "precious people". But in order to do that...The Last Uchiha's eyes narrowed. He would have to defeat Yoroi.
Yoroi leapt backwards, finally spotting an opening. It took less than five seconds to activate his ability. A wide-unseen smile worked its way across his face. Now he would show the arrogant Uchiha who really was stronger!
Yoroi lunged forward, his hands suddenly erupting in a blue aura. Sasuke, spotting the danger, ducked the wild swing, Yoroi's hand only grazing Sasuke's hair. The Last Uchiha's eyes widened as he felt a portion of his chakra drained by his opponent's touch. What would have happened if that blow had connected? Sasuke didn't want to find out.
The Last Uchiha quickly rolled backwards, putting distance between himself and his opponent. He sprang to his feet, fully expecting Yoroi to have followed him; after all, it's what Naruto would have done. Surprisingly, Yoroi stayed where he was, seemingly confident in being able to win the match. Sasuke resisted the urge to use his chakra, feeling the curse seal pulse as it sensed his desire to use chakra. The Last Uchiha slowly reached into his kunai pouch, withdrawing two kunai. He tossed one of them into his free hand, spinning both of the kunai he held in each hand to a reverse grip. The Last Uchiha readied himself.
Sasuke charged his opponent. Yoroi grinned and charged as well, seeking to strike the charging Uchiha. Yoroi swung. Just before his blow connected with Sasuke's determined face, the black-haired Uchiha spun to the outward side of the attacking arm without breaking his momentum. The moment Sasuke's shoulder passed Yoroi's, the Last Uchiha spun on his heel, snapping the kunai he held in his hands directly into the back of Yoroi's knees.
Yoroi instantly tumbled to the ground, skidding for a few feet from the speed he had hit the ground. Yoroi struggled to roll over; to do something. The adult Genin knew that he wouldn't be walking without major healing, but he could still fight!
A foot slammed into his upper back, driving the masked Genin face first into the dirt, pulling a cut of scream of pain from him. Sasuke ignored the slight rush of pleasure that shot through him at the sound Yoroi's scream, knowing it was the curse seal that was trying to influence him. For above all else, Sasuke was an Uchiha, and he would not be manipulated by some seal like some clan-less commoner.
Yoroi froze as he felt a razor sharp Kunai tighten close to his throat, the cold steel reminding the masked Genin not to move. "Yield!" Sasuke's words would allow nothing but complete compliance. Yoroi carefully nodded, hyper aware of the kunai pressed close to his throat.
"Yoroi Akado has yielded! Sasuke Uchiha is the winner!" The Last Uchiha moved towards the exit, ignoring the medical ninja that hurried towards Yoroi. Sasuke met Kakashi at the exit ramp and the two quickly exited the arena amidst the deafening cheers of the crowd.
The sign board quickly spun again, the crowd quieting in anticipation. When it stopped there was a shocked silence from the Hyuga clan section. "Would Neji Hyuga and Hinata Hyuga please make their way down to the area?"
As the two Hyuga clan members made their way down to the area, Kiba shook his head at Neji's back. "Well, Neji's fucked."
"What?" Tenten, the female member on Neji's team blinked in shock at Kiba's blunt statement. "Neji-San is a really strong and talented ninja. He even beats Lee when they spar."
Kiba snorted and raised an eyebrow. "Good for him?" Seeing her unbelieving expression, the Inuzuka explained further. "Look, I'm sure Neji is cool and all, but he's facing Hinata. Who's on Team Eight." Kiba's tone had the some tone one might expect while talking about one of the legendary Sannin. "And if by some miracle he beat's Hinata, well..." Kiba shook his head at Neji's imagined messy end. "Naruto will beat him to death in the finals."
"But she hasn't even been a Genin for a year!" Tenten protested, believing Kiba's words to be false.
"What you believe doesn't matter!" Sasuke's harsh tone lanced across the small area. "Hinata is a teammate to Naruto. Naruto is the only one here who is worthy of being my rival. And since Hinata is on Naruto's team, she has to be strong." Sasuke paused, a malicious smirk crossing his face. "The Hyuga male doesn't stand a chance. His lesser eyes will not save him. Perhaps if he had the Sharingan..."
"Isn't Hinata also a Hyuga?" A now confused and slightly worried Tenten questioned.
"She is on Team Eight." Sasuke explained, as if his statement was all that was needed to explain why Hinata was different. The Last Uchiha turned his attention back on the area grounds, signaling that he was done talking about this topic.
"While Sasuke said it like an asshole, he's right." Kiba admitted. Tenten cast a worried glance down at the area. What would Neji's reaction be in the unlikely event that he lost?
Hinata reached the area floor, moving towards the center of the dirt covered floor, Naruto's words of encouragement keeping her heart warm. As she approached, Neji couldn't help but mutter, making little real attempt to lower his voice, "And so the Main Branch makes us wait until they deem themselves ready..."
Hinata frowned slightly. "Neji-San, I am not like the other clan members...We have talked about this before!"
Neji shook his head, his noble features twisting into a scowl. "You are like the rest, no matter what you say!" Neji paused for a briefest moment, mastering himself. His tone dropped back into a emotionless tone. "It does not matter. Fate has made you my opponent this day, and thus you will lose." Neji glanced at Hinata. "Be comforted that Fate has decreed that you will be defeated this day. Fate controls everything!"
Hinata stilled, her face freezing into a icy mask. "Fate?" Her voice ghosted out softly, as if she was speaking a word that she understood but hated.
Hayate coughed into his hand, drawing both Genin's attention. "Are you ready Neji Hyuga?"
"Fate has decided it is so."
Hayate blinked before shrugging. That was probably as close to a 'yes' as he was going to get. "Are you ready Hinata Hyuga?"
"I am."
"In that case..." Hayate moved back before raising his arm, not wanting to be near when the two talented Hyuga fighters clashed. "Hajime!"
For a long moment neither Genin moved, both just assessing their opponent. Then, with a surge of chakra, they both activated their eyes. Two sets of the All-Seeing Eye gazed into the other, seeking out weakness. "You should have given up, Hinata-Sama." Neji glared at Hinata. "Fate has decreed that you will lose this match, just as Fate took my father away." The Hyuga boy swept his arms out in a complicated pattern as he snapped into the Gentle Fist stance. "You were always a failure, weak and easily defeated. No one can change their Fate. Fate cannot be changed."
Hinata flowed into the Gentle Fist stance, the complicated pattern looking more like a dance then the beginning of a fighting stance. "You say that Fate cannot be changed?" Hinata quietly asked, her tone unreadable. "You are wrong." Hinata's stance was perfect, a mix of both grace and hidden strength. By contrast, Neji's stance was almost perfect, strength and hidden outrage in equal measure.
At some unseen signal, the two Hyuga members rushed towards each other. When Neji was within an arm's length of Hinata, he planted his foot and snapped his hands forward, chakra flaring for the briefest of seconds. "Eight Trigrams Two Strikes!"
Like lightning, Hinata's hands came up, intercepting his blows. "Eight Trigrams Two Palms!"
Neji surged his hands forward. "Eight Trigrams Four Palms!"
"Eight Trigrams Four Palms!"
Neji's hands moved faster. "Eight Trigrams Eight Palms! Eight Trigrams Sixteen Palms!"
Hinata matched him blow for blow. "Eight Trigrams Eight Palms! Eight Trigrams Sixteen Palms!"
Neji pushed himself to his limits. "Eight Trigrams Thirty-Two Palms! Sixty-Four Palms!"
"Eight Trigrams Thirty-Two Palms! Sixty Four Palms!"
A now confused and cautious Neji leapt back, placing some distance between himself and Hinata. "So you are skilled. It does not matter. You cannot change Fate!"
Hinata chuckled, her hollow laughter sending an uneasy chill down her opponent's spine. "Fate cannot be changed?" Hinata's voice took on a slightly harsher tone. "If Naruto-Kun believed Fate could not be changed, he would have died in his cradle. If Fate could not be changed, he would have died from the mobs. If Fate could not be changed, he would have died on a mission. If Fate could not be changed, Sakura-Chan would never have become a kunoichi. If Fate could not be changed, she would have never met Naruto-Kun. And..." Hinata met Neji's eyes squarely, "If Fate could not be changed, I would not be standing here today!"
"The fact that you of all people are saying this..." Neji practically snarled, "If it wasn't for you, I would not have this seal!" The Hyuga male ninja reached up and untied his forehead protector, exposing the Caged Bird Seal for all to see. "I received this cursed seal on your birthday! It was my Fate!"
"And what have you done to change your fate?" Hinata asked, her tone growing cold. "Have you studied your seal? Have you tried to bypass it? Have you done anything? Or have you just believed that your fate can not be changed?" At Neji's angered eyes, Hinata continued, her killing intent lancing across the arena floor. "That is the difference between you and Naruto-Kun. When fate has tried to stop him; tried to kill him; tried to keep him weak; tried to stop him from protecting, he defied his fate!"
"Let me show you what you are capable of when you defy your fate!" Hinata slowly dropped back into the Gentle Fist stance. As her arms passed one another, electricity flickered from one palm to another. As the stance settled, all of the Hyuga clan members' eyes widened in shock. Raw electricity danced across Hinata's fingers.
"Y-You added an element to the Gentle Fist?" Neji stammered, taken aback by what he was seeing.
"This is the power I gained when I chose my own fate!" Hinata surged towards her opponent. To Neji's credit, he was able to dodge the first two strikes, and barely dodge the next four. He then was forced to block the next eight, only managing to block the next sixteen by only the slimmest of margins. He had no chance of blocking the next thirty-two strikes. Sixty-four strikes shook his body with their impacts.
"Eight Trigrams One Hundred Twenty-Eight Palms!" Sparks danced off of Neji's body as Hinata's strikes flashed forward. The final blow sent Neji skidding backwards onto his back. Every chakra point was screaming in pain, and he jerked spasmodically as the electricity sent false signals racing through his body.
Hinata walked next to the defeated Hyuga and knelt down to whisper to Neji, her lips only a scant inch from his ear. "If you swear loyalty to Naruto-Kun and I, we will free you from your caged seal." Neji's eyes widened. "Think on this as you recover." Neji was in no condition to react as Hinata's hand snapped forward, sending him into the welcoming arms of unconsciousness.
"Hinata Hyuga is the winner by knockout!" Cheers erupted from the Genin gallery as Naruto and an army of his clones gave her a standing enthusiastic ovation. The medics hurried past Hinata as she made her way towards the exit, somehow feeling lighter than usual. Naruto-Kun would gain allies. She would see to it done.
So what did you guys think? I tried to keep the fights interesting while describing the fast-paced nature of them, but I'm not sure if that came across well.
To my reviewers:
LordTicky: I'm glad you enjoyed it!
asw28: Heh, it would be telling if I answered that. I don't think Ino will be, given that she really doesn't see Naruto for who he really is. And yeah, sometimes scenes feel a little cut off since I run into my 9k word cap.
THE 7TH DEMON OF RAZGRIZ: Well, given that Naruto will react differently once he finally gets together with someone (or someones), I would have to create half a dozen different versions of the same chapter. It's a cool idea, but it would take me far too long to write each chapter then.
zafnak: I'm glad you are interested. Unfortunately, answering would be spoiling.
Kit: Here's the next chapter!
Thorndsword: Yeah, sometimes I forget that while an exclamation point means to me that they are using emphasis, to others it can look like they are shouting. Sorry about that.
bloodbrother 18: Here's the next chapter! Telling about the thing in the exam room would be spoiling the surprise. I'm glad you enjoyed the fight scene!
Vanishing Raptor: I'm glad that I was able to pull off Team Eight's growth in a realistic kind of way. I wanted to have a battle showing Hinata and Sakura working together without any deaths occurring, so it would contrast how they act when they are attacking to kill. Naruto's battle was fun to write, since I could easily imagine Naruto happily punching the clones, much to the growing frustration of the Ame team. Orochimaru took a bit of work, given that while he is high above all of them in skill, he doesn't have any special abilities to make him god-like. And yeah, it's going to be interesting with Kakashi, given that there's no cannon examples that he himself has had any relationships. So he's mostly going off of what he has observed and read.
MR GUEST: That's the funny thing about this story. From what it looks like, it's heading in the harem direction. But at the same time, HotE didn't start out this way. I say all that to say that while it looks like it should be a harem, anything could happen, given that relationships aren't going to start until after the three-year time skip. But yeah, as things heat up, jealousy might start rearing its head. I'm glad you liked Bear. He was an awesome OC to write.
Hanmac: Karin will be in this story, but she wouldn't be joining in the Naruto fun-time quest. Granted, this isn't to say that she isn't going to be interacting with Naruto...I'll take your vote into consideration. I'm keeping an unofficial tally of what pairing you guys would like to see.
CreedRazerReaper: That would be spoiling if I told you. Good guess though.
drannakka: Hmmm...I did not know that. Ah well. Too late now.
gilmaxter: Happy belated birthday! Here's the next chapter!
Animaman: While I can't tell you exactly how the council thing is going to go down, I can say that it will be very eye-opening for the council. And you'll just have to see about who's going to develop a crush on Naruto. I try to keep things realistic, so sometimes Naruto has the misfortune of being crushed on by multiple people. And it's interesting you mentioned Temari. If you would, let me know what you think of Temari's character given that she was introduced this chapter. You'll see what happens when the council tries something shortly after the preliminary battles conclude. Hiruzen is slowly becoming someone they can't push around anymore.
jmg94: Thanks! I'm glad you liked that moment between Bear and Naruto.
Iceflame55: Yeah, I've always been puzzled by fics like that. I'm trying my best to show that they really don't want to share, and that learning to share is a long process. And yeah, it's looking more and more like Haku would only be with Naruto, given how much she focuses on him. Sakura and Hinata have picked up on it, but they currently believe that Haku isn't going to do anything with her feelings.
loganhunter92: Heh, that's me! All the ship teasings! And that's the funny thing about Naruto. In cannon he would have been op had the author not kept him stupid. Hell, he became a better Sage then his teacher in less than a year!
RikudoNaruto1: Heh. I'll add your vote to the list.
dksamuri: I'm glad you enjoyed it! Here's the next chapter!
Necrotic Knight: Heh. Well, luckily they had the Earth Scrolls that Hinata and Sakura had acquired. Otherwise they would have had to track down even more Genin teams and taken their scrolls. Granted the other option would have been for Naruto to slice open his arm, but Sakura and Hinata would have never let him do that.
Guest: That is one thing I'm struggling to work on. I want to avoid having Sakura and Hinata fade into the background, but at the same time, realistically, Naruto is far above them in terms of strength. So I'm trying to create areas that let each member of Team Eight shine. And you are right. It's not just your potential that determines who you are, but your determination to see it through. Sakura is a prime example of this in HotE. She doesn't have a bloodline or a big clan, but she can stand right alongside Hinata and Naruto.
Waldo Santiago: Yeah, sometimes I go a bit overboard with italics. It's still a learning process for me. Heh, that would be spoiling if I told you what happened. Excellent guess though.
Illuminated: Heh. While having his future self sending the answers back would be awesome, it would be spoiling if I told you what actually happened. Good guesses though.
SeanHicks4: Don't worry. You'll find out in time. Granted, knowing me, it's not going to be necessarily beneficial for Naruto...
Mr. Motivator: You bring up an interesting point. I'm still trying to figure out what a military organization would deem as appropriate code names. On a side note, I'm fairly certain that repeating 'Nekojin' out loud repeatedly has garnered some strange looks from those around me. But eh, research isn't always easy.
mac10m1: I'm glad you like it! I'm trying my best to avoid bashing any characters for the sake of bashing as well as avoiding painting any characters in a pure heroic light. Sakura's parents were fun to write, given that Sakura is a reflection to a certain extent of them.
mac10m1: Thanks! Hoped you liked the rest of the chapters!
Hirocan: Thanks! Here's the new chapter!
Father Anime: One of the things I try for is to keep the flow of the story the same. Within the next few chapters you'll learn about the gift that is inside Naruto. Here's the update!
BurningSaiyan:Honestly, I myself don't know exactly who Naruto is going to end up with. I suspect something, but that could change as the characters do. There's a bit of character growth from Sasuke this chapter. I'm still trying to figure out where exactly Sasuke is going to end up, given that he doesn't have the crutch of Naruto this time around. Realistically, Kakashi is going to get help from Anko (even if he doesn't want or think he needs it), given that Anko wouldn't let him go on without help once she learns of his issues. And yeah, Shino is awesome. Expect to see more Shino being awesome in the future. As far as Kurenai goes, she's aware that she can't push her team to their limits. She's just a bit, for lack of a better term, too motherly to that. So in order to combat that, she enlisted help from some of the other Jonins. Here's your next chapter.
Sek96: You bring up a really good point. I honestly didn't know that it was Kage Bunshin only. I'll have to go back and edit that to a different training (granted it will still be completely crazy, but it will make sense).
imps: Thanks! And here's the next chapter for you.
sugar hussain: I'm glad you liked it. It took a bit of time to write out the fight between Naruto/Shino and Orochimaru. I think I went through a half-dozen drawings before I settled on one that would work. And good guess. It would be spoiling if I answered though. Here's the update!