Please leave a review, I really want to know everyone's thoughts about my righting so I can improve. And thank you all for reading and sticking with me and my first fic to till now, I really appreciate all of you and hopefully the story will keep getting beter as I go.


Chapter 5: A Fated Encounter, Training and Bonding

Waking up from another nightmare Naruto got out of bed and went to his fridge for a glass of milk. It had been 4 months since his team's mission to Wave and yet the faces of his victims still haunted his dreams. Since they got back to the village, Team 7 has been training nonstop for the Chuunin Exams in a two months' time. Opening the fridge, Naruto was disappointed to see the lack of both milk and his favorite food, ramen, and decided to go for a walk instead not realizing he was being watched by both a concerned Hinata and Kakashi.

"He'll be fine Hinata, he just needs some support from his team and friends, whether he wants it or not. Trust me I would know." Sasuke stated, rubbing his eyes as he walked out of his room.

"He woke you up too, huh?" Kakashi asked with a chuckle.

"It's kind of hard not to wake up with that kind of screaming, and it's still as annoying as it began 4 months ago. Sometimes I feel like waking him up so that he can stop, but it seems like he does that himself." Sasuke answered before going back into his room, "I'm going back to sleep. See you tomorrow." He added before closing the door and climbing in his bed.

Because of his team's curiosity, Naruto although fearful to their reactions told his team about the Nine-Tailed Fox. To say that they were surprised was an understatement, and yet they understood his burden and instead of it pushing them away, it seemed like it only made them grow closer.

Walking through the streets in the cold of night Naruto somehow found himself at the graveyard, walking between the rows of gravestones he ended up at the grave of his greatest hero and the person who burdened him with protecting the village, and unbeknownst to most his father, the Yondaime Hokage.

Sitting down, Naruto began to speak, "I guess it's about time I visit you again huh, so how have you been? Sorry I haven't been here in a while, I have been busy with all these D-rank missions, and the occasional C-rank. But with the Chunnin Exams rolling around I've been training a lot, though that's mostly to put my mind at ease from the screams of the people I killed. Oh, I almost forgot to tell that I forgive you for what you sealed in me, it may have taken a while but I realized it had to be done. Though if what I'm thinking is right you couldn't really have taken anyone else, I mean we basically look the same if not for my whiskers and height, though I don't know which family member you were like my father, uncle or even cousin. Anyway I have to go now, I just wish I knew if you were proud of me." He finished before standing up and walking away before a tall white haired man appeared where Naruto sat just a minute ago.

"So he figured it out, huh? Guess he really is your son, Minato." The man said turning his head from a departing Naruto to the grave.

-The Next Day-

Waking up from the best sleep he had since Wave, Naruto had a good feeling about the day only to be disappointed when Kakashi cancelled the days training. Walking through the village Naruto's stomach began to growl and decided to go to Ichiraku's where he met the strange sight of a giant man with waist long hair resembling that of a lion's mane, jumping off a large toad and walking into the ramen stand before the large toad vanished in a puff of smoke. Walking into the stand Naruto went to sit next to the man and order his usual Miso Ramen.

"Oh this will be a good one." The man stated while giggling as he read some of his notes.

"What're you reading?" Naruto asked looking over the startled man's shoulder.

"Nothing meant for your eyes, brat." The man replied while hiding the notes with his body, "Who are you anyway?" He added.

"The names Naruto Obito Uzumaki!" He replied before asking, "And you are?"

"I'm glad you asked brat, for I am the legendary sage trained by the Great Toad Sage himself on Mount Myōboku, he who has wooed women from all over the Elemental Nations, THE GREAT TOAD SAGE...dramatic pause…JIRAIYA!" The man stated while doing a Kabuki style dance and ending in a dramatic pose while Naruto swore he could hear drums being played.

"Umm… Sure, whatever floats your boat old man." Naruto said turning to eat the Ramen recently placed in front of him. That is until he realized what the man said, "NO WAY! You're THE Toad Sage Jiraiya of the Legendary Sannin?" He asked after swallowing his mouthful of Ramen.

"The one and only." Jiraiya chuckled with pride, sitting back down on his seat and starting to eat his ramen.

"That means you trained the Yondaime Hokage, that's so cool. Can you tell me a story about him, Please?" Naruto began begging, unknowingly boosting Jiraiya's pride.

"You know what brat, I'm starting to like you. How about I show you a few things after we're done eating. What do you say?" He asked, smirking at boy that resembled a torch with both his hair and the fire burning in his eyes as he nodded his head with such vigor that it would put the youthful Green Beast of Konoha to shame.

"Alright, then you beter finish quickly cause I'm not waiting for yo…." Jiraiya started but was cut off when he heard a loud *SLURP* and *SLAM* before looking over to see Naruto already finished his extra-large bowl of Miso Ramen.

Arriving at one of the unused training grounds of Konoha, Jiraiya began to spar with Naruto to test his abilities but was disappointed to see every possible opening a Taijutsu stance could have being used by Naruto. He was pleasantly surprised tough to see Naruto's talent in Ninjutsu as he used two wind style and one water style techniques.

"Okay, I've seen enough." Jiraiya said ending their spar.

"But you haven't even showed me anything yet." Naruto complained.

"I didn't say we were done, brat. I just needed to see what you need help with. And your Taijutsu or lack thereof is gonna get my full attention until I'm satisfied." Jiraiya stated before biting his finger, forming a few handseals and slamming his hand to the ground.

Kuchiyose no Jutsu

After the cloud of smoke disappeared Naruto saw an old small toad that Jiraiya called Fukasaku-sama. Listening to the conversation between Jiraiya and Fukasaku, he realized that the old toad would teach him Taijutsu while Jiraiya would focus on his Ninjutsu.

"Hey…Um…Jiraiya-sama, why is this old frog going to teach me Taijutsu?" A confused Naruto asked, much to the horror of Jiraiya and anger of the old toad.

"Naruto, do you have anyone you want at your funeral." Jiraiya asked his voice serious and his face blank as he pulled out his note book and pen, waiting for his answer.

"What are you talk…" Naruto started but was cut off with a loud *FWAP* and pain running down his head.

"Who are you calling old or a frog you damn brat." Fukasaku said after disappearing from his spot on Jiraiya and appearing on Naruto's head, repeatedly hitting the teen with his wooden stick.

After about two hours of watching his new student get beaten by the toad, Jiraiya interfered, though hesitantly before explaining how Jiraiya is going take some of his clones to another area to focus on Ninjutsu while Fukasaku is going to teach him the Toad Fist style.

The next two months have passed by rather quickly under the tutelage of Kakashi, Jiraiya, Fukasaku and even Might Guy every now and then. Though he was rather sad about not going to be thought under Jiraiya anymore anytime soon, he couldn't help but be happy about getting a break from the Ero-Sennin's, as Naruto liked to call him, training methods. Like the one time he was pushed off a cliff to access the Nine-Tailed fox's chakra to manage to summon the Chief Toad Gamabunta, who he had to stay on the back off while the very large toad hopped around all day, and then got into a drinking contest, all to be accepted as a toad summoner.

Now only a week away from the Chuunin exams, all of the senseis of teams that is taking part in the exams have to give a report on their squad's abilities.

"Okay, please call in Kurenai Yuhi in next." Hiruzen ordered to the secretary in his office. Five seconds later a tall dark haired woman with crimson red eyes stepped into the office and began speaking once she received permission from the leader.

"Good evening Sandaime-sama. I should probably inform you of Sakura Haruno first, she has incredible chakra control and took to the Genjutsu I taught her like a fish takes to water, though she isn't very strong physically her team mate Kiba Inuzuka more than makes up for it with his strength and tracking abilities however both Sakura and Kiba are very brash when it comes to decision making which is why Shino Aburame's stoic nature comes in useful, who is also as inept in tacking with his bugs as Inuzuka is with their noses. Though I must admit that Sakura isn't the most willing person to work with her team."

"I see. Now I must ask, do you still think your team is up for the exams?" Asked the Sandaime earning a nod from the woman before dismissing her.

"Okay, bring in Asuma Sarutobi next please." He asked his secretary again, and this time a tanned man with short brown hair, a trimmed beard and a cigar in his mouth.

"Good evening father, how have you been? I suppose you want my report now, so I guess I'll start with our strategist Shikamaru Nara, he's not very enthusiastic about anything though he has a brilliant mind. He's able to come up with strategies on the spot to ensure a successful mission, and then there is Choji Akamichi who makes up for his teammates lack of strength with his own. Finally there is Ino Yamanaka, how should I put this, she's not very smart… or strong, but she does have the ability to read people like a book and gather information." Asuma stated before being asked the same question as the woman, nodding his head and leaving with a bow.

"Okay and finally, Kakashi Hatake." Hiruzen said lighting his pipe and putting it in his mouth.

Walking into the office Kakashi put his book back in his pack and greeted to Hokage with his usual eyesmile, "Mind if I take a seat, Hokage-sama?" He asked. Getting a nod of confirmation from the aged Hokage, Kakashi sat in the seat opposite his leader before beginning his report.

"Well I suppose I'll start with Hinata Hyuuga then, her mental state has improved quiet smoothly, when on missions and while training she discards her shy and timid nature only bringing that part of herself out when in the village and around her Torchy teammate. Her Taijutsu and combat Ninjutsu leaves a lot to be desired but she shows great aptitude for medical jutsu and she can also be quiet fearsome when using Senbon needles. I also tested hers and her teammate's Chakra Nature and the results shocked me, to say the least, Hinata has both water and lightning elements."

"Next is Sasuke Uchiha, it would seem that his need for revenge has dimmed considerably and came to think of his team as a sort of second family, though he and Naruto still continues with their verbal spars there is hardly any heat in their words. His Taijutsu and Ninjutsu are excellent and learns the Jutsu I teach them almost as fast as I do with his Sharingan. He has also made great progress in his marksmanship, which only increased with his birthday gift Naruto. And his Chakra Natures are Fire and Earth but also has a much weaker affinity to lightning."

"Finally there is our Torchy little friend Naruto Uzumaki. His mental state had deteriorated since Wave but not as much as I would have thought thanks to his teams; friends and to my surprise, Jiraiya who had also been helping to train him for the past six months. Using his 'Shadow' Clones based off of Nidaime Hokage's own unique clone jutsu to boost his training along, Naruto was taught the Toad Fist style though not very efficient in it yet, it's a Taijutsu style that suits him very well. His Ninjutsu is astounding, he finished the Fuuton (Wind Release): Gale Palm I taught him in Wave a month after we got back to the village, as well as Fuuton: Great Breakthrough and Suiton (Water Release): Water Bullet. He has also proved his superior Swordsmanship, rivaling that of my own at his age. And finally we get to his Chakra Natures which is Wind and Water, and as for his mutation to use shadows, we're making steady progress but I have a feeling we haven't even scratched the surface, but for what he can do so far is apply the shadows to his jutsu but only his clone thus far; enter the shadows to hide and move between them, though we don't want to risk sending anyone in with him; make solid transformations, though that might be because of his tenant; and finally, he is able to mask his presence to a degree but with training he could potentially completely disappear. All in all, if he is trained right and gains a bit more experience he could strike fear in all of the Elemental Nations without the use of Nine-Tails." Kakashi finished to the old leader whose eyebrows were plastered on the roof in shock. "I suppose you are pleased with what you hear, Hokage-sama?" He asked jokingly.

"You already know the answer Kakashi. I knew they had potential, but this surpasses all my expectations by a very, very wide margin." Hiruzen replied and couldn't help but chuckle. It wasn't just team 7 that showed more potential than the previous generation, but also Teams 6, 8 and 10; though they did show the most. "Well I suppose asking you this is useless, but do you still feel like they are ready for the Chunnin Exams?" He asked already knowing the answer.

Grinning beneath his mask, Kakashi nodded his head before answering to reinforce his notion, "Of course, Hokage-sama."

Before he could exit the office, Kakashi was called back by the Hokage who threw a scroll at him before saying, ""Give that to Naruto-kun after the second stage of the Exam, would you." He said before continuing at the confused look of his silver haired subordinate, "It's a gift from his father for when he becomes Chunnin, tell Naruto it's a thank you for helping me with my paperwork problem." He added with a chuckle at the last part.

Looking around the office, Kakashi finally realized what the Hokage's Clones were doing. "Jiraiya has already told you about Naruto's theory about who his father is, hasn't he?" The Jonnin asked lightheartedly before looking at the picture of the Yondaime on one of the office walls.

The remaining few days passed rather quickly and finally the day of the Exam rolled around.

'So this is it, huh?' Naruto thought a smile on his face as he and his team stood outside the academy.


Well that's it. Sorry about the cliffhanger, but hey the Chunnin Exams are up next, so that's gonna be fun.

Anyway, this is The_Dovabean signing off.