OP1: Overwhelming Vivid Days by Nanami Yoshi
Chunin Exams Part II
Four Days Later
"You're withdrawing from the exams?" Sakura asked Kabuto as the seven remaining teams listened to the Third Hokage's explanation of the preliminaries.
"Naruto, I can tell that I won't make it, just by looking at the people I'll possibly have to face," he told him. "I've seen some of the things your friends can do, and it's pretty intimidating, to say the least. I wouldn't even last a few good minutes with either of them on a 1-on-1 match."
"You won't know unless you try," Naruto adds.
"Maybe, but I know my limits and when to call it quits. This is one of them." Though Sakura didn't like the idea of Kabuto quitting so early when he's come this far, she and Naruto allow Kabuto to leave.
"That said, I would like to have our third proctor, Hayate Gekkō, continue with the explanations," said the Third Hokage, leaving right after.
"Thank you, Lord Hokage. Welcome to the elimination round. I am the third proctor, Hayate Gekkō. In the elimination round, only 10 Genin will make it to the next round, and since there's 21 Genin, one Genin will fight an extra round."
"Hopefully, it's not me..." Shikamaru thought to himself. Hayate pulls out a box and picks a random piece of paper from it. Looking at it, he told them Naruto would be fighting an extra round.
"Just my luck..." Naruto thought before letting out a sigh. Looking at Sasuke, he hoped he wouldn't do anything to unleash the cursed seal. Kakashi gave him specific instructions, mainly to not use his Sharingan, since the cursed mark responds to flows of chakra. If it got out of control, Kakashi would have to intervene and stop the match to control it.
"Alright then, the first match will be Sasuke Uchiha vs. Yoroi," Gekko finished, Sakura, looking at Sasuke, worried if he'll be able to perform well with the handicap he was given. Yoroi was a ninja who could absorb chakra with his touch. Once the non-combatants walked up to the balconies to watch the fight, Yoroi quickly closed the distance between himself and the Uchiha, who tried his best to fight off his opponent. However, the cursed seal prevented him from performing at the peak of his abilities, allowing Yoroi to grab Sasuke by his head and absorb his chakra.
It seemed hopeless for Sasuke at first. But after recalling his fight with Lee, Sasuke managed to best his opponent by hitting him with his new taijutsu technique: The Lion Combo. After checking on the now-unconscious Yoroi, Hayate declared Sasuke the winner. Right after, Kakashi appeared behind the Uchiha and asked him to come with him so he could seal off the cursed mark. Without saying anything, Sasuke relents, disappearing with the Jonin.
"Next match: Zaku Abumi vs. Naruto Uzumaki," Gekko announced. Naruto jumps down onto the ring as Zaku enters as well. Looking at him, he asked his opponent if he was okay fighting without the use of his arms, aware of how Sasuke dislocated them when he was influenced by the cursed seal. With an arrogant grin, he told the blond Genin he could take him down with one arm tied, so to speak, as he revealed that one of his arms had recovered.
"Hey proctor, start the match, I wanna flatten this guy right away," Zaku boldly yelled. Though annoyed by Zaku ordering him to start the match, the Proctor starts it. "Decapitating Airwave!" Zaku launched a powerful supersonic blast of air at Naruto, who simply stepped aside in order to avoid it.
"What!?" Angry, Zaku decides to use the same attack again, only for Naruto to avoid it with little effort.
"Never thought I'd have to fight a spammer in real life. This is just sad for a ninja like you...Either your opponents were genin-level or they forgot how to dodge," Naruto told him, sounding unimpressed. Bothered by his words, Zaku fires a powerful version of it, called the Extreme Decapitating Airwaves, a massive gust of cutting wind at the blond. After letting out a sigh, Naruto appears behind Zaku to avoid the attack.
"By the amount of power that attack had, it must use up a lot of chakra. Also, is blowing wind out of your palms your only technique? And based on the name of the technique, were you trying to make it sound dangerous? I'd give that name an F." Turning around, Zaku blasts him again, only to miss. Naruto quickly finished him off by performing a forward somersault with his legs outstretched, kicking him twice before pushing off him with both feet and slamming his opponent to the ground.
"Looks like only two applicants from Otogakure will make Chunin this year, "said Naruto, reminding Zaku of the words he said to Kabuto, angering him as he slowly passed out. "You had the chance to walk away. Should've taken it..."
"The winner is Naruto Uzumaki..." As soon as the medics came in to take Zaku away, Naruto walked back up to Sakura and Lee, the latter complimenting his attack. "It was nothing special..."
"I don't know, I thought that attack was pretty impressive." Naruto turned to see Kasumi approach them. "Congrats on winning."
"Thanks...Where's your sister?" Kasumi tells him how she got called by their brother to help out with something important.
"Next match, Shino Aburame vs. Kasumi." Hearing her name being called out, she told the blond to wish her good luck before jumping down to the arena.
Elsewhere
At another location, Kakashi had just finished writing several blood-written sealing formulas all over Sasuke's body.
"Alright listen up Sasuke. I'm going to use the Evil Sealing Method on you. I must warn you, once I begin the Evil Sealing Method, you will start feeling a lot of pain." As soon as Sasuke told him to do it and get it over with, Kakashi placed his hand on the Uchiha's cursed mark as he uses the Evil Sealing Method. Sasuke screams in pain until the process is done, the young genin heavily panting on the floor. "Should the cursed mark activate, the Evil Sealing Formula will stop it. However, it utilizes your will as its main source. If you lose faith in your power and your will sways...the cursed mark will reactivate..." Immediately after, Sasuke falls unconscious.
"...Anko, I know you're there." Anko appears from behind one of the pillars in the room they're in, telling Kakashi she was just checking up to see if his sealing technique would blow up in his face. "Very funny...someone else is here as well."
"Well well well, I see you can do sealing techniques now, Kakashi." Turning around, the two sport defensive and angry looks on their faces as Orochimaru makes himself known.
"Orochimaru, the former student of the Third Hokage and one of the Legendary Sannin."
"You've grown, Kakashi...Anko."
"Orochimaru-sensei."
"You're in the way of my new host body. I suggest you two step aside and let me have Sasuke," said Orochimaru, Kakashi voicing how he wasn't going to let him take the Uchiha without a fight. "You both know that even if you two fight me at the same time, you won't be able to defeat me."
"Then I guess I should cut in." Orochimaru's eyes widened in fear, his body freezing in place when Ryu Hayabusa appeared, his Dragon Sword in hand. "One wrong move, and I'll end your life right where you stand." If there was anything or anyone Orochimaru feared, it was the Hayabusa Clan. He recalled facing one several years back, being close to death before managing to make a getaway and transfer his soul into another host.
"Tch, I will have Sasuke, and there's nothing you can do about it. He will want power, a power only I can give him. Just you wai-" Before Ryu could kill Orochimaru, the former Sannin teleported, surviving with just a cut on his right cheek that burned him, forcing him to shed his skin. As Ryu sheathed his Dragon Sword, Kakashi thanked him for showing up when he did.
"No need to thank me. What matters is that Sasuke's cursed mark is sealed and kept in check."
"Well, now that the sealing's done, I have to get back to my Genin. Can you take Sasuke to the hospital? I have to stick around and root for my kids."
"Sure..."
Chunin Exams
Back at the exams, Kasumi finished off Shino using Thunders of Tenjin, a technique that involved her launching Shino into the air and wrapping her legs around his neck and backflipping downwards, smashing his head to the ground.
"I think she overdid it," Naruto thought to himself as the proctor declared Kasumi the winner. Medics come and put Shino on a stretcher before preparing to carry him off.
"Will he be alright?" asked Kasumi, sounding worried for the boy.
"He'll be fine, though he will need to rest for a whole week."
"Okay then, thank you. I will be sure to pray he makes a quick recovery." she said before bowing. Kasumi immediately teleports to Naruto, Sakura, and Lee as Shino is brought to the hospital.
"Hopefully I don't fight her," Sakura thought to herself. "Kabuto was right, the Mugen Tenshin kunoichi was dangerous."
The next match was Kankuro vs Misumi, the latter being a ninja who could use chakra to dislocate his joints to stretch and twist his body. Kankuro easily defeated his opponent by switching places with a puppet that was disguised as him and crushing the Genin's bones in its hold, knocking him out.
After Kankuro was declared the winner, it was a match between Sakura and Ino, which eventually ended with the two knocking each other out, meaning both girls wouldn't be able to advance to the finals.
After that was Tenten vs. Temari, a bad match-up for Neji's girlfriend. All the projectile weapons used by her were completely countered by the Wind Release techniques used by Temari and her Giant Fan, which she used as a conduit for her techniques.
Finally, it was Shikamaru's fight with Kin Tsuchi, one of the Sound Ninjas that attacked Sakura and Sasuke. Shikamaru was at a disadvantage since Kin had learned about his Shadow Imitation Technique from Orochimaru. However, he managed to join her shadow with his and made her hit her head on a wall, winning the match. This surprised Naruto, who immediately follows it up with a comment on how this was one of the many times he actually put in the effort to win before voicing how only one Sound Ninja was going to make Chunin this year. After being announced the winner, Shikamaru walks back to where his friend Chōji is.
"Nice job, Shikamaru!" said a smiling Choji, congratulating his friend and teammate.
"Your friend is a very good strategist," Kasumi comments.
"What he lacks in combat, he makes up for it with strategy..." Naruto responds, wondering when his next match was.
"Next match, Naruto Uzumaki vs. Kiba Inuzuka."
"Speak of the devil..." Naruto jumps down to the arena as Kiba, and his dog, jump down as well.
"I never thought I'd be fighting you...I was itching to finally fight you with all I got," Kiba told the blond, a big smirk on his face. "It's about time I finally wiped that overconfident look off your face." Naruto raised a brow when he said that. "I wonder, how much skill and strength could you have possibly gained since you reached genin?"
"Who knows..." Naruto responds. This served to anger Kiba as he points his finger at him.
"At least say something more than that! It's annoying as hell!" Naruto remained silent, his facial expression asking the question, "What need would I have to waste energy on words when?", further angering the Inuzuka boy.
"Tch, whatever! I'll just make sure Akamaru and I finish you off fast instead of dragging it out."
"You two must not have done enough training to back your skills up if you're just talking too much." Again, Kiba is left infuriated as he tells Akamaru to stay back, going down on all fours (HA! XD) after. His pupils turn into slits as he starts to grow claws and fangs. Naruto noticed Kiba's strength increasing as the latter quickly closed the distance between them, readying a punch. Naruto immediately caught his fist before kicking him away and preparing for another attack. Kiba comes back swinging his claws as he attempts to land a hit on the blond.
"You're so high on yourself...It's always like that with you, Kiba, which is why we never get along," Naruto thought in his head as he avoids a diagonal claw strike before tripping his opponent with a kick. Kiba tries to sweep him off his feet, only for Naruto to perform three backflips to create some distance.
Looking down at Akamaru, Kiba told him to attack Naruto before he throws a couple of smoke bombs at the blond. Naruto fires a blast of wind from his left palm to knock it up into the air, allowing the smoke bombs to harmlessly explode before throwing a kunai at the dog, the dull part of it grazing the area between Akamaru's spinal column and the thoracic column, instantly applying pressure on it, paralyzing his spinal cord nerves. Akamaru dropped on the floor, unable to move, shocking both his owner and the spectators.
"Akamaru can't move his back legs?" said Kurenai, wondering what Naruto did to take down the dog without injuring him.
"Other than his techniques, Naruto's mind is the most dangerous," Shino tells himself. "He knows that without Akamaru, Kiba can't utilize any collaborative moves."
"What...did you just do?"
"Nothing serious, I just paralyzed Akamaru. He won't be able to move by himself for a good while," Naruto informed his opponent. Kiba glared daggers at him as he clenched his fists and grits his teeth.
"Damn it all...How? How are you this strong!?" Naruto doesn't say anything as he lets Kiba shout at him. "I always thought I'd be giving you a tough time. I trained so hard just to have a fight with you...Yet...I never expected to have this hard of a time fighting you, in just a few short minutes! Just what the hell did you put yourself through to be this strong!? Why can't I be like you!?" Finished shouting at the blond, Kiba prepared for another attack.
"By looking at his posture, he'll begin his attack with a claw strike, using his left hand. First, dodge the claw strike..." As predicted, Kiba runs at him with a claw strike, which Naruto dodged at the last second. "Then strike him on his right side with a spinning elbow strike and follow it up with a low spinning sweep kick." Naruto delivers a spinning elbow strike to Kiba's right trying to get him with a sweep kick, only for Kiba to jump over it.
"He avoided the sweep kick. Need to adapt. Discombobulate Kiba's hearing with a Pompyang move." Naruto slaps his palms on to both of Kiba's ears, disconcerting his hearing. "He's wide open. Next course of action, use a Cannon Spike to send him to the air and finally wrap things up with a headlock takedown." With a Cannon Spike, Naruto sends Kiba to the air before performing a Tornado DDT on him, defeating Kiba as his head drops onto the hard floor.
"Injuries: A bruised right side, short hearing loss, and moderate head trauma. Head trauma isn't life-threatening, that's good. The number of days needed for recovery: 4. The number of days needed for recovery for Akamaru: 0." Everyone was speechless as they bore witness to a snippet of Naruto's actual skills. Kasumi said nothing, though she had a look of curiosity on her face as Naruto knelt down to Kiba, who was still conscious, but unable to move.
"To answer your questions, I can't tell you what I went through to get to where I am. All I can tell you is that I've gotten my ass kicked in more ways than I can count before I came back here...by those who trained me to get to this point. Like you, there's someone I know who I can never beat, no matter how much I trained." This served to surprise Kiba as he looked up at him.
"I get the feeling you're having. However, it shouldn't be a bad thing to experience from time to time. I still can't beat him, but I never got angry about it. I just accepted it and continued surpassing my own limits. Point is, even if you had the means to stand against me, even beat me, you wouldn't have anything to aspire to after this. Every fight would be boring for you. You still have room to get stronger..."
"...Geez, with the injuries you gave me coupled with those words of yours, I can't help but hate you and respect you at the same time," Kiba replied, smiling at him as the proctor announced Naruto as the winner before the medics came in to take the former and his dog to the hospital.
"The next match is Hinata Hyuga vs. Neji Hyuga." Looking up at Hinata, Naruto gave her a nod as she gave him a nodding smile before jumping down on the floor.
Hokage Office
"Request to have a handful of Hayabusa Ninja come as added security?" Hiruzen approves of it, after hearing about his former pupil Orochimaru going after Sasuke and branding him with the cursed mark.
"We may need the Hayabusa Clan now more than ever...Will we need to include ninjas from the Mugen Tenshin Clan?" he asked Ryu, who responds with a yes. "Very well, I'll need you to give Ayane a message to send to Shiden and Genra," he finished, giving the Hayabusa ninja two scrolls.
"Thank you." As Ryu turned to leave, Danzo enters, exchanging glances with him before exiting the room.
"It's unwise to rely on the Hayabusa and the Mugen Tenshin, Hiruzen."
"With Orochimaru appearing after so long, we need them to help us, now more than ever," Hizuzen told him.
"If we rely on those two clans, it'd make us look weak," Danzo counters. Hiruzen tells him he thinks negative of the village's ninja and that the village wasn't weak for receiving help from allied clans outside of the village.
"If we had ninja who could utilize ki, we wouldn't need to rely on those who can," Danzo adds.
"Danzo, even without ki, this village has survived many battles, thanks to the bravery and strength of our Leaf Ninjas. With changing times, the Hidden Leaf may eventually need to open up to potential allies to help fight battles we might not always be capable of dealing with ourselves, and build trust." Danzo said nothing as he turned around and left.
Chunin Exams
After Hinata's victory over her cousin Neji, Naruto had congratulated her for her win, telling her she had gotten stronger.
"Th-Thanks Naruto..."
"Hinata...congrats," said Neji, sounding proud of her as he puts an assuring hand on her shoulder.
"Hey, did I miss anything?" asked Kakashi, having just arrived. When asked where he was, he told them he went for lunch after sealing Sasuke's cursed mark.
"You missed our matches. Sakura and Ino knocked each other out, eliminating each other, and I won my two matches."
"So that means you and Sasuke will be advancing. Good for you," Kakashi told him, smiling once he finished. The next battle was Rock Lee vs. Gaara. Turning to Naruto, Lee told him he was looking forward to fighting him and Kasumi, including how their matches have motivated him to give it his all for his match and the finals before entering the arena.
"I don't know what kind of tricks this bowl-cut kid has up his sleeve...but there's no way he'll win against Gaara," Kankuro told Naruto, Kakashi, Hinata, Neji, Sakura, and Kasumi as he walked towards them.
"I don't know, Lee did give Sasuke a bit of a problem," Naruto informed the Suna-nin as the match started.
Gaara pulls out the cork for the gourd on his back as Hayate begins the match. Lee attacks with a Leaf Whirlwind. The attack is blocked by a large amount of sand coming out of the gourd, which is controlled by Gaara. More sand comes out of it and attacks Lee, sending him flying backward. The bushy-browed ninja gets back up as he runs at Gaara, who effortlessly blocks his blows with his sand.
"Without moving a muscle...Damn!" Lee thought to himself as he continued trying to find an opening to land a hit on the Suna-nin.
"Fast as he is, Lee is getting nowhere," said Sakura.
"Physical attacks are worthless against Gaara," Kankuro informed them. "The sand forms a shield to protect his body, independent of Gaara's will. That's why, to this day, there's not one person...who has ever wounded him." Naruto said nothing as he watched the match, wondering how Lee can overcome his opponent.
"Why is Lee using only Taijutsu!? Taijutsu's ineffective and painful against that sand. He needs to start using Ninjutsu," said Sakura.
"It's not that Lee won't use Ninjutsu..." Turning to their right, they see Might Guy approaching them. "It's that he can't."
"What!?" Sakura says out loud before Guy starts to explain how Lee had practically no Ninjutsu or Genjutsu abilities.
"When I first met Lee, he had absolutely no sense and no talent or ability whatsoever. That's why the only moves he's been able to develop are Taijutsu. There are many ninjas who can use neither Ninjutsu nor Genjutsu. But I have faith that he'll win." Back at the fights, Lee is backed against the wall, surrounded by sand.
"Lee! Take them off!" Guy loudly told his student. Lee, looking up to his sensei, asked him if he was sure. "It's all right! I'll allow it!" Smiling, Lee jumped up onto the Buddha statue that was connected to the arena as he pulls out multiple weights out of his leg warmers.
"Now I can move freely!" Lee happily yelled. As soon as the weights fall down on the floor, they form 2 large craters.
"Those are some heavy weights," Kakashi said to himself as Lee starts running at Gaara, much faster than before as Gaara starts struggling with blocking all of Bushy Brow's attacks. Finally, Lee jumps into the air and scratches Gaara's right cheek with a downward heel kick, surprising everyone.
"He just wounded Gaara..." Kankuro said to himself as Temari started processing this.
"Wow, this Lee kid knows his stuff," said Kasumi, with Naruto agreeing with her with a nod.
"Had he shown me this before the first exam, I'm sure he'd get me to fight serious." This surprised everyone around Naruto after he said it with a straight face. Back to the fight, Lee starts beating on Gaara as the latter's Sand fails to protect him. Suddenly, Gaara's face starts to crack, revealing the scratch on his cheek was fake. Looking up at his opponent, Gaara shows an insane smile on his face as he encased himself with sand.
"What's he doing?" Sakura asked Kankuro, looking worried for Lee.
"Sand Armor, with it...he can encase himself in a thin shell of sand in order to cover and protect his body, controlling it by the force of his will," Kankuro explains, calling it Gaara's ultimate defense."
"Is that all you've got?" Gaara asked Lee, looking unimpressed.
"I'll have to keep pounding and punishing that outer layer of sand. I'll have to use...The Front Lotus." Lee prepares to unwrap some of the large bandages around his arms as he appears in front of Gaara and kicks him into the air before using Shadow of the Dancing Leaf on him. Once behind his opponent, he restrains him with the loose bandages as he prepares to piledrive himself and Gaara into the ground head first while rotating at a ferocious speed.
"Front Lotus!" The impact creates a crater larger than the ones the weights created. As the dust settles, Gaara is found lying unconscious in the crater as Lee finds himself extremely fatigued from the attack he performed.
"I...I think Lee won," Sakura said to the others, Kasumi telling her, "Don't be so sure..." At that moment, Gaara's face suddenly cracks open, revealing that Lee just used the Front Lotus on an empty shell of sand.
"What!?" Guy yelled. "There's no way he could..."
"Did you notice anything Naruto?" asked Kakashi, Naruto nodding his head yes. "So I'm not the only one..."
"What did you see?" asked Guy.
"During the use of the Front Lotus, he paused in pain for just a few seconds," Naruto told Guy, "And that's when..." Out of nowhere, Gaara appears behind Lee, his maniacal face returning as he sends Lee crashing into a wall with his sand and smashing him multiple times with his sand before the bushy-browed ninja jumps out of the way in order to avoid the last attack.
"For you, it ends here..." Gaara told Lee as he gets up and says, "One way or another...the next move will be the last..." Hearing this, Kakashi's eyes widened as he turns his attention towards Guy.
"His eyes...don't tell me...you taught him how to open the 8 Inner Gates!?"
"...I did."
"You taught him something horribly dangerous. And by the look on his face, it looks like he's gonna use the Reverse Lotus. That move tops the list of moves that you shouldn't teach. Tell me Guy...which of the 8 Inner Gates has he gotten up to so far?" After a few seconds of silence, Guy told him Lee can go up to the Fifth Gate.
"What're these 8 Inner Gates?" Sakura asked her sensei. Kasumi decides to explain it to her.
"The gates act as limiters that must be released in preparation for performing the Reverse Lotus. At eight specific points along our Chakra Pathway System - the network of energy lines through which chakra flows...there are places where the chakra nodes converge: The Gates of Opening, Rest, Life, Pain, Closing, Joy, Shock, and Death. Those are the 8 Inner Gates. They constantly maintain limits on the amount of chakra flowing through our bodies...limits that The Lotus uses chakra to forcibly override, enabling the user to draw upon strength that is dozens of times our usual level, even if the user's body is destroyed in the process. The Front Lotus that Lee used earlier opens the Gate of Opening. Opening the first Gate frees the user from his or her own mental inhibitions. The opening of the Gate of Rest boosts his strength. And with the opening of the Gate of Life, he can use the Reverse Lotus."
"What happens when all the gates are opened?" Sakura asked, growing even more worried about Lee's safety.
"When all the gates have been opened, they enter a state called the 8 Inner Gates Formation. Anyone who achieves that state will, however briefly, be granted strength that surpasses even the Hokage's. But in exchange...that person will inevitably die," Naruto adds, narrowing his eyes from how serious the fight was getting, getting a bad feeling on the back of his head.
"Wait, are you serious Naruto!?" Naruto confirms it by telling her, "He's taking a big risk here..."
Down at the arena, Lee begins opening the Gate of Life, his skin turning red as he opens the Gates of Pain and Closing, his chakra increasing, surprising Gaara. In an instant, Lee kicks Gaara into the air and continues to strike him at inhuman speeds before hitting him with a final, powerful open-handed strike and kick at the same time, sending Gaara crashing into the ground below. The ground is left devastated due to the force of the attack, Lee dropping down to the ground hard.
"Did...Did he defeat him?" asked Sakura, Looking down, everyone noticed that the gourd on Gaara's back was turned into sand, which was used to cushion the impact. Opening his eyes, Gaara begins controlling his sand to cover Lee's left arm and leg before shouting, "Sand Binding Coffin!"
Following this, the sand crushed Lee's left arm and leg as the latter screams in pain and falls unconscious. Gaara gets up and attempts to use his sand to kill Lee. Before he could, Might Guy appears behind Gaara.
"Don't even think about it..." Guy told him as Gaara looked at the Jonin and said nothing before gathering all the sand and forming it into a gourd on his back and appearing next to his sister Temari.
"He never stood a chance against Gaara..." Temari thought to herself. The medical-nins prepare to take Lee to the hospital as Guy stays at his side.
"Will he be okay?" asked Sakura.
"By the look of his injuries, he has compound compressive fractures and torn muscles throughout his body. He'll get a full recovery but...the damage to his left arm and leg is severe..." Kasumi informed her and the others.
"What are you saying?" asked Neji.
"His body is so destroyed...he'll never recover enough to be a ninja again." Once Kasumi said that their eyes widened as they turned to look at Gaara, who was looking directly at them.
"To do that to Lee...Do we stand a chance against him?" asked a worried Shikamaru.
"We can't worry about it now..." said Naruto, confusing them. "We have to keep going. There's no time for doubts and fears now..." Looking at Naruto, Kasumi noticed he was clenching his fists as he glared at Gaara. Right after Chōji's match, having been defeated by Dosu of the three Sound Ninjas, it was time to move onto the next round. The ones left remaining were Naruto, Hinata, Kasumi, Sasuke, Temari, Shikamaru, Gaara, Kankurō, and Dosu.
"Now that the elimination round's over, I have a box with slips of paper in it. Take one," Gekko told them. In order of numbers, it was: Naruto (1), Hinata (2), Gaara (3), Sasuke (4), Kankuro (5), Kasumi (6), Temari (7), Dosu (8), and Shikamaru (9).
"Alright, the match-ups for the upcoming Chūnin Exams Tournament will be Naruto Uzumaki vs. Hinata Hyūga, Gaara vs. Sasuke Uchiha, Kankurō vs. Kasumi, and Temari vs. either Dosu or Shikamaru. Looking at Naruto, Hinata thought to herself, "I finally get to fight Naruto..."
"Why do I have to have two fights?" Shikamaru wondered. Kankuro found himself unlucky since he was supposed to fight the Mugen Tenshin kunoichi.
"Any questions?" asked Gekko.
"Just one," said Shikamaru. Does only one person get to be a Chūnin?"
"No, that's not the case. For the finals, you'll be observed by many judges, not only by the Third Hokage but the Fourth Kazekage and the rulers and Shinobi Leaders of countries that will be requesting missions as well. Based on your performance in the tournament, those judges will assign you an absolute value. And all those who are deemed to have sufficient abilities to be a Chūnin. Even those who may have lost in the first round can become Chūnin," Gekko explains.
"Do you mean that it's possible that all of us here could become Chūnin?" Temari asked.
"Yes, however...it is also possible that none of you will become Chūnin. You're all dismissed. See you all in a month, train hard and be prepared."
Turning to Hinata, Naruto told her he looked forward to their fight, and to train hard. Putting an assuring hand on her shoulder, he told her, "Don't think about what happened with Gaara and Lee. Who knows, maybe you won't have to fight him."
"But what if he fights you? I'm worried that-"
"Don't worry about me. If I do win against you, I'll be sure to be on my guard with him, okay?"
"Y-Yeah..." As the genin leave one by one to prepare for the next part of the exams, Kasumi deciding to go back to her village to train, Naruto wondered where Ryu was. He survived the preliminaries, but where was the Dragon Ninja? After a few seconds, Ryu appeared in front of him.
"You passed the preliminaries..." Naruto nods his head yes to confirm it. "As promised, I will personally train you for a whole month, but not here in Konoha. I'll be taking you to the Hayabusa Village for your training." Naruto's eyes widened when he told the blond he was bringing him to his village.
"You're taking me to your village?"
"I figure it'd help to train at a place with fewer distractions," he told the blond. " I'll let you go home to pack. Meet me at the Village Gate after you've finished. First, it's about time you removed those weights."
"Oh, I almost forgot about these..."
Mugen Tenshin Village
Having arrived home 20 minutes ago, Kasumi found Ayane training by herself as usual, near the river they used to play at when they were kids. Smiling, she says hello to her sister, grabbing her attention.
"I passed the preliminaries," she told her.
"Not really something worth telling me, considering your skills, added with the fact that you're already a Jonin," Kasumi tells her it couldn't be helped, given that she WAS undercover on an important mission to find a spy working for Orochimaru within the Genin ranks.
"So...did you find the spy?"
"Unfortunately, no...Who knows, maybe he's left already. He might've also perished in the Forest of Death since Orochimaru was in the exams to personally go after that Uchiha boy."
"Maybe...How's Naruto? Did he pass?" Kasumi tells Ayane he passed without any trouble at all. "I see...Good for him..."
"...He should be arriving at the Hayabusa Village soon..."
"...You're not here to just talk, are you?" Ayane asked Kasumi, the latter asking her to help her train for the whole month. Ayane stops her own training and looks at her sister. "Why not ask Hayate or your father?"
"I want...I want you to help me," Ayane says nothing for a bit, unsure of what to say. Finally, she said, "To ask me for help...And I thought the princess of the Mugen Tenshin Clan was strong and perfect, I guess not...You better keep up with me, I won't explain things twice." Kasumi smiled at Ayane when she offered to help her, hugging her sister as she thanked her. The Hajinmon kunoichi turned red from her sister showing her affection, telling Kasumi to let go of her after.
Hayabusa Clan Village
After packing, Naruto met up with Ryu at the Village Gate, who immediately teleported himself and the blond to the Hayabusa Village. Viewing it for the first time, Naruto's eyes marveled at the new surroundings before him.
"Oh wow..."
"You're one of the rare ninjas from Konoha who've seen our village. For now, you should rest. We can start ki training tomorrow. I'll go let my father know that we have a guest staying with us for the whole month. Today, make yourself familiar with our village. Think of it as your home." This caught Naruto off-guard when Ryu told him that.
"Home..."
"Oh, I forgot to mention one thing. You'll be training alongside my apprentice."
"Apprentice?" Naruto asked, raising a brow.
"I made a promise to train her once she was 15..." Ryu told him before walking off. Surveying his surroundings, Naruto begins exploring the village, starting with the shrine.
Dragon Lineage Shrine
Entering, Naruto compliments the decorative interior of the shrine before noticing a woman having trouble carrying cleaning equipment by herself, blocking her vision before falling backward, dropping them as she lands on her butt.
"Owww..." Going over to the woman, Naruto offered his hand to help her up. "Thank you very much."
"You need help?"
"Yes, please do." Naruto helps her pick up the items on the floor. As she picked them up, she asked him what village he was from.
"The Hidden Leaf..."
"A Hidden Leaf Ninja...Are you here on business?"
"Something like that. I'm here to train with Ryu...I guess I should call him Master Ryu now since I'll be here for a whole month." This response surprised the woman.
"Ryu made you his apprentice?" The woman smiled as she finished picking up the last of the cleaning items. "It's very rare to have an apprentice outside of the Hayabusa Clan. Hmmm...I see. So you possess the ability to use ki energy."
"How did-"
"I can sense it in you...I must say...Your ki is a very bright and warm orange. However, it hasn't been cultivated enough, which will exhaust you very quickly if you use strong techniques without practice and perfect mastery over your ki."
"I uh...learned that the hard way..." Naruto told her.
"Only natural you'd learn it "that way". Happens to a few of us to tell you the truth, me included. Lucky for you, Ryu is a great teacher, so you don't have to worry about improper ki control after your month of training ends..."
"That's good to hear...I'm Naruto Uzumaki." The woman smiled at him as she introduced herself as Kureha before asking him if he could help her clean up the shrine. "Sure."
45 minutes later
Evening
Naruto and Kureha sighed a breath of relief after they finished cleaning the floor and the statues, finding a nice shine coming off from their hard work.
"Thank you very much, Naruto. Usually, it takes two hours for me to finish by myself." When asked if she gets help with cleaning up the shrine, she tells him how she gave the others a day off.
"Now that we've finished cleaning, let's pray in front of the Dragon Statue for a bit."
"Pray?" Kureha tells him it would bring him good luck and protection.
"If you say so..." Naruto was surprised when Kureha puts his hands in hers before telling him to close his eyes and recite the prayers of the Hayabusa Clan. When asked if it was okay for someone like him, who was a ninja not part of their clan, to pray to the shrine, Kureha said it should be fine, a warm smile on her face that caught Naruto off guard. "Now, let us close our eyes and pray, please." After two long minutes of praying, Kureha told the blond he could open his eyes.
"Now, are you familiar with the village yet?" Naruto tells the shrine maiden he just arrived and that he only visited the shrine. "Hmmm...Alright! Allow me to show you around the village!"
[FATE/STAY NIGHT [HEAVEN'S FEEL] I. PRESAGE FLOWER OST - calm and quiet days]
"The Chunin Exams are next month?" Kureha asked Naruto as she gave him a tour of the Hayabusa Clan Village.
"Yeah, a friend and I made a promise to fight each other with everything we've got when we were little."
"Do you think he's gotten stronger since that promise?"
"She..." Kureha was visibly surprised when Naruto told her the promise he made was with a girl. "And she has gotten stronger. Who knows how strong she'll be once the final part of the exams begins."
"So it's that way huh..." Kureha said with a smile. When asked what she was talking about, she told him it was nothing. As they walked along the path, Naruto looked down as he felt a ball roll to his feet. Stopping, he picked it up before looking up to see a few kids looking at him with wonder. One of them, a boy, asked if he could roll it back to them. Rolling it back to them, The boy picked it up before thanking him with a smile, running off with his friends after.
"Are your parents okay with you being away from the village or-"
"No parents. Orphaned as a baby..."
"Oh...I'm sorry..." Naruto tells her it was fine since he was used to it. "It's not fine. To grow up without a mother and father is never fine. How've you been able to last this long without a parent's love?"
"Dumb luck, along with some rare friends and chance encounters, I guess..." After he answered her question, Kureha noticed Ryu approaching them.
"Welcome back, Ryu." Ryu says hello to Kureha before turning to Naruto and telling him how his father approved of the blond genin staying with them for a whole month. "My father and I are arranging a room for you to-"
"Ryu, how about you have Naruto stay with me?" This surprised the genin as he turned to the shrine maiden. "Momiji and I have a lot of room at our place so why not have him do that?"
"Hmm, I see no problem with that. That is...if Naruto's okay with it." Looking at Naruto, Ryu wondered what his answer would be.
"...It'd be rude not to accept her offer." Kureha smiled as Naruto looked at her, wondering what was going on in her head.
"Have you finished touring the village with Kureha?" Naruto tells Ryu they had just finished.
"Good...Kureha, I'll take him off your hands a bit. My father wishes to meet him."
"Your father?" Naruto asked.
"Yes...Jo Hayabusa, the head of the Hayabusa Clan." Looking at Kureha, Naruto thanked her for showing him around the village, the woman telling him it was her pleasure and if he needed to remember where everything was, he could come to her for help.
[Music End]
Hayabusa Forest
Finished with his sword training, Jo noticed the presence of his son Ryu, and Naruto as he turns around and locks eyes with them.
"This is the Konoha genin you told me about earlier?" Ryu nods his head yes as Jo sheathes his katana. Directing his eyes at Naruto, he tells him to approach him. Walking forward, he stops in front of the Hayabusa leader. Leaning forward, the Clan Head observes the blond and his energy.
"Hmmm...So you're the Hidden Leaf Village's Jinchuuriki."
"Jinchuuriki?"
"It's what people call those who contain demons within themselves." Turning to Ryu, he tells him to leave them alone. His son gives him an understanding nod before teleporting away. "...I'm aware of the animosity your village has towards you." Naruto's eyes widened when the Hayabusa head said that.
"I must apologize to you."
"For what?"
"You see...The Hayabusa and the Mugen Tenshin were there when the Nine-Tailed Fox attacked Konoha. It was because of the Fourth Hokage, an old friend of ours, that relations between our clans and Konoha improved after the Second..."
"What did the Second Hokage do?"
"...It's something so forbidden, that we almost cut relations with the Hidden Leaf...until his death. Back to the previous subject, regarding you, when you were born, and the demon was sealed within you, under the Fourth's request, we were to take you in, but we faced animosity from the elders of the village, who were against this. Because they were in power for a while, they prevented us from fulfilling that request."
"You mean..."
"If we were allowed to that day, you could've been raised here." Bowing his head down to him, Jo apologized to Naruto for having him go through what he did all those years because they weren't able to fulfill their request.
"...Lift your head up," said Naruto, a small smile on his face. Jo looks up at the blond genin as he tells him, "It's not your fault and...I don't blame you. I'm...glad you told me this. I admit I had it rough while I was growing up, but it wasn't all that bad. I got to meet a few good people in the village, got to see the world outside it, and I met more good people along the way. And hey, you're fulfilling that request now, even if it's just for a month."
"Thank you for understanding," Jo told him before getting up. "Let's head back. It's almost dinner time."
"Right..."
Dinner
Castle of the Dragon
"So, you're going to be training alongside me?" asked Momiji (15-years old) as they ate dinner with the rest of the clan, which included the leaders and the villagers. In Hayabusa tradition, it was important to welcome guests whom the leader has taken an interest in, which extends to friends Jo has made from other villages, even people outside of the ninja nations, and Naruto was one of them.
"That's right..." he answered.
"And I thought I could finally get more alone time with Ryu..." Momiji thought to herself. "Well, I look forward to learning with you, Naruto."
"Same here, Momiji." Taking a huge bite from the salmon onigiri in his right hand, he comments on how delicious it was compared to the ones he made at home as a smile appears on his face. "Who made this? I must get the recipe..."
"Kureha made it. She's a very good cook," Ryu informed Naruto before continuing with his meal, Kureha asking the blond if he cooks.
"Yeah, I know how to cook." The shrine maiden offers to show him tomorrow before his and Momiji's training with Ryu. "Really!? Thank you!" Kureha looked surprised when she saw him happy. Realizing this, Naruto turned red and focused on eating.
"You should act like that more...it suits you," she told him with a smile. Focusing on the food in front of him, he told her he'd try to work on it.
Kureha's House
"I find it hard to believe she'd be friends with anyone," said Momiji as Naruto told her, "Same here, but I'm glad that wasn't the case. She's pretty good to have around the house whenever she comes to the village."
"She visits your place?" Momiji asked, not believing the blond. "Could it be she..."
"Oh good, you two are getting along," said a smiling Kureha as she entered the room and got ready for bed.
"Yeah...Thanks for letting me stay here."
"No problem, think of our home, and the Hayabusa Clan Village as a whole, as yours." Naruto got caught off-guard once more as she mentioned home. When asked if something was wrong, he told her everything was fine. "Are you sure?"
"Yes..." Unconvinced, Kureha gets up close to him and looks him straight in his eyes, making him nervous, beads of sweat going down his forehead.
"Oh dear, there's that Kureha stare..." said Momiji, sweating as she said it.
"Your eyes squint a bit when you lie. Tell me what troubles you Naruto." Once Kureha gave him a little space, Naruto wiped the sweat off his face before giving Kureha a response.
"I'm just not used to the word home is all..." This served to confuse Kureha and Momiji. "I have a place of my own at the Leaf, yet I have no one waiting for me. I could move to another place outside of that village, but it'd still feel lonely, especially when that perverted sage author isn't around. What's a home when you have no one to come home to? Sure a few people come to visit, but once they leave it's...lonely...And when you decided to house me, I...liked the idea of living with you."
"That explains why you were acting like that earlier..." Kureha replied, smiling after.
"Other than coming back to a house with no one waiting for me, I live in a village where 99% of the villagers hate me. This village, it's far more welcoming despite what people see on the outside. I was looking for signs that the people here didn't want me around, but I saw none...I..." Kureha doesn't let him finish as she pulls him into a hug.
"It's truly frustrating for you...Ryu told me everything...I just wanted to hear it from you as well...To understand you better."
"I know I can change them, but... What if I can't change them? What if...What if the moment the Hokage dies, everyone in the village takes that moment to hate me for it? Like I didn't do enough? Was it wrong for me to return there, hoping to accomplish a goal that may never come true?" Hearing what Naruto had to add, Kureha gently bops him on the nose.
"You can, and you will. I know it because you're afraid, unsure of whether you'll succeed or fail. That fear you have shall be your reason to not give up and try harder. It's okay to feel the way you are now, but don't let it overcome you. If there's still a part of you who believes you can change the Leaf Village, keep holding on to it, and never let go. Also...Starting tomorrow, I'll be the one you can come home too, even if it's just more this month." Hearing Kureha tell him that soothed his soul as she told him to get some rest.
"I...I look forward to that...and thanks..." Turning red, he asked Kureha if she could let him go.
"No...You need this hug Naruto...You have rarely had someone hug you like this to let you know someone understands and cares for you, so let this sink in."
"If you say so, then..." To Naruto's embarrassment, the shrine maiden told him he was warm.
"Th-...Thanks..." A few minutes later, Naruto found himself still in Kureha's hug, the shrine maiden, and her sister, now fast asleep.
"She fell asleep!?"
TO BE CONTINUED...
ED1: Self-Inflicted Achromatic (自傷無色)(Cover) by Raon Lee
Next chapter will cover some bits of Naruto's training, it may be quick since I got the idea to not drag it on from watching episode 3 of My Hero Academia Season 1.
The fights in here, some, honestly, were rushed/skipped because we've seen most of them, some of them being short in both manga and anime. The fights like Naruto vs Kiba and Lee vs Gaara were central. Naruto's fight with Kiba was to let others know that, yes he's strong, but not the strongest, and that if people were to surpass the strongest, who else was there to surpass once that was accomplished?
Like the anime/manga, the fight with Gaara was to show how big of a danger he was and that Naruto, Sasuke, and Kasumi weren't the only challengers to fear.
For the poll, I am surprised to see a lot of yes. That honestly eased my conscience a bit. It may take a while until Naruto and Ayane actually get together, but as the story goes on and moves on in different ones, we'll see the two interact a bit more, and more. There's a lot of obstacles, doubts and hurt, but in the end, Ayane will be rewarded for it.
Kureha will also be one of the many people who shape Naruto to who he is. The relationship with her and the blond Genin is one that will eventually end, and it...it's something.
Momiji has her own thing going on as well which I am looking forward to diving into since, like Ayane, she has her own love problems involving Ryu.