Himawari: Naruto Next Generations

by Son Kenshin

The youngest Uzumaki is about to be thrown into the ninja world like her sibilings and parents before her, and Himawari wants to join the ranks of her father and grandfather as Hokage! But a mysterious new organization is rising up, composed of her own countrymen from their long destroyed country, will Himawari and her friends be able to face them and keep the peace?

1. Chapter 1

Himawari: Naruto Next Generations!

Prologue:

It had now been eighteen years since the Fourth Shinobi World War and the world is at peace. Konoha, and by extension the Land of Fire, has become the most powerful nation within the Shinobi Union, due to a combination of its Rokudaime Hokage Uzumaki Naruto's power as well as his charisma. With Konoha now the capital of the Land of Fire it had grown immensely since the Invasion of Pain which left the village a crater. It was now a fairly large city with a booming population that was made up of people from all over the continent and was the center of commerce in the new peaceful world. Despite this, however the Sound Alliance formed a counterbalance to the Shinobi Union, led by the resurrected Orochimaru. But despite tensions between the two power blocks nothing had turned into open warfare yet despite there being a few flareups between their forces over the years.

Due to this new tension, training of shinobi had increased all over the Shinobi Union though the demand for it was still less than during the perceived cold war between the Five Great Nations before the Fourth Shinobi World War. Which is why Uzumaki Himawari, the youngest of Naruto and Hinata's four children has stepped up to the plate to finish her shinobi training and become a Genin!

Chapter 1: Sunflower of the Leaf

Konohagakure, Uzumaki Household

In the backyard of the Uzumaki Household, 12-year-old Uzumaki Himawari practiced with her shurikens as her big brother Boruto and big sister Shina watched! The youngest Uzumaki was dressed in a yellow overcoat and orange pants-much like her fathers with the Uzumaki and Hyūga crests on her back. Her dark blue hair had grown out a bit and down to her shoulders and her whisker marks were slightly flared from tapping into the hereditary Kurama chakra Naruto had passed down to his children. Her normal bright blue eyes now had the pale Byakugan activated as she focused. In her hand were several kunai which she were practicing with.

"Hima-chan, keep calm!" Shina said from where she stood. Shina was now 15 years old and wore a grey overcoat with a orange trim, her forehead protector around her neck like Hinata used to wear hers and blue-black pants with a kunai holster on her left hip.

"Yeah! Throwing the kunai too hard will just break the target!" Boruto added, he was 15 now and he had a katana on his back and was wearing a black overcoat with pink trim with a mesh shirt underneath and a necklace that had a literal bolt on it with black pants to round off his look.

Boruto and Shina, the firstborn of Naruto and Hinata, were considered two of the geniuses of their generation and had become Rookie of the Year and Kunoichi of the Year in their graduation year respectfully, having inherited their grandfather's talent. Shina was even a Jōnin now, and Boruto a Tokubetsu Jōnin who still worked closely with his team of Uchiha Sarada and Mitsuki. The eldest Uzumaki sibling had his own adventures when he was younger, having helped save Kirigakure from a coup d'état in the last year of his Academy days, a full-on insurrection in Iwagakure by a faction led by the late Sandaime Tsuchikage's son Kū who had formed his own version of ROOT to oppose Kurotsuchi.

Shina had also had her own adventures with her team and had been easily promoted to Chūnin during her first Chūnin Exams. Alongside the likes of Sarada she was also believed to be a shoo-in to become Hokage if she desired when she got older. And she had built up quite a Fanclub around Konoha due to her kindness, beauty and strength!

Himawari then unleashed several of the kunai at the target and each one hit the center, the final one slammed with such force it broke the target in half and buried itself in a stone. Boruto's jaw dropped at that, and he looked back at his little sister, then at the damage she had done with the final kunai.

"H-Hima I told you'd break the target that way…" he said and the youngest Uzumaki powered down and winced apologetically.

"H-Heh…I guess I got frustrated," Himawari said as she stuck out her tongue, tilted her head and knocked her own head. "Tried so hard to hit the bullseye but failing a few times…"

Shina grinned. "Well, you have the power there little sis," she said as she came over. The second eldest Uzumaki put her hand on her sister's shoulder. "You're going to do great at the final exam at the Academy."

"Thanks!" Himawari exclaimed cheerfully and then she looked around. "Where's Tsu-kun anyway?"

"Where else, visiting Hikari-chan," Shina said as she stretched. "And trying to get on Ukataka-san's good side."

Himawari giggled at that. "No wonder why he's stopped his usual pranks!" her watch then went off and she began to panic. "GAH! I'm gonna be late for my shift at Auntie Ino's Flower Shop!" she said as she rushed out of the backyard.

Himawari jumped onto the fence before she ran at full speed on the walls, putting her arms back to gain speed as she leaned forward. She had started to work at the Yamanaka Flower Shop shortly after she had decided to try other careers and jobs besides being a ninja so she would know full well what she wanted to do. Ino was one of her idols as well, Konoha's Head Jōnin and a person she wanted to be: being able to balance two full time jobs takes a LOT of work after all!

She activated her Byakugan and then she jumped to the wall across from the one she was running on to avoid a cat that was snoozing on top of it. On the ground several passersby noticed the young Uzumaki's mad dash, and the older ones chuckled and felt nostalgic since Naruto used to do the same thing.

Himawari then landed on the street itself after she left the residential areas as she ran towards downtown Konoha, and she glanced around at the new urban scrawl of the village. Ever since the rebuilding of the village following the Invasion of Pain as well as the transfer of the Land of Fire's Capital to Konoha after the Fourth Shinobi World War, the village had changed from a large town to a respectable city with hundreds of thousands of people living in the area. Behind the Hokage Monument were several skyscrapers of the new financial district and Konoha was connected to every other ninja village through a complex rail network that the Land of Iron had shared and provided the rest of the world with.

In the skies were several airships that were being used to advertise businesses around Konoha or ferry passengers from the airfields that were near the Forest of Death. Himawari took a moment to look up at them before she rushed towards the Yamanaka Flower Shop. She passed Downtown Konoha's huge screen TV where Naruto was giving an interview and she jumped, ducked and dodged several carts, people on bicycles and other shinobi just going about their business.

Himawari managed to make it to the Yamanaka Flower Shop, but she nearly bumped into Ino's son, Inojin. She used her natural flexibility to dodge him and she then backflipped and landed perfectly. The older teen sighed, shaking his head. He was dressed in ANBU, sans mask and had his scroll and a tanto on his back.

"Cutting it real close Himawari, you know mom when it comes to tardiness," Inojin commented with a dry look and the young Uzumaki eeked at that.

"Sorry, sorry I got too caught up in training and studying for the Genin Exams!" Himawari exclaimed as she waved her arms around.

Inojin chuckled at that. "Well better punch in before you're really late."

Himawari jumped at that and rushed through the door and pirouetted out of the way of a customer who carried out a full bouquet and then rushed to the punch clock. After she logged in, she zipped right to the counter where Ino waited with her hands on her hips.

"Cut it very close Hima-chan," Ino said scoldingly as the young Uzumaki clapped her hands together and bowed in apology.

"Sorry, sorry Ino-sama I was just training, and I lost track of time…!"

Ino's stern look faded, and she laughed. "Relax Hima-chan, I know you're training for your Genin Exams! Just had to give the 'stern boss' routine to tease you! And you can call me auntie Ino remember?"

Himawari knocked her head with her knuckle and stuck out her tongue. "Right, right sorry auntie Ino!"

"Now let's get started! By the time we're done we'll make some serious profit for the store, and you'll get some experience with some of the ninja trivia I've scattered throughout the store," Ino said proudly as she gave a grin.

"You're so awesome auntie Ino!" Himawari said with a grin and then she did a salute. 'Let's get to work!"

As Himawari worked at the Yamanaka Flower Shop, at the Hokage Tower Naruto was in a teleconference with the rest of the Kages. Darui looked like he was especially ragged, Kumogakure's financial difficulties hadn't ceased since the end of the War. It was hard for the village, hell the Land of Lightning itself to even draw in foreign investment and its infrastructure was failing fast. On top of that many of its ninja clans were even leaving Kumogakure for brighter pastures-often joining other villages in a mass migration. And finally, as an after effect of not only the battles that had waged in the northern part of the continent, but the Ten-Tails own rampage a thick, never-ending dust-cloud was above it that had dropped temperatures to dangerous levels and the mountain rages glaciers and even from as far away as the poles started to encroach on what remains of settlement.

"I've done my best to keep things together these past two decades, but things keep getting worse and worse, Naruto," Darui said as he slapped his forehead. He heaved a heavy sigh; his beard and moustache had grown haggard and long from lack of shaving. "Kumogakure has about a half a decade at best of life left in it…I can't feel like I'm failing the late Raikages"

"Don't trouble yourself so much, Darui," Gaara said from his window. "The aftermath of the fourth War is at a magnitude that no other nation could hope to face even alone."

Mei pursed her lips from her own window. "I'm still having trouble keeping investors interested in Kumo itself, Darui. Shipping companies in Water and Kirigakure itself are finding the ice that is building up harder and harder to navigate safely."

"What if we just move Kumogakure to a lower latitude?" Kurotsuchi suggested from her own window. "Find some place closer to the border with Hotsprings that would allow it to start attracting more business and also start concentrating the towns and cities there too?"

Darui shook his head. "Even if we could do that many people would just stay. Those that left for other villages and countries now are being looked upon as a stigma, that they were just 'too weak' to tough it out." He rubbed the bridge of his nose. "And any talk of evacuating further south even within the Land of Lightning will start getting the Lightning Front's ire again…"

"That nationalist group?" Naruto asked for the first time during the conversation, his hands had been folded in front of his face as he listened to everything. The Rokudaime Hokage had grown out a thin beard that went down his jawline and onto his chin. "I thought they had been dealt with a decade ago."

"Merely went underground. And I suspect Orochimaru is funneling them supplies and forbidden jutsu so they can attempt a takeover again," Darui sighed and leaned back. "And unlike last time I doubt I can stop them. The people are tired, growing desperate and angry at the day. On top of that the Lightning Front is providing the nostalgia of pre-War Kumo, and it's gained more and more followers."

"What about Killer Bee? Doesn't he have some influence to talk them down?" Naruto asked.

"Bee has mostly retreated back to Genbu the Turtle. He still has students and everything but has gone into a near full on hermit lifestyle. The boss' death still hits him really hard," Darui said as he sighed. "Barely even raps anymore. You know something is wrong if he is speaking…well normal."

Naruto scowled at that. "I'll go and talk to him, try to snap him out of his funk."

"Thank you…" Darui started as his assistant brought in an expense report for not just the village but the country to. "…now time to get back for some paperwork."

With that the video conference ended and Naruto sighed as he slumped back in his chair. All the progress that had been made since the Fourth Shinobi World War felt like it was going to face a new hurdle. A ninja village collapsing wasn't something new, a Major one was however due to the age, size and prestige of the ninja villages of the Five Great Nations. Usually, the wealth and power that a major village accrued over decades would give it the foundation to stay afloat…but the total war aspect of Fourth War was beyond anything that happened in past conflicts.

The door to the Hokage's office creaked open and Naruto looked up to see Hinata walking in. She had just completed a few dozen missions around the village and wanted to see her husband. While she was dressed in her mission gear, she also wore a Konoha Flak Jacket now and her long blue-black hair was in ponytail.

"How did the meeting go?" Hinata asked as she walked over, and Naruto gave a tired smile.

"Rather standard until more of Kumogakure's plight was brought to the table," Naruto said as he rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Even with all the ninjutsu I mastered, the powers the fricking Sage of Six Paths given me, an economic and population collapse is something I can't stop. Makes me feel powerless…" he sighed. "Kurama reminds me even if I do manage to destroy the clouds with his power they'll just come back since that region's climate is now permanently altered from all the battles that were fought."

"Hmph, you thought that throwing around mountain destroying blasts at least wouldn't cause a shift. You were and still are naïve Naruto."

"GRR…" Naruto growled. "I get it I get it Kurama!"

His wife came over and sat next to him, putting her hand on his. "There are times that even a Hokage can't do a thing and those times are okay, Naruto-kun."

Naruto grasped Hinata's hand and smiled softly at that. "Thanks, Hinata-chan…even all after all these years you're supporting me through thick and thin."

"Of course, I do," Hinata started before she leaned in and gave him a quick kiss on the lips. "I've loved you ever since we were kids."

Naruto laughed a bit bashfully at that. "Yeah, and I love you too Hinata-chan."

She helped him up. "Your father's 'shift' as Hokage should start soon so time for some rest Naruto-kun. Plus, we have to prepare."

His eyes sparkled. "That's right. Himawari is going to take her Genin Exam later today!"

Almost like he had been recharged Naruto jumped up with a grin and Hinata laughed. "Right! The Exam is taking place in the evening after Himawari-chan's shift at Ino's flower shop."

Minato had soon arrived to see his son and daughter-in-law happily chatting about the upcoming Genin Exam. The years had been kind to the Yellow Flash now; that he was in his mid-forties biologically due to being revived when he was still 24 during the War. He and Kushina doted on their grandchildren whenever they could, and Minato helped Naruto maintain a balanced work and home life by taking over as Hokage in shifts. After all, the Yellow Flash considered himself far too young to retire!

"Alright Naruto, you've earned a break," Minato said with a proud smile. "Go home and see your kids for a bit."

"Thanks dad," Naruto said with a grin and he and Hinata went and walked out.

As the Rokudaime Hokage and his wife walked throughout Konoha towards their home, at the Uchiha Compound Sasuke, Sakura and Sarada watched the youngest Uchiha practicing the Uchiha initiation technique in front of the pond that was in their backyard. The pink-haired young man finished the set of seals and his cheeks swelled.

"Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu (Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique)!" the pink-haired boy said as he blew out a large white, not orange or red fireball from his mouth.

Sasuke gave a nod. "Excellent Homura…" he said as he congratulated his son. "You past the test…"

"I'll say," Sarada said as she pushed her glasses up. "You kind of fried all the koi in the pond little bro."

Homura winced and he laughed a bit nervously. "Heh…I just was really focused on the chakra amount…" he said as the fish that were in the pond floated up to the surface…completely broiled.

"…I'll go order some more," Sakura said with a sigh. "And I really liked that batch too."

All around the village ninja were preparing for the influx of new blood from upcoming Genin Exams. Thanks to Naruto's general overhauling of the Academy's programs, there was nearly a hundred percent success rate in passing. Kakashi even assisted in the final test-having done so during Boruto and Shina's own graduation as well.

Himawari's class had a bunch of skilled students. From the class rep and foreign princess Yukiwari Kae to a young member of Konoha's Fūma Clan named Eiki, there were plenty of skilled soon to be genin within her class. Himawari herself was at or near the top of the class consistently and her closest friends within it were the blue haired Itomaki Yuina and the impetuous Norimaki Ehō.

The young Uzumaki wiped her forehead after she put several boxes down within the Yamanaka Flower Shop. She opened them up and began to restock the seeds and bulbs that Ino would be selling for the day, and she used it as a training exercise. She activated her Byakugan and flicked her wrist to get each seed pack in the right spot like they were shuriken. When she was finished everything was in the right place and she put her hands on her hips and beamed like her father would.

"Auntie Ino, I'm done for the day!" Himawari announced as she removed her apron and rushed out into the selling floor of the shop.

"Oh, in record time!" Ino said cheerfully as she interacted with customers, she got a nice couple, two young men the perfect flowers for their date. "Here you go and have some good fun tonight!"

"Thank you, Ino-san!"

"Y-Yes thank you!"

Ino smiled dreamily as the young men walked out. "Ahh young love. Just like how Sai and I were when we were younger!"

Himawari giggled at that. "I'll be heading to the Academy Auntie Ino! I'll tell you how I did in the exam afterwards!"

"Good luck Hima-chan! I know you're going to pass and become a great kunoichi!"

Himawari rushed out the door and gave Ino a cheerful wave. She then jumped into the air and ran up the wall as she reached the roof. Then the young Uzumaki began to jump from building to building as she made her way towards the Academy. She glanced down as she got closer and saw Yuina on the street and she hopped down.

"Yuina-chan!" Himawari said happily as she landed on the street.

"Hey Hima-chan! How was work?" Yuina asked with a grin. She had been reading a book, so she had a pair of glasses on, and she wore a striking red qipao in the same style that Sakura used to wear when she was a genin since the Uchiha matriarch was one of her idols.

"Great! The flowers were so pretty, and I got everything organized for Auntie Ino!" Himawari replied with a grin. "Plus got some shuriken training while there too."

Yuina giggled and she took off her glasses. "You always find a way to train Hima-chan, how do you do it?"

"It's just fun, I guess," Himawari replied as the two walked towards the Academy. "Oh, where's Ehō-kun?"

"He said he wanted to get a spar in with Homura," Yuina replied as they passed through the gates. "We'll see him for the exam."

"Wonder how they're going to do it this year," Himawari said as she folded her hands behind her head much like her father would. "Boruto-onii-chan and Shina-onee-chan said they had to work together with their entire class against papa's teacher Kakashi-sensei."

Yuina's eyes widened. "Will we have to take on a Jōnin too?!"

"I don't know, let's wait and see,' Himawari said with a smile. "And don't panic Yuina-chan we're gonna pass, dattebame!"

The silver haired princess Kae waved at them as she ran over. "Himawari-chan, Yuina-chan, all of us are nearly here for the exam!"

"I bet your people are going to be really proud of you becoming a ninja, Kae-chan!" Himawari said with a grin.

Kae flushed and rubbed the back of her head. The Bamboo Princess wore rather conservative clothing, a silver battle dress and she had a rapier on her hip in contrast to the usual katana or wakizashi of Konoha. "Yeah, they are already starting to throw preliminary celebrations back at the capital."

"Don't be too enthusiastic!" a new voice announced, and Himawari looked up to see Eiki standing on the side of the Academy's wall. He was dressed in a black shirt and blue-black pants with a camouflage design on them and on his back, he had a large Fūma Shuriken strapped to it. "Since I'm going to become Rookie of the Year Himawari, over you and Homura!"

The young Uzumaki sweat-dropped but Yuina groaned. "Eiki, Hima-chan and Homura-kun both are at the very top of the class, you've been left in the dust!"

"Doesn't matter, during these Exams I'll show why I'm the best of the class! I have to protect the honor of the Fūma Clan after all and show my dad I have what it takes to join the Military Police!"

"Whatever you say," Himawari said meekly as she rubbed the back of her head.

"Eiki's making a fool of himself again," another new voice said, and they turned to see the Aburame member of the class, Aburame Harika walked in. She was wearing a aviator helmet complete with black goggles and her black hair poked out in long pig-tails. She also wore a long white overcoat with black pants. "Seriously you know you shouldn't compete against the Hokage's daughter nor a Uchiha at this point."

Himawari flushed in embarrassment. "…just because I'm the Hokage's daughter doesn't automatically make me strong Harika-chan, you know how hard I train…"

Before anything more could be said, however, there was a loud bang at the entrance to the Academy. All the Academy Students still there jumped, and they saw an older shinobi wearing a bandana and his face was covered in scars. He cleared his throat and the students gulped as they felt like they were being sized up.

"I'm your examiner this year, Morino Ibiki. Get to the class or I will fail you for being tardy," the older shinobi said in a threatening voice.

"Y-Yes sir!" All the Academy students said as they rushed into the academy.

Ibiki watched them head up the stairs and he smirked. "Ah, feels good to come out of retirement to get the next generation of shinobi ready for the world."

"Just don't psychologically damage them too much Ibiki…" a female voice said, and he smirked and turned to the speaker.

"Anko, you know me. I want our ninja to be prepared and if they can't cut it they can always retake it, well its one less person for a body bag," Ibiki said as he put his hands into his jacket.

Anko sighed. "I know I know, but we're at a time of peace and they are my students, got it?"

The years had been kind to Orochimaru's former apprentice. Anko had put on a bit of weight, but it made her body a bit curvier and mature, and she wore a orange dress over her usual mesh with a long tan overcoat to complete the look. Most of the students also didn't realize she was literally armed to the teeth and she often how to use some scare tactics to get them into line.

"Hence why I can't go soft on them," Ibiki said as he went walking in. "Time of peace my ass too. Orochimaru's power block is rising in power and Kumogakure is going to collapse in a few years. There's going to be a huge domino effect, and everyone needs to be ready."

Anko sighed but didn't protest that. While the world was at peace with the major nations all united, cracks were growing. And Orochimaru had made himself into a power player on the international stage with his own allied countries that opposed the Shinobi Union. That didn't even go into the ongoing crisis that Kumogakure was facing and if it did fall…

"Alright, alright I get it…" Anko said as she crossed her arms authoritatively in front of Ibiki. "Just don't scare them too badly…"

"No promises," Ibiki said as he put his hands into his pockets before he headed into the Ninja Academy.

In Himawari's classroom, she sat next to Yuina and Ehō. The latter was dressed in a green overshirt with black pants, but on his shoulders, he had what appeared to be hawk feathers attached for his hidden techniques. Other members of their class were also taking their seats, Kae sat next to Eiki and a young woman with long purple-pink hair and golden eyes named Kamakura Osuka.

Next to Himawari or Kae, Osuka had the biggest fan club. Her being a daughter of a famous jōnin turned movie star really helped her out in that regard. But she had considerably mellowed out since their first year and her kinder side was often shown a lot more. Especially to the girl in glasses sitting in the next set of seats, Asakura Neon who was her best friend and the resident tech-ninja of the class.

Next to Neon was Inuzuka Mimi and her little ninken Kikuchiyo. She was the adopted daughter of the still clan leader of Inuzuka Tsume, and she had short blonde hair, the fang Inuzuka clan markings on her cheeks and was wearing overalls. Sitting next to her was Aburame Harika and her best friend Soul Tao. Soul was dressed in a orange-yellow track suit and she wore her long hair in a ponytail and even had some weights under leg warmers to help with her taijutsu training much like her idols Rock Lee and Might Guy.

Fraternal twins Suzu and Ran Sōgi were on the next level. Ran had short blue hair and blue eyes while his sister had red hair and red eyes with a flower over her ear. They were around a year younger than the rest of the class but due to how proficient they were in genjutsu and medical ninjutsu they had been moved a grade up. And next to the red-haired Suzu was the son of a candymaker and current class chemist Nerikiri Konashi. He had extremely short black hair, light blue eyes and was dressed in a loose-fitting red hamada over a green robe and white shirt underneath it. On his hip he had a box that contained supplies to not only make candies but soldier pills, poisons and smoke bombs.

Next to them, wearing a hooded robe with cat ears and a bell on the clasp was the ninja cat user Kageno Kura. Truthfully no one had seen more than the lower side of her face but much of the class suspected she had green cat eyes to go with her look and potentially real cat ears which is why she kept them hidden. But one thing the class knew for sure was she had cat-like fangs in her mouth and often wore black shorts and stockings, and a rather plain pair of sandals. Next to her was the pink haired Uchiha Homura, he had green eyes like his mother, small horns on his head and he wore a black shirt with a tall collar with the Uchiha symbol emblazoned on its back, with some white pants to finish off the look.

Finally, there was the large bruiser of the class Ganryū Doseki. He had short brown hair, a unibrow and black eyes. He was also incredibly muscular for his age but still had a bit of plumpness around his face and stomach and wore a yellow shirt with the symbol of 'Muscle' on it and black pants. And next to him was the class gossip, Amino Sōsha. She had long orange hair, brown eyes and a rather smooth face. She also wore a brown flak jacket, orange undershirt and a black skirt that went down below her knees. And right next to her was the class heartthrob and genius Inabikari Kande. He had long blue hair that looked messy but was actually braided in dreadlocks fair skin and yellow eyes, and he wore a light tan hoody with a katana on his hip.

Everyone chatted as they were excited to take the Genin Exam. The class had been through some rough spots-an attempt on Kae's life during their first year, a near disastrous survival camp on Genbu the Island Turtle, and a field trip to Sunagakure that exposed yet another plot against Gaara. Himawari had been the classes' rock through all of that and even scored a friendship with the One-Tailed Shukaku!

"Man, when I'm a genin I can't wait to do so many missions!" Eiki said excitedly and Osuka flipped her hair dismissively.

"That's if you pass Eiki," Osuka mocked in a noblewoman's voice. "Outside anything that doesn't require fighting you always struggle!"

"On can it!" Eiki said with a grumble.

Himawari giggled nervously. "Guys the Hana-sensei is about to give us our tests! And we have that scary guy coming in later!"

"YOSH!" Soul punched her fist into the air. "We'll show them our fires of youth just like Guy-sensei!"

More and more, the class started to chatter and gossip about what they'd do when they were full-fledged ninja despite Himawari-being class rep this year, trying to keep everyone under control. Soon the class was full of laughter and arguments as rivalries fired up throughout the room.

Their normal teacher, Kaka Hana, greeted them before she started their normal tests. She had long black hair, red eyes similar to that of Kurenai's and wore a black top and skirt. First a written exam on shinobi history, procedure and other various things. Himawari and Homura both finished their tests in record time with Yae a close third, and at the end of the written exam Eiki was the last one filling it out. After that, the entire class was led into the front training yard.

There they were all paired up for a miniature tournament of shinobi sparring. Himawari and Yae ended up sparring with each other with the Bamboo Princess using several techniques she had managed to pick up to try to get the young Uzumaki's guard down but Himawari's usage of Jūken shut down her tenketsu. Their teacher watched and took notes on form and strategy within each match.

After that had concluded, they all were led to the weapons range. The goal was to hit the bullseye at least three targets, a perfect score would be in ten. During this round Homura showed off his mastery of Shurikenjutsu with surprisingly Eiki competing with him, and both ended up getting the perfect scores! Himawari in contrast only got eight out of 10 targets but she had passed.

"Excellent everyone!" Hana said after she finished marking each student's performance in every test. "There is going to be one more test, so lets head back to the classroom!"

"Right Hana-sensei!" everyone said, all sounding excited about being so close to becoming ninja.

The class was led back into the classroom, and everyone took their seats once more. Eiki was bragging on matching Homura in the Shurikenjutsu test, but Soul mocked him saying he lost the taijutsu portion by a big amount. Before he could say anything more…the entire atmosphere of the classroom changed. Morino Ibiki came walking in as the class full of Academy Students turned silent…a few remembering the scary guy who said he was going to be their proctor, and just like Ibiki said…he was there for their final test. He breathed through his nose as he walked silently into the room and went to the center podium. The torture master slammed his hands to the table to quiet talking and he cleared his throats.

"According to your homeroom teacher," Ibiki started as the class looked at him. "You all passed the standard curriculum, so congratulations. However," his gaze locked on every student as he made mental notes of all of them. "I can't in good conscience let you become ninja. You are all not ready."

"What?!" most of the young Academy students demanded.

"We've worked so hard!" Eiki argued.

"We trained for years!" Kura added.

"Come on, we're strong!" Doseki added as he flexed his biceps.

Ibiki chopped the podium to silence them. "Doesn't matter, I've been a shinobi since before your parents even became genin. You have talent, you have learned both basic and even some advanced ninjutsu and genjutsu here. I've read your files, all of you have made quite a name for yourself despite not even being fully fledged genin yet. But…"

"But what?! We stopped an assassination on Kazekage-sama!' Ehō argued and Ibiki shot him a cold glare that made him quiet down.

"You are still not ready," Ibiki reiterated with authority. "Being a ninja doesn't mean you go on adventures or right monsters like in your video games or movies. Being a ninja is dangerous," he continued sharply. "Talent and hard work only goes too far. What will you do if one of your comrades gets captured? What will you do if you get maimed or one of your friends gets killed?" He went on as he scanned the class. "Ninja are not superheroes, we are soldiers. We live, fight and die to accomplish our missions. We do the dirty work that our country's standard military won't do. I can tell for a fact most of you will freeze up if you have to make your first kill despite your teacher's attempt to ease you in. Killing is never easy but it's a necessary evil that ninja must do."

The class was silent as they digested these hard facts that Konoha's top torturer was spitting out. A few were even starting to shake in fear and internally Ibiki smirked. Then he started to remove his head covering.

"Some of you might end up getting captured by the enemy, may it be bandits, rogue ninja or rogue elements within the Shinobi Union," Ibiki continued as he painstakingly removed the bandages off his head. "How many of you can take the torture I wonder? Because, you see I have a lot of experience with that myself…"

There was a collective gasp and Himawari's eyes widened as their examiner placed the bandages on the podium and his head was shown fully. He was bald…and his head was covered in horrific scars. Old burn scars, marks that showed screws had been drilled into his head as well as several slash marks. Ibiki's head was nothing more than a mass of scar tissue and it not only looked horrifying, but a bit sickening. While their textbooks had warned them with pictures of wounds…seeing the aftereffects of a torture session was new.

He then expanded on the effects by creating a genjutsu to everyone who was watching…and the bodies of the dead appeared in front of them. Neon screamed as she nearly fell out of her chair and Eiki turned a bright green.

"This is what shinobi go through. We climb of the corpses of both friend and foe alike," Ibiki went on as he walked in front of them. The 'bodies' changed into images of the students' own classmates. "Are you prepared for this possibility? No generation has escaped the Shinigami at the end of the day," he said as the illusionary corpses lifted their hands up. "Can you look into the eyes of your friends as they expire…?" he asked as he watched the classes' reactions. "Can you look into the eyes of your foes as the life drains from their faces…?"

Ibiki smirked as he saw the children's horrified looks. They didn't look like eager wannabe genin anymore, they just looked like normal children. It's what he wanted to see…since he was testing their resolve. Much like when he was a proctor for Chūnin hopefuls, he needed to see the resolve of the younger generation and see if they would be broken by the dangers of what they would face…or would they have the guts to take the first step into adulthood.

Himawari's hands shook and she saw what looked to be a dead version of Yuina in front of her and she then saw her class panicking. Homura though looked rather nonplussed…like he had figured out something ad then it clicked in her mind.

It's a genjutsu! Those scars on Ibiki are real and he used the shock of them to create an illusion! Himawari thought and she slammed her hands together while pointing two fingers up while she charged an immense amount of chakra through her body that became visible. "KAI!"

Cracks began to appear in reality and the illusion shattered for the young Uzumaki. She slammed her hands down and nearly caught everyone's attention as she took several deep gasps to calm herself off from what she saw. Sweat dripped from Himawari's forehead as she took several deep breaths before making eye contact with Ibiki and her Byakugan activated instinctively.

"…I don't…care of its hard…I know the risks…I know the dangers…but I'm just like my momma, papa, grandma and grandpa…I'm going to be a ninja!" Himawari announced firmly and Konoha's top torturer gave a smirk. "And like my papa and grandpa I'm going to be Hokage!"

Since she activated her Byakugan she also sent a pulse of chakra throughout the room which affected her classmate's own genjutsu. One by one, she had invertedly broken them out just as they reached their own determination to become genin. All that Himawari ultimately did unknowingly was inspire her classmates like she usually does.

"We're…"

"All…!"

"READY!"

The class, minus Homura who was looking bored due to already breaking the genjutsu before anyone else. Though Ibiki crossed his arms in approval and gave a nod.

"Excellent," Ibiki said approvingly. "You all pass."

It took several moments but the class began to freak out at that. Most were wondering if that was really the test while a few felt like they were cheated. Though Himawari, Kae and Yuina were all a bit relieved that they had passed. Eiki complained that he wanted to beat up Homura to show he was 'Rookie of the Year' but Ibiki cleared his throat authoritatively.

"Like I said, you all passed. In previous years other types of exams had been used for your upperclassmen to varying success down the line," Ibiki said as he crossed his arms behind his back and paced in front of them. "The point of my test was twofold: to see if you could recognize and break out of genjutsu which is a skill that will save your life more than you know, and to see if you all have the guts to become ninja."

"Huh, what do you mean there Ibiki-sensei?" Ehō asked in confusion and the torturer smirked.

"You are all extremely talented for your age group as I commended you at the start. But I wanted to show you the taste of what being an actual ninja is," Ibiki said as he looked at them all. "Just because we're in a time of peace compared to past eras doesn't detract from the danger you'll face. And I am just going to be realistic…its very, very rare for an entire graduating class to survive till retirement. As the Yondaime Hokage and his wife can attest, sometimes you'll be the only survivors of your graduating class."

Himawari looked down at that. She did hear the stories of her grandfather on her mother's side falling in battle during the Fourth Shinobi World War, and she knew that Aunt Ino, Uncle Shikamaru and Uncle Chōji all lost their own parents during that terrible conflict. What's more…her parents had lost a friend and teammate in Inuzuka Kiba. She had to comfort Akamaru a lot since the ninken would often have nightmares about his late partner.

"And ninja are soldiers, we fight or die in battles or on missions all the time. Even now," Ibiki said as he stopped behind the podium. "You must be prepared for those eventualities. And you all showed that you are ready for the risk, or at least you think you are. While you passed my Genin test…only on the field will you truly show your mettle."

The door slid open as Naruto himself came walking in, followed by Iruka who the Academy's Principal was now and a full Jōnin with several other teachers with them. The class was in awe as they saw the Rokudaime Hokage right there to congratulate them on passing. And with them they had the newly forged Konoha Headbands which gleamed from the light of the classroom.

"Congratulations on passing everyone!" Naruto said with a grin and most of the class was in awe of seeing the Rokudaime right here. "You all have such an amazing talent and I know you'll become amazing ninja in the future!"

Iruka smiled. "You all worked extremely hard; I know you'll become amazing genin."

With that the entire class broke out in cheers and claps. Himawari beamed as she looked at her father who waved at her then created a bunch of Kage Bunshins to start individually giving each newly graduated Genin their headband. Naruto went over to his daughter personally with a big grin as he presented her headband, and she took it before giving him a big hug.

"Heh, you made me really proud Hima-chan!" Naruto said as he hugged his youngest daughter back.

"Thank you, dad, thank you!" Himawari exclaimed as she eagerly tied the headband around her forehead and the metal reflected the light of the room.

"We did it Himawari!" Yuma and Ehō cheered as they hugged her happily.

Iruka cleared his throat. "You all deserve praise. Now sleep up, tomorrow morning we will be assigning you Jōnin teachers and breaking you down into three-man cells to go along with your instructor."

The entire class nodded and gave another cheer. Ibiki smirked at the newly minted genin but part of him was debating if he had made the right choice. Just because things were peaceful now…that could change at any moment. A new threat could appear, the alliances made could break down, or Orochimaru's power block could decide to turn this cold war hot. In front of him was a new generation of shinobi who would have to deal with these uncertainties and hopefully have the strength to get through the other side.

Ruins of Uzushiogakure

While Konoha was thriving, in the ruins of one of its oldest allies there was a bit of reconstruction happening. The old walls of the village were being rebuilt and the long since destroyed sealing defenses were being repaired. Each member of the repair crew wore black cloaks and had red masks with a spiral design on them.

In a puff of smoke from a remote summoning circle Yakushi Kabuto appeared. He looked more reptilian now: he had completely discarded his glasses and aside from a small mohawk of hair at the very top of his head his entire body was covered in white scales. While he still possessed the Rinnegan he had lost his eyebrows and even his eyelids and he flicked his tongue out to taste the air.

"Ahhh…the rebuilding is going along well," he said as he opened his mouth to expose his fangs.

"Kabuto-sama," one of the workers came over and then bowed.

"Yes, yes, is Tendo here?" Kabuto asked and the worker nodded.

"Yes, he's preparing the main Tasogare force sir!"

"Excellent, I do have some intelligence thanks to my old mentor," Kabuto said as he referred to Orochimaru. "Something he'll find enlightening."

"Excellent sir, he's at the main tower!"

Inside the main tower of Uzushiogakure, old murals of the Uzumaki were restored to their prime and a man, looking no older than 30 or 40 stood there as he crossed his hand behind his back. He had short, spiky red hair with a vein of white in the middle and he had green eyes. Compared to the rest of his followers he had a white robe with a golden trim and there was the kanji of…Rikudō Senjutsu emblazoned on the back of it. Though with one alteration…there was the Uzumaki whirlpool symbol right over it with Tendo's own alteration of it.

"Kabuto, did you manage to finish your search for the progenitors of the clans?" Tendo asked without turning to greet his comrade.

"I am still working on it, their tombs have long since been hidden," Kabuto replied as he flicked his tongue out. "I bring other news…"

"What is it?" Tendo asked as he lifted his hand up and a chain shot out to grab a wine glass on the table incredibly delicately and he pulled it towards him. In the glass…and he sniffed the red contents before sipping.

"Orochimaru has found out that our planet is now in the crosshairs of the Ōtsutsuki Clan's forebearers," Kabuto replied as he watched the mysterious man's body glow a bit, his red hair suddenly becoming more vibrant before returning to its normal shade. "We have a year, maybe two to prepare…and maybe even take their power."

"Hm…get preparations ready," Tendo said as he gently rolled the red fluid before taking another drink.

Kabuto flicked his tongue out. "As you wish Tendo…" he said as he was about to walk out when a woman walked in.

"Tendo-sama," she said as she bowed slowly to him.

She had long black hair in a ponytail, piercing blue eyes and a narrow, attractive face. Unlike the rest of the people in the rebuilding Uzushiogakure wore a red robe with black clouds as if it was mocking Akatsuki's old garb. And on her palms, she had diamond markings on her palm, one black on her right hand and the other red on her left.

"Kiyone, you know you don't have to be so formal with me," Tendo said in a what could be mistaken for a fatherly tone.

"Right…" Kiyone said as she lifted her head up. "Our spies are showing the Land of Lightning…specifically Kumo will be at its most vulnerable in years. We can strike and retake what your Clan lost in the Second Shinobi World War."

"Excellent…I'll leave the preparations for this operation entirely up to you," Tendo said as he put his glass down. "Don't let me down."

"I wouldn't think of it, Tendo-sama," Kiyone said as she opened her right-hand and a vortex of black chakra appeared behind her and she stepped through It and vanished.

"Hm…a Meiton (Dark Release) user, I thought that Clan had been wiped out…well except for the one Hiruko managed to capture years ago," Kabuto commented.

"She's my best and most powerful servant, so do not underestimate her Kabuto," Tendo said, and he smirked. "Now tell our Sannin ally that we'll be sure to take advantage of his intel."

IF Kabuto could still smirk, he would have. His tongue flicked out in approval before he walked…slithered…both out of the room. Tendo then shot out another chain from his hand at a picture of Naruto.

"Soon, son of Kushina, you and this new world of yours will be brought down and crushed under my boot," Tendo said with a snarl. "That seal your master put on me so many years ago will finally be broken and my full power will be unleashed once more. And even though you achieved the power of the Six Paths…you'll find its not exclusive to you."

And with that Tendo shredded the picture after his chain sprouted spikes on each link. Tasogare was about to rise…when daybreak hits, the world will shudder!

Konohagakure, Uzumaki Household

There was now a big party at the Uzumaki Household, with Himawari being the center of attention due to her graduating from the Academy to become a genin! Kushina and Hinata had spent all evening cooking together to make all of the youngest Uzumaki's favorite dishes. Bowls of different types of ramen, red bean soup, cinnamon buns, even some barbecue from YakinuQ's recipes were there. And there was also plenty of sweet dango to go around as well as burgers for Boruto and Tsune as well.

Himawari beamed as she proudly wore her headband over her forehead. Hinata grinned and hugged her daughter happily. "You look so good in it Himawari-chan!"

"Thanks mama!" Himawari beamed as she cuddled her mother happily.

"Aww no hugs for grammy?" Kushina asked teasingly and Himawari beamed and hugged her grandmother happily. "Aww that's my sweet Hima-chan, dattebane!"

Shina grinned and went over to her younger sister. "See Himawari, I knew you didn't have anything to worry about! You passed with flying colors!"

"Thanks Shina-onee-chan, but that final test was still pretty scary!" Himawari admitted a bit sheepishly and she rubbed the back of her head.

Tsune then surprised his little sister with a bearhug from behind. "Congrats Himawari! You did a lot better than me when I graduated!"

"Heh, you're in good company then Himawari-chan," Naruto said to his daughter. "Ibiki freaked me out quite a lot when I was a genin! Him and Anko both!"

They heard a knock on the fence door and Hinata walked over to let the Yamanaka family in. Ino, Sai, and their children Inojin and their twin daughters Erino and Mimi were the first guests to arrive. Erino looked like a mirror image of her mother at the same age, minus the pale skin, however Mimi? She had modeled her appearance after her hero Jiraiya, her hair was white and spiky, she wore a headband with the word 'oil' on it and had dull green clothing with a red vest. The Yamanaka matriarch beamed, and she hugged Himawari happily to congratulate her.

"I knew you could do it Hima-chan! You're going to make an awesome ninja!" Ino said happily.

Sai smiled and handed the youngest Uzumaki a sketchbook with a set of fancy brushes and high-quality ink and pants. "This is a gift from me, Himawari. I know how good of an artist you are so I thought a brand-new sketchbook and art supplies from the very shop I get my own would be fitting."

"Thank you, Uncle Sai!" Himawari said with a smile, jumping and hugging him happily.

"Don't think you're the only one giving out presents Sai," a new voice said and the young Uzumaki looked up as Uchiha Sakura with Sasuke, as well as their children their eldest Sarada and Himawari's classmate Homura.

"Auntie Sakura, Uncle Sasuke!" Himawari said with a grin and rushed over to hug them as well.

Sakura beamed. "Aww you're still so cute Himawari! And finally, a ninja, just like our young boy here!"

"…mom come on, don't embarrass me," Homura said with a blush.

Sasuke smirked and ruffled his son's hair. "Come on, don't be like that. And since there is a party here, we can all celebrate your own ascension to the genin rank."

"And might be able to get beyond that, unlike our dad," Sarada said with a smirk, and she looked over to Boruto who was enjoying a burger.

Shina then nudged her brother. "Boruto your girlfriend is here," she said with a whisper.

The eldest Uzumaki child's cheeks turned bright red. "W-We're not dating Shina, we're just friends and teammates, you know that!" he whispered frantically.

"I don't think Sarada sees it that way," a new voice, belonging to Mitsuki said as he appeared in front of Boruto who jumped back.

"Mitsuki, that's creepy!"

"Sorry, I was waiting for my brother, but I did bring Himawari her present," Mitsuki said cheerfully, wearing his blue kimono with the Uzumaki symbol on his back. "After all I am technically her uncle, correct?"

Kushina smirked and walked over to Mitsuki. "Nope, you're her uncle alright Mitsuki-kun. Family ties are more than blood after all."

"Thank you, mother," Mitsuki said with a respectful bow, but the red-haired habanero enveloped her adopted youngest son in a big hug. "Mother, I can't breathe…"

The last guests arrived, Shino and his wife Fu and their daughter Hinata, who had green hair, black glasses and was dressed in a hood similar to that of her father's were the first, followed by Shikamaru, Temari and their son Shikadai walked in alongside Chōji, Karui and their daughter Chocho, finally Neji, Tenten, and their daughter eldest Hana who looked like her mother right down to her hair style but she had her father's Byakugan eyes and youngest son Hizushi who had long black hair and his mother's dark eyes, and he wore a version of his mother's weapon scroll on his back. Rock Lee and his son Metal Lee to complete the group. Despite how many years had passed as well as all their various responsibilities, Naruto's bond with his friends remained strong.

As such whenever one of their own their children managed to become a ninja, or got promoted? Naruto would throw a big party for everyone at his residence to strengthen their bonds. Himawari laughed, talking with Homura while showing off to their friends and family their new headbands.

From Sakura, Himawari got a new civilian blouse that had sunflowers embroidered onto it. From Shikamaru he got his 'niece' a custom shogi set and Temari had pitched in and got her a small fan modeled after her own. From Shino he got her a colony of ants due to her interest in etymology. From Chōji he had gotten Himawari a life-time free cinnamon bun ticket from High in the Clouds bakery in downtown Konoha.

From her own parents though Himawari received he 'Tale of the Gutsy Ninja' from Naruto and from Hinata she was given a light armored mesh to wear under her clothes on missions to protect her. Finally, Neji and Tenten both had gotten their youngest niece a custom array of weapons to use on missions and a book of Juken stances and techniques for her to study.

Homura himself got his own presents, Naruto even got the youngest Uchiha a custom made wakizashi while other gifts ranged from kunai and shuriken sets (mostly from Tenten), a survival book from Ino, a Go set from Shikamaru and from his own parents a medical book from Sakura and his own katana from Sasuke. He tried to look like he didn't care but he was internally extremely proud of himself and glad to get the praise he wanted.

And a few hours, the party continued. Himawari and Homura got several pictures together from their parents-showing off their gifts and headbands like this was a birthday party. But when it was nearly 9:00 PM I was time to call it a night. Himawari helped her parents clean up-using a Kage Bunshin to speed up the process before she changed into her pajamas and curled up in her bed,

I'm finally a ninja and tomorrow I'll be put into a cell with my classmates and even get my own Jōnin-sensei! I can't wait! Himawari thought as she cuddled up under the covers. "Just wait, like my dad and grandfather I'll become the best shinobi in the village and become Hokage!"

To be continued…

Author's Notes:

Whew, finally done. I've been working on the official sequel for a while, and I hope you all like it. Shikamaru Hiden is still being written so don't worry about that, but I had a bunch of inspiration to write the sequel to War of the Biju thanks to developments in the Boruto manga.

I also wanted to use this chapter to deal with a complaint I had about how Boruto treated becoming a ninja during its first arc in the anime. It was never, ever made clear wat a shinobi or ninja actually was and what sort of trials that Boruto's class would ever get mixed up in. They acted like this was My Hero Academia instead of well, ninja being soldiers for their village and country. I wanted to address that since this made Boruto's generation completely unprepared for the brief War in the Land of Water against a bunch of Pirates since they had never been prepared, at all to deal with the type of things Naruto's generation were prepared for.

And I also wanted to show the realistic fallout of all the battles on the Land of Lightning's soil. Before the Fourth Shinobi World War it was basically tied with Konoha as the strongest of the Five Great Nations, but after the War due to the vast amount of destruction and loss of life…it got hit far harder than the rest of the villages. As such…Kumogakure might just become a memory in the lifetime of Himawari's generation, and even if it still exists it would be a minor village, ineligible for he prestige o have a Kage in charge of it.

Oh, and for anyone curious, I got the names of Himawari's classmates from her and Kawaki's arc in the manga. It was the best chance for me to get a full class for me to use and I will try to utilize all of them. As for the current ninja village rankings?

Konoha:

Economy: 5/5

Military: 5/5

Population: 5/5

Suna:

Economy: 4/5

Military: 4/5

Population 3/5

Iwa:

Economy: 3/5

Military: 5/5

Population: 4/5

Kiri:

Economy: 5/5

Military: 3/5

Population: 4/5

Ame:

Economy: 3/5

Military: 4/5

Population: 3/5

Kumo:

Economy: 2/5

Military: 4/5

Population: 2/5

Please read and review, already thinking of the first few arcs now!