"Alright, so we're going to work on a new Chakra Control exercise," Yūgao said getting a small groan from Naruto, while Milly and Kebaken sat off to the side along with Karin, Tayuya and their partners in the Dragon Clan, Prism-Scale and Lin-Lin. Prism-Scale was a soft white serpentine dragon like Koumori however Prism-Scale was larger, had clawed hands instead of feet and his tail was currently wrapped around Karin's waist like a belt. While his head rested on her shoulder, his wings resting in such a way Karin appeared to be wearing a small cape. Lin-Lin was an acid green snake with large crimson feathered wings and was currently hovering next to Tayuya with a large smirk.

Yūgao smiled as she reached for a bag on the ground next to her and pulled out a water balloon, "This exercise will be the first step in learning the Rasengan," She then held up her other hand and a swirling blue sphere of Chakra appeared.

"I freaking called it!" Karin laughed as she and Tayua stepped forward to fully join the session while Yūgao dispelled her Rasengan, "So what do we do first?"

"First step is using your Chakra to rotate the water in the balloon," Yūgao explained as the balloon quickly grew several bulges all over it for a few seconds before it burst, "The trick is to make several rotations at the same time all rotating around a single spot."

Hinata tilted her head in thought, "I'm guessing we need to have some rotating clockwise and some counter clockwise?"

"I was thinking the same thing," Karin nodded.

"Actually no," Yūgao smiled, "I found that my Chakra naturally rotated counterclockwise and it took a large amount of concentration to rotate it clockwise. I assume that in the end it doesn't really matter which way it rotates and the power will be similar."

Nodding the four Genin and one Tokubetsu Jonin began training… with the help of a Shadow Clone each. Hinata and Karin's clone were the first ones to burst the balloons after about half an hour of work. Natuo, Shino and Tayuya's clones burst themselves and the three quickly followed Hinata's and Karin's example, "I'm not surprised you all got that quickly," Yūgao smiled, "Each of you have excellent Chakra Control," Unsealing a new bag while a clone took the water balloons to the side for Naruto to use later she continued, "Next step are these rubber balls. For this you need to increase the power without sacrificing the rotation's speed."

This time Naruto and Tayuya were the first to get it, as power was something they both had in abundance even if this time it took over an hour, "Two steps down!" Naruto cheered.

"I assume the next stage is combining stages one and two without breaking the ball?" Shino asked as he held up a constantly morphing sphere of blue Chakra.

"Correct," Yūgao smiled, "As it is, while the power is there it'll spread out too much and overall deal far less damage than the complete Rasengan which can be used to either bore through a target or grind into them before sending them flying. As an example…" Stamping a foot two slabs of stone rose from the ground, "Here's the incomplete Rasengan," Forming the stage two Rasengan she slammed it into the rock, a spider web of cracks forming and a small indent forming, "Now the complete version," Moving over to the second slab Yūgao's incomplete Rasengan almost solidified into the completed blue sphere. This time the ball of death bore straight through the stone leaving a smooth hole.

Naruto tilted his head, "Hmm… It's already difficult just making the Rasengan… so adding an element to it will be like being pulled in two ways at the same time…"

"What do you mean?" Hinata asked and Naruto quickly explained how the Rasengan, while powerful, was still incomplete.

"What about a Shadow Clone?" Prism-Scale asked as he ruffled his wings.

"Yeah," Lin-Lin agreed as she floated over, "The original makes the Rasengan while the clone adds the Elemental Chakra… though you might want to practice with only Shadow Clones for a while until you've got the elemental version down."

Tayuya winced, "Yeah… it might get explosive if the technique becomes unstable…"

"Perhaps we should focus on just mastering the basic Rasengan?" Shino suggested, "And save the elemental version for after the Chunin Exams?"

Milly nodded, "Might be a good idea."

"Yeah. Even with Shadow Clones there's only so much you can learn," Kebaken agreed, "I think you already have a good range of skills for the exams so perhaps you should just focus on mastering what you already know."

"I agree," Yūgao stated as she passed out new balloons, "So once you've got the Rasengan down, we'll spend the rest of our time doing missions and working towards mastering the Jutsu you already have. Now step three is containment. As Shino stated, you need to use the previous steps without breaking or altering the shape of the balloon."

"Sounds simple enough," Tayuya said, "But will most likely be a pain in the ass to master."

"That's why Naruto will make three Shadow Clones while holding this bag of balloons," Yūgao smiled, "So we have all the balloons we need."


Meanwhile in the afterlife Kushina Uzumaki was once more beating the shit out of her ex-husband Minato Namikaze, the spirit of the Fourth Hokage who was unable to get too far away as a spectral thread connected him to a cord wrapped around the Shinigami's left hand. The Death God allowed this if only because it was no end of amusement seeing the egotistical man get taken down a peg. Plus not even he wanted to have an Uzumaki pissed at him.

"WHEN WILL YOU FINALLY TELL ME WHY!" Kushina roared as she buried her fist into Minato's face. Minato fell onto his ass as his broken nose once more repaired itself. Looking up he saw that even without the Kyubi Kushina's long red hair split into nine tails, "I thought you loved me. That's the only reason I taught you as much as I did!" She growled in a low, dangerous voice that sent shivers down Minato's spine. When he was forced to seal the Kyubi in his son he'd never thought he'd be on the receiving end of Kushina's wrath… or that she'd find out the main reason he'd courted her was to learn secrets about Fuinjutsu that not even Jirayia had learned when he'd trained with the Uzumaki, "I should have listened to Kyubi when he warned me you weren't what you seemed but I was to blinded by my emotions to listen."

"You'd listen to that monster?!" Minato gasped as he slowly got to his feet, "The Biju are nothing but Demons who've killed who knows how many people! If the Shinigami hadn't interfered then once Naruto died, no one would have to worry about the strongest Biju ever again!"

This however was the wrong thing to say as the Kushina's Chakra flared up covering her in a bonfire of blue energy while the golden Adamantine Sealing Chains shot out of her back. They quickly turned and coiled around Minato, lifting him into the air before slamming him down, "Is that why you made sure everyone would know he's the Jinchuriki?! So the people of Konoha would break the Konoha/Uzushio treaty by killing the last Mainline Uzumaki, just to kill the Kyubi and destroy one of the Nine Pillars of Nature?!"

"That thing is not a Pillar of Nature!" Minato gasped. Why did everyone insist that the Biju were needed for Earth's survival? Why was Mito-Sama the only person who agreed with him? The Biju were nothing but monsters that needed to be destroyed!

"I've told you! My Father's told you, my Grandfather's told you!" Kushina roared her chains repeatedly slamming Minato into the endless blue void that counted as ground of this section of the afterlife. Normally Kushina was in a recreation of Uzushiogakure with the rest of the dead Uzumaki who weren't sent to Hell like Mito had been, "Hell even the Shinigami's told you! How many times do we have to tell you you're WRONG! Everyone is lucky Shinigami-Sama didn't go through with your plan to split the Kyubi in half and instead contacted the Leader of the Fox Clan to enter the seal!"

"Let… me… go!" Minato grunted as he tried to wriggle free to no success.

"You've lied to me, put our son in danger, refuse to admit your wrong," Kushina growled her eyes going pure white in her rage as her chains grip on the blond fool tightened, "At this point if we weren't already dead I'd have killed you five times over!"

"But you can't!" Minato spat, "We're both already dead! This rage is pointless and the Curse of the Biju will continue because none of you can see that they need to be removed from the Earth for humanity to prosper!"

"ENOUGH!" The Shinigami roared as even his patients had limits as he'd had Minato constantly going on and on about how the Death God had ruined everything, "Minato Namikaze, since you fail to understand just how close you came to dooming all life on the planet… I have no choice but to take you to Lord Enma."

"But I've already seen an Enma!" Minato growled, "And Judged to remain in your stomach despite trying to alter the contract!"

"As you said… you've seen an Enma," Shinigami replied with a chuckle that sent chills down Minato's spine, "Not The Enma. Lord Enma is the top Judge of the Dead, and depending on their Judgment you might never be allowed to reincarnate as your soul will be erased."

Despite a sudden rush of mixed emotions Kushina smirked. She might have loved Minato once but now she knew that Minato was no different to the current Raikage's Father who'd ordered her kidnapping all those years ago. Power hungry and completely full of himself. She wondered what Lord Enma would do to Minato and if it would finally get it through Minato's thick skull that he was wrong. As the Shinigami took Minato away her thoughts drifted back to the night where everything changed... the night she died.


She'd just given birth to a wonderful baby boy with the most adorable whisker like birthmarks when someone in a black robe with short black hair, and a yellow one eyed mask appeared out of nowhere stabbed an Anbu in the throat with a Kunai as Minato took Naruto and teleported away with his Flying Thundergod Jutsu, but during the few seconds he was gone the Masked Man began the Jutsu to remove Kurama from his seal. When Minato returned the Jutsu had been completed and the Kurama released. The rest of the fight was a blur with reality snapping back to focus when one of Kurama's claws was plunged through her's and Minato's chest just as he finished the Jutsu to summon the Shinigami. An eerie silence filled the area as a transparent purple skinned figured cloaked in a white robe with bone white hair with a tanto held in its mouth. As the Shinigami looked down upon the two mortally wounded humans before looking up at Kurama. With a wave of his hand the Genjutsu was removed from the Ancient Kyubi-no-Kitsune. All of whom were unable to move.

As the all information of Minato's contract including the bits he wanted to alter for his own gain entered his mind the Shinigami growled before removing the tanto from his mouth and growled, "No. I will not split the Kyubi-No-Kitsune in half in an deluded attempt to doom the world while you think your saving it..." Kushina looked over her shoulder horrified at Minato, "You are also planning on altering the contract, to place part of your own souls within the infant..."

"But I summoned you! You must do as I command!" Minato gasped. The feeling of his life bleeding away had slowed but was still very much present.

"Do as you command? Do you think you can command Death? That I am your slave?" The Shinigami asked his eyes glaring down on the foolish blond mortal, "Because that is a very foolish and near suicidal thought."

Kushina spat out some blood onto the dirt before asking, "Minato... what happened to you? Why would you try to manipulate Shinigami-Sama? What is this plan that would bring doom to our world and why did you want to split Kurama?"

"That will wait until later. First..." Shinigami said as he raised his empty hand letting Kurama pull his claw back, "Kurama, please wait for a moment. I believe I have an idea that will buy us some time, as Hiruzen and the fool who released you will have noticed my presence and will know the infant will become a Jinchūriki," Kurama nodded as the Shinigami turned back to the humans, "Minato Namikaze. I will deal with you later..." The Shinigami inhaled sucking a spectral copy of Minato out of his body and directly down the Shinigami's throat, "Kushina Uzumaki. I may dislike your family due to binding me to that accursed mask. However you personally have done nothing to slight me I will allow you a few moments to say goodbye to your child."

"Thank you Shinigami-Sama," Kushina said as show bowed her head, the only way she could show respect at the moment knowing if she tried bowing she'd simply collapse. As Kushina turned to her son Shinigami raised his tanto to the sky and chanted in an unknown language causing a large golden nine-tailed fox about half as tall as Kurama to appear next to the Biju, "Tamamo-No-Mai. Leader of the Fox Summoning Clan."

"Shinigami-Sama," Tamamo said bowing to the Death God, "How may I be of assistance?"

"The infant before you must become a Jinchūriki due to a pair of foolish mortals. However instead of playing their game, I believe a change is in order. As such I suggest Kurama staying in the Field of Inari for some time. That way if the infant is attacked within the next few years he will be out of their grasp, and as you are not connected to his origin you will easily be able to escape."

"Heh," Kurama chuckled, "A cunning plan Shinigami. Tamamo plays the decoy and I get to kick back and relax for a few years."

Tamamo rolled her eyes despite a small grin, "I agree that it is rather cunning though I don't like using a child as bait."

"Neither do I," Shinigami stated, "However as I've told Kurama, others would have noticed my summoning however they cannot sense how long I am here on top of slowing time to give us a chance to talk."

Tamamo nodded and thought for a few moments before saying, "I would be glad to assist in this. I will also slowly get his body attuned to Natural Energy from my Sage Mode. That should hopefully prepare him to receive Kurama-San as well as make becoming the Fox Sage easier for him in the future."

Shinigami nodded and turned to Kushina, "It is time. However know that your husband did send a Shadow Clone to Hiruzen to inform him of your husband's last wish... which was for him to be known as a 'hero' for containing Kurama."

Kushina nodded and gave her son one last kiss on the forehead, "I love you Naruto. From the moment I learned about you until the day we meet in the afterlife. I pray that you live a good and long life, and can endure the hardships you're bound to face."


Closing the door to his small apartment the white haired bespectacled form of Kabuto scowled. He despised having to pretend to be loyal to Konoha but security in the last couple months had drastically increased to the point that he might have to leave before the Chunin Exams. His 'teammates' Yorori Akadō and Misumi Tsurugi were fools who thought themselves invincible just because of some basic modifications Orochimaru had given them. His sensei was also useless though considering he was so weak Orochimaru had basically ignored him in favor of Anko when the two were his Genin students, but even she was deemed too weak to be of any use. Sitting at his desk Kabuto laced his fingers together as he contemplated his options. While it wasn't as much as he'd like he did have a decent amount of intel but… most of his normal drop zones around Konoha had been discovered, and his failure of a Sensei seemed content to let them train alone for now so he could do a little extra work in Konoha's Tactical Department.

He knew Danzo was also planning something, a coup being the most likely option. Kabuto's frown deepened. He needed to get word to Orochimaru but how?


Haku slowly made her way through Konoha. She'd completed the last of her competency tests a few days ago and was now officially an Elite Chunin. She was currently wearing the same outfit she wore when she fought Team Six with the addition of her new Konoha Forehead Protector she had tied around her neck. Reactions to her were mixed. Some Civilians and Shinobie looked at her with distrust if only because she was Zabuza's adopted daughter, some gave a welcoming wave, while very few civilians gave her looks of barely hidden anger. From what her new friends told her before arriving in Konoha she guessed the angered civilians had some connection to the Civilian Counsel and we're angered that Haku couldn't be bullied into the CRA so the Council could gain more power.

She soon came across a shop called Higurashi Armaments and decided to enter, if only to get some spare packs of Senbon. Upon entering the store a bun haired Kunoichi said, "Welcome to Higurashi Armaments.. oh! Are you the Hyoton user I heard arrived when Naruto and the others got back from Wave?"

"Yes. My name is Haku Yuki-Momochi. Nice to meet you," Haku introduced as the Kunoichi vaulted over the counter and approached to shake her hand.

"Names Tenten Higurashi, member of Team Nine, potential Weapon Mistress of Konoha and the occasional sparring partner to the insanity that is Naruto Uzumaki, but lately I've been working with Ino Yamanaka of Team Six more."

Haku giggled, "I'll take your word for it. So far I haven't seen much that would classify him as 'insane', apart from jumping at the chance to make a bet with Zabuza-Sama…"

"Remind me to tell you about some of his more off the wall pranks sometime," Tenten sighed, "So what are you looking for and what was this bet?"

"Some extra packages of Senbon," Haku explained, "Now that Zabuza-Sama and I have a proper home and steady income I can afford to get Senbon when I'm not running low… maybe a new combat outfit as well. As for the bet. Zabuza-Sama was hired to kill a bridge builder in Wave by a Crimelord named Gato…"

"The shipping magnate and head of the shipping company named after him?" Tenten asked.

"The same," Haku nodded, "However he was planning to betray us the entire time and brought an army of thugs. Naruto bet Zabuza-Sama that he could take out the army with a single Jutsu. Zabuza-Sama replied that if he could do that without Shadow Clones, Zabuza-Sama, the Demon Brothers and I would join the Leaf… Naruto then summoned the Boss of the Foxes who used a Genjutsu to knock out the army."

Tenten blinked, "He… has the Fox Contract? Huh… also note to self. Never make a bet against an Uzumaki."

"Zabuza-Sama said something similar," Haku giggled.

Tenten shook her head, "Alright. So you wanted some Senbon and a new outfit right?" When Haku nodded, "Easy enough. Our Senbon comes in cases of twenty five for two thousand Ryo, fifty for five thousand Ryo, and a hundred for ten thousand Ryo. If you're interested we do have a different kind of Shuriken called Bo Shuriken. They're thicker but have a similar arch when thrown even if they are heavier."

Haku tilted her head in thought, "I'll take a look then decide."

Tenten nodded, "Once you have we can take a look at getting you a new outfit. Do you want the armor to be obvious or hidden? As all our outfits are at least somewhat armored."

"Hidden please," Haku replied, "And lightweight. My fighting style revolves around speed and my bloodline rather than brute force."

"I got ya," Tenten said as she led Haku over to the correct section, "So let's see if the Bo Shuriken works for ya before moving onto the wardrobe. There's got to be something here that you'll like."


Ino, Sakura and Choji hid in a small clearing a short distance away from a bandit camp. Ensui-Sensei was hidden somewhere nearby as he wanted to see how the three Genin would handle this on their own. Ino was currently possessing a Forest Lynx and spying on the camp. She soon stirred and opened her eyes, "Yeah… you're not going to like what I found…"

"Hostages?" Choji asked getting a nod from Ino.

"Mostly women and kids from what the lynx could smell. They're held in the three largest tents each in a different clearing. One cage per tent if I had to guess. I couldn't get close enough to get inside the tents without being seen. In total I saw about forty five bandits but with a group this large there has to be a Nuke-Nin in charge. Otherwise a group like this would have been noticed sooner if not destroyed itself with infighting," Ino said and the three thought about what to do.

"We can't split up," Sakura stated, "Even with our skills we'd be overwhelmed if we're careless and we wouldn't be able to back each other up.."

"But if we don't they'll either use the hostages against us," Choji pondered, "Or just kill them."

"For once I wish Naruto or Shikamaru was here," Ino groaned, "Naruto could just swarm them with clones, while Shika could think of some kind of plan…"

"Well… I know Sensei wanted us to do this alone but fact is we can't," Sakura sighed, "We could take one camp on easy but this? No way in hell could we do this at our level."

"Correct," Ensui-Sensei said as he faded into view, "You three focus on the closet camp, and leave the others to me."

"Yes Sensei," The three relieved Genin said as their Sensei once again faded from view.

"That's a load off my mind," Choji sighed before shaking his head, "Alright. How many bandits are in the closet camp?"

"Twenty seven," Ino said, "It's the largest of the three. It has three tents. One of them has the captives, and I'm guessing that the other two are where most of the bandits sleep."

"Alright… how's this sound? I catch some of the bandits in a Genjutsu, while Choji distracts the rest so Ino can sneak in and protects the hostages. If necessary we can bust out that new combo attack."

"Sounds good to me," Choji nodded, "We take to the trees and attack from different angles?"

Ino and Sakura nodded and the three Genin leapt to the tree tops. Sakura was the first to strike with a Genjutsu that made seven bandits draw their weapons and attack their comrades as they now saw the rest of the group as enemies. Choji then shot out of the trees swinging his blazing kanabo taking out three bandits in his first assault while ten more bandits burst out of two of the tents.

Ino slipped into the back of the tent with the hostages and while the two guards were looking out the front opened a water skin on her belt that she'd poured iron shavings into and used a Water Whip Jutsu to strike at the two bandits' necks taking them out instantly.

She then went to the cage that had ten women and five kids, all of whom were wearing rags and huddled at the back of the cage. Placing the tip of her rapier in the lock and focusing Fire Chakra into it, Ino attempted to break the lock. The cages lock slowly turned red before a slight cracking sound was heard and the door swung open. Placing a finger to her lips, Ino whispered, "Give me and my team a bit and we'll get you all to safety."

The civilians nodded before a look of fear crossed their faces. Seeing this and hearing a slight whistling, Ino ducked under a ninjato which did manage to cut half an inch off her ponytail and lashed out with a swift kick, hitting the assailant in the gut before overloading the tree walking exercise sending them flying out of the tent. Turning Ino saw a woman in her late twenties with golden blond hair with red flakes wearing a tan battle kimono with a tan Sunagakure Chunin flak jacket and a large rectangular metal slab on her back only for her to flip over and land on her feet.

"So the little Genin wants to play~?" The woman cackled as she licked her ninjato, her slashed Sunagakure headband sitting proudly on her forehead, "Alright then… let's play!" The woman rushed forward and tried to skewer Ino who dodged causing the woman to slam into the cage, the captives cowering back as the point of the Nuke-Nin's weapon was mere inches from a woman in her mid thirties with light brown hair. Pulling her arm back the woman turned with a completely unhinged smile, "Little Genin might make this interesting… good. Been too long since Miyako-Sama's had some fun that didn't last less than a minute!"

"Who are you?" Ino asked as she moved farther away from the woman so the captives wouldn't be targeted. She wasn't sure if Miyako was her opponent's name or the name of someone else in the camp.

"Miyako of Suna," the Nukenin replied as she slowly moved towards Ino, "More commonly called Miyako The Blazing Storm. Impress Miyako-Sama enough and Miyako might show you why~. Perhaps Miyako will even let Gorro sacrifice you to his god~"

Ino shuddered as she lept backwards and out of the tent, Miyako following with an insane laugh. When Team Six fought their first Nuke-Nins… were they anything like this psycho? Glancing around she saw that there were still a large number of bandits left but the moment they saw the look on Miyako's face they all drew back. Apparently seeing her like this was well known amongst the group and getting in her way was a bad idea.

"Tch," Sakura scoffed as she and Choji moved forward to help Ino, "We just had to run into the Nuke-Nin didn't we?"

"I don't think she's the only one here," Ino replied, "She mentioned someone named Gorro… but I think she's the second in command."

"Great…" Choji groaned as Miyako sheathed her ninjato and pulled the metal slab of her back unfurling and now revealing it as one of Suna's great war-fans, a single purple circle sitting proudly on the cloth.

"Try not to disappoint Miyako-Sama~" Miyako said before swinging her fan, sending out blades of Wind Chakra, "Play times just started after all~"

Choji moved forward and held up his gauntlet clad arms, the metal bursting into flames, with the Wind Jutsu just feeding the fire and the three Genin charged forward for their counter attack. Choji slammed a flaming fist into the ground just missing Miyako who dodged to the side only to duck under Ino's Water Whip then leap into the air to avoid Sakura's Rock Fist Jutsu.

"Kiddies really know how to play!" Miyako cheered her grin and somehow became even more deranged, "More! Play more!"

"This woman is seriously messed up," Choji grunted, "What do you say we deal with this quickly?"

"Let's," Sakura agreed, as she began going through hand signs, as Choji withdrew his kanabo and once more set it alight.

"Wind Release! Cyclone Cutter!" Miyako called jumping into the air swinging her fan creating a small twister which shot out more wind blades at the Genin. Chouji leapt up at it attempting to use the wind to feed his kanabo's fire but had to be pulled back by Ino's Water Whip as Miyako called, "Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Jutsu!" And released a small barrage of fire balls which set the twister and wind blades alight.

The now enhanced wind blades shot out of the twister at the Genin, Sakura and Choji raising rock walls to block some of the blades, though they wouldn't last long, "Choji Ino! Rain of pain!" Sakura called before using an Earth Jutsu to catapult her teammates into the air above the twister before she had to dive into the ground as if it was water to avoid a giant wind blade Miyako sent at the wall destroying it.

"Water Release: Water Bomb Jutsu!"

"Earth Release: Stalactite Rain Jutsu!"

"Fire Release: Phoenix Rage Jutsu!"

Ino spat out a large ball of water from her mouth which was sucked into the twister and detonated dousing the flames moments before Choji swung his kanabo as sharp rocky spikes grew all over its surface before shooting off which quickly became coated in fire from Ino's second Jutsu and tearing through the twister destroying it before continuing on as they fell at the Nuke-Nin, "Combination Jutsu! Rain of Pain!" The two Genin roared even as Ino braced herself against Choji's feet and overloaded the Tree Walking exercise launching him down to earth like a cannonball.

"Kiddies will need to do better than that to beat Miyako-Sama!" The unhinged Wind user unfurled her war fan so a second moon appeared and batted away the combination Jutsu and was about to jump away from Choji's incoming attack but tree roots shot out of the ground and grabbed her ankles, "What?! No fair!" Kiyako had to snap her fan shut and use it to block Choji's kanabo that was once more coated in fire.

A loud clang was heard and dirt exploded away from the point of impact as the Nuke-Nin tried to push Choji away but wasn't able to partly because the roots had crawled their way half way up her legs so she had to rely solely on her upper body strength. She was about to spit out a Wind Bullet when Ino shot out of the sky, her hand smoking slightly around her rapier as she yelled, "Yamanaka Kenjutsu Secret Technique! Falling Star!" Miyako's eyes went wide as she focused on the tip of Ino's sword moments before the blade pierced right through her skull and buried itself in the ground like a giant spike the roots releasing their hold.

Panting slightly Ino from the adrenalin of falling from such a distance Ino slowly withdrew her rapier while Choji landed on the ground and Sakura rose from the Earth. They looked at the Bandits who threw down their weapons and fled from the sight of the kids who'd killed the psychotic woman. None of them wanted to take a chance fighting them if they could be her and still look ready for more. Once the coast was clear the three slumped down, Ino dropping her sword and bowing on her slightly burnt hands. Using that Fire Jutsu to send her flying down at the enemy had seemed like a good idea but her palms were still stinging like crazy.

Choji meanwhile fell on his ass and alternated between rubbing his slowly bruising arms and legs. Even with Earth Chakra reinforcing his limbs being shot like a cannonball and clashing with the Chunin still took a toll on the Genin. Sakura got off the lightest but was still running low on Chakra. Earth and Water Jutsu were fine but Mokuton still took a lot out of her. Pulling out a waterskin Sakura used pure Chakra Manipulation to bring some water out of the container and used it to engulf Ino's hands, "That'll have to do for now. I'm too low on Chakra to use any Medical Jutsu."

"Same," Ino sighed, "How're you holding up Choji?"

"Oooowwww," Choji groaned as sounds of combat could be heard from the other two camps, "My arms and legs feel like they're about to fall off! I was almost tempted to focus Fire Chakra out of my feet just to increase my power even more if you hadn't taken her out."

"I'll get the captives," Sakura said as Ino took over using Chakra Manipulation to keep the water around her hands. Choji managed to get to his feet and drag the corpse into the second tent so the civilians didn't have to see it as the sounds of combat slowly faded. Once the captives were let out of the cage and the Genin began leading the civilians away from camp, Ensui-Sense walked into the clearing dragging an unconscious nuke-nin bound by chains. Small patches of his clothes had been burned away leaving raw burned skin open to the air as more civilians followed him

"Sensei!" The Genin said as they ran over to him the water around Ino's hands now back in Sakura's Waterskin.

"I'm alright," Ensui smiled at his Genin, "This guy was rather annoying to fight but slowed down by his scythe so he had to rely on his Lightning Jutsu. Can't believe we ended up on a mission with a Jashinist… how troublesome."

"A Jashinist?" Ino asked, "The Nuke-nin we fought mentioned something about someone named Gorro sacrificing us to his god… is that part of it?"

"You three had to fight a Nuke-nin?" Ensui asked, shocked, "I thought this guy was the only one! Are you alright? Any injuries?"

"Mostly just sore," Sakura said, "And a bit low on Chakra. Your training on dodging attacks really helped us out."

"Thank the Kami," Ensui sighed, "And to answer your question Ino. Yes. Jashanist worship a being called Jashin and the main form of worship is through human sacrifice. As such every time a Jashanist pops up most villages take the opportunity to put them down. Only the most insane Shinobi or those who could easily overpower the Jashinist ever work with them."

"Sounds like the one we fought," Choji said, making a subtle motion to the tent the corpse was in, "She was definitely insane."

"Did you get her name?" Ensui asked as he put Gorro in a Stasis Scroll before moving towards the tent.

"Miyako The Blazing Storm," Sakura explained, making Ensui pause before letting out a low whistle.

"Really? Not bad kids. She was a High C, Low B Rank Nuke-Nin," Ensui said, making the Genin's eyes go wide.

"We got really lucky," Choji sighed, "Our new combo attack managed to get her. If she was taking us more seriously from the start and we didn't catch her by surprise I don't know if we could have won."

"Sometimes that can happen," Ensui nodded, "When that happens, just be glad you got through the fight and work hard to make sure it doesn't happen again."


Author's Notes:

Yes, Team Kabuto's sensei was also Orochimaru's Genin student… but considering his appearances are so minor, he might as well not be.

Why did I have everyone get the Rasengan in a day? One as a way to show just how far they've all come, and two… because Jirayia's reaction to learning that Yūgao recreated his method of learning the Jutsu in two months, and how quickly Naruto and the others learned the Jutsu will be just another slap in the face for him. He really needs an Ego check in a few areas. Though with how quickly Naruto learned it in cannon just shows how intelligent he is. Minato took three years to make it, Jiraiya three months to make his three step system/learn it, while Naruto got the hang of it in a week with little to no help from Shadow Clones!

Why is Kusha Minato's ex-wife? Because unto death do you part. They're dead so the vows no longer mean anything unless they want it to mean something.

As for Minato… not every version of him is going to be a good person. Plus he was being a huge idiot when he brought half of the Kyubi into the Shinigami. From the way I see there are a few outcomes to that if Naruto had died early… and only one of them is 'good' with that being the half inside the Shinigami is released so the Kyubi could reform in 9 years. The other outcomes are nowhere near that good and most of the other options with a LOT of people dying due to this one decision.

Are the genin getting through the missions too easily? Maybe… with that stay the same in the Chunin Exams? Hell no!