Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto
Chapter 7: Preparing for Graduation
Naruto and Sasuke's home.
The day of the graduation exam is almost here, and everyone was training the best they could. Ino, Shikamaru, Choji, Shino, Kiba, and Hinata looked to train their main clan jutsus, worked on their taijutsu, and worked on their shinobi skills. Sakura continued her training with Kushina on controlling her chakra and building enough reserves to perform more high level jutsus. Sasuke practiced his fireball jutsus and the three jutsus needed to pass the class while Naruto kept trying (and failing) to master the one jutsu that has always held him back. The goddamn clone jutsu.
Naruto tried for days on end to get the correct chakra amounts to perform the jutsu but for some goddamn reason he always produced a faulty puppet instead of a clone. Unfortunately, this kind of clone comes up regardless of whether the user inputted too much chakra or too little chakra, so it would be nearly impossible to tell which direction to go in without a Byakugan or some other visual jutsu.
"CLONE JUTSU!" Naruto yelled, a puff of smoke coming out showing yet another deformed puppet. The 10th one today.
"What the hell am I doing wrong? Why can't this stupid clone just work for once!" Naruto screamed, causing Sasuke to lose his balance and concentration.
"Really loser? Did you have to scream that fucking loudly? Now I gotta start all the way from 1 again." Sasuke complained.
"Sorry Sasuke, but how the hell do you do this pathetic jutsu? I mean, when I'm in a fight nobody would be brain dead enough to fall for a clone, especially if they're jonin rank or higher. I've already proven I can manipulate chakra with the Transformation and Substitution jutsus so why do I have to do the clone jutsu too?"
"Because Naruto, if you can't do a simple jutsu on command, how the fuck do you think you're going to do any other more complicated jutsu? Especially ones who are evolutions of the clone jutsu? Face it lil bro, your chakra control is straight garbage right now and that's why your clones always come out as pathetic." Sasuke jabbed back, always taking pleasure in making Naruto miserable, just like any older brother would do, while also being as protective of his newfound family as he would have if his old one was still alive.
"Can you just help me man? This jutsu has become the bane of my fucking existence and I will purge anyone who says this is useful. This shit got me looking like Yamcha from DBZ." Naruto said.
"Alright, fine loser. But this better not backfire on me or I swear to god I'll finish off what Iwa and Kumo started." Sasuke said in return. He knew all about the massacre of the Uzumaki clan at the hands of 3 great nations, how Iwagakure feared the might of Uzushiogakure for their sealing abilities and how Kushina was one of the only ones to survive the massacre. Knowing that he wasn't the only one to witness the massacre of his family brought him at least some form of comfort. He felt much more comfortable responding to the humor that can come with these moments and honestly, they've helped him cope with the loss of his family much easier than otherwise.
"Yeah yeah whatever, just tell me what I'm doing wrong for fuck's sakes." Naruto rolled his eyes. "CLONE JUTSU!"
Sasuke activated his sharingan in hopes of seeing exactly what was going on with Naruto, but unfortunately for him, he wasn't able to pinpoint the problem. All of Naruto's chakra felt like a blur to him and when he tried to do the clone jutsu, he couldn't see the culmination of the chakra that allowed the Uchiha to accurately copy the hand signs of the opponent they attempted to copy.
"Sorry man, I just can't figure it out. For some reason your body just doesn't swirl the chakra needed correctly in order to create the jutsu. Maybe try asking your mom about it, from what I heard about this shit before my mom died was that your mom also had a lot of trouble with this particular jutsu. She passed the academy somehow, so it might be worth it to see what's the problem from her guidance." Sasuke suggested.
"Wow, the bastard has finally given a good idea without it benefitting him in some way." Naruto snidely remarked.
"Oh I do get to benefit in some way, I don't have to listen to your sorry ass whine about not being able to do an academy jutsu correctly." Sasuke shot back.
Naruto made his way inside and went up to his mother's room, who was busy teaching Sakura everything she knew about seals and chakra control.
"So Kushina-san, am I doing it right?" Sakura asked as she scribbled down a sign on the scroll given to her.
"It looks good from my eyes, I developed this seal in case Naruto eventually lost control of Kurama and was about to go on a rampage, then this would work to seal his chakra so that he does not accidentally hurt anyone. The more tags we have, the safer we'll be." Kushina stated. "However, this kind of seal requires a large amount of chakra to perform, so until your chakra reserves are expanded to a certain level, you won't be able to use this tag. That is why I had you do intense training over the last 5 years, because sealing jutsu requires not only perfect chakra control, but also high chakra reserves to replenish the chakra lost without causing harm to the user. It's also the reason why sealing jutsu has only been common among the members of the Uzumaki clan for the majority of its existence."
Sakura could only nod along while Naruto finally made his presence known.
"Hey mom, I need your help with something." Naruto said.
"What is it, my son?" Kushina asked.
"Well, how did you manage to create the clone jutsu to pass the academy? From what I heard from Sasuke, his mom told him that you always had trouble making your clones, so do you think you can help me with mine?"
Kushina could only look down at the floor. In truth, she hadn't been able to perform the academy clone jutsu until the nine tails attack on Konoha, in large part due to her being an Uzumaki and the jinchuriki of Kurama, which gave her abnormally high chakra reserves and as such, the miniscule amount of chakra needed to make the academy clone jutsu, which was nearly impossible for anyone in her clan to do, would be even harder for her. She wanted nothing more than to see her son succeed in a way that she hadn't been able to, but she also knew that telling him to work on it when it can only be done by the people with the most pristine of chakra control would only lead to him continuing to spin a futile hamster wheel.
"I'm sorry Naruto, but the truth is performing the clone jutsu would be impossible for you." Kushina said solemnly.
"What do you mean mom? Why would it be impossible for me?" Naruto asked.
"Well, being the jinchuriki of a tailed beast coupled with you being an Uzumaki means your chakra reserves are much higher than the maximum amount it would take to do the clone jutsu effectively, meaning that no matter how much you try, unless your chakra control is that of Tsunade-sama's, then you won't be able to perform the jutsu."
"Then that means, I'll never be able to become a ninja." Tears started flowing down Naruto's face.
Realizing that the one she loved was about to break down, Sakura immediately jumped up and took Naruto in her arms, letting him cry on her shoulder. Kushina joined in the comforting by wrapping her arms around both of them.
"IT'S NOT FAIR! WHY DO I HAVE TO DO THIS USELESS JUTSU TO PASS THE ACADEMY? WHY CAN I NEVER GET GOOD MARKS ON WRITTEN TESTS? WHY IS THE ACADEMY SO HARD FOR ME?" Naruto broke down in their arms.
"I just want to be a shinobi like dad was, someone he could be proud to call his son. Why can't that happen for me? Why does everything have to be so hard?"
Seeing Naruto like this only broke Sakura's heart for the young man. She knew the real reason behind Naruto's low test scores from her little espionage mission to the academy a few nights ago.
Flashback to the Monday, with Sakura and Ino
"Sakura, what the hell are we doing here?" Ino asked.
"I overheard the teachers talking about how they would place all the tests in the archive so that they could come back to them every once in a while and laugh at the ones who were too stupid to make it past the academy. Also, be quiet or else they will hear us for sure." Sakura responded.
"I know that, but how the fuck are we going to help Naruto-kun by digging through the files of some old academy students?" Ino asked.
"Because Ino-pig, if we can find Naruto-kun's file here, we might be able to see how and why he got so low of a mark and why he insisted that he wasn't asked to show his work on the paper when everyone should have gotten the same test and at least my test said to show my work." Sakura explained.
Ino nodded along and kept looking. While scouring through the records, they found the biographies of many of the greats to ever step foot in Konoha, including Kakashi Hatake, Itachi Uchiha, Hiruzen Sarutobi, the legendary Sannin, and Naruto's parents. It wasn't long, however, that they finally made it to Naruto's file. Looking through, they couldn't really find any evidence of sabotage.
"I can't find anything, Sakura, I don't know what it is but Naruto-kun may have lied to us about this." Ino said, on the verge of giving up.
Sakura on the other hand could not believe that Naruto would ever lie to them, even over something as small as this. She knew him, he never lied about anything no matter how much it hurt him to do. If there was one thing he was always proud of, it was the fact that no matter what, he always told the truth. It didn't make any sense for Naruto to lie about this, she just knew it.
"Ino, think about who you're talking about here. This is Naruto-kun. What have you learned from him out of the entire time knowing him?" Sakura asked accusingly.
"Naruto never lies, no matter what. It's always been what he has been most proud of." Ino responded, realizing just what she had done by questioning the integrity of her friend and the one she secretly liked.
"That's right, so there has to be something we're missing. Something that isn't completely obvious to us." Sakura concluded before it finally hit her. She finally figured it out, how they were able to get away with sabotaging Naruto for the past 5 years.
"Ino, come look at this." Sakura said, putting a piece of paper with Naruto's handwriting on it right next to another piece of paper with 'Naruto's' test answers.
"What am I seeing here? These two look the same." Ino said.
"Look closely at the kanji symbol here, the one for water. See any differences?" Sakura asked, bringing the two pieces of writing to Ino's face.
"Hey you're right! Naruto always connects the markings on both the left and the right side while this paper only has the connection on the right!" Ino exclaimed, finally finding the piece of evidence they needed to bring down the people at the academy.
"Exactly. Someone forged his test answers onto the correct sheets before marking them in a different color using their own handwriting, we just need to figure out who the culprit was, and we need to find the original sheet to compare it to." Sakura said.
The two searched around the boxes for hours, coming up with essentially nothing. Whoever did this made sure to cover their tracks REALLY well. However, Sakura and Ino were determined to prove their friend right once and for all. It would be a while but Ino would end up finding something rather odd in the placements of some of the boxes.
"Hey Sakura, come here and take a look. Something's up with these boxes." Ino said, directing her friend's attention to the back corner of the classroom. One of the boxes wasn't placed as neatly as the others, and knowing the groundskeeper's need to keep things in the perfect placement, this could only have been done by someone who was in a rush to get out of there. The two girls opened the box and found Naruto's original test papers, all torn up to pieces in an attempt to hide the evidence. It took them over an hour to do so, but they finally got one of the papers matched up. Naruto's claims matched up. The actual paper he wrote didn't ask him to show his work at all and someone forged his writing before giving it to Mizuki to mark. Since the markers didn't get started with marking the papers until the day after the test, it gave the perpetrator plenty of time to fake the handwriting while also making it legible enough that someone without a strong sense of who Naruto was wouldn't be able to recognize it.
"Those clever bastards. Thinking they could just screw with Naruto-kun like that. I swear if we find out who did this I am going to melt their brain so badly that they won't even remember what their name is afterwards." Ino threatened. "We need to take this to Iruka sensei right now. He might be the only one who will be able to give Naruto-kun the marks he deserves."
"No, Ino, going to Iruka sensei with an accusation as grave as this would only cause trouble for us. We need to know who did it first, and before that we need to know if Naruto-kun actually wants this to happen. I know he wants to be a shinobi, but he doesn't want this at the cost of someone else's life. To him, hurting someone else because they were the ones who hurt him first makes him no better than the people who hurt him to begin with. It's one of the things I love about him so much, his compassion and willingness to help others, even at the cost of his own happiness." Sakura said. "The Naruto I know would want to overcome the odds here, not play dirty like the people who gave him the unfair mark. Force them to make him a shinobi or die trying."
"But how is this fair to him? He worked hard to become a shinobi, why are we taking that away from him by not bringing this forward?" Ino cried out. If there was anything she valued more than her own life, it was that everyone got treated fairly and in accordance with what they did rather than prejudiced notions against them.
"Because Ino, that might be who we are, but that's not who Naruto-kun is. Let's tell him what we found, and if he wants us to go through with it, we will. Otherwise, we need to keep this to ourselves. Nothing good can come from randomly exposing the staff here. They can easily deny it and we have no way of knowing who actually did it. Not to mention if we bring in the wrong person, we have unintentionally ruined another person's life. So before we go further, we need to ask Naruto-kun what he wants to do. This is regarding him anyways, he should have the final decision." Sakura concluded, which Ino nodded along.
"Fucking hell, I hate it when you're right." Ino groaned as she and Sakura made their way to the exit.
They almost made it out of the academy before they got stopped by an older woman.
"Sakura, Ino, what are you doing at the academy so late?" The woman asked.
Sakura froze up on the spot, not being able to come up with a believable lie for the teacher to believe. Thankfully for her, she was being accompanied by a person who excelled in mind games, not just in reading them, but in manipulating others too.
"Well we're going to graduate in a few days so we just wanted to take one last look at the academy before we set off into the shinobi world." Ino said, nearly giving them away by shaking so much. Luckily for them, the woman seemed to buy it.
"Ah young academy students, I remember when I was once in your shoes. Eagerly walking down the halls waiting for the day I could finally go out and serve my village like all those who came before me. Little did I know just how hard it would be, especially on a young group of genin-chunin level ninjas. Some of my best memories came in these very walls, and I like to come back every once in a while to remember all those who came with me, and those who unfortunately couldn't be here today." The woman said with a tear falling from her covered eye and onto the purple stripes across her face.
The young girls immediately felt sorry for the older woman, as they could tell she lost someone special to her, either a teammate, a loved one, or both.
"He's in a better place now, don't worry." Ino spoke up, reaching up and placing a hand on the woman's shoulder.
"I know they are, sometimes I just wish I could have done more to protect them, you know, three people who had given me everything and I couldn't even return the favor by making sure their legacy remained safe." She said, nearing the verge of collapsing into tears. "Promise me one thing girls, whatever you do, cherish those you love and those who love you, because you will never know when kami will strike to take them away from you. Don't hesitate to have feelings either. I know it may be counterintuitive as you've learned that it's important for ninjas to be able to put their feelings aside and bury them on missions, but in reality, it's not acting on feelings that will get you in the most trouble possible, the one that won't get fixed no matter how hard you try to do it."
"We will Miss." Sakura and Ino responded. "Sorry, we didn't get your name." They asked the lady.
"My name is Rin Nohara, head of Konoha's medical department, student of lord 4th." The girl responded. "What about you? What are your names?"
"I am Sakura, no last name as I abandoned it when my parents decided that I wasn't good enough to be their daughter. Since then I've been staying with Ino-chan here and we've become the best of friends." Sakura responded.
"My name is Ino Yamanaka, heiress of the Yamanaka clan." Ino said.
"Well then Sakura, Ino, I really hope the two of you can pass your finals. Hopefully then we can have more females in the forces. As of right now, the amount is relatively low, as only 5 females are currently active in a force of hundreds of shinobis, me included. I have all the faith in the two of you that you'll be able to pull it off." Rin said while ruffling their hairs. "Well anyways, I have to get back to the hospital now. You two better stay out of trouble."
"We will. Thank you Rin-sensei." Sakura and Ino said before returning back home, ready to begin their training for the academy graduation exams.
Back at Naruto's place, with Naruto and Sakura.
Breaking apart the hug, Sakura looked directly into Naruto's eyes. Seeing them so full of sorrow, she thought of the one thing that might help him cheer up. She decided to spill the secret to Naruto right here, right now.
"Naruto-kun, it's not your fault that you didn't score well on these tests. Ino and I went back to the school and found evidence of tampering going on with your file. Someone gave you the wrong test and before handing it off to Mizuki-sensei, they forged your writing onto the correct paper. If you want, I can take this to Lord Hokage and we can get the people who did this to you fired." Sakura offered.
While he wanted nothing more than to see the people who screwed him over get punished for what they did, how would that make him any better than the people who did that? No. Regardless of how unfair it was, he wouldn't do that. Naruto would force them to accept him, not go behind someone else's back for revenge.
"Sakura, it's ok. Don't tell anyone about this. The graduation exam is tomorrow, we should get ready for it through our own skills, and I'm not going to be like them. Let them do whatever they want right now, I'll make them eat their fucking words later on. So long as I have you, mom, Sasuke, and Ino by my side, nothing else can bring me down." Naruto said, looking into Sakura's eyes. Even though he was still hurt that he was being screwed over by some of the academy staff, he didn't want to be known as the snitch. If anything, snitching would only make it worse for him as he didn't know who he could trust in these situations.
"Are you sure? I mean this could be the key to getting you into the ninja ranks." Sakura questioned.
"I am. I may hate the fact that I got screwed in this, but there isn't much I can do about it at this moment. Yeah, I could get that bastard who did it fired, but what good will that do me? The only thing that will do is place a target on my back for the graduation ceremony. People in this damn village already hate me enough as it is, Sakura, why would I do anything to make that treatment worse?" Naruto said.
Sakura didn't have any form of countering what Naruto had just said. It sucked. The fact that one of the kindest people she knew was this fed up with the village's actions to the point where he couldn't bring himself to do the right thing out of fear of retaliation, and it wasn't an unwarranted fear. In her whole time knowing Naruto, she got first-hand experiences on the types of mental abuse he faced, from being neglected by the villagers, to getting items thrown at him out of pure spite, to even straight up being ignored. Naruto was never the most trusting guy, especially after the attack on him 6 years before, but even she couldn't fathom trusting the village so little that he was scared of taking justice.
"Well Naruto-kun, I'm here to support you with whatever you choose. While I think this should be taken to the Hokage and he could probably do something about it, at the end of the day it's your choice. But whatever you do, please don't leave me behind you." Sakura said.
"Wouldn't dream of it." Naruto said, flashing his iconic smile at Sakura nearly causing her to faint due to blood loss. "Well anyways, we should get back to training now. The graduation exams are tomorrow.
Day of the graduation ceremony: The Academy
Hundreds of academy students lined up at the front of the school, side-by-side with their parents and guardians, eager to await the start of the graduation ceremony from the academy. However, there was one who still felt empty. Despite being surrounded by people he could genuinely come to say he cared about, there was still one thing missing for the young Uchiha. All day, Sasuke waited and waited for his brother to at least show up and give him some words to talk, but still nothing. No sign of Itachi or Obito left Sasuke in despair, seemingly hoping that at least one of them would take the time to at least see him on one of the most important days of his life. After taking away his entire family, that was the least they could do.
Suddenly, a swirl emerged from nowhere and a hand touched Sasuke's shoulder before transporting him into the Kamui dimension.
"Big brother! You came!" Sasuke yelled as he ran to Itachi and gave him the biggest hug he could.
"Hello, Sasuke, of course I would come. How could any self-respecting older brother not come to his younger brother's graduation? Although we can't stay here for long. The Akatsuki will be on the move soon and we'll be tasked to seek out Naruto to gather intel on the states of the jinchuriki. I've actually come here to give you a mission, your very first one as a shinobi of Konoha." Itachi said.
Hearing this made Sasuke's eyes light up with joy. His brother, the one he idolized growing up, was ready to see him as his equal by giving him a mission. He wondered what it could be. Take down Danzo? Join him to infiltrate the akatsuki? Something totally awesome and cool so he could show off to his friends?
"Your mission, Sasuke, is to obtain the 3-tomoe sharingan. Once you do that, I want you to find me and grant me one last battle. A battle to the death, where only one of us will make it out alive." Itachi said.
Sasuke was shook by the request. His brother was asking him to fight him? A deathmatch nonetheless. What could possibly have wanted Itachi to make such a request?
"Why big brother? Why must it be a fight to the death? I don't want to kill you, I just want my big brother back in Konoha where he belongs!" Sasuke screamed. Luckily they were in the Kamui dimension and they couldn't be heard outside.
"Because Sasuke, this is the only way you'll grow strong enough to take down the Akatsuki once and for all. I have reason to believe there is someone much stronger than the current leader at the helm of the Akatsuki, someone who could change the very fabric of the world if let loose. And I need to make sure that no matter what, you and Naruto grow strong enough to take him on and win." Itachi stated cryptically. "Now go little brother, and remember. I am waiting for that fight."
Itachi then signaled to Obito to transport Sasuke out of the Kamui dimension in time for the actual graduation ceremony to begin, and before Sasuke had any chance to protest the mission he was just given.
Back outside the Kamui dimension, Iruka gathered in front of all the students and explained to them the format of the final exam. The first section would be a written test, followed by a Kunai/Shuriken throwing competition, a taijutsu battle, and finally, the jutsu test consisting of the transformation jutsu, the substitution jutsu, and the clone jutsu. Sasuke himself could not be more excited. He was finally becoming a ninja, just like the rest of his family.
Naruto meanwhile, was sweating bullets at the thought of having to do the clone jutsu. It had been over 5 years of practice and he hadn't been able to do it once. And then he got hit with the truck of "You have way too much chakra to do the clone jutsu effectively, to the point where it is near impossible to perform the clone jutsu correctly." He thought about just asking Iruka-sensei if he could just perform another jutsu instead of the clone jutsu, hopefully then he would be able to pass the jutsu portion. He heard stories from his mother, Jiraiya, and Obito about people who became ninjas even without the ability to do any jutsu, so it would be possible for him to do so. Unfortunately, in a graduating class as stacked as the one he was in, going that route would not end well whatsoever.
Suddenly, Naruto felt a tug on his back and was inside his own mindscape.
"Kit, stop being a fuckin nervous ass wreck. You're disturbing my naptime." Kurama stated.
"Sorry foxy, it's just the damn clone jutsu. It's going to be on the jutsu test and I just know I'm going to fail it. I mean in 5 years I haven't been able to make a single functional clone, how am I going to randomly pull one out of my ass conveniently during the graduation test? Face it, being a ninja is not in my cards." Naruto cried out.
"Stop your whining and be a man for once. What happened to the kid who always screamed of being the hokage? Even if he had to break the bones of everyone to do it? What happened to the kid who would stop at nothing to protect the ones he loves? What happened to the kid who made it his vow to make his father proud of the person he became? Your father named you the fucking last hope of his clan, and you sit here thinking of giving up? You disgust me Naruto, you truly do." Kurama blasted out, bursting Naruto into tears.
"How foxy, how am I supposed to do all that if I can't even perform a goddamn clone?! The easiest jutsu in the fucking book?! If I can't even do this, then how am I realistically going to protect my loved ones and live up to everything my father taught me?" Naruto internally screamed.
"Because you don't need to know the clone jutsu, Naruto." Minato said, jumping into view.
"DAD!" Naruto yelled, jumping into his father's arms.
"Hello son, you've grown a lot taller since the last time I saw you. Hopefully you're eating well and keeping up with your studies." Minato said softly.
"Well it has been six goddamn years, of course I've grown taller. Regarding food, mom's been on my case about eating healthier, so she made sure to hide all the ramen in the house. With my studies, unfortunately they haven't been the greatest. I have always been near the bottom of the class, regardless of the answers I put. It seems like the teachers here don't want me to become a shinobi." Naruto complained. "But that hasn't stopped me from becoming the best. I will become hokage like you did, dad, and you will look down on me with a smile knowing I made your legacy proud."
"Well then, I couldn't have asked for a better son. Tell me, have you made some friends that you can rely on?"
"I have. Two beautiful girls named Sakura and Ino! You know the day you first came to me? They were the ones who saved me from getting my head caved in. I have been able to count on them to help me with anything, and they have become really precious to me. Then there's Sasuke. He's a bastard and an emotionless loser, but he's also someone who I would personally jump into a pit of burning hot lava to save. He pushes me to be a better person, and I push him to become a better ninja. Mom and Uncle Teuchi have been great to me too!" Naruto said excitedly.
"Well then I couldn't be happier. But Naruto, as I said before, you don't need the clone jutsu itself to pass the academy, because I am going to show you an even better jutsu to help you pass the academy." Minato said with a smile on his face.
"REALLY? YOU'RE FINALLY GOING TO TEACH ME A JUTSU?" Naruto internally screamed, to which Minato could only chuckle at and Kurama could only groan in despair.
He really is just like you, Kushina. I hope you're taking good care of him. He'll be someone special one day. Minato thought to himself.
"Now Naruto, this jutsu is going to be something that will be part of your main arsenal, so it is important that you master this jutsu in its entirety." Minato stated. "This jutsu is an evolution of the clone jutsu, mainly used for people who have extremely high chakra reserves to the point where a normal clone jutsu won't work for them. This is how your mother was able to pass the academy, so take a good look at how it's done."
Minato performed a singular hand sign, forming a cross with two fingers on each hand. "SHADOW CLONE JUTSU!" He yelled out before another carbon copy of Minato Namikaze poofed into existence.
"Naruto, this jutsu is known as the shadow clone jutsu. Unlike a normal clone jutsu, the shadow clones are solid and they have their own ways of thinking. Using this jutsu is especially useful for reconnaissance and training, so please know not to use this lightly." Minato warned. "This jutsu also consumes a lot of chakra, so be careful that you don't make too many while using it."
"Ok." Naruto said before performing the hand signs. "SHADOW CLONE JUTSU!"
To everyone's surprise, even Naruto's, over 1000 different Narutos poofed into existence, all a carbon copy of the original user.
Holy shit this kid will surpass me in no time! Minato was amazed at just how much natural talent Naruto had for this sort of thing.
"Alright, what do I do now?" Naruto asked.
"I want you to command one of your clones to kick this and dispel the clone after it." Minato instructed, before summoning a sharp set of spikes for the clone to kick.
Naruto did what he was told. Instructing one of his clones to kick the spikes before it dispelled, causing Naruto to get a massive headache and pain in his right foot.
"OUCH, THAT HURT DAD!" Naruto yelled before gasping. "H-How did I know that I got hit on my foot? Nobody hit me, it was my clone that got hit!"
"That's the power of the Shadow Clone Jutsu, Naruto. The ability for the user to recount the memories of the clone that was used. It's what allows us to be really good at reconnaissance and gathering intelligence on our enemies without causing immediate harm to our shinobi. It's also part of how Lord 2nd was able to turn the tide in the 1st great war to result in a Konoha victory." Minato explained.
"Wow this is insanely cool! I'll make sure to take good care of it. Got anything else to teach me father?" Naruto asked.
Minato could only laugh. "Baby steps, Naruto, baby steps. Once you become a shinobi and make it to the chunin exams, I will teach you another move that made me incredibly famous. I promise." Minato said before pulling his son in for a fatherly hug. "Now get out of here and kick ass on the graduation finals. I wouldn't want to see my legacy go down before everything even starts."
"OK dad, I'll be sure to make you proud of me." Naruto said before exiting the mindscape, getting ready for his graduation finals.
"Little does he know I'm already proud of him. What do you think, Kurama?" Minato said with a chuckle.
"I think I want to go back to sleep. Now don't fucking disturb me Minato." Kurama said as he drifted off.
"Alright, good night furball. Just be sure to take care of Naruto please. I wouldn't want anything to happen to my son with you inside of him."
"Yeah yeah, whatever you say."
Back outside the mindscape, everyone was lined up in front of the instructor. Naruto made sure to look around and gauge the moods of everyone there, especially the people he deemed to be worthy of paying attention to.
Looking around at the people deemed his friends, he saw Sakura and Ino fidgeting with their fingers, a clear sign of nervousness. Shikamaru and Shino looked completely bored and uninterested, although to Naruto it meant completely different things. Shikamaru was just lazy and Shino knew this would be way too easy for him. Kiba was jumping for joy. He could not be more excited. Hinata meanwhile was showing a lot more restraint, indicating more fear of failure than dreams of success. Choji stuffed more food into his mouth than before, he was absolutely petrified. Naruto didn't understand why, he was one of the best in the class. However, there was one man that caught Naruto's eye in his expression more than anyone. Sasuke. Looking at his surrogate brother, he could see a fierce competitor look in his eye, showing that he would do whatever it took to win. As for Naruto himself, well all he could do was smirk. He was about to kick this test's ass and become a full shinobi.
He was more than ready.
And that does it for this chapter everyone! Next chapter will look at the graduation and the team assignments, so I'd greatly appreciate it if you let me know what teams you want to see form in this story. The senseis are Rin Nohara, Asuma Sarutobi, and Kurenai Yuuhi, and the teammates can be any 3 of the Rookie 9. The team with the most requests will be the winner.
Also do drop a review on the story, even if it is criticism for how the story is written. This kind of help is paramount for the story's success and I truly do hope you all can enjoy it. Since this is the first story I've written on this site, it is a learning curve for me too.
As for the Harems, I'll be posting a poll following the conclusion of the next chapter on the girls you want to be included in it. I have narrowed the list down to 10 choices for each and the top 3 girls will be included in Naruto's harem with the top 5 in Sasuke's poll being included in his. If you would like any last minute submissions, let me know now so I can consider them as potential options for the poll.
This is GOAT Obito signing off for now! Peace!