Chapter 11

"Morning, princess," Naruto said with a sarcastic smile. The sky was still dark and filled with stars. A low, smoky fire smoldered a few feet from him. He was sitting with his back against a tree, his dark orange sleeping bag a few inches away all ruffled up from having been slept in. Over to his left, Hinata was nestled into her sleeping bag; her eyes closed, mouth slightly afar. To his right, Sasuke was pushing himself up onto his elbows. His eyes were black, and his hair was disheveled as he squinted around in the dark. Naruto watched as bright red crimson blossomed from Sasuke's pupil. It spread out like a stain over his black eyes, and three small tomoe-like marks rose to the surface of the crimson and spun around his pupil gently.

Activating the Sharingan as soon as he woke had become instinctual for Sasuke. He did it without a second thought. Somedays, he didn't even need to do it as it would activate right before he got up subconsciously. Instantly the night came into sharp focus, and even without any light, he could see out into the tree line with incredible accuracy. Sasuke sighed as he recalled the previous day quickly. He'd run out of chakra fighting Zaku, and in a wild attempt to end the fight quickly, he'd blitzed the other ninja thinking he'd avoid using his wind technique in close quarters. Sasuke had underestimated him and had been blasted point-blank in the chest. Sasuke felt frustration and anger build inside of him as he snarled into the darkness.

"Let it go," Naruto said roughly as he watched Sasuke snarl angrily into the darkness. "You never would have lost if we hadn't been forced to fight Orochimaru of all people."

"I should have been strong enough," Sasuke muttered darkly as he finished sitting up. He drew his knees to his chest and wrapped his arms around his legs. "Ita-"

"I swear to god if you finish that sentence." Naruto snapped as he glared at Sasuke through the darkness. "Even Itachi would have struggled to beat Orochimaru. Let alone the three of us. I told you we'll catch up; it'll take time."

"Why are you so pissy?" Sasuke asked bluntly as he met Naruto's glare with a blank stare of his own. "Don't lecture me about getting angry while taking out your frustration for the same thing out on me." Sasuke looked around again, his eyes gliding over Hinata, Kiba, and Shino, and then finally resting on Sakura. She was completely healed up, curled up on her side, her pink hair hanging in her face, sleeping peacefully. Sasuke felt a weight lift off his shoulders and let out a sigh. Gritting his teeth, he snarled again as he tore his eyes away from her and looked back out into the darkness.

"You're right," Naruto muttered as he looked up into the star-splattered sky above them. "Once these exams are over, we can get back to training. We'll work on your chakra reserves more get you using more clones. That and improving your body and taijutsu will help expand your reserves. We need to improve your genjutsu too. That will help you keep a distance, or if they get close enough, shut them down."

"None of those matter against someone like Orochimaru," Sasuke said bitterly as he recalled the fight.

"You're right, but we have to start somewhere. To fight someone like him, we need to be better overall. Stronger, faster, and more experienced. That will all take time, but we have to start somewhere. We might as well start with our weaknesses."

"What about you then? What should you work on?" Sasuke asked as he stared out into the tree line, not looking for anything.

Hinata stirred in her sleeping bag. She could hear two voices out in the distance; they sounded familiar, but it took her time to place them. As consciousness returned to her, they became crisper, and the previous day's events came to mind. It was Naruto and Sasuke; they were both talking about the fighting from the day before.

"I need to get faster and stronger too," Naruto said absentmindedly. "Thankfully, I know the perfect way to get faster." Naruto looked down at the ground. Several markings had been traced into the dirt by his finger. "By the time the third part of the exam starts, I'll be the fastest ninja alive."

"I'm guessing they saved our asses," Sasuke muttered, finally acknowledging the presence of three other sleeping bags. He didn't say anything about Naruto's previous decleration, but he had no doubt the blond would make good on his words.

"Yeah," Naruto muttered as he looked over at Hinata with a smile. He could see the top of her blue hair, her face buried into the sleeping bag. "We got lucky if it weren't for them, they'd have taken you to Orochimaru."

"Jiraiya said something about him using my body," Sasuke said as he looked at Naruto. "Do you know anything about that?"

"It's part of some jutsu that makes him immortal. Ero-sennin said something about it once. He steals another ninja's body and takes it over." Naruto locked eyes with Sasuke and gave him a severe look. "He's going to try and tempt you. He'll promise you anything to get you to go with him. He'll even promise you Itachi."

Sasuke didn't say anything for a moment; he turned away and stared out into the dark tree line, and let out a sigh.

"Orochimaru is powerful. He is probably one of the strongest ninjas in the world, and he could undoubtedly train you up enough to kill Itachi. After that, though, he'll take your body for his own, and you'll be dead. You'll lose everything else in the process. You'll lose your home, your honor, your friends…Sakura." Sasuke's head snapped as he looked at Naruto with narrowed eyes.

"None of those things matter to me," Sasuke said sharply as he turned away again, resisting the urge to look at Sakura.

"You can lie to yourself, but not to me," Naruto said as he looked back at the top of Hinata's head. "Itachi killed your whole family and stole your childhood from you. Don't let him take anything else. Slow and steady wins the race Sasuke. Work with me, Kakashi, and Ero-sennin, and you'll be strong enough to kill him without losing anything else."

"Won't I lose my home and Sakura if I stay with you anyway?" Sasuke shot back irritably. "When you and I leave Konoha?"

'Leave Konoha?' Hinata thought as she felt her muscles tighten at what Sasuke said.

"Uzushio will be your home, and Sakura is more than welcome to come with us. Don't try and find reasons to talk yourself into anything you'll regret. I haven't been wrong yet, have I?"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Sasuke muttered as he looked out into the tree line.

"He tempted me too," Naruto said as he looked at Sasuke. "He promised to help me rebuild Uzushio and even told me that he knew where other Uzumaki's were. Don't you think I considered it? Orochimaru could teach me just as much as Ero-sennin. You and I could go and get everything we ever wanted without any bullshit like these exams getting in the way." Sasuke turned and locked eyes with him again. "It's not worth what we'd lose."

"What do you have to lose?"

"The closest thing to a father I'll ever have, Sakura, Kakashi-sensei, my dignity, myself, and…" Naruto trailed off as his eyes shifted to stare at the top of Hinata's head.

"You'll lose her anyway," Sasuke said as he tracked Naruto's eyes.

'Her? Who would he lose?' Hinata thought as she felt her heart beating in her chest. 'Say the name, please say the name.'

"The Hyuga's will never let one of their own leave the village with you, especially if you're starting a rival ninja village."

'It's me!' Hinata thought as she felt a weight lift off her chest. 'It has to be me, right?'

"When the time comes, if Hinata wants to come with me, I'll make that happen," Naruto said as he stared at Hinata in the darkness.

"Good luck with that," Sasuke muttered as he shifted his weight and let out a soft groan. "You'll create an incident before we've even fully established our village."

"Do you think I care?" Naruto asked with a biting edge in his voice. "Do you think I give a damn about what this village thinks of me?" Naruto looked back down at the characters traced in the ground. "This was fun while it lasted, but Orochimaru attacked us. Almost killed me and took you. I don't have the patience for this anymore. We'll get through these exams and get Jiraiya to take us out of the village and train us. We'll try and get Kakashi to come, but if he doesn't, Ero-sennin will be enough. Then we'll kill Itachi, and I'll never set foot here ever again."

Sasuke sat there in silence as Naruto seemed to trace something in the dirt by his leg and didn't say anything. Naruto was clearly dealing with some complicated feelings about the other day, and Sasuke couldn't help but feel like he missed something important. Sasuke rested his head against the tree and stared out into the forest with a sigh.


"It was really him?" Sarutobi asked as he looked at Kakashi and Jiraiya. "I should have gone out with you and ended this myself." Sarutobi took a long drag off of his pipe and sighed as smoke billowed out of his mouth and nostrils.

"Yeah, it was him," Jiraiya muttered angrily. "He was about to kill Naruto before we showed up." Jiraiya's face had been set in a permeant scowl since he'd seen his former teammate.

"We were able to confirm he was after Sasuke," Kakashi said seriously as he looked at the Sandaime with his one dark eye. "Sasuke confirmed it when we spoke to him. He said Orochimaru wanted his body for something."

"Orochimaru," the Sandaime sighed. His student had fallen so far from grace. "I doubt we've seen the last of him during these exams. Jiraiya, I need you to meet up with your contacts and see if you can learn anything."

"That won't be happening," Jiraiya said as he stared down at the Sandaime. "We know he's planning something, and that's all we need to know. I'm not leaving this village until I'm sure Orochimaru isn't coming back. Especially if he's trying to kill Naruto."

"I agree with Jiraiya-sama," Kakashi said with a curt nod towards the larger ninja. "We know he's nearby, and we know he's after Sasuke. It's best if Jiraiya-sama stays close by in case he attacks the village. Jiraiya-sama and yourself are the only ninjas in this village that even have a chance at beating him."

"You have a good point," Sarutobi said with a sigh. "I'll send some ANBU out to scout around the village and see if they can find any details. In the meantime, you, both will stick close to Team 7 and the exams."

"When these exams are over, I'm taking Naruto with me again," Jiraiya said seriously as he looked at the Sandaime. "Orochimaru infiltrated these exams right under your nose. That's not something he did without help. If he wants to kill Naruto, he'll find a way. He's safest by my side."

"If you had said this a few weeks ago. Naruto probably would have done backflips." Kakashi said before the Sandaime could say anything. "However, I don't think it will be that easy now, Jiraiya-sama. Naruto has formed some kind of bond with Sasuke, and if he knows Orochimaru is after Sasuke, Naruto won't leave his side. I haven't known him for long, but I know him well enough to know just how much like Minato he is. Even if he won't admit it."

"Then I'll take the Uchiha with me too." Jiraiya snapped at Kakashi angrily. Kakashi stayed expressionless as he stared at Jiraiya with the same lazy look he always had. Jiraiya paused and took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, Kakashi."

"I won't stop you from taking Naruto," Sarutobi said softly as he puffed on his pipe quietly. The other two ninjas in the room were slightly surprised by his lax attitude towards the subject. "I know I couldn't stop you," he followed up with a sigh. "Taking Uchiha Sasuke out of this village, though, is something I won't allow. We have no idea where Itachi is or why he spared Sasuke. Taking Sasuke with you and Naruto would only draw his attention to you. Whoever helped Itachi kill his clan that night might very well be the one helping Orochimaru infiltrate Konoha."

"I'm sorry, Hokage-sama, but did you say help Itachi?" Kakashi asked with a raised eyebrow. "I was under the impression the Uchiha massacre was carried out by Itachi alone."

"There are only three people who know the truth of that night. Two of them are in this room, Kakashi." Sarutobi said softly as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "Our ninja examined all of the bodies that night and saw two specific wound patterns. Our medical team did not doubt that there was at least one other there that night. I personally sealed their memories of that knowledge away and only ever told Jiraiya. We've spent the last several years trying to determine who it was that helped that young man kill his family. We don't know if it was someone outside of Konoha or someone from within. We've had little luck in that regard."

"The current theory is that someone from that mercenary group helped Itachi and that the killings were a kind of intimidation tactic. We haven't ruled out the idea that someone within the village helped, though. There is some evidence that supports the idea that Dan-"

"Watch what you say next, Jiraiya," Sarutobi said harshly as he tapped the end of his pipe harshly against the glass ashtray on the desk. "Your evidence was anecdotal and guesswork at best. I may not see eye to eye with him, but I told you I don't believe he is capable of something like that."

Kakashi and Jiraiya locked eyes, and Jiraiya shook his head slightly. Kakashi drew his eyes away from Jiraiya's and back to the Sandaime. "If that's the case, I think it's best we ramped up my team's training. With Orochimaru after one of my students and this information about the massacre, we need to make sure they can at least defend themselves enough to get away if someone like those two goes after them."

"I've been trying to ramp Naruto's training up for over a year now, but he doesn't want to learn the rest of what I have to teach him," Jiraiya said with a heavy sigh. "I can keep helping him with what he knows and mentoring him on other things, but he refuses to have anything to do with anything remotely connected to Minato." Jiraiya laced his fingers behind his head sighed heavily. "He won't learn the Rasengan, and I offered to tell him what I know about the Hirashin. I can't even get him to sign a contract with the Toads. He didn't even want to learn Senjutsu until I told him Minato never mastered it and barely ever used it, but he wants me to teach him without the Toads."

"Can you even learn Senjutsu without a summoning contract?" Kakashi asked as he crossed his arms and looked at Jiraiya.

"Technically, anyone can learn Senjutsu," Jiraiya said with a shrug. "However, it's much easier and safer to learn it with a summoning clan that knows it. I'm not good enough to teach him without their help."

"What about Kushina's techniques?" Sarutobi asked as he looked at Jiraiya with bunched brows.

"He's learned some Uzumaki techniques. He can apply seals with just a touch and even knows their healing jutsu, but he hasn't pursued anything else. I don't know if he could use the Adamantine Sealing Chains or how he'd even learn. Despite everything we knew about the Uzumaki Clan, we don't know if that was a learned technique or a Kekkei Genkai."

"It was certainly one of their most guarded and powerful techniques. If it's something that can be taught, they never taught anyone outside of the clan." Sarutobi muttered as he packed his smoking pipe absentmindedly. "He seems to have no problem learning Uzumaki techniques. Is there a reason why he won't learn any of Minato's? Does he know his mother was equally responsible for sealing the Kyuubi within him?"

"No, after I told him about Minato…I couldn't tell him about Kushina too," Jiraiya muttered as he pressed his fingers into his eyes. "The boy spent the first seven or eight years without a family. Then I took him in and told him all these amazing tales about the Uzumaki's. I told him how powerful and respected they were, and then I told him what had happened to them. He's turned them into some kind of fairytale heroes in his head. The family that would have loved and supported him, the family that never would put a demon inside of him."

"Which turned his father and this village into the villains that ruined his life." Sarutobi let out a deep sigh, and smoke billowed out from his mouth. "Taking the hard road out of spite," Sarutobi said softly as a small smile curled at his lips. "Who does he remind you of, Jiraiya?" Jiraiya remained silent as Sarutobi looked at him. "The boy who refused to learn anything I taught his rival? Or the boy who tried a summoning jutsu without a contract?"

"I grew out of that," Jiraiya muttered, looking away from his formal sensei. "I had too eventually when everyone else around surpassed me."

"Yes," Sarutobi muttered softly. "Maybe this brush with Orochimaru will have a similar effect on Naruto."

"Maybe," Jiraiya grumbled as he stood up. "I need some air." Jiraiya left the office without another word leaving Kakashi and Sarutobi alone together.

"Between the second and third exams, Kakashi, I want you to do as much as possible to close the gap between Naruto and Sasuke."

"You really think that can be done in just 30 days?" Kakashi asked as he uncrossed his arms and moved towards the door.

"Sasuke is a genius, and as good as Naruto is theirs, no comparison between them in terms of raw talent." The Sandaime took a puff on his piped and blew out the smoke. "If any genin here could close that gap in 30 days, it would Sasuke."

"I wouldn't count Naruto out Hokage-sama," Kakashi said as he pulled open the door. "He's just as much of a genius. I trained with him every day, and I can tell you one thing. He was holding back, even when he fought me. Sasuke will catch up with him eventually, but I don't think it will be so soon." Kakashi left the office without looking back at the Sandaime.


"We're almost there," Naruto called back as he jumped from branch to branch. Naruto and the others were jumping through the trees in the Forest of Death, the wind wiping through their hair. Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura were practically as good as new. Hinata was just a few feet to his left as she scouted ahead with her Byakugan. Sasuke and Sakura took up the rear while Kiba and Shino took the middle.

"I can't believe we're almost done with this part of the exam," Hinata said loudly to Naruto as she looked over at him with a smile. She'd been smiling all morning ever since she woke up and remembered what she overheard.

"Yeah, and you saved my life!" Naruto shouted back with a large grin. "You've been amazing during this!" Naruto jumped forward and landed on his palms. He flipped over and looked between his arms, and grinned at Hinata. "You're my hero!" Naruto launched himself up with his arms and flipped back over with a laugh.

"Stop showing off!" Kiba shouted with a smirk as Naruto flipped through the air. He landed a bit behind Hinata but quickly caught up with her. "You'd think we didn't just have to save his ass yesterday with that attitude." Kiba snarked at Shino. Shino looked over and gave a slight shrug.

"Oh, come on!" Naruto shouted back with a large grin. "Let's have some fun while we can!" He let out a loud laugh as he forced wind chakra below his feet and jumped. Wind blasted from Naruto's feet, propelling him into the air. Naruto grinned as the wind rushed past his face as he soared into the air. As he started to fall, he twisted through the air doing several flips laughing the whole way down. His hair whipped around his head, and as the branches below got closer and closer, he pushed out a small amount of wind chakra around his hands and feet, cushioning his landing.

"Show off," Kiba muttered as Naruto landed near him. The blond ninja laughed and flashed feral ninja a toothy smirk. Pushing chakra into his legs, Naruto pushed off the branch and leaped through the air catching up to Hinata.

"What's got you in such a good mood?" Hinata asked sincerely as she looked at Naruto with a small smile. She liked this side of Naruto best when he was carefree and happy, just enjoying the moment.

"Well, the exam is practically over, isn't it?" Naruto asked as he looked at her with a grin. "All that's left is one on one fights. There isn't anyone here that can come close to beating me in a one-on-one fight."

"We'll see about that!" Kiba shouted from behind them. "You haven't fought me yet!"

"That so?" Naruto called back with a grin. "I look forward to it!"

"You don't stand a chance," Shino said in a monotone voice as he stared forward in front of them. He looked at Kiba through his dark glasses, who was making a face at him.

"Don't be such a spoilsport, Shino!" Kiba growled as they leaped from branch to branch. "I could have a chance!"

Shino didn't respond as a bug drifted down through the air towards Shino. The bug landed on his cheek, and Shino felt its chakra connect with his. He closed his eyes as he felt raw, jagged images float to the surface of his mind. Grainy washed-out images flashed before his eyes rapidly. It was like each picture was a rough piece of a puzzle that had to be put together. Then it faded.

"The tower is up ahead about 20 minutes out!" Shino called out loudly without shouting. The bug crawled around his cheek and scurried down his collar disappearing.

"Sounds good to me!" Sakura called back with a smile. "I could use a good proper shower."

"We'll have 30 days to train before the fights, right?" Kiba asked loudly. "That's 30 days to get ready to kick your ass, blondie!"

"For every day you train, I'll train ten days!" Naruto shouted back with a toothy grin. "You won't stand a chance!"

"What's that supposed to mean!" Kiba barked, shaking his fist at the blond ninja. "Don't say such stupid things without explaining it!"

Sakura let out a giggle as Kiba shouted at Naruto. "Kiba has no idea how true that statement is." Sakura's eyes slid over to Sasuke, who was smiling slightly. "We'll be able to get in quite a bit of training too. It should be a pretty easy exam if we can train as we did before."

"Yeah," Sasuke muttered as he let out a small sigh. "We have a lot of catching up to do if we want to get closer to his level."

"Well, at least we can do it together as a team," Sakura replied with a smile. "I'll try not to hold you back."

"You've never held me back," Sasuke replied stoically.

Sakura looked over at Sasuke, her eyes wide at his response. It was one of the closest things to a compliment Sasuke had ever said to her. "Well, you thought I would at first," she muttered as she flushed bright red.

"I was wrong, and you were helpful during our training." Sasuke turned and locked eyes with her. She was staring into his dark red eyes, and she felt her face turning bright red. "Thank you, Sakura."

Sasuke turned away and kept running straight ahead, not saying anything else. Sakura slowly peeled her eyes away from the raven-haired shinobi. 'When did he start to get so nice?'

"Man, 30 more days of pure training." Naruto let out a loud sigh. "I'm looking forward to it, but at the same time, I'm not."

"You think we'll be able to train together again? Even if it's just a little like before?" Hinata asked as she looked at Naruto with a small smile.

"I'm not sure," Naruto said with a shrug as he looked back at her with a gentle look. "I was thinking about training somewhere else for a bit."

"Somewhere else?" Hinata asked as her eyes widened. 'Is he leaving already? He can't be; he still has to finish the exams.'

"Yeah," Naruto replied as he shrugged with arms out in a comical fashion mid-jump. "There's somewhere I've always wanted to visit, and this might be the best opportunity I have to go for a while."

"Only during the training, though, right?" She asked as she looked at Naruto with a downcast expression. 'Does he mean Uzushio?' Hinata thought to herself. She didn't know much about the village other than it had been wiped out some time right before the Third Ninja War.

"Of course!" Naruto replied with a grin. "You think I'd go anywhere without my bodyguard for too long?" Naruto reached up, pulled his lower eyelid down, and stuck his tongue out at the blue-haired kunoichi. "You aren't getting rid of me that easily Hinata."

"Good," Hinata said as she beamed back at Naruto. As she landed on a branch, Hinata felt her heart flutter and then launched back into the air. 'It's only 30 days, or so it won't be that long…right?'

Naruto flashed her a toothy grin, and then he felt it. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up, and he could feel the air shift slightly around his face. Naruto ducked just as several shurikens flew over his head. He heard Hinata let out a small shout of surprise. Naruto landed on the closest branch and slid to a stop. Rolling, he sprang back up to his feet and drew his sword. Everyone else reacted instantly. Shino and Kiba took high ground above Naruto and Hinata. Naruto watched as Sasuke and Sakura stopped and stayed back on the lower ground.

"What!?" Hinata asked out loud. Naruto turned to see the veins around her eyes bulging slightly. Just as she opened her mouth to shout, Naruto jumped back. "Neji-nii-san!"

Neji's fist flew past right where Naruto's chin had just been. Naruto sneered as the long-haired ninja landed right where Naruto had been standing. Almost instantly, two figures appeared right behind him. 'It's that weirdo with the eyebrows and the girl.'

"Neji-kun, we don't need to fight them." The Tenten said softly, placing a hand on his shoulder. She looked at Neji seriously while Rock Lee was standing there grinning.

"Where's Sasuke-kun!?" Lee shouted as he looked around. "If Neji-san is gonna fight, I want to as well."

"Not you too!" Tenten snapped as she glared at the green jumpsuit-wearing ninja. "We have two scrolls; we're 15 minutes away from the tower. Let's just get there and call it a day."

"Neji-nii-san! What are you doing?" Hinata asked as she looked between Naruto and Neji. Naruto's eyes had shifted from Neji to the cracks in the bark under Lee's feet. His eyes traveled up to the orange leg warmers just above his ankles.

"You caught me off guard yesterday. That's not going to happen this time." Neji said as he glared at Naruto. Naruto's eyes snapped back to Neji's, and he smirked.

"Off-guard, on-guard, it doesn't matter. You don't have a chance." Naruto took a deep breath and sighed. "Listen to your teammate get to the tower and call it a day."

"No," Neji said stoically as the veins around his eyes bulged. "I'm going to end your time in the exam right here. In fact, I think I'm going to beat some manners into you." Neji lowered himself into a fighting stance. "Teach you to show some respect when addressing your betters."

"Your outnumbered Neji-nii-san," Hinata said loudly as she looked between him and Naruto. "Don't do this…please." Hinata watched as Neji snarled as she spoke. He didn't respond to her.

"I'd recommend not fighting my teammates." Naruto said as he looked between Tenten and Rock Lee." "If you two stay out of this, your team might still have a chance at getting through after this."

"Sakura! Sasuke! Stay out of this!" Naruto shouted, looking behind Tenten and Rock Lee. Both turned to look at Sasuke and Sakura on the branch right behind them. "This is between me and this branch family, Hyuga," Naruto smirked Neji's jaw clenched.

"But I really want to fight Sasuke-kun!" Lee shouted in disappointment.

"You won't have time," Neji said through gritted teeth. "I'm going to show this little brat who the strongest in this exam really is." Neji launched himself forward in a blur.

Naruto watched as Neji almost disappeared from his sight. He quickly flipped backward just as Neji's glowing fingers lashed out just where he'd been standing. Naruto twisted and threw several shurikens at Neji.

Naruto didn't bother to watch the Hyuga dodge as he turned and let himself fall to the ground. He flipped in midair with little effort and landed softly. He'd seen plenty of examples of the Gentle Fist over the last month. Fighting on the ground would give Neji the advantage, but Naruto didn't want to provide Neji with any excuses for when he lost. Naruto turned his head up and watched as Neji jumped down from the branch. His eyes tracked him down through the lower limbs a Neji landed in front of him with a quiet thump.

"Well, you going to fight me or what?" Naruto asked as he stood there, his hands laced behind his head. "You gave an awfully big speech before." Naruto looked at the long-haired teen and let out a deep sigh. "Listen, for some reason, Hinata seems to like you despite being a huge rude ass. So, this is your last chance back off."

"Like I'd lose to some second-rate orphan like you." Neji spat as he glared at Naruto. "When I'm done with you, I'll take care of the little princess in the exam."

"Neji-nii-san! Please, don't fight Naruto! Your issues are with me!" Hinata pleaded, her voice strained with emotion.

"Neji-san, maybe we should leave." Rock Lee said seriously as his face turned grim as he looked between the three. "We don't have to do this right now; we can fight later."

"Shut up, loser!" Neji snapped back as he turned to glare at his teammate. He turned to look back at Naruto, whose hands had fallen to his side, and his face had become stoic.

"I'm over this," Naruto said with a sigh. "After yesterday, I don't have the patience to deal with you, and It's better I teach you this lesson instead of a real enemy," Naruto said as he stretched his neck to the right. There was a slight cracking sound, and Naruto rolled his shoulders. "So, you gonna do something?" Naruto asked; he raised his arms and fell into a fighting stance.

Neji bolted forward faster than he had before. He cleared the distance between him and Naruto in less than a second. His fingers were glowing bright blue with chakra, and the veins around his eyes were pulsating with blood. He stopped on a dime and lashed out with two fingers.

Naruto turned to avoid the blow. Neji didn't slow down. His hands lashed out furiously in quick succession. Once. Twice. Three Times. Each time Naruto sidestepped the blows with ease. Neji swiped at Naruto's face. Naruto ducked just as his palm soared past the spot his face had been. Naruto maneuvered around Neji's outstretched arm and snapped back up. Naruto turned his body, and with his right hand, he reached up and wrapped his fingers around Neji's wrist. Naruto's left hand slammed into Neji's outstretched arm just above the elbow. Naruto softened the blow to avoid breaking the Hyuga's arm.


"Neji-kun!" Tenten shouted as she started to move towards him. Sasuke appeared in front of her instantly and glared down at her with his Sharingan.

"I wouldn't do that," Sasuke said as he glared down at her. Tenten flinched back and moved to draw a kunai from her thigh holster. She felt something grab her wrists and pin her arm behind her back with a rough upwards tug. She turned her head to see a second Sasuke. "I really wouldn't do that." The second Sasuke said.

She reached behind her back with her free hand for a tanto she had strapped to her back. Once again, someone grabbed her wrist. Turning, she locked eyes with another set of bright red eyes.

"Last warning." The Sasuke in Infront of her said harshly as he shoved her back towards Lee. The other two Sasuke's disappeared with a shimmer. It was genjutsu. "Your teammate wanted this. Don't get involved, or I will." Sasuke let the warning hang in the air as he turned towards the fight.

Neji let out a groan as Naruto released his arm and threw two jabs into the Huyga's stomach and chest. Then spun on the ball of his left foot and lashed out with his right. Neji's head snapped to the side as the young man was lifted off his feet and then went crashing into the ground.


"What's Naruto doing?" Kiba asked as he turned to look at Shino with a raised eyebrow. "It's almost like he's playing with him."

"That's because he is," Shino said softly as he tilted his head at the fight. He felt a shiver go down his spine when Hyuga Neji was lifted off the ground. 'Neji is without a doubt one of the strongest genin in Konoha. Uzumaki Naruto, just how strong are you?'

"Well, he needs to wrap it up so we can get to the tower and rest." Kiba groaned loudly.

"He wants to humiliate him," Shino muttered as he kept his eyes on the two below them. The difference between the two genin was astronomical. Naruto was wholly relaxed, dodging each strike as if was being made by a child and not an elite ninja


"God damn you!" Neji shouted as anger got the better of him. He rolled to his feet and sucked his teeth. He spat out the metallic tang that had filled his mouth, and bright red blood spattered the ground at his feet.

"This is over!" Neji shouted as chakra pulsed through all of his muscles simultaneously. "Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms!" It was instant. Neji moved faster than he had during the entire fight, his fingers blazing with chakra. He was on top of Naruto before he could visibly react.

"Two Palms!" Neji shouted as he lashed out at Naruto twice in rapid succession. For the first time, he hit the blond.


"Naruto!" Sakura yelled as she took a step forward. She felt a hand clasp around her wrist. Turning, she locked eyes with Sasuke, who shook his head. Sakura turned back with a look of concern on her face.

Sasuke could barely believe his own eyes as he watched the fight. Had Naruto always been able to do that? 'Have you always been this strong, or did you learn that while we were training?'


"Four Palms!" Neji shouted again, hitting two more times.

"Eight Palms!"
"Sixteen Palms!"

"THIRTY-TWO PALMS!" Neji roared one last time as he pummeled Naruto. His fingers ablaze with chakra struck Naruto 32 times with imperceivable speed. As his last strike landed, Naruto slid back in the dirt with a loud grunt and then fell to his knees.


"Neji!" Hinata shouted in shock. She knew that Naruto she was looking at wasn't the real one; it couldn't be. The Naruto on the ground had almost no chakra; where did it all go? Could one of Naruto's clones take an attack like that? 'How can he know how to perform that attack? Only the main family is taught how to do that? What happened to Naruto? Where did his chakra go? I should have stopped this!'


Naruto coughed and felt something slick and metallic in his mouth. He turned his eyes up towards Neji, who was standing there panting. A broad sly smile pulled over his face.

"Why are you smiling?" Naruto asked roughly. "When the real one is behind you?" Then Naruto disappeared with a soft pop and a puff of white smoke.

Neji turned quickly but was too slow. Naruto had darted out just from outside his field of view and struck Neji in the chest with his palm. Neji stumbled backwards. Then with his Byakugan, he saw what he must have missed before. Another Naruto appeared behind him with a puff of smoke. 'A shadow clone! But how!?' Neji asked himself frantically. The Naruto in front of him hadn't even moved.

"As I said before, I've run out of patience," Naruto said as Neji stumbled back towards the original Naruto. Naruto's arm whipped up as the back of his hand crashed into the side of Neji's face with a loud whip-like crack. Neji felt his head snap just as he saw a third Naruto appear. The third Naruto brought his open palm down across the side of Neji's face, and the black-haired teen was once again sent reeling…right into another Naruto. Neji once again felt the biting sting of Naruto's palm as it slid over his face. Neji lost his footing and fell onto one knee, and he lifted his face to lock eyes with the Naruto that'd backhanded him.

"How? How could you beat me!? It's your fate to lose to me! You're a nobody!" Neji shouted angrily as he stared at the glaring blond daggers. "How did you make those clones!"

"The Shadow Clone Jutsu is something I've been using for years, ever since I was a kid. I've mastered this jutsu to an extent no other ninja has before me. I haven't needed hand seals to make clones for a long time." Naruto stepped forward, his upper lip curled in disgust.

"You're everything wrong with this village!" Naruto shouted angrily at Neji. "You mistake your privilege for strength and a modicum of talent for genius!" Naruto took another step towards Neji; his blue eyes were as hard as diamonds. "You look down on those you perceive as weaker than you and treat them like garbage! The only thing you care about is yourself, and even with those eyes, you're too blind to see the truth in front of you!" Naruto reached down and grabbed Neji by the hair and forcefully turned the ninja, who let out a small shout. Neji's eyes had been turned to look at his teammates, but he could still see Naruto clearly with his Byakugan.

"Hinata, Sasuke, Kiba, Shino, and even your teammates could see how this fight would go before it even started. You endangered them! Put their future at risk to fulfill a petty insignificant feud with me because I dared to call you out!" Naruto jerked Neji's head up. "Even with your eyes, your blind to the fact that you're not even the strongest genin on your team, let alone in this exam!" Naruto pointed a finger directly at Rock Lee, "he is the strongest genin in this exam! Not you! You're just a pathetic and angry little boy taking your anger out on the people that you consider to be weaker than you."

Searing pain filled Neji's senses as he watched the Naruto behind him draw his sword with his free hand slash at his back; it was faster than Neji could even process it as he felt Naruto throw his head away from him and the skin on his back split open. Neji could feel warm blood soaking through the back of his shirt and rolling over his back and into the ground. There were several soft pops as the other Naruto's disappeared.

'How!? How is this even possible!?' Neji thought to himself as he felt his knee move under him. He was trying to push himself up off the ground. He felt the sole of Naruto's foot press itself into the open wound, and he let you a shout as his knee and arms collapsed, and he fell to the ground completely.

"Neji!" Tenten shouted, stepping forward.

"Naruto!" Hinata shouted as she looked at the blond in shock. She felt a chill run through her body when she thought about how Naruto had acted the other day. Stabbing that sound ninja and the cold look on his face. The same look he had now. "You proved your point! You can let it go!"

"Let go of whatever anger is eating away at you," Naruto said as he twisted his foot into the wound on Neji's back one last time as he sheathed his sword. "Trust me on that; it'll make you feel better. At least until some arrogant prick decides to ambush you and ruin the mood."

"How dare you! You sit here and lecture me on my arrogance! What about yours!." Neji gasped in a raspy voice. "You know nothing about the Hyuga or this village." Neji turned his eyes boring into Naruto's. "You have no idea what it's like knowing every day that you're just disposable. That your life is nothing compared to theirs, but you stand there and compare me to them!"

Naruto stared into Neji's eyes and sighed. "Believe it or not, I know exactly how it feels. I know it's like to fight every day and still not be good enough. To still be rejected despite everything." Naruto moved even closer to Neji. "I know what it's like to wake up and fight the urge to kill these people. Like your barely holding on, and your grip could slip at any time, and you could end up doing something you regret. Hinata isn't one of them, and I think despite all your effort, you probably aren't either but don't give me a reason to lose my grip." Naruto shoved Neji into the ground one last time and stood up.

"This isn't over!" Neji shouted at Naruto as he stood still glaring. "I'll do whatever it ta-" Neji was cut short as Naruto's foot lashed out and collided with his head.

"it's over," Naruto said as Neji fell unconscious. Naruto looked down and gave Neji one last sad look just as Rock Lee and Tenten landed in front of him. Each on either side of Neji and both of them ready to fight. "Pick up your friend and get him to the tower before you're disqualified," Naruto said, making it clear he wasn't interested in fighting them.

Tenten and Lee both looked at each other for a moment before turning towards Naruto and nodding hesitantly. "Naruto-kun, I'm sorry this happened," Lee said softly before he picked Neji up and threw him over his shoulder. Lee and Tenten gave Naruto one last cautious look before they jumped up into the trees and disappeared.

"Yeah, me too." Naruto sighed as he watched them take off. Looking around, he saw Kiba, Shino, Sakura, Sasuke, and Hinata all standing in the trees, looking down at him with entirely different expressions. Naruto's focus was inevitably pulled to Hinata, who looked down at him with an expression Naruto couldn't quite grasp.

"That was incredible, Naruto!" Kiba shouted as he jumped off a branch and fell through the air. He landed next to Naruto with a small thump. "I mean, he hit you with that crazy move, but you shrugged it off like it was nothing. "Man, to see that smug bastard get knocked on his ass like that is the highlight of this exam so far!"

Everyone else seemed to fall from the branches above in quick succession landing around Naruto like Kiba.

Naruto forced a broad smile on his face, "Yeah, well, he had it coming." Naruto laced his fingers behind his head and let out a smug laugh. "He took me by surprise with that move, though. I didn't think he knew something like that. If I'd known he was capable of that, I would have taken it a bit more seriously."

"He shouldn't," Hinata said muttered as she looked at Naruto with concern. "That's a main branch technique. The only person who should be capable of pulling that move off right now is my father."

"Well, I guess he is a prodigy," Sakura said with a sigh as she looked between Hinata and Naruto.

"Is that really what you'd call a performance like that," Sasuke said with his usual air of superiority. "You didn't tell us you could make clones without hand seals," Sasuke said as he raised his eyebrows at Naruto.

"I didn't realize it was worth mentioning, honestly," Naruto said with a loud laugh. "It's not like I was hiding it or anything." Naruto walked over and placed a hand on Sasuke's shoulders, "lighten up."

"I think we should get moving soon," Shino said with his usual flat tone as he looked around the forest. "It's already been over 24 hours. We should try and get back to the tower to start resting up. That way, we're ready to start training as soon as this part of the exam is over."

"Sasuke and I will go on ahead this time," Sakura said as she looked between Naruto and Hinata again. Naruto followed her gaze back to Hinata and let out a small breath. She was still looking at him with that same expression. Was it concern? Guilt? Fear? All three?

"Kiba and Shino, you two take the middle. I have to rest up a bit before I start moving again," Naruto said as he rolled his shoulders and groaned. "Hinata can stay with me in case something happens. We'll catch up in a couple of minutes."

"What? Are you serious?" Kiba asked as he looked at Naruto in confusion. "That's stupid; we can all wait here just in case."

"He said they'll catch up, Kiba," Shino replied as he reached out and pulled Kiba towards him by the arm. "They'll be fine."

"You really are dense," Sakura muttered as she jumped up onto a low-hanging branch.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kiba shouted as Sasuke followed his pink-haired teammate.

"Come on," Shino said as he jumped onto the same branch, Sasuke and Sakura had just been on.

Kiba looked between Shino, Naruto, and Hinata for a few seconds. "Fine, but you better catch up quick. I don't want to double back for you." Naruto watched as Kiba and Shino quickly disappeared from sight and into the foliage.

Naruto and Hinata stood there for a few seconds avoiding the other's gaze. Finally, Naruto let out a sigh, "everything okay?"

"I-I'm sorry about Neji-nii-san," Hinata practically whispered as she met Naruto's gaze. "His relationship with the main branch is complicated."

"I'm guessing he's been taking it out on you," Naruto responded as he let his arms rest at his sides. "Seems like he has a problem with everyone."

"He wasn't always like that," Hinata muttered as she looked down. "It's gotten a lot worst the last couple of years. "His relationship with the main branch has been strained ever since his father died. Since then, it's just festered. When he graduated from the academy last year, it just got worse."

"I'm guessing his father was your dads' brother."

"Yes," Hinata said quietly; her mouth tightened as she took a deep breath. "When I was younger, I was kidnapped by ninjas from Kumo. My father killed them when he saved my life. Kumo demanded that my father be turned over to them as retribution to prevent war. They sent Neji's father instead; he was my father's twin brother."

"He blames you for his father's death?" Naruto asked as he took a step closer to Hinata. "That's ridiculous; if anyone's to blame, it's your father, not you."

"I don't know if he blames me or just resents me," Hinata muttered. She gave Naruto a small smile trying to reassure him. "Either way, he hates me, and it seems like it grows more and more every day."

"That's not all you wanted to say," Naruto replied as he laid a hand on her arm. "You're upset about something else, right?"

"It's just," Hinata started to say and then paused for a second. She locked eyes with Naruto and swallowed. "When you stabbed that Oto-nin and just now with Neji. It's like you were a different person entirely." Hinata turned away from Naruto's gaze. "You were so angry and cold. It was scary. You humiliated him and could have ended that fight any time, but you drew it out."

Naruto looked away with a sigh and squeezed Hinata's arm gently. "I know I'm sorry." He stepped back to let out nervous laughter. "I guess, sometimes I get too into it or something." Naruto rubbed the back of his head, "but I would never hurt you, Hinata."

"I-I know that," Hinata replied quickly. "I'm just worried about you, is all. I know that being a ninja…that being a ninja isn't an easy job, and we're going to have to do things that we don't want to do." Hinata bit her lip as she tried to find the right words spinning around in her head. "I guess I just never thought of you like that before. I just had a different vision of you in my head, is all."

"I've spent a good chunk of my life being hated by almost everyone I met." Naruto absentmindedly kicked the dirt under his feet. "With that other nin and Neji," Naruto trailed off and let out a sigh. "I don't know," Naruto said defeatedly. "That Oto-nin was threatening you and Sasuke, and they'd hurt Sakura."

"What about Neji-nii-san? Did you have to be so…so…cruel?"

"Neji is more dangerous than you think he is," Naruto's tone was a bit sharper than he intended it to be. "I-I just mean I think he just got under my skin for some reason. I didn't mean to be cruel. I'm sorry you thought I was. I was trying to show him what could have happened if he'd acted like that towards a real enemy."

"No, I'm sorry," Hinata trailed off, looking away from Naruto, her cheeks flush. "I-I didn't mean to upset you." 'I shouldn't have said anything; now he's going think I think he's a monster.'

"It's okay," Naruto said with a smile. He reached forward and placed his hand on top of her head softly. "Maybe I pushed it a little too far, but we should get going."

"Naruto," Hinata said as Naruto bent his knees to jump onto the low-hanging branches above them. "What did you mean when you said Neji was more dangerous than I think he is?"

"I just meant that I think I know where Neji is coming from. At least to an extent, and I know what that can do to somebody." Naruto responded before jumping onto the branch above them.


"About time!" Kiba shouted as Hinata and Naruto came into view. The four of them had been standing near the tower for close to ten minutes, waiting for them to catch up.

"Sorry about that!" Naruto shouted back. Naruto leaped from branch to branch towards the other four leaf-nin. Once he was close enough, he flipped over one last branch before landing on the ground with a dull thud. "Hope I didn't keep you all waiting for too long."

"Whatever! Let's get this over with," Kiba barked with a large grin. "Hinata, you have our other scroll?"

"Yes," Hinata muttered as she reached into one of her pouches and pulled out a scroll. She handed it over to Kiba, who held it aloft with a giant grin on his face.

"That's my queue." Naruto reached into a pouch and pulled out a lone scroll. Unrolling it, Naruto stuck his hand under the sealing formula letting the rest of the scroll fall over his hand. There was a small pop and puff of white smoke, and a pile of scrolls appeared in his hand. The scrolls quickly started to roll off each other and fall to the ground.

"You collected that many scrolls before you were attacked!?" Kiba looked at the scrolls falling to the ground with an envious look.

"Oh yeah, we hunted a few groups down in the first couple of hours. It was pretty easy getting our hands on them." Naruto bent over and picked up one Earth Scroll and one Heaven Scroll. Tossing one to Sasuke and the other to Sakura, Naruto rolled up his sealing scroll and stuck it back in the pouch.

"You're just going to leave those there?" Shino asked curiously as he eyed the discarded scrolls on the ground.

"Why not? Most people coming here should already have two scrolls, and if they don't then, it'll be their lucky day."

Sasuke sucked his teeth and looked at Sakura. "Ready?"

"Oh yeah," Sakura said as she unrolled her scroll.

"Hey, wait for me!" Kiba shouted as he unrolled his scroll as well.

Two pops accompanied by the usual white smoke as Kakashi and a woman Naruto didn't recognize appeared. She was about average height with long dark hair bright red eyes. For a second, Naruto thought she might be an Uchiha.

"Congratulations, Team 7," The woman said with a small smile.

"Also, Team 8," Kakashi said with a smirk under his mask. His uncovered eye lingered on the scroll in Shino's hand and then Sasuke's as well. "It seems both teams have arrived with each scroll."

"With a few to spare, it looks like," The woman with red eyes said with a small laugh.

"See told you we'd get through Kurenai-sensei!" Kiba said with a loud laugh. "It was no sweat; went off without a hitch."

"That's not really true," Shino replied as he shook his head. "It was challenging Kurenai-sensei."

"Well, I'm glad to see my team rose to the challenge," Kurenai replied as she smiled at all three of them. "I'm very proud of you three."

"Thank you, Sensei," Hinata muttered as she bowed respectfully.

"Aren't you proud of us, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked, throwing an arm around Kakashi's shoulders. "I even got you some extras; maybe you can read them instead of the new Icha Icha book."

"What do you mean new Icha Icha book?" Kakashi asked suddenly, very serious as he turned and grabbed Naruto's arms. "The last book was Icha Icha Violence, and there haven't been any new volumes released yet!"

"Oh, I didn't mention that?" Naruto asked with a sly smirk on his face. "I could have sworn I told you there was a new Icha Icha book coming out soon. Ero-sennin did drop it off at his publisher's office before we went to Wave."

"How could you withhold such critical information from your sensei!" Kakashi demanded as he shook Naruto roughly.

"Enough," Sasuke said loudly as he grabbed the back of Naruto's vest and pulled him out of Kakashi's grip. "We need to talk," Sasuke said pointedly, staring at Kakashi.

"That's true," Kakashi muttered as he stroked his chin. "We should get to the Hokage's office. He's set up here temporarily during the exams." Kakashi turned and offered a lazy wave to Kurenai and Team 8. Sasuke started following Kakashi without another word, but he did offer Team 8 a quick wave similar to Kakashi's.

"Well, we should probably get going," Sakura said with a bow. "Thanks again for all your help."

"Don't you forget it!" Kiba thundered with a deep laugh. "You wouldn't be here if it weren't for us, so take it easy on us during the next phase."

"Kiba!" Kurenai said sharply as her dark red eyes stared daggers at the young man.

"I'll catch you all up later," Naruto said as he gave them a wave and a large smile. "I'll do my best not to kill you if we have to fight Kiba-kun."

"I'll see you soon," Hinata muttered with a small smile.

"What do you mean you'll try not to kill me?" Kiba asked, his face a few shades whiter than it was before. "Do you think he really meant that?" Kiba asked turning to Hinata.

Hinata smiled at him and let out a small laugh. She turned her attention back to Naruto as he disappeared into the shadows cast by the tower.

"Come on," Kurenai said softly as she smiled at her team. "Let's get you three set up here; you have to stay at the tower until the five days are up."

A/N: Another update for everyone. I have a few more chapters already written, so hopefully, I'll get the next one up sometime this week.

Please feel free to leave a review and let me know what you think! I really enjoy hearing everyone's feedback. I know this is all very Cannon adjacent right now, but trust me, we're going to veering off the beaten path real soon. I just wanted to use these cannon events to introduce everyone and lay the groundwork for acts 2 &3