Uzumaki Naruto, Uchiha Sasuke, and Haruno Sakura sat silently in the empty classroom. It had been nearing three hours since the Genin teams were decided, and their sensei - Hatake Kakashi - was nowhere to be seen. Naruto was about to fall asleep in his chair when suddenly a tall, lanky looking man pushed his way into the room. It was the Silver One. Naruto recognized him from months before. Despite his laid back posture and slouched shoulders, Naruto knew this man was incredibly dangerous. Being in the man's presence made his hairs stand on end. He glanced at Obsidian Eyes and Haruno. They seemed to either not notice The Silver One's latent power, or were unperturbed. Naruto highly doubted it was the latter.
"Where've you been!?" Haruno's voice pierced the silence violently. "We've been waiting here for hours!"
Naruto eyed The Silver One as his lone visible eye gently closed, curving downwards in the image of a smile. "Maaah. I simply got lost on the road of life."
Sasuke could faintly be heard muttering. "What a load of crap."
The Silver One spoke up again. "Well then, my cute little Genin. Meet me on the roof." With his piece said, he vanished in a swirl of leaves. Last Naruto checked, the Body Flicker Technique did not create that many leaves, all of which were conveniently stuck in the three Genin's hair. The blond grumbled, shook his head vigorously then moved to the nearest window. Slipping out of said window, he strode up the wall confidently.
He arrived just a few moments before Uchiha and Haruno finished their climb up the stairs. Wall climbing was good practice for his chakra control. Uchiha turned to him, the question dancing in his eyes. Haruno beat him to it. "How'd you get up here so fast?"
"I walked." Naruto was amused by how frustrated this answer made Haruno. Sasuke strode closer to the tanned boy. He leaned down. "Come on, Uzumaki. It isn't nice to hide secrets from your teammates."
Naruto raised a lone brow at the Uchiha's brazenness, but shrugged. "I channeled my chakra to the soles of my feet. Regulating my chakra to the thickness of the object I am attaching to, I can stick to it."
Sasuke nodded his approval. Haruno pondered. The team was interrupted by a non-discrete cough coming from the corner. The Silver One beckoned them over to his side of the roof. They followed.
"Alright kiddos, I would like you to introduce yourselves."
Haruno piped up from where she was seated criss-crossed on the floor. "Can you give us an example, Sensei?"
"Hmm, sure. My name is Kakashi Hatake. I like some things, dislike a few others. Never really thought about my future dreams.. I have a lot of hobbies."
Sakura frowned. "All we learned was his name…"
"Alright! Let's start with you, Blondie."
Naruto looked straight into The Silver One's lone eye. "My name is Uzumaki Naruto. I like growing stronger. I dislike weaklings. In my spare time I train and learn more. My dream is to become Hokage and stand at the summit of humanity."
Haruno twitched. "Who are you to speak such arrogance!"
A pair of cerulean eyes flicked towards the source of the annoyance. With a grunt, his significant chakra was flexed and Haruno damn near fell on her ass. He turned away with a huff, muttering. "Weakling…"
"...Anyways, Pinky you're up next." The Silver One was the diffusing party.
"O-oh. I like uh-" The girl glanced in a certain someone's direction. "I dislike, well-" She glanced in the direction of her other teammate, eliciting a scoff. "As for goals.." The girl trailed off once again.
Naruto glared at her, disappointed. What kind of teammate is this?
"Let us hear you now, dark and angry." The Silver One's voice cut through the tension once again. Obsidian Eyed took a breath in, then spoke.
"My name is Uchiha Sasuke. I have many dislikes, and no likes in particular. As for goals… I wouldn't put it as a goal so much as my ambition. My ambition is to grow as strong as I can, and kill a certain man."
The blond boy beside him whistled. Hatake clapped his hands together. "Great! Meet me at training ground seven tomorrow at eight O'clock sharp. Oh, I forgot to mention. I would advise against eating breakfast." His uncovered right eye, dark as coal, curled into a smile. "You'll just throw it up again."
Sakura shuddered at The Silver One's sinister countenance. "Bye now, my cute little student-hopefuls!" And with that, he vanished in a swirl of leaves.
The newly minted Genin met at training ground seven the following day. It was swelteringly hot, with not a cloud in the sky. The three Genin in question sat in a variety of stances. Uchiha was leaning back on the fence, eyes closed. Haruno sat next to him, attempting to garner his attention. Finally, Uzumaki sat in a tree. Or perhaps a more apt description would be stuck to a tree, as his body was perpendicular to the ground, flush with the tree trunk. Uzumaki Naruto was continually practicing his chakra control, as well as constantly trying to grow his already massive reserves.
Naruto was calm. While he felt hunger, he was also no stranger to foodless days during his early childhood. He ignored the gnawing feeling in his gut. Focusing instead on the feeling of wind in his hair, the ground beneath him, warm sunny rays on his face, and slight crisp smell of ozone in his nostrils. Time ceased to be of importance. All that mattered was him and his place within the world.
And just like that the moment was shattered by an incoming presence. It was The Silver One, but unlike yesterday, he did not bother to conceal his chakra or stature. Naruto released his influence over his chakra, sliding down the rough bark. Touching down to the ground with the speed he had accumulated over the course of his fall, his teammates were alerted.
"Something the matter, Uzumaki?" It was Uchiha, eager for a chance to shake the lone female in the area off him.
The blond was serious. "Hatake is here."
It wasn't that Haruno didn't believe Naruto, the boy had proved to be reliable when it came to these sorts of things, she herself could not sense Kakashi. "I can't sense his chakra."
Uchiha and Uzumaki met eyes, but it was Naruto who responded. "How? His presence is gargantuan." The noirette nodded his assent. Naruto's eyes widened in shock, and he bellowed out an order before diving to the right. "SCATTER!"
Not a moment too soon. A hail of shuriken coated the area where the boy once stood. He was already in motion, sprinting towards Uchiha and Haruno. Mid-dash, Naruto pressed his right hand to his chest, channeling chakra into the seal that had been active since he last met with The Wrinkly Old Man. Within an instant, the heavy pressure that had weighed Naruto down vanished, and his speed more than tripled. Crossing the remaining distance between himself and his teammates near instantly, he grabbed a hold of them, then sped off into the woods. He flung the three of them to the left, narrowly avoiding a hail of kunai.
The Uchiha acted quickly. "What's happening?" Which contrasted rather nicely with Haruno's disgruntled cry of: "Put me down!"
A surge of chakra was felt behind, and the blond acted on instinct. Paying the Pinkette no mind, he filled his leg muscles with dark chakra, jumping into the canopy with a mighty leap. Three large balls of fire detonated where he once stood.
Naruto couldn't resist exclaiming. "Holy shit, no chant for a technique of that power?!"
He continued his original thought. "We are being chased by Hatake. To what end I know not but considering that was the phoenix flower technique I would say that this is some sort of combat test."
Uchiha slapped Haruno. "Get yourself together, we need to find a way to defeat Hatake. No way a veteran Jonin expects us to beat him alone. We'll need to work together."
The girl recoiled, but nodded. Naruto spoke up as he made a sudden right turn, jerking his teammates and very nearly dropping Sakura. Not a moment too soon, as a high speed wave obliterated the tree they were just standing on. "I will engage Hatake head on, Uchiha you're with me. Haruno, you're weaker so I request that you either stay out of our way or provide ranged support. Genjutsu or shurikenjutsu."
The girl wouldn't be nearly so cooperative in any other situation. However the stress of being viciously assaulted by their Sensei and still reeling from the slap, she nodded. Naruto tensed his right shoulder, which held Sakura. "I'm going to drop you on this branch, don't fall."
Naruto heaved, and as he passed the targeted tree he dropped the girl. Mid fall, she reached both hands into her belt pouches, procuring six shurikens. She let them fly in the general direction of their pursuer.
Grabbing a hold of the trunk, Naruto used this momentum to complete a one-eighty spin, thrusting his foot out into a kick. He channeled chakra into the limb, reinforcing it. Their pursuer's lone eye narrowed, as he flashed through three hand seals, and slammed his sandaled foot into the dirt. "Earth Style: Mud Wall!"
A chakra enhanced foot crashed into a wall of rock and dirt. The wall shook, but held strong. Throwing his last passenger into the air, Naruto called out: "Do something, Uchiha!"
Weaving through seven hand seals the boy shouted his technique as he flew through the air, right over the wall of earth. "Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique!"
A ball of angry, roiling flames soared through the sky, singeing the very air Sasuke was breathing. Hatake looked up. A Genin shouldn't possess the necessary chakra to perform such a technique… Although I suppose I should expect anything less from progeny of one of the great clans.
The fireball landed, and instantly exploded. Did I get him? Having lost his concentration, the Uchiha was surprised by a kunai approaching his throat. An orange clad arm intercepted just in time, slapping the offending limb away. Uchiha and Uzumaki jumped back, creating space between them and their attacker. They got a good long look at him this time. He was incredibly tall, perhaps a few inches past six feet. His long silver hair was kept out of his eyes by his Konoha headband, which also covered his left eye. The Silver One's presence was monstrous, just being near him felt like the air itself was heavy. He spoke, tone light and playful. "Good job!" He chuckled a bit. "I wasn't expecting such resistance! You truly are a set of unique Genin!"
Naruto rested a hand on top of Sasuke's shoulder. The black haired boy was surprised to find that he was no longer in the forest facing Hatake, but in some sort of dank, circular room. Ankle deep water obscured the floor, and there was a lone skull in the middle of the room, white as snow. "What is this place?" Sasuke muttered.
"My Innate Domain, or mindscape." Naruto replied.
The Uchiha startled, but then responded. "Hmm. I've never heard of such a thing."
The blond hummed his agreement. "I hadn't either." He paused, thoughtful. "I have reason to believe that it is due to my innate technique. I think they are called Bloodline Limits in the textbooks."
The ravenette froze, eyes wide as saucers. "B-Bloodline Limit?!" A very un-Uchiha like stutter escaped his lips.
Naruto smirked at the sight. "Yes, I call it 'Shrine.' It is something I've researched and found no information about, so I can only assume that it is unique to me."
The Uchiha knew the ramifications of having a Bloodline Limit, possessing one himself. For example, Kirigakure had wars fought over Bloodline Limits. "Wait, this is all very interesting but what about the scary Jonin that we should be engaging at the moment?"
Naruto waved him off. "Time flows differently here. Don't worry about it, Uchiha."
The boy in question frowned, but supposed he had no choice but to believe his blond teammate. "Sure, so why did you bring us here?"
Naruto frowned. "It has to do with that 'Scary Jonin' you were referring to." The boy took a deep breath. "I met him a while ago, very briefly. He was an emissary for the Hokage. When I looked at him.." Naruto Shuddered a bit. "Let's just say I wasn't as strong back then, and Hatake is incredibly powerful."
Uchiha Sasuke grimaced, his face scrunching. "Well then, do you have a plan?"
Naruto sighed. "To win? No. There's no way we could defeat a monster like him. Going off of the assumption that this is a test, we should try to impress him the best we can."
Naruto received a nod of affirmation. "Do you have your Sharingan yet, Uchiha?"
His face twisted again. He looked like he would rather eat a shoe than say what he was about to say. "No."
Despite the fact that Uchiha kept his response short, it was clear he was ashamed of his weakness. Uzumaki realized his Innate Technique before I did…
"Alright, that will make things a bit harder." Naruto let a challenging smirk grace his features. "Do try to keep up, won't you?"
With that, the mindscape fell away, putting Sasuke and Naruto back in front of their Jonin pursuer. Naruto gave him a look.
The two boys sprang into action. Sasuke leapt to the right, taking high ground and began pressuring Hatake with shuriken and kunai.
Naruto on the other hand, jumped right into Hatake's face, throwing an alarmingly fast punch. The Jonin weaved, then returned a left hook of his own. Deflecting it off of his forearm, the blond rammed his face into Hatake's. Cleary not expecting such a reckless move, the taller man was stunned momentarily. At that moment, a certain black haired someone swept Hatake's legs, dropping him to the floor. However, instead of impacting the ground like the two Genin expected, The Silver One sank into the ground like it wasn't even there. Sasuke jumped back immediately, wary of Hatake. "What the fuck?"
"He's underground." Naruto spoke up. "I can feel him"
He shouldn't be able to hear what I say while he's down there plotting…
"Haruno! The second he surfaces, cover him in Genjutsu!" Naruto barked baritone orders to his underlings.
The girl's chakra was unsteady. Naruto could tell she was nervous due to Hatake's overwhelming strength. He opened his mouth to reassure her. "Sakura, fear not. Uchiha and I will occupy Hata-"
The rest of Naruto's sentence was cut off by The Silver One grabbing his face and dragging him violently through the tree line. The two of them smashed through tree after tree. Naruto's body -toughened as it was by the Nine Tails- was still under immense strain. After being shoved through the fifth tree, Naruto managed to wrap his hand around Hatake's arm, using his left forelimb as a battering ram, he thrust it into Hatake's arm with as much strength as he could muster. A sickening crunch echoed through the forest as Hatake's limb broke under the impact. The man ignored the pain, and threw Naruto deeper into the woods.
Uchiha Sasuke was giving chase when he was suddenly forced to engage The Silver One in a vicious flurry of Taijutsu. The boy was hard pressed, and was barely able to mount a defense. Hatake's blows were lightning fast, and felt like being hit by a sledgehammer, even when Sasuke blocked them. Pumping as much chakra as he was able to safely channel through his legs, he rocketed upwards into the canopy. Weaving hand seals once again, he shouted: "Fire Style: Great Flamethrower!"
Using this technique was nearing the upper limits of his prowess, but he deemed it necessary to create enough space. Any technique less lethal wouldn't delay the ferocious Jonin long enough. An enormous wave of flames bathed the area where Hatake had been, super heating the air. Sasuke sustained the technique a moment longer in order to prevent The Silver One from being able to press the advantage. He cut it short soon after, in order to save chakra. He was running dangerously low, he had to play it safe.
He felt the man before he saw him again. His chakra was gargantuan, and his presence was unlike anything he had ever felt. When he finally came into view Sasuke was surprised to see Hatake's right arms dangling at an odd angle. He watched, horrified as The Silver One brought his right appendage in front of him, then braced it with his left. A seafoam green glow emanated from his left hand. Sasuke's mouth dropped open. He can HEAL too? He tensed, expecting to need to defend himself once more. He was pleasantly surprised however when a barrage of miscellaneous sharp metal objects punctured the man. Of course, it was revealed soon after that all that was hit was a log. The man gave one last look at Sasuke before darting off to find the source of his ranged attacker. That was the first useful thing she has ever done.. Where the hell is Naruto?
The boy in question was grumbling as he picked himself out of the shard of an exploded tree. Having been flung there by The Silver One, Naruto wasn't in the greatest shape. His durable orange jacket's backside was torn to shreds. Growling to himself, the blond violently ripped the rest of the jacket off of himself, shirt included. This left a very angry, bare chested Naruto standing in the clearing. He was sweaty, in pain, and loved every second of it. That doesn't mean Hatake is not going to get his due, though. He tensed his muscles, flooding them with dense chakra from his near bottomless reserves. With a bang he was off, the ground where he once stood having cratered.
The three Genin met in semi-open clearing. There was no terrain they could use to avoid or escape from Hatake. The man in question strode in confidently, and had his eyes drawn to the three of them standing side by side. The blond one was in the middle, with the Uchiha on Naruto's right, and Haruno on Naruto's left. Hatake chuckled, it reminded him of his old team. He spoke up, his lackadaisical voice drifting through the air. "So, one last try?"
Haruno spoke up first. "Try for what?"
The Silver One looked confused at that. "Did I not tell you what your goal is as a part of this test?"
The girl nearly fell over. Uchiha looked incredulous, and Naruto began laughing uproariously. "You- You asshole!" The blond wiped tears from his eyes. "Bastard started the test without even telling us there was one!"
His teammates did not find it as funny as he did. Kakashi frowned, then spoke. "Well, despite how well you have been doing so far, I can't help but feel a little bit bad for forgetting such a large detail…" Haruno sweatdropped. "So, I'm changing it up. Last five minutes in combat against me right now, and you will officially be Team Seven."
"You mean to tell me that right now, we aren't actually your students?" Naruto asked blankly.
"Well yes, I do mean to tell you that. I thought I had told you earlier. Must have forgotten about that too."
A borderline evil grin stretched across Naruto's face. "That means I can test a few things out, then. I won't feel guilty for accidentally killing you if you aren't even my Sensei."
With his piece said, the boy pumped chakra into his legs and bolted forward, splaying his fingers in front of him and solemnly declaring a single word.
"Dismantle"
Hatake's instincts screamed at him to move and he was glad he did. The Silver One threw himself to the side just in time as the row of trees behind him, the ones that defined the clearings border, were bisected. The technique responsible for that was fast, incredibly so, and monumentally powerful. The Silver One placed his fingers into a cross shaped seal, declaring: "Shadow Clone Technique."
Sasuke didn't know much about Hatake Kakashi, but he did know the following. The man was fast, staggeringly so. He was strong, the bruises lining Sasuke's limbs attested to that. He had large reserves, and a firm control over them. Additionally, the man either needed drastically less hand seals and chants, or none. All of this pointed to the technique Hatake just used being either incredibly powerful or complicated. He braced himself as two new people poofed into existence. They were exact copies of Hatake, from the Silver hair to the Eye-concealing headband he wore. One copy lunged at Sasuke, the other at Sakura. From there on, the clearing was pure chaos.
They lasted six minutes and twenty-two seconds before Hatake Kakashi was able to subdue all of them. The result was Haruno Sakura being tied to a tree trunk, and Hatake giving the two remaining males bento boxes for lunch. "You get stuck to the tree for being the weakest, Pinky." She flinched at the criticism. "Don't feed her. I am going to go check on something."
With that, The Silver One had vanished. Uzumaki shoved his face into the food, instantly. He was starving after being thrashed around by Hatake. Sasuke however, had something else in mind. He scooted towards the downtrodden third teammate. Glancing around, he skillfully wielded chopsticks to push a slice of sushi past Haruno's lips and into her mouth. She chewed, but shook her head frantically. "Sasuke! What are you doing?! Kakashi said not to!"
Sasuke shrugged. "I don't care. You are a part of this team and despite your weakness, you still tried to step up where you could, and were a fantastic team player. You deserve food as much as the rest of us."
Her eyes widened. Sasuke had never spoken this many words to her, but surprisingly, she didn't feel the need to squeal or shout in excitement. It felt good being recognized, despite not being recognized as an equal. I promise to get stronger. I don't want to be a burden anymore… I will grow strong! I swear!
Naruto grumbled something unintelligible, but passed the remaining third of his bento box to Uchiha. "You share it with her, I don't know if weakling is contagious.."
Haruno Sakura beamed despite the barbed words. "Thank you guys so much! I promise I won't waste this-"
The girl was cut off by a dark aura surrounding the area. The Silver One's chakra was thick and heavy, draping the clearing in his presence. All three Genin shivered. Being in combat was one thing, but having such chakra directed at them intentionally was terrifying.
Hatake loomed over them, lone eye glaring. As the tension peaked, he finally spoke. "You broke the one rule I gave you. You-" A pause. The air was thick. "Pass!"
The pressure was gone in an instant, as The Silver One eye smiled at the trio.
The newly minted Genin expressed their shock. "Eh?!"
"Good job on passing not only the combat test, but my own personal teamwork exam as well! First team since, well, ever I suppose."
Haruno spoke up. "But Sensei, we broke your direct orders!"
Hatake chuckled. "Indeed you did, and that makes you trash."
The sudden change in how the conversation was going was giving Naruto whiplash. He spoke up, annoyed. "Enough beating around the bush, Hatake! Tell us what you mean."
"Very well then. You see, Shinobi creed dictates that those in this world who break the rules are scum. And while that is true, those that would dare to abandon a teammate or a friend are far worse than scum." The tall man took a breath, then placed his hands on Naruto and Sasuke, touching Sakura with his elbow. With a swirl of leaves, they appeared in a graveyard, the air somber and filled with sadness. "This stone here contains the names of every shinobi of the leaf who has perished. These were once our comrades. Do not let your team become engraved onto this stone."
He clapped his hands together. "Alright! Missions start tomorrow, so meet me at the Hokage tower at eight O'clock."
Just like that he was gone in a swirl of leaves once again.
