Sakura frowned while watching team 8 and 10 perform their skills.
She knew their Sensei's decided to give her the benefit of the doubt by showing off their students skills - sure of themselves that their students were better than her.
To say she was impressed would be a major lie.
The two teams worked hard together so they had a good idea of teamwork but not great. Their stamina and strength shocked her the most as their foreheads were already covered in sweat after using two jutsu's and a little taijutsu.
'I see why he sent me now. I may be the weakest in team 7 but these guys are...embarrassing.'
"Excuse me, Kurenai-Sensei, Asuma-Sensei?" Sakura called, halting the sparring matches between the members of the team's.
The two Sensei's looked over at her with smug expressions, clearly waiting for her to admit how out of her league she was with them.
"Your students..." she started, gaining the attention of all the genin as well "How to put it lightly... they're weak." She smiled sheepishly.
Asuma and Kurenai were taken aback by the girls forward attitude but more so by the brutal honesty - not that they'd take it as the truth.
The genin glanced at one another in confusion. They thought they'd done pretty well.
"If I may?" Sakura quickly added before the two Sensei's could try to scold her.
They slowly nodded and she moved to the group of Genin.
Ino and Kiba glared at the young kunoichi. Shikamaru, Shino, and Hinata watched her with curiosity while Choji simply munched on his chips.
Sakura stopped in the middle of them "You may want to back up a little" She smiled gently, trying her best not to offend anyone.
The group did as they were told, though hesitantly, and watched with curious eyes as Sakura lifted her fist to the ground and slammed down hard.
The ground shattered beneath her. A crater being the only thing left behind as grass and dirt disappeared with the wind.
As she straightened up, she noticed the genin backing up a step.
Sakura looked at them and sighed "Alright... Now I'll do it with chakra" She stated with a smile.
The genin, as well as the Sensei's, mouths dropped open with disbelief and quickly jumped back as she performed the task.
___
"Hmm" Kakashi groaned while rubbing his head. The two remaining genin stood before him with glares.
"That's what you get for calling Ra weak!" Naruto huffed and crossed his arms.
Sasuke just glared at the Jounin but otherwise remained quiet.
"Yeah, Yeah...I get it" Kakashi stood, waving the blonde off who became even more ticked off from it "Anyway, are you two ready to head out?"
The two looked at each other with slight confusion.
"Baka's" Kakashi sighed "Naruto, you need to go train with Jiraiya and Sasuke will be coming with me to continue his training."
"Oh...right" Naruto laughed sheepishly but quickly ran upstairs to get changed into fresher clothes. Kakashi was nice enough to buy him some extra copies of the exact same outfit he always wore, not that the Jounin had a choice in changing the style.
'Naruto would most likely go naked before he switched up his precious orange jumpsuit.'
A throat cleared behind the Copycat, only startling him the slightest in all fairness.
He turned his head to glanced back at the Uchiha.
Sasuke looked bored but waited patiently by the front door, already open.
"Impatient Sasuke?" Kakashi teased causing the brunette to scowl "Shouldn't you go change as Well?" His Sensei questioned after giving a little thought into his constant presence.
"No."
Kakashi could feel a drop of sweat making it's way down his forehead while a deadpanned look graced his features.
'This kid...' Kakashi thought with a sigh.
"Ready!" "Ah!"
Naruto and Kakashi said/yelled at the same time.
Naruto's blonde head of hair tilted to the side as he watched his Sensei with an arched eyebrow.
Kakashi, on the other hand, breathed out another long sigh whilst trying to calm himself down.
'These kids will be the death of me!' The silver-haired male thought with a bit of irritation.
"Ne...Sensei? You okay?" Naruto asked feeling the dark aura coming from his body.
Sasuke shook his head and simply walked out, leaving the two behind.
"Hm? Eh! Ke! Hey, wait up!" Naruto yelled after the Uchiha while Kakashi simply watched after the two.
He figured Sasuke would realize he'd have to wait if he wanted to train with him still so the Jounin took his time in locking up and leisurely walking to the training grounds.
___
"I'm just saying, a little more meat and you'll lose that stick figure-"
"Shut up idiot!" Sasuke snapped at the rambling blonde.
Naruto quickly shut his mouth and Sasuke glared in front of him as the two now walked in awkward silence.
"I've got a better body than you..." Naruto hastily whispered and jumped away as Sasuke immediately tried to punch him.
"Baka!" The Uchiha yelled whilst chasing after the blonde.
Who cared that he was supposed to be training with Kakashi right? The guy would probably be late anyway, grocery shopping or something. Some Jounin.
The two went back and forth across the rooftops of civilian homes, some shouting at them to knock it off.
Eventually, Sasuke caught up to the slippery blonde and kicked him hard in the gut.
"Oof!" Naruto gasped and fell down from the building on to soft green grass.
Naruto looked around and found himself on the edge of the small park they used to play in as kids.
'Huh...we went a lot further than I thought we would' Naruto thought with some confusion though he didn't linger for long as Sasuke jumped down after him a few moments after.
"Hn, Dobe" Sasuke smirked and crossed his arms.
"Teme" Naruto grumbled as he simply sat back and looked up at the smug Uchiha with a glare.
"Oh!" Naruto suddenly sprung up as realization hit him. "I'm so late! Oh man, oh man, oh man! He's gonna kill me, dattebayo!" Naruto exclaimed, his speech impediment coming out as it always did when he was freaking out.
Sasuke, of course, realized a while ago that he'd be late but said nothing as he felt Naruto deserved it after annoying him so much.
"Oh...yeah, I know" Sasuke casually let slip.
"Eh!? You knew I was late and didn't say anything?" Naruto bellowed at the Uchiha, who simply shrugged in return.
The blonde sighed heavily with sagged, defeated, shoulders. "Come on man, that's just uncool."
"Whatever, I'm going to go train" Sasuke rolled his eyes and disappeared in a whirlwind of leaves, leaving Naruto to sigh with defeat as he strolled on to a harsh morning of training with Jiraiya.
Their mornings continued on like that, for the most part. Team 7 would split up in the mornings to go train with separate Sensei's and then meet up again in the evening to complete their own training, together as a team. Sakura, after a few lessons of teaching her students, began training with Kurenai whenever team 8 completed their training - which didn't last long.
The pinkette was grateful for the extra help as Kakashi hadn't bothered finding a sensei for her but then again, neither did he help Naruto. She supposed if you wanted something done, you had to do it yourself.
It was now the day of the last phase of the Chuunin Exams and Sakura was already at the stadium, filled with people and sponsors from all nations. She glimpsed up to the crowd and noticed a shot of blonde hair sticking out from the group of genin's gathered to the side. Sakura almost felt bad at how badly she had injured Ino in the preliminary rounds but then the blonde had started to insult her and her 'weak' team. Well, she didn't feel so bad anymore.
Ino shot an apologetic and sincere look down at Sakura, once she caught her eyes.
It surprised the pinkette how quick the girl was to change her mind and feelings but it didn't bother her as long as Ino didn't hold any ill feelings against her. Sakura still considered her to be her best friend, even after everything and all the fights they've been through.
"What a drag..." Shikamaru's catchphrase brought the girl back to reality.
She noticed the lack of her teammate's presence and sighed out in frustration at their sense of time...or rather Kakashi's sense of time and Naruto's ability to sleep through a hurricane.
She just hoped they'd arrive in time, it wouldn't look good for her to be the only one bothered to show up to this thing.
"Ra." A monologue voice greeted from beside her. A strong gust of wind following moments after as Naruto appeared next to her, supposedly from thin air.
Sakura gave a small smile, only noticeable to him while internally breathing a heavy sigh of relief.
The other contestants eyed him with caution but otherwise remained silent as they waited for the proctor to step up.
"Alright, listen up!" Genma Shiranui called to attention, successfully gaining the notice of the participants.
"The third, and last, phase of the Chuunin Exams are about to start. Fight your best today, these people are here to see your skills and abilities so that they may hire you in the future. Show them what you've got!" Genma encouraged with a bored tone.
Sakura was unsure how he could be so enthusiastic but still have the most expression and tone of someone who'd rather be anywhere else.
After a round of cocky smirks and arrogant huffs, Genma continued on to pull a large piece of paper out from his pouch.
"Come closer and have a look at who you'll be going against"
Sakura moved with eagerness to find who she'd be fighting while Naruto stayed back, wondering where the last member of their team was.
"I'm fighting whoever wins in Kabuto and Shino's match" Sakura stated quietly to the blonde as she came back.
She waited for a response and rolled her eyes when none came. 'Isn't Sasuke supposed to be the mysterious one?' Sakura sweatdropped.
"You're fighting Neji...In case you were wondering" Sakura huffed.
Naruto smirked at the girl, noticing the frustration he was causing just by being quiet - like she always tells him to be.
"Neji Hyuga and Naruto...Namikaze" Genma stuttered, looking down at the piece of paper in front of him. He held a different document in his hand than the one he showed the genin.
"Please step forward while the rest of you wait on the side stands..." Genma muttered, narrowing his eyes down at the blonde who seemed indifferent to the change of name.
Sakura, too, gave Naruto a confused look. She'd heard the name before but couldn't recall from where it came and she couldn't figure out why he'd suddenly change his name. 'A question for later' Sakura thought to herself as she side-eyed the impatient participants.
The two participants stepped forward, Neji stepping quite a few meters forward to put space between the two of them, before turning to face each other.
"Listen up. Same rules apply as the preliminary rounds but try to keep it clean" Genma spoke, only for the two of them to hear.
Neither gave any indication of agreeing with the proctor which caused a sigh to leave his tired lips.
"You may begin!" Genma announced, loud enough for everyone to hear.
"You may as well give up, Naruto. It is fate for you to lose today" Neji spoke up with a snarky attitude.
Naruto kept his face blank "Is this a fight or a lecture?" He retorted with a sigh.
Neji immediately activated his Byakugan and charged at Naruto with the intent to kill strong in his eyes.
Naruto narrowed his eyes in concentration as he dodged Neji's gentle fist technique, making sure not to make contact at all. As Naruto's body swayed from side to side in avoiding the relentless attacks, Sasuke and Kakashi appeared next to Sakura in the stands. The two went unnoticed by everyone around them except for an angry pink haired genin.
"Oishi Baka" She grumbled, glancing at the two with a scary glare.
Kakashi nervously chuckled at her intimidation while Sasuke didn't pay her any head as his concentration was on the match below them.
Naruto suddenly jumped into the air, narrowly missing Neji's ongoing attacks. Naruto swiftly created a clone mid-air while he used the Kawarimi no Jutsu to substitute himself for a kunai on the ground. While Neji looked up at the clone, which had been cloned so carefully that the Hyuuga would have to concentrate solely on the clone, and not on surviving if he wanted to tell the difference.
The real Naruto jumped behind a tree and waited in hiding while his clone blocked the barrage of kunai Neji threw at him. As the clone's feet hit the ground, he dashed forward at Neji, driving the Hyuuga back toward the tree Naruto was waiting at.
With concealed chakra, Naruto readied himself to attack but as the clone threw his own barrage of kunai at the boy, Neji deflected each and every one of them by using a technique he thought only the main branch of the Hyuuga clan was allowed to learn.
Despite this, Naruto quickly changed his plan and jumped forward while Neji was still using the technique and muttered: Suitoru Fuuin (Absorbing seal).
The seal on the blonde's left palm shifted as if opening up as Naruto placed his hand directly on the technique Neji was using. It cut up his arms and body but was worth it in the end as the technique was swallowed up into his left palm, the seal shifting again and another seal appearing on the back of his right hand - waiting to be used.
"What!" Neji yelled out in surprise before jumping away from Naruto as he pushed chakra into his fist and slammed down on the ground where Neji stood moments before.
The whole ground cracked for a moment before bursting from the pressure, Neji and his clone being caught in it.
Naruto threw a kunai behind the tree while the clone disappeared, Neji jumped into the air as Naruto had done and threw kunai after kunai at the blonde. Naruto easily dodged the weapons and jumped to meet him mid-air before performing one of his newer techniques - Fuuton: Kamisori Metsuki (Wind Release: Razor Eye).
A large shuriken shaped mass of wind formed together in front of the blonde with the middle looking like an eye. This was called 'the eye of the storm' which is what caused the most damage. Though in an actual storm, the center was a place of calmness.
It hit Neji full force as he got sucked into the eye. The crowd around them gasped as the Hyuuga's body was cut and torn before Naruto decided to stop the jutsu. The two landed on the ground, Naruto on his feet and Neji on his back.
The Hyuuga took a moment to get back up but did so successfully albeit with a lot of struggle. Naruto grunted with frustration at the genin's incapability to lose but respected it.
The blonde lunged for the Hyuuga, who shakily raised his arms to block whatever attack Naruto was about to bring upon him, but Neji didn't plan for Naruto to disappear before his eyes only to feel his charka behind him, suddenly.
Naruto kept a blank expression as he released Neji's Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven Jutsu. The blue swirling dome covered Naruto and hit Neji with a harsh force, sending him back a few meters.
Neji once again landed on his back but was unable to move this time. Naruto calmly straightened up and glanced at the Hyuuga's in the stands. No doubt, they'd be furious about the casual usage of their signature jutsu.
Genma appeared in the arena, next to Neji, and felt for a pulse. His face relaxed as he felt the light thumping against his fingers.
He straightened up and studied the blonde genin before him with a curious expression.
"The winner of this match is Naruto Namikaze!" Genma announced to the crowd.
A moment of silence followed before everyone burst into cheers. Naruto noticed some suspicious glances from some of the higher ranked ninjas but ignored it. He was the son of the Hokage. It was about time people knew and understood that.
Naruto disappeared in a whirlwind of leaves before reappearing beside his team members.
He grinned at them with a hopeful look "I did great!...right?"
"You did amazing, To!" Sakura quickly exclaimed, excited for the boy.
Naruto gave her a blinding smile, nodding his thanks.
"I'm very proud of you, Naruto" Kakashi was the second to speak up, gaining another bashful smile from the blonde.
"Hn. You better fight like that when we have our battle" Sasuke smirked and while Naruto didn't expect any kind of compliment from the Uchiha, he felt more than happy when he did receive one.
"You can bet on it!" Naruto grinned as he gave his team a thumbs up. The genin felt so much excitement flow through him and he didn't even use his ultra-secret jutsu yet.
"Naruto, did I hear that right? Namikaze?" Kakashi questioned with confusion on his features.
Naruto blushed but nodded "Hai, I know my dad was the Fourth Hokage. I've known for some time but my name will still have the Uzumaki name in it, I just wanted to announce it" the blonde grinned.
Kakashi stared at him with soft eyes before nodding whilst his teammates smiled as he'd found out more about his past and his parents.
The matches continued on with not much else happening in them. Except for Shikamaru's match. The kid was too lazy for his own good and forfeited when he was about to win.
"Sasuke Uchiha and Gaara of the Sand" The Procter called out. The atmosphere immediately became tense as team 7 watched their first line of defense jump into the arena.
The crowd went wild and the ninja became serious. They wanted to take note of the Uchiha's strength and Naruto only hoped he wouldn't overdo it with the curse mark.