Naruto's scream reverberated through the sewer. He could hear the echos down the passages.
Kyuubi laughed. The sound was so terrifying and rumbling it shook the ceiling and brought bits of plaster raining down onto Naruto's messy blonde hair. "You seem so surprised."
"Where the hell am I?" Naruto yelled and scrambled away as far as possible. "The Kyuubi? The Yondaime Hokage killed the Kyuubi the day I was born. What are you a spirit?"
Kyuubi grinned, looking more evil than ever. "No. But I am your worst nightmare."
...
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Naruto screamed and bolted upright in his bed. Sweat trailed down his face, and he wiped a shaky hand across his forehead, too stunned to do much else. Two figures, both of which had been conversing quietly in the other side of the room, rushed to his side, evidently worried.
"What's wrong Naruto? Are you feeling alright?" Sakura asked, bending down to check on Naruto's pallid face. "You just fell unconscious while traveling here! We were so worried!"
Naruto stared back at his friends' face like he wasn't seeing anything. He had just learned the truth. Everything. Everything about the Kyuubi, everything that had happened, and how the Kyuubi was very intent on getting out of Naruto as soon as possible, or, if impossible, make his life as miserable as he could.
It seemed like his tongue was malfunctioning for once. They always said he would be talkative till the end, but hey, he was completely shut up this time. If only his instructors from the academy could see him now.
Sasuke and Sakura shared looks. Naruto was in a daze, his eyes glazed and staring at the air in between the three of them. Sasuke left to fetch Kakashi.
Sakura waved her hand in front of his face. "You in there?"
Naruto shook his head like he was trying to shake some bad feeling off. "I just had a nightmare."
"You did?" Sakura searched his face. Since when did happy, preppy Naruto get nightmares? "What was it about?"
The doorknob clicked and the door fell open. "Naruto? Are you up?" Kakashi and Sasuke entered the room. "Sasuke said you were a bit shaken."
"He just had a nightmare," Sakura explained. "About what Naruto? About Orochimaru? It was pretty scary."
"Not about Orochimaru." Naruto rubbed his face with his hand. "It was about the Kyuubi no Yoko, who told me that he is currently inhabiting my stomach and that he hates my parents most in the world for sealing him into me."
Kakashi froze. No way. Did Naruto come into contact with the Kyuubi? The Third told him something like this could happen if Naruto was emotionally distressed, or was in a dangerous situation. Encountering Orochimaru was indeed a dangerous situation, but he heard Naruto was fine during their fight. It was after he moved away from Orochimaru that he fainted.
But crap. Sakura and Sasuke were hearing this, when they shouldn't! First, was Naruto believing this to be the truth? Or was this just a scary nightmare for him?
"Your parents?" Sasuke frowned. "But it was the Fourth Hokage who confronted the Kyuubi and killed him. Why would your parents have anything to do with it?"
"According to the fox, the Fourth Hokage is my father, apparently. Who wants a flasher for a dad?" Naruto closed his eyes and put a hand on his stomach, concentrating.
"This is just a dream." Sakura concluded. "How can there be a demon sealed inside of you? The Yondaime killed it long time ago. He didn't seal it."
Naruto lifted his hand off his belly and turned pale. "Uh, actually, I think my dream wasn't really a dream." How had he missed that ball of malevolent chakra lurking in his system? He was a sensor!
Kakashi bit his tongue. Oh no. Not only did Naruto find out that he had the Kyuubi sealed inside him, he found out his heritage, which he wasn't supposed to learn until long after. Crap, the Third was going to give him hell for this.
Sakura and Sasuke looked confused. "What do you mean?" Sasuke asked.
Naruto looked sick. He pointed to his stomach. "I can feel his chakra, right inside of me."
...
After an hour of throwing up and dry heaving, Naruto was finally calm again. In fact, he was better than calm.
"Guys, can you actually believe that the great Namikaze Minato is really my father?" He crowed, very excited. "Oh. My. God. It's unbelievable! My childhood hero, being my father! I can't believe it! Sakura, slap me so I can tell this isn't all a dream."
Sakura, annoyed with Naruto's endless rambling, reached out and slapped him. Naruto blinked. Then grinned. "YES! Why, E, SS! Yes! I am NOT dreaming! Oh Kami-sama! Woohoo!"
Kakashi groaned. "Naruto, I'm sorry, but could you please keep your volumn down? I don't want the entire tower to find out whose son you really are."
Naruto paused. "The tower? We're in the tower? We made it!" He pumped his fist in the air and howled.
Sasuke rubbed his chin. "Then again, considering how you're the most normal one of our not-so-normal team, I guess this makes sense. It's cool that you have a demon inside of you."
Kakashi slapped his face with his hand. Things just weren't working out his way.
On the other side of Konoha, in the Hokage tower, Sarutobi wasn't having his best day either. "Orochimaru? He's back again? Summon all available Chuunin and Jounin now, tell them we're on emergency alert. Put the entire village on first class security and have the civilian leaders be prepared for an evacuation, in the worst case scenario." He swiveled in his chair and stood up, facing the village through the window. "Where's Anko?"
The messenger Chuunin that had found the three bodies stood sweating. "Uh, she went inside the forest to track down Orochimaru."
"What?" Sarutobi bellowed. "She went in there by herself? Ludicrous! Bear, take your team and go into the Forest of Death and get Anko. Come to the tower."
The Hokage's Anbu dropped from the ceilings and nodded once. Then he vanished.
Sarutobi paced relentlessly, then he turned and saw the Chuunin still sweating there. "Well? Go back to your post. Tell the others that the exams will not be canceled. Continue with the second phase."
The Chuunin looked most relieved to be out of there. "Yes sir."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Anko was nervous, angry, desperate, and most of all: Pissed. She ran into Team 7 at least eight times. What the hell? Were these kids trying to annoy her or what? Because she kept on running into them, she couldn't concentrate on finding Orochimaru. How did those kids keep finding her, though? If she encountered any more of them, then she had half a mind to disqualify them on the spot.
"Orochimaru you jerk!" She screamed in fury. "Where are you! Show your spineless face right now!" She swung from branches and brandished her famously sharp kunai at dark little corners, but Orochimaru of course, wasn't there to hear her.
Sighing, Anko turned and headed for the tower. It was getting late, and she didn't want to be stuck in the forest all by herself at night. She just hoped the other Genin were safe. First, she had to meet the Hokage and discuss plans. Her curse seal was stinging badly, and she needed help.
Far away in the forest, Orochimaru just tracked down another team of clones when a fit of sneezes overcame him. When he recovered, the team had gotten away. He chased after in a mad frenzy, determined that this was the real group of kids. He had tracked down at least fifty teams in twelve hours and he was sure this group of kids were the real ones.
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"So, we're in the tower, we completed the second phase of the exam in less than a day, came in second, and now we're waiting for another three days for the other kids to complete the exam?" Naruto summed everything that his teammates told him. "That's great!"
Kakashi sighed. "If it only were. Naruto, you need to understand a few things."
Naruto bounded up and down in his bed, still very hyper. "What, what?"
"First, you need to know that all this about the Kyuubi is really an S-class secret, and can only be told by you." Kakashi didn't like what was coming up. "You remember long time ago, when you didn't know Sasuke and Sakura?"
Naruto remembered. It was his dark days. He hated those times. Everybody just seemed to hate him for no reason. "Yeah, what about it?"
"Naruto, the Kyuubi is the reason why all those people hated you. They thought you were the Kyuubi incarnate, when you are actually the hero. The people were too blinded by fear and hatred to see the real you." Kakashi mussed up Naruto's hair. "But some people know the truth. They see Uzumaki Naruto, not the Kyuubi. Like Iruka-sensei, Hokage-sama, Sasuke, Sakura, and myself. Do you see?"
Naruto felt his eyes getting moist and he wiped his eyes. "Yeah. I see."
Kakashi's eyes went soft. "I'll be honest. A lot of people still see you as a monster. But you need to always remember who you really are, and that there are people here who support you. You need to work extra hard to prove to everyone that you're the great future Hokage, Uzumaki Naruto, and make everyone acknowledge you, especially because of your..predicament. Understand?"
"I do." Naruto ran up and hugged his sensei.
Kakashi fixed his other two students with a serious eye. "You guys too. I already know you won't treat Naruto any differently because of his condition, but always remember that this is an S-class secret, and never speak of this to anyone. Got it?"
Sasuke and Sakura nodded solemnly.
"Oh and one more thing," Kakashi pointed to the door. "I really tried to tell them that you're the victim, but they just don't get it. Try not to drive them bats, will you? They may be a little irritating, but they're still my darling kouhais (juniors)."
"Come to think of it, there's two ninja right outside the door, funny I didn't really notice till now." Naruto cocked his head, feeling the suppressed chakra on the other side of the wall. "What do they want?"
A knock resounded, then two figures, swathed in tight fitting armor and faces masked with porcelain animal masks, entered the room. "Uzumaki Naruto. You will come with us for questioning."
...
A dark robed ANBU stood in front of Naruto in a dim empty room, who was sitting in a chair. "Exactly what happened to you in the Forest of Death?"
Naruto picked his nose. "Don't you know already? Why are you asking me? It's not as if I know more than my teammates."
The ANBU didn't speak as he silently watched Naruto flick a piece of something gooey into a dark corner of the interrogation room. "We have indeed questioned your teammates already."
"Then let us move on instead of wasting both our time with inane questions." Naruto sat up and crossed his fingers in front of his face. He loved acting like Sasuke's serious mode. It made other people edgy.
The ANBU, who happened to be a captain, bristled at the comment. "Very well. In that case, is it true that you fought against Orochimaru?"
"Well technically my team and I all fought against Orochimaru, not just me, but I guess that you can say we did fight him." Naruto mused. "Though, snake-freak pretty much dominated the fight, so not really much of a fight at all."
"Are you aware that Orochimaru is one of the legendary Sannin? How did you get away from him?"
"Isn't that question pretty much the same question as the first one?" Naruto patted his stomach. "We used a genjutsu to run away."
"That is near incomprehensible. How could Genin have tricked a Sannin with a genjutsu?"
"Simple. We combined real life elements with the illusion. In this case, we used Kage Bunshin at the same time."
The ANBU didn't mention it, but he was impressed. Just as Orochimaru had. The kid was just a Genin, but he had more guts and balls than most shinobi he ever saw. Here he was, just a small boy, sitting in the middle of questioning in a dim room with ANBU, the most terrifying forces of Konoha. And yet, he was picking his nose and even managing to sound like a smartass. If his skills are just as up to bat, and his teammates are up to par, then he had more than half a mind to recruit them into ANBU.
"Illusion? Who's the genjutsu types in your team? What type of illusion was used?" He really wanted to know.
"While this has nothing to do with the situation and therefore totally off topic, Sasuke and Sakura are both illusion types." Naruto picked at his ear this time. "It's this illusion the two of them came up with to match our combo. Anything else?"
"Did Orochimaru mention anything? Even something small is fine. Anything you can recall."
Naruto pondered for a bit, then said, "He said he wasn't a pansy."
"...Pardon?"
"He said he wasn't a pansy. Oh, and he also wanted to elope with Sasuke. I think he's gay. You should watch out for him. He also called me rare."
"...Rare?"
Naruto shrugged. "I'm a sensor. It turns out sensors are rare around here."
Rather than getting irked by the useless responses he was getting, he was starting to really like the kid and his set of abilities. "Oh? And did you say anything to him in return?"
Naruto thought again. "I told him that he was a gay snake-freak and that we're going to be more legendary than he ever was. And I said the reason why he couldn't be Hokage was because he wasn't melodramatic enough. He really took that to heart."
"...I see. That will be enough then. Thank you for your cooperation."
For the next three days, Team Badass was training. After the fight with Orochimaru, they all looked inward on themselves, and after scrutinizing their current self, decided that they were still weak.
Kakashi thought so too. Only thing was, during the middle of the Chuunin exams the Jounin instructor wasn't allowed to help them in any way possible. But that didn't mean he couldn't talk to them. If someone heard him discreetly giving them critiques on their form and workouts, then he'd smile and ask if they said anything. And his students would deny it all.
Naruto was fed up with how his explosive tags failed against Orochimaru. Although Kakashi assured him that this was because Orochimaru was an exceptionally strong ninja and Naruto simply wasn't experienced enough to go against him at the same level, Naruto put his sealing aside for the moment, and demanded ninjutsu and taijutsu.
Kakashi really couldn't do much about that in their situation, with the no help rule and all, but he did promise Naruto some new techniques.
For now, Naruto Sasuke Sakura worked on increasing their muscle mass, speed, and agility through weight exercises, sprints and spars. Sakura hit the hardest, so no one dared to block a punch from her. That only left dodging, and Sakura wasn't exactly the slowest person in the world, despite the fact that she was a girl. Sparring with her was intense anaerobic training for strength and speed.
Sasuke was different. He was fast, and he was flexible. He moved with grace and precision that helped him maneuver his attacks in a way that made him have near no openings. His style, Kakashi contemplated, was befitting that of a swordsmen. Quick, fast, and deadly. Perhaps some kenjutsu training was in hand.
Naruto, however, was a combination of Sakura and Sasuke. Naruto was speedy and quick, but not as nimble as Sasuke. On the other hand, his hits were dense and had weight. He moved with a flurry of wide arcs that seemed to leave big gaps in his defense. But those gaps were feints, and Naruto moved through scheming attacks with ease.
More and more teams arrived, and on the last day, finally one more team came through the gates, only to be knocked out by the special sleeping seal on the scrolls, that were activated only if they weren't in the tower and if they didn't have the other scroll.
Sasuke snickered at the poor team knocked unconscious, because he knew the Heaven's scroll they had was actually the one he had thrown away.
In total, 21 people, seven teams, made it past the second phase.
Everyone gathered together in the big space with their Jounin sensei, the first and second exam proctors, and the Hokage present.
Sarutobi pushed thoughts of Orochimaru away as he smiled at the examinees. "Good job to all of you! I'm proud that you have made it this far. This Chuunin exam is a means to show off power from each of the respective villages, as a method of assuring peace.
"You have all made it far, but unfortunately, I cannot allow every one of you to progress to the finals. Since the finals are a significant event that invites Daimyos and other lords to witness, only the best of the best will be entered to ensure maximum quality and entertainment." Sarutobi didn't look apologetic. This was life. Nothing was fair, and plans didn't always come into fruition. If you didn't learn how to adapt and adjust, you might as well die early. "Therefore, you will now go through preliminary rounds to eliminate those -ah,- less qualified to enter the Finals, so that our audience would be more thoroughly entertained."
"I suddenly feel like a gigolo." Out came Naruto's offhand comment. The rest of his teammates slapped their foreheads in response. Kakashi included.
Sarutobi ticked, then coughed. "Ahem. From now on, your Final round proctor, Hayate, will explain how this will work."
"Hai, thank you Hokage-sama." A sickly, pale man with major bags under his eyes dropped from the ceiling. "I am Gekko Hayate, your examiner. You will be paired into matches by the computer up there," he gestured with his thumb "and those of you not battling will go up on the second floor to watch. There isn't any real rules, other than you having to fight only your opponent, and not anyone else. Also, if I call a match to a stop, than you must stop. If a person gives up, then their opponent must stop in their attack. Besides this, you can maim, kill, or incapacitate your opponent and I'll call the match accordingly. Understand?"
The group nodded. Hayate scanned the crowd. "Since we have an odd number of people, is there anyone who would like to give up now? This is your chance."
A hand rose from the teams. It was Kabuto. "I'll give up." He had failed. Orochimaru had set him with the mission of observing the Kyuubi-boy, but he couldn't even find them in the second round. The chances of him meeting against Naruto in the prelims were slim. It would be far more tactical to retreat and replan.
Hayate nodded at the Genin. "You may go." And like that, Kabuto exited the building. From the sidelines, Sarutobi and Anko conversed quietly, not really liking the subtle vibe they got from the teen. But they stored it away in their minds for later.
The computer buzzed and flickered to life. Neon yellow blinked two names onto the screen: