"And you're absolutely sure?" Naruto nodded.
"If nothing has changed about that situation, then yes. Orochimaru will kill the Kazekage and take his place and then manipulate his shinobi as well as Suna's to do a joint attack. This attack claimed several lives, including yours." Naruto spoke in a serious tone, pacing back and forth in the Hokage's Office.
"Hm, this is indeed troubling." Hiruzen said as he smoked on his pipe. "I'll see what preparations can be done. And you said you will taking care of a spy?" Naruto nodded.
"Kabuto Yakushi, one of the key reasons we actually lost the war. I want to deal with him, personally." Naruto spoke the last word in such a dark tone that even Hiruzen felt a shiver crawl up his spine as Naruto left his office.
Perhaps he should ask Inoichi to take a look into Naruto's mind?
Naruto walked into the building where the First Exams were to be held and frowned. He saw Sayuri and Sakura waiting at some type of door where Genins were currently being held up by what looked like two brats standing in front of the entrace.
Two, obviously fake, brats stopping several Genins from entering a very fake room. Not even speaking once, Naruto grabbed the wrist of both Sayuri and Sakura and dragged them away.
"What are you doing, Naruto?" Sakura whispered semi-angrily. Naruto didn't respond, he kept dragging them away from the crowd that was getting bigger by the second. Sayuri yanked her wrist from his grasp, rubbing it slightly with a scowl.
"What the hell is wrong with you, dobe?" She whispered to him angrily, glaring at him. Naruto rolled his eyes.
"And the Uchiha couldn't see past an obvious genjutsu? Come on, you're both better than this." Naruto muttered under his breath as he shoved his hands in his pockets. "Come on, we have places to be."
"Please wait!" An overjoyous voice practically boomed as Rock Lee, a student of Might Guy, jumped into view. "I wish to say something to the beautiful Sayuri and Sakura!" Naruto would've laughed if it wasn't for his current track of thoughts the train known as his mind was currently going down at heightened speeds.
"Lee, don't be greedy," Naruto spoke in a bored tone. "Choose one and I can have the other," Sakura and Sayuri both turned a bright red, both of them slapping Naruto at once, who only took it with a small smile.
"Kidding, I don't want either of you." Another slap. "WHICH IS IT? DO YOU WANT ME TO WANT YOU OR DO YOU WANT ME TO LEAVE YOU ALONE?" He shouted comically.
"We want you to shut up," Sayuri said, turning away from the blonde, though the blush on her face didn't decrease.
"Idiot," Sakura said, nodding in agreement with Sayuri. Rock Lee, who was confused for a moment, quickly sent them a flashy grin with his thumb up in the air.
"If I must choose, then I choose Sayuri-chan!" Naruto openly laughed, earning a Sharingan glare from Sayuri.
"Don't laugh dobe," Naruto shook his head.
"It's actually pretty hilarious. Lee, why don't you go join back with Neji and Tenten? I'm sure they're probably worrying about where you are, and Tenten won't be happy when she finds out you're flirting with Sayuri-chan over here."
Lee paled at the thought of an angry Tenten but quickly got over the image in his head. "I do not care! My love for Sayuri-chan does not vanish at the thought of my female teammate!"
"Welp, I tried." Naruto said, waving off Sakura and Sayuri who could only look at him with a dumbfounded expression on their faces. "Good luck, I gotta go threaten some people."
"Wait!" Lee shouted, halting Naruto in his tracks as he looked over his shoulder.
"Yes?"
"Will you spar with me? You beat Neji in a fight and I want to prove myself against you!" Naruto smiled at his fellow Leaf nin.
"Lee, I beat Neji because he underestimated me. If he actually gauged me correctly and took measures and used that big brain of his, he would have beat me." Lee faltered for a moment before shaking his head.
"I do not believe you!" Lee shouted. "You are the strongest Genin I know, Naruto-kun! If you do not fight me, perhaps we will fight in the Exams later!" Sayuri and Sakura turned their eyes to their blonde teammate, their eyes wide with shock.
"The strongest?" Sakura muttered in disbelief. Sayuri shook her head in denial.
"I'm not sure who you are, but to say Naruto is the strongest Genin from Konoha is way off base. He's the dobe, the deadlast. He was the worse in our graduating class." Lee raised an eyebrow at that statement.
"Well, a couple of months ago, he beat the number one student from last years graduating class in a fight." Sayuri's eyes narrowed.
"Is that so?" Was Naruto hiding his true strength? No, that couldn't be it. But something was suspicious about the blonde, but she couldn't tell what it was. She would have to find out somehow.
"Hm. Yes, I will face you in the Exams Lee, I hope you give me a good fight." And with that, Naruto walked down the hall, where he found Obito standing outside of the doors that led into the first exam.
"Oh? Where's everyone else?" He asked. Naruto pointed backward.
"On there way. We were held up by one of Guy-sensei's Genin."
"We're here," Sakura called out as Sayuri and her approached the two. "We were held up by," A shiver ran down her spine.
"An annoyance." Sayuri finished for her. She then rose her eyebrow at the sight of Obito being there, which she then announced her thoughts aloud.
"Just to wish you all luck, ya know?" Naruto nodded.
"Appreciated but we don't want to be late due to the fact that you are holding us up." Obito shrank back at Naruto's rude but somewhat accurate assessment.
"Heh heh, so mean." He then adopted a serious expression. "Use the teamwork I've taught all of you. This isn't a game, nor is the life of a shinobi. If you are having any doubts about your place in the world, do not walk through that door."
"We got this sensei!" Sakura said confidently. Sayuri smirked and crossed her arms over her chest.
"Hell yeah we got it. "
"You mustn't worry over us too much sensei, sometimes the baby bird needs to jump out of the nest in order to fly." Naruto spoke, but he too had a confident smile on his face. Obito grinned.
"Good, now go kick ass and make me look awesome!"
The trio then entered in the large exam room that Naruto had remembered from all those years ago. He observed the Genin that hailed from multiple different villages. He was then bombarded by the voices of his old classmates,
"You guys are taking this too?" Shikamaru greeted them. "Jeez, what a drag, it seems our graduating class is all here."
"Well, might as well forfeit now!" Kiba boasted. "We've been training seriously hard with Kurenai-sensei, you won't be able to beat us!"
"Kiba-kun," Hinata said shyly, speaking to her teammate with a small blush on her face. "Please be more respectful to our friends."
"Ah whatever, we both know it's true, Hinata!" Kiba said brashly, practically yelling. "We got this thing in the bag!" Naruto narrowed his eyes at the speaking Inuzuka.
While not necessarily hating the boy, his arrogance had gotten his entire team killed during the war. He thought Akamaru and himself was strong enough to hold off Madara's Wood Style attack, and instead of running away as ordered, he and the rest of his team died.
"Your arrogance has not changed it seems." Naruto said simply. Kiba glared at Naruto and grabbed the boy by the collar.
"What did you just say? Do you want me to kick your ass again dobe?!"
"Oy," Another cut in. "You guys should quiet it down! You're attracting very much unwanted attention." Kiba let go of Naruto with a small growl and turned to the newcomer, who Naruto recognized at Kabuto, the man who was responsible for a great deal of trouble during the war.
He had worked with Obito and revived many shinobi using the Second Hokage's Edo Tensei Jutsu, including Madara Uchiha, who crippled Gaara's forces in the Eastern Quadrant of the war. Naruto held his tongue, knowing it would only raise more questions from his comrades in the end. He would have to deal with Kabuto later.
"Meh," Naruto said, waving off Kabuto's warning. "I'm not scared of people who can't mind their own business."
"Naruto," Sayuri hissed. "Shut up!" Naruto shook his head.
He was intimidated by the glares of the Genin when he had first taken these Exams, but not this time. They were just children trying to push their own ranks within the world by slaughtering each other. It was pathetic.
And they knew it.
"No, I'm tired of bowing down to people who believe they're the shit when they're truly nothing other than garbage." He glared at the room full of Genin, putting his hands in his pockets as he met some of their gazes.
"Listen up, I'm only going to say it once. When we face each other, if you threaten me or any of my comrades, I will not hesitate to put you down." He emphasized the last three words. "I'm not scared of any of you, and even then, only a handful of you could actually threaten the likes of me." His eyes flashed a vermillion red, replacing his dull blue ones as killing intent began leaking out of his body, directing it at all of the Genin.
"I suggest you quit while you're ahead, I have no tolerance for stupidity." Everyone looked at him with wide eyes, some were shaking in fear while others could barely breathe under the pressure of his killing intent.
It was terrifying.
Taking a deep breath, Naruto closed his eyes and reopened them, revealing once again his dull blue eyes instead of the red. He turned around and saw the looks of fear in his comrade's eyes, even Sayuri was shaking a little at what the blonde had displayed. He fought the urge to sigh.
"Well," Kabuto began, breaking the tension Naruto had created. "Since you guys are all rookies, I'll give you all some info on some people that are in the exams. How 'bout it?" Sayuri shook her head, dispelling the images of that night that Naruto had indirectly caused her to remember.
"Give me information about Naruto Uzumaki." She stated, her eyes narrowing at the blonde. Things were getting suspicious about the blonde. Had he really hidden his true abilities during the academy, and if so, why? Why had he changed so drastically since they became Genin? Where was the Naruto who was always smiling and full of innocence?
What happened to her Naruto?
"Well, Naruto Uzumaki," Kabuto pulled a small card and sent some chakra into it, only to stop as he felt cold steel touch the back of his neck. "Wha-"
"Do not test my patience, Kabuto Yakushi. If I find out you read a single letter on that info card regarding me and my abilities, I will sever your head and feed you to the snakes." He hissed the last word, sending chills down the spy's back.
"Naruto!" Sayuri shouted. "What's wrong with you? He's a fellow Leaf Shinobi!" Naruto fought the urge to call Sayuri dumb. She was ignorant, not stupid. Ignorance was not a crime unless you could help it, and in this case, she could not.
"No comrade of mine would sell out another comrades information just to get in good standing of the arrogant Uchiha." Naruto said bitterly. He put a bit more pressure on Kabuto's neck. "Do we have an understanding, Kabuto?" The grey-haired 'Genin' nodded slowly, not wanting to provoke the Jinchuuriki.
He was nothing as the reports said. He was not an idiot. He could tell by looking in the reflection of his glasses. He could see directly into Naruto's eyes and they were those of a seasoned veteran who said what he meant.
If he was not careful, this boy could disrupt him and his master's plans. He would have to kill him during the Second Exam just to make sure he wouldn't stick his nose in his business.
"Alright that's enough," Ibiki Morino shouted at the top of his lungs. In an instant, for fear of disqualification, Naruto sheathed his sword. "Time for the exams to begin! I wish you all luck, but in the end, I hope you all fail!"
And done. How was it? Good? Bad? Tell me!
Anyway, yeah.
Til next time my lil demons!