Naruto pushed himself off the ground in rapid succession, perspiration coating his face. He had a grin plastered on his face as his muscled burned from tension. One of his hands were bound behind his back, and his sweat dripped down the crook of his nose and into a puddle in the dirt. It was his goal to not fall into it.

"Naruto, you can stop there. Come here; we're going to summon the Toads." Jiraiya stood from his perch under a tree and stretched. "Perform the summoning, and summon something big."

Naruto grinned, flipping through hand signs quickly and slamming his palm to the dirt. "Summoning Jutsu!" In a puff of smoke, both Jiraiya and Naruto stood on top of a giant, red toad. "What the Hell?!" Naruto exclaimed in shock and pain, clutching his eyes. "What the Hell is this?!"

"...This isn't one of my Toads!" Jiraiya shrieked. Indeed, the Toad instead had Naruto's Rinnegan patterned in its eyes. Naruto screamed again and fell to his knees.

"I can see what it sees! I can see what it sees, Sensei!" Tears fell out of Naruto's eyes and he spoke, and the Toad dispelled, causing the two to begin falling back towards the Earth. Jiraiya caught Naruto and laid him down while he hyperventilated.

"What did you see, Naruto?!" Jiraiya shouted, shocking Naruto out of his fetal position.

"I… saw what the Toad saw… What the Hell, Sensei? You didn't tell me about that!" Naruto sat up, clutching his knees to his chest.

"Summon it again. — No. Summon something else. Summon a snake." Jiraiya stood back this time. "And be prepared for… the backlash."

"But I don't have the Snake Contract!" Naruto protested.

Kurama gave a low hum. "It's just another Path, Naruto. Calm yourself."

Naruto's eyes narrowed. What kind of Path lets me summon Toads and see out of their eyes? He flipped through the hand signs again. Unless… "Summoning Jutsu!" Naruto slammed his palm on the ground, and in a puff of smoke appeared a rather large Black Mamba that Naruto shared vision with. The snake slithered towards him upon his command, crawling up his arm and perching on his shoulder. Naruto willed it to dispel. "So I guess that I can't use the Toad Contract, huh? Not when I have this… Animal Path." The words felt right coming off of his tongue. Like he'd always known them. "Wish I had this going up against Itachi. I could have wrecked his Susanoo."

Jiraiya snorted. "You could say that about any of the Paths if you'd bother to see what they were truly capable of. You have your Amaterasu— which can counter Itachi's— located only in your left eye and in Itachi's right. But you rarely use it for anything other than a distraction. And you don't even know what your right eye is capable of even after all this time. You have how many Paths so far— two? You have four to go, and I'm not going to even bother trying to figure those out until you're more proficient in at least Deva Path."

Naruto looked at the blades of grass trickling in the wind, noting how much clearer it looked to him now. It was like the world was bathed in a different shade of light, tweaking the richness and edges of color just slightly enough to perfect whatever he looked at. He could almost say that looking through the Rinnegan alone was enough to keep him motivated.

"It's time to keep training, Sensei." Naruto stretched out and slipped into his Strong Fist stance. "And I don't want to take it easy this time, either."

Jiraiya smirked as well, entering non-enhanced Frog Kata. Look at him now, Minato. Even with those rings I can see you in his eyes. He won't have to hide for much longer. I'll make sure of it.

The master and student charged as one.

"Naruto, listen. There's more going on here than you know… and I don't care what Sensei says. I'm telling you right now, and you're going to have to make a choice." Jiraiya passed Naruto a saucer and shot glass, pouring him a small taste of sake. "We're going to be invaded very soon. During the Finals, actually. By Orochimaru, Oto, and Suna."

Naruto took a sip, his eyes unconsciously morphing into his Rinnegan. "How do you know?"

"It's actually thanks to you that we figured it out. You put Orochimaru's plans into overdrive when you fought him in the forest and then Sasuke sealed off his own Curse Mark. He slipped up, and it's all because a Genin team made him sweat a little. We know he has plans for Sasuke, which isn't good if he gave him that mark. It can only mean that Orochimaru wants to put his own soul into Sasuke's body, although with him having so little hold over him and not being anywhere near the point where he can swap bodies, it likely won't be easy from his perspective. He tried to move his Sunagakure puppets too quickly. Gekkou Hayate managed to spy on Suna no Baki… and Yakushi Kabuto."

Naruto's eyes narrowed. He knew something was off about that guy. But to think he'd turn on his own village… "Further research concluded that Kabuto was not a ninja of Konoha for very long— in fact, he is a plant from Otogakure, leading me to think that Orochimaru has some major pull in that village. He may have even constructed it, if it's truly a village at all. That leads to your part in all of this. I want you to guard Sensei through any means necessary."

Naruto looked at Jiraiya when he said that. Then he nodded lowly. "What'll Sasuke and Sakura be doing," the jinchurikki asked. Jiraiya downed a shot quickly before speaking.

"Sasuke is going to assassinate Sabaku no Gaara."

Naruto stared down at the crowd from a high perch on the day of the Finals, thinking over his training. He'd certainly went at it harder after Jiraiya's revelations two weeks ago. Since then he'd only seen Sasuke once, and that was by chance as Naruto and Jiraiya entered the village and Sasuke and Kakashi exited it. There weren't many words spoken between them. In fact, only Sasuke spoke.

"You aren't leaving me behind, idiot."

Naruto wasn't one hundred percent certain, but he felt that the sword that Sasuke carried could've been a real threat. NInja didn't carry around tools they didn't know to use. It was a silly thought. And if Sasuke was anything like Samui, Omoi, or Karui… there would be a reckoning during both the Finals and the invasion.

Naruto wondered how Sakura would fare against Samui. From what he'd seen, Samui was just as analytical as his teammate, only with far more power behind her. By that same token, Sakura seemed to have an incredible amount of work ethic and potential behind her, if what he'd seen from the last time he'd seen her and viewing her from above was any indication. It would be interesting regardless of the way it played out, and he doubted that anyone on his team would stay as a Genin.

Naruto stood up, remembering his mission of having to protect Hiruzen. How exactly can I protect him against anything? Even with the Rinnegan and Kurama I'm no match for him. He's one of the strongest shinobi who've ever lived. I'm not sure what I can even offer to the fight if they're expecting it to be that tough! He was about to hop off of the light pole when he noticed someone Body Flicker to his location. "Yo, Crazy Snake Lady."

Anko smirked at him. "You don't seem as hyperactive as you did a month ago. Maturity finally hitting your brain?"

Naruto gave her a wry smirk. "You know how it hits with shinobi. Stress in the field wakes you up. And I've had plenty of it since I met you."

Anko tossed an arm over his shoulder. "You know, when Ibiki first pointed you out as someone to watch out for, I couldn't figure out why. I couldn't see anything in you that I hadn't seen before, of course not counting your eyes since Ibiki has never judged based on that kind of thing. And I think, after your performances in the Forest and in the Preliminaries, that I see what he sees."

Naruto looked at her. "What do you see, then, Anko?" He was honestly curious.

Anko let out a little smile. "It's hard to put in words. But, you're almost… sage." Anko turned away from him, preparing to move on. "Break a leg, kid. Just… not your own."

Naruto wiped a tear that he hoped she couldn't see away while she jumped. I guess it isn't impossible. Then again, when is anything ever? Like Kaka-sensei said… With eyes like mine, anything is possible.

"Naruto… I think you'll be the first person to make me believe those words," Kurama said with a softer tone in his voice than normal. "Don't you dare make me eat them."

"Welcome, all viewers, to the Chuunin Exams of Konohagakure no Sato!" Hayate called out as the Genin lined up in front of him. The crowd cheered while each Genin had a look of pure determination on their faces. "The rules are very simple. These bouts are between two individuals at any one time. Killing is allowed by technicality but is also severely frowned upon. Once I say a match is over and declare a winner, that is the end of it. If you are deemed unable to fight, you lose the match. Leaving the arena area is grounds for disqualification. Outside interference is grounds for disqualification for all liable parties. Additionally, you need not win the tournament, or even your first match, to qualify for promotion. This is at the discretion of the judges and beyond that your village. Ergo that means that all, some, one, or none of you may be promoted. If everyone understands this, we can begin. Would Uzumaki Naruto and Hyuuga Neji stay in the arena, while all other contestants move to the participant's stand?"

Naruto and Neji glared at each other as the other Genin moved away. Neji slipped into his Gentle Fist stance quickly. "Neji… do you remember what I said to you after you nearly killed Hinata?" Naruto activated his Rinnegan and slipped into a taijutsu stance, different from his usual Strong Fist. His left hand wasn't behind his back anymore. Instead, it was lower than his right arm, curled into a fist. His right hand, which was usually tightened with his palm facing upwards, was facing towards Neji, similar to the Gentle Fist stance. "I'm going to show you exactly why you made a huge mistake."

"I don't know what you plan to do with that pitiful stance, but I'll tell you one thing." Neji's Byakugan activated through sheer anger. "You aren't above fate. And I'll show you where it placed you. Right along with Hinata-sama."

"First Match: Uzumaki Naruto versus Hyuuga Neji. Begin." Hayate hopped away from the two right as they charged.

Neji made to strike first, going directly for Naruto's heart. The Hyuuga smirked when he realized that Naruto was going to attempt to block instead of dodge. He truly is a deadlast. He saw what the Gentle Fist could do, and yet… — !

Naruto blocked Neji's strike with his own palm strike, and Neji grit his teeth when he saw that not a single tenketsu in Naruto's hand was damaged. Then Naruto's left fist shot out and buried itself into Neji's gut, making the Hyuuga's Byakugan deactivate. Neji hopped away despite the pain and readied himself, spitting blood into the dirt.

Naruto held a hand out. "Universal Pull." Against his will, Neji was yanked forwards and into Naruto's debilitating left hook, snapping Neji's head backwards as he continued forward, sliding on his knees and ultimately falling on the back of his head. Neji looked up with fury in his eyes, rushing at Naruto with speeds that he hadn't had during the preliminaries.

Neji and Naruto traded blows quickly, and Neji proved that his title of genius was not mistaken as he quickly pieced together what Naruto was doing. He's not even using the Gentle Fist correctly. All he can do is focus chakra into his palms for added striking force. It isn't precise at all, but it simulates the force behind a cannon. That is certainly dangerous, considering that he uses Lee's taijutsu. Mix all of that in with his Rinnegan— which I certainly don't know the limits of— and this fight leans towards him in brute force. Neji began to weave in and out of Naruto's strikes, before getting in close and managing to hit him in the side with chakra laced fingers. Naruto hissed in pain, and a phantom force tossed Neji away from him.

Neji internally grinned as he realized that Naruto wasn't very technique heavy. I see. He doesn't have much control over either the Strong Fist or the Gentle Fist. He's still dangerous simply because of the training he went through to correctly perform the Strong Fist, however. Still, I can beat him with this.

Naruto held out his palm once more. "Universal Pull." In his right hand he began forming a Rasengan. Neji began spinning in mid air. "Rasengan!" Naruto called out, slamming the spiraling sphere forward.

"Eight Trigrams Rotation!" Neji called out, a sphere of swirling energy quite similar to the Rasengan forming around the dimensions of his body. The two techniques clashed, causing a shrill [BOOM] before tossing both fighters backwards. Neji skipped along the dirt like a ragdoll. Naruto's arm had been blown off at the elbow, blood, bone, and muscle in the trail behind him.

Naruto groaned and sat up, noting with glee that his arm began to reconstruct itself as if he were some kind of machine. A new Path… Ashura Path. I can work with this. His arm came back together totally, and he was instantly hit with an intense fatigue. Kurama, what's happening?!

"It seems that your Rinnegan can't handle switching between Paths quickly yet. I'd say that the reason for this is my presence within you. It's a similar effect to using an odd numbered seal over what's sealing me inside of you, only the even seal that I'm trapped in seems to provide interference for your eyes. Jiraiya will have to look into it at a later date."

Naruto clicked his tongue as Neji struggled to his feet. "Do you see the difference between us, Neji!?" Naruto screamed. "Do you see it now!? I've clearly drawn a division between us! Did Hinata ever do that!? NO!" Kurama's chakra began to leak into Naruto's system, giving his Rinnegan a maroon tint. "She doesn't see lines that way. So don't hate her. Hate me, and then do something about it."

Neji couldn't look away from Naruto's eyes. It was worse every time he saw it. Neji began sobbing as he scrambled away from Naruto. "I surrender! I surrender! Please, just get him away from me! Please!"

Naruto released his hold on Kurama's chakra, feeling even more fatigued than before. Shit. I shouldn't have expended so much energy. Now it'll be harder to go against Orochimaru, and I could barely handle him when I fought him at full mast.

"Winner of the First Match: Uzumaki Naruto!" Hayate called out, releasing a sickly cough. "Medics!" Naruto made his way to the contestant stands, where Sakura greeted him warmly.

"Naruto-kun, you were amazing!" Sakura wrapped her arms around the blonde boy, who stiffened lightly before reciprocating the affection.

"Thanks, Sakura. I'm sure you'll do great, too!" Naruto let her go and crawled his vision over the other contestants. Gaara stared directly at him with murderous intent, which Naruto pointedly ignored. "Sakura, I have to go to the Old Man's spot, so I need you to focus on your match and opponent. And keep in mind that I… I want you to do your best." Damn it, I don't even know who I want to win between the two of them! It's confusing! Sakura's my teammate, but I want to fight Mui-chan later on!

Sakura, noticing the hesitation and the specific wording, lost a bit of the joy in her eyes. "Thank you, Naruto-kun. You'd better be ready to face me in the next round."

Naruto gave a large grin. "You, too."

Sarutobi Hiruzen looked over the stadium crowd in contemplation. To either of his sides were the Kazekage, Hakaisuna no Rasa; and Jiraiya. Hiruzen knew exactly who the veiled Kazekage truly was, even if said person didn't. "How did you enjoy the first match, Kazekage-dono?" Hiruzen asked.

Orochimaru— for that was the man posing as Rasa— hummed lightly, stroking his arm in thought. "The Uzumaki brat. His eyes are peculiar. Rinnegan, I assume? An Uzumaki with a doujutsu is a scary thought, but seeing one once wielded by the Father of Ninjutsu… I wonder how well the Uchiha will hold up against him? He'd have to get past my son first, of course."

Hiruzen was mildly disgusted at how far Orochimaru was playing this game. Killing a father, misleading his children and their whole nation, and manipulating their emotions? It was something that Hiruzen didn't agree with. You wouldn't like to see what I've fostered after you left us, Sensei. I'm sorry. But I'm correcting my mistake today.

Naruto appeared next to Hiruzen with a grin. "Ohayou, Jiji, Sensei. Since I've finished my first match I figured I'd start with my duties a bit early."

If he tries anything, I'm going to kill him immediately.

Hiruzen smiled. "Ah, of course you're welcome to do so Naruto-kun. Make sure you're fair when delivering verdicts, though. But don't be lenient either. Follow through; that's the way to becoming Hokage."

Don't you dare hold back for a second, then.

The unspoken message resonated between the two in a way that Hiruzen had never thought possible. I've felt the effects of his eyes piercing into me before, but now it feels more like they're cooperating with me. Just what kind of powers do you have that I'm missing? "Naruto-kun, I saw that you unlocked more abilities of your eyes before. You tired out afterwards, though you seem fine now. How come?"

Naruto scratched his head, mouth pursed as he spoke. "It was mostly because Neji blew my arm off. It took a lot of chakra simply because I had to switch the abilities of my eyes and also because I'd never used that Path before, but above that it was just hard to regrow the limb because of exactly where it stumped. I'm really supposed to regenerate at exact points, but eh…"

"Naruto, why don't you ever try unlocking them when we train?" Jiraiya asked with an eye roll. "Makes them that much more effective in combat."

It doesn't really work like that, though. Too bad I can't tell him that. "Ah, I just feel like I need to focus more on other aspects of my training. The ones that aren't a kekkei genkai, you know, so I can keep sharp and not get complacent. Wouldn't do to go blind in one eye and not be able to toss around ninjutsu just 'cause they're all dependent on my Rinnegan."

"The boy will be wise as he matures," Orochimaru complimented. "I can see why you've chosen him as a potential successor, Hokage-dono."

Hiruzen hit his pipe with a forlorn breath before releasing it. "It wasn't simply for his heritage, you know. The boy showed me on his own that he had what it took long before that came into play."

"Hokage-sama, that means a lot to me," Naruto said with a smile. "I think that the next match is beginning, though…" With that, Hayate called for Sasuke and Gaara. I wonder how hard it will be for Sasuke to kill him…

It quickly became apparent that Sasuke had yet to show up. Is he preparing something at the last minute? Naruto thought. Jiji won't allow him to be disqualified since he's slated to assassinate Gaara right here, but it would look suspicious to not do so.

Horizon stood up. "Uchiha Sasuke and Sabaku no Gaara will fight at the end of the first round. Please move onto the next fight."

...Well that answers that, I guess.

The pain was nearly intolerable. Sasuke's breath came shallow and quick, his face clammed with sweat. He was unable to even move— that was how far gone he was. His bones felt raw and hollow, his skin like a chafing orange peel. His very hair follicles screamed in change. And in his dreams, all he could see was a dark figure with yellow eyes glaring down at him.

"Sasuke, are you awake?"

Kakashi turned his head quickly to the side as a spear of bone nearly pierced through his skull. Instead it stuck itself into the wall ten or so meters away. It had come out of Sasuke's palm of all places. "...I didn't know you were sexually active already. Use protection against Gaara, ne?"

"Shut up, Kakashi."

Neither noticed the Zetsu watching them.

Samui rose an eyebrow at Sakura. "You seem to have some sort of vendetta against me. I've never really spoken to you before, so why is that?"

Sakura stopped the scowl she hadn't even known she had sent towards her opponent. "I just want to win. Really, really badly." If I win here, Naruto-kun will definitely see that I'm better than her! Heh. And why shouldn't he? I'm fabulous!

Samui unsheathed her tanto, charging it with ration chakra. "I won't go down easily, you know? I'm the strongest member of my team, and you're the weakest of yours. No offense, of course."

The scowl returned to Sakura's face, before quickly being replaced by a sardonic smile. "Well, if I'm the weakest, and you're the strongest, this battle will show something about the strength of our villages, won't it?"

A small smile creeped its way onto Samui's face. "I hope your bite is as big as your bark."

"Second match: Haruno Sakura vs. Kumo no Samui is underway."

Samui charged at Sakura at a breakneck pace, swinging her sword with her right hand in vertical arc.

But it was blocked.

Sakura held a kunai in her palm.

And it was laced with Katon chakra.

Samui was surprised enough that Sakura could force her back. Sakura then lengthened the blade and engaged Samui in a frantic dance of death. Sparks of red and blue flew everywhere, and both women were sweating profusely. There was no room for error on either party's front, as any small slip-up could end the match, and even their lives.

"Naruto, what's happening? How can Sakura keep up with her?" Ino asked in jealous shock.

Naruto glanced at her, then back at the match. "She trained. Hard. Anyone can do it if they really want to. If you can't match them, I guess you don't really want to be a kunoichi, then."

Ino growled, but looked away. He's right. At this rate, Sakura will get Sasuke-kun before me!

Naruto turned his attention away from the match for a moment, taking note of a multitude of Suna and Oto shinobi in the crowd. He made another Kage Bunshin and dispelled it, so the placement could be noted by Hiruzen.

Sakura had managed to press Samui into defensive maneuvers, where there was no room to breathe. So uncool…. Guess I'll have to start using some mid-range ninjutsu. "Electromagnetic Murder!" Sakura rolled out of the way of the lightning bolt, but the jutsu had fulfilled its purpose: to get Samui some much-needed space.

Samui went in for the kill, but suddenly, an elbow caught her in the back of her head. Sakura shimmered out of existence.

As Samui gained her bearings, she cursed. Genjutsu…

Sakura smirked, "Demonic Illusion. I've got plenty more where that came from."

Samui gave a cheap grin. "Alright, I see you as a dangerous opponent. So I hope you don't mind me going all out. Hachiman Armor." In an explosion befitting of a war instead of a Chunin Exatm, Samui was wreathed in a coat of ethereal beauty. Black lightning danced off of her skin. She charged at Sakura, who could only dodge and pray.

In the stands, Naruto chewed his lip. "I didn't know she could use black lightning. I thought only the Raikage could, actually."

Shikamaru looked at Naruto. "You seem to know an awful lot about things, Naruto. So, let me ask you this: why are there Sound and Sand shinobi moving around in the stands?"

Naruto gave Shikamaru an annoyed look. "Stop asking questions. You'll live longer."

Damn it, Sakura thought, frantically dodging the strikes from the focused and more experienced Kunoichi. How can she have enough chakra to do this?! Sakura charged a kunai with Katon chakra and shunshined through the blasts, coming at Samui's throat. Suddenly, Samui's body was covered in black chakra, small black lightning sparks cackling in the air surrounding her. She disappeared….

...And Sakura was on the floor, out cold.

Samui came back into view with her fist outstretched, and the aura still surrounding her. "Kuro Rai no Yoroi. An A-Ranked Jutsu, only known by two people. I'm still a little new at it, but it gets the job done. Proctor, call the match." The aura dissipated.

"Winner of the second match: Samui of Kumo! Medics!"

Naruto smiled even at Sakura's loss. She'd become far stronger than when they first became a team. Forcing Samui to use a trump card like that showed just what she was capable of. But Sasuke hasn't shown up yet… Just as he thought that, Kakashi and Sasuke entered the arena. But Sasuke… looked so much different.

His clothes had changed more than anything. He wore a basic ANBU fit in black along with his sword at his side. His arms had been wrapped in tape much like Rock Lee's. His Sharingan was active and at stage three. "We aren't late, are we?"

"Uchiha Sasuke's match will begin immediately." Hiruzen's voice carried over Naruto and elicited cheers from around the stadium. Gaara moved to the field, and Kakashi appeared next to Naruto.

"Yo."

Naruto grinned at his Sensei. "Kaka-sensei, it's been a while since we've had an actual conversation hasn't it? Let's conversate. What exactly can Sasuke do now?"

Kakashi hummed. "Likely something to surprise even your Rinnegan."

Naruto blinked.

As soon as the battle began, Gaara realized something. His sand couldn't reach Sasuke.

It certainly wasn't from a lack of trying, either. Coupling Sasuke's Sharingan with his lightning-charged sword made it impossible to hit him at all. And the entire time he moved far too fluidly for him to be having trouble.

The real issue came when Sasuke did something unprecedented. "Thousand Birds Sharp Spear."

An arc of lightning pierced through Gaara's chest. Right over his heart.

A/N: I sincerely apologized for the rushed chapter. Again, I don't have a laptop anymore. I wrote this at school which is something I normally never even consider. Above that I wanted to get something done for you guys. It's really a shame since the mobile app for ff . net is horrible and the mobile site doesn't even allow publishing actions. Regardless, I also want to say that I've been taking a lot of criticism for the story to heart. So this is a shoutout to AnonymousAbomynous- in future chapters I will take your words to heart. To all other reviewers, your questions should mostly be answered or at least have a basis for further questioning by next chapter. Thank you! ^^