Chapter 11: ANBU

Note: Tenzo will appear in this chapter! I know that he only transfers from ROOT when Naruto is around four years old, but here, Tenzo is already in Kakashi's team by the time the rookie 9 are three years old.

I hope you guys had a good New Year! This is my second chapter I'm posting this time! But this is only because I'll be taking a bit of a break from writing - sorry, sort of buried under preparation for finals, reports, and presentations I have to do... :(

Please give me some reviews! The more reviews or follows I get, the more likely I will try to get back to writing earlier XP!.

Warnings: AU. Slight OOC. Good-ish Danzo.

The early morning of November 1st, Zero got up, dressed with meticulous care, and ate breakfast, all while making sure he didn't wake up Ichiru who was still sleeping. After taking a look at the innocently sleeping Ichiru, Zero walked out of the house and made his way across the rooftops towards Training Ground 44 – the Forest of Death. The village was mostly deserted during this time of the day, as almost everyone was still asleep.

Zero had opted to not wear the armour he had received in the scroll, since it was too loose for his small body of seven years, and the blank trainee mask was strapped to the side of his waist. Other than the standard kunai holster and shuriken pouch that Zero usually had on him, Zero had also sealed his prized wakizashi, Sode no Shirayuki, in the white bracelet he was wearing on his right wrist.

Upon reaching Training Ground 44, Zero was told by an ANBU to line up with the other prospective ANBU trainees, while they waited for the rest of the trainees to show up. As Zero had expected, he was basically half the size of everyone else, with his height a mere ninety-eight centimetres compared to the other's hundred and sixty-to-seventy centimetres. Zero heard a few hidden sniggers and felt multiple glances from the other potential ANBU members around him, but he ignored them; after all, this was nothing compared to the stares he received from his classmates all year long, back in the academy.

Zero subtly examined his surroundings, his chakra sense automatically memorizing and determining the positions of the fully fledged ANBU around them. Some stood off at the side like they were going to be involved in testing them, and others hid in the shadows as if they were simply there to observe the prospects.

When there were around thirty ANBU trainees all lined up in front of the entrance to Training Ground 44, an ANBU wearing what looked like a goat mask stepped forward.

"The fact that you are here means that either your skill was acknowledged by the Konoha superiors, or you think you are ready for a place in ANBU. Either way, for the duration of the one month long Initiation, each of you will be assigned a number. Remember that number because that will be used in place of your name from now on." Goat said in a firm monotone voice.

Another ANBU came forward and started appointing numbers to each of the trainees. Zero waited patiently in his position until the ANBU reached him, and was given the number 'eight'.

"The Initiation will start effectively now. The first exercise you will have to complete is simple – you will spend five days in the forest alone, while avoiding capture. If by the time we signal the end of the exercise and you have not been incapacitated yet, you are to return here, immediately." Goat continued to explain. "Any questions? No? Then what are you still waiting for?"

While some of the other trainees floundered and hesitated briefly, not knowing what to do, Zero dashed straight into the Forest of Death, enhancing his speed with chakra. It was a good thing that he had been inside the forest just about a week or two ago, because of the chunin exams, Zero thought, as now he knew the most secluded and suitable spots to wait out the next five days. He would plan out a route and several resting spots that he would use for the rest of the exercise because there was no doubt that ANBU squads would soon be sent after them. Being only seven years old and having just passed the chunin exams a week ago, Zero was at a disadvantage in not only experience, but also ability.

He would need to keep his guard up and sharpen his five senses in order to make it pass the first exercise, Zero thought, as he crouched on a large rock in the middle of a cluster of trees and wove sense-disrupting illusions around the area he was in to throw off anyone on his trail, before leaping off the rock and continuing moving again.

Action is the key to staying off the radar, after all.

Four days had passed since the first exercise started, and Zero had yet to encounter any ANBUs. The main reason for that was because every time Zero felt an ANBU approaching near the area he was in, he would immediately speed up his pace and move to a different area.

Stopping on a tree branch for a moment, Zero pulled out a rations bar and took a bite from it, only to grimace and have to force down the disgusting bland taste. He sighed dejectedly, as usual, the taste of the rations bars were something that he could never get used to. If there was a kitchen somewhere here, then Zero would be able to dish up something way more delicious in a few minutes since he was the one who made most of the desserts back at Rose Blossom Bakery, especially because Ichiru seemed to have zero talent when it came to cooking. But because it was the wish of the Hokage and the Elders for him to join ANBU, Zero had no choice but to deal with the tasteless and unappetizing rations bars for most likely the rest of the month. After swallowing the rest of it down, Zero flipped off the tree branch he was on and continued moving.

Stealth and evasion, those are the traits essential for a shinobi who watches over Konoha from the darkness, Zero thought.

At dawn of the last day, a movement in the corner of his peripheral vision caused Zero to throw one of his higher genjutsus around him and he then used shunpo to land in a crouch on one of the higher branches in the area. Zero observed from his position on the tree as a masked ANBU member moved confidently into the area, only to fall under the influence of Zero's 'Second Circle of Hell'. Their chakra fluctuated slightly as they tried to dispel the genjutsu, but was unable to do so; Zero's prowess in genjutsu was one of the best in Konoha, it would not be so easy to escape from his technique. Taking this chance, Zero leapt off the branch and swiftly knocked the ANBU member out. He casted his chakra sense around to confirm that there were no other pursuers, then Zero shunpoed out of the area. He resumed moving at a fast pace for a few more minutes in order to ensure he wouldn't encounter another ANBU, before he stopped at one of the resting spots he had initially designated at the start of the exercise.

Zero leaned his back on a tree and calmly took a few deep breaths. Even though he had only come into contact with ANBU once, the constant moving around in the forest for the last five days had definitely taken a toll on his stamina. Zero's child-sized body was not adjusted to such stressful activity; he could feel the dull soreness in his joints and his skin felt raw from the consistent use of chakra to boost his speed and hide his signature at the same time.

Hearing the loud sound of the horn being blown, Zero couldn't help but feel relieved. He didn't think his body could handle even more movement. Zero stood up and quickly made his way out of the forest, to where they were supposed to return to.

XXXXXX

When Zero arrived at the clearing that he was supposed to be at, he saw a few other recruits sitting on the ground, writing frantically on what looked like a piece of paper. Many of them had various scrapes and cuts, and it seemed like it was only Zero who had managed to complete the first exercise unscathed.

Goat walked up to Zero and handed him a stack of papers, saying that the second test was a written exam, in which they would have one hour to answer a hundred questions about various shinobi arts, foreign affairs, and hypothetical situations, and that the test had already started so Zero would only have fourty-five minutes to complete the written exam. Zero nodded his agreement and quickly walked over to a free space in the opening. He sat on the ground and flipped through the written exam, Zero's eyes roaming briskly through the questions.

Not too bad, Zero mused, as he finished scanning through all the questions. While there were a lot of questions he had to answer in a limited amount of time, none of the questions were hard or particularly difficult.

Zero's hand rapidly flew across the paper as he wrote down his answers. If it was a knowledge test, than he would have no problem. Rather, Zero could only feel glad that it wasn't a test that involved him moving, because he doubted that his body could handle any more action.

Goat carefully observed from his position the ANBU recruits doing the written exam. The second test of the Initiation didn't just assess the trainees' knowledge; it also was a psychological test to see how they would deal under pressure.

The second test started as soon as Goat had blown the horn, so the longer time it took for a trainee to return to the opening, the less time they had for the written exam. How the recruit chose to answer the questions on the exam in the short amount of time was a big key in knowing their personalities. From whether they chose to rush through the entire exam and answer all the questions sparingly to responding thoroughly to the questions they knew the answer to while leaving the ones they couldn't blank, the way the recruit chose in order to earn as much points as they could, was important to determine what areas they were good at and what areas they were not as good at.

Goat's eyes landed on Eight, the youngest prospective ANBU trainee. From the very beginning of the Initiation, Goat was quite interested in how Eight would do among the other recruits who were all at least twice his size and age. And Goat had to say, that he was definitely impressed with Eight's skill. Although being the youngest, Eight had completed the first test in Training Ground 44 without receiving a single scratch. His stamina and stealth were both top-notch that only one ANBU had been able to track him down, and Eight had even managed to defeat that fully-fledged member in mere seconds. The written exam seemed to be providing Eight no trouble either, as his looked to be breezing through the test.

Goat could certainly see why the Hokage and the Elders had Eight join ANBU right after passing his Chunin Exam.

At 11 o'clock sharp, Goat collected all the written exams from the trainees and ushered them to a barrack, stating that they would have three hours of rest before they would start the taijutsu and ninjutsu tests. Or at least that was all Zero was able to hear because he was too tired to pay much attention.

Zero had gotten maybe only a few hours of sleep combined since the Initiation started, and he was seriously at his limit. To be honest, if the second test was not a written exam, then Zero doubted he would have been able to make it through.

He was seven!

By the time Zero entered the barrack, he was already too exhausted to do anything but collapse on the bed. He wasn't even able to think of removing the blank mask Zero was still wearing over his face.

Zero was asleep before he could so much as formulate a thought.

When the sound of a gong woke Zero up three hours later, signalling the time for the ANBU recruits to make their way back to the clearing in front of Training Ground 44, Zero felt the opposite of refreshed.

His head was hurting, his joints ached, and his chakra levels felt quite low.

Nevertheless, at least Zero felt a bit better compared to how he felt when he had finished the second test. Depending on how he used his chakra, then he could probably last through the taijutsu and ninjutsu tests.

Or so Zero hoped.

XXXXXX

Hatake Kakashi leisurely strolled to the Forest of Death, as he decided that it was finally time for him to show up to the ANBU Initiation. It was tradition for members of ANBU to either participate or watch the Initiation because that way, they could either scare the life out of the trainees who thought they were ready to be ANBU, or they could grab hold of the trainee they wanted.

To be honest, Kakashi had mixed feelings about Kiryuu Zero.

He had heard rumours about how the young prodigy started rising through the ranks at a frighteningly fast pace, with another fellow prodigy, Nara Kaname, beside him the whole way. Not to mention, the two of them were closely followed behind by another child genius, the Uchiha heir – Uchiha Itachi. But Kakashi had tried not to pay much attention to the three young geniuses, else he would be forced to see how much they reminded him of himself.

Kakashi found his way to the exam grounds about fifteen minutes after the taijutsu test had begun, nodding a greeting to ANBU Commander Goat, who looked as intimidating as ever, and Nara Shikaku who looked to be half-asleep while leaning on a tree.

His team members, Tenzo, Shiranui Genma, and Namiashi Raidou, all moved in his direction as soon as they spotted him.

"Kakashi-taichou," came the usual, polite greeting from Tenzo, while Genma and Raidou just gave a wave at him.

Kakashi gave a half-hearted wave back to the three of them, before focusing his attention on the ANBU trainee currently undertaking the taijutsu test.

The third stage of the Initiation was a taijutsu match, in which the ANBU candidates who had managed to survive pass the first and second exams – the usual five day run in the Forest of Death and the written exam, were expected to protect a target without using any weapons and chakra that went beyond reinforcing one's body. This stage picked out the shinobis who had exceptional chakra control and ability to make use of the most miniscule amounts of chakra to give themselves an edge.

Kakashi perked up when he saw a trainee with a blank mask that had the number Eight on it, make their way to the centre of the exam ground. Despite their face being covered by the mask, their identity as Kiryuu Zero was obvious to the rest of the onlookers, as all the other ANBU trainees were at least double or maybe even triple in height and size.

Both said to be a geniuses once in a generation, both graduated from the academy in a single year, and both were promoted at an indecently young age; Kakashi couldn't help but draw parallels as he observed Kiryuu Zero. Still, taking the ANBU exam at seven years of age was unprecedented. Even Kakashi was thirteen by the time he entered ANBU, and that was already considered quite early.

It was no surprise that the other people around the exam ground all sat up and paid more attention. Shikaku too, straightened from his slouched position and his eyes pierced Eight from behind.

Zero looked ridiculously small as he stood calmly in the middle of the clearing, with his back to the masked ANBU sitting on the ground, simulating a civilian. The short stature along with the thin limbs, the unexpectedly feminine face that still had traces of baby fat at the cheeks, and the hair, a soft shade of silver like the rays of the moon, made him look more like an angel than a shinobi.

Zero's opponent was ANBU taijutsu expert, Bear. At first glance, the match already looked extremely one-sided, and in truth, it was probably as far away from a fair match as you would ever get. But it didn't really matter, because the real purpose behind the taijutsu test was to see how long an ANBU trainee's control reached, how long it would take before they got frustrated and forget the objective – protecting the target. How and when Zero would break, was what was actually being judged here.

An overwhelming silence mixed with restrained awe, fell over the crowd as they watched the match.

Bear was a blur as he unleased quick punches and vicious kicks that looked like they would shatter bones should they connect.

But they didn't.

Zero surged up to meet every attack, his innate speed allowing him to deflect the blows. The way the young boy used simple manoeuvres and basic movements of his body to deflect basically all the force behind Bear's attack was nothing but amazing.

The onlookers couldn't help but grudgingly admire Zero's skill, as he used his small size to his advantage and ducked under his opponent's arm, simultaneously spinning and delivering a surprisingly strong blow to Bear's ribs. Then, in a show of stunning agility and flexibility, Zero placed his hand on the ground, using it as a pivot point, as he launched his body into the air while folding into a tight backflip and landed at exactly the same spot he had started from, with his back to the civilian he was supposed to protect.

Kakashi didn't miss the fact that even though Zero sustained quite a few scrapes and bruises, he had not actually ever received a full blow from Bear, and that throughout the test, Zero had never forgotten the objective as he always returned to his original position between the target and the opponent, not once giving in to the urge to pursue.

Eventually, Commander Goat called a stop to the match, announcing that Zero had passed.

XXXXXX

ANBU Commander Goat stood at attention with Jonin Commander Nara Shikaku beside him, in front of the Hokage and Danzo-sama.

"Your thoughts?" Sandaime asked the two of them.

"Eight – Kiryuu Zero, has lots of potential. It's obvious by looking at his results in the first, second, and third stages of the Initiation, that ANBU would definitely benefit from his prodigious skills." Goat reported. "Never mind putting him through the rest of the Initiation, he's certainly already at ANBU level. There's no need for Eight to be put through more pointless exercises or tests. With your permission, I'll assign him to Team Ro under Hatake Kakashi's command, in where Eight will no doubt be able to grow even more.

Shikaku nodded his head in agreement, "I also am in concord with Goat's decision."

Though in actuality, Shikaku felt the opposite; Zero was too young to join ANBU, he was only seven, ANBU would most likely destroy all the innocence Zero had left. But Shikaku was the jonin commander, he knew very well how Konoha was still at a vulnerable position, so he couldn't avoid not using Zero's genius skill in order to strengthen Konoha.

Hiruzen regarded Goat and Shikaku impassively for a moment, before bowing his head slightly. He could feel Danzo's heavy stare probing into the back of his head.

"Very well, Kiryuu Zero will be a member of ANBU from now on, and he will be appointed under Hatake Kakashi's command." Hiruzen said diplomatically while puffing on his pipe. He was the Hokage of Konoha, at times he would be forced to make decisions he didn't want to. Konoha was still weak from the Third Great Shinobi War and the Kyuubi attack three years ago, no matter how Hiruzen wanted Zero to to be able to enjoy his childhood, the village came first.

"Konoha's youngest registered ANBU operative, huh." Hiruzen murmured.

XXXXXX

Zero followed ANBU Commander Goat as he was led around the ANBU headquarters.

"Trainee Eight, Kiryuu Zero, from now on you are ANBU Operative Crane." A painted mask was handed to Zero, while another ANBU inked the ANBU tattoo on Zero's left shoulder. "You will be a part of Assasination and Infiltration Team Ro, under Captain Hound's command. Report to him at 0830 sharp, starting from tomorrow."

"Hai." Zero answered in acknowledgement.

Commander Goat disappeared in a swirl of shunshin, and Zero slumped on the wall behind him in relief.

Even though Zero had been pulled out of the Initiation after only a week and accepted into ANBU, his body was still extremely exhausted and sore. The mere three hours of rest he had gotten after the second exam had only made him feel a bit better, and that only lasted until his taijutsu match with Bear. Zero couldn't help but feel lucky that there wasn't a need for him to finish the Initiation, as the taijutsu test had used up all the stamina and strength he had.

If the Initiation gave Zero this much trouble, he feared how harsh ANBU would actually be.

The next day Zero put on the ANBU set of gear fitted to his size that he had received. Black shinobi pants with the standard shuriken pouch and kunai holsters, a blank tank top that showed the ANBU tattoo on his left shoulder, a grey flak jacket that went over the tank top, black gloves that had metal plates on the back of their hand area and went a bit over the elbows, and grey metal arm guards. Lastly, Zero strapped Sode no Shirayuki onto his back, clipped his ANBU mask onto the side of his waist, took the box that held his personal belongings and headed to Team Ro's room.

Zero walked into his team's room and stopped in the doorway, bowing in greeting.

"Starting from today, I've been assigned to Team Ro of ANBU Black Ops. I'm Kiryuu Zero. It is a pleasure to meet your acquaintance."

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