Finally...I've been meaning to get this one out, but I just kept getting side tracked...

ONE MONTH LATER

JANUARY 7th, 0930 HRS

It was a rather sunny day in Konoha for a January, slightly warm with no overcast. The streets were bustling as per usual for a morning, but there was an extra element to the business going on down in the street today. It was because of the Chuunin Exam finals, being held today in the Central stadium. There were betting pools being set up all over the place. Financial players of all walks of life were busy taking bets and wagers. Some were even betting with mortgages, deeds and titles, pink slips, and IOU's (Go to Vegas some time...You'll see people using some weird shit to back their bets...).

Since Sasuke and Neji, two of the most surefire bets, were taken out of the running by two of the supposed weaklings according to the Academy Records, and several others were wild cards. The only surefire bet in many minds was Gaara of Suna. The next bet was Naruto, then Hinata and Lee. So far, the odds were 2 : 1 for Gaara, 10 : 1 for Naruto since they adjusted for his new skills and power, 12 : 1 for Hinata and 13 : 1 for Lee.

Everyone had been training themselves into the ground in preparation for their fights, especially Ino and Chouji. Ino was to fight Rock Lee, who was like a tank that could move at speeds faster than she could track and hit like a frieght train packed with anvils. Her only chance would be to lure him into her Shintenshin and hope that he'd be too caught up in sparring with a fellow Capoerista. If she tried to fight him head on, she would lose horribly, not to mention quickly. To add to that, she wanted to face Sakura in the finals. She had something that she wanted to tell her and get her point across.

She had also changed her look. For the match, she would be wearing the traditional white cotton drawstring pants and a white sports top while fighting barefoot, like Capo was meant to be fought as she was taught. She had also chopped off her hair to mid back length, pulling the rest back into a tight braid. Lee was also going to uphold the tradition, while wearing a white tank top for males while having his hair in a skinny rat tail. Both would wear their Konoha headbands on their right arm, hoping to start a new tradition right here in Konoha.

Lee was training just as hard for his match and he and Ino agreed to a Capoeira match plus an exhibition before hand. They had met and agreed on the music to be played during their match. It was a song that Ichigo had told them originated from a nation called Brazil, who adopted Capoeira as their national martial art. He told them that their masters were referred to as Mestre, which Ichigo was to them since he taught them the art. They talked with Ichigo and he agreed to talk with the Hokage about it and to let him lead the display, heightening the experience. Sarutobi was delighted with the idea and gave it the go ahead. Gai came forward and wanted to be included, since he also knew the style. Setsuna, being a budding practitioner, also wanted to be in it, so they approved it.

This also had another purpose...It was to be a stalling tactic and a smoke screen, to give the ANBU and other Jounin more time to dig in and search out the force locations prior to the starting signal of the invasion. For it to work, it had to be convincing enough to cause Orochimaru to drop his guard. He just hoped that Orochimaru was arrogant enough to only see the surface.

As for poor Chouji, he drew the short straw and has to face Gaara. He knew that his Body Expansion would help keep him from getting crushed by Gaara's sand, but he wouldn't be able to keep it up for long. In order for him to pierce the sand shield, he'd need a massive amount of force to do so and a blunt trauma blow wouldn't cut it. He'd need to think of something, or Gaara would grind him into paste. His father worked with him constantly, teaching him as many of the Akimichi Clan techniques and fight moves as he could within the one month training period.

Tenten was also training hard, with Kakashi focusing on her Taijutsu, since Naruto was a close range fighter and her long range techniques would be useless if he made it in close. He also kept up her physical training regimen to further augment her strength and stamina. To add to that, he also worked with her weapons skills. He figured that since weapons was where her strength was, he should at least her help expand upon it. He also got to shake the rust off of his Kenjutsu and use his old ANBU Ninjato. Afterwards, he was so proud of her for enduring the gruelling training without a single complaint, he handed down something very special to her...A legendary artifact of Konoha...

Speaking of the rest of Team 7, Sasuke was currently busy brooding over his loss in the Prelims to Naruto. On top of that, the power that had been given to him had been sealed away by not only Kakashi, but also by the Hokage. The seal they imprinted upon him was too powerful for him to throw off on his own and tampering with it would guarantee frying out his chakra system, so in a way, it was like a collar, as well. He couldn't believe that he was beaten the way he was and that Naruto possessed such a massive power within him that dwarfed his own. He swore that before long, he would have his revenge on him and crush all that he held dear to him, even if it meant turning his back on the village. This had even superceded his thirst of revenge against Itachi, something Orochimaru had longed to take advantage of. He appeared to Sasuke, like the devil to Eve in Eden, tempting him with power beyond imagining. The spoiled boy took the offer in a heartbeat. All he had to do was...

Then, there was Neji. Ever since losing to Hinata in the prelims, Hiashi had been in an even more foul mood than usual. He would use the Curse Seal at the slightest provocation and now that Hanabi was taken away by Child Protection Sevices...It wasn't pretty. For example, a small girl, around Hanabi's age, from the branch family had accidentally bumped into him and he nearly killed her from using the curse seal for too long. Another similar incident ended in death when a woman that worked in the kitchen took too long to bring him his meal. He activated the seal and didn't stop until he saw blood oozing out of her eyes and ears. That alone was enough to scare the living crap out of him. Finally, Hiashi got around to his punishment for losing. He beat the boy without mercy for days on end, using the Seal off and on then back to beating him again. By the time the finals came around, his entire body was covered in bruises. However, this was also a rather enlightening experience for the once arrogant boy.

'This must be my punishment...For how I treated Hinata-sama and Hanabi-sama...They received similar abuse...And I ignored it to wallow in self pity. Kami-sama...Oh, Kami-sama...I'm so sorry...' He silently cried when he was left alone in a small room without any comforts.

'Hiashi-sama...There will come a day when you will regret your actions...And there will be no forgiveness for you. I so swear it. I will do whatever it takes to make things up to Hinata-sama and Hanabi-sama. To help protect them from YOU.' Neji swore as he forced himself to get some rest.

Hinata's training with Kurenai was proceeding as planned. She was currently training to increase her rather small chakra reserves and increase her physical stamina. She was capable of amazing speed and bursts of power, but she couldn't keep up it for too long without getting exhausted. To that effect, Kurenai took a page out of Maito Gai's book and had Hinata run with smaller amounts of weight in order to increase her endurance and constant sparring to keep her on her toes.

With the Jinchuuriki sisters, they were currently still in school and up to their usual antics. However, since they got acquainted with the Konohamaru Corps, the picked up on one of Naruto's...hidden jutsu, the Sexy Jutsu. It was pandemonium when Ebisu came around for Konohamaru's usual training and he didn't feel like going so the girls hit him with their best shot. Setsuna turned into a buxom purple haired bombshell while Kana became a greenhaired knockout. This gave them an idea for how they were wanting to cheer their Onii-chan on for his match . They had secretly gotten hold of one of Jiraiya's books while he was napping and discovered something called Cheerleaders from it, so they were going to combine the two into this little routine they were working out along with Moegi and Hanabi. Anything they could be cooking up can't be good.

Sakura's training had been stepped up quite a bit. Her immersion into the Shinmeiryuu had gone smoothly, just like Hitomi's did when she was taught by her grandmother, Hina. In their family, the Shinmeiryuu was taught to the women from mother to daughter and since her own mother, Touko, had died young, her grandmother saw to her training. One night, Sakura had a dream. She dreamt that she met the original owner of Yunagi...

SAKURA'S DREAM

Sakura woke up in a start to find herself on a grassy hillside underneath the biggest tree she'd ever seen in her life, overlooking a city of some sort and the ocean. She sat up and found that her new sword wasn't next to her. As she looked around for it, she ran into a girl a little older than her...And she was holding Yunagi!

"Um...Excuse me? That sword belongs to me. Can I have it back?" Sakura asked politely.

The girl was a little shorter than her, her dark hair tied off at the side, wore the sort of clothes that a samurai would wear but with the kimono top's arms cut off, leaving her arms bare. However,the most peculiar thing was that...she had WINGS. The girl looked at her with a kind smile.

"I've waited for over 2,000 years for someone to wield my blade again. You must be one of my descendants. Tell me...What reasons do you fight for?" She asked.

Sakura blinked in bewilderment, but answered her anyway.

"The reason why I fight? I...Well..." Sakura replied bashfully.

The girl already knew and Sakura's reaction was proof enough that she was right. She had peered into Sakura's memories and saw her life. She giggled when she saw her meet Naruto for the first time and at how quickly they became friends.

"He really was a sweet child, just like another boy I once knew. It's amazing that someone who has suffered as Naruto-kun has even has the capacity to love. He must be very special." Setsuna commented, thinking of a certain boy named Negi Springfield. She believed that Naruto and Negi had many things in common, their hearts being the most vital similarity.

'Kami rest his soul.' Setsuna thought sadly.

She could tell that they were completely smitten with each other, but wasn't terribly pleased with how her mind was changed. She was very pleased that she and Naruto found their way to each other again with the help of this Ichigo person, who made her confront her feelings.

"Poor child...He must have been heartbroken...I'm just glad that this Ichigo person, whoever he is, got you to see what a special person you almost passed by." Setsuna said.

"I know...both Naruto-kun and Ichigo-sensei are two of the most special people in my life, even if Ichigo-sensei has only been here for less than a year." Sakura replied.

"Oh? Where did he come from?" Setsuna inquired.

"Well...No one really knows. He just showed up one day, claiming to be Naruto's elder brother and they look so much alike and act alike, too. All that we know and really care about, is that he is responsible for drawing us all together and helping us get stronger. He's so powerful, yet so gentle with us. To add to that, he asked my mother to marry him and she said yes." Sakura told her. Setsuna found herself wanting to meet this man, but it would be nigh impossible.

"I find myself wanting to meet this person even more." Setsuna said.

She was crying when Sakura was...assualted by Sasuke Uchiha, but was happy to see that the feelings Sakura had for Naruto were as true and genuine as they could get, and that he was utterly devoted to her. It was that loyal devotion that saw them through the darkness and he proclaimed his undying love for her and she to him.

"What that loathesome boy has done...Can never be forgiven. Rape is one of the ultimate crimes against Heaven and guarantees eternal damnation. However, with the love of Naruto-kun, you have managed to put it behind you and for that, I am very proud of you." Setsuna commended. She had found Sakura's reasons for wielding her blade to be true.

Her reason was True Love. The greatest reason of all. One that her fellow swordswoman, Motoko Aoyama, had forsaken and suffered grievously for it, never reaching her full potential unlike her sister Tsuruko, who embraced it and reached heights that were once fantasy.

'This girl and her mother, Hitomi, have vast potential within them. I know they will not falter from the true path of the Shinmeiryuu...' Setsuna though as she made her decision.

"Sakura...I deem you worthy of carrying my blade into battle, with my blessings. Take care of Naruto-kun, for he truly loves you." The girl said, handing Yunagi back to her.

"I also have one final gift. You may not be able to use it yet, but someday...You will. It was one of my most powerful techniques but it was never recorded. I wish to pass it down to you, the SHIN RAIKOUKEN. Use it...To protect the ones you love." The winged girl explained as she imprinted the knowledge into her. Since this was a dream, things like this could be done.

"Wait...Who are you? I don't even know your name!" Sakura asked as the girl spread her wings, ready to take off. She looked back with a sincere smile.

"It's Setsuna...Setsuna Sakurazaki..." The girl said, her voice echoing as she took to the skies, leaving behind feathers of the purest white showing that she had been there at all. The dream then faded to white.

END DREAM...

Since that dream, she trained herself even harder to make good on the promise she made with her ancestor. Yunagi...It felt as if the blade had become part of her, like a piece of her heart and soul had been fused with it, as well as her desire to be with Naruto till eternity come. The dream only served to bolster and strengthen her resolve. She absorbed everything that her mother had taught to her, learning at a fevered pace. She learned the unarmed forms of the Shimeiryuu style such as the ZANKUSHOU (Air Cutting Palm) and it's variation, the ZANKUSHOU-SAN, which fired off like a shotgun. She also mastered the FUUJIN RANBU (Chaotic Wind Dance). She was told by Hitomi to keep her blade a secret until the right time, so she sealed it away within a weapon scroll that she keeps in her pouch.

'I will NOT fail Naruto-kun. I was already tainted by that bastard Sasuke, but I'll kill him myself if he EVER tries anything again. I'll drag his headless, limbless, dickless corpse before the council myself and I'll kill anyone who tries to hurt our families.' Sakura swore as she threw herself into her training.

Now, as for Naruto himself...Here's how it went down...

FLASHBACK!

Jiraiya had left the Uzumaki house and sought out Gai as her promised he'd do. He didn't have to look far, since he was with the other sensei having a quick nightcap before they all turned in for the night.

"Ah! Jiraiya-sama! How youthful of you to join us!" The bushy-browed Jounin greeted.

"Ah...Yes. Hey, Gai? I need to speak with you for a moment. In private." The Sage asked of him, to which he obeyed.

As soon as they were out of earshot, their conversation began.

"So, what is this about, Jiraiya-sama?" Gai asked, in full serious mode.

"I won't beat around the bush, Gai. I have come to train Naruto." Jiraiya declared.

"What reasons do you have for such a thing?" He asked.

"I...want to pass down a few birthrights to my Godson from his father, my student." Jiraiya told him. Gai wasn't as stupid as people made him out to be and made the connection, his eyes going wide.

"I see...So he really was his son after all..." Gai commented before getting back to the matter at hand.

"I'll allow it. It's...only right that he claims his birthright and I haven't much left to teach him. He has been a wonderful student and he had the drive to become even greater than his father someday." The bowl cut Jounin agreed, a bit hesitant to let go of such a wonderful student.

"Don't worry, Gai. He will be in good hands. That much I can promise you." Jiraiya assured him as he left the area in a blur.

The next day saw Jiraiya in front of Ichiraku's as he specified to Naruto the night before as he waited for the boy in question. After waiting for a few more minutes, Naruto showed up.

"Hey gaki...You're a few minutes late." Jiraiys scolded him lightly.

"I know, sensei. I was just dropping off my little sisters at school." Naruto explained.

Jiraiya backed down since he understood and just paid for 2 large bowls of Teuchi's new breakfast ramen, his newest creation. It was literally like a breakfast in a bowl of noodles, pan fried bacon chopped up finely, stewed potatoes, the eggs were instead of hard-boiled, cracked into a small mixing bowl, whisked, and poured directly into the broth. It was a massive hit and workers would crowd the stand in the mornings for one of the hearty hot bowls of breakfast. Even Naruto was filled after one large bowl and the Uzumaki sisters gave it their seals of approval, since they were the test bed for the experimental dish. Many of the townspeople still didn't like them, but knew that they were ramen experts of the highest degree. Anything they approved so highly of HAD to be good. (On a serious note...I actially tried making this myself and it was sooo damn good...)

After breakfast, Jiraiya dragged him out to a secluded patch of forest to gauge where Naruto stood at this point by having him do a few drills, such as Water and Tree Walking. Next, he was ordered to perform a few of the jutsu he knew, so he chose some of the smaller scale jutsu, like the FUUTON :DAITOPPA, SUITON : MIZUTAMA and SUITON : SUITAIHOU.

Before they could really get down to brass tacks, Ichigo showed up as called Jiraiya over.

"Just a minute, Jiraya," Ichigo stated. "I think you should know what Naruto has learned, but there are some things I would like to keep secret for a while longer."

"What do you mean?"

"Didn't Hokage-jii fill you in on everything that's been going on with Naruto, especially when it comes to the Uchiha?" The blank look on the Toad Sannin's face answered his question.

Sighing, he turned to face Naruto and said, "Naruto, start with your warm-ups while we talk for a moment." Jiraiya instructed. He turned to Ichigo, who place a hand on his shoulder and guided him to the far side of the field. This wasn't going to be pleasant.

Naruto focused on his warm-ups, but he was distracted a few times. The distraction each time was a sharp, intense burst of killer intent coming from the old man.

Jiraya have had a long life and a long career as a ninja, and had seen and heard many truly heinous things, but that didn't prepare him for what this youngster had just told him. He had been angry plenty of times before, but had only been absolutely livid on a few occasions. That number of occasions had just been increased.

'And I called the village ungrateful. If anything, "ungrateful" is an understatement in this case. That goes double for the Uchiha clan. If Itachi hadn't already killed his clan, I would be doing it right now. Under the circumstances, I'll forego my research for this month. As for Sasuke Uchiha and the council…'

"I'm surprised you haven't taken matters into your own hand." Jiraiya growled.

"He's number one on my shit list, with the Civilian Council, Homura, and Danzo coming in at a close second, and Hiashi Hyuuga third. But considering how much Sakura means to Naruto, Sasuke's reserved for Naruto only. After their fight in the preliminaries, Naruto promised Sasuke and everyone else in the arena that the next time he touched Sakura or even came near her or any of his precious people again, he'd kill him in front of the entire village, and the council be damned. Haishi...I took care of him already, but I'll kill him if he tries to hurt those children again.

And on the note of the council, I once warned Homura and Danzo that even a guardian angel can become a devil if pushed hard enough. After I heard how they acquitted the teme, I intended to show them exactly what a devil, or rather in this case an avenging angel, can do. Hitomi-chan convinced me it wouldn't be worth it. Koharu-san, Tsume Inuzuka and most of the other clan heads pledged their support to me. The only exception is of course that asshole Hiashi. However, my patience with the council has run out. One more act of injustice, or any attempt to harm my daughters…And the guilty ones will beg for death."

"Can't say I completely approve of what you intend to do, but under the circumstances I'm not going to fault you."

"Thanks. I just wanted to give you a heads-up. I don't want to fight you, and should you find yourself in my way, step aside."

The discussion over, the two went back to Naruto and watched him continue his warm-ups. "As I was saying, after everything that happened with that teme, I decided to step up his training. Gai and I came up with a counter-tactic which he used during his match. He gushed out chakra at such a high rate that anyone using the Sharingan or even the Byakugan would be blinded. Thus, Sasuke was unable to use his eyes during the fight."

"Nice idea," Jiraya said with an approving grin.

"I did more than that. After I arrived, I was given a month to prepare for the placement test. Hitomi-chan provided me with five scrolls, each with a jutsu from a different element. Once I mastered them, I began experimenting and created a number of originals that I had been contemplating. Hokage-jii either saw them in a demonstration or saw the results. Two of them have been classified S-rank. Considering one of them did some...Uh...Restructuring with the nearby mountain range, I don't blame him."

Jiraya couldn't help but look at Ichigo with utter amazement. Creating new jutsus isn't unheard of, but it usually took a long time to do so. More importantly, such an undertaking was potentially very dangerous. But to hear this youth actually creating a number of new jutsus, especially two S-ranked ones…

'I thought that big dip in the Northern mountains was wierd. If I hadn't heard his story, I'd swear he was related to Minato.' Jiraiya though.

Realization suddenly swept through Jiraiya. "Tell me you didn't…"

"To be honest, I wanted to wait until he became at least a chunin before teaching him any of my high-level jutsus, but the council's inactivity in delivering justice and the threat Sasuke that poses to him and the others has forced my hand. Besides, the fact that he uses the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu repeatedly, and can use the Tajuu Kage Bunshi no Jutsu without injury, despite the latter being a kinjutsu, tells me he has sufficient chakra to use them. The other counter-tactic I came up with was to teach him extremely high cost ninjutsu that the teme couldn't possibly copy and use without killing himself. Those two use up more chakra than a regular Jounin would have alone, much less one pissant little turd. He would only be able to access maybe a small fraction of their power before killing himself."

"Can't say I like that idea. Just how far along have you gotten?"

"Naruto has wind affinity, so I taught him my Fuuton: Kyo Tatsumaki Kaimetsu. It creates three massive tornadoes that orbit a single spot around 10 meters wide. Anyone or anything caught in them gets ripped, slashed, and torn apart. Hokage-jii remarked that it's destructive power was comparable to the Raiton: Raimu Raito."

Jiraya went wide-eyed at Ichigo's statement. He knew about the Raimu Raito, the destructive lightning jutsu that could only be performed via collaboration between four ninjas. The only four who could do that were part of the Guardian Twelve – the Daimyo's former bodyguards – Kitane, Tou, Seito, and Nana. All four were killed years ago and the scroll with the jutsu stolen...By Orochimaru.

"Kid, better be careful with your jutsus. I'm willing to bet the proceeds from my next Icha Icha novel that if a certain snake were to learn of your collection of jutsus, he'd do anything to learn them."

"I know all about his lust for power and jutsus. They'll be my trump cards against that bastard." He said before he left.

After around a week, Jiraiya took in Naruto's progress and was highly pleased by what he saw.

"Good, kid. It looks like you're right on track with your control and jutsu. Now...There are two things that I can pass down to you, your father's signature jutsu, the Rasengan, and the Summoning Contract for the Toads. He was about your age when he signed it." Jiraiya told him, making his eyes go wide. He was shocked and quite humbled at having the honor of being taught the same things that made his father famous.

The entire first week was spent on refining his basics and going over his secondary chakra source and it's possible applications. He also got to work with the Kyuubi's chakra and get a little more practice so he could wield it more efficiently, which Kyuu agreed with. While she was more than happy to assist him, she wasn't terribly happy with her chakra being clumsly wielded like some kind of club. She stressed the fact that he needed to learn to control her power better or it will backlash on him. After that week, Jiraiya felt more comfortable with moving on to letting him Summon and showing him the basics of the Rasengan.

During his first attempts at summoning, Jiraiya got a real surprize when he summoned an actual toad, albeit a small one. The small toad looked around and saw Jiraiya.

"Yo...What's up? Why'd ya summon me?" It asked.

"I didn't summon you, Kichi...He did." The old pervert said, pointing to Naruto.

"Yo! What's up? I'm Gamakichi!" The small toad introduced himself, raising a webbed forefoot.

Naruto and Gamakichi hit it off quickly and he was soon summoned everyday to spend time with him while he practiced the Rasengan and joked around like old friends, much to Jiraiya's comfort.

'This means Naruto and Gamakichi have a strong bond. That is very good news when it comes time to summon his dad, Gamabunta.' He thought.

As you well know, First you say it, then you do it. That is exactly what happened a week later when Naruto was frustrated and poured as much chakra as he could manage into the summoning, summoning Gamabunta. Jiraiya paled when he did it.

'It's too soon! Who knows what that grouchy old toad will do?' He thought in a state of near panic.

"Oi! Who summoned me?! I was in the middle of having a drink!" Bunta bellowed in anger, making the very earth shake.

"Yo, up here!" Naruto yelled, making the massive toad to look up.

"Hey there!" Naruto said once he was found.

"What do you want, brat? Where's that slob Jiraiya? I wanna talk with that old wino for summoning me here!" He yelled at Naruto.

"Well...Here's the thing...I did that." Naruto answered him awkwardly.

"BWAHAHA! Nice try, little snot, but you couldn't have possibly summoned me!" Bunta taunted as he turned to look for Jiraiya again.

"Hey pops! Down here!" Gamakichi answered from the ground.

"Gamakichi? What are you doing here?" The massive toad inquired of his oldest son.

"Bro here really did call you! He called me, too and he's a cool guy!" Gamakichi answered, vouching for his new buddy.

"Hmm...Is that right? Fine then...Kid, you are now one of my henchmen." Bunta announced with a great froggy smirk, pulling out his massive hip flask of sake.

"Now...We seal the deal like men with a little drink, ne?" The old toad chuckled, pouring a small amound into a crater sized saucer for Naruto while he took a nice deep tug.

Naruto shrugged and before Jiraiya could stop him, he was head long into the sake and took a deep swig of the fiery liquid. Almost instantly, the alcohol hit him like a sledgehammer breaking the sound barrier.

"Naru-chan!" Kyuu yelled at him in a scandalized tone, feeling the effects of the sake herself, but able to ward it off.

"What were you thinking, young man?! You're too young to drink something this powerful! And the nerve of that bloated, over-sized wallet...Serving alcohol to young kits!" She fumed in a motherly huff as she began to work to nullify the potent beverage.

Outside of the seal, Naruto and Bunta were drunkenly babbling about anything and everything until the buzz wore off and found himself inside of his mindscape, facing a fuming Fox Demoness.

"Uhhh...Sorry?" He apologized weakly.

"I can't believe you! You should know better than that!" Kyuu chastized her vessel, her nine tails swishing behind her in agitation.

"But...I had to in order to complete the Summoning Contract! Honest!" He explained. It was like trying to explain things to the police. She stared at him for a few more tense moments then she relented.

"Fine...Just as long as this is the ONLY time this happens. You're too young for that, Naru-chan." Kyuu admonished more lightly this time as he returned to the outside world.

He sat up and shook his head to clear the cobwebs, staring directly into his godfather's eyes and he wasn't really amused, either.

"Gaki, that sake he swigs like water is far more potent than your normal liquor. That much could have given you alcohol poisoning. Try to be more careful next time, huh?" Jiraiya chastised.

"Man...First Kyuu-chan and now you..." He mumbled.

"So...She gave you an earful, too? Good." Jiraiya agreed as they turned their attention on the gargantuan drunken toad.

"Hey! Bunta! What's the verdict, you old wino? The kid in or what?" Jiraiya called out.

"Yeah...That Gaki's...(Burp) awright with me...Ja ne!" Bunta said as he poofed away.

FLASHBACK END

From then on out, Jiraiya concentraited on his Ninjutsu and Taijutsu, refining them as sharply as they could until their time was up, bringing us to this day.

CHUUNIN EXAM STADIUM 0930 HRS.

Everyone had piled into the Chuunin Exam Stadium, expecting a damn good show today. The various Daimyos and dignitaries from many diffenrent countries had arrived the day earlier and were told of the exhibition and were eagerly waiting for it. Along with the dignitaries, the Kazekage showed up and took his place in the Kage's box along with Jiraiya and the girls.

"Ahh...Hokage-dono...How nice to see you." He greeted, his bodyguards by his side.

"Kazekage-dono. I trust your trip was pleasant." Sarutobi returned.

"Hardly." The Kazekage sniffed. He then noticed the girls.

"I didn't know you had granddaughters, Hokage-dono." He asked, suspicion in his tone.

'I've seen that smaller brat before...And I don't remember that old fool having Granddaughters, either. Wait...Those two couldn't be...' The snake within thought as he took a closer look at them, making the girls hide behind Jiraiya.

"Great-granddaughters, actually." Sarutobi responded as he turned to the youngest.

"Setsuna-chan...Shouldn't you be getting down to the arena floor for the demonstration?" The old Hokage asked.

"I almost forgot! Dad wanted me to perform with him and the others! I gotta get ready!" The little girl exclaimed as she bolted from the booth down to the changing room to get ready.

"Demonstration?" The fake Kazekage asked.

"All in good time." The Hokage said cryptically. He already knew that the Kazekage was a fake, but the safest place for the girls right now was away from him and close to Jiraiya.

'Speaking of which...I should get them away from him.' He thought.

"Jiraiya...Maybe you should take Kana-chan down to the stands to see her sister and father perform the Capo." Sarutobi suggested to the sage, his eyes motioning to the faux Kage. Jiraiya picked up on the eye movements and knew what he meant.

"Yeah...C'mon, kiddo. Let's go on down there. I wanna see what this Capoeira is all about." The sage replied as he picked up his surrogate granddaughter and whisked them away to the lower seats.

'I knew it...It IS them. I will have them if it's the last thing I do. I must possess their power...' Orochi-pedo thought as the Hokage stood.

Down in the arena floor, all of the contestants were lined up in a row, being presented to the crowd as Sarutobi took over.

"HELLO, AND WELCOME TO THE 26th BI-ANNUAL CHUUNIN EXAMS HERE IN KONOHA! TODAY, WE WILL BEAR WITNESS TO THESE YOUNG GENIN AS THEY SHOW WHAT THEY ARE CAPABLE OF AND TO SEE IF THEY ARE TRULY WORTHY OF THE RANK OF CHUUNIN! HOWEVER, BEFORE WE BEGIN, WE HAVE A SPECIAL PERFORMANCE THAT WE WOULD LIKE TO PRESENT TO YOU AS AN ADDED TREAT!" He announced as the chosen performers took centerfield, the other Genin on the field all getting a front row seat. Ichigo arranged them into a circle around them, forming a Roda of sorts, getting them involved in the festivities and further stalling the invasion while appeasing the crowd.

Ichigo took this a his cue to open things up. Himself, Gai, Lee, Ino, and Setsuna were all dressed in the traditional clothes of the Capoeristas, but all had different colored sashes to indicate their rank as according to the tradition. Lee and Ino both had on Green/Yellow sashes to indicate their Intermediate Rank, Gai wore a Yellow/White sash to indicate that he was a Teacher, Ichigo wore a pure white sash signifying that he was a Mestre, while Setsuna had none meaning that she was a beginner.

"Hello! We offered to put together a small performance before the exams get underway! This is a long forgotten tradition from far across the seas, called Capoeira. It was created by slaves, who used this fighting art to train under the guise of dancing. However, we will put on a small demonstration of what this art entails!" He announced as he explained what the sashes meant, calling for the music to begin. The music had a tribal feel to it, with chanting in a another, unknown language to them, but known to him as a Spanish dialect from Brazil.

"This song is called Paranaue and the way the contestants down here are arranged is called a Roda. This is a tradition for Capoeira and signifies community, as they would usually be chanting and clapping along with the music." He told the crowd as Naruto and Hinata had both heard this before and started to chant and clap with the music.

Ino and Lee got into the Ginga, standard sweeping motions and stance for Capoeira as they moved side by side and started out with a series of Gancho (Hook Kicks). Ino entered an Negativa to dodge when Lee used a Gancho Giratoria and the two of them traded moves until it was time to tag out using the Chamada. Lee switched out with Setsuna and the smaller girl used a flurry of acrobatic kicks and spins, much to the enjoyment of the crowd, who cheered loudly.

Ino had a few new admirers due to her choice of clothing since it revealed her new toned body quite nicely. Shikamaru couldn't believe that this was really Ino down there.

"Crap...She can really move. She's keeping up with the guy that kicked my ass...Troublesome..." He grumbled until his mother smacked him on the head.

"At least she trains." Yoshino scolded.

Soon, it was time for the Teacher and the Mestre to get things started for real as Ino and Setsuna performed the Chamada to bring them in. The two came in from opposite ends of the Roda using the Bandiera. Soon, it was a mix up of Negativas, Gancho, and several other moves all performed with the lightning speed and precision of masters. Just as the music ended, the two of them went into an artistic Au Batido, like a breaker's pose, to cap the presentation off.

'I hope that gave the guys enough time to dig in and get ready.' Ichigo thought as he and the other performers took a bow, making the crowd roar with applause.

"My...That was certainly an artistic fighting style. This was called Capoeira, was it?" The fake Kazekage inquired.

"Yes...It was." Sarutobi answered dryly.

"Hmm...I should like to see this, Brazil, and learn this style of Taijutsu." He replied as the Mestre poofed into a plume of smoke to reveal that he was under a Henge the whole time, now in his Jounin uniform so he could officiate over the matches.

"I HOPE THAT ALL OF YOU ENJOYED OUR LITTLE SHOW! NOW, WE MOVE ON TO THE FIRST MATCH OF THE FINAL EXAM...GAARA VS. CHOUJI AKIMICHI!" Ichigo announced, the two fighters staying behind while the rest went back upstairs. Gai took Setsuna back into the stands and dropped her off with Jiraiya and her sister.

"You have fun down there?" Jiraiya asked her with one of his lop-sided grins.

"Yeah! That was really fun, Jii-chan!" Setsuna gushed.

"Hey, Se-chan...That looked like fun down there!" Kana chirped.

"Yeah! Can you teach us some of that some time?" Hanabi added.

"Ha ha! The Mestre Setsuna-sama can teach you, my students!" The spunky Setsuna told them dramatically, making a few adults nearby chuckle.

"Those girls are so cute!" A pretty young woman gushed.

"And their grandfather brought them here too. How sweet!" Her equally attractive friend agreed.

'*Sigh*...I'm surrounded by cute girls, yes...BUT THEY'RE NOT EVEN OVER TEN AND TWO OF THEM ARE MY SURROGATE GRAND-DAUGHTERS! THE YOUNG LADIES ONLY SEE ME AS A GRANDFATHER! Not fair...' The Great Perv...Jiraiya whined as the match below was getting started.

Ino was worried about her teammate. She saw what Gaara did to that one Genin back in the prelims and was tempted to talk him out of competing. However, she knew that he wanted to fight and show that he'd been working just as had as her and to make his father proud of him. His father's opinion of him really meant a lot to him, since he looked up to him so much.

Chouji mustered all of the confidence he had and made his way down to the arena floor while his opponent simply used his sand to teleport down there, the two of them meeting up in the middle of the arena. Ichigo looked back and forth between them.

"Are you ready?" He asked of them.

"Y-yeah!" Chouji shouted, trying to pump himself up.

"Hurry up..." Gaara said impatiently.

"FIGHT!"

Gaara wasted no time in trying to crush Chouji to a pulp, but the portly genin already knew what would happen if he got caught. His father had been changing up his training to better stay ahead of Gaara's sand. He worked on his speed and while he was still rather slow, he could still stay slightly ahead of the sand. He lanced out with an enlarged fist to fight back. He didn't really expect it to work, but it helped get the sand to back off so it could defend Gaara. Spurred on by his attack, Chouji just went wild with his attacks, wailing away at Gaara's sand shield until it finally gave way, a massive fist clocking Gaara cleanly .

This shocked everyone in the audience, especially the Suna team. Chouji had scored a direct hit on Gaara, something that was thought to be impossible and Gaara was having a hard time getting back up. However, upon closer inspection, his face seemed like it had cracks in it, like the impact never happened. The sand rushed in and sealed it, Gaara's once dead expression now one of anger as his sand wrapped around Chouji quickly. He struggled and struggled, trying to break free, but the sand was quickly enveloping him.

SAND COFFIN...

"CHOUJI!" Ino screamed in horror. Ichigo was ready to rescue Chouji, but Chouji wasn't quite ready to give up yet.

NIKUDAN HARI SENSHA!

The Sand Coffin began to bulge outward, then exploded, revealing Chouji in his expanded form, rows of kunai knives strapped around him. He them rolled himself into his Human Boulder plus the knives and sent himself careening toward Gaara. He threw up a sand shield just in time, but his defenses were slowly being ground away. Acting quickly, Gaara turned the ground beneath Chouji into soft dirt, making him dig himself into a hole. After another moment, Chouji ground to a halt, stuck and completely helpless in the ground. He had no choice but to quit.

"I give up. You got me." He announced, but Gaara refused to acknowledge it.

"No...Mother hasn't been satisfied yet..." Gaara spoke in his usual creepy tone as the sand slithered up to Chouji's head and began to suffocate him.

"GAARA! STOP RIGHT NOW!" Ichigo commanded, but it went ignored. Cursing under his breath, he quickly charged up a chakra pulse and launched it, severing the sand from Chouji and knocking Gaara back.

"This your final warning. If you disobey my orders again, you will be disqualified. Is that clear?" Ichigo growled at the disrespectful Genin, who continued to just glare at him.

"I SAID IS THAT CLEAR, GENIN?" He roared, his voice carrying up to the Kage seats quite well.

"...Yes..." He complied as he skulked back up to the competitors area and waited for his next match. He knew that he was no match for this proctor, even his Bijuu told him not to fight him.

In the Kage's box, Sarutobi wasn't amused by Gaara's actions.

"Your son needs to listen to the proctor." Sarutobi scowled.

"Yes...Gaara never really seems to respond well to authority figures." The Kazekage replied.

Ino lept down from the stands to help her teammate back up to the contestant's box while Ichigo got ready to announce the next match.

"NEXT MATCH...SAKURA HARUNO VS. KANKURO!"

Sakura heard her name called and she turned to Naruto.

"Wish me luck, Naruto-kun." She told him as she stole a quick kiss from him.

"I will, but I doubt you'll need it." He replied with a teasing grin. Ino watched the pair with a little bit of jealously.

'I have to win and fight her...I need to tell her how I feel about him and get some closure, one way or the other.' Ino thought as she steeled her resolve and Sakura lept down to the field.

Hitomi was watching anxiously from the stands near the girls. She was chomping at the bit to see her daughter win her fights.

'She's trained hard for today...I know she can beat this kid.' Hitomi thought, having the utmost confidence in her daughter.

She and Kankuro met face to face, calculating each other carefully.

'She's gonna be tough...But I can take her, even if she did beat sis.' Kankuro surmised.

'I already know that he's tricky and he's probably built in more tricks by now...I'll need to take him down quickly and I have the means to do it.' Sakura thought as she readied herself.

"Ready...FIGHT!" Ichigo announced as the two tensed, but didn't move. They were waiting for each other to make the first move and possibly the first mistake.

"So...You were able to beat my sister, huh? Che...She was beat by a runt like you...Pitiful..." Kankuro goaded, but it wasn't affecting his intended target. Instead, his sister up in the stands was looking like she was ready to blow a head gasket.

"KANKURO! I'LL SKIN YOUR PAINTED ASS FOR THAT!" Temari bellowed from the stands, making him pale.

"Aw crap...She heard me..." He groaned, but Sakura saw her chance to lunge in and take him apart. He noticed her in time and set his puppet, Karasu on her. She dodged out of the way and did the last thing he expected, but the worst thing to do to a puppeteer...Cut the stings. Karasu fell lifelessly to the ground and was refusing to respond. In a panic, he looked over toward his opponent and saw that her had was encased in green chakra...And nearly wet himself.

'SHIT!' He freaked out inwardly as she closed the gap between them quickly and he was forced to rely on his poor Taijutsu skills. The fight wasn't really so much of a fight at this point, but an ass-kicking spree of biblical proportions. After a full minute of getting his ass beaten to a pulp, Ichigo saw fit to call the match in her favor, almost feeling sorry for the Suna Genin...Almost. She then picked him up by the collar of his black jumpsuit and held him up to Temari.

"Hey! You want a turn at him?" She yelled out.

"GLADLY! That little punk..." The livid kunoichi muttered as she stomped her way over to the contestant's box to claim the soon-to-be chew toy. Upon picking him up and dragging him out of the box, a series of painful sounds could be heard, making many of them wince. Naruto pulled his attention away form the impromtu torture session and onto his girlfriend.

"You did really well out there, Hime." He told her.

"Thanks...I hope you do good, too." She replied, the two of them staring into each other's eyes.

"Geez...Get a room!" Tenten taunted playfully.

"Tenten-chan...They are only showing their youthful feelings for each other!" Lee retorted to his former teammate.

"God Lee...I was only joking with them." Tenten admonished, making him wilt slightly.

"Oh...Sorry..." He replied sheepishly, but she punched him playfully on the arm.

"'S'okay, Lee." She said cheerfully.

Up in the Kage box, the two leaders were reviewing the results of the match.

"I dare say that the Haruno girl dominated this match. Kankuro did not stand a chance against her once he lost his puppet. It seems that she is a Taijutsu specialist, a bad match for a Kugutsu." Sarutobi commented.

"Hmph." Was what he got in return as the next match was announced.

"NEXT MATCH...NARUTO UZUMAKI VS. TENTEN!"

Naruto noticed that she was looking very nervous, but after what he did to Sasuke, he couldn't blame her. On the other hand, Tenten was nervous, yes, but she knew he wouldn't do to her what he did to Sasuke, that being beating her into a barely identifiable pulp. She sighed, steeled herself, and hopped down there to face off against one of her best friends.

'I hope I'm up to this...' Tenten thought as she got herself ready.

Up in the stands, the four small girls all got up and stood out in an open row where they'd have a little more room. Everyone around them were puzzled at what they were doing...Until the infamous words were spoken.

OIROKE NO JUTSU!

All four girls were transformed into every young man's ( And lonely Pervert's...) fantasy, a quartet of perky, scantily clad cheerleaders ripped right out of one of Jiraiya's infamous novels. Almost every male with a pulse within view sprouted nose bleeds as all four knockouts started up their little routine. Sakura and the other girls were mortified, but couldn't help but feel a little envious at their figures, even if they weren't real. Kakashi had two bulges growing, one on his face and the other...You know where that is, folks. Even up in the Hokage's box, Sarutobi was hit suddenly.

"Hokage-dono...Is there something wrong?" Oro-pedo asked.

"No...Nothing is wrong." He answered as calmly as he could, his nose bleeding a gallon a minute.

'No, no...Bad Saru, Bad! Those are you Great-granddaughters down there, for God's sake!' He was screaming at himself.

"Go, Go, Nii-chan, Go, Go!" The four girls chanted as they danced in their adult bodies.

Hitomi wasn't really amused, per se...She was laughing her head off at the widespread damage the girls caused. Besides, she thought that it was a rather cute idea that they wanted to cheer him on and because of that, she couldn't bring herself to get mad at them. However, next to her, Jiraiya was furiously scribbling down notes, a pervy grin on his face.

"Hee, hee, hee! These girls are geniuses! Damn, I'm proud!" He clamored, crying "Manly Tears". Hitomi sighed as she leaned over.

"You know...Two of them are your Granddaughters..." She told him, bursting his bubble and was enjoying seeing him visually deflate.

Down in the arena, Ichigo was trying...trying to suppress a headache as he glared at Naruto.

"If I find out you taught them that..." He growled, leaving his threat hanging there to let him picture his gruesome end himself.

"What do you mean, me?! I wouldn't do that!" Naruto protested, but knew of one little snot that probably did.

"That little turd Konohamaru...He's SO gonna get it after this is all over!" Naruto yelled. Said little turd was now wishing he could become invisible now that Hitomi and several others were all glaring at him.

"Alright...We'll deal with this later. Are both of you ready?" Ichigo asked them, to which they agreed.

"Alright then...FIGHT!" He shouted as he lept back to a safe distance while the two contestants lept in.

Tenten was hesitant about mixing it up with him, but wanted to just get the initial clash over with. Naruto was eager to fight Tenten to see just how far she had come. He truly treasured her as a friend and to not give his all during this match would be an insult. With a hint of impatience, Naruto lept in for the first strike. His kunai clashed with hers as they locked up for a moment until Naruto lashed out with a sweeping kick to knock her feet from under her. She hopped over it chamber a sweeping roundhouse kick to his head, which was blocked as a light taijutsu exchanged was started.

After they exchanged more blows, Naruto managed to kick her away and swapped to his regular close quarters style, Muay Thai and pressed his attack. Tenten was forced to fall back, using every shred of training that Kakashi gave her just to hold him at bay. She managed to catch a lucky break when he over extended one of his kicks and allowed her to back off.

"You're no slouch, Ten-chan." Naruto praised.

"You either...I'm really starting to enjoy this little fight!" Tenten replied as she drew the saber that passed down to her by Kakashi himself. It was the very saber that made his father so famous, and he passed it down to her...

FLASHBACK...

Tenten was training hard for her matches in the Finals, pouring every ounce of her being into her efforts. Kakashi was nothing short of impressed with the girl's drive to succeed, her ability to wield any weapon and adapt quickly. She was bound and determined to show the world that kunoichi were every bit as deadly as their male counterparts.

'Maybe...It's time that I passed it down. I don't know if I'll live long enough to have children of my own...And she is like a niece to me. She has more than earned the right to carry it into battle. She is the only member of this team embodies all that it means to be a Konoha shinobi and does so proudly. I couldn't be any more proud of her. I just hope that...Someday she will pass this down to a student that is worthy enough to carry it.' The Copy-nin thought as he called her over.

"Yes, sensei?" She asked, panting and huffing with fatigue.

"I...just wanted to tell you how proud I am of you. You succeeded where two prodigies and geniuses failed, showing everyone that skill and ability have to be earned." He told her. She blushed slightly from the praise.

"I...I'm not as strong as Naruto or Lee, though...And I don't have a big clan name or special eyes backing me like Sasuke or Neji." She admitted.

'Yet another reason why she's earned it. She's still modest...'

"That might be true, but you have just as much guts and determination as they do and as for a clan name...It's overrated as you've proven. You've grown beyond my expectations...And I never thought my finest student would be a girl. My sensei must be laughing right now." Kakashi mused aloud with a chuckle.

"I don't think you ever told us who your sensei was." She inquired. He pointed to the North of the village...To Hokage Mountain.

"His face is up there." He told her with an eyesmile, enjoying watching her gape in disbelief.

"No way...The Yondaime?" She gasped.

"Yes...Rin and myself were his students, along with an Uchiha named Obito..." He started as he told her all about his old team, making her giggle when she heard what Obito was like.

"He sounds a bit like Naruto..." She replied.

"Yeah...He was the most un-Uchiha Uchiha there ever was..." He continued on with his story. He told her of when he gained his Sharingan eye...and Obito's sacrifice.

"He was my best friend...And it was thanks to him, that I am the shinobi I am today. Everything I am, I owe to him. Minato-sensei treated us all equally and when the Kyuubi attacked, he asked Rin and I to help watch over his legacy." He said, knowing that Tenten was smart enough to know what that meant.

"Naruto...He's the Yondaime's Legacy, isn't he? Because of the Kyuubi?" She asked.

"Yes, he is. You saw through the lies of the village and saw who he is as a person. Again, for that, I am very proud of you and I'd like to think that Minato-sensei would have been, too." Kakashi told her sadly, winding down his tale.

Tenten was still reeling in shock that the mighty Yondaime was the sensei for her sensei, and that her choices would have made him proud of her, a lowly orphan girl. Kakashi thought that she was getting dangerously close to figuring out that Naruto is the son of his sensei, but was relieved when she didn't question into it further.

"Tenten...Just know that win or lose in the finals, I will still be proud of you." He encouraged her as they stopped training for the day.

They stopped by his apartment on the way home so he could give her something truly special.

"This is what I wanted to pass down to you. This is how my father, Sakumo Hatake, got the name The White Fang. It's a very special sword in it's own right, like the swords of the Kiri Swordmen and the Niidaime's Raijin. As shinobi, we never know which day will be our last, and I wanted to pass this down to you. Hopefully, you can pass this along to someone you deem worthy when you become a sensei someday." Kakashi told her as he handed her the legendary weapon as they broke for the day. She marvelled at the gift that was bestowed upon her...The White Light Chakra Saber of the White Fang himself.

'Kakashi-sensei...I will make you proud. I swear it...' She swore as she left for home.

FLASHBACK END...

'I'll do my best, sensei. I promise.' She swore as she readied herself to strike.

Naruto picked up the tensing in her muscles as she lunged in to strike and attempted to parry with a kunai again, but the saber cut through it like a hot knife through butter. He managed to dodge most of the blow, but some of it still cut his arm slightly as he backed away.

'Damn...Ten-chan means business and that sword of hers can slice right through anything I block with. I gotta think for a minute...Got it!' He thought as he put his impromptu plan into motion.

He let Tenten swing at him some more as he created some Shadow Clones for her to play with and keep her busy while he started on his plans. He had the clones attack her relentlessly, wearing her down. Her stamina was good, but not anywhere near as good as his and he could easily outpace her. After a few minutes of fending off his clones, she was getting tired and it was showing in her slowing pace and the sweat beading on her brow.

'Dammit! He's like some kind of machine! He just keeps coming and I'm running out of juice and options! Time I used something I've been saving...' She thought quickly as she lept back to get a little distance, pulling out two scrolls in the process. She quickly unfurled them with a flourish and unsealed all of the weapons within.

SOUSHORYUU!

Naruto now had to contend with a literal hailstorm of weapons of all shapes and sizes being lobbed at him, forcing him to dodge like crazy.

'Holy crap! Where the hell did she get all of those weapons?! Did she rob the outfitter?!' He told himself as he flew through handseals for a particular Fuuton jutsu that would be very useful here.

FUUTON : KAZE NO TATE!

A protective barrier of wind roared to life around him, protecting him from the steel hailstorm. All of her attacks were now just bouncing off of his shield of wind and rendered all further attacks useless while Tenten looked on in despair.

"No..." She whispered as she dropped to the ground, the last of her energy spent during the weapon summoning. She had completely run out of options, her muscles were screaming at her, and if she chose to fight even more, she would only suffer a beatdown...So she surrendered.

"Proctor...I give. I can't keep this up..." She wheezed out, but her face told a different story. She was disappointed in herself, greatly.

"She really gave her all down there. I couldn't possibly ask for more than that from her." Kakashi said, a smile on his face.

"Yes, she really did. She has gotten so strong..." Gai agreed.

"I know. I'm very proud of her." Kakashi replied as he got up to go meet her as Naruto was announced the winner.

'She did really well despite Naruto being a stamina freak...She's an incredible girl...' Ichigo mused with a grin.

Up in the Kage box, Sarutobi was continuing to play his part in the ruse. "So...Naruto has really shown tremendous growth since his Academy days. First he defeats the Uchiha prodigy, now he wins against our budding weapons mistress. In her defense, she held out well against someone with so much stamina, but she will still need some seasoning. I feel that she will certainly make Chuunin on her next exam."

"Hn...The Uzumaki boy...Is he not your village's jinchuuriki? Why did he not use his powers? He certainly gave up a great advantage. I do not see that as Chuunin material." The Kazekage argued.

"Ah...But there's the thing. He knows that power like that must be handled responsibly and he would only use it as a last resort. In his battle with the Uchiha, the Uchiha was actively trying to kill him and he called upon that strange chakra if you remember." Sarutobi countered with a knowing grin. Orochimaru shut up to avoid overplaying his hand.

'So Kakashi passed down his father's heirloom. He couldn't have found a more fitting and worthy successor to become the next White Fang. I can imagine that many will be following her career with great interest.' Sarutobi thought.

"Good fight, Ten-chan. You nearly got me a few times and kept me on my toes." Naruto told her supportively as he helped her to her feet. She was one of his best friends and she had done exceedingly well.

"Yeah...Thanks, Naruto. Could...you help me back up there? It's really hard to move right now." She admitted sheepishly. He simply threw her arm around his shoulder and helped her slump back up to the box where she could rest.

On their way back up to the box, Kakashi met them half way and said that he'd take her back, so he went on ahead. She averted her eyes down to the ground, disappointed in her own performance when he'd put so much faith in her.

"Tenten...I'm not disappointed in you. I'm actually proud that you managed to push your opponent that hard. I told you that win or lose, I'd be happy as long as you gave it your all." Kakashi consoled his kunoichi student.

"Thanks...Sensei." She replied as she gave him a quick hug before he helped her to the medic's station to get her treated while down in the arena, Ichigo was ready to call out the next match.

NEXT MATCH : SHINO ABURAME VS. HINATA UZUMAKI!

Shino and Hinata both vaulted down to the arena floor and faced one another. Yes, they were both teammates and even good friends...But that had no place here and they both knew that. Both had been undergoing intense training for this day and were going to have to fight to earn their promotions. Both were familiar with each other's styles and traits and that was what made Shino sweat. He had very little outside of his Kikai to use against Hinata. Genjutsu were useless and Taijutsu would only end badly and painfully. This left Ninjutsu and trying to outpace her, even though he had nothing outside of the Academy three and his clan's Kikai Jutsu. He could only hope that her stamina was still a little lacking and he could outlast her.

On Hinata's side, she had been busy preparing countermeasures for Shino's bugs and anything else she could think of. Thanks to Kurenai's hard training, she had further unlocked her secondary element...Lightning. She was now able to mix it ino her attacks to an extent along with something she had been working on since she had been shown the conductivity trick. She had lined her coat with chakra conductive wiring along with insulation, so that anyone that got too close to her would get the surprise of their lives, her turning herself into a human bug zapper and stun gun. On top of all that, she had been increasing her capacity, speed, and endurance for this day, three areas where she was known to be a bit lacking.

Kurenai was a bit pensive about two of her students facing off against each other in the finals, but she was also very proud of them for making it this far. Out of all of the Konoha Genin, two from her team made it, all three of Gai's team, one from Asuma and Kakashi each, and two of the Suna Genin. The biggest shocker of them all to many was that the two supposely weakest of the bunch defeated the two Rookies of the Year to get there. Naruto and Hinata had both come so far from where the were before that it was almost surreal. Her whole team had growm immensely and she was happy with that.

READY...FIGHT!

Hinata wasn't too eager to wait for Shino to make the first move, knowing how easily he could come up with ideas if given the time, so she lept in and decided to keep him on the defensive. Shino wasn't used to Hinata being this agressive, so he tried to send out a cloud of bugs to drain her chakra before she could pull off anything nasty, but he was already in for a nasty surprise.

"Sorry, Shino-kun...But I already prepared for you." Hinata told him as she channeled her Raiton chakra into her jacket, quickly stunning all of his bugs and leaving him with little else. With his primary defense and offense neutralized, he had no choice but to fall back and resort to thrown weapons. She wasn't going to let up the pressure, so she darted off after him, nailing him with one of her Raiton powered Jyuuken strikes to his legs. His legs quickly gave out on him due to the electrical charge scrambling his nerves and rendering him helpless. Shino wasn't a fool, he knew he was beaten.

"Proctor, I concede defeat. She has neutralized me at all ranges and shut me down. If this were a real battle, I would be dead." Shino told Ichigo. He nodded and walked over to Hinata, raising her hand.

THE WINNER...HINATA UZUMAKI!

Up with the Kage's, they were again reviewing what happened.

"That Hyuuga girl...How did she cast a lightning jutsu over her body like that?" The disguised Orochimaru asked in fascination.

"Hmm...I don't know, but I'd like to know how she did it. Her planning was exemplary and her execution was swift and brutal. I believe that even with the results of the next fight, she has earned Chuunin rank." Sarutobi replied, he himself amazed by her ingenuity.

Neji watched her victory with a smirk, especially since Hiashi was stewing in a rage over how she did it. She managed to cast a jutsu over her whole body, then she used Raiton Chakra in her Jyuuken strikes to increase their effectiveness. It was something only she could pull off, since she was the only Hyuuga born besides her mother with a Raiton and Suiton affinity, not a solid Doton like the rest of them. He then looked over to the rest of the Hyuuga elders, who looked like they were regretting kicking her out. They were probably thinking that if she had this much latent talent, just think of how far she could go in the near future.

Over with Kurenai and the girls, Kurenai was damn proud how quickly she put her opponent away and of how far she had come. All she needed was to get away from her father so that she could grow. The little ones were really impressed that their big sister was so strong and wanted to be like her.

As Shino was helped off to the medical station, Ichigo announced the next match.

INO YAMANAKA VS. ROCK LEE

Ino heard him call for her match and was mentally psyching herself up for what she was preparing to do. She knew that it was a dirty trick to pull on someone like Lee, but in her eyes it was a necessary evil. She had promised him a full out Taijutsu match, but she wouldn't kid herself into thinking that she could take him on like that. Even though she had her nose to the grindstone, she couldn't even scratch the surface of what Lee was capable of physically. She would take the kunoichi approach to this match. She looked over to her opponent, who gave her his standard nice guy pose before vaulting down to the arena below.

'Sorry, Lee...But I'm a girl on a mission. I have my objective and I will NOT back down.' Ino thought as she stole a quick glance over at the couple before following her opponent.

Both of them walked up to the middle of the arena, meeting face to face. Lee still had on a grin, but Ino's face was one of steeled resolve as she kept up her facade. Ichigo saw that they were both ready to go, so he called it.

FIGHT!

The two of them settled into a rythmn as they started their match, trading blows in the agreed upon style for a few moments. Ino was once again thankful that she had pushed herself so hard during her training, or she would have been out of the running with the first clash. Lee was a seriously powerful fighter and he had a decent amount of experience, but she knew one of his weaknesses. He was very trusting of his fellow nin but in a test such as this, it would prove to be a costly mistake. As they clashed, she slipped her hand into her pouch and palmed a pair of smoke bombs and waited until Lee went high again, as was his habit. As soon as he went for a high hook kick, she feinted low with a negativa and used the bombs.

"Wh-what the?!" Lee gasped for air as he heard a voice.

"I'm sorry, Lee." Ino whispered as she used the Kage Bunshin and then her Shintenshin, the Bunshin holding her body.

She opened her eyes inside of Lee's body and stepped beyond the smoke cloud, the Bunshin doing the same holding her body. Everyone from Konoha knew what happened there when they saw that. Ino was now inside Lee's body. Suddenly, the boy's hand raised.

"Proctor, I give up." Lee/Ino declared.

"Very well...WINNER...INO YAMANAKA!"

The crowd went dead silent as the announcement was given. Nobody thought that she would be able to defeat the fighting machine and many who thought they bet on a sure fire winner lost BIG. Ino's odds were...Well, it's best not to mention HOW slim they were and how happy her father's wallet is.

"It seems as though Lee-kun will need more seasoning, but he has the skills and strength required for Chuunin rank. Ino-chan on the other hand, shows some promise. She overcame a physically superior opponent with cunning. I will need to pay attention to her next match." Sarutobi commented.

Ino released her jutsu and woke up in her own body again, her Kage Bunshin dispelling itself. Lee, who was now recovered from his temporary displacement, looked highly disappointed, although she didn't know at whom, with her or himself. All in all, she wasn't terribly pleased with the way she won either, but her mind was quick to justify her actions. It was all so that she could meet Sakura in the finals and finally get what she was feeling off of her chest and at the same time, prove that she was her friend's equal. She walked up to Lee and tried to apologize, but he already had something to say.

"It's okay, Ino-san...I know why you wanted to win so bad." He told her with a slight grin.

"You...do?" She asked him in a daze.

"It's very obvious even to me that you have something to prove to my teammates and it was my own negligence that caused me to overlook the fact that shinobi are supposed to be cunning, not just powerful. I thank you for teaching me this valuable lesson, Ino-san. I truly hope to spar with my fellow Capoeirista again sometime." Lee replied, showing a grace in defeat that was hard not to be a little proud of. Ino burst forward and hugged him, whispering into his ear.

"Y'know, Tenten is really lucky to have you chasing after her..." She said to him as she pulled away and lept up to the stands, making him blush. After shaking the blush, he lept into the stands to meet with his teacher as Ichigo cleared his throat to address the crowd.

"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN...THE PRELIMINATY MATCHES ARE NOW COMPLETED! AFTER A SHORT BREAK, WE WILL MOVE ON TO THE SEMI-FINAL MATCHES! BEFORE WE BREAK, I WILL NOW ANNOUNCE THE SEMI-FINAL MATCHES :

FIRST MATCH...NARUTO UZUMAKI VS. HINATA UZUMAKI!

Hinata and Naruto both stiffened who they were to fight. They knew that this was an exam and that this was inevitable, but in all honesty they wanted this to happen. They had been wanting to see how they would stack up against each other in combat. Naruto knew that Hinata had gotten much stronger. She was almost a completely different, but much stronger person compared to the sullen, emotionally abused girl she used to be. Naruto had made a turn around himself, a farcry from the dead last of his class and amongst his peers. He was now the strongest among them and had the love of the girl he befriended years ago.

SECOND MATCH...SAKURA HARUNO VS. INO YAMANAKA!

'I was waiting for this chance...I need to make sure this doesn't go to waste.' Ino thought, her resolve strengthening by the second as she stared at her long time friend.

'So...I get to fight Ino? Good. Maybe now I can drag out what's been eating her lately.' Sakura mused as she glanced right back at her opponent.

GAARA OF SUNA HAS RECIEVED A BYE, FACING THE WINNER OF THE FIRST MATCH.

Everyone in the stands got up to stretch their legs, visit a vendor or use the facilities during the break while the fighters all got themselves prepped for their fights.

OUTSIDE OF THE STADIUM AND OUT IN THE FOREST...

A large army of Suna and Oto shinobi were laying in wait for the signal to begin the attack. They were split into three groups of 300 shinobi apiece, gathered around large summoning arrays. These arrays were meant to summon the massive adult Snake summons to spearhead their invasion assault. Suna had their reasons for allying with Orochimaru, that being the Wind Daimyo sending most of their missions to other villages, mainly Konoha. The Wind Daimyo never liked the Yondaime Kazekage and let his displeasure be known. Financially, this left them in a very dire situation. Some of their people were beginning to starve, the rate of nin going rouge was increasing at an alarming rate. Even some of the Oinin were going rouge, the ones who were supposed to catch nukenin. That's how bad things were getting.

Meanwhile, within the village's walls, one Sasuke Uchiha had packed his belongings into his bag and had stashed it just beyond the village walls and was about to walk away. He suddenly stopped.

"That dobe must die...But not before I give him a little...going away present." Sasuke grinned evilly as he went over to the Stadium to wait for the big kickoff.

AT THE VILLAGE ENTRANCE

At the entrance to the village, two women strolled up to the gates and up to the guards. One was somewhat plain in a way, but cute in others. She had bobbed black hair and a simple black robe, but what really stood out was the fact that she was carrying a small pig wearing a vest and a necklace. The woman with her, however, really stood out. She was somewhat tall for a woman with her long blond hair pulled back into twin tails and a small diamond symbol on her forehead, as if her impressive cleavage didn't stand out enough. The blond woman stood looking at the gates and sighed deeply.

"The old fart better not be pulling my leg..." She grumbled as she turned to her companion.

"C'mon, Shizune...Let's go see that old monkey. He said that the Exams were today and thats where he'd be." She ordered.

"Y-Yes, Lady Tsunade!" She replied as she quickened her pace to match that of her mistress, approaching the gate guards.

"Halt! Papers please." One of them asked, the other nearly mesmerized by her chest. She groaned with exasperation and grabbed the staff of the guard ogling her. Then using her thumb, she snapped it in half like a pencil.

"Does THAT prove who I am?" She grunted as she pushed past them, Shizune apologizing quickly before running to catch up.

"No way...Lady Tsunade of the Sannin?! Here?!" One gasped.

"I'm just glad she didn't kill me for ogling her." The other shuddered as they got back to their duties.

AT THE STADIUM

Tsunade and Shizune had arrived at the stadium and were making their way up to the Kage's box when a reel of highlights was played on a screen for all to see during the intermission. She saw one of a pink haired girl's match and was slightly impressed with her usage of the Chakra Scalpel to fight a Suna Puppeteer, but the next reel stopped her in her tracks. She saw a blond boy who was the spitting image of Minato fighting a brown hair girl who was throwing everything but the kitchen sink at him. She saw him wind his way through the steel onslaught and engage her, but the girl pulled out something she hadn't seen since the Second Shinobi War...The White Light Chakra Sabre.

"Now there's something you don't see everyday." She commented as she watched the rest of the matches. She was actually mildly impressed with this group of Genin as she watched them before heading up to the Kage box, where she entered uncontested past the guards.

"Tsunade…I see that you actually read the missive." Sarutobi remarked with a chuckle, making her frown slightly more than usual.

"That damn summon you sent wouldn't leave me alone until I did, you old goat. Besides, once I read it, I had to come see for myself, so I hope you didn't waste my time. There's a poker tournament in the capitol I'd like to be at." She replied, her arms folded under her impressive bust.

"I asure you that I most certainly did NOT waste your time, Tsunade. However, it will have to wait until after the finals to be revealed. Until then, sit with me and watch the final matches. They promise to be very exciting, as we haven't had a crop this promising in quite a long time." Sarutobi told her, Raido pulling out a chair for her as she sat.

"I can only assume that my pervert of a teammate is here, too?" She asked.

"That he is, Tsunade. He's down in the seating area with his granddaughters." Sarutobi told her, intentionally letting the granddaughter part slip and enjoying the look of surprise on her face.

"Shizune. I need you to go find Jiraiya and find out what the hell's going on." She ordered her assistant as she herself greeted the Kazekage, whom she got a strange vibe from, not good.

"Right away, Lady Tsunade." She responded as she deftly complied with the command, taking Tonton with her.

"Kazekage-sama...A pleasure to see you here." Tsunade greeted coolly.

"Likewise, Tsunade. It is quite a surprize to see two of the three Sannin in attendance after so many years of absence." Orochimaru played his part, not really knowing if his ruse was exposed or not yet.

'No matter...I can still take this drunken floozy and the old man down easily. The only real threat is Jiraiya, but I will be done with these two before he can help.' Orochimaru thought as he carried on with the ruse.

Down in the seating area, Shizune was on the lookout for her mistress's old teammate. She had seen pictures of him as was quite sure that he would stand out in a crowd. After a moment of scanning the crowd, she spotted him and made her way over to him.

"Excuse me, Lord Jiraiya?" She asked, getting his attention.

It took a moment, but Jiraiya managed to recognise the student of his old teammate.

"Ah…Shizune. It's been a long time and I can see that you're not that scrawny little girl anymore…" The old sage replied, a slightly lecherous tone mixed into his greeting. Before she could reply with indignance, another person joined in.

"Shizune? Is that really you?" Hitomi asked her old schoolmate.

"Hitomi…It's really good to see you!" Shizune perked up.

"Who is she, kaa-chan?" Setsuna asked, Kana asked the same.

"She's an old friend of mine from my Academy days." Hitomi explained.

"That's the truth of it, runts. She's also the student of my old teammate." Jiraiya added.

"Really, Jii-san?" Kana inquired.

"Uh…You had kids?" Shizune asked her old classmate.

"Yes…I do. My eldest daughter is in the finals, and these two…It's a long story." Hitomi trailed off, giving her a brief explanation of the situation that saw the two girls in Konoha and in her care.

It made her head hurt at first, but she understood in the end, leaving it at that until she could explain this to her mistress. They also explained about Naruto, confirming that the Hokage was indeed telling the truth and had a legit reason for summoning them there. She knew that the Mitokado guy was bad news and slimy as hell, but her friend paid the price. Not all things were as bad as they could have been, though. She was a bit giddy at the fact that young Naruto was so smitten with her friend's daughter and that Sakura returned the feelings, but nearly went on a personal SND mission to find and eliminate the Uchiha scion as painfully as possible. The situation with Ichigo was confusing, but she was happy that her friend was engaged to marry him and they made each other happy. They all sat down to watch the rest of the finals as they started. Shizune saw the boy her mistress had come here to find and had to admit that he was the spitting image of his father and even though the situation had been explained, she had to suppress her surprise at the name of his opponent.

Semi-finals first match...Naruto Uzumaki vs. Hinata Uzumaki!

This match promised to be a real blockbuster. Two real underdogs that took these exams by storm were about to square off and the crowd was on the edge of their seats in anticipation. They got over their disappointment that the Uchiha and Hyuuga Geniuses had been clipped early on. Sasuke who? Neji what? The two had almost been forgotten in the face of these new rising stars such as Rock Lee, Ino Yamanaka, Tenten, and the other finalists. Sakura Haruno made a strong showing for herself when she took down not only Temari from Suna, but her puppet using teammate using her head and a mean right cross. Hinata had attracted attention from potential clients with her tactics along with expanding on what made a Hyuuga so dangerous in the first place.

Up in the contestants box, Naruto and Hinata both gave each other a simple nod, a silent agreement to give it their all, and lept down to the arena floor. The two walked up to one another with a determined gait, stopping just short of each other and waiting for the signal to begin. The proctor looked at the two of them, seeing that they were ready.

"READY...FIGHT!"

Hinata wasted no time in engaging her adoptive brother, who bobbed and weaved his way thought her Jyuken onslaught while attempting to counter attack against her, but her ability to shut him down AND stun him was keeping him from doing anything risky. Finally, he spotted a gap in her offence and grabbed her wrists and spread her arms apart, leaving her midsection open. He then launched a front kick to her stomach knocking her away but she managed to nail him with a palm heel to his left cheek, giving him a split lip and her a large bruise on her stomach.

The crowd was going wild over the Taijutsu exchange, many of them lauding their skill. Kurenai was proud that her student was going toe to toe with someone that was personally trained by not only Gai, one of the best Taijutsu masters the world had ever seen, but also Ichigo, Kakashi, and Jiraiya of the Sannin to an extent, and managed to break even with him. Hinata was really coming into her own and a Taijutsu mistress, developing her own style completely of her own design. Shino was no pushover, but she took him down with ruthless efficency. Even Kurenai herself had to be very careful when in close with her and she was a full Jounin. Lining her coat with those chakra wires and insulation was a work of genius, but she could see that her adoptive gaurdian's tinkering had rubbed off on her and gave her imagniation and ingenuity an entirely new and broad spectum of possiblities.

Naruto had also come very far since her Academy days. He started out at the very bottom of the barrel in every avenue of the ninja arts, but he used his incredible stamina and his ingenuity to his advantage, along with willing sensei and a work ethic that rivaled that of Gai and his protege Lee, to take himself farther than anyone thought possible. This had come to a head in the Prelims when he took out the Uchiha genius in a brutal knockdown, dragout battle, during which the Uchiha admitted to rape and the willingness to commit such horrors again, which lost him a lot of public support. However, the way Naruto handled the situation gained him the respect of the shinobi and some of the general populace. If he truly were a demon, he would have destroyed the village in retaliation.

"Good move, nee-chan." Naruto said.

"You too, nii-chan. We should really step this up a notch." She replied, lightning chakra arcing all around her arms as she activated her RAIKEN.

"Yeah...Let's do it." Naruto answered her challenge, boosting his wind chakra output even higher to counter her lightning, throwing himself at her once again.

The mêlée barrage once again started with Naruto leaping in quickly with a flying knee which Hinata blocked and pushed away from, jabbing at his limbs to shut him down, but he twisted out of her reach with a spinning elbow to her head. She ducked this and countered a roundhouse kick, blocked by a standard Muay Thai guard as he started to throw low kicks to keep her off balance. This tactic was starting to work, with him throwing out front kicks for good measure to her stomach to push her back since he had longer arms than she did and could reach farther. Finally, Hinata grew weary of being pushed away, so she took a page out of Ino's book and used her flexibility and agility to her advantage. She bent backwards at a complete 90 degree angle, planted her hands down into a handstand and kicked out with her legs, catching him full on the mouth with a heel, righting herself with a spin. Naruto spun away from blow to recover, but Hinata was hot on his heels, not willing to chance him recovering and overwhelming her.

So far, he hadn't used any ninjutsu and that worried her, since he would have an insurmountable advantage there. She was far better equipped to handle close quarter threats than mid to long range threats as she was right now. She was primarily geared as a Taijutsu fighter like her former clan. She knew a few other jutsu, but Naruto had already seen them and would know to avoid them. Naruto, on the other hand, was very devious and tricky, along with being physically powerful and skilled with endurance far above her own. She knew that if she stood any chance of winning, she would have to put him away quickly.

Naruto quickly thought of all that he knew about how Hinata fought. She was a brilliant close quarters fighter, blindingly fast and very flexible. She seemed to be able to attack from multiple angles that he just couldn't. Her weakness was that she was still vulnerable to the same things the Hyuuga were, eye irritants and that she needed it to use her Jyuuken. She could fight quite well without it, but her strength was still lacking since she focused on speed and flexibility. She also still had somewhat poor endurance, despite all that she has done to improve it. She was very lethal in spurts, but just couldn't keep it up for very long, at least not as long as he could. Finally, he thought it time to put her away as he summoned a pair of Kage Bunshin and had them stand by.

"Sorry, Hina-chan...But it's time to end this." Naruto toned as he seemed to fly right at her and engaged her in another fierce flurry of blows.

Hinata cranked up her speed even higher as she managed to nail him in the gut with an electrified palm, but before she could follow up, she was knocked off balance by a blast of wind that nearly toppled her. She tried to take down the wind using clone, but another clone, using Suiton, blasted her with a water bullet that sent her flying with a small shriek of pain. Before she could get up, she saw him over her with a kunai to her face.

"Sorry, Hina-chan..." He whispered apologetically.

"You...You got me...I give." She replied, her bangs shadowing her eyes as he helped her to her feet and into a strong hug.

WINNER : NARUTO UZUMAKI!

The crowd went completely bonkers at the announcement. A good deal of people whooped in glee, stating that they'd won a small fortune while others looked like they'd betted their lives away. Neji was proud of how well she did down there, knowing that he couldn't have done a better job himself, however, Hiashi was smoldering with rage as he tore off down to the box.

Kurenai was beaming down at her student with pride, that she'd gone all out to win and held nothing back, as were her two teammates. Hanabi raced over to the contestants box to see her sister, Hitomi asking Jiraiya and Shizune to watch the other girls as she chased after her. Jiraiya was just as impressed by the girl and how she held off his student as long as he did, as well as by her unique technique.

Tsunade was also highly impressed by her ingenuity, taking things and combining them into something that was completely of her own design, just like she did but at an older age. Tsunade hadn't developed her strength technique and the taijutsu style that accompanied it until she was a Jounin, but Hinata was only thirteen and a rookie Genin, but she had already accomplished that and more. Naruto had also put up a hell of a fight, withstanding her withering barrage of lightning powered attacks, but he managed to find ways around it and beat her. Sarutobi seemed to mirror her sentiment.

"Hinata has showed tremendous growth from the shy and downtrodden girl she used to be into this powerful and proud kunoichi we see now. I believe that she has more than earned her vest and so has Naruto. This was a spectacular match, one for the record books." Sarutobi announced to a now silent Kazekage.

'Hmm...This Hyuuga girl is quite interesting. I never would have thought of trying something like this, but I can only imagine the control it would take. Her's might be on par with Tsunade's to pull this off...' Orochimaru thought. He was now thinking of adding her to his list of targets to take back to Oto with him.

In the competetor's box, Hanabi had slipped in and latched onto her elder sister like a barnacle, the two of them enjoying a family moment as Hinata circled her arms around her. Behind them, Hitomi was letting the girl do her thing but another person made his way down to the box was demanding to be allowed inside.

"Stand aside...I must speak with my daughter." Hiashi demanded.

"No. Only contestants and sensei are allowed inside. Please leave or we will be forced to remove you." The guard ANBU replied firmly, not budging an inch from his post.

"Dammit Hiashi...Don't you get it? You aren't their father anymore, you've never been one to begin with! Hokage-sama warned you to stay away, so have Ichigo-kun and Jiraiya-sama! Leave now, or I'll be forced to deal with you..." She drew her katana slowly for effect. "Permanently." She snarled, her blade's dark finish looking sinister in the low lighting of the passageway.

Hiashi was about to attack her, but the ANBU was also drawing his ninjato and his odds of pulling this off suddenly hit rock bottom and he stomped away once again. Hitomi let out the breath she didn't know she was holding in as she re-sheathed her blade as sealed it away once again. The ANBU also relaxed as got back to his duties as Hitomi retrieved Hanabi, walking her back to the stands.

Hinata and Naruto returned to the box and received praise from most of the remaining contenders.

"That was a really good match, Naru-kun! You too, Hinata-chan!" Sakura greeted.

"Yeah! You two did pretty well down there. I wouldn't be surprized if you two made Chuunin!" Ino added, but changed gears.

'I still have my most important match in front of me...I need to be ready.' Ino thought, her gaze going back and forth between Naruto and Sakura. Hinata could see what was going on and gracefully excused herself.

"I'm going to go sit with the girls, now. Good luck!" Hinata said in farewell as she departed for the stands. She arrived at the stands and sat with her younger siblings and Jiraiya.

"You know...You did damn good out there against him." Jiraiya commented.

"Yeah...I still think I could have done something different." Hinata sighed.

"As long as you know that fact and learn from this, you'll only be stronger for it." Jiraiya replied sagely as they turned their attention back down to the arena for the next match.

"Finally...My daughter and her friend are going to settle whatever it was that was bothering them." Hitomi sighed.

"What's been eating the two of them?" Jiraiya asked.

"I can answer that one." Shiho Yamanaka piped up near them, coming over to sit with them as she answered their question.

"I'd have to be blind, deaf and dumb to not notice how my daughter has feelings for Naruto-kun. However, since her best friend is already going out with him and now this whole incident drawing them closer together, she has kept silent about it out of respect." Shiho told them.

"Wow...That's very mature of her." Shizune replied appraisingly.

"Mm hm...But, I think she's going to lay it all out during her match with Sakura. That way...In case things go south, they are already fighting. She's a stubborn girl when she sets her mind to something." The elder blond replied.

"Oh ho...The brat's in for an interesting ride." Jiraiya smirked.

Up in the booth, the two girls in question stared at each other with a blazing intensity, so much so that they almost didn't hear Ichigo call them down to the arena.

NEXT MATCH : SAKURA HARUNO Vs. INO YAMANAKA!

The two snapped out of it and immeadiately snapped down to the arena floor without so much as a word to anyone. The two Genin faced each other with a chilling silence that was more than a little unnerving.

"So...Are you finally going to tell me what the hell is going on and why you've been avoiding me?" Sakura asked, a hint of anger in her calm tone.

"Oh...You will. I'll tell you everything you want to know about that, and I won't stop until you understand where I'm coming from." Ino replied, a determined gaze setting in on her face as she started to get into rhythm.

"Ready?" Ichigo asked.

"Let's do this, piggy." Sakura hissed.

"Fine then, Forehead. I always wanted to see where I stood with you." Ino replied.

"FIGHT!" Ichigo yelled as the two of them immediately clashed.

Sakura was going to fight her without using her Yunagi, but she would most definitely use her Shinmeiryuu unarmed techniques. Ino's attacks were coming in from all angles, her natural flexibility allowing her to compensate for having a little less striking power than her opponent. After the first clash and exchange of blows, the two girls backed off.

"What the hell is your problem, Ino?! What's been bugging you?!" Sakura yelled as she attacked again and again, the both of them sustaining heavy bruises and tiring.

"It's hard to tell you what's been bothering me, Sakura...But, I feel like I can tell you now that we got that out of our systems." Ino replied, her tone much softer than it was before.

"Wh-what?" Sakura was taken back by her tone, but was compelled to listen.

"Do you remember? That day back at the Academy when Naruto-kun yelled at us, and I did that brain dive on him and Sasuke?" Ino asked, Sakura nodding and not really knowing where this was going.

"...After I went into Naruto-kun's head...I...Fell in love with him. I got to know the real Naruto, the one that he hid away from the world in fear that people would try to demoralize him even more. After all of that...I just couldn't help it. I really do love him, and I would never do anything to hurt him." Ino finally admitted. It was a literal bombshell that she dropped on them.

Up in the box and over in the stands, Naruto was just as flabbergasted with the news that the beautiful blond girl was also in love with him. Hinata, who was at one time in love with him, had come to grips with her feelings long ago and where her crush once was, she now viewed him as family.

"Oh man...Sakura-san is not going to like this." Hinata surmised.

"You mean...You've been in love with my boyfriend all this time, but didn't say anything?" Sakura asked, her voice weak.

"That's the truth...But, I've also never tried to put any moves on him, either. I respect you too much for that and I don't want to trash our friendship over a boy...Like what happened with Sasuke. I was perfectly willing to let you have him, if it made the both of you happy. It hurt...It hurt so damn much...But I didn't want to betray either of you." Ino answered her, her baby blue eyes now starting to leak tears.

Sakura was completely stunned over all that Ino just revealed to her. She admitted that she was deeply in love with her boyfriend, but then she never did anything to get in the way, no matter how badly she was hurting. Sakura could also tell that Ino took a huge risk to admit her feelings. However, they still had a match to fight.

"I'll give you my answer to that after we fight. PROVE YOURSELF!" Sakura roared as she got her second wind, throwing herself at her opponent with a vengeance, forcing Ino to dodge like crazy and find the energy to fight back.

"Dammit!" Ino hissed as she fought with everything she had. She was hellbent on proving to be a match for her rival and best friend and worthy of the young man she loved.

Blow after crushing blow was landed, many of them making the spectators wince. After another three minutes of punishment being served back and forth, the two girls were barely standing and breathing hard. The two had a multitude of bruises and were bleeding from various cuts from kunai and shuriken. The two stared at one another before winding up for what looked to be the final blow and decision maker of the match.

"GRAAAAHHH!" Sakura roared.

"RRAAGGHHH!" Ino bellowed.

The two kunoichi let their blows fly, their punishing gut punches, which contained the last of their energy, slammed into one another at the same time. The two seemed to freeze in time, the crowd on the edges of their seats to see who would go down and who won this devastating fight. Finally, the both of them slumped forward and collasped face to face. Ichigo looked at the two of them and could tell that they were finished here. They weren't getting back up.

"This match has ended in a draw! The fighters have taken each other down!" He announced.

"Well...That was certainly unexpected." Sarutobi stated, Tsunade mirroring her sensei.

"That was an interesting match...Although Minato's gaki is in for a really rough time ahead." Tsunade chuckled.

"Well, regarding their match, I can honestly say that neither is ready for Chuunin rank as of yet, but their skills put them up for consideration for the next exam." Sarutobi mused.

"Yeah...They need a little more seasoning before they're ready, but they have the combat ability. They can fight pretty well." Tsunade replied to his assessment.

Down on the arena floor, the two girls were still laying still on the ground, facing one another.

"I guess...neither of us won..." Ino wheezed.

"Yeah, but...You know what?" Sakura gasped out, trying to catch her breath.

"What?" Ino asked.

"I was thinking...You really love Naruto-kun, don't you?" Sakura asked her.

"I do...What are you...Getting at, Sakura?" Ino inquired.

"Since you...love him as much as I do...Do you want to...Share him?" Sakura ventured. Ino couldn't believe what she heard her friend say, neither could Ichigo.

"Whoa...Didn't see that one coming." He muttered in surprize.

"...What?" Was all a stunned Ino could squeak out.

"Sorry to interrupt, but I need to move the two of you out of here so we can continue with the exams." Ichigo coughed to get their attention as he gathered them up and got them out of the arena where they could finish their discussion.

"Sakura...Did you really mean what you said?" Ino asked hopefully.

"Yeah, I did. I don't want this to come between us, any of us, so this is the best solution I could think of." Sakura replied.

"We need to ask Naruto what he thinks of this. It's his decision, too." Ino reminded her.

"You're right, Ino. Let's go ask him." Sakura chirped as they left the stands to do just that. They had been overheard by the adults, who deliberated this amongst themselves.

"What the hell just happened?" Hinata said after a one mintue silence, almost checking to see if she was trapped in a Genjutsu or in a parallel universe or something.

"Oh my...I expected them to hash this out, but not like this!" Shiho exclaimed.

"I'm pretty surprized with Sakura, too. I never thought she would suggest anything like this." Hitomi added.

"I've heard of men having more than one girlfriend before, but not with the girls suggesting it themselves!" Shizune almost yelled.

"He he...That brat has Minato's charisma, alright!" Jiraiya crowed.

"What did Sakura-neechan mean that she and Ino-neechan would share Nii-chan?" Kana asked.

"Yeah! Is that like when me an' Kana share our toys?" Setsuna asked eagerly, making the ladies sweat and Jiraiya chuckle lecherous.

"Depends on what they share him for..." He cackled out, confusing the girls but making the women angry.

"Jiraiya...Don't go putting ideas in their heads. They already got enough of your ideas if the little stunt they pulled earlier was any indication." Hitomi retorted, her scowl able to burn through plate steel.

"He he...Sorry." He apologized sheepishly.

Over at the competitor's box, the girls managed to garner Naruto's attention and told him what they thought...He passed out for a moment. After they woke him up, they asked him if he would be alright with it. A small corner of his mind told him that it wasn't right...But the rest gave him a resounding "HELL YEAH!". Even Kyuu voiced her approval, having met Ino personally.

"Well, well...That Yamanaka girl has some serious spine if she managed all of this and Sakura has the guts to stand her ground. Those two are more vixen like than I gave them credit for. I approve of this, Naru-chan. They will be good mates for you." Kyuu winked at him from within with a giggle.

'Are you serious?! I thought you'd get pissed, being a girl and all!' Naruto replied.

"Why would I? They came up with this themselves and besides...You, of all humans, deserve this, so just enjoy it!" She urged him.

'If that's not an endorsement, I dunno what is!' Naruto thought to himself as he returned to the outside world.

"Hey...Um...Would you get mad at me if I said...I wanted to try this?" Naruto asked timidly, not wanting to set off either girl. The reaction he got was quite a positive one...Since they both tackled him to the ground and kissed him at the same time. They then got off of him and wished him luck in his match.

Speaking of which, Gaara had been waiting for the chance to kill again eagerly. Now, the time had come and he would be allowed to kill to his heart's content soon...He was nearly salivating at the prospect.

"Soon...Killing will start soon...Mother." Gaara muttered to himself as he eagerly awaited his turn.

Up in the Kage Box, Sarutobi and his guards were still standing by for the inevitable assault on the village, but had confirmed that all of their defenses were in place, their scouts confirming all that their informant had leaked to them. Kin hadn't been privy to many of the details, but Shikaku and the other strategists could piece together the rest based on what the young girl had provided. The Genjutsu Wards were in place and active, extra ANBU had been scattered throughout the stadium, hidden amongst the spectators...Konoha had covered their bases well in ensuring that Oto and Suna would not succeed.

Finally, the time for the final match had come.

FINAL MATCH...NARUTO UZUMAKI Vs. GAARA!

Both Genin made their way down to the arena floor, a murderous look in Gaara's eyes and sadistic glee in the Kazekage's.

"Looking forward to this match, I see." Sarutobi commented.

"Oh yes...I have a feeling that it will prove to be very intertaining." He replied, the veil he wore hiding his sinister smirk.

Just the tone of his comment made Tsunade feel ill at ease. She could tell that something was seriously wrong, but that her sensei knew about it and was playing along for now. It wouldn't do for her to spoil whatever surprize her sensei had in store, so she corrected herself.

Just outside of the Stadium, Sasuke was preparing to launch an attack of his own on Naruto's family, doing as much damage as he could before seomone came to help them, starting with the two little ones. He was told by Orochimaru that he would be very grateful if he secured both of them, taking them back to Oto with them. What he didn't count on, though, was who he'd have to fight to get to them.

Back down on the floor, Gaara and Naruto faced one another, Ichigo coming between them.

"Now...We all want a good fight, but when I say stop, I damn well mean it. I won't hestitate to take down the Genin that won't follow my orders." Ichigo informed the two of them as he got ready to start the fight.

The crowd was on the edge of their seats. This was the match they had been waiting for the entire time. Sure, the other matches had been splendid and the Genin proved themselves quite well, but this match was what they wanted.

READY...FIGHT!

At his signal, Gaara wasted no time in attacking, his sand lancing out in an attempt to impale his opponent, but Naruto dodged to the side and further studied his opponent, as Jiraiya and the rest of his teachers had literally pounded into his head.

'Lesse here...Sand...It's always around him and it's damn fast. What if I could slow it down, like mud? Wait! That's it...' Naruto thought in a flash of brilliance.

He immediately created some Kage Bunshin for Gaara to target. His idea was that the more of Gaara's sand that he kept occupied and hit with Suiton jutsu, the less he'd have to protect himself with and the slower his attacks would be. As his plan was being carried out, Gaara's sand was becoming sluggish and after a few more moments, it refused to move. Before he could even register surprize, he was nailed with a water blast that was melting away his Sand Armor. After finally neutralizing Gaara's defense and offense, he lept in for the kill, enaging his with a punishing barrage of Taijutsu that made even his siblings cringe. Temari and Kankurou had never seen anyone bypass Gaara's defenses, much less take him to task like Naruto was doing.

Gaara was being beaten to a bloody pulp out there without his armor to take the damage for him. Naruto had even flooded the arena floor up to ankle deep, just to ensure that the sand wouldn't dry out and spring to Gaara's rescue. Deep within the demented boy, Shukaku was growing enraged.

"Idiot boy! The Kyuubi's container is defeating you easily! I want his blood NOW!" Shukaku demanded.

"Mother...I cannot defeat him...This water is washing away my sand..." Gaara replied.

"I always have to do things myself!" The demon snarled as it broke free of it's bindings and began to take over.

Outside, Gaara began to convulse and bend at odd angles before more sand shot up through the water, forming a grotesque shell around the boy, a demented, insane, and evil smile on his face.

"Yes...I feel it! I feel so ALIVE! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Shukaku raved madly, his chakra flooding the stadium, which was the cue to begin the invasion.

"Showtime..." Kabuto muttered smugly as he cast his Genjutsu...Only for it to fail.

"What? What's happening?" He panicked, casting the jutsu over and over only for nothing to happen.

Up in the Kage's Box, Orochimaru knew that it was time to begin, but the signal hadn't gone off. He could feel Kabuto trying to cast the Genjutsu, but something was inhibiting them.

'No! They knew about all of this and prepared for us! No matter...As long as the old fool dies, I can come back and finish the job!' Orochimaru reasoned as he shed his disguise, taking Sarutobi by knife point.

"So...Finally tipped your hand, did you?" Sarutobi chuckled, only further enraging the Nuke-nin.

"You...You old bastard! Even if this invasion fails, I will still have your head!" The Snake Sannin screamed, slicing his throat but instead of blood, a hissing sound was heard.

Sarutobi had already switched with a log with an explosive tag on it. Eyes wide, he narrowly avoided the blast, but two of his lieutenants weren't as lucky. Jiroubo and Sakon had both taken the full blast, one in pieces that was currently raining down over the box and Jiroubo had been blown clean in half with the directed charge. With two of his four guards dead, he could no longer form the barrier that would allow him to take on Sarutobi one on one...Along with the Edo Tensei to further tip the odds in his favor. On top of that set back, his surprize attack had failed and his forces in the stadium were being wiped out by the various high level shinobi that were down there, including Jiraiya and the Jounin from the forest that managed to fight him to a stalemate.

Down on the arena floor, Baki, the Suna sensei, had lept down beside Gaara along with his team.

"Dammit! The invasion plan is ruined! Kill as many Konoha shinobi and civilians as you can and flee!" Baki ordered, turning to the Genin.

"Grab Gaara and run. He's useless to us like this." He ordered them, Temari and Kankurou grabbing him and running off with him. Baki slashed at Naruto, only for Ichigo to intercept it and kick him back.

"Get after them! Don't let them escape!" Ichigo ordered as Kabuto hopped down there to even the odds. Naruto made a clean escape while he faced down Baki and Kabuto.

"So...I get to kill the one who injured Lord Orochimaru. This will be interesting." Kabuto commented smugly, but Kakashi and Gai lept down behind him.

"You're still needed to help get rid of those snakes. We'll take over here." Kakashi said.

"Thanks, Kakashi, Gai. I'm off." He thanked them as he blurred from sight, leaving the two Jounin to take the two on.

"Can't fight his own battles?" Kabuto taunted.

"No...It's more like he doesn't have time to deal with small fry like you right now." Kakashi replied as they got the fight started.

Up in the stands, Sasuke was wondering what went wrong, but decided to go with the plan as he attempted to grab the little girls, only for his hand to get sliced off by Hitomi in a eye blink and his legs shut down by Hinata faster than he could blink, combined with Shizune ensuring that he wouldn't be getting up anytime soon. The Uchiha slumped to the ground, screaming in pain and clutching the stump where his hand once was as Jiraiya grabbed him by the throat.

"You little bastard...I had a hunch that our old friend Orochimaru had contacted you, but you decided to not only betray the village, but also try to kidnap my granddaughters. I make sure you suffer for this." The Sannin snarled angrily, slapping a stasis seal on him to keep him out for the duration of the fight. He then gathered the small girls and summoned a pair of toads.

"Whaddya want?" They asked.

"Take these four girls to Myobokuzan, where they will be safe. I'll summon you back when it's safe, okay?" Jiraiya instructed, turning to the girls.

"These two will protect you all, so please go with them. I'll bring you back as soon as this is all over." Jiraiya told them, the toads grabbing them and vanishing. He knew that they were two of Orochimaru's objectives, so sending them away where he couldn't possibly get to them was for the best. He couldn't have had better timing, either, since they saw a group of massive snakes smash their way through the walls.

"It's time for me to get to work." Jiraiya sighed as he summoned Gamahiro, hopping on the massive toad's head and rode into battle. Hitomi unsheathed her blade and turned to her daughter.

"Now is the time to reveal your true ablilities. Don't hold back and go help Naruto-kun." She instructed as she lept off in the same direction as Ichigo.

Ino had already been ordered to help the civilians to the shelters by her sensei, so she would be going it alone. That fact hadn't scared her in the least, as she immeadiately set out to find Naruto and back him up. Anyone who got in her way...She was ready to kill on sight. Hitomi turned to Hinata next.

"Hinata-chan...I need you to head to the shelters, rescuing anyone you see along the way. If you see Hiashi, run. Just run until you find either myself or Ichigo-kun." Hitomi ordered, the ex-Hyuuga girl nodding dutifully as she sped off.

Ichigo lept up to the very top of a nearby tower and summoned Shiranui herself.

"Ichigo-dono...I take it that the time has come to end that snake. Where is the girl?" The large wolf stated.

"She is safe...Jiraiya has the Toads protecting her in the Toad Domain. Now...Let's go end that snake, Lady Shiranui." Ichigo bellowed but before he could leave, Hitomi hopped up behind him.

"Ichigo-kun...Be careful..." She told him as they kissed.

"I know. I'll come back, but just make sure you do the same." Ichigo told her as he rode forth into battle along side Jiraiya and Gamahiro.

Hitomi began to cut down Suna and Oto nin herself, advancing toward the area with the snakes when she was halted by Baki, the Suna sensei and commander of Suna's forces.

"You seem to be a strong woman and beautiful as well. It would be a shame to kill you." Baki leered slightly, making Hitomi bristle with anger.

"No one...But my beloved can oogle me, you scum bag..." She snarled as he launched a wind blade.

She batted the jutsu aside easily using her Shinmeiryuu skills as she took up the stance. She then lunged in, but he was expecting to catch the blade with his reinforced armor...He couldn't have been more wrong. She had infused her blade with her chakra, giving it several times more cutting power as she cleanly hacked through the armor and lopped off his arm, causing him to scream and thrash in pain, clutching the stump of what used to be his arm as Kabuto managed to ditch Gai and Kakashi to see what happened.

'Damn...Even Baki was defeated...This woman is strong, at least on my level.' The snake's right hand mused as he tried to subdue her, but she lashed out and nearly cleaved his head from his shoulders. This also gave Kakashi and Gai enough time to find him and re-engage him as she continued towards the civilian evac centers.

Ichigo and his summon were busy fighting the snakes near the hospital when he heard a scream from inside.

"My Lady...I need to get down there." He stated to his partner.

"Be careful, Ichigo-dono!" Shiranui replied as she continued her offensive against the snakes while Ichigo slid down into the wreckage to find the source of the voice.

"Help me!" The voice called out again, letting him further zero in on the location of the trapped person.

There were Oto ninja inside looking for people to finish off and he spotted them trying to kill some of the medical staff that had gotten trapped. He was on top of them before they even knew he was there and dispatched them both quickly as he turned to face the staff. To his surprize, he saw Mikoto, the one he had a date with on his first day in Konoha, but she ditched him brutally when she found out that he was the "Brother" of Naruto, and she was just as surprized to see him. He shook off any hard feelings he may have had and did his job.

"C'mon! This place is about to collapse!" He yelled out, making Kage Bunshin to carry them out to safety, just in time, too. The East Wing of the Hospital completely collapsed right after he got them out. His clones managed to get the rest of them to safety, but Mikoto was stuck with him as he had to leap up to Shiranui and continue the fight. After a few more moments, the massive wolf managed to chomp down on the snakes head and crush it, killing it almost instantly as it's fangs scraped against the wolf's armor in a desperate last attack.

There was still a third snake out there and it was currently trying to hide, having sensed that it's brothers had already fallen in combat. It then sensed another presense and peeked out to see Hitomi running along the rooftops at a rapid clip. It was now revealing itself for the prospect of an easy meal, but she managed to dodge the massive snake in time.

"Dammit...This is the last thing I need." She growled as she prepared for a rough fight, the snake rearing for another strike. She flipped to the side again to dodge, but the snake's tail lashed out at her and caught her squarely in the ribs, cracking a few.

"Damn..." She groaned in pain, using her blade to remain standing as the snake reared again, this time going for the kill.

"NO!" Ichigo bellowed as he and his summon tried to reach her, but would not make it in time as they could only watch as the snake bore down in his fiancee...Only to hear her battlecry.

SHINMEIRYUU OUGI : RYUHAZAN!

The snake seemed to freeze in that exact moment in time. Then, the snake's head cleanly split into halves in a shower of blood to reveal a haggard Hitomi breathing hard from using the technique. Ichigo wasted no time getting down there, leaving Mikoto atop of Shiranui, and gently carrying her atop of his mount and bounded away, Jiraiya and Gamahiro right behind him to drop off the people they rescued and head back into the fight.

As he hopped down, he gently handed Hitomi over to Rin for medical treatment.

"You did great down there..." He told her gently as he kissed her.

"Flatterer...You still have a job to do, you lazy bum." She quipped back, chuckling as much as her abused ribs would allow her, much to Mikoto's ire.

The young nurse was jealous. Ichigo and Naruto were becoming heroes within the village and she had cruelly swept him aside due to her short-sightedness. As soon as he left again alongside Jiraiya, she stormed over to the stricken woman with a scowl.

"What is he to you?" She demanded, even Rin scowling at the woman while she treated Hitomi's injuries.

"He's my fiancee...That's who." The swordswoman replied in a tone that could chill one to the bone, her green eyes now like frozen jade.

"He dated me first, you know. I can take him back if I want to. He is mine." Mikoto declared snootily, but a naked blade caressed her throat.

"I don't think so. I was told about you by Rin-chan, but I'll tell you here and now. We are happy together and if you try anything to fuck it up, I'll rip your heart out and make you eat it." Hitomi snarled, her Ki blazing. Mikoto, being a civilian with no ninja training, could only cower in fear as she ran off like death itself was chasing her.

"Bitch..." Hitomi bit out as Rin continued treating her so she could get back out there.

KIKIYO TOWER

With Sarutobi and Tsunade, they were facing off against Orochimaru and his two remaining guards, Tayuya and Kidoumaru. The two were very hesitant about holding off Tsunade since she was legendary for a damn good reason, but all time to reflect had passed as the furious blond woman came hurtling at them at speeds they could barely see and nearly tore Tayuya's head off.

"Fuck! This bitch will kill us if she connects!" She panicked, reaching for her flute to summon her Doki to fight while Kidoumaru held her attention, and getting the crap beaten out of him. She managed to finish off the spider-like nin by snapping his neck with her vice-like grip just in time to see the trio of monsters bearing down on her. She dodged the blows of the first two and then caught the club of the third, ripping it away and smashing the orge in one swift movement, it's head exploding like a melon.

"Shit...One down..." Tayuta muttered, her heartbeat becoming erratic with mortal terror.

Tsunade proceeded to use her newly aquired weapon to lay waste to the remaining Doki, crushing them into barely recognizable pulp. Their corpses vanished, her new club along with it as she turned to the summoner, rage highly visible in her eyes. The redhead barely managed to dodge the first swipe, but Tsunade snagged the girl out of the air by her neck and spiked her into the roof they were standing on, breaking several of her vertebrae and leaving her paralyzed from the waist down. She then took Tayuya's flute, crushed it into a ball of steel and chucked it over her shoulder as she left to assist Sarutobi in his fight against Orochimaru.

Orochimaru himself wasn't fairing very well against an equally skilled opponent, especially one that knew how he ticked. Add to that Tsunade finishing off what remained of his elite guard, Kabuto was nowhere to be seen and his forces were being slaughtered, he was in a world of trouble.

"Give up, Orochimaru...You can't win." Sarutobi demanded, his Adamantine Staff brandished and ready to strike the rouge Sannin down.

"Me? Give up to weak fools like you?" Orochimaru sneered then laughed madly, his body shape beginning to shift.

His body began to change, his outward appearance now matching his dark and twisted soul as Sarutobi and Tsunade looked on in abject horror at what Orochimaru had done to himself in the name of power and immortality.

"Ha ha ha! Look upon me and despair!" The now in-human Sannin cackled madly with laughter. He now looked like a giant and grotesque white serpent, towering above them and looking down hungrily.

"So...This is what you've been up to. I should have killed you, out of mercy." Sarutobi replied, now resolved to kill his former student.

"Heh...Now you match your personality, snake-face." Tsunade taunted.

"It matters not...As long as you die here today, I don't care how many die! I will realize my dream and rule over all with the Sharingan!" Orochimaru again roared with insane laughter until a giant katana nearly lopped his head off.

"I agree with Hime, Snake-face. I should have killed you years ago." Jiraiya called out from atop Gamahiro. He lept down to the roof top to face his demented former teammate.

"Also...I wouldn't count on gaining that Uchiha brat anytime soon nor the girls." Jiraiya added to further rattle Orochimaru's cage.

"What do you mean, dobe?" He sneered, still using that old insult.

"He's missing his hands and sitting in the Toad domain, being held for treason, the girls are under their protection." Jiraiya answered with a smug grin. The evil snake's face was twisted in a rictus of complete and blinding rage.

"Nooo! I won't go empty handed! I'll kill you all!" The mad Sannin screamed in outrage as he bore down on them like lightning, but was intercepted by Shiranui, who had clamped her mighty jaws around his neck and left him a mangled, bleeding mess.

"I refuse to allow you to live. Your very existance is a blight to the world and all who live within it. This is for all of the people people in Tsukigakure and everyone else you sacrificed for your selfish goals, you monster!" The Wolf Goddess roared in fury as she bit down again to finish him off, but she clamped down on a shedded skin.

The serpent slithered away, grievously injured, but alive.

"This isn't over! I always get what I want in the end!" Orochimaru hissed as he sunk into the ground and got away.

"Dammit! We were so close!" Ichigo yelled in frustration.

"I know...But the girls are safe from him and the Uchiha has been caught red handed." Jiraiya told him.

"What did he do?" Ichigo asked.

"Apparently, he was ordered to kidnap the girls by Orochimaru as payment for more power." Jiraiya replied, but started to regret it.

"That little bastard! Those girls are my whole life!" Ichigo snarled as he was about to go down there and kill every Suna and Oto ninja he came across until he found his target, but Jiraiya stopped him.

"Ma and Pa Toad have him under so many stasis seals, it would take an act of Kami to get him loose without them not to mention your lovely wife to be lopped off his hand, so don't worry. That brat will get his." Jiraiya assured the young father who was now calming down. Jiraiya then summoned the girls back, thanks to Gamakichi and Gamatatsu.

"Yo! These girls are pretty fun to play with! I hope Bro calls us a little more often!" Kichi stated, giving his new human friends a wink as he and his portly brother poofed away again, the girls running up to embrace their father.

"You're safe...Thank God..." He murmured, picking them up and leaping atop of Shiranui once again.

"Hello, little ones." She greeted the children kindly.

"You're Fuyuno-chan's mama!" Setsuna exclaimed, making the mighty wolf chuckle.

"Yes...I am her mother, small one. Now...I will take you to a safe place now that Orochimaru is gone. Are you ready to go, Ichigo-dono?" She asked her summoner, who nodded. She then turned and bounded off for the shelters, leaving behind a stunned Tsunade.

"That...Who was that?" She asked. She could have sworn she saw Minato just now.

"That will come after this whole mess is cleared up." Sarutobi assured her as Jiraiya took Moegi and Hanabi atop Gamahiro and took them to the shelters as well.

KONOHA STREETS WITH HINATA

Hinata sped through the streets while taking down any hostile ninja she could take by surprize while managing to rescue a few civilians and a Jounin from begin struck down. The Jounin managed to stand up shakily, taking in the small girl who saved his life.

"Thank you. That bastard got the drop on us as a few Chuunin and myself were escorting these civilians to the shelters. My Chuunin were killed and I was barely holding him off until you came." He told her as they teamed up to get the civilians to safety.

They were almost at the shelters when they were attacked again, only this time it was by a Konoha Shinobi...A Hyuuga. The man suddenly appeared before them and lunged at Hinata, but the Jounin jumped in and made him back off.

"What the hell are you doing?!" The Jounin demanded, but the slient Hyuuga simply sped in under his guard and nailed him with a death strike to his heart, killing him instantly.

"Hinata. I have orders to bring you before Hiashi-sama for punishment." The Hyuuga intoned.

"No...I will NEVER go back to that monster! And besides, i still have my duty as a Konoha Shinobi to do!" Hinata countered hotly. Her attacker frowned, then killed the civilians she was escorting.

"There. Now come with me willingly, or will use force." He sneered as he attempted to grab her arm. She smirked

RAITON : RAISEN!

She channelled her jutsu into her coat as she had done before, only this time she wasn't aiming to stun. She clamped down in his wrist to keep him from pulling away and soon she was able to see smoke coming from him. As soon as his clothes and hair caught fire, she released him and caught her breath.

"Bastard..." She growled, leaping up to the rooftops to head for the shelters, deciding to go there in case Hiashi himself was coming for her next.

KONOHA BORDER

Naruto had been in hot pursuit of Gaara and his siblings for close to an hour with no signs of tiring, making them desperate to escape. Kankuro slipped back to hold him off, but ended up being overwhelmed by Kage Bunshin who were each much stronger than him and was beaten silly while the real Naruto kept up his pursuit, Sakura trailing behind but closing in steadily. She had already scored her first kills on the Wave Mission, so she had already hardened herself to slaying any enemy nin she encountered with her recently unsheathed blade, Yunagi. Whenever she held it, she felt...Powerful. Like she could move mountains with enough effort. The sword itself was just a blade, special, but not that special. For her, it was a confidence booster, knowing that her ancestor once wielded that blade righteously gave her faith and courage to do the same, no matter the odds.

Temari had sent Gaara on ahead as she tried to hold Naruto off, but she managed to miss him altogether and ran right smack into Sakura. She looked at the younger kunoichi with barely restrained comtempt for not only for her loss in the pre-lims, but the loss of her mother's precious fan and embarrassing her in front of the male she intended to claim.

"It's too bad about that blond cutie. Gaara's going to kill him and I'll kill you." Temari growled.

"Try it, skank. Your little invasion put my family in danger! When I'm done with you, they'll bury you in a fucking match box!" Sakura returned greater venom as she disrupted an opening wind blast from Temari's replacement fan by simply slicing through it with a Hiken, making the Suna girl's eyes go wide.

"How..." She gasped as Sakura closed the distance and tried to use the same tactics as before, but now Sakura had a much longer reach, scoring several slashes and drawing a lot of blood.

"I am not the weak little girl I used to be. Move, and I'll lop your head off." She snarled, knotting her with the pommel of the sword and knocking her out.

Back with Naruto, he had finally caught up with Gaara and hit him in the back with a Suiton jutsu to slow him down, but it only seemed to antagonize him more.

"YES...MAKE ME FEEL ALIVE, UZUMAKI!" Shukaku/Gaara screamed with insane delight as it sent out countless spears of sand to impale him.

Naruto twisted and dodged for all he was worth, constantly using the trees in the forest for cover while trying to use his clones to probe his defenses. He fired off a few water jutsu in another attempt to slow him down, but the sand was now absorbing the water, Gaara looking even monstrous than before as Shukaku's hold got stronger. As Naruto took cover behind a thick tree, Sakura had caught up to him and slashed at the monster. The sand would normally block such an attack, but her Shinmeiryuu skills had her channeling chakra into the blade and allowed her to cleave through his defenses with ease.

"GAAAAAHHHHH! I'M BLEEDING MY OWN BLOOD! I'LL KILL YOU, YOU BITCH!" Gaara screamed as he launched a sand attack that nailed her squarely in the chest. It penetrated the skin and left a nasty, bleeding wound that looked life threatening.

"SAKURA!" Naruto bellowed as he saw her go down in a spray of blood. He raced over to her and pulled her to safety before Gaara could finish her off.

"Sakura...Sakura!" Naruto cried, trying to revive her, but she was out, her life hanging by a thread.

"Naru-chan...Shukaku is coming...That seal can't hold him back any longer." Kyuu warned her host, sensing the massive surge of Bijuu chakra. True to her words, Gaara was ready to do just that.

Tanuki Neiri Jutsu!

With that jutsu, Gaara's seal lost all power to restrain the demon within him, letting the Ichibi Bijuu completely free to rampage and kill to it's dark heart's content.

"WHEEE! I'M FREE AT LAST! NOW...I'LL TEAR YOU APART UNTIL KYUU-CHAN IS ALL MINE!" Shukaku screamed with glee.

"That arrogant bastard...Take him down, Naru-chan!" Kyuu nearly demanded of her host, Naruto only too happy to comply.

"If Sakura-chan dies...Everyone from Suna and Oto will die...I swear it..." Naruto vowed as he pulled out all the stops and summoned Gamabunta, the Toad Boss appearing under the two of them.

"Oi gaki...What do you want?" Bunta croaked out.

"I need your help beating that thing so I can get Sakura-chan to the hospital!" Naruto yelled desperately. Bunta could smell the blood from the girl and knew she didn't have long left. Bunta then called another toad to his side.

"Hey...Take the gaki's girlfriend to Ma and Pa. They can heal her. Got it?" Bunta ordered.

"Got it, boss!" The small toad saluted and took the critically wounded girl with him to safety.

"Thanks, Boss...Now, we can kick that bastard squirrel's ass!" Naruto yelled as Bunta whipped out his tanto and lunged at the Bijuu.

The blade sunk into Shukaku, but got stuck halfway. The massive toad tried to pull it out, but the sand had a death grip on it and it was trying to snre him too, so he had to let it go and back off.

"Hey gaki...Did the vessel fall asleep?" Bunta asked, dreading the answer.

"Yeah, he did! How'd you know?" Naruto asked.

"When he did that, he gave the demon full control and full power!" Bunta yelled as he dodged another sand spike, Shukaku gearing up for a jutsu while Bunta was in mid air.

FUUTON : RENKUUDAN!

SUITON : TEPPOUDAMA!

The jutsu clashed in a massive explosion, giving Bunta a chance to back off and think of something else.

"Damn...He's tough. Gaki, you know any fire jutsu?" Bunta asked, thinking of trying something he and Jiraiya would use.

"Only one...The teme's Goukyakuu. Why?" Naruto answered.

"That's good enough! Now, get ready to use it after I spit my oil!" Bunta commanded, his cheeks now swelling with the highly flammable liquid. As he spit the oil out, Naruto flipped through the handseals for the jutsu.

KATON : GAMAYUU ENDAN!

The flames combined with the massive stream of volitile oil, resulting in a stream of hellfire that turned the trees it hit to ashes on contact. Shukaku saw the wall of hellish flames racing toward it, but could do little about it as the searing flames consumed it. A literal cloud of fire reigned for a brief few moment, but after they died down, the sand that the creature was composed of became a glassy coffin that trapped the now helpless Bijuu within.

"Go wake up that host and Shukaku will disappear!" Bunta hollared as he got Naruto close enough to do the job.

The glassy surface was very difficult to cling to, but he managed to do it. He had nothing in his arsenal that could punch through the thick glass, but Kyuu had a solution.

"Naru-chan...Focus my chakra into your fist." She requested as he did as she asked.

The potent chakra was gathering into his fist, then she told him to punch the surface, releasing the chakra at the exact moment of impact using the newly honed control he had over her chakra. He punched with everything he had. The resulting explosion smashed it's way through the thick glassy surface and slugged Gaara hard in the jaw, nearly breaking his face in half. It was enough to jar Gaara awake and yank Shukaku back inside it's seal.

"NOOOO! I WANNA PLAY SOME MORE! I NEVER GOT TO MATE WITH KYUU-CHAN!" The massive sand demon wailed as it's body crumbled at disappeared, leaving it's vessel to plummet to the ground.

Gaara hit the forest ground hard, further damaging him by snapping his shoulder, Naruto dismissing Bunta and leaping down next to him. He didn't look too happy.

"N-no...Stay away from me..." Gaara wimpered as he tried to drag himself away, but his injured arm gave out.

"I'm not really any different from you, you know...I'm a vessel, too." Naruto called out.

"Then why...WHY ARE YOU SO DIFFERENT?! HOW CAN YOU BE SO HAPPY WITH YOUR LIFE?!" Gaara pleaded.

"I never gave up on being human. I was beaten, abused, ignored...and even raped once. But I never gave in...And I was rewarded for it. Rewarded for my patience with people who love me. I can tell that something similar happened to you, but quit being such a GODDAMN BABY!" Naruto bellowed at the top of his lungs.

"Then...Why were so much stronger than me?" Gaara asked quietly.

"Because of the ones I love, my family, my sisters...I fight with everything I have to protect them...Especially Sakura-chan..." Naruto replied, reverently silent at the end, causing Gaara to think seriously on this new lease on life he was given.

"I see...You have given me a new approach to life to think about...Thank you, Uzumaki." Gaara thanked him sincerely as Temari and Kankuro, both looking very beat up, landed next to him and expected a fight.

"Just...Take him and go. I didn't see anything." Naruto sighed as the siblings hefted him up and lept away.

"Temari...Kankuro..." Gaara called out in a whisper like voice.

"Yeah?" His elder brother asked.

"Can we...be a family again? Like we used to?" Gaara asked, shocking the both of them. Not wanting to slap down the hand he reached out to them with, they replied.

"Of course...We can be the family father wouldn't allow us to be." Temari replied, earning the first true smile Gaara has shown since he was a small child.

"Thank you..." He sighed with relief, making their way back to Suna as Naruto called Gamariki back with Sakura.

"Sup, bro! Ma and Pa patched her up pretty good, so she'll be okay! Ja ne!" The small toad croaked as he went back to Myoubokuzan, leaving him to pick her up carefully and bring her back towards the village, only hoping that things had calmed down as he headed for the shelters.

AT THE SHELTERS...

A great deal of trembling drew the guards out of the shelter, but there were greeted by the sight of a massive wolf, being ridden by Ichigo and two small girls. Off to the side, they saw Jiraiya atop ne of his massive Toads, another two children with him, the two men delivering the children to safety.

"Papa? I wanna go with you!" Setsuna pleaded, Kana adding her own two cents in.

"We want to fight with you!" The green haired girl added, making him chuckle.

"Listen...I have another mission for you two. Protect the shelters and your mother until I return, okay?" Ichigo asked of them, their eyes gaining a bright gleam in them.

"Yeah! Come on, Se-chan, Nabi-chan, Moe-chan!" Kana chirped as her sister, friends, and herself bounded off to see the woman the two small jinchuuriki acknowledged as their mother.

"You know...Tsunade's going to have a world of questions for you and she won't stop until you answer them." Jiraiya mentioned.

"Yeah... I've got a few of my own for her, too." Ichigo replied as they headed back into the city to further aid in ridding their home of invaders.

Just after they left, Naruto arrived into time to see them leave, bringing Sakura inside to recieve treatment when Hitomi, who was now well enough to at least get around, saw them and sped over to her daughter's side.

"What happened to her?" She asked as calmly as she could, Naruto filling her in on the details.

"So...She was able to severely injure that Suna kid, Gaara? I'm very proud of her." Hitomi replied softly, but Naruto had some questions for her.

"Hey, um...Where did she learn to use a sword like that?" Naruto inquired, puzzled by her new and very deadly skill set.

"That...I will tell you later, Naruto-chan. After all of this is over." She answered him cryptically as they continued to keep watch over the shelters.

A/N: Whew...It's been a year since I last updated this one...But this chapter's a doozy! I wanted to cover the entire Third Exam in one go. Also...I promised an Omake of those too cute youngun's so I will deliver that right...

NOW! Omake...START!

We find ourselves at the Academy exactly two weeks before the start of the Chuunin Exam finals, Iruka's classroom to be exact. Here we find our four little munchkins chattering away during their free study period. Normally, the topics of their discussions were about normal little girl things, like how they ribbed Hanabi about her little crush on Naruto or Moegi about hers on Konohamaru. However, this time it was very different. You see, while their Grandpa Jiraiya was napping on the couch, Setsuna managed to snag one of the books he always bragged about writing. She had also seen these books under Naruto-nii's bed and hidden in Papa Ichigo's pillowcase. She decided to see what the big deal was and was...educated on what the sounds she heard coming from his room meant, which Hokuou confirmed under a huge amount of embarrassment.

However, that wasn't what she was interested in. She and Kana wanted to find a way to cheer on their Nii-chan during his match and that happened to be what the female lead in the book did. She was called a Cheerleader and her job was to cheer people on, so that was exactly what she'd do, but a few things needed to be done first. First, she would get Konohamaru to teach her that Sexy Jutsu Naruto-nii taught him to do. Next, she and her three cohorts needed to find a place to practice in secret, so that meant in the backyard at night or at Moegi's place, since her grandmother would chalk it up to youthful games. After they all got the jutsu down, they memorized what the costumes looked like down to the last detail and even worked out a little dance routine.

"Naruto-niichan's gonna love this!" The smallest jinchuuriki giggled, her sister and friends agreeing with her.

Aren't children so innocent?