Summary: Uzushio has always been a very secretive and isolated village. So much so that their existence is almost a myth. Hence, when the village decides to participate in the chunin exams, everyone's quite excited to see what their ninjas can do. [SasuNaru]

Note:

I messed with the characters' age a bit because this story made more sense to me that way. So just to clarify:

Sasuke, Naruto & co.:15 years old

Itachi, Karin & co.: 25 years old

Kakashi, Gai & co.: 30 years old

Minato, Fugaku & co.: 40 years old.

Hope you enjoy!

Made in Heaven

Chapter 1

''Hey guys, I've got incredible news!'' Sakura came crashing into the restaurant and had sped over to the massive grill-table where the whole cohort had gathered for a celebratory dinner. Sakura was late and the last one to arrive, but she had a good reason. She took a pause to calm her erratic breathing.

Eight pairs of curious eyes turned to her (though Choji was constantly going back to his steak to make sure it wasn't overcooked).

''What is it, Sakura-san,'' Sai, always with his creepy smile, asked his teammate. Sasuke, her other teammate, quickly lost interest and contemplated grilling another brochette. Whatever his excited pink-haired teammate had to say was probably terribly uninteresting.

''Apparently, Uzushiogakure's going to participate in the exams!''

Forget what he said. Sasuke was very interested.

''Really?!'' Kiba exclaimed, spitting a few meat crumbs over Ino's new outfit.

''Eww, gross,'' the pretty blond said, glaring at the Inuzuka.

''I thought that village was destroyed, like, a decade ago,'' Kiba continued, picking up another slice of chicken to grill.

''I heard they all committed a massive suicide,'' Shino said, adjusting his glasses over his nose. ''Why? I don't know.'' Everyone gave him a blank look.

''And I heard aliens abducted the whole population,'' Choji said in between mouthfuls.

''What the actual fuck, Choji,'' Shikamaru said, raising his eyebrow suspiciously at his friend.

''You guys are all wrong,'' Sakura sighed dramatically. Sometimes being surrounded by a bunch of uncultured idiots -except her Sasuke-kun, of course- was very tiring. ''It's just very secretive and doesn't mingle with foreign shinobi countries much.''

''Do you know how many teams they'll send?'' Sasuke asked, curiosity taking the better of him.

''No,'' Sakura said dejectedly, disappointed that she couldn't answer him. ''Probably not many though. It's a pretty small village. Probably the size of Hidden Grass and I heard that village is only sending two teams,'' she supplied.

''How do you know all of that stuff?'' Ino asked, still wiping away Kiba's spit on her clothes.

''I'm just not an idiot, I guess,'' she answered nonchalantly, shrugging her shoulders.

''Go to hell.''

Sasuke was still deep in thought. His family sometimes mentioned the village, more particularly its main clan; the Uzumaki clan. They were the only true masters of fuinjutsu and apparently, the art was fearsome. What most shinobis could do with fuin was to store objects into scrolls. He was curious to see what it could accomplish when used at its full potential. His father had told him a few old stories. He wandered if they were true.

OoOoO

''Naruto-sama!'' Uzumaki Honoka cried out after her cousin, begging him to slow down. ''Don't wander off by yourself!'' The redhead flew from branch to branch, trying to catch up with the blond teen.

''Man, that guy sometimes,'' Tayuya grunted, her patience running thin. Not that she was the patient sort of girl in the first place. That was Honoka's role. Still, Tayuya thought, she didn't like having the Honorable Son distant himself from the team, no matter how skilled he was. ''Sensei, shouldn't we-'' Tayuya blinked when she saw that their sensei was gone. Weird, the girl thought, she was right behind me.

''Woah!'' Naruto nearly tripped over a tree branch when his sensei suddenly appeared in front of him. He managed to find his balance and stay on his feet. ''Uh-oh...'' Naruto gulped uneasily, a nervous drop of sweat falling along his temple. He knew that angry stare too well; it was eerily similar to his mother's.

''Naruto-sama,'' Karin seethed through her teeth, arms crossed severely over her chest. ''What did I tell you about going off like that!''

''Sorry,'' Naruto said repentantly, shoulders slopping in disappointment. His two other teammates promptly joined their sensei and glared down at the blond. Naruto cursed his short stature once more.

Uzumaki Honoka

Uzumaki Tayuya

Uzumaki Karin

His three relatives were everything a true Uzumaki was supposed to be; tall, beautiful with fair skin, long fiery red hair and with a strong character. Honoka's temper was kinder, but she was no-less determined and opinionated. Her passive-aggressiveness made anyone submit to her will.

''I just can't help it,'' Naruto continued, throwing them his perfected puppy-eyes look he knew they could never resist. ''We're almost in Kohona!'' Naruto couldn't help his excitement. Konoha was his father's native village. It was also his first time going so far away from Uzushio. He had always dreamed of visiting the world, especially the Village Hidden in the Leaves.

Just as he had hoped, his cousins' glares softened and they sighed in defeat.

''I understand your enthusiasm,'' Karin said, adjusting her glasses. ''But you still need to stay close. You are the most valuable member of our clan and you are the Kyuubi's Jinchuuriki. Two Jinchurikis have already been captured in the last three years. You need to be careful.''

It was Naruto's turn to sigh. He had been getting that speech a lot lately. Even his fearless mother had been anxious about his going to the chunin exams since the news of the extraction of the Nibi.

''I will,'' the blond promised.

''Alright!'' Tayuya exclaimed brashly, throwing a fist in the air. ''Let's go faster so Naruto-sama doesn't have to storm off again!''

The blond grinned and the other two redheads nodded, smile illuminating their fair features.

The group sped off towards konoha until, at last, the leaves became less and less dense and let view of a massive entrance gate. Naruto's eyes brightened and wondered at how big the village seemed compared to his own native one. He knew Konoha to be one of the mightiest ninja villages. He couldn't wait to measure himself up against their shinobis. As their jounin sensei, Karin took the lead and approached towards the guards.

Izumo and Kotetsu blinked curiously at the approaching ninjas and their jaw nearly fell onto the floor when they noticed their forehead protectors. So it was true after all; Uzushio truly had sent a team to participate. Their eyes roamed up and down the odd-looking group. It was also the first time they saw a team with only one boy and three females; it was usually the opposite or at least equal. The two girls and their older jounin sensei looked very alike and were all undeniably attractive, yet each had their own style. Even the blond boy, the two very-straight guards had to admit, looked quite beautiful.

The girl named Tayuya was definitely the tomboyish type. She had messy long hair, topped with a black bandana cap with the Uzushio protective plate at the front. She wore a long-sleeved black turtle neck over which lay a short beige kimono. It bore the red Uzumaki-clan symbol at the back and was tucked into black combat pants at the front. The ample sleeves of her kimono ended around her elbows and she wore plates on her forearms. She also bore a shoulder plate and even her high shinobi sandals were plated.

The next one, Honoka, had a more feminine and graceful style. Her hair was neater and fell completely straight. Her outfit was mostly in shades of lavender and was much less heavy. Her forehead protector was made with white fabric. She had a long-sleeved, pale mauve kimono with a purple hakama over it. It was tied tightly around her waist with a large white obi and a purple ribbon. The kimono went down to her calves and was slanted at the sides for easier movements. She seemed to wear simple black leggings underneath complemented with standard black shinobi sandals. Both Honoka and Tayuya had deep dark eyes and could easily pass as sisters.

The third lady was their sensei and looked like a more balanced mix of the two girls. Her spiky hair -with a clipper cut near her left ear- and bright red eyes made her look wild, but she also had a strange air of sophistication about her. She wore a sharp dark lavender tunic with a high mao collar tied with a plated white belt. She wore a long black skirt underneath, also slanted on one side, revealing a toned leg, and standard black sandals, as well as a pair of stylish glasses. Both Konoha guard felt their cheeks warm up. She was quite attractive.

Last but not least was the blue eyed boy. He wore a short black kimono which had unusually long and large sleeves and a high collar, as was customary in Uzushio. He had grey leggings underneath and black shinobi sandals which went almost all the way up to the knees and were platted with iron at the front. Over the whole kit, he had on another kimono; though this one was white and went down to his mid-thighs and had slits on the sides. The sleeves and collar were shorter though, letting about two inches of the black one visible at the trims, and it bore the signature red Uzumaki symbol at the back. Since going out into the world without at least a little bit of orange was out of the question, Naruto opted for a large pale orange obi to tie everything together. To complete the look, the boy also had plated black fingerless gloves and wore his black forehead protector casually like a headband, letting wild spiky strands of hair fall over his forehead and against his temples.

None of them, Izumo and Kotetsu noted rather surprised, were wearing any weapon pouches or hostlers. In fact, they did not look armed at all.

All too soon, formalities and paperwork were over and the Uzushio team passed through the gate, leaving the two guards blinking behind them.

Naruto drank in the sight of that large buildings and the dense population. Konoha's architecture was eclectic and its people seemed full of life. There were also quite a lot of foreign shinobis coming in because of the exam. Naruto grinned widely, completely unaware of the stares and whispers he and his cousins were getting.

''Are they-?''

''Their village emblem is-''

''Look!'' Naruto gasped and pointed towards the Hokage Monument. The girls blinked then turned to follow the boy's finger. ''That's the Shodaime, Hashirama Senju, and next to him is his brother the Nidaime, Tobirama and-''

''What the hell!'' Tayuya exclaimed suddenly, hitting the honourable son behind the head. ''You failed History class when we were in the academy, but you know all about Konoha's? What's the deal?'' She said angrily.

''Ow,'' Naruto pouted and rubbed the sore spot. ''Uzushio's history is boring. We basically stay home and avoid people.'' Naruto muttered childishly. ''Konoha's way more interesting.''

''Hmph,'' Karin huffed at the insult. She was very patriotic and couldn't stand whenever her cousin complained about their glorious village. ''There's nothing honourable about getting in all sorts of wars.''

Naruto wanted to talk back; to tell his sensei that perhaps they were fighting for what they believed in, that at least they were getting things moving, but he managed to contain himself. He had had that argument too many times before and he had always been outnumbered. Besides, he didn't want to spoil his mood.

''Alright,'' Karin said, bringing her little pupils to a stop. ''I'm going to see the Hokage. You guys take care of your registration. It should be at the academy.''

''Where's that?'' Tayuya asked, rising a sharp brow.

''I know!'' Naruto exclaimed, a while smile on his face. Tayuya rolled her eyes.

''Of course he'd know,'' Honoka chuckled. Karin laughed as well.

''Let's meet up right here for dinner, okay? Around six.'' Her students nodded and Karin promptly flew away.

''Show us the way,'' Tayuya told her blond teammate, crossing her arms. Naruto grinned and started to walk.

OoOoO

''Neji, look!'' Tenten whispered excitingly, pointing towards an approaching team.

Neji had just completed his own registration and he could hear whispers all around him. He turned to see what the fuss was all about. His eyes widened when he recognized the village emblem on the new team's hitai-ate.

''I told you it was true,'' Tenten added.

''Indeed,'' Neji replied evenly, eyes sharpening. ''They don't look like much of a big deal.'' Besides having very unique and good-looking group, they didn't seem very intimidating. Their built was slender, two of the team members were girls and they seemed a little younger than his team was. The short blond one looked especially clueless; he had wide blue eyes and had the look of a child that had just entered a candy store. Did they not know what they were getting into? The chunin exam should not be taken lightly.

''How exciting!'' Lee exclaimed with his usual enthusiasm. ''New rivals to measure our strength to! I look forward to see what these mysterious shinobis can do!''

''Don't get your hopes up, Lee,'' Neji said, crossing his arms severely. ''They're only genins, after all.''

''We're 'only genins' too, you know,'' Tenten deadpanned. Sometimes her teammate could get so full of himself.

''I know,'' Neji replied, ''but we've been training four years for this. I'm not going to let newcomers with no reputation to back themselves impress me. We'll show-'' He turned to face his other teammate, only to find that the green-clad idiot had run off. ''Where's Lee?'' He blinked.

''Asking a girl out-'' Tenten said, narrowing her eyes and try to see a little better further down the hall. ''-aaannd getting rejected.'' Neji facepalmed.

''Woah, did you see that guy's kick? And how the other caught it? They look pretty skilled.''

Neji turned towards the whispering voice. It was the blond boy from Uzushio talking to his female teammates. The more he looked at him, the more out of place the teen looked. If that simple scene was impressive to him, he'll be eliminated in no time once the exams started.

Neji had to look away from the strange trio and had to focus back his teammate. He was too late to interfere when he walked over there, however; Lee had already challenged Uchiha Sasuke to fight over some pink-haired girl. The Uchiha had thrown the most unimpressed look to the taijutsu expert and had refused, saying he could care less. Lee somehow translated that as 'I accept your challenge' and had proceeded to name the time and place (right now, downstairs). Sasuke rolled his eyes, sighed and buried his hands into his pocket, following the hyper teen to the large entrance hall nonchalantly.

Neji had meant to just let that be, but he figured getting a first impression on the Uchiha's skills might serve well later. He was, after all, the Hokage's little brother.

The Uzushio team -guided by the blond's obvious excitement- also decided to take a peek at the fight.

OoOoO

''Thank you for receiving me,'' Karin said with a polite wushu salute, as was the custom in Uzushio. ''I am Uzumaki Karin from Uzushiogakure.'' The Uzumaki smirked when she saw the Hokage. She had heard about the Kage, the infamous Uchiha Itachi, being young and incredibly good-looking, but she hadn't expected that. A handsome face, dark hair and eyes, an aura that radiated strength and confidence. Well hello there, cutie, she said to herself. He looks about the same age as me too.

''Welcome to our village,'' Itachi said, raising from his desk and bowing respectfully to his special guest.

When he had received a letter from the mythical village of Whirlpools, informing them that a team would participate in the exam, he had barely been able to believe it himself. It could have been a prank, for all he knew, but rumours of the letter had spread before he could stop them and, as it turned out, it had been true.

''I am honoured that Uzushio has decided to join us for this event,'' Itachi added out of formality. Truly, Itachi was rather suspicious. He was suspicious of everything by nature, so something like this ought to call for prudence. ''Please, have a seat.'' Itachi gestured to one of the chairs in front of his desk. Karin nodded gratefully and sat down.

''You must be wondering why now, of all times,'' Karin said without preamble. ''Who wouldn't?''

''Indeed,'' The Uchiha replied, eyes narrowing. Karin chuckled.

''The reason is so simple, it's almost boring,'' Karin said casually with a soft sigh. ''One of my pupils really wanted to go. He pestered us until our clan head agreed.'' Itachi blinked.

''That pupil of yours must be very special if his caprice got the clan to bypass a century old tradition,'' Itachi replied at last. Well-guessed, Karin thought with a smirk.

''That's right,'' Karin said, crossing a slender leg over the other. ''He's our clan head's only son. There's hardly anything his mother can refuse him.''

''There is something else,'' Itahci stated. It was Karin's turn to blink. Impressive.

''There is,'' she confirmed. ''His father was born in this village. He's our current village leader; our village's 'kage' if you'd like. Though you are perhaps a little young to recall who he is, since he joined Uzushio almost twenty years ago. His name is Namikaze Minato. The boy's always wanted to see his father's native village, so we decided to kill two birds with one stone and here we are.''

Itachi ignored the comment about his age and pondered about what the redhead had just said. The boy's father's name did ring a bell, though. He'd have to look into it later.

''There really is no reason to worry about our presence here, it really is as simple as that,'' Karin said. Itachi hadn't said or showed anything on his face that suggested suspicion, but he supposed it was an understandable presumption to make considering Uzushio's long absence in cross-country events. ''But there is just one more thing.'' The redhead sounded much more serious now. Gone was the seductive air. Her blood-red eyes had narrowed. This picked Itachi's interest.

''Yes?''

''Our clan head and I do not care about this exam as much as my pupils do. I know your rules and how dangerous this exam can be. I will interfere if I find that my team's life is in danger. You can disqualify or even ban us from ever participating again, I don't care, but I will not be stopped.''

''I understand,'' Itachi replied calmly. So it isn't as simple as she claims it is, Itachi thought. And it probably has something to do with their leaders' son. I will have to investigate. ''I hope you will enjoy your stay.''

''Thank you,'' Karin's smile came back instantly. She rose to her seat and threw the young Hokage a last look before she left the room.

Was that a wink? Itachi stared as the door closed.

OoOoO

The spar with Lee ended as strangely as it had started. Scratch that; the ending was worse. Sasuke doubted there was anything that could top having a bigger-Lee riding a turtle in the most ridiculous pose in existence.

He definitely had underestimated the guy with the bowl-cut though, he had to admit. That left him even more excited for the exams. If you added Uzushio and the creepy redhead from Suna, this exam was definitely going to be entertaining.

''Man, I knew I'd love this village!'' Sasuke's and Neji's teams turned to the new voice. ''So many funny people.'' Sasuke's eyes widened. A team from Uzushio. ''Somehow I already understand my dad a little better.'' The last part was spoken more softly to the blond's two female partners.

''Hey,'' Sasuke called out casually to the blond and his teammates. ''How about you come down and introduce yourselves.'' The blond gave him a wide smile, while the two girls simply followed down from the balcony from where they had observed the fight.

The trio came closer and Sasuke could only stare. Perfect figure, tan skin and gorgeous blue eyes? Yes, please, Sasuke thought to himself. Then he realized his mouth was open. He closed it. Fortunately, he hadn't drooled.

''I'm Uzumaki Naruto,'' the beautiful blond did some sort of salute the Uchiha had never seen before. ''These are my cousins and teammates; Uzumaki Tayuya and Uzuaki Honoka. We're from Whirpool.''

''Pleased to meet you,'' the two girls said. They were smirking at him. Sasuke wisely chose to ignore that. He also willed his libido to calm down so he could speak coherently to Naruto. He turned his suave mode on. He gave Naruto a once-over and gave him his smoothest smile.

''You've just arrived today, right? I could show you around the village. I know the best places to eat too; my treat.'' The blond's eyes sparkled.

''Wow, that'd be great!'' He looked at his teammates and grinned widely at them. ''We'd love that, thanks.''

… We? Sasuke blinked.

The girls snickered.

Well, it looked like the gorgeous blond was also very dense. But that was okay, he happened to have a thing for adorable idiots so... Sasuke smiled fondly.

''We'll take the tour,'' Honoka said politely. ''but I'm afraid we have to meet our sensei before diner. Thank you for the offer though.''

''No problem,'' Sasuke said. ''Follow me.'' He put a casual had around Naruto's shoulder.

Not too far from the scene, Sakura was staring at the whole thing with a very confused expression. She couldn't hear much of what was being said, but she sure didn't like that her Sasuke was talking to two hot redheads.

''They better not steal my Sasuke-kun away,'' Sakura pouted. Beside her, Sai was smiling as creepily as ever.

''I wouldn't worry about those two girls if I were you,'' he said indifferently. Sakura blinked.

''Really?'' Then she reasoned with herself. ''You're right. They're just here for the exams and then they'll go back. Sasuke won't waste his time with them.''

''I meant-'' Then Sai figured it would be way more interesting anthropologically-speaking if Sakura found out the truth on her own. ''Never mind.''

''Wait for us, Sasuke-kun!'' Sakura exclaimed when she saw he was about to leave with the Uzu-nins.

Sai observed as the girl skipped happily towards her ice prince. Perhaps he should take notes for future studies.

OoOoO

That night, Sasuke decided to visit his brother and inquire about the team from Uzushio. Itachi welcomed him warmly and offered him hot green tea. The two sat around the low table in his brother's traditional living room and exchanged small talk before ending up on the topic of the exams.

''I think you should stay clear of that team,'' Itachi said, taking a sip from his cup.

''Why?'' Sasuke lifted a curious brow.

''I'm not exactly sure,'' Itachi sighed, ''but something doesn't feel right. This whole exam doesn't feel right.'' Uzushio participating, the Sound village -which was very recent and still mysterious- also participating... There was an unusual amount of strong participants. And on top of that, there was that particular team from the Sand village... He had heard of the red haired boy's 'exploits' from Jiraiya's spy network. There was a good chance that that boy was...

''I'll be careful,'' Sasuke supplied. He rarely ever saw such a worried expression on his brother. He was always so cool and in control of the situation all the time. Itachi's reign as Hokage had started only two years ago, when the Third decided to retire. This was the first major event he was hosting as Hokage. Perhaps he was starting to truly feel the weight of his duties on his shoulders.

''But they really don't seem like a threat,'' Sasuke added. ''In fact...'' His mind conjured a picture of a smiling Naruto. The latter also didn't have much clothes and was-

''Sasuke,'' Itachi interrupted his fantasy. ''Please tell me you're not planning to hit on the Uzumaki boy... Please.'' Ever since he had started to hit puberty, his little brother had also apparently lost part of his self-restraint.

''Not hit on him,'' Sasuke said with an eye roll. ''Foolish big brother-''

''-wha-'' Had Sasuke just used his line?

''I plan screwing him and then marry him.'' Itachi wanted to rip his hair off his head.

''Sasuke, that boy is the village leader and clanhead's only son. You will not touch him.''

Itachi knew he should not have said that the moment he saw his little borther's smirk widen.

''He's perfect.''

OoOoO

''Alright, the room's safe. Now let's get down to business.'' Karin had made sure that the walls of the hotel room they were staying in were completely soundproof thanks to one of her seals. Her students had gathered around a map she had drawn earlier today while the teens had been on their tour.

''This is what I was able to gather from my visit to the Hokage Tower. I've also managed to take a peek at the guards' schedules and zones, so make sure you memorise that too,'' the Jounin said as she gestured towards the notes she had written down. ''I am convinced that Mito-sama's scrolls are in the lower levels of the tower, where the security is the heaviest.''

This had been the true reason they had decided to participate in the exams. Almost a decade ago, Uzushio had made a formal request to Konoha to ask for Mito's study and research scrolls which she had left in Konoha after her passing. The Third Hokage had refused. Somehow, the Leaf seemed to think that because Mito had married the Shodaime that it gave them the write to keep their hold on these rare documents. Karin was pretty sure none of the leaf ninjas had even managed to open them, much less understand them. They were probably filled with notes on fuinjutsu that were far beyond their comprehension.

As soon as Uzushio found out that the Leaf now had a new and much younger (and therefore, probably more open-minded) hokage two years ago, they had made another formal request.

Which was also denied.

Up until now, they had been waiting for the perfect excuse to enter the Leaf village without too much suspicion. The Chunin exam was a golden opportunity they simply could not let pass.

''We have the duration of the entire exams to prepare for this,'' Karin explained calmly. ''We must not rush into this. We will prepare thoroughly, steal the scrolls and, most importantly, make sure the leaf cannot trace the theft back to us.''

Karin was pretty sure that the Leaf would suspect Uzushio once they found out the scrolls had been stolen. The important thing was not to give them proof that they had.

''Where should we start?'' Honoka asked, always the more focused student in the team.

''I've started to seduce the Hokage in order to get his trust and-... what?''

Her three students stared at her impassively.

''You're being ridiculous, sensei,'' Naruto said simply. ''Again.''

''Humph!'' Karin huffed angrily and crossed her arms. ''Think want you want. I know what I'm doing.''

''What about us? Who are we seducing?'' Tayuya mocked, cleaning her flute carefully. She was the least invested in this particular mission.

''You brats will start by studying the ground around the tower and the structure of the building. I want to know everything; every blind spot, the material it's made of... everything,'' Karin repeated for good measure.

''The Hokage's an Uchiha, right?'' Tayuya said suddenly, face perking up with a budding idea. ''There's genin we met who was checking Naruto-sama out. He's an Uchiha too. He might know a thing or two about the current Hokage that we don't.''

''Yeah,'' Honoka agreed, snickering obnoxiously. ''He was definitely into him. I thought for sure he'd trip Naruto-sama naked right there, in the hall.''

''What the hell are you talking about?'' Naruto said, blinking in confusion. ''You mean Sasuke?''

''Who else?'' Honoka said, very amused. ''I'm pretty sure you could get anything you'd want from him. All you'd have to do is give him a little kiss... or something,'' she finished suggestively. Naruto's mouth fell on the floor, his whole face beat-red.

''Oh no,'' Karin shook his head, panic slowly rising within her. ''No, no, no. I don't want Minato-sama to chop my head off when we get back. You stay away from that guy, you hear me?'' She gave Naruto a serious look.

''Shame. He's really hot,'' Tayuya mused. ''Isn't he, Naruto-sama?'' The blond could practically feel the steam coming out of his ears. The Uchiha was undeniably handsome; you'd have to be blind not to see it.

''You're just messing with me!'' Naruto exploded, looking back down at his sensei's plan, filled with embarrassment. ''Can we please talk about the mission now?''

Karin could feel a massive headache coming. This mission is going to be hell.

I have a thing for Naruto coming from Uzushio. This isn't my first story with this core concept... and it definitely won't be my last, haha.

I hope you enjoy!