So…I wanted to try something different. Nothing else special about this decision.

Like or hate it, this first chapter is simply a test to see how "different" things are viewed on this site. Please leave your thoughts/comments in a review.

Disclaimer: I Own Nothing

Nara-To

Chapter 1: Family Life

Soft snores could be heard from a teenage boy as he rested on the roof of a home, illuminated by the crescent moon and stars in the sky. His head was situated in his arms as he slept, and his laid posture showed the epitome of content relaxation.

Unfortunately for him, his relaxation was cut short by a woman's voice.

"How many times have I told you that the roof is not for sleeping, young man?!"

The yell stirred him from his sleep, and he opened his eyes to reveal violet irises to the world. With a yawn that showed strangely sharp canines, he roused himself to a sitting position and rubbed the back of his spiky, wine red hair; playing with the tied portion that looked like a frazzled wolf's tail.

From the feet upward, he was dressed in black sandals with matching pants that were taped at the ankles and had a kunai holster on the right leg. A burnt orange sash acted as his belt while his torso had a matching orange shirt without sleeves that rested beneath a mesh armor top. Covering it all was an open jacket with short sleeves that was colored dark crimson with a black outline. The shoulders of the jacket had two different symbols on them; the left bearing the encircled insignia of the Nara Clan while the right held the famous red spiral of the Uzumaki Clan.

"I lost count after the first dozen times or so…" he answered as he fought another yawn. "I lost track of time stargazing, I guess."

With a frustrated sigh, she dropped her irritation and sent him a stern look. "I can appreciate looking at the sky now and then, but I still can't understand how you Nara men can do so every chance you get."

"At least my choice can only be viewed during certain hours," he argued cheekily with a grin that stretched his whiskered cheeks.

"Still doesn't stop you from doing it every night, mister."

A hapless shrug with an easy smile was his response to that, making her sigh again.

"Just get inside. You need to eat."

"Yes, ma'am," he replied, speaking respectfully this time as he followed her inside the house from the roof access.

"Another thing I need to remind you about. You don't need to call me that, dear." She stopped walking, turning to face him with a gentler expression. "I thought I was kaa-chan to you?"

"You are," he assured her, looking away with slightly red cheeks. "It's just…weird after you told me that you're not my mom…" His voice dropped as he added, "…sorry…"

Her smile softened as she crouched slightly, cupping his chin and making him meet her gaze. "I still raised you as my own, sweetheart. Yes, I didn't give birth to you, but the moment I claimed you into this household was the very moment I swore to be a mother to you. Kushina wanted me or Mikoto to look after you if anything happened. I'm just sad that something did happen…" Her smile turned somber. "She was your mother, but she was also my sister in all but blood."

He returned her smile, moving in to embrace the woman.

"Besides, you and I are related by blood. Or did you forget that I'm still your aunt, Naruto?"

Naruto Nara smiled at Yoshino as he pulled away from her. "I didn't forget…kaa-chan."

She smiled a bit brighter, leaning in to kiss the top of his head before sending him ahead with a gentle push. "Now, get going, mister. I didn't cook a nice dinner just to let it go cold."

With a chuckle, he rushed downstairs to join the other two Nara men in his family. His father figure, Shikaku, was enjoying a dish of sake as he finished his plate while his brother figure, Shikamaru, was resting his head in his hand. His eyes were closed and his plate was empty, letting anyone see that he was sleeping at the table.

"The stars good tonight?" Shikaku asked as he entered the dining room.

"Nice and bright thanks to the clear sky," Naruto replied with a grin, sitting down and placing some food on his plate. "How long did the match with Shika-nii go this time?"

"Four hours…" Shikamaru mumbled, blearily opening his eyes. "Bout time you came back down. She wouldn't let me leave until you came. Troublesome redhead…"

A sheepish chuckle was Naruto's initial reply before he gained a cheeky grin. "You could've offered to come get me yourself. Or was that to troublesome too, Lazybones?"

"Tch…" was the child genius's eloquent response to the taunt.

"That's enough of that, Naruto. Eat," Yoshino ordered as she took the empty plates and dishes to wash. "After you eat, I want to see your progress on that beginner scroll on fūinjutsu."

"I told you that I breezed through that, kaa-chan," Naruto shot back as he ate, earning a look from Yoshino as he talked with food in his mouth.

"Finish what's in your mouth before talking!" she admonished, earning a sheepish look. "And I don't care if you think you've finished it. I'm going to test you and see for myself. Got it?"

Shikamaru chose this time to mumble to his adoptive brother, "Just go with it, or else she'll become more troublesome…"

"I heard that, young man."

"See?" he asked rhetorically, not sounding ashamed while Naruto sweatdropped.

Shikaku smirked at the byplay as he took another drink. It was just another night in the Nara household for him.

The following morning at dawn, Naruto was already dressed and awake. He was currently outside in the woods owned by the Nara Clan, feeding some of the deer that came to check on who was visiting. One of the does with interesting white spots in her fur walked over to him, nuzzling her head into Naruto's side before accepting the offered grains he had in his palm.

"Good morning, Shiroi," he greeted her, using his free hand to brush the top of her head. "You're looking much better than you did last time I visited. Your leg back to full strength?"

She gave a soft bleat in response, moving her right foreleg back and forth to show him that it was all better.

"That's good to hear." He then moved over to a tree and sat down with his back resting against it, letting Shiroi lay beside him and rest her head on his lap. "…I'm nervous about my test, Shiroi. I've been trying really hard to get my Clone Jutsu to an acceptable level, but I don't know what I'm doing wrong. Tou-san has been helping me with my chakra control, but it never seems to be enough."

She sensed his depression and nuzzled against him to try and cheer him up. It earned her some more pets on the head, but she still felt his distress.

"I've failed every practice session with that jutsu, but I just can't pull it off. Kaa-chan told me that there were other types of Clones, but she doesn't know if the Academy will allow me to use them to pass. I'd talk to the Old Man, but he's been busier than usual lately. Even that mummy guy he was talking to looks like he's expecting me to pass; and I don't even know who that guy is!"

A sharp grunt from one of the stags made Naruto wince, knowing he was being too loud.

"Sorry…" he apologized, earning another grunt from the stag before he resumed grazing. "I'm just frustrated with everything, Shiroi. I know Shika-nii will pass; he'll just do the bare minimum to do so. But I'm trying really hard, and it feels like it's for nothing."

Shiroi gave him as sympathetic a look that a deer could pull off, raising her head up to lick his whiskered cheek in reassurance. This finally made him smile again as he pressed her forehead to his, enjoying the closeness he had with the animal.

"Well, if all else fails, I could always just become a groundskeeper here," he mused aloud. "I'd be able to spend more time with you and the others that way."

She gave a grunt in response, shaking her head before nudging him.

"Alright, I get it," he relented. "No quitter-talk when there's still a chance. Can't blame me for trying to find the silver lining though, Shiroi."

He swore that she rolled her eyes at him, despite the oh-so-innocent gaze she had.

A couple hours later, Naruto was about to head out the door with his brother. "We'll see you guys after the exams," he bid.

"Hold on!" Yoshino called from inside, stepping out the door to catch them before they took off. "Shikamaru, you go on ahead. I need a moment with your brother."

"Troublesome… Don't take too long, or he'll be late," the lazy teen bid as he walked off to meet Choji at the gates of the Nara Compound. The two were the best of friends, so it was no surprise that the hefty boy would wait for him to head to the Academy together.

Left alone with his mother-aunt, Naruto asked, "What did you need to talk to me about?"

"Any luck figuring out how to make a successful Clone Jutsu?" she asked back, looking slightly worried.

"No luck…"

"Have you been practicing the control exercises Shikaku and I taught you?"

"Every day, kaa-chan."

She bit her lip as she tried to think of a way to help her son. "…What if we lowered your chakra? Restricted the maximum output and gave you less to deal with?"

"I don't think that would help. That would just lower the cap; not improve my control," he shot down, recalling the footnotes on Chakra Restrictions that was in the fūinjutsu scrolls. He then gave her the best smile he could muster and declared, "I'll be sure to pass this test, kaa-chan! I'll give it everything I've got, and they'll see that I'm more than ready! So, don't worry so much!"

She could spot the falsehood in his smile from a mile away; one of the perks of being his mother since he was a baby. However, she couldn't bring herself to call him out on it this time; not when he was desperately trying to make himself believe he wouldn't fail.

So, with her own smile of falsehood, she gave him a warm hug to pour all her support before she watched him take off in a jog. And as he left, she couldn't help but feel like something terrible was going to happen; something that she could've prevented.

But for the life of her, she couldn't figure out what it was.

Managing to arrive in class with a few minutes to spare, Naruto found an empty seat next to Hinata Hyuuga; a shy girl who had a good heart and was a friend of his. She greeted him with a polite smile, her cheeks dusted with an almost never-ending blush.

"Good morning, Naruto-kun."

"Morning, Hinata," he greeted back politely. Yoshino had drilled it into his head since he could remember to treat others respectfully until they prove undeserving of it. he still felt phantom pains of the lumps he received during those lessons.

"How are you feeling about the exam?" Hinata continued, looking concerned. "Are you still having trouble with the Clone Jutsu?"

"Yeah, but I'm going to give it my best effort. If I pass the other tests and only fail that jutsu, I should still have enough points to pass. Right?"

"I would assume so, but nothing is certain…"

He could accept that response, finding the truth in it. He would've spoke further if the two loudest girls in the class hadn't barged in, making a scene at the door before they argued over who would sit beside Sasuke Uchiha.

Naruto didn't get the Uchiha. He grew up from a respected Clan and lost them when his brother snapped and killed them all; something the Uzumaki-Nara still found to be suspicious. He then pushes anyone away when they try to help him, spouting off about avenging his family and not needing anyone to help him do so.

The way Naruto saw it, Sasuke was an idiot who couldn't see the value in camaraderie or friendship. By everything holy, Naruto knew he wouldn't be where he was now without the help of his loved ones and friends. If Sasuke continued this lone wolf mentality, he'd find nothing but that bitter loneliness when his time came.

It was a morbid thought, but Shikaku-tou-san warned him years ago what being alone does to a person.

Not long after the arrival of Sasuke's biggest fans, Iruka and Mizuki entered the room and silenced the students before informing them about the different tests for the Genin Exam. First would be a written test, then outside for physical tests such as shuriken/kunai precision and taijutsu examinations, and finally the ninjutsu segment of the exam.

After that explanation, the written tests were handed out and the students started their tests.

Naruto sat in his seat, waiting for his name to be called for the ninjutsu portion of the exam. He had studied hard for the written test and felt he had more than earned a passing grade, his weapon accuracy was slightly under a perfect score (he'd estimate around 90-95%), and he had lasted the full ten minutes against Mizuki in the taijutsu portion; though he suspected that the Chunin was holding back on him less than with the other students.

Now, there was just the final portion, and he was nervous about his chances. He could pull off the Transformation and Replacement techniques without issue, but Clones were still out of his reach. He just hoped that everything else he did for the exams as a whole would be enough.

"Naruto Uzumaki," Iruka called out, making him tense before he took a steady breath and followed the man inside the testing room. After taking his seat, Iruka ordered, "Perform the Transformation Jutsu."

Nodding in compliance, Naruto went through the handseals before his form was engulfed in smoke. When it cleared, his form was replaced with a redheaded woman of average height. Her hair reached her ankles, her violet orbs held a playfulness inside that was full of warmth, and her clothes consisted of a white blouse beneath a green dress with blue sandals and a black clip that parted her hair to the left.

Iruka, having seen the woman in passing when she was alive, nodded in acceptance at Naruto's successful Transformation. "Nice work. Next is the Replacement Jutsu. You are to replace yourself with that log in the back corner."

Still under the guise of his late mother, Naruto nodded before he held a half Ram Seal and flared his chakra briefly. In a flicker, he was now in the corner while the log was in his place, hanging in midair for a second before falling with a loud plop.

Mizuki nodded at the success while Iruka was kind enough to give the still transformed teen a smile. "Nice work keeping up your disguise while performing this jutsu. Now, dispel your Transformation and perform the Clone Jutsu. You must produce at least three to pass."

A small burst of smoke covered Naruto before he was back in his regular appearance, a noticeably nervous expression on his face. Taking a breath, he slowly went through the necessary handseals while gathering his chakra; the energy outlining his form in a bright blue shade.

"Clone Jutsu!" Naruto declared, flaring his chakra and producing three puffs of smoke. When they cleared, it showed three Clones; but they were far from being noted as successful.

The first was far too pale; the skin being a ghostly white. It also looked sickly, standing wobbly and placing a hand over its stomach.

The second looked out of breath, sitting down and practically gasping for air. This one was also a ghostly white, but the clothes were also off color by several shades.

The final one looked dead, collapsed on the floor and not moving a muscle. The clothes were a stormy gray color, nearly matching the white skin of the copy.

"I'm afraid I can't pass you on the Clone Jutsu, Naruto," Iruka noted, marking that section as a failure.

"But…do I still pass?" Naruto asked hopefully.

"Unfortunately, Genin are required to have some form of genjutsu to pass this test. The Clone Jutsu, while classified as a ninjutsu, is more akin to genjutsu since the duplicates are illusionary," Mizuki explained, hiding his smirk at the boy's dawning realization. "Unless you have a different genjutsu you'd like to present to us to make up for the failure…?"

Iruka nodded in agreement, showing Naruto that what his fellow Chunin explained was the truth. "Do you know any other genjutsu, Naruto?"

Looking down, the redheaded teen answered, "No… I don't."

"Then I'm sorry to say that you fail," Iruka concluded, genuinely apologetic towards the young man who obviously tried his best. "There's always next semester, though. Practice your Clone Jutsu or learn a different genjutsu by then. I'll pass you on principle if you can display a successful one by then."

Nodding despondently, Naruto turned and walked out of the examination room, walking passed those who passed and those who had yet to take the test. He left the classroom while fighting his tears, missing his brother and friend look to his retreating form sadly.

Seated on the roof of the Academy, Naruto watched as his fellow classmates were congratulated by their friends and family about their promotion to Genin. He noted that Shikamaru was hugged by Yoshino before she looked around, searching for him while Shikaku spoke with his son.

Naruto didn't want to be found, though. He had failed and couldn't face his family knowing that. It would hurt too much to see their looks of sympathy or to hear them try to make him feel better. He wanted to pass for them; but he couldn't even do that.

"Thought I'd find you up here," he heard, making him turn to see Mizuki approach him before sitting beside him. "Sorry that you didn't pass, Naruto. I can tell you really wanted it, but we have rules and guidelines for a reason."

"I know…"

"How bad do you want to pass?"

"I'll do anything," was his immediate response.

"I see. Then I guess I won't feel too worried telling you that I might have a makeup exam for you to take." Seeing that he had the boy's attention, the man continued, "Genjutsu is a good skill to have; but, it's not a necessity. We're ninja, which means we need to be able to sneak around and retrieve information or secrets from our enemies. So, this makeup exam will test your stealth and information gathering skills."

"What's the test?"

He could barely contain his smirk as he explained, "Inside the Hokage's office, there's this scroll…"

He was breathing heavily as he darted away from the Hokage Tower, a scroll almost as large as he was strapped to his back. He had been able to pull one over on the Hokage by playing on the man's weakness; and what a sad one it was.

Seriously, who passes out just by seeing an almost nude woman? He mentally made a note to thank Kiba for giving him that old magazine, the Inuzuka practically throwing it away when he purchased a more current edition.

A simple Transformation was all he needed, and the Old Man was down for the count. That made he worry about village security, but he couldn't dwell on that. He needed to keep moving so that he could meet Mizuki at the designated location.

In the back of his mind, he hoped that the Hokage would overlook his actions this night. He must've known about the test, and there should be extra points for getting passed him; at least he hoped there were.

Doubts started to creep into his thoughts, slowing down his rush to a jog as he moved through the forest to the rendezvous point. The Old Man looked genuinely surprised at his appearance; far too surprised for it to be acting. What if he wasn't in on the test? What if this was a trick?

What if…?

He broke out of his thoughts upon reaching the clearing, staying in the shadows and looking around for any signs of a trap. He frowned and stayed in the bushes, using the foliage to hide him as he looked at the scroll he took.

"What the hell is in this thing, anyway?" he whispered to himself, remembering to stay as quiet as possible. Setting the large scroll on the ground, he rolled it open slightly and saw that it listed a jutsu; the Shadow Clone to be exact.

His frown deepened at that, knowing that it was a Clone technique that got him into this situation in the first place. Still, as he looked over the notes for this one, it felt right up his alley in terms of usage. It was chakra extensive, and he had chakra in spades; which only added to his poor control over it.

Perhaps he could make good use of this jutsu.

He lost track of time practicing the jutsu, but he felt that he had it down before he heard rustling in the distance. Hastily rolling up the scroll, he was surprised to see Iruka land in the clearing.

"Sensei? Are you issuing the makeup test, too?" he asked, effectively stopping Iruka from yelling at the redheaded teen.

"Makeup test…?" he repeated.

"Yeah, the one Mizuki told me about. It was supposed to test my stealth and intel gathering." At Iruka's angered look, he came to a realization. "He tricked me, didn't he…?"

"I'm sorry, Naruto; but there's no makeup test after you fail. You're only allowed to retake the test the following semester. Mizuki played on your failing grade to try and get the scroll for himself. Just hand it over and we can go explain this to Lord Hokage."

Naruto nodded sadly, feeling ashamed at his actions. He stood up and moved over to Iruka before they both heard heavy distortions in the air and dove away, avoiding a massive shuriken that would've tore into them. Looking to the direction it came from, they saw Mizuki sneering at them from one of the trees.

"Tch! I missed, eh? And it looks like the cat's out of the bag," he groused.

"Mizuki, you damned traitor! How could you do this to the Hidden Leaf?!" Iruka questioned angrily.

"Simple; for power. Lord Orochimaru promised me ultimate power if he was delivered the scroll, and he also said I can take care of the fox brat if I could make it work. A shame you got involved, Iruka." The false apology was joined by a condescending smile. "You could've lived longer if you had just stayed out of this."

"Naruto, take that scroll and run!"

"Oh, he isn't going to leave; not when I can tell him the reason why he's given the cold shoulder by so many people here in this village!"

Iruka's eyes widened. "No, that's forbidden!"

"What was the reason?" Naruto asked, wanting to know why he was seemingly feared or why people acted like he didn't exist.

"Naruto, you're not ready to know!"

"I disagree, Iruka! I think he should've been told years ago! I think he should've been known he was the Kyuubi reborn before he even entered the Academy!" Mizuki taunted, yelling out the truth.

Naruto's eyes went wide at that, his body trembling at the news. "I-I'm…the Kyuubi…?"

"Naruto, don't listen to him!" Iruka pleaded. "You're not the fox; you're it's prison!"

"Whatever the case, it doesn't change that people treat him like trash and that the fox will die with him!" Mizuki pulled out his second shuriken, spinning it dangerously as a manic grin formed on his face. "Imagine my reward when the world knows that I've forever silenced the Kyuubi! NOW DIE, DEMON FOX!"

The shuriken was sent hurtling forward, but a wall made of darkness rose up to intercept it. Mizuki lost his grin for a surprised look before he was caught off guard by the mother of all punches striking the side of his face. Sent crashing into an adjacent tree, he looked up to see an enraged Yoshino staring down at him; a murderous aura pouring off her form as she cracked her knuckles.

"You dare try to kill my son?" she spoke in a low tone as her rage grew. "Try to fill his head with lies to justify your own?!" Reaching down, she grabbed the frightened man by his Chunin vest and brought him face-to-face with her. "Let me enlighten you on what I do to those who try to hurt my family!"

Naruto was unaware of the tears rolling down his cheeks before he felt a hand on his shoulder. Turning around, he saw Shikaku giving him a grim smile. "Best not watch what she'll do to the poor bastard. It won't be pretty."

The sound of Mizuki's wails of anguish and pleas for mercy made Naruto concede to the man's advice.

"Here, son," he continued, surprising the redhead since the man never used that title with him. "Give me the scroll. I promise that you'll be told the truth when we return."

His tears flowed faster as he handed the man the scroll before he rushed into his open arms. Crying into his chest, Naruto offered endless apologies for his actions and for letting them down; which only served to make Shikaku hug him tighter.

He was still apologizing when Yoshino finished enlightening Mizuki, and Shikaku allowed her to bring Naruto over to her. She stopped his apologies with soft words of comfort, easing him into an exhausted rest as the emotional night finally took its toll on him. She didn't care, letting him sleep as she held her boy close to her.

'Kushina-chan, I'm so sorry… I should've let him know instead of worrying about the consequences.'

While Shikaku spoke with the ANBU and handed one of them the Sacred Scroll, she situated Naruto on her back with his head resting on her shoulder. With a nod, she followed her husband and the ANBU back to the Hokage's office while Iruka was dismissed for the evening.

"For what it's worth," Sarutobi began, speaking to a once again awake Naruto, "you won't be punished for your actions tonight, Naruto. If a student cannot trust his teacher, then that leaves the question of who they can trust. Also, about the Kyuubi…"

"…I'm really its prison?" he asked softly.

"The proper term is Jinchūriki," Shikaku explained. "Kushina was the previous container before you, and she should've remained that way if she hadn't died that night."

"So, is it my-?"

"Don't you dare finish that question, young man!" Yoshino cut off, making him wince at her stern face and tone. She softened them both as she continued, "Kushina-chan wanted nothing more than to be a mother to you, sweetheart. We're still not sure what happened that night, but I will not have you blaming yourself for her death. Am I clear?"

He nodded through his renewed tears. "Yes, ma'am…"

"I had hoped to tell you after you became a Genin, but with everything that happened, I'm starting to think you should've been told sooner," the Hokage mused regretfully. "And I'm sorry that I didn't look further into your struggles with one of the jutsu needed to pass this exam. I should've known by now that a simple Clone would be beyond you. The Uzumaki Clan were known for their excessive chakra, and you being the Jinchūriki of the fox only adds onto to those higher chakra levels."

"Is that why the Shadow Clone technique is easier for me to do?" Naruto asked, wiping away his tears.

"Yes, considering the taxing amount of chakra they demand. Still, I believe that you should be reimbursed for what's happened to you tonight; considering how you were almost framed for theft and treason."

Naruto winced at that, relieved that he wasn't in trouble.

"So, for successfully completing this makeup exam, for learning a B-Rank jutsu, and for your earlier marks on your actual Genin Exam, I'm allowing you to pass this year and join your classmates among the ranks of Genin. Congratulations, Naruto."

Naruto was stunned at the news for a few moments before he smiled brightly and stood up, bowing to the Hokage. "Thank you, Old Man!"

"Naruto!" Yoshino admonished.

"It's alright, Yoshino. It's refreshing to hear referrals to my age instead of constantly being called by a title."

The Nara matriarch frowned at that before relenting for the moment. It didn't mean she would allow her son to keep being so disrespectful. Shikaku, seeing the look on his wife's face, simply chuckled and said nothing while Naruto was still giddy with excitement.

"Now, you should be told about your future team and sensei in a week's time at the Academy," Sarutobi explained to the new Genin. "Be sure to show up on time, and know that I'm expecting great things from you, Naruto."

"I will, and thank you again," he bid before he was led out of the office by Yoshino, leaving Shikaku with the elderly village leader.

"Will we be punished for telling Shikamaru?"

Smiling warmly, the Hokage replied, "I doubt something this big could stay hidden between brothers, Shikaku. Have a nice evening."

Smirking back, the Nara patriarch gave the man a respectful nod before following his family.

A week flew by in a blink, and Naruto was once again seen hanging around the Nara Clan deer with Shiroi's head in his lap.

"So…I get my team today," he spoke up, getting a soft grunt from the doe. "I'm kinda anxious about who my teammates and sensei will be. I just hope that they won't care about me holding the Kyuubi." Looking to her, he asked, "You don't mind that I have a giant, angry fox in my gut, do you?"

Shiroi raised her head and gave him a dull stare, making him laugh.

"Yeah, I should've expected as much! Hahaha!"

She smiled at him before resting her head once more, enjoying the way he petted her fur.

"Thanks for always being so understanding, Shiroi-chan," he said softly. "I'm glad we're friends."

She said nothing at that, breathing softly as she rested against him. He saw that she wasn't going to move anytime soon, so he made a Shadow Clone before switching places with it. Free to leave, he reached down to pat her head before he walked off back to the compound.

After a moment, Shiroi roused herself from her rest, allowing the Clone to dispel with a smile and wave. Left alone with her fellow deer, a soft feminine voice was heard saying, "You really believe he is worthy?"

She turned to see and older doe staring at her, this one having streaks of white in her brown fur. Shiroi nodded once and replied, "Yes. I believe in him completely. He has heart, and I know he would never abuse our trust. Plus, as he said…we're friends; and I trust in my friend."

The elder doe nodded in understanding. "Very well, then. When the time comes, have him come to the center of our woods. My fellow Elders and I shall test him then."

"I will, your grace," Shiroi bid with a bow, confident in her friend's chances of passing their tests.

The Divine Messengers will return. (1)

1~ In the Shinto Faith, deer are seen as Messengers of the Gods.

That's that! Like I said, this idea is "different", and I want to see how "different" ideas are taken here on FanFiction.

Please leave your thoughts and comments in a review and remember that this is mainly a test idea. If it winds up being a major success, then I shall try to continue it.

On a side note, I'm not sure who to pair Naruto Uzumaki-Nara with if I do continue this idea. If you guys have a suggestion alongside your review for the story, please share it along with a VALID reason why.

Thank you for your time.

~pain17ification~