Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, or the game(s) Fallout 3/New Vegas. They are the property of Masashi Kishimoto, and Bethesda Softworks respectively… I am just having some fun!

Iruka-sensei and Mizuki walk into the classroom. They put their papers down on the respective side of their shared desk, before turning to face the assembled mass of students.

"Good morning, students! My name is Iruka Umino, and this is my teaching assistant Mizuki Hoshi, but you will call us sensei. OK, class? Now I want you all to say, 'Good morning Iruka-Sensei'. Ready and…"

"Good Morning, Iruka-sensei."

"Very good, now say good morning to Mizuki-sensei. Ready and…"

"Good Morning, Mizuki-sensei."

"Good morning, class!" Mizuki said brightly.

"We're off to a good start! Now Mizuki and I are going to be teaching you all how to become Shinobi! Now settle down class, most of you are still six years away from becoming ninja. Now over the course of your tenure here, we will learn all about the history of our great village. You will learn mathematics, the sciences, and the rules that govern both the village and the shinobi who serve it. You will also learn about chakra, how to control it, and how to utilize it in the fundamental three pillars of shinobi, those pillars being Taijutsu, Ninjutsu, and Genjutsu. Now that seems like a lot to learn, I know, and I have high expectations for all of you, but remember all of this is going to take place over the next six years. Now to start with, how about we take it a bit easy on the first day, play some games and get to know each other."

Iruka uses the back of his hand to stifle his chuckles at the children's excited outburst.

"All right then. I see we are all in agreement." Pointing into the assembled mass before him, seemingly at random, Iruka selected the first student to start a student, "Let's start with you, and are you a boy or a girl?"

I glanced curiously up at my former teacher, a puzzled expression playing across my face

By this immediately before his outburst, the world seemed to dim, and take on a hue of orange. In front of him there appears a large, glowing, orange, translucent rectangle, with two smaller rectangles inside of it, labeled 'BOY' and 'GIRL'.

I stared, slack-jawed and silent at the screen in front of me… Before screaming

"What the hell is going on?"

I started to panic by this point, so I frantically search the room around me, and there I see all of my friends, Ino sitting next to Sakura-chan, Kiba without Akamaru, and there was the Bastard, looking all… happy and smiling? I shook my head, resolving to think over that bit LATER. There was Hinata, sitting demurely in the back of the class, Shino not far away. There was Shikamaru, holding his head up drowsily, lazily. And there right next to him was Chouji with a bag of chips, and his hand frozen halfway to his mouth.

Wait…

He was frozen?

Looking around quickly, I saw that they all were sitting there in the same state as Chouji, staring vacantly at nothing as time passed by, unmoving. Hell, it didn't even look like they were breathing. So I reacted as any 12 year old knucklehead would

"HOLD ON GUYS! I'M…" I shouted before moving to get up and help them… Only to find that while I was able to shout and move my arms and head, I was as stuck to my seat as any of them.

"What the-?" I exclaimed, shocked at my situation.

Screaming desperately for help, I struggled and wriggled this way and that in an attempt to detach myself from his prison, but to no avail.

"All right," I ground out, "I can't move I have to be patient, like Kakashi-sensei tried to teach me."

Taking a moment, I focused on simply relaxing, trying to come up with a way out of my predicament…before smacking myself in the forehead.

"OF COURSE, Rasengan!"

Taking another moment to center myself, I tried to recreate that perfect Rasengan I had when I battled Sasuke. Holding up my right hand, I concentrated on molding my chakra.

After several minutes of having no visible effect whatsoever had passed, I started to groan in frustration again.

"Why is NOTHING WORKING?" I shouted, throwing my hands up in the air before slamming my head and arms down on the desk in exasperation.

Hearing a happy little chime, I looked up.

YOU HAVE CHOSEN 'GIRL', ARE YOU SURE THIS IS YOUR SELECTION?

YES NO

Pause…

"NOONONONONONO!" I screamed before selecting the same.

Breathing a sigh of relief when the screen reverted back to its previous state, I furrowed my brow in an attempt to do something I rarely did, and absolutely loathed… Thinking.

"All right, so how did I get myself into this mess?"

/Flashback/

An explosion echoed as I plunged into the water of the Valley floor. Water swirled around me as tides ricocheted off the stone walls of the Valley of the End. But even for all the sounds and the violent crashing of the water, or even my present state of being 60 feet below the surface, only one thought passed through my mind.

'Sasuke intended to kill me. My friend, the man who I would've call brother, the person who represented everything that I wanted to be (though I would never tell him that), had attempted to take my life.

Floating back to the surface of the now calm river, I looked back towards the waterfall, and him.

"Naruto"

I started to stand back up on the water.

"It is said that high level shinobi can read each other's intentions, even their hearts by simply exchanging blows." Squinting, I saw those black marks begin to cover his skin. "So, what did you see in this heart of mine?" Sasuke finished, forming hand signs for another attack.

'KATON: PHOENIX FIRE JUTSU'

I jumped off the water to dodge the fireballs racing towards me, glancing around to find Sasuke. Milliseconds after dodging Sasuke's technique, I see him appear right beside me in midair. 'He's as fast as Lee' was my thought before I gagged on the powerful strike I got in the stomach. Flying backward, I plunged into the water once again as Sasuke landed softly atop the waves.

Waiting for me to resurface, Sasuke stood patiently with his arms folded across his chest.

Surfacing, I spat out the lungful of water I had received.

"I am stronger than you Naruto." Sasuke said in a low, confident voice. "I have always been stronger than you. I always will be stronger than you. I am a genius, an Uchiha, an Avenger! And you will always be the Dobe."

Shaking my waterlogged head at his words, I looked him straight in his Sharingan eye, "No. What I once was does not determine who I will be. But what we both are, are friends. And as a friend, I am asking you to come with me back to Konoha."

It was Sasuke's turn to shake his head, "Friendship is just one more bond I must break. The only bonds I have are those of Hatred. Hatred towards my brother, Itachi."

I roared back in anger, "So that's it? None of what we did back in Konoha mattered? I thought that we were friends! I thought that Team 7 was like a family!"

"IT WAS!" Sasuke snapped back, "And you were the person I was closest to. You were my best friend…" Sasuke trailed off quietly.

Shocked into silence, I stared at my friend as he looked down at his hands. Slowly his hands clenched into fists, and he lifted his head upwards. I was pinned where I stood under the blazing hatred in his fully matured Sharingan eyes.

"And that is exactly why I have to kill you." His curse mark started to develop his entire body, turning it first black, and then a mottled grey color. His Hair turned an odd shade of purple, the famous red Sharingan turned yellow, and a bizarre star formed on his nose. On top of all that, what confused me most at the moment was why he was wearing glossy lipstick.

"Sasuke, I may be a moron, because I have no idea what you are talking about." Shaking my head in stunned frustration I lowered my head, "I only know that we were friends, we ARE friends." Closed my eyes, "I know I made a promise to Sakura-chan to bring you back to Konoha, to reunite Team 7 again," and reached for the Kyuubi's chakra inside the seal. "And I am going to do it," My eyes snapped open, showing the red slits that they had become. "Even if I have to break every bone in your body, and DRAG you back!"

With that said, we launched at each other, the water exploding into a maelstrom around us. Over the next few minutes we pushed each other further and further, far past any limit that either of us had set for ourselves. I reached for more and more of the Kyuubi's chakra, until it had formed a cloud around me and my consciousness had started to ebb. Sasuke had also pushed himself further into his curse seal, growing wins that looked like giant hands. Still we fought.

'Win or die' was the thought that raced through my head, 'win or die'. He launched himself in the air, raining down fire balls from on high, while I ducked into the water, launching limbs made of chakra trying to pull him back down. Amidst all of his fireballs, I barely noticed him swoop down directly towards me. I brought my chakra enhanced arms up in a feeble defense before getting knocked back into the feet of the statue of Hashirama Senju.

"I see now, Naruto." Sasuke said, hovering in the air above me, Nightmare Wings flapping. "You are special. I am just more special." He said grandiosely.

Quickly forming another chakra limb, I grabbed him by one of his Nightmare Wings and threw him into the feet of the statue opposite me.

Laughing, Sasuke climbed to his feet.

"This. Is. FUN!" Sasuke cried out, laughing maniacally.

"SASUKE!" I shouted out him, trying to snap him out of it, or undo whatever the Snake Bastard had done. "That Seal is starting to affect your mind! Can't you see that?" I growled out.

"I DON'T CARE!" He shouted right back at me, sweeping his arm in front of him and clenching his fist. "AS LONG AS I GET MY REVENGE, AS LONG AS ITACHI SUFFERS, AS LONG AS I RECEIVE THE POWER OF AN AVENGER, I COULD CARE LESS WHAT HAPPENS TO ME!"

"YOU BASTARD! I CARE ABOUT WHAT HAPPENS! SO DO KAKASHI-SENSEI AND SAKURA-CHAN, AND THERE IS NO WAY AM I LETTING THAT SNAKE GET HIS FANGS INTO YOU! YOU'RE COMING BACK TO KONOHA WITH ME!" I shouted back at him, lowering my right hand, I began to mold chakra.

Sasuke was laughed again, going through hand seals, "I'd like to see you try Dead last!" Sasuke dropped his right hand, holding onto a tainted and blackened Chidori.

"SASUKE!" I shouted, forming the first perfect Rasengan in my life.

"NARUTO!" He shouted back, leaping towards me, tainted Chidori leading the way.

Then I leaped, my Rasengan pushed out in front of me.

The next few moments seemed to last forever, as our attacks slowly closed in on each other.

My life with Team 7 flashed before my eyes.

'Rescuing' Tora the demon cat from the forests.

Painting fences and doing household labor for my first 'Missions'.

Tazuna, Inari, Haku, Zabuza, the massive completed bridge, and all the people that celebrated their freedom from the oppression of Gato and his thugs.

Going through the Chunin Exams, and facing the twin terrors of Orochimaru and Gaara.

Protecting Princess Fujikaze and overthrowing that dictator in the land of Snow, now the land of Spring.

Helping Idate win his race.

All the big, important moments of the team, and all the stupid, little ones that I never thought I would remember or even think about again flashed through my mind. Shortly followed by a short, but profound realization.

'I don't want to kill my friend.'

Pulling my hand up and to the right of Sasuke, I cleared him just in time, hitting his Forehead Protector, but not his head.

Sasuke wasn't so kind with his technique.

The blackened Chidori plunged straight through my chakra cloud and into my stomach.

I remember the feeling of falling then, back into the water below. The feeling of waves hitting me was the last thing I remember before falling unconscious.

When I awoke again, I remember lying on something hard, feeling dizzy, and seeing Sasuke standing above me, a shocked expression on playing across his face.

After that I started to fade out, my eyes feeling heavier and heavier. I think I remember Kaka-sensei saying "STAY WITH ME", but I can't say for sure.

Slowly I closed my eyes, and I felt myself drift away.

Then I started to hear voices.

"And so our brave hero passed from this world, taking the great demon Kyuubi with him. The impact that he had upon the elemental countries would be felt for years to come.' A man's voice spoke somberly as a picture of me with a gory hole in my chest took up my world.

I tried to call out, to scream, to do something, anything. But I couldn't move. I couldn't talk. All I could do, was to exist there, listening as the consequences of my life and death echoed.

"Their purpose for existence gone, the Akatsuki gradually faded away as the criminals that had once bolstered its ranks turned away to better prospects. In the end, the leader to the once most formidable criminal network in existence, passed away from natural causes."

"Konoha prospered from the long and peaceful reign of its fifth Hokage, Tsunade Senju. Its aspiring ninja always looked to the example of the Rookie 5, the remnants of the teams that took part in the Chunin Exams during the invasion of Oto, and Suna. Eventually Tsunade retired from the title of Hokage, the second ever to do so. Handing the hat off to a matured Konohamaru Sarutobi, he could be heard to say on his inauguration day, 'This one's for you, boss.'"

"Having been captured by Kakashi while he stood horrified as the blood of his best friend covered his hands, Sasuke Uchiha successfully claimed before the Hokage and her advisors, that the Cursed Seal of Heaven was affecting his mental state, turning him against those he once considered friends. As a response to this danger, the Hokage then ordered the Uchiha's chakra sealed permanently, so as to avoid the seals ill effects. Prevented from being a Ninja, Sasuke spent out the remainder of his days squandering his wealth by hiring assassins to go after his older brother. To his everlasting shame, all of their missions were failures."

"After seeing the corpse of her team-mate, Sakura Haruno gave up on her dreams to become an ANBU, and to marry Sasuke Uchiha. She stayed a low level employee of Konoha for the remainder of her days, her sense of self-worth gone in the wake of the demolition of team 7."

"Seeing the son of his sensei and the number 1 most surprising, hyper-active, knuckleheaded ninja of Konoha on the ground, passing away, Kakashi Hatake felt the last remaining piece of hope in his life die. After bringing his student's corpse and the traitorous Uchiha back to Konoha, Kakashi resigned the position of Jonin-sensei. He went back to being an ANBU captain, removing all remaining personal ties in his life. He died 13 years later during a routine patrol along the Konoha-Kumo border, taking out the leader of a pack of missing nin, and the 5 shinobi with him."

"Konohamaru Sarutobi grew up to be everything he saw his 'boss' to be and more. Where there was corruption, he would bring justice. Where there was weakness, he would bring strength. Where there was war, he would bring peace. The Rokudaime Hokage would be presented as the single most influential Hokage in all of history. Asked many years later what gave him the drive to do all that he did, he would simply respond, 'Onii-san.' When stepping down from the office of Hokage, Konohamaru made sure to teach each of his grandchildren the 'Kage Killer', an S-rank Kinjutsu."

"The economy of the village of Wave turned around after the completion of its 'super bridge', going so far as to become the number one exporter of prime fresh fish for Konoha and Fire Country. Credited with the success of Wave, Tazuna became the new mayor of Wave village. Tazuna, Inari, and the rest of the village of Wave would continue to draw inspiration from the 'Great Naruto Bridge', so named for the bravest and strongest ninja they ever knew.

"Tsunade left the village again after handing the Hokage hat to the young Sarutobi, this time unaccompanied by her trustworthy apprentice, who had stayed behind to run the hospital in Konoha. Tsunade continued to whittle away her fortune in the casino's and bars of Fire Country. While betting at the tables or demolishing a towns sake supply, she could be seen crying, holding up an allegedly cursed necklace."

"After the death of his godson, Jiraiya was so grief stricken he completely gave up on his Icha Icha series, saying that they reminded him of the reason he got into writing too much. He instead solely represented Konoha's interests abroad, running his spy networks to keep his home well informed. Jiraiya continued to run the spy networks of Konoha well into his 80's before resigning his position as a ninja to retire to the toad sanctuary upon Mount Myobuki. Upon his death bed, Jiraiya was said to beg forgiveness of Kami, for failing his students."

"And so, the Destiny Child's journey came to an end. In the Shinobi world, though, blood would continue to be spilled, as many lived and died in the great circle of violence and war that had so marked the ages past and would mark the ages yet to come. In the end, though his friends would remember him unto his dying day, nothing had really changed.

The voice faded as music picked up, playing a mournful song as I continued to exist, deprived of all my senses. Eventually even the mournful music faded, leaving me drifting in the void.

I'm not sure how long I stayed like that, floating along. It could have been hours, days, or weeks. But eventually I started to feel something. I felt hard wood underneath my hands, smelt the sharp stink of body odor, and heard quiet chattering around me. It sounded like…children?

Opening my eyes I saw that I was in my old classroom with all of my old class mates… scratch that, with chibified versions of my classmates. They all looked like they were 5 or 6.

I heard the door at the front of the classroom open and in stepped Iruka-sensei and Mizuki-teme.

/Flashback ends/

"All right. So I died because of something I never would have expected, I hear a voice that that went over all of my friends lives after I died, I am in a room that I haven't been in in months, surrounded by younger versions of my friends, and Mizuki is somehow not in prison OR attacking me."

I began to rub my temples in a vain attempt to stave off a headache from so much thinking.

"This can't be heaven, because Mizuki-teme is here, and there's a big floating question in front of me which has a PRETTY FRIGGIN OBVIOUS ANSWER!" I yelled out in frustration, before talking a few calming breaths.

"So, I am stuck to this chair, I can't jutsu my out of the chair, and everyone is frozen except for me, kinda."

Looking around slowly at all of his classmates, I thought of an answer.

"No way out but forward. I'll play this game for now, to see where it goes."

Reaching for the box labeled 'BOY', I just hope I don't regret this.

A soft chime was heard in the frozen classroom and there appeared a new screen.

YOU HAVE CHOSEN 'BOY', ARE YOU SURE THIS IS YOUR SELECTION?

YES NO

Quickly selecting 'YES', I was relieved when the classroom proceeded to unfreeze, starting with Chouji finally demolishing the chip he had been holding.

"Good." Iruka said, smiling, "Now, what is your first name?"

The world took on its orange hue as another translucent screen popped up in front of me.

STATE OR WRITE YOUR FIRST NAME

"Naruto."

YOU HAVE CHOSEN 'NARUTO' ARE YOU SURE?

YES NO

I hit the 'YES' button with a sigh.

'So far so good, hopefully the sooner I get this done, the sooner I can get back to…' I frowned as the class unfroze. I was dead; I had DIED at the hands of a traitor. What did I have to get back to? Where was I even now?

Shaking my head, I tried to refocus on the task at hand. Answering the questions and seeing where it led me.

So deep in thought was I, that I had missed Iruka's next question completely, and was quite surprised to find the next question screen staring me in the face.

"WAAAHHHHH." I shrieked, flailing my arms, "Stupid…THINGS and their stupid popping up!"

Taking a moment, I calmed before looking at the question before me.

SELECT YOUR FAMILY NAME

UZUMAKI

SENJU

"What? Senju? Isn't that what Baa-chan's name is?"

HYUUGA

"Neji's family? But what is it doing here?"

INUZUKA

"Now Kiba's family? Next thing you know it will be Sasuke-teme's!" Shaking my head I read the last name on the list.

YAMAMOTO

"And I don't recognize that name at all." Ruefully sighing, I looked over the names once more.

"So I have my last name, Neji's, Kiba's, Baa-chan's, and then two names I don't recognize." Pausing a minute before shrugging helplessly, I reached for the first name on the list,

"Go with what works."

The screen disappeared, and was replaced by another.

UZUMAKI-

THE UZUMAKI FAMILY WAS PREVALENT BOTH DURING AND BEFORE THE SECOND GREAT SHINOBI WAR. THEY MADE THEIR HOME IN THE ISLAND VILLAGE OF UZUSHIOGAKURE, WHERE THEY WERE WELL KNOWN FOR THEIR LARGE CHAKRA CAPACITIES, GENERAL TOUGHNESS AND CAPABILITIES IN THE SEALING ARTS. HOWEVER, THEIR SKILLS HAD GARNERED TOO MUCH ATTENTION AND HOSTILITY, AND SO THE VILLAGE WAS ERADICATED DURING THE SECOND SHINOBI WAR. THE SURVIVORS OF THE DISASTER FLED TO THE MAINLAND, SOME TO THE VILLAGE HIDDEN IN THE LEAVES WHILE OTHERS SCATTERED TO THE WINDS. ONE SURVIVOR IN PARTICULAR, WHO HAD BEEN STAYING IN KONOHA AND AVOIDED THE DISASTER, WAS GIVEN THE DUTY BY HER HOST VILLAGE TO CARRY THE BURDEN OF THE KYUUBI. THAT SURVIVOR WAS NAMED KUSHINA UZUMAKI, AND SHE IS YOUR MOTHER. NOW ALL THAT IS LEFT OF THE ONCE GREAT AND NOBLE CLAN IS YOU. WHETHER THE CLAN WILL FOREVER REMAIN ON ONLY THE PAGES OF HISTORY, OR WHETHER IT WILL BE LED INTO A NEW AND GLORIOUS AGE REMAINS TO BE SEEN

YOU HAVE SELECTED 'UZUMAKI', ARE YOU SURE?

YES NO

A pause…

"My mom's name is Kushina. I never knew that her family, My family, used to be famous…" Deciding to *shudder* think about it later, I then selected yes, continuing on.

"Naruto Uzumaki, good to meet you!" Iruka said with a smile, "Now everyone says, 'Hello Naruto'. Ready and…"

"Hello, Naruto"

"Very good, class! Now let's continue with the introductions and… you, miss, what's your name?"

And so it went, with the whole class introducing themselves and what family/clan they were from until there was no who had not spoken.

"All right students, now we are going to do a quick test, to see where all of you are, physically and academically." Iruka waved his hands while Mizuki smirked at the collective groaning of the students. "Now, now, it isn't that bad… In fact this is a very SPECIAL Test. Now take one and pass it along, and I have pens at the front for anyone who didn't bring their own."

And with that, the pieces of paper began flying around the class in the hands of small children. It was 3 minutes later when I finally managed to grab a test of my own. 'If I have to keep dealing with these little kids, I might just go insane, even if they ARE my friends later.'

Looking down at the peculiar test I saw spelled across the top.

S.P.E.C.I.A.L.

Squinting at the strange title, my eyes scrolled down to the next item.

5 POINTS REMAINING

A sigh, "Oh what fresh hell is this?"

S IS FOR STRENGTH, WHICH AFFECTS HOW MUCH YOU CAN CARRY, HOW MUCH EXTRA DAMAGE IS DONE WITH BUKIJUTSU, AND IT GOVERNS THE SKILLS OF BUKIJUTSU AND SMITHING.

- 5 +

"So I have 5 Strength? That seems…low." I furrowed his brow in concentration, before hitting the first right arrow twice, changing my strength score to 7. But he noticed that he only had 3 points remaining

"So I have 5 points to spend on like my strength and speed and stuff? THAT'S SO COOL! I'm gonna be wicked stronger when I get outta this stupid thing!"

Shaking in excitement, I hit the bottom most right arrow, flipping the test to its next page.

P IS FOR PERCEPTION, YOUR ABILITY TO READ INTO THINGS AND SITUATIONS. PERCEPTION GOVERNS THE GENJUTSU AND LOCKPICKING SKILLS, WHILE ALSO ALLOWING YOU TO TRACK PEOPLE MOVING AROUND YOU.

- 4 +

I grunted in frustration.

"Man, I wanted something cool, like Ninjutsu or like speed or something.

"Well it sounds like there's nothing in there I use anyway, so let's take some points off of that."

I touched the left arrow three times, dropping my total Perception down to 1, but doing so, I noticed that my points to spend had gone up to 6.

"So when I add, I have less Points Remaining, but when I take away, I get more!? TOO COOL!"

I flipped to the next page, eager to see what awaited me next.

E IS FOR ENDURANCE, YOUR ABILITY TO TAKE A HIT AND GIVE ONE BACK. ENDURANCE GOVERNS THE SKILLS OF TAIJUTSU AND NINJUTSU, AFFECTS THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF HEALTH AND CHAKRA YOU HAVE, AND HOW MUCH DAMAGE YOU CAN RESIST.

- 9 +

"NOW THAT IS WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT! I always knew I was tough, but this is just AWESOME!" I shouted, attempting to do my happy dance before remembering I was still stuck to the chair. "Ahhh, right… stupid chair."

Refocusing on his Endurance score, I was struck with an additional thought, 'Wait, if it's already at 9, how high can my score go?'

After some experimentation, I figured out the lowest score he could have was 1 and the highest score was 10

"Like on a scale of one to 10, ramen from Ichiraku's would be a 10 for awesome!" I shouted triumphantly. "I'll keep this at 9 for now and look at the rest of my scores." And with that, I turned the page to find my next attribute.

C IS FOR CHARISMA, YOUR ABILITY TO TALK TO PEOPLE, MAKE FRIENDS AND ALLIES AND A MEASURE FOR HOW WILLING OTHERS ARE TO FOLLOW YOUR LEAD. AN ESSENTIAL TRAIT FOR ANY ASPIRING LEADER, CHARISMA GOVERNS THE SKILLS OF BARTER AND SPEECH.

-3+

"What, a 3? People follow me all the time! Why do I have such a low score?" Shaking with frustration, I turned the page again.

I IS FOR INTELLIGENCE, YOUR KNOWLEDGE OF ALL THINGS. YOUR INTELLIGENCE SCORE DETERMINES HOW MANY SKILL POINTS YOU RECEIVE UPON LEVELING UP, AS WELL AS GOVERNING THE SKILLS OF MEDICINE, CHAKRA CONTROL, AND FUUINJUTSU.

-2+

A five second pause occurred, while I stared at the number 2 trembling with rage, before a shout finished the unusual silence

"WHAT!" A TWO? I AM NOT THAT STUPID! I MAY BE A LITTLE SLOW SOMETIMES, or you know, like most of the time, but…. I'm not THAT stupid!"

Furious at the numbers slight on my smarts, I immediately put 4 more points on his Intelligence, bringing it to a respectable 6, with 2 Points remaining, and turned the page without any further ado.

A IS FOR AGILITY, YOUR SPEED AND REFLEXES. AGILITY DETERMINES YOUR BASE SPEED, YOUR ABILITY TO SET UP OR REMOVE TRAPS, AND GOVERNS THE SKILL OF STEALTH AND RANGED BUKIJUTSU.

- 5 +

"Well 5 isn't bad, plus I don't really sneak around that much anyway." I left the 5 how it was and turned the page.

L IS FOR LUCK, WHICH AFFECTS JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING INCLUDING ALL OF YOUR SKILLS, HOW OFTEN YOU GET A CRITICAL HIT, AND HOW MUCH RYO, OR HOW OFTEN VALUABLE ITEMS WILL BE FOUND IN CONTAINERS.

- 7 +

"A seven is good. I wanna save those two points for something BIG." I turned the page, wondering what grandiose statements would be made next…

Only to find it was an overview of all my attributes.

"Man, that's it? I wanted to see something else awesome." I pouted petulantly, casting his gaze on the summary of my attributes.

2 POINTS REMAING

STRENGTH - 7 +

PERCEPTION - 1 +

ENDURANCE - 9 +

CHARISMA - 3 +

INTELLIGENCE - 6 +

AGILITY - 5 +

LUCK - 7 +

I stared hard at the figures, trying desperately to figure out where to put my remaining two Points. I frowned a bit, looking at the column of Attributes on the left... before letting a chuckle escape my lips.

"Hehehehe, S.P.E.C.I.A.L., I get it now, it's a special test. Why didn't I see that before now?"

My eyes wandered back to the left-hand column, before settling on Perception.

"Wait, is that what perception means? I thought it was just for senses and stuff! That's why I don't pick up on jokes and things?" Shaking my head in disbelief, I placed my final two points on Perception, raising it to a silently better, but still poor score of 3.

"And I wanted to put them on something cool, too." Regretfully lowering my head, I turned the page.

YOUR SPECIAL SCORES ARE,

STRENGTH - 7 +

PERCEPTION - 3 +

ENDURANCE - 9 +

CHARISMA - 3 +

INTELLIGENCE - 6 +

AGILITY - 5 +

LUCK - 7 +

ARE YOU SURE?

YES NO

I hit the 'YES' button. Seconds later, the world lost its dull shade again and returned to its former vibrancy.

"All right when you're done, please pass them forward to Sasuke-kun, Sasuke when you have them all please hand them to me." Iruka said loudly, making sure all the children heard him.

After some loud scuffling, and many papers being flung about, the papers were finally all in Iruka's clutches. I swiftly looked around, staring at wanton chaos that so simple a command generated, staring at the chibi versions of the comrades whom I would have gladly given my life for with the eyes of an older kid, I came to a conclusion.

"This is a fucking madhouse." Shaking my head in disbelief, I pondered how in the name of Kami I would get through six years of repeating the academy ON TOP OF dealing with all the childish antics of my classmates.

"All right class, we'll be heading outside to play a fun game, so CALMLY get up and follow Mizuki-sensei outside!" Iruka finished over the cheering of the children.

I cautiously made to get up, wincing at the memory of my earlier attempts for freedom… to find that I was no longer encaged in my seat.

'That's one less thing to worry about' and with that thought, I made quickly for the door.

"Follow me, everyone." Mizuki cried over the den, "like follow the leader! See? We're playing a game already!"

Falling into line, I began to hear a strange 'whooshing', as if from a distance. My frown at the strange noise quickly grew to fear, as gleaming white began to blur out my vision

"WHAT IS HAPPE…?" I began, only to be drowned out by a roar of sound and wall of white come crashing down upon me.

Seconds of chaos and overlapping sound assaulted me before I started picking out voices amidst the bedlam.

"Now class, this is called a kunai, it is a ninja tool…" 'Was that, Iruka-sensei?'

"A-aa-ari-g-gato, N-naruto-k-kun…" 'That was Hinata! I'd recognize that stutter anywhere.'

"DAMN IT! I said I didn't want to date you Naruto! Why won't you take no…" 'And that was Sakura-chan; I'd recognize that yelling anywhere, too.' I winced in phantom pain, rubbing the back of my neck, 'and those punches.'

Puddles of black began to pool in front of my eyes, forming words amidst a sea of endless white.

6 YEARS LATER

'Wait, 6 YEARS have passed? That means I don't have to spend any time in the stupid Academy!' I thought, ecstatic that I was skipping class again, before pausing to reconsider. "But what happened during those years? Was I just on auto-pilot? What will I talk to my friends about; I won't know anything that's happened between us!'

My panic ground to a halt when world regained its color. I was looking down a street in Konoha, looking at the all the homes and stores littering the block, and I stared at the backs of two shinobi running like the hounds of hell were on their heels.

'I REMEMBER THIS! This is when I painted all over the Hokage Monument and they were chasing me in the street for like an hour and a half! And then Iruka-sensei snuck up behind me-'

"NARUTO!" Came a shout from behind me.

"BWAAAHHH" I screamed shrilly, jumping up in the air, before falling down. Staring up at my near-assassin-via-heart-attack, I shouted at Iruka, "How did you sneak up behind me, Iruka-Sensei?"

"A better question is why you are here vandalizing public property, when you should be studying for the final exam tomorrow!" Iruka shouted right back, before picking me up and whisking me back my daily prison.

Reaching the academy minutes later, I was lobbed headlong into the classroom, tumbling to stop on the hard wooden floor.

"Looks like you were so busy running around that you forgot that today was review day for the final exam." Accused the scarred Chunin, "Now you need to run along, the first part of the review is taking place with Suzume-sensei, her class room is right down the hall."

Iruka turned his head away from me and so didn't see me blinking owlishly.

'What is going on?' I thought confusedly, 'This isn't how this day happened at all! We got retested on the Henge, and then Iruka-sensei got a nose bleed from the Orioke and I-'

"Naruto, the class is just down the hall. Now get going, you're late enough as it is." Iruka said seriously, not even bothering to look up from the paper he was reviewing.

"Hai, Sensei" I responded sharply. Deciding that I had a lot to think about if I could ever get enough time without someone interrupting me, I proceeded to walk out the door…

Where I was met by a familiar sight of a dimmed out world and a translucent orange screen.

'Not again…'

Authors Note.

FIRST STORY! WOOOOOO!

This wasn't my first idea for a story, nor is it the most popular idea for one. This only dawned on me after I read Chibi-Reaper's and Majin Hentai X/Animaniac Dudes' versions and decided to make one for myself. I have no idea what the pairing is going to be (maybe NaruHina, but I have time, 'cause they're like frickin' 12), or where this is going to end up (an idea, yes, but I want to see if the story agrees), but I hope the ride is going to be fun! Also constructive criticism welcome, but trolls can stay under your bridges (No flames please). Also, this isn't the first version of the opening. I had another opening that was much longer but was confusing as hell and needed way too much explanation as it takes place during the 4th shinobi war, and apparently, that means that all levels of normalcy and logic can just be thrown to the wind. So I went with Naruto's death at the Valley of the End. It's simpler and SO much less of a headache. Don't forget to review guys.

Yours Truly,

10,000 Fists