Chapter 3
It was way too easy. Why was it so easy?
Not the test, by no means. Even after Naruto started to learn in a healthy environment in a way he was capable of grasping things, he wouldn’t be able to answer these heavy theoretical questions. Like his parents he was more of a try and error kind of person, more in action than lost in thoughts. Actually, his Mum once told him that if his Dad got lost in a new idea he could be stuck in his office for days and needed to be dragged out to eat on a regular basis. Maybe it was more of an Uzumaki thing. Most Uzumaki worked that way too, which was also the reason that it was likely to hear explosions on a regular basis in Uzushio, not always close to the training grounds.
Naruto let an ink brush emerge from somewhere inside his robes and started mindless scribbles on the test paper, while he watched the room.
The easy part was understanding that this test was by no means theoretical. So he watched. Could see the way everyone cheated. The bar must be low, if the flying eye was not eliminated.
Head rested on his left hand, he nearly snorted seeing a girl moving mirrors positioned underneath the sealing. How did she even manage to get those there?
Next to him sat a black haired girl with the Byakugan. Rather amazed he paid more attention to her. Even if she possessed the Kekkei Genkai she did not activate it and still solved most of those ridiculous questions. Her eyes glanced at his paper for a second, before focusing on her own test again. Worry contorted her delicate features. Did she think he would want to copy her work?
“I am glad to see you again, Naruto-kun.” A whisper of a voice directed at her paper, but he caught it. His brush halted half way through a stroke he wasn’t sure was part of a seal or not. Then he remembered. Hyuga Hinata, he had saved her once on a snowy winter day, not that he was capable of doing anything back then. They also got placed in the same class at the academy, but she never really talked to him. Well no one did, so he wouldn’t blame her.
“It’s nice to see you again too, Hinata-chan.” She blushed a bit, a shy girl it seems. He wasn’t used to that, his cousin and mother being everything but shy. It was kinda cute.
“If you have troubles with your test, I could let you see mine.” Now her voice was barely audible. A smile settled on Naruto's lips. She sure was cute.
“I don’t think you should help an outsider, Hinata-chan. I am not a Konoha-nin, you know?” His grin got a bit wider while he pointed at the Uzu-Hitai-Ate around his neck. He should stop teasing her, before she faints from blushing so hard.
“Ye-yes, of course, I am sorry.”
“Don’t be, thank you. I’ll do just fine.” With a little nod the girl's focus went back to her test, she tried willing her blush away with little success. Really cute.
‘Are you done flirting? It’s hurting my brain.’
‘Oh, shut up old fart. How are you doing on your test?’
He could see Kurama on his spot if he turned a bit to the left. His Biju was staring the paper down with a frown.
‘Already finished ages ago.’ Kurama swatted something in front of him.
‘If you finished, why do you look like you have constipation?’
‘Some annoying kid keeps sending his insects to my test paper. Fucking hate those little pests.”
‘The insects or the Genin?’
‘both’ Something ignited a few inches above the test paper. A lot of self-control was necessary for Naruto to not start laughing his ass off. He sure was right, when he told Karin this would be fun.
---
Ibiki expected Anko to be too early, but was the broken window necessary? Again? The scarred man walked around the tables picking out some tests. The Uzushio kids interested him, since it was the first time the village participated. Uzumaki Karin had no trouble it seemed, the wild looking boy Kurama actually surprised him. The answers are perfect. Some genius Uzushio had there. He went over to the seat Uzumaki-Namikaze has been sitting on. Naruto, huh?
Ibiki was informed about the Jinchuriki, that Danzo claimed his death. It was common knowledge around his line of work that the Hokage did not believe Danzo for a single second. Seems like she was right. He picked up the test paper, his eyes widened a fraction.
The boy hadn’t answered a single question, rather he drew a bunch of seals on the paper. Ibiki couldn’t recognise a single one of them. But he was aware that it was pure Uzumaki style, something lost in Konoha. He should bring this with him to T&I right away. The moment he left the room the paper crumbled right beneath his fingers. He stopped in his tracks, staring at his empty hand. Of course it did.
The man contained an exasperated laugh.
If their kunoichi was equally crazy, that team would unleash hell on the other genins. Anko will have a field day with this for sure.
---
“You cheated, didn’t you?” Karin proclaimed loudly, pointing an accusing finger at her blond teammate. “You sure as hell used that telepathy shit and cheated.” Naruto got the feeling that she was not mad about the cheating part. “You know, that was kind of the point of the test. Also I didn’t, I actually didn’t even answer a single question.”
Karin mouthed something, but stopped her rant. She was pouting now. The team stood at the gathering place, like everyone who got through the first test. The kunoichi that jumped through the window earlier is now explaining the rules of the second test.
“That’s not what I meant.” Karin complained. Damn, Naruto was glad he learned to figure his cousin out, the amount of times they fought in the beginning because they misunderstood each other. “If you want we can work on a seal for telepathy. It would really benefit our teamwork, you know?”
In seconds the redhead brightened up. “Really? Let’s do that then. Right after this stupid test is over. Finding some scrolls can’t be that difficult.” She was already planning the outline of their seal, while Naruto went and got their team's scroll. Getting back to his team he openly threw it at Kurama. Said caught it and snarled at him. “Why do I need to fend off the pests?”
“Karin is our sensor, she’ll tell you if someone approaches, you are physically the strongest and I’ll go and place a Hiraishin on the exit. I would like to get this done as fast as possible. The time I spent in the woods with our sensei for survival training was more than enough.”
They all shivered at that thought, even Kurama who got his human form later remembered those days. Also, having openly shown which scroll they had made it more likely to be approached by a team with the one they needed.
“With me as your defense you won’t need to worry Kurama, I worked on my barriers.” Karin threw her arm around Kurama's shoulder, obviously not caring for her own safety. A huff from Kurama, but he kept quiet. Even he knew that Karin was a tank. She had the same crazy stamina every Uzumaki had on top of her great control over the chakra chains Naruto had never been able to manifest.
“I also believe that you won’t let anyone humiliate you by losing the scroll, right?” Naruto chimed in.
The teams started moving towards the gates, the second test starting soon.
“Fucking fine, just be fast Naruto. The redhead and I will get the second scroll.”
“If you need me Karin can push a bit of chakra in the Hiraishin I gave her or Kurama yells at me inside my head. Wouldn’t be the first time.”
It was a plan and it would work. They could figure out the details on the way. The start signal was set, the genin teams vanished into the forest. Kurama and Karin kept it slow, while Naruto mock saluted and went off like a flash.
---
“He’s fast.”
Shizune comments watching the second team arriving at the tower.
“He’s using Hiraishin.” Tsunade answered.
The Uzushio team had been the second to pass after the Suna kids arrived. But in comparison the Uzumakis at least looked like they had been in a fight.
Their Sensei appeared before them when they combined the scrolls, grinning like a true Uzumaki. ‘Like Kushina’ Tsunade’s mind supplied helpfully. Dragging two of the kids into a hug and exchanging a few words with the seemingly distant teammate.
“He looks happy, Hime-sama”
And Tsunade can't say anything about that, because he does and she had read the reports when she took over the hat. She had heard civilians and Shinobi alike talk about the death of the boy like they were freed from a burden too great to handle.
“He does.”
Four more days, before the teams are able to leave the tower again, four more days, before she can go and figure out why they had lost Naruto so abruptly. Maybe she just wanted to deny that she already knew the reason.
She watched the three genin, the orange haired feral looking kid crossing his arms and leaning on a wall not far from his team, while the three Uzumaki let themselves drop to the floor right where they stood and started working on something that looked like pure madness forced into the form of a seal.
A bright grin on the blond boy's lips as he was shoving random notes towards his Sensei.
Tsunade grabbed for a Sake bottle that wasn’t there, halting in the middle of her own movement. She left the surveillance room, sighing deeply. Shizune followed just a step behind her.
“Inform me the moment the next team passes.” Tsunade called to the team inside the room, before the door fell close behind them.
---
“No, no are you mad, you gotta apply sound to make it work.”
Karin was shoving her pen across a seal Naruto had just started. Naruto, who had been half leaning back on his Ka-san, writing on the floor in an awkward position, sat up straight to shove Karins hand away.
“You’re one to talk, what good would sound do? Anyone could hear it that way.”
“So what would be better then? How do you wanna hear anything without sound, huh, dumbass?”
Naruto catches Karins fist before it can collide with his head, still concentrating on the seal that was just semi ruined by his cousin.
“No clue.”
She groaned but started lightly chuckling right away. “Ne, Kuromi-sensei, do you have an idea?” Karin asked, turning towards their sensei, who was equally invested in the new seal the genin wanted to create.
“I’m not sure, something like this hasn't been tried before. Sound has been used for some simplistic forms of communication, but they are normally not very safe and don’t work over great distances.”
“Don’t the Yamanaka have a similar Jutsu? Projecting their thoughts?” Naruto questioned, but his Ka-san shook her head.
“Do you think they’ll just explain clan techniques to random Shinobi from a different village?”
“True…” The blond closed his eyes, deep in thought. But before his brain could start emitting smoke he let himself fall back.
“Then how is it working with you and Kurama?” Karin questioned, while she was trying to hit her cousin's head with one of the paper balls made out of useless tries for a new seal.
“Yeah, Kurama, how are we…” Karin had hit him right on the forehead. Naruto could hear his family snickering at him. He sat back up, turning to the lazily grinning Biju behind him.
“How are we talking inside my head?”
“Stupid question, brat. I am chakra inside your own system, how would we not be talking?”
And that…, made an awfully lot of sense.
He turned back to his Ka-san who also looked like it clicked. They grinned at each other, before they started cackling and working on a new seal together.
“We lost them.” Karin said towards Kurama who, in all his asshole-ish glory, ignored her.
The next paper ball hit his head.