"Ibiki, show the match-ups." The Hokage ordered.
Match 1: Uzumaki Naruto VS Hyuuga Neji
Match 2: Sabaku no Gaara VS Uchiha Sasuke
Match 3: Kankurou VS Aburame Shino
Match 4: Temari VS Winner (Dosu VS Shikamaru)
...
Naruto inwardly grinned at the match he received. He would have liked to smack Sasuke around, but he would definitely settle for fucking Neji up, especially after what he pulled with Hinata. That stuck up asshole was in for a world of pain and humiliation.
He could see Neji giving him a haughty look out of his peripheral vision, but decided to completely ignore the boy, which served to anger the Hyuuga greatly.
"I have a question." Shikamaru put up his hand. The Hokage nodded in acceptance. "If it's a tournament, that means there's only one winner, right? Does that mean only one person can become a Chuunin?" He questioned logically.
"No, that's not how it is. These matches will have judges including me, the Kazekage, as well as the Daimyo's and…Head Shinobi from other countries, who will be potential clients. These judges will grade you by watching the tournament. And those who are qualified to be a Chuunin, even if they lose in the first round, will become a Chuunin," The Hokage explained.
"So there's a possibility that everyone here can become a Chuunin?" Temari pointed out.
"Yes, but that also means that it's possible for no one to become a Chuunin." The Hokage countered. "Winning the matches in the tournament means that you are able to show off your skills more. Understand? That is all. We are adjourned until the next month."
After the debriefing was done, Naruto casually made his way out of the tower, not sparing a single glance at his opponent, who was silently seething, trying to glare a hole in his head, for ignoring him.
Naruto, however, didn't care, he had other things to do.
...
Naruto was currently lying on his bed, staring up at the ceiling in contemplation.
[ What's got you in such a sombre mood? ] His partner asked.
"Hmmm…I'm just thinking…How badly should I break Neji?" He pondered casually. The Kyuubi's ear's perked up in excitement at the thought of Naruto unleashing violence and humiliation on people.
[ Oh oh can I help?! Please, please pretty please! ] She pestered. Naruto could almost see her directing her puppy eyes at him, causing him to face-palm.
[ How about, when he activates his Byakugan, we whip out some yaoi doujinshi featuring himself and the pink-eyed cockroach? That should mess him up. ] She suggested, making Naruto sweat-drop at her.
"You're being entirely too enthusiastic about this. I know that you're quite the sadistic vixen, but please remember that, regardless of the enormous pole stuck up his ass, he's still a fellow Konoha shinobi. We don't want to cripple him for life.
Maybe mentally scar him while breaking his pride and beliefs, but not cripple. Actually, now that I think about it, your idea isn't really that bad." Naruto commented as he rubbed his chin in contemplation.
[ See! I told you! I'm good at this stuff. Maybe you can use your mastery of the Kawarimi to switch out his underwear for sexy lingerie. Then while fighting him, destroy his clothes leaving him standing in front of all those dignitaries in female undergarments.
That should shatter that ego of his. He'll never be able to show his face again! ] She proposed gleefully.
"Kyu-chan, you are one vicious bitch….But that's why I love you." Naruto praised, causing her to preen. "As much as I love your suggestions though, I think a good old fashioned beat down is in store for the pretty boy Hyuuga.
He thinks he's some genius prodigy, well let's see how that helps him in life when he gets destroyed by the 'dead-last' in front of the Daimyo's. And if his attitude still doesn't change, then we can give him some 'behavioural readjustments'.
Besides, your ideas won't go to waste, there's always Sasuke, and we never needed a reason to torment that little fucker." Naruto said.
The Kyuubi, just nodded in happiness at that thought. "What do you think I should do for my training in this month? I know I can defeat any of the guys in this exam, but I still need to do something, well besides my regular daily training that is." He asked her.
[ I think I may have a solution. I sensed a large chakra signature when you were walking back from your apartment. I'm sure you did too. If my memory serves me correct, that was actually Jiraiya, one of those Sannin.
He was also your father's sensei, not to mention your godfather. I know you probably want nothing to do with the guy, and I don't blame you, however, he is a goldmine of information and techniques, he is also a seal master, not to mention, he might actually have the key to this seal. ] She suggested. Naruto just sat in silent contemplation.
"So you're saying I should get close to him and learn what I can…While you are right, I don't want anything to do with the guy, but learning from him will be extremely beneficial. Pride has no place if it means I can improve myself. Besides, I'm sure I can guilt him into training me.
But first, there's someone I need to visit." He said before leaving his apartment, leaving behind the large amount of clones who were practicing Fūinjutsu.
...
Naruto walked through the sliding doors of Konoha General Hospital, into the lobby, which was sparsely populated. He looked around for a bit before walking up to the counter.
"Good evening, could you please direct me to the room of Hyuuga Hinata?" Naruto politely asked the receptionist, who upon seeing him, formed a disgusted on her face.
"We don't allow your kind in here. Get lost brat." She sneered at him. His face remained unchanged, with a polite smile on his face and his eyes closed. Suddenly, a horrific sensation spread throughout the reception area, making the receptionist stumbled back in fear.
A crimson miasma was emanating from Naruto, whose expression still remained unchanged. She could see horrific visions of her death and mutilation. She wasn't sure if she was hallucinating, but she was sure she saw a snarling fax mask behind him. The receptionist could feel a trickle of liquid running down her leg.
"Ara? I'm sure I misheard. I'm going to repeat the question just in case. Could you please direct me to the room of Hyuuga Hinata?" He politely questioned, his tone though carried an underlying threat to it, which promised violence and bodily harm. The receptionist was quivering in fear at the unnatural presence that she felt.
"R..Room…314…Sir…" She stuttered out frightfully. Suddenly, the malicious intent simple vanished, like it was never there.
"Thank you for your assistance. I hope you enjoy the rest of your day." He said graciously, with the same expression, before casually walking away. The receptionist slowly collapsed on her desk, breathing heavily at her close brush with, what she perceived as, death.
Naruto silently made his way down the hall of the hospital, hunting down the room he was looking for. Everybody just gave him a wide berth.
He came across Kakashi, who looked to be making his way out of the hospital.
"Oh hey Naruto. About the finals for the Chunnin Exam, I won't be able to train-" Kakashi started, only to be cut off.
"Save it Kakashi. I already anticipated that you would focus on your golden boy. I have already made my arrangements." Naruto replied, not even bothering to slow down, leaving behind a dumbfounded and slightly hurt Kakashi behind.
[ That was amusing to watch. I meant the thing with the receptionist not the scene with that perverted failure of a sensei of yours. ] The Kyuubi snickered in his mind.
'Fufu I'm glad you enjoyed it Kyu-chan. And thank you for teaching me that little trick with the killing intent, it really is a good way to convince idiots to do stuff.' He replied.
[So why exactly are you making an effort to visit this girl?] She questioned.
'Call it an investment. I can see a lot of potential in her. She has the ability to be something better. But her lack of confidence is holding her back. I see a lot of my old self in her. So desperate to be accepted by people who will never see past her surface.
If Haku-chan hadn't given me the strength she did, I would still be that bumbling idiot who wanted these moron villagers to accept him. In the same way, if my words and actions can give this girl a better shot, I would do it in a heartbeat. I'm also aware that she has a bit of a crush on me. I can use that as the basis to give her the reality check she needs.
It will either push her to blossom into a fearsome kunoichi, or it would break her. I've got the devils luck in gambling through, and my money is on her shattering her chains.' He explained. The Kyuubi just snorted in his mind.
['A little crush'…Pfft…please. That girl was on the verge of jumping you and riding your dick like a fucking pornstar when she saw you defeat her teammate. I guarantee you that this is going to come back to bite you in the ass, believe it.] She taunted, causing Naruto to stumble mid stride, before regaining his gait, although he had a small blush on his face.
He couldn't believe that she would taunt him with that annoying verbal tick of his. He wanted to respond, but knew that it would just give her more ammo to tease him. He made a promise to get her back later.
He finally arrived at the door of room 314. He knocked softly on the door three times, before hearing a gentle voice granting him permission to enter. Said voice let out a cute 'eep' as soon as she saw him. He chuckled at her behaviour before pulling a chair and sitting at her bedside.
"Hello Hinata. How are you feeling?" He asked.
"I'm do..doing better Na..Naruto-kun." She stuttered out in reply.
"Tell me Hinata, why do you want to be a shinobi?" He questioned out of the blue. She looked at him in shock before taking the time to answer.
"I…I want to be strong…to make my…father..and my clan..proud of me…I also want to unite..the Hyuuga clan…" she stuttered out timidly. She also wanted to be close to him, but she didn't have the courage to say that out loud. Naruto just sighed loudly in disappointment.
"And that, Hinata…Is why you will fail." He told her bluntly.
She looked at him in shock and betrayal, tears stinging the corners of her eyes at his piercing words. He was her inspiration, her pillar of strength, for him to say such a thing, it cut her deeply. She averted her eyes, not able to look at him, having flashbacks of her father saying similar things to her.
"I like you Hinata. I can see you are a kind and compassionate person. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that. In fact, I think those are some of your better qualities. However, there comes a time that, one has to fight for their belief and for their pride.
I can see great strength in you Hinata, you showed it in you fight against Neji, it's there, just bubbling under the surface, but you are suppressing it for some reason." Naruto told her, causing her to feel happiness at his compliments and shame at his observations.
"I'm sure you've noticed that I'm a bit different from how I was academy. It happened because of the events of my first C-Rank mission. Do you want to know what happened?" He asked her. She nodded timidly in reply.
"The client lied about the mission we received, leading us to encounter a nuke-nin. I wasn't just any nuke-nin though, it was Momoichi Zabuza, the Kirigakure no Kijin. Our first encounter with him, allowed Kakashi to defeat him, but he had an accomplice that rescued him. While I was at the Wave, the conditions there brought up memories of my past, of living on the streets, of fighting for survival every day.
One day the client's grandson said something that pissed me off. So I left to train. I fell asleep after training almost the entire night. I was awakened the next morning by what could only be described as an angel. She was the most beautiful person I had ever seen in my life. She had a gentle smile and a heart full of kindness that ensnared me. I was hopelessly addicted to her very presence.
For the next 4 days, we met every day and talked, about our similar pasts as street kids, hobbies dreams and aspirations. Every time I would see her, my heart would start racing and my tummy would get all fluttery. I didn't know what these feelings meant. I've never experienced them in my life. I promised myself that the next time I saw her, I would ask her what they meant.
...
The next day, Zabuza and his accomplice struck. Kakashi battled Zabuza while Sasuke took on the accomplice, he was hopelessly outmatched. Zabuza's accomplice could have killed him at any time, but didn't. When I saw Sasuke's beaten up state, I kind of lost it, and tapped into my power.
I went wild and attacked the accomplice viciously. When I finally landed a hit on the accomplices mask, it shattered, revealing the face of Haku, the girl I spent all my time with. I was horrified. I wondered if all the time spent together was a lie, just to get information from me.
Before I could question her more, she intercepted the attack meant to kill Zabuza, it pierced her right below her heart. As I held her dying body in my arms, she told me that she treasured every moment we spent. I told her about my strange feelings, and she just laughed at me. Then she said the three word I've wanted to hear all my life, she said 'I love you'. It was both the happiest and saddest moment of my life.
I finally had someone who loved and acknowledged me, but she was dying. She told me her feelings and I told her mine. Her last request was for me to take her first and last kiss. As I kissed her, she breathed her final breath." Naruto narrated to her. He could feel a little wetness in his eyes, as he re-lived that bittersweet moment.