The Cloud Over The Leaf

Naruto kicked a rock he passed by as he walked through the village.

"Man, everyone is busy all of a sudden. How am I suppose to get stronger if I can't find anyone?"

Naruto found out too late that everyone had already found training partners for the tournament.

Shizuka took Kushina and Minato.

Kakashi dragged Sasuke somewhere.

Even Hii and Kaya we're nowhere to be found!

"Haaa! Guess I gotta train by myself. At least I got you, Kurama."

(Hmph!)

'Ya big softie.'

Naruto smiled as he rubbed his belly and looked around.

"When did I get here?"

He found himself in the hotspring area, right in front of the bath house.

'Maybe a bath will clear my mind. Hmm?'

As he debated whether he should go in or not, he noticed something odd.

"Uhehehehe~!"

He saw a white haired old man giggling to himself as he looked into a small hole on the side of the bathhouse.

"......"

Naruto silently approaches the man as he tries to recall something.

'Hey, Kurama?'

(Hmmm?)

'Didn't Mom say something about a white haired pervert before?'

Kurama thinks about it for a moment before he exclaimed.

(Ah! She did! She said you should hold him down and scream pervert at the top of your lungs if you ever see him.)

Naruto surveyed the man once more.

After confirming the red, starved eyes he had and his bated breath, Naruto promptly weaved a hand sign.

"Shadow clone Jitsu!"

*Poof Poof Poof*

"Huh?!"

The old man turned around only to find 7 clones surrounding him and taking in a deep breath.

""It's a pervert!!!""

"W-Wait a minute?!"

The old man tried to get out of the situation, but Naruto is surprised when a group of women instantly surround the man.

"You again?! You never learn, do you?!"

"N-Now hold on a minute."

The old man pleads, but the women heard none of it!

*Pow Bang Pow Pow*

They immediately started to beat up on the man in coordinated unison!

"Aaah!!!!"

"....."

Naruto watched on in fright as the women destroyed the man.

**

"....."

"....."

Naruto felt bad for the old pervert and decided to help him get away from the bathhouse...after the ladies were done with him.

They were currently staring at each other. 

One with a hint of remorse in his eyes, the other with smouldering rage.

"What was that for, huh?! You just had to go and ruin my fu- I mean my research!"

"Sorry about that. It's just something my Mom told me to do."

The man's face scrunched up for a moment before leaning in close.

"D-Does your Mom know me or something?"

Naruto thought for a moment and shook his head.

"I don't know. All I was told was that if I ran into a man with long white hair making a weird face while peeking into the bathhouse, I was supposed to do that."

"....."

Hearing the oddly specific instructions from his mother, the man began to sweat as he observed the boy.

As he began to notice some similarities, the sweat started to pool as he shivered in fear.

"Wait. W-What's your name, kid?"

"Oh! I'm Naruto Uzumaki! A proud Leaf Genin soon to be Chuunin!"

Naruto smiled brightly while the old man began to become progressively worried.

'Oh no!!! My grand disciple caught me researching! Kushina's gonna kill me!'

The man quickly shook off his worried expression as he smiled amiably.

"Nice to meet you, Naruto! I'm Jiraiya!"

*Poof*

Jiraiya was suddenly covered in smoke as a large frog appeared underneath him as he struck a pose!

"The Toad Sage!"

"Woah! How did you do that?!"

 'Hehe! Got him!'

"You wanna know how? I can teach you, but you gotta keep what happened today a secret, got it?"

Naruto thought for a moment before nodding his head.

"Alright! You got it! Show me how to do it!"

Jiraiya grinned as Naruto grew enamoured with his technique, poking the frog's skin with fascination.

'Now I just gotta make sure Minato doesn't find out as well.'

As Jiraiya was caught in his thoughts of getting away successfully, Ebisu watched on with a scowl.

'Hmph! I'll have to inform the Hokage that his master is acting up again. I can't believe he didn't let me peek as well!'

*Shuu*

Although he did a good job covering his meeting with Naruto, Jiraiya forgot all about Ebisu and his grudge.

**

*Chi Chi Chi Chi*

"Hngh! Ugh!"

Sasuke focused his attention on his left hand as he tried to harness his chakra.

Kakashi stood on the sidelines, watching silently as he gave pointers to Sasuke.

"Make sure not to overburden your chakra pathways. If the power cuts off, the technique won't work."

Kakashi could see Sasuke nodding his head as sweat dripped down from his bangs.

*Chi Chi Chi*

Once Kakashi sensed the Jutsu was stable, he nodded his head.

"Try it again."

"Uooooh!!"

*Crack Crack Crack Bang*

An explosion of rubble shot out as Sasuke slammed his hand into the nearby boulder.

A large crater formed around his fist as his arm shook from the discharge.

Sasuke looked solemnly at the crater, then to his hand.

'Is this enough?'

Sasuke clenched his fist as he turned over to Kakashi.

"How was it?"

Kakashi tilted his head and fell into deep thought.

Sasuke waited for him to finish as he rested and reflected on the sensation of his Jutsu.

"Not bad. You have a good shot now, but only a shot."

Sasuke nodded his head as he unclenched his fist.

"Hinata shouldn't be a problem, but that can change at any point. You can never be too sure against the Hyuga clan."

Kakashi continued to explain as he thought of the matches that Sasuke might face.

"The true battle will be after that match."

Sasuke fist clenched at the thought of those two being his opponents.

One gave him the feeling of insanity and bloodlust while the other was a wall he had tried to climb for years now.

'It doesn't matter who wins. I'm not gonna lose to either of them!'

His Sharingan spun energetically as he readied his technique once more.

**

*Bam Bam Swish Woosh*

"Haaa!"

*Bang*

Two silhouettes collided and separated from each other, taking their stances a distance away.

"Haaa! Haaa!"

*Bang Bang Bang*

The two clashed over and over again before they both stopped, covered in sweat.

The two exited their stances as they caught their breath.

"Great work, Hinata-sama."

Neji calmed his breath as Hinata smiled.

"Thank you, Nii-san."

Neji shook his head as he went to get a towel for Hinata from a nearby servant.

"You shouldn't call me Nii-san, Hinata-sama."

"I don't want you to call me Hinata-sama either, Nii-san."

"....Haaa."

Neji sighed as Hinata giggled at his expense.

Hanabi sat nearby and smiled as the two seemed a bit closer since the exam started.

Neji focused his gaze on Hinata as he asked a serious question.

"What are your chances against him?"

Hinata finished wiping her sweat and folded her towel.

"I-I don't think I'll win this fight."

Neji nodded his head. Sasuke was an opponent even he couldn't guarantee to win against.

"It doesn't mean I won't give it my all! I'll fight him for as long as I can!"

Neji nodded his head in agreement.

"Honestly, I would want you to win. It just that the opponents after him are..."

Hinata looked at the ground and silently agreed with her cousin.

Gaara and Hii were two scary opponents. She didn't have the confidence nor the techniques to take them on now.

"I won't be able to win now, but I'll be able to take them on in the future."

Hinata's resolve brought a smile to Neji's face as looked up into the sky.

"Break time's over. Let's spar some more."

"Yes!"

Hinata and Neji returned to their combat stances and flew towards each other!

*Bang Bang Bang*

The two collided once more as Hanabi smiled and watched them execute their techniques.

**

*Clack*

Shikamaru placed a shogi piece on the board as he faced off against an imaginary enemy.

*Clack*

He didn't go easy on himself whenever he faced his own wit.

He would exploit every possibility he could and use it against himself.

After all, the enemy would do the same.

*Clack*

Shikamaru envisioned his opponent's tactics.

She was haughty, but definitely didn't lack the skills to back it up.

She would be a challenge.

"......"

He breathed in softly and thought about the exams.

'What a drag...'

He knew realistically, he wouldn't be winning the tournament unless something crazy happened.

The line up of opponents were too strong.

'Especially those Uchihas and Uzumakis.' 

Shikamaru thought for a moment before sighing and shaking his head.

"No use worrying about that. I should get past the first match before I worry about that."

*Fwoosh*

The wind gently breezed by as Shikamaru continued his mental game. 

*Clack*

**

Rasa looked over the files in his lap with a sigh.

'What could they be hiding?'

He had stayed in the Hidden Leaf for a few days and he could already feel something strange was going on.

He could sense the Leaf Ninjas were tense of something, but it wasn't of him and his village.

*Shuu*

A figure appeared before him, crouched and waiting.

"Did you find anything, Baki?"

The man's head was covered in cloth besides one half of his face.

He was the Jonin in charge of Rasa's children, Baki.

"I couldn't gleam into much, Lord Kazekage."

"Hmmm...."

Rasa rubbed his chin as he looked out at the surroundings from the nearby window.

The greenery and atmosphere of the Leaf had always left him envious.

'When will our village be just as prosperous?'

Rasa stared for a moment before refocusing his mind.

"How are they doing? Are they prepared for the exam?"

Baki nodded his head.

"Yes. Temari is pretty confident in her match. She still practices her technique and hasn't slacked off."

Rasa nodded his head and urged him to continue.

"Kankuro seems to be confident as well, but I urged him and Temari to not take their opponents lightly. I still remember many of our comrades getting killed being careless. Especially to the Nara clan."

Rasa agreed with him.

"The Nara are a silent threat. Their intelligence and techniques have always been problems for us."

Baki agreed and stayed silent for a moment.

Rasa sighed again as his mood soured.

"And him?'

"....."

Baki took a deep breath and began his report.

"He's....excited."

"...."

The room became tense as Rasa's chakra started to rise slowly.

"Excited?"

Baki slowly nodded.

"I haven't seen him like this in a long time. I heard he grew an interest in his opponents during the exam. It seems the interest not only stayed, but increased over time."

Rasa thought about his son for a moment.

If he could even call him his son now.

'If I l keep thinking about it, it will drive me insane.'

Rasa could feel his chakra pulsing at the thought of Shukaku bursting out in the village.

All of the hard work and good fortune he obtained from the Leaf would be gone in one roar.

Baki watched in silence as Rasa's thoughts began to wander in his frustration.

He couldn't help bitterly laughing at the comparison of Konoha and Suna.

Better environment.

Better resources.

Better ninjas.

Even better Jinchuuriki.

'Ah. I'm so jealous.'

*Crrrrr*

Rasa's hands clenched as the metal in the room started to strain under his chakra.

Suddenly, it all vanished again.

Rasa took in a deep breath and looked at Baki.

"Make sure he's in proper form for his fight. Don't let him disgrace the Sand any further."

"Yes!"

*Shuu*

Baki flickered away as Rasa looked back outside.

He stared at the lush forest for a moment before getting back to work.

**

In the Forest of Death, Shino walked around with a container in his hands. 

It held three strange looking beetles inside, trapping them as the slowly clawed at their prison.

Shino held the cage up to his face. His glasses flashed with light as he stared at his catch.

"Perhaps I'll be able to use a new type of beetle if I can integrate these three with the rest."

He had found these beetles near a strange area filled with nothing, but half dead trees. It was wholly bizarre as everything else around it was brimming with life except that area.

'I wonder if it's a rare phenomenon. None of the books I've read seem to talk about something like that.'

Shino was excited as he carried his beetles back to his home.

He couldn't wait to see what made these beetles so special.

**

Dosu stood still as sweat covered his body.

He stood in his hotel room as a shadowy figure watched him with pleasure.

The sinister feeling of something preying on him sunk deep into his mind as he felt the yellow eyes of his master watching over his form.

"Good work. I'll have you continue in the exam. Fight or give up. It's up to you. You must be ready to fight, however, once the operation begins. Understood?"

"Y-Yes Lord Orochimaru."

Dosu's bandages couldn't hold in all the sweat as he tried not to wipe it.

This seemed to only entice Orochimaru more as he enjoyed his squirming.

*Shuu*

A shadow quickly appeared in the room before kneeling in front of Orochimaru.

"Lord Orochimaru. It seems Aeon's group has completed their preparations."

Orochimaru's smile grew wider as he stood up from his chair.

"Good. My preparations have also been completed with some volunteers."

Dosu's body shook for a moment before he forcefully stilled it, but Orochimaru still noticed it.

"Don't worry about those two. Failures have a way of...being recycled for a better chance."

"Y-Yes."

Orochimaru suddenly appeared behind him and put his arm around his shoulder.

"You show promise. Make sure you keep doing well. The more you shine, the more likely you'll stay shining."

Dosu heard a hissing noise come from Orochimaru's arm as he lifted it off his shoulder.

"Stay out of trouble and remember to be ready."

*Shuu Shuu*

The two disappeared from the room, letting Dosu fall to his knees as his biggest fear disappeared from the room.

"Haaa! Haaa! Haaa!"

Dosu gulped for air as his mind raced.

'Those two were killed because they lost! What should I do?!'

Dosu clenched his fist as he looked out the window towards the moon.

Should he run? Should he fight and hope he'll survive the operation?

Dosu dragged himself towards his bed, deep in thought.

He would have to make a decision soon on what he would do.

He didn't have a lot of time left to decide.

**

"1001! 1002! 1003!"

Lee continued to power through his push ups as the boulder on his back dropped flakes of stone.

Guy watched on with a joyful expression as he nodded his head.

"Lee! Your youth burns brightly! I'm proud of you for how far you've come. However! That doesn't mean you can slack off! You must shed more sweat and blood to reach the levels of even higher ninja."

"Yes, Guy-Sensei!"

Guy nodded his head before dropping down and standing on his hands.

He pulled up one arm and gave Lee a thumbs up!

"Well then, I'll be back in a jiffy. Gotta run around the village a few times for my warm-up! Remember to get your one armed push-ups done as well. Today's training will be burning hot!"

*Fwoosh*

Guy sped away on his two hands as Lee's eyes grew fiery with spirit!

'I managed to beat Neji, but I realized I'm not done. With the loss of one obstacle, many more have appeared.'

Lee's mind raced with the images of Naruto and Sasuke before focusing on their big sisters in the shadows of his mind.

Above that was his comrade in hard work. The long flowing white hair and blade of his friend and rival.

'I have to get even stronger! I can't be left behind!'

"I'll finish this workout in the next 5 minutes! I can't leave Guy-Sensei waiting!"

Lee continued to push-up, counting in his head as the sweat flowed from him like a river!

"Uuuuooooh!!! Youth!!!!!"