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Soon, it was the day of the chunnin exams to start. Standing in front of the examination building, Naruto, Sasuke, and Yakumo looked ahead with hope-filled eyes.

"This is it, guys. Our first steps on our journey to be the greatest ever." Naruto exclaimed as the other two took a bold step forward, entering the building.

Walking up the stairs, the three saw a crowd forming in front of a classroom on the second floor, as roaring voices could be heard.

"Such weakness. I will do you guys a favor and kick you out of this exam before it even begins. You guys are not strong enough to even survive the first round." The man blocking the door to 205 on the right spoke up with a smirk.

"That's right. Go away and suck on mommy's milk before you come back here in a few more years. Shoo, shoo." The one on the left continued.

"Let's go guys," Sasuke said, ignoring the commotion, as Yakumo nodded, her eyes still on the angry participants.

"If they can't even see past such a simple genjutsu, they really don't have the skills necessary to become a chunnin," Naruto commented under his breath, as the three walked ahead.

"STOP." Suddenly, a voice sounded out from behind the trio, as a bushy-browed teen in green spandex jumped in front of them.

"Yo, Lee. What happened?" Naruto asked as the teen stood in front of them.

"Oh. Naruto, Yakumo, you're here as well. I saw him walk by and recognized him as Sasuke Uchiha. Are you Sasuke Uchiha?" Lee asked, focusing on the raven-haired boy.

"I am. What is to you?" Sasuke asked, his ingrained arrogance seeping out a bit.

"My name is Rock Lee, and I heard that you were the strongest rookie from your batch. I want to fight you." Lee went straight to the point.

"No." Sasuke instantly denied it before walking away.

"Yo, Lee. What have I told you about challenging people as soon as you meet them? It's rude, you know?" Naruto scolded the stunned boy, as he had never heard such a swift rejection.

"Sorry. I just wanted to see how strong the rookie of the year from your batch was." Lee apologized sadly.

"But don't worry. You have a chance to fight with him in the final rounds. There, you guys can go all out, unlike here, where you will be stopped by Guy as soon as you try to use any of your techniques like the hidden lotus." Naruto explained as the flames of youth burned brightly in Lee's eyes.

That's right. Thanks, Naruto. I'll see you in the exam. Good luck. See ya. Naruto, Yakumo." Lee waved them away, youth exploding from his body, while Naruto just chuckled seeing his behavior.

"He hasn't changed a bit in the past year. I sometimes wonder if he's Guy Sensei's secret love child?" Yakumo chuckled as the two caught up with Sasuke.

"Hey, you guys. You made it." As soon as they entered the correct room, a loud voice caught their attention.

"Kiba. Akamaru. Good to see you. Is everyone here yet?" Naruto greeted the boy and scratched behind the dog's ear, causing it to bark in a greeting.

"Yeah, you guys were the last to enter. Did you guys get caught in the trap on the second floor? I honestly expected better from you." Kiba gloated, thinking he did better than the top rookie team.

"Nah, you wish. We just met a friend and talked with him for a while." Hearing the commotion, more and more people from their batch came close and greeted each other.

"SASUKE!!!!" Suddenly, a banshee's scream sounded out, as a blur of blonde and purple tackled Sasuke to the ground.

"Ugh, Ino. Slow down. Not here." Sasuke grumbled as he gently pushed away Ino, causing everyone's eyes to go wide.

"WHEN THE HELL DID THIS HAPPEN?" Naruto screamed as Sasuke looked at him with a victorious smirk.

"What, jealous, Naruto, that I got a hot girlfriend before you?" Sasuke smirked, causing Naruto to look at the couple, his eyes moving from the girl to the boy and back again.

"What, no, I'm not jealous. Surprised, I think. I didn't think you had it in you. Honestly, I thought you were gay." Naruto replied once he got his bearings.

"What? Why would you think that??" Sasuke turned red and asked.

"You kept on pushing each and every fan girl away when you were in the academy. Honestly, every guy in our class thought that. I'm right, aren't I?" Naruto asked his classmates, who slowly nodded, causing Sasuke to become depressed.

"Well, I can attest to it that Sasuke is far from being gay. If what he has done so far is gay, then I don't think there are any straight people in the world." Ino blushed as she heard Shikamaru's voice from behind her.

"We see them mingling with each other every time after they finish their missions. They both look at each other like Choji looks at BBQ." Shikamaru sighed as he too greeted Naruto.

"Damn. You are moving fast, my boy." Naruto slapped the boy's back, causing him to stumble forwards, as Sasuke and Ino blushed like a pair of ripe tomatoes.

"Naruto Kun." A soft voice penetrated the joyous atmosphere, and Naruto turned around.

"Hinata. You made it!" Naruto hugged the girl causing her to turn red, but the amount of skin ships the two shared in the past year, was enough to stop the girl from passing out.

"So, it looks like everyone from the Rookie 9 is here, then," Kiba asked, as they all nodded, forgetting about a certain pinkette.

"Do you guys mind? You are making too much noise, and attracting a lot of angry eyes." From their back, a young man with silver hair and round glasses approached the group.

GLARE.

As the man said, heaps of angry glares were directed toward the group, causing the group to huddle up and quieten down.

"The one's behind you are from the hidden rain. They have short tempers.

Everyone's tense before the exams. I warned you so that you don't get picked on." The newcomer continued.

"Thanks." Ino and Yakumo thanked the man with a light bow, as they realized the errors of their brazen attitudes.

"No worries. Maybe I should share some information with my cute underclassmen, then. Since you are so polite.

My name is Kabuto Yakushi. Here, do you have anyone in mind that you would like to know about?" Kabuto asked as he presented a deck of blank cards, attracting Naruto's interest.

'Interesting. Recognition Cards. Aren't they primarily used by the spies of the various villages? It's very hard to get your hands on them as a chunnin, much less a genin.' Naruto thought suspiciously of the man in front of them.

"Really. Do you have their information? Let's see, can I see Sasuke's card?" Kiba asked in excitement, causing Kabuto to chuckle lightly.

"Sure, here we go. Sasuke Uchiha. The Last Uchiha loyal to the Hidden Leaf. Wielder of the Sharingan, proficient in Taijutsu, Ninjutsu, and Genjutsu. The primary mode of attack, Fire Style, followed by Lightning Style. Missions Completed. 130 D-Rank. 40 C-Rank. 4 B-Rank. 2 A-Rank. Wow. Impressive." Kabuto replied as the group was stunned.

"Impossible. How did he do so many missions? What about his team then?" Kiba continued, not believing the results.

"Yakumo Kurama. Heiress of the Kurama Clan. Wielder of the clan's kekkei genkai. Proficient in Genjutsu and Information gathering. Primary mode of attack, Genjutsu and trapping the opponents. Missions completed. 130 D-Rank. 40 C-Rank. 4 B-Rank. 2 A-Rank. Same as her teammates."

"Naruto Uzumaki. Proficient in Taijutsu, Ninjutsu, Fuinjutsu, and Iryojutsu. No information on genjutsu. Primary means of operation. Scouting and Ranged Detection. Incredible Sensor abilities. Mysterious Kekkei Genkai which causes chains made of chakra to emerge from his back to attack. Missions completed. 130 D-Rank. 40 C-Rank. 4 B-Rank. 2 A-Rank." Kabuto finished, which caused everyone to look at Team 7 with disbelief.

"Sasuke-kun/Naruto-Kun are so amazing." Their respective fan girls/admirers commented at the same time.

'Something's definitely not right.' Team 7 shared a look at each other, conveying their thoughts with a single look before Naruto asked.

"Sabaku no Gaara of Sunagakure."

"Oh, you know their village of origin. That's no fun. Anyway, here we are.

Sabaku no Gaara. Son of the Kazekage. Has two elder siblings. Kankuro, and Temari. All missions were completed without a single scratch on his body. Wields the ability to have an impenetrable barrier of sand protecting him automatically from any attack. Oh my. Missions completed. 97 C-Rank. 6 B-Rank. 2 A-Rank. Amazing." Kabuto commented, seeing the results. "He also completed the missions without a single scratch on his body."

'It's suspicious. Keep an eye on him.' Naruto gave the other two a subtle nod, to which they nodded back, their senses telling them this guy was not who he said he is.

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