The Graduation Exam Night Incident (2)

Konoha was on high alert.

Every clans and shinobi families had answered the Third Hokage's call, sending their people to scour the village for that little thief.

It had gone beyond the level of a prank. The scroll contained many jutsu that even the First Hokage himself had deemed too dangerous. If it fell to the wrong hand, the consequences would be dire.

While they were busy coordinating their moves, nobody noticed two shadows leaping through the rooftops.

Kiba gritted his teeth as he recognized the people down the streets.

That huge silhouette was Mr. Choza. That one was from Aburame clan. Everyone was a big-namer from their clan!

If Naruto was caught by any of them, he would be toast!

"Hey, are you sure this is the right way?" Hikari asked.

"Yep."

Kiba pulled down the collar of his shirt, revealing Akamaru tucked underneath.

"Akamaru told me that he'd caught Naruto's scent going this way."

They were heading toward a forest in the underdeveloped part of the village. None of the Konoha shinobi had searched that place yet.

If they could get there on time, they might still be able to do something.

"Come to think of it… wouldn't it be possible that your mother has gotten there ahead of us?"

Tsume had Kuromaru after all, not to mention the Inuzuka clan's enhanced senses.

Kiba gulped. That would be the worst-case situation...

"Damn it, we'll just have to get there before her, then! Let's go! Hurry!" He roared.

The two raised their pace, crossing the night sky in the blink of an eye.

He could only hope that Naruto's luck would hold up just for a bit longer...

---

"You would even transform into your parent's killer just to protect him?"

In the deeper part of the woods, two men, both instructors from the academy were facing each other.

The first person, with a large shuriken on his back, was the assistant instructor, Mizuki, while the other one was Naruto's homeroom teacher, Fumino Iruka. The latter was covered in wounds, most notably the bloodied cut on his back. He was leaning on a tree as he felt his energy draining out of his body.

However, he couldn't back down. Not yet.

That person, Mizuki... had taken advantage of Naruto's sadness from failing the exam and manipulated him to steal the forbidden scroll from the Third's house. He was the true culprit of this incident!

There was no way that Iruka would let him off, especially with Naruto's life on the line!

"I won't hand over the scroll to someone like you!" Iruka declared, trying his best to hold up against the worsening pain.

"You idiot," Mizuki grinned. "Naruto and I are the same! With that scroll, we can acquire limitless power! There's no way that demon fox wouldn't pass this opportunity! You're not wrong to despise him!"

"...Yeah… you're right..."

Iruka softly said with a wry smile.

Hiding behind a tree nearby, Naruto was listening to their conversation.

His heart was a terrible mess. He had just learned that the evil nine-tailed fox from the legend, the monster that had brought disaster to the village in the past, was none other than himself. The Fourth Hokage had died to save the village from the demon fox, and he had achieved that by sealing the monster inside Naruto's body.

He was... he was the reason that Iruka's parents had died. Surely Iruka had hated him from the beginning, right?

He clutched the scroll tighter, trying to repress the ugly feeling in his heart.

"I do hate the demon fox. That monster surely would use the scroll to take revenge," Iruka continued.

Naruto closed his eyes, unwilling to listen any further.

"However... Naruto won't do that. He's different. I've... acknowledged him as an excellent student. MY student!"

Even so, Iruka's words...

"He's a lazy idiot. He's awkward, clumsy, and nobody was able to accept him. However, that loneliness allowed him to know what it means to be in pain."

...Little by little, had cracked the shell covering his heart.

A faint sob surfaced.

"He's not a demon fox. He's a proud member of Konohagakure, Uzumaki Naruto!"

The dam had finally broke as tears uncontrollably streamed down the boy's cheeks.

For the first time in his life, he had finally met someone that could accept him for who he really was.

"Tsk... sure, whatever you say!"

Mizuki unstrapped the shuriken on his back.

"Iruka. I wanted to take care of you after I'm done with the kid... but I changed my mind. I'll finish you first. Hurry up and die!"

Mizuki lunged toward the weakened Iruka, who was too weakened to avoid his attack. The shuriken on his hand was swung in full force, threatening to slice Iruka's head off.

"No! Teacher!"

Naruto quickly sprang out from his hiding spot, trying to tackle Mizuki away from his blind spot.

At that moment...

Mizuki's shuriken clashed with the sharp edge of a ninjato, producing an ear-splitting clang.

The short sword was quickly twisted to the side, tearing the shuriken away from the assistant instructor's hand. It spun in the air for a brief second before disappearing into the forest.

"W-what?!"

Two people wearing porcelain masks stood before Iruka, unyieldingly blocking Mizuki's path.

The one wielding the ninjato had a dolphin-faced mask covering her face. She was wearing a thin white robe with mesh armor underneath. With her long hair swaying by the wind and her skin faintly reflecting the moonlight, she looked like a wandering spirit.

The other person had a dog-faced mask, He was wearing a black shirt and shorts. The thing that stuck out from his appearance was the waist-length black wig that was covering his entire back just like a kabuki performer.

"Teacher Iruka! Are you alright?"

"Y-yeah, I'm fine- wait, teacher?"

"Oh fu-"

Hikari mercilessly slapped her idiot companion on the back of his head.

"You moron!"

"S-sorry, I was just worried..." Kiba groaned in response.

Iruka blinked several times, still dazed by the chain of events.

He was on the verge of getting killed by Mizuki. And then, these two suddenly dropped down from the sky, saving him at the last moment.

...At the very least, they weren't enemies, right?

"Teacher!"

Naruto ran straight toward Iruka, crashing right into his chest. When he saw that his teacher was still alive, he almost cried again from joy.

"That idiot, he finally showed up," Kiba sighed.

"Is that the scroll?" Hikari nudged at the cylindrical object on Naruto's back.

"I think so."

"Great. Let's grab it and leave."

"Not yet," he shook his head. "Right, teacher?"

Anyway, he already screwed up once by using that honorific. It shouldn't make a difference even if he used it again.

"Ah? Ah, r-right…"

Iruka struggled back to his feet.

"I have no idea who you guys are… but our priority right now is to catch Mizuki. Please lend us your assistance!"

"Ou!"

"Seriously?" Hikari sighed. "Fine… in for a penny, in for a pound."

Hikari assumed Emei sect's flowing stance, while Kiba used Wudang sect's stance that she had taught him over the past couple of years.

She had explicitly warned him not to use Four-Legs Technique, since it would immediately give away the fact that he was an Inuzuka. As a safety precaution, Akamaru was also not coming along. They left the puppy to watch by the sidelines at a safe distance.

'No Human-Beast Taijutsu, huh... let's see how far I can go.'

With a sly grin on his face, Kiba copied what Hikari had done to him during their first sparring. He faced his palm upward, his hand pointing at Mizuki, and then curled his fingers, beckoning the assistant instructor to come.

The veins on Mizuki's forehead throbbed.

His plan was supposed to be perfect. And yet, disturbances appeared one after another.

These guys playing heroes in masks... judging from their short height, they should be children, right? They shouldn't be older than Naruto.

He was a Chuunin, damn it! He should be superior to a bunch of kids!

He decided right then and there that he would kill all of them!

"Heaaah!"

Naruto was the first to act. He threw a straight punch at Mizuki.

"Heh, too slow!"

Mizuki pulled out a kunai, intending to avoid the boy's attack and strike back with a slash toward his neck.

Unfortunately, Hikari had appeared by his side, faster than his eyes could see.

The tip of the ninjato in her hand touched his kunai. Suddenly, Mizuki felt as if he had lost control of his arm. No matter how hard he pulled or pushed, the kunai wouldn't budge.

With a gentle tap, she had locked the kunai in its place.

"Damn y-!"

He couldn't even finish his sentence before Naruto slugged him at the cheek.

"Guh-!"

Mizuki staggered back, his head ringing painfully, leaving his defense wide open.

Seizing the opportunity, Kiba closed the distance in a single leap, his body covered in a thin layer of chakra to emulate the effect of Four-Legs Technique.

His legs stretched apart, his body drooping down slightly as he shot his right arm forward at breakneck speed.

<<Wudang Sect Unarmed-Style: Heaven Shaking Iron Palm>>

When the palm connected with Mizuki's chest, Kiba swore that he had heard the faint sound of something breaking.

"Guaah!"

The force of the boy's palm strike was so strong that it had sent Mizuki crashing into a tree several feet away.

Kiba was left aghast. He quickly threw an accusatory glance at Hikari.

"Th-that, that technique... What happens if I hit someone with it?"

"Nothing much," she shrugged. "At your level, if your target doesn't guard their chest with chakra or qi, you'll just break their ribcage at best."

"The heck did you teach me?! That's really dangerous!"

Facing an exasperated Kiba, Hikari just tsk-ed while waving her finger.

"When you've become an expert, it's normal for a clean hit to bore a hole through someone's body."

"@%#%!!!"

"You bastards...! Ugh..."

Mizuki crawled back up, clutching his chest with a pained look on his face. It seemed that Kiba had indeed broken a few bones with that attack.

"Mizuki, give it up already!" Iruka shouted.

"Never!"

With a defiant yell, he made a Snake hand seal.

<Earth Release>

Before they could react, he had sunk entirely into the earth, disappearing from sight.

"Damn it! Everyone, on your guard!"

Iruka pushed his back on the tree while pulling out a kunai. He strained his senses, trying to predict where Mizuki would pop up next.

That was when the earth around Kiba's feet started to bulge out.

Mizuki sprung right behind Kiba.

"Dog-mask! Below!"

"Darn!"

Thankfully, Iruka's warning came on time. The boy managed to evade the attack at the last second, although he still suffered a cut on his arm.

"Tch!"

Failing to get a fatal hit, Mizuki slipped back into the ground.

Hikari frowned as she watched the situation swaying to Mizuki's advantage. They wouldn't be able to fight properly unless they could fish that guy out.

She turned her attention to Iruka.

"Hey, scar-face over there."

"Eh? Scar... face? M-me?"

"You're a teacher, right? You should know a lot about ninjutsu. How to deal with this technique?"

Iruka rubbed his chin, trying his hardest to recall the characteristic of Mizuki's jutsu.

"Earth Release has low chakra requirement for activation, but it'll cost him a lot if he stayed hidden indefinitely. Not to mention, he still has to breathe from time to time. The most effective method is to wait until he exhausts himself."

"Won't he run away by then?!"

"W-well... we can also break the ground he's hiding in. He'll then be forced to show up. The problem is..."

He wasn't sure if these children knew any jutsu on that scale. He might be able to come up with something, but the injuries prevented him from using too much chakra.

Mizuki also realized that he only had a limited time before he would run dry, so he suppressed his thirst for revenge and returned his focus to his initial goal.

Without warning, he popped out once again. This time, he appeared right behind Naruto.

"W-wha?!"

"I'll be taking that!"

As swift as the wind, Mizuki snatched the scroll from the kid's back. Before Naruto could retrieve it back, he had already submerged back in.

"N-no! The scroll!"

"On it."

Hikari had been waiting for this chance. She immediately leaped toward the place that Mizuki had appeared just now.

Even with that strange technique, he was still human. Surely he couldn't have gone far in that short amount of time.

'Lord Kokuo, can you use 'that' again?'

'Hmm? Do you have a plan?'

'If I'm not mistaken, your ability is to heat up chakra until it's maddeningly hot. Please handle the process, I'll take care of the control.'

'Interesting,' Kokuo smirked. 'Fine, let's do it your way. Don't bore This One!'

<Boil Release>

The chakra surrounding Hikari's body began to glow brightly, the temperature climbing up like there was no tomorrow.

Naruto immediately backed away from her after sensing the drastic change.

She then slammed her hands into the ground.

Her chakra poured uncontrollably out of her palms like a raging river, spreading through the ground without reservation.

'Venerable One, does this move have a name?'

'Hmm? This One is not a human. This One has no need for names. Give it yourself if you so desire.'

'I see... then, let's call it-'

"<Boil Release: Scorched Earth>"

Kiba and Naruto hurriedly leaped away. The earth under their feet was warming up at an alarming rate.

Hot.

Hot.

So hot to the point that the patches of grass covering the ground gradually withered up.

It was as if a raging flame was burning underneath!

"I see! Good thinking!" Iruka exclaimed.

If the surface was already this hot, then how deadly would it be down under? It was only a matter of time before...

"H-hot...!"

...the mole would get smoked out!

"There he is!"

Mizuki popped out just a few steps away from Naruto's position. The boy's eyes glimmered with self-conviction.

He had made a grave mistake before. Now, he had to make it up!

"Get him, Naruto!" Kiba yelled.

"Leave it to me!"

The rambunctious kid leaped up while making a series of hand seals.

Unable to escape, Mizuki pulled a spare kunai, determined to take Naruto down with him if it's the last thing that he does.

"Loser! Come at me! You can't do anything to me!"

"Shut up! The pain that you've inflicted on teacher Iruka... I'll make you pay a thousand folds!"

"<Multiple Shadow Clone Technique>!"

Alongside his proclamation, the boy's chakra flared up in response to the technique's activation.

Poof! Poof! Poof!

One thousand explosions blasted off one after another, filling the forest with a thick layer of smoke.

And then, the smoke dissipated after a brief second, revealing hordes of Naruto surrounding Mizuki in a tight circle, leaving no gap to escape.

"...Eh?"

Mizuki's lips twitched.

"Dear God..."

Kiba and Iruka had the same expression on their face: eyes wide open, jaws hanging limply as if the hinge was broken.

Within her soul, Hikari turned to Kokuo while pointing at the absurd scene in front of their eyes.

"Venerable One, could you-"

"No."

"But I haven't sai-"

"This One said, no."

That was such an inefficient way of using chakra. No way would it teach its Jinchuuriki how to do that!

"""Here's your punishment!!!"""

The uncountable number of Naruto yelled in perfect sync as they descended upon Mizuki with the fury of a storm.

No matter how skillful he was as an assistant instructor, he was quickly subdued by the sheer number of the shadow clones, finally turned into a pitiful punching bags.

"Goeh! Guh! Agh! Kuah!"

Punches upon kicks upon slaps upon smacks followed with no end in sight.

At one point, he had lost consciousness from all the pummeling. His bloodied mess of a body swayed around lifelessly like a broken puppet.

"Naruto! That's enough!" Iruka shouted.

The numerous clones disappeared in a puff of smoke, leaving only the real Naruto at the center. He subsequently fell on his knees.

The forbidden technique had drained him to the last bit.

Even so, when he looked up at Iruka and showed him a victory sign, he had a really wide grin on his face.

"Can't be helped…" Iruka sighed.

"You two, leave that thing alone," he suddenly changed his attention toward Hikari and Kiba, who was about to take the scroll.

"Ah, but..." Kiba hesitated before telling him the truth. "If we return it to the Third's house, maybe Naruto..."

Iruka's suspicion was finally confirmed. So they did come to help this kid.

"Don't worry. I'll stay here with Naruto and explain everything to the Third. I'll make sure that he won't be harmed. Please believe me."

Hikari stole a glance at Kiba. She only let go of the scroll after he saw him nodding slightly.

The Inuzuka had a good judgment of someone's character. Since he was someone that Kiba trusted, then it should be fine.

"We'll leave it to you."

She tugged on Kiba's sleeves, urging him to get away before the other shinobi arrived.

"Ah... okay. Please take care of him, Teacher!"

"I told you not to make unnecessary comments!"

She smacked him again as they leaped back into the night.

Iruka scratched his cheek. That kid had called him teacher... Does that mean he was in his class? But, that skill level didn't look like someone that he knew...

And those porcelain masks, were they imitating the Anbu?

"Ah, whatever. The most important thing is that Naruto is safe."

Since they wanted to hide their identity, then he should play along and treated them as if they didn't exist.

He returned his gaze to the yellow-haired boy, who was scratching his head while grinning foolishly.

"Naruto, come over here."

Iruka crouched down with a smile on his face.

"There's something that I want to give to you..."

---

Shrouded behind the curtain of the leaves was a shinobi dressed in Konoha's Anbu uniform, their face concealed by a bear-faced porcelain mask.

As ordered by the Third Hokage, the Anbu was keeping watch over the situation, staying as a bystander throughout the entire fight.

While he found the boy quite fascinating, his attention was aimed toward the two mysterious figures that had entered the scene.

However, he wouldn't include them in the report to the Third. Not yet.

Not until their identities were certain.

The figure flickered away from sight, dead-set on finding them at all costs.