Chapter 4

As the morning sun peeked above the mountains, its warm rays illuminated the dilapidated shack on the outskirts of Konoha. The shack was old and weather-beaten, with creaky walls and a crooked roof. The light morning breeze made the shack shudder and sway, adding to the eerie atmosphere.

Inside the shack, the only bed was occupied by twin brothers, Naruto Uzumaki and Menma Uzumaki. Naruto's face was covered in a thin layer of sweat, his eyebrows furrowed as he tossed and turned in his sleep. He seemed to be having a nightmare, judging by the look of worry on his face. On the other hand, Menma was sleeping soundly, huddled under his bed sheets, completely oblivious to his brother's distress.

The shack was sparse, with barely any furniture or decorations. The walls were cracked and peeling, and the only source of light was a small window that overlooked the desolate landscape outside. The shack was a stark contrast to the bustling city of Konoha, which was visible in the distance.

Startled, Naruto's labored breathing and wide cerulean eyes swept the room as he woke up. As he recognized that he was only having another nightmare, his breathing gradually calmed down. Sitting up on the bed, he hugged himself, silently reassuring himself that it wasn't real.

Kurama's voice sounded in Naruto's head, asking if he was okay after sensing his distress. Glancing down at his trembling fingers, Naruto covered half of his face with them, taking a deep breath before exhaling.

'I'm fine, kurama.' he replied as his expression changed to one of no emotion.

Naruto slowly got up off the bed, careful not to wake Menma as he made his way to the window before climbing out.

As Naruto stepped outside into the cool morning air, his cold blue eyes gazed into the warm sun basking in it's light as the soft morning breeze caressed his face, and the faint sounds of life in the distance were comforting.

"Soon, It'll all be fine..." The blonde muttered to himself, his golden locks fluttering in the wind, his face betraying no emotion as he stalked off into the distance.

-.-

Menma slowly opened his eyes, wincing at the sun light shining through the window, he looked beside him only to see that Naruto wasn't there.

'....He must've had another nightmare.' Menma thought while staring at the empty spot his brother had been in.

Menma always knew that Naruto had frequent nightmares, but when he confronted him about it Naruto always brushed it off not wanting him to worry. A frown formed on Menma's face as he thought about the suffering his brother suffering in silence. His fist balled up as his anger rose. He eventually calmed himself as anger would not solve their problems.

Menma out of bed and stepped outside the shack, his gaze hovering just above the horizon. The sun was now higher in the sky.

'Today's the day I'll know what team that old bastard will assign me to.' Menma thought.

Menma clenched his fists, his eyes narrowing with determination. He had been waiting for this day for a long time, hoping to use his position as a ninja to exact revenge on the people of Konoha who had wronged him and his brother.

Menma and Naruto knew the dangers of being ninja and anbu respectively, but they found it worth the risk as they were determined to succeed in their revenge plan.

As Menma made his way towards the center of Konoha, he couldn't help but feel a sense of unease in his gut. He knew that the people of Konoha despised him and his brother, and the thought of working alongside them made him feel sick. However, he pushed these thoughts aside and focused on his goal.

-.-

Menma sat at the back of the classroom as Iruka announced the teams, "Ino Yamanaka, Choji Akimichi and Shikamaru Nara. You're assigned to Team 10."

"Next up is, Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno," Sakura started to cheer, glad to be on the same team as Sasuke, though said Uchiha couldn't say he felt the same, "And lastly Menma Uzumaki. You're assigned to Team 7." Iruka finished.

Sakura stared at Menma, slackjawed, she couldn't believe that she was on the same team as the prideful and arrogant Menma. He paid her no heed as he was day dreaming about the past, consumed with anger at the mistreatment he and Naruto had faced. Menma had always been distant from others, finding it hard to trust anyone outside of his twin brother Naruto. He had learned to rely only on himself and his intelligence to navigate through life.

As Iruka continued to assign teams, Menma's thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of the one person he didn't want to see at that moment - Sasuke Uchiha. The Uchiha heir walked up to him, his usual aloof expression on his face.

"Uzumaki, I can't believe we're on the same team," Sasuke said, looking down at Menma with a condescending expression.

Menma merely raised an eyebrow at Sasuke's tone, not in the mood to deal with the Uchiha's attitude. "Believe it or not, Uchiha, I couldn't care less about being on the same team as you," Menma retorted coldly.

"I don't know why you're so arrogant, Uzumaki. You're not even that strong," Sasuke replied, his tone dripping with disdain.

Menma and Sasuke glared at each other for a few more seconds before Menma finally turned away, his anger simmering just beneath the surface. He couldn't stand Sasuke's arrogance and he knew that they were going to have to find a way to work together if they were going to succeed as a team, which made it even more irritating.

"You better not hold us back during missions," he warned.

Menma scoffed, "As if I would ever let you do all the work, Uchiha."

"Stand down kit." Kurama said, speaking directly into his mind.

Menma gritted his teeth as he glared at the Uchiha who glared back in response. Menma turned away as he walked back to his seat, Sakura flinching as he walked by her.

'Arrogant prick,' Menma thought as he lowered into his seat.

"Hmph, he reminds me of you," Kurama (A/N: the one sealed inside Menma) mused much to Menma's ire.

'Shut up, I'm nothing like that prick,' Menma huffed.

Kurama chuckled, "Oh, but you are. You both have that same prideful attitude."

Menma scowled, not wanting to admit that Kurama might have a point. He knew that he could be stubborn and arrogant at times, but he didn't want to be compared to Sasuke.

Meanwhile, Naruto waltz into the Hokage tower ignoring the piercing glares that he received as he sauntered up to the receptionist.

She too glared at him as she spoke, "What do you want?" She asked in a snarky tone.

"I'm here to see the Hokage." Naruto replied, completely ignoring her tone as he kept up his fake smile.

"Well, you can't," She spat, "He's busy at the moment." She finished glancing at the Hokage office door.

'When you're lying atleast try to make it believable,' Naruto thought as he walked past her and up to Hiruzen's office door.

"I'm here old man!" Naruto yelled as soon as he opened the door.

Hiruzen's ear twitched at the volume of his voice, "Welcome, Are you ready to take the test?" He asked.

'No, I'm here to say hello.' Naruto thought sarcastically, rolling his eyes internally while still maintaining his facade, "Yes, I'm ready." Naruto replied.

"Alright, here are the papers," Hiruzen said as he slid the papers across the desk, "You have two hours to complete it."

Naruto took up the test papers and grinned inwardly as he thought, 'This isn't even going to take 10 minutes.'

Naruto took a seat in a chair located in the corner of the office and waited for the signal to start.

"You may now begin." Hiruzen said as he flipped over an hour glass that came from who knows where.

Naruto quickly scanned the questions and began writing down his answers. As he worked, he couldn't help but feel a sense of pride. He had come a long way since he first entered the academy, and he was determined to prove to everyone that he was a capable ninja.

After about ten minutes, Naruto had finished the exam and stood up to turn it in. Hiruzen looked surprised at how quickly Naruto had finished, but he took the papers nonetheless.

"Very impressive, Naruto," Hiruzen said with a smile, "I'll have the results for you in a few days."

Naruto grinned widely, "Thanks, old man. I'll be looking forward to it."

As Naruto left the office, he felt a sense of relief wash over him the first phase of their plan was in motion. He had completed the Anbu exam, and he was confident that he had passed with flying colors.

-.-

Iruka left the room and the jonin instructors for each team came in one by one and took their team with them. The only team left in the room was team 7 as they awaited their jonin instructor, Kakashi's arrival.

'I heard he was infamous for being late,' Menma thought, crossing his arms and tapping his finger as he grew increasingly impatient, 'But I didn't know it was this bad.'

"Maybe he died or something." Kurama shrugged.

Sakura fidgeted nervously in her seat, trying to avoid making eye contact with Menma. Still unable to shake off the fear she felt around him.

Suddenly, the door to the classroom slid open and in walked a tall man with spiky silver hair and a mask covering the lower half of his face. Menma recognized him immediately as Kakashi Hatake, the famous copy-ninja.

"Sorry I'm late," Kakashi said nonchalantly as he strolled into the room, "I got lost on the path of life."

Menma narrowed his eyes at the man's lame excuse. Sasuke only glanced at the jonin with a suppressed annoyance as Sakura fidgeted in her seat nervously.

Kakashi, receiving no verbal response, spoke up "Alright everyone, meet me on the roof." He said with a closed eye smile before disappearing in a whirl of leaves.

The three genin made their way up to the roof of the academy, where they found Kakashi leaning against the railing, looking out at the village. Menma couldn't help but feel irritated at the man's lackadaisical attitude.

"Alright, first things first," Kakashi said as he turned around to face the trio, "I want you to introduce yourselves and tell me your likes and dislikes. You with the pink hair, why don't you start?"

Sakura nervously cleared her throat, "Um, my name is Sakura Haruno. I like... um, I like... Sasuke-kun," she said, blushing and looking at the ground.

Sasuke rolled his eyes at her response while Menma fought back a smirk.

"And what do you dislike, Sakura?" Kakashi prompted.

"I dislike... um, I dislike people who are mean to my friends," Sakura said, her tone firming slightly.

"Very good. Sasuke, your turn," Kakashi said, gesturing to the Uchiha.

"My name is Sasuke Uchiha. I like training and getting stronger. I dislike people who get in my way," Sasuke said, his tone cool and detached.

'So predictable,' Menma thought, knowing the Uchiha was referring to him.

"And you, Menma?" Kakashi asked, turning to the blue eyed genin.

"My name is Menma Uzumaki. I like training and getting stronger too. I dislike arrogant people," Menma said, his eyes flickering to Sasuke for a moment before turning back to Kakashi.

Kakashi nodded, seemingly satisfied with their responses. "Alright, let's move on to the real introduction. I'm Kakashi Hatake, your jonin instructor. My likes and dislikes? Well, I don't feel like sharing that with you just yet," he said with a small smirk.

'He acts like he isn't, but I know this guy is strong, afterall the name "Kakashi The copy Ninja" wouldn't be just for show now would it?' Menma thought as he regarded Kakashi.

"Alright, now that that's over," Kakashi said flashing a closed eye smile.

"Tomorrow, meet me at the training grounds. There you will be going through a test to decide whether you graduate or are sent back to the academy." Kakashi said.

The three genin nodded, silently accepting the challenge.

"Dismissed," Kakashi said, turning to leave.

As the three genin went their separate ways, Menma couldn't help but feel a sense of unease. He knew that the test tomorrow would be difficult, and he was unsure if he could trust his teammates.

However, he also knew that he couldn't let his personal feelings get in the way of their mission. Revenge against the village was their ultimate goal, and if they were going to achieve it, they would have to work together.

Menma took a deep breath and pushed his doubts aside, steeling himself for the challenges that lay ahead. He would do whatever it takes to make sure that they succeeded, even if it meant working with people he didn't necessarily like.

Menma wandered around the village looking for Naruto. He eventually found him sitting on a bench, looking pleased with himself.

"Hey, Naruto. How'd the exam go?" Menma asked.

Naruto grinned, "It was a piece of cake. I'm pretty sure I aced it."

Menma smiled at Naruto's confidence, "That's great to hear. I knew you could do it."

Naruto beamed, "Thanks, Menma. So, how did your team assignment go?"

Menma shrugged, "I got placed on a team with Sasuke and Sakura. Under the leadership of Kakashi."

Naruto's eyes widened, "Wow, that's a pretty strong team. Good luck with that."

Menma rolled his eyes, "Yeah, thanks. I just hope that Uchiha doesn't get on my nerves too much."

Naruto chuckled, "Just try to keep your cool. You don't want to start any fights with your teammates."

Menma nodded, "I know. I'll try to work with them, even that Uchiha is annoying."

Naruto grinned, "That's the spirit."

"Let's head back now," Menma said, taking a quick glance at the villagers lurking in the shadows as the sky darkened, "We don't want those troublesome villagers to follow us," he added with a hint of disdain.

"Yeah," Naruto replied, his eyes narrowing slightly.