from Academy to Anbu by theriku260

chapter 14

With Naruto…

Naruto chuckled at Kiba's cries and Akamaru's yelps. Kuranai gave him a look.

"I don't appreciate you laughing at my student, Naruto. They didn't get the full amount of time and is setting your beasts against them really fair?"
"Hey, first they're cat summons, and second we're ninjas. Since when is fair a part of our life style? I haven't had more than two days off since I became a shinobi? Every day I'm supposed to be off for medical or mission leave, Dragon-sama, Guy-sensei, or Sempai has something for me to do, be it training or a favor. Yesterday I got home and was told by Kakashi-sempai I needed to take over today. So please, just can it, Kuranai-sempai, I'm really just too tired to give a damn." And in a huff Naruto deftly stored his seals and stalked off to observe his former classmates be taken out by an undersized panther, a silent tiger, and lots of traps.

"Perhaps my youthful neighbor has dried up his youth from overwork" Gai said in an usually serious voice once Naruto's lithe form disappeared into the canopy, his chakra signature becoming almost non-existent to anyone below a jonin. Asuma sighed while Kuranai winced.

"I didn't know he was that busy. Then again, he's hardly in the village proper anymore. The civilians and lower chunin had begun to wonder if he was even around anymore, and none of them know he graduated."

"Yeah, pops and the higher ups are treating everything about the kid as some kind of top secret."

"Not even my youthful protégé knows he is a ninja! On the days Lee is with us Naruto is in his hip and cool off duty clothes! Oh, curse you Kakashi for taking away his most youthful orange!"

"Um, I heard that was the ANBU actually" Asuma pointed out, too which Guy ignored.

With the test takers…

The genin weren't even twenty feet in and already ten out of the twelve had experienced various traps or were caught under one of the cats. The exceptions were Sai who had narrowly missed an elaborate kunai and wire course and Shino, whose bugs were acting as his defense.

"Arg, who made Naruto pissed off?" Sakura moaned as she was caught in the third paint bomb. Naruto was never this vindictive unless someone hurt him first. Sasuke snorted and used his Sharingan to deflect some shuriken. Neji cried in frustration.

"My eyes can see destiny; why can't they pick up where these childish pranks are hiding?!" Hinata was quietly wondering why hers weren't helping either and Shikamaru dropped into his thinking pose.

"Hehehe" A heavy mist rolled through the forest laden with chakra and a disembodied voice rang out. "You all wonder why the 'dead last' is able to out smart you? News flash, I have always been able to out prank ANBU and the village- heck, I could out run most of them before I was eleven. Neji, I am friends with Hikaru, and his eyes are stronger than yours"

"Nonsense!" Neji claimed. His were the strongest since his father's. "That disgrace focuses on inferior techniques to the Byakugan, his eyes have already been surpassed by even Hanabi"

"Tsk, tsk, no. Yours and Hanabi's eyes have the 'potential' to surpass Hikaru's, but you are just a new genin and Hikaru is a jonin at fifteen. That, and he doesn't rely on his eyes to fight, they are just a tool like every other kunai or exploding tag." Naruto was slinking through the trees in a taunting manner as he ripped into his friend's little cousin's pride. Hikaru rarely discussed his clan but he had a special place in his heart for Neji- well, more of a desire to beat the fate out of him as the boy bought into the clan's whispers that his eyes were already at the pinnacle and that Hikaru was a failure for having an even skill set. Naruto set this part of the test just for him, and Akira joined him in sniggering at the genins' misfortune from her perch nearby. "Now start working together, I'll be watching." The mist pulled away slowly and Sakura cleared her throat.