The Fox's Disciple

Chapter 2: The Exam

The green leaves of the oak trees passed by in a blur as Naruto sprinted through the forest. Iruka didn’t understand, and he never would. He wasn’t there seven years ago when the villagers were abusing him, so what right did he have to worry now? He shook his head fiercely, trying to rid himself of all the confusion and pain.

“Naruto?” a voice asked, surprise coloring his voice. Naruto skidded to stop in front of his white haired teacher.

“Mizuki-sensei?” The dark eyed teacher smiled at Naruto, beckoning the boy forward.

“What are you doing out here Naruto?” he asked politely. Naruto’s eyes darkened slightly and he turned away.

“I don’t want to talk about it.” Mizuki held his hands up in surrender. The academy instructor searched for a change of topic and found the perfect one.

“Are you ready for tomorrow’s exam?” he questioned. Naruto’s mood seemed to only darken more.

“Yeah,” he lied. Mizuki nodded in approval, detecting the lie, but deciding to leave the boy alone.

“Well, I’ll see you tomorrow, Naruto,” Mizuki said, departing. Naruto watched the tall Chunin as he ran through the forest and back to the village. Sighing heavily, he plopped onto the ground. The blonde fell backwards, his head hitting the dirt ground softly. Naruto glared up at the sky like the azure ocean had somehow wronged him. It once again occurred to him how beautiful it was today and how the beauty had to be spoiled by his sour mood. Contrary to popular belief, Naruto Uzumaki was not the dead last everyone believed him to be. He was actually fairly smart for his age. Why the Genin test was so hard for him, he would never understand. The written portion was always his worst. The questions were ridiculously hard and Naruto was never good at getting his thoughts and words down clearly on paper. The weapons portion was his best; no thought process needed, just throw the shuriken/kunai and hit the target. Plain and simple, just how he liked it. Then there was the clone test. The instructors would ask the student to make as many perfect clones of themselves as possible. Naruto’s chakra control had always been poor, so he was unable to make able-bodied clones.

Naruto frowned as he thought about the exams. His mind eventually landed on the topic of his scar-nosed sensei. Naruto had been living on his own all his life, and didn't need others to help him. For as long as he could remember, he had been beaten and abused by the villagers of the village, and not once had he felt anyone cared. It was impossible for him to think that someone actually cared like Iruka said he did. Naruto sighed heavily, getting to his feet and brushing himself off. Might as well get a good sleep before the test, right?

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    Naruto pulled the keys to his run down apartment from the pocket of his orange pants and proceeded to unlock the door. His apartment was located in the slums of Konoha and barely anyone lived there. His landlord charged ridiculous amounts of money for the shack, raising the rates if he wasn't paid on time. Naruto was used to the cold and loneliness that associated with the apartment that he shared with only the mice that found their way inside. Naruto had no idea who his parents were, whether they were alive, if they loved him. When he had asked the old man Hokage, the village leader got a faraway look in his eyes and told him, “When you’re older.” Naruto removed his beaten up ninja sandals and padded softly into his small kitchen, putting water on the stove to boil. After his dinner of instant ramen, he changed into pajamas and practically fell onto his old, ripped mattress.

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    Naruto woke up to the ringing of his alarm clock and promptly threw said alarm clock at his wall, making another impact mark on his wall. He took a cold shower, once again cursing his landlord, and changed into his trademark orange and blue jacket, then his orange pants. He fixed the green goggles that he had gotten from an anonymous person for his birthday upon his forehead and trudged out the door. The sky was a gloomy gray color that mirrored Naruto’s mood. At the academy, Naruto took his seat beside the raven haired Sasuke and waited for Iruka. The room’s traditional sliding door pushed open and three people walked through. Iruka, Mizuki, and an instructor that Naruto didn’t recognize, stood at the head of the classroom and addressed the group of academy students.

“As you all know, today is the Genin exams, a right of passage for all of you. If you pass these tests, then you will officially become shinobi (ninjas) of Konohagakure. Remember to try your best and the best of luck to you all,” Iruka said, looking at Naruto through most of the speech. Naruto averted his eyes, trying to look anywhere that wasn’t Iruka. “First, we will do the written exam, so get out a pencil and get ready,” Iruka instructed. Naruto did as he was told, nervously waiting for his paper. Once the white slip was in front of him, Naruto knew he was screwed. The first question was: ‘If an enemy shinobi (ninja) is hidden in a tree thirty feet away and there is a wind speed of seven miles per hour, how fast, hard, and at what angle would you have to throw a 1 pound shuriken to kill your target?’ Naruto couldn't even began to understand the question. He peeked at his classmates out of the corner of his eye and saw them all writing feverishly, seeming to find the questions easy. He peered at the second question and found that they were all practically the same. He sighed and began to write down random answers.

“Time's up! Put your pencils down!” Iruka called. Mizuki picked up the papers, giving Naruto an encouraging smile, before returning to the front of the class. The third instructor began to grade the papers while Iruka explained the next part of the exams. “The next portion of the Genin exams is the weapons portion. You will be judged on speed and accuracy. You will need ten points to pass this portion of the test.” Mizuki and Iruka proceeded to lead the excited students and one glum Uzumaki to the training field outside the Academy. The class was lined up and tested, Naruto once again being one of the last to go.

“Naruto Uzumaki,” Mizuki called out. Naruto took a deep breath, stepping up to the drawn line ten feet away from the logs that were his target. He took five shuriken from Iruka and lined himself up. He threw the first shuriken, his arm an orange blur. The metal weapon embedded itself into the wooden post. Naruto threw the rest of the shuriken at the other posts, hitting them all dead on.

“Very good, Naruto. Ten points,” Iruka told him. Naruto smiled victoriously, walking back to his classmates. “Alright, the next test will be the bunshin (clone) test,” Naruto’s 100-watt smile slipped, “you will be graded on the quality of your bunshins (clones). Follow us,” Iruka said. The class was led back inside and told to wait until their name was called.

“Sasuke Uchiha!” Mizuki called, returning to the room with the Uchiha close behind. Time seemed to move slowly for one blonde haired Uzumaki as student after student was called to the room.

“Naruto Uzumaki!” Mizuki’s voice rang through the room. Everyone fell silent as they watched Naruto slump into the room. The door closed behind him, and he felt like a trapped animal.

“Relax, Naruto. Make your bunshins (clones) when you're ready,” Iruka tried to soothe. Naruto just nodded, his throat unusually tight. He held his fingers up in a cross sigh called out,

“Bunshin no Jutsu (Clone Technique)!” A puff of smoke surrounded the orange clad boy, and quickly dispersed. It left behind one Naruto Uzumaki and a pale, sickly looking thing that could hardly be called a clone. Naruto felt his heart drop to the floor. He looked up at Iruka, his cerulean eyes pleading. Iruka gave him an apologetic look.

“I’m sorry, Naruto, but that clone could never fool the enemy. I’m afraid that you don't pass this portion of the test. I’m sorry,” Iruka murmured. Naruto’s eyes dropped. He left the room without dismissal and took his seat at the front of the class. Iruka returned a few minutes later, clipboard in hand. “I will now call out the passing students. If your name is called, please come up and get your Leaf Hitai-ate (Leaf Forehead-protectors),” Iruka said as Mizuki placed a box of forehead protectors on the desk.

“Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno, Ino Yamanaka, Shikamaru Nara, Choji Akimichi,  Hinata Hyuuga, Kiba Inuzuka, Shino Aburame…” the names continued, forehead protectors disappearing one after the other. Iruka finished the list, leaving only one without a Leaf Hitai-ate: Naruto Uzumaki.