, Despair and Deliberation

Naruto nursed a cut on his cheek. He'd forgotten about Anko's kunai throw outside the forest, and paid dearly. He hadn't even started mocking the forest this time, but Anko had still singled him out, thrown a kunai, then flickered behind him to lick the blood off his cheek. The disguised Orochimaru had also stepped in, but Kurama had warned Naruto that exposing him now would almost certainly cut the month short. At least Sakura was far more sympathetic this time, and gave him a band-aid from a first aid kit she'd decided to bring.

Sasuke grunted. "At least you'll be somewhat useful, finally."

Naruto was far more enthusiastic. "You're the best, 'kura!"

"Thank you, Sasuke!" Despite the not-a-date that Naruto and Sakura had gone on the previous night, Sakura began pining after Sasuke as soon as the group met up outside the forest of **** that morning. Naruto felt a little depressed, but Kurama reassured him.

"You've made progress, kit. The next step is showing that your new attitude is working. Show that you're capable in the forest." Naruto nodded as he stepped into the dark leaves.

He remembered not to pee in front of Sakura this time, instead going into the bushes. The dappled sun streamed through the foliage, warbling birdsong wafted through the trees, and Naruto's impressive girth was pissing all over the tree roots. As he dropped trou, he remembered that this was the moment he'd been ambushed the first time he went through the forest. Frowning, he listened around him, waiting for anything out of the ordinary to happen. A rustle emanated from the bushes behind him, and Naruto spun around, forming a hand seal. The unfortunate genin was surrounded by a group of pants-less Narutos, and found himself hog-tied before he could blink. If the author had different proclivities, this would lead to a very different scene, however instead simply Naruto finished his business and checked through the ninja's pockets. He pocketed the earth scroll he found, then towed out the captured ninja with a shit eating grin on his face. "Yo! Check what I found!"

Sasuke narrowed his eyes, and began slowly looking Naruto over. Sakura ran over. "How did you do this? We didn't even hear you, Naruto!"

"Well, he was sneaking up on me while I was pis-" Kurama growled. "Powdering my nose! While I was powdering my nose, y'know?" Sakura gave him an odd look. "Anyway, I realised he was skulking around and summoned some clones to help." Sasuke still hadn't moved, and glanced around the canopy. His gaze returned to Naruto.

"Naruto? What was the name of that ice ninja in the land of waves?"

"What? Why are you talking about Haku?" Naruto hadn't thought about the boy since the loops had started. Just the memory was enough to deflate his attitude a little.

Sasuke let out a breath. "Thought you were an impostor. It's not like you to be aware of your surroundings."

"Hey!"

Sakura spoke up. "He's been doing a lot of extra work, Sasuke. He can water walk already!"

Sasuke regarded Naruto with a cool look. "Finally sick of being dead last have you, dunce?"

"Better believe it! Soon I'll be so good even those eyes of yours will be useless. All I need is a normal set of eyes to know everything that's happening around me!" It was at this moment that one of Orochimaru's titanic snakes crashed through the canopy, crushing the prisoner that Naruto had just taken. Sakura screamed in terror. Naruto froze in shock. Sasuke immediately ran at the beast, ensuring he got between it and Naruto. He threw a storm of kunai at the maw of the serpent, and prepared to unleash a billowing breath of fire. Naruto relaxed a little, and began looking around for the man he knew had summoned them.

"Look up!" Naruto's head jerked skyward at Kurama's warning. Another snake was winding its way down one of the tree trunks. Naruto grinned. Now was the time to show Sakura what he could do! A barrage of kunai wielding clones appeared and began slashing at the snake from every angle, carving a hundred scarlet lines into its scales and ending its **** before it began. The snake fell down next to the one Sasuke had just killed. Naruto stuck his tongue out at him.

"I killed mine faster!"

"Now isn't the time, dunce! I don't think those snakes were native. Sakura?"

Sakura looked up, eyes like a deer in headlights. "What? Oh. N-no, snakes that size don't exist unless they've been... summoned." She finished with a horrified look on her face. "We're facing a summoner! Those jutsu aren't normally used by anyone weaker than jounin!"

A bored voice interjected. "How astute of you, girl. Almost astute enough to make up for your pitiful response to those snake's ****." Climbing out of the corpse of the snake Naruto had just dispatched was a ninja with long black hair and a sinister smile. "And how nice to see you, Sasuke!"

"What?"

"Oh, you'll see. Now, I believe you'll be wanting this? After all, you've got a heaven scroll, don't you?" Orochimaru waved an earth scroll around.

Naruto looked over at Sasuke, and realised he was preparing to fight the man. "Sasuke? Fair warning, that's Orochimaru, one of the Sannin. He can take all of us blindfolded with one hand behind his back." Orochimaru looked over at Naruto, then broke out into laughter.

"It is nice to be surprised every now and again! How did you work that one out?"

"Like I'd have any reason to tell you!"

Orochimaru cocked his head to the side, considering Naruto for a moment. "Kabuto, I think. I'll kill him once I finish with you three." He started flashing through some hand seals.

"Grab Sakura and run! That's an area attack, and he's not aiming for Sasuke." Trusting Kurama's words, Naruto body flickered to Sakura, grabbed her bridal style and started sprinting.

"What are you doing idiot? Sasuke's still back there!" Sakura was pounding on Naruto's chest.

"He's not aiming for Sasuke!"

"You aren't going to make it."

"Then help, Kurama!"

"If you insist..."

"How can you be sure? And who's Kur-" Sakura's question was cut short as red chakra flared to life around Naruto, and his speed multiplied. Not a moment too soon, as a massive wall of heat hit the two of them, and Sakura gasped.

"You're safe. Have a look at what you dodged." Naruto set Sakura down, and the two of them ran up a tree to check their surroundings. A blackened cone had been cut from the forest where they had been standing. Right on the tip stood two figures, one shorter than the other, both with jet black hair.

"Told you he wasn't aiming for Sasuke."

"But how did you know? I couldn't even work out what technique he was trying to use."

"Careful what you say here. Remember, she doesn't have the best opinion of me."

"I'll, uh, tell you after we finish this bit of the exam."

"Smooth."

"What! Why can't you tell me now?"

"Because Sasuke is fighting one of the Sannin." The blood drained from Sakura's face, and she ran off across the canopy.

"Aren't I meant to be the one who runs into things without thinking?"

"A crush will do odd things to a person's mind. You asked the same woman on a date for years without ever catching the hint that she might not be interested." Choosing not to try to rebut that, Naruto ran after Sakura's disappearing form, both of them tearing towards the incinerated area that they'd just fled from. By the time they reached it, Sasuke was already on the ground, cursed seal on his neck. Orochimaru was nowhere to be found. Sakura immediately screamed and ran over to Sasuke's body, scrabbling at her first aid kit for anything to help him. Naruto glanced around the area, then grabbed her by the shoulder.

"'Kura, we need to move him somewhere else. That explosion is gonna bring a lotta people here."

Sakura sniffled. "I don't know what's happened to him, though. What if moving him makes it worse?"

Naruto squatted next to her. "Sakura, this is what happened to him. Orochimaru placed a curse seal on him that will make him way stronger, but only has a one in ten survival rate. Sasuke is that one. He'll survive, as long as we get him away from other people."

"How do you know all this?"

"I'll tell you at the same time I tell you about Kurama, 'kay? Look, I lucked my way into an earth scroll back there, we just need to make it to the middle of the forest. You grab the heaven scroll, I'll carry Sasuke." Naruto leant down to pick up the boy in question, and started setting off into the forest. Sakura trailed after him, a worried look on her face.