Kapitel 57: Chapter 057
Two years later…
It was a lovely, warm summer day out in the woods, conditions that all of the animals and insects living in the forest could agree with as they went about their early morning routines. This sort of went double for one Shino Aburame as he too was out mingling with the common folk. Being a weekend day, the boy had decided to live it up by pursuing his favorite pastime; scouring Konoha's surrounding forests for the most diverse and exotic bug life he could find.
Whether to add them to his arsenal, his collection or to his research it was uncertain, but whatever the case was the young man was so intent in going about his business he was almost completely submerged in the serenity of his environment. Without any need for a log book for documentation, the boy in the high-collar jacket and sunglasses moved from trunk to trunk across the wide expanse of land checking every possible place his friends or targets could be hiding. As expected of someone of his discipline and character, he was incredibly thorough.
Brushing past a couple of branches, the young academy student spotted a golden cicada perched atop of a fallen log resting against a large oak. The song of the insect filled the air with a deafening hum, adding to the sounds of the forest and luring Shino to its position. Glasses flashing, the teen reached down to pick it, only for the insect to suddenly fly off when a cluster of twigs and leaves fell around it.
Blinking, Shino looked up.
In the brush of the tree above, silhouetted against the sunny sky peaking through the canopy, the Aburame spotted a series of small figures leaping and swinging through the upper branches. The teen raised an eyebrow at the commotion of creatures dashing across the heights, which he quickly identified as a family of Gibbons.
It was a common sight; nothing out of the ordinary and nothing to get too excited about. But when an even larger figure darting in amongst the group rushed past Shino's point of view the boy recoiled a little and followed the group of monkeys more intently.
The larger animal was so damn quick he barely had any time to identify it.
"That's no monkey," Shino murmured to himself. "How do I know? Because monkeys don't wear orange…"
It was a fact he and many others knew all too well.
The massive beast leaping through the vines and treetops like he was flying, was wearing an orange jacket with a hood pulled over his head and short, blue sleeves with orange arrow marks on either side pointing forwards. He also wore a pair of orange cargo shorts that stopped at his knees, blue sandals, and a pair of goggles slapped over his eyes for protection. Furthermore, to accompany the massive grin that he wore, his short, blonde spiky hair waved in the wind as he tore past the family of Gibbons he was playing with and ascended the canopy at high speed.
Shino continued to follow the strange figure with his eyes till the young man was gone from sight, moments before the Aburame returned to his task and once again went about foraging for insects.
He didn't need a photo lineup to know who that person was and neither did anybody else who knew that person.
Jumping from branch to branch, making tight corners, impossible climbs and long strides through the canopy, the boy in orange eventually reached the tallest tree in that neck of the woods, which was situated at the top of a very large hill. With fleetness only a wild animal could possess, he clambered up the tree till he arrived at the very tip, allowing him a clear view of his surroundings. The chattering gibbons that had been pursuing him arrived seconds later, crowding around the branches beneath the winner and looking up at him as if he were the big boss himself.
"Ha! Looks like I win again!" Naruto exclaimed, pulling the goggles from his eyes and pushing them up to his forehead. He grinned down at the family of monkeys beneath him. "Sorry fellas. Better luck next time."
The family fussed for a bit, yet maintained their positions and gazed up at him attentively. With his dominance established, the jinchuriki then turned his gaze back toward his village further out, where his eyes fell upon the Hokage Monument situated in the distance and the mountain like cloud towering over the horizon beyond it.
His admiring gaze locked onto the tranquil scenery of his home at peace, capturing his attention long enough to allow two swallows, one with a familiar red kunai mark on their back, to fly circles around him before landing on his right shoulder. Naruto folded his arms for comfort and sat himself on top of the crown as a gentle breeze caressed him, a healthy sigh escaping his lips.
"It's almost here," he spoke in a low yet excited tone of voice. His eyes shimmered with anticipation. "The day that I finally become a Genin is nearly here." Curling his fist, he filled it with all the confidence and heart he could muster before jabbing it towards the four faces of the mountain far in front of his reach. "Look out world; Uzumaki Naruto is coming to get you!"
OOO
The academy…
Mid-day…
The sound of the school bell signaling the start of lunch rang out throughout the entire building, cutting Iruka's lesson short and breaking everyone out of their emotionless trances. Before the scuffle for the door could commence however, the chief homeroom instructor, determined to finish on a point where he could easily retrace his steps afterwards, clicked his fingers so that he could get everyone's attention and, by extension, kept them from leaving prematurely.
"So remember to study hard tonight for the written exam and that you're ready to take it by tomorrow morning. I expect each and every one of you to at least get a credit for it, so do your best," Iruka stated before dismissing them all with a wave. As kids began filing out one after the other, the man then turned to the middle row where he could see his most troublesome student fiddling with the brace on his wrist, as if waiting for everyone else to excuse themselves before he did. "Naruto! Could you stay back for a bit? I need to talk to you."
Interrupted from his task, the jinchuriki looked up with a start and quickly processed the question. "Oh. Sure thing, sensei."
The rest of the class left easily, save for Shikamaru who needed to be woken up by Choji to get his butt in gear and out of there. Once everyone was out, Naruto and Iruka approached each other on the classroom's ground floor, where the Chunin confronted the blonde haired student with a serious gaze in play and his hands on his hips. The jinchuriki meanwhile maintained his normally collected expression and gazed up at the man curiously, yet remained indifferent towards the overall atmosphere surrounding him.
The blonde scratched his ear when his instructor finally spoke. "So… it's been two years. I believe we have some unfinished business we need to take care of before we move into your finals. You remember the agreement we made back in the woods regarding your Bunshin no Jutsu assessment, don't you?"
With the reason for his prolonged stay now out on the floor, Naruto grinned and nodded his head affirmatively. "The one we made about me learning a different technique to make up for the Bunshin no Jutsu if I'm unable to get it working in time? Yeah. Of course I remember that. I've been on it almost every single day for the past two years, sensei." The blonde stepped back and pressed his fists into his waist, sticking his chest out and looking incredibly pleased. "Believe it."..
Wöchentlicher Energiestatus
-- Power-
Rangliste 
-- Power-
Stein