The rest of the week passed quickly, Naruto and Shikamaru teaching Hinari more words, and now she would point at everything and ask what it was, frowning if she couldn't pronounce it right.

Her favorite thing to say was 'I love you,' followed by 'I missed you' and 'Welcome home!' The first time she said 'I love you', Shikamaru fainted and Naruto gleefully took pictures and hung them on the fridge.

It was the day of the finals. Naruto tied up her hair and firmly tied her hita-ite. She strapped on her weapon pouches, and grabbed the stack of experimental seals tags. She waited for Shikamaru, who was still changing, before heading into Hinari's room, scooping her up and taking her to Anko. The purple-haired kunoichi would be at the matches later and would let Hinari watch. On one condition. First sign of danger, both Anko and Hinari had to go to the bunkers in the Hokage Mountain.

Naruto got ready for her fight. She would be up against Shikamaru, who was just as strong as she was. Not to mention the Uzumaki suspected that there would be an attack on the village, and the two had agreed to hold back, showing one or two flashy jutsu and some taijutsu before Shikamaru would tap out.

The genin stood apart from the audience, in a waiting room. There were screens that showed the arena, where the same sickly man stood. Gekko Hayate had confirmed the plan of attack via conversation with Kabuto, and all of the genin and as many chunin and jounin as possible had been directed on what to do in the instance that the attack happened.

"First match, Aburame Shino of Konoha vs Haruno Sakura of Konoha."

Naruto finished braiding Sakura's hair. "You got this."

The pink haired kunoichi nodded gratefully, determination burning in her jade eyes. "Thanks Naruto-chan."

The two genin stood ten meters apart, waiting for the signal. When Hayate threw down his hand, Sakura shot forward, not wanting to give Shino's bugs any time to react. She had gotten faster, and had even started training with Kiba's sister, having met her in the hospital. Her punch was blocked, leaving an opening for Sakura to snap her hips and wrap her legs around his neck, flipping him and slamming him into the ground.

She leapt away when the boy dispersed into bugs. Her green eyes flitted around, sharp, noting every movement. Neither of them were giving it their all, saving energy for the possible attack, but they needed a show, to try and make chunin. 

'He's not in front of me, or behind me, above me or on either side. He must be-'

"Below!" She whispered, and gathered her chakra, flying through hand seals. Naruto had managed to get her hands on Lady Tsunade's notes on how she got her monstrous strength, and Sakura had immediately started to try and recreate it. However, there was no guarantee it'd work, as every six out of ten times she tried it, she broke or fractured something.

She slammed her hands down. "Doton: Tsuchi Nami!" The ground rose and fell like a wave, likely making Shino nauseous. Sure enough, a slightly green Shino rose from the earth. Sakura threw some kunai and shuriken, discreetly twitching her fingers to direct the weapons. Sasuke had shown her the basics of shurikenjutsu, while Kakashi taught her one or two Doton jutsu.

Shino barely dodged, and earned several tears in his big coat. His bugs shot out in a wave, wrapping around a struggling Sakura 'draining' her chakra. Sakura made a show of growing faint before collapsing to the ground weakly. "I yield." She murmured, limbs shaking as she tried to move them.

Shino had to congratulate her on her acting. She would be great at infiltration. He called back his insects and walked off the arena, allowing the medics, which were just transformed shadow clones of one Uzumaki Naruto, to help Sakura back to the balcony.

"That was amazing Saki-chan!" Naruto exclaimed, handing her a water bottle.

"Thanks Naruto-chan. However, in a real battle, I would have lost. I've gotten stronger, but I've still got a long way to go."

Naruto just smiled at her. "Just thank Kiba's sister for the help in taijutsu." Sakura nodded and made her way over to the Inuzuka.

"Match two!" Hayate coughed. "Higurashi Tenten of Konoha vs Sabaku no Temari of Suna."

Temari flew down on her fan and landed gracefully, while Tenten just vaulted over the stairs and landed like a cat.

"Your weapons won't even touch me," Temari smirked. Her hand was on her hip while the other rested on her fan.

"We'll see about that."

"Begin."

Tenten leapt forward as Temari leapt backwards, opening her fan. "Fuuton! Kamaitachi!"

Tenten braced herself against the vicious wind and pulled out her own two small fans. She had found out she had Water for her element, and had been surprised to find she had a wind sub-element. She had decided to experiment with fans and had found the perfect little fans laced with chakra enhancers to help with her control.

She used the fans to send small but deadly blades of wind to Temari, before pulling out her weapon scrolls. She unsealed a myriad of weapons and used her fans to push the weapons through Temari's Kamaitachi, forcing the blond to use her fan to block.

A loud rip sounded as one of Tenten's special kunai ripped the fan. Temari looked horrified and glared at Tenten murderously. 

"I give." You could feel the knife piercing her pride, but it was obvious the fan meant a lot to her. Tenten bowed and left.

Not much was said other than another round of congratulations. Naruto and Shikamaru were off to the side using Kurama and Yoru to converse in their minds.

"Kit, you know me and Yoru can set up a permanent link between you and your mate, right?"

'No I didn't you fuzzball!'

"Well, Now you do pup. Kurama and I can set up a link that is purely mental. Sealed chakra won't prevent you from each other. And you can block each other when you don't want to invade on each others privacy."

'This could be useful, we wouldn't have to use you two as messengers when we are at a distance.'

"We can do it while the next match goes. Just meditate so Yoru and I can set it up."

'Okay.'

Naruto and Shikamaru sat down next to each other and started meditating. The next match was Shino vs Neji, Neji going against the winner of the first match. Shino immediately gave up, and Neji looked more pissed than usual.

"Fourth match. Uchiha Sasuke of Konoha vs Hyuuga Hinata of Konoha."

Hinata looked graceful, and attracted many eyes as she wore a lavender battle kimono tailored by one of the best shinobi seamstresses around. metal was woven in with the silk, chakra enhanced, flexible but durable.

The normally shy girl looked confident. She held her chin up and met her opponent's eyes squarely.

"Thank you for the spar," She mouthed, bowing, before falling into what seemed to be the basic Jyuuken stance. Palms raised and muscles tense. 

Sasuke smirked. He and Kakashi had stumbled upon her training and Kakashi had let her tag along. They were equal in strength. He would beat her in ninjutsu, she would best him in taijutsu. She'd notice and break a genjutsu, he'd weave a stronger one for her to break.

She was strong, and this was just a spar.

"Begin!"

They clashed, mere blurs to the civilian eye. They didn't stay in contact for long. Once Hinata blocked one chakra point he had kicked off of her shoulder and flipped midair, throwing fireballs at her.

Hinata closed her eyes and her brow furrowed as her stance shifted and her arms became barely visible as she wove a shield of chakra around her. She unsealed several jugs of water, throwing the scroll as the summon happened, forcing the jugs to go everywhere.

She flashed through hand seals before calling out "Suiton! Mizu Senbon!"

A hail of thin needles flew towards the Uchiha, who dodged, Sharingan blazing. Hinata activated her Byakugan and leapt forward. She was just as fast as Sasuke, and quickly caught up. They engaged in a fierce taijutsu battle, Hinata slowing overpowering the Uchiha. She closed his tenketsu and with one final tap, he collapsed, 'unconscious'.

"Winner Hyuuga Hinata."

Again, clones disguised as medics took Sasuke to the waiting area, where Hinata unblocked his tenketsu. "Thank you for the spar Sasuke-san." Hinata sat down next to him and gratefully accepted the water bottle given to her by Shino.

"Next match! Nara Shikamaru of Konoha, vs Uzumaki Naruto of Konoha."

The two rose from their meditative stances, eyes still closed as the walked down to the arena.

"The link is almost done. By the time you reach the bottom of the stairs. It may feel strange."

'Okay.'

Both of their eyes flew open in shock as their foot hit the bottom step and their minds seemed so much larger. A flood of thoughts and feelings flew between the two.

"To lock it down, just imagine a door or gate."

Naruto imagined her door to her home, and closed it. Her mind shrank, and she narrowed her eyes as she walked across the field. Slowly, she opened the door again, imagining one of those screens that kept bugs out. The flood ebbed, becoming a trickle that could be easily ignored.

'Shika?' She pushed the thought out the door.

'Naru. It worked.' An image of Shikamaru smiling entered her mind. They could show each other everything. The stopped ten meters from each other.

"Begin."

"Fuuton Bakuhatsu no Jutsu!" A wall of shadows expanded as the ball of wind blew up. Naruto rushed forward, engaging in taijutsu. Shikamaru was still better than her, and quickly threw her away. She flipped and in midair, vanished in a flash of red gold.

Shikamaru flew through a string of hand seals before slamming his hands down on the ground. "Kageton! Kageryuudan!"

Naruto 'panted' She had flashed all around the dragon, and made a show of exhaustion.

"Using that bloodline of yours sure tires you out, hm Naruto?" Shikamaru drawled.

In reality, Naruto wasn't even close to tired. but Orochimaru didn't know that. "Shut it Shikamaru!" She growled, and made a show of angrily running at him with a kunai before jumping and vanishing, appearing before the dark-haired nin on top of the shadowy dragon which twisted n an attempt to bite her in half. She dodged, and was thrown to the ground.

The dragon suddenly dispersed, and Shikamaru fell from about twenty meters up. He managed to stick the landing, but panted harshly in exhaustion. Again, a ploy.

"What a drag, I give up. Too troublesome to keep fighting that troublesome woman, not to mention I don't have enough chakra to beat her."

The two walked back to the waiting area, Naruto popping a chakra regeneration pill in front of everyone in order to make a show of regaining chakra.

"The first round is complete. There will be a small intermission before the second round of the tournament begins."

'Shika. I expected the attack to come during our fight...'

'I know. I did too. Don't relax though. There are too many civilians here, and your bloodline could save many of them.'

'I know. I will be taking Anko and Hinari to the bunkers first though.'

'Good.' For all that they loved their village, Hinari meant so much more.

The two drank some water and ate a sandwhich. All of the genin were tense. Naruo subtly passed around chakra regeneration pills as well as soldier pills.

"Stay alert. Better safe than sorry."

Naruto pulled out a notepad and began writing, passing it to Shikamaru every now and then. Naruto made a clone to take the notepad to the apartment and place it under the loose floorboard in the corner of the living room.

'Ready?'

'Yeah. Don't see why we needed to write that. We'll be-'

'Naru. It's a precaution. We don't know what could happen.'

Naruto sighed and scanned the crowds for Orochimaru. She could feel him, but where? She looked to the Kage box. All the way across the stands, but she swore she saw a glint of yellow.

"Shikamaru... I think I found him."

"What?! Where?" Shikamaru scanned the audience.

"He's up there with Jiji. He's the Kazekage." Naruto tried to think of a plan.

"Uzumaki."

Naruto turned and saw the Sand trio. She walked up to them, long hair swaying. "Hey Gaara, Temari, Kankuro. What brings you here?"

"Gaara wanted to talk to you." Temari frowned. She was without her fan, and looked upset.

Naruto turned to Gaara who looked unsure. "Yes Gaara?"

"I wanted to thank you for fixing the seal. I can think clearer now. I wanted to tell you that Suna is planning with Oto to invade Konoha in twenty minutes. I feel that I... owe you."

Naruto smiled. "Thank you, but we've known for about a week. We're as prepared as we can be. Most of the civilians are here, or already in the bunker. If you want, you could assist Konoha instead of going against us. We're friends, right?"

Gaara gave her the barest ghost of a smile. "Yeah, friends."

Shikamaru smiled. 'You really broke him out of his psychotic tendencies this past month didn't you?'

Naruto huffed a laugh. "Go back to acting like we're enemies so Snakeface doesn't get too suspicious. And if you had any love at all for your father, I'm sorry, but Orochimaru killed him and is impersonating him in the Kage box at the moment."

None of the three looked even a bit sad. "Thank you, but he wasn't a good father. To help, when Orochimaru attacks, we will get your Hokage to safety if possible."

The two Konoha 'genin' nodded in thanks.

"The intermission is over. The first match is Higurashi Tenten of Konoha vs Hyuuga Hinata of Konoha."

"I withdraw!" Hinata called out. Her voice was soft, but full of confidence. "I used too much of my chakra against Uchiha and would lose dearly."

"Ah-Okay. Final match, Uzumaki Naruto of Konoha vs Hyuuga Neji of Konoha."

Naruto body flickered into the arena. Neji walked. 

"Begin."

"It is fated for you to lose."

"We'll see about that."

Neji flew back as he was struck before he could activate his Byakugan. His head hit the wall and he saw stars. "Destiny and fate are mere restrictions. You can ignore them."

"You-you are wrong. I was fated to be a branch member, I was fated to defeat you."

Naruto scoffed. "Then I shall prove you wrong."

She disappeared, and Neji was thrown into the air, before he was rained down on by clones. He was hit everywhere, nd slammed into the ground head first.

He tried to stand but was effectively restrained, a kunai to his neck. "Yield?" Naruto asked, amusement lacing her voice.

"Tch." Neji struggled, channeling his chakra and using his Byakugan to see if there was any way to escape. None. 

"Winner, Uzumaki Naruto. Hyuuga Neji has been down longer than thirty seconds and as such, loses."

Naruto leaned closer. "I just beat fate." She whispered, before flashing away, panting tiredly. Of course, it was a show. Suddenly there was an explosion, and she whipped to the stands, immediately pinpointing Anko and Hinari. She flashed to them and saw Shikamaru close by and getting closer. She grabbed him and Anko and Hinari and disappeared in a flash.

They reappeared in the bunker. "Mama, Dada! Whas ha-pe-nin?" Hinari asked. 

Naruto grew anxious. She had a bad feeling. "Hinari, Dada and I love you so much okay?"

Hinari nodded. "I love you!" She said. Naruto smiled fondly. She kissed Hinari's forehead. She stepped back and Shikamaru stepped forward. 

"Hey, Hina-chan. Momma and me need to go and protect the village. We'll come back as soon as we can okay?"

Hinari nodded. "I love you!"

Shikamaru ruffled her hair. "I love you too." He looked up at Anko. "Keep her safe." He said.

"Come back safe." She countered. Shikamaru smirked. He grabbed Naruto's hand and they disappeared.

Naruto wanted to fight. She spotted a barrier and could see sand attacking it. She hoped Jiji was okay. She let go of Shikamaru. "I have to get these civilians to safety." She murmured. Most of them were in a panic, and she used chakra to enhance her voice.

"HEY!" Everyone stopped. "CIVILIANS NEED TO GROUP TOGETHER NEAR A SHINOBI. HOLD EACH OTHERS HANDS SO I CAN GET MORE TO SAFETY AT ONCE!"

The enemy immediately targeted her, and Shikamaru grinned. 

'I'll cover you.'

Naruto grabbed him and vanished, appearing next to a group, releasing Shikamaru and disappearing with a group of around thirty civilians. In under a minute all of the civilians were in the bunker and all that was left was the enemy.

Naruto took out as many as possible as she approached the barrier. Using her bloodline with large groups had drained her more than she expected, and her breath was slightly labored. She looked in the barrier and saw Jiji, injured and starting hand seals with a resigned expression. Naruto's eyes widened.

"N-

-o!"

She slapped his hands apart and faced the three kage level nin. "That's-"

"Hashirama and Tobirama."Jiji confirmed, collapsing as the sword that had pierced his stomach slid out.

Naruto grabbed him and flashed out, handing him to a medic and going back. 

"Orochimaru." She snarled. Her reserves were half empty and she was up against two Hokage and a Sannin. She was scared. But the Hokage couldn't be at full power or they'd be themselves, not puppets.

She flashed in front of the first Hokage and channeled chakra into her fist, destroying his head. The body collapsed and a faint shimmer hovered in front of her.

'Thank you."

She turned and was kicked in the stomach, a few ribs snapping. She coughed and flashed away. Tobirama Senju was an intimidating figure. He also was the first to have Hirashin and as thus made him one of her ancestors.

They flashed around one another, playing a deadly game of tag. Finally Naruto twisted as she flashed and shot out a Fuuton Daitoppa. The head exploded and Naruto collapsed. Her vision wavered as her chakra hit bottom. She drew on Kurama's and sent it out in a burst.

The barrier shattered, and Shikamaru rushed in, attacking the Sannin.  He looked tired, obviously having fought waves of Oto and Suna nin. However he fought to stall. He threw out Jutsu after Jutsu, taking every hit and getting up again. It was just past noon, and the shadows were still weak.

Naruto struggled to get up, and coughed as a blade pierce her stomach. She looked up and saw a red haired kunoichi smirking down at her. She saw a boot, and then everything went black.

'Anko... Keep her safe.'

AN// Ok so. If you want spoiler/foreboding future flash thingie, go to Mah Art book and there's some art depicting future scenes. Feel free to predict what's going to happen in the comments~   ja ne!