Grandmaster

Seven gates! Kakashi shot to his feet. Sakura, Ino, and most of the weaker genin had already collapsed to the ground. The overwhelming power Naruto released had driven the air away.

Gate of Death, open! Naruto said, and everyone's eyes widened. Naruto's muscles swelled completely, ripping apart his mesh armor and shirt and leaving his upper body bare. The ground beneath his feet cracked with every step. His eyes had turned entirely blue, and his skin had reddened.

"He opened the final gate," Kakashi said as he dropped to his knees.

"Don't worry," Hinata said calmly as everyone watched her. "Only five people in the world can open all the gates and survive. Naruto is one of them."

Might Guy swallowed and turned his attention back to the arena. To witness all eight gates opening was truly something one rarely lived long enough to see.

"Are you ready, Rock Lee?" Naruto asked. His voice sounded deeper from having opened all the gates. Rock Lee swallowed and slowly nodded, not really wanting to know what would happen next.

Naruto burst forward so quickly that even Kakashi's Sharingan could not follow him.

Rock Lee looked around, then suddenly felt a sharp pain in his abdomen. He looked down and found Naruto's fist buried in his chest. Rock Lee was sent flying. In midair, Naruto appeared beneath him and drove his knee into his back, kicking him higher into the sky.

Naruto vanished again, reappearing above Rock Lee in midair. He punched Rock Lee with tremendous force, and the shockwave swept through the entire arena. Everyone watching had to use chakra just to remain standing.

Just as Rock Lee was about to slam into the ground, Naruto grabbed his arm, delivered a crushing blow to his chest, and hurled him down. When Rock Lee crashed down, the entire building shook and the arena exploded into fragments.

Naruto landed on the ground and dropped to his knees. Although he could withstand the consequences of opening all the gates, it still inflicted severe damage on his body.

Hayate approached Rock Lee to check whether he was still intact. He leaned closer, felt his neck, and detected a faint pulse.

"Ah, the winner is Naruto," Hayate announced haltingly.

He snapped out of his shock and shouted:

Medical team!

No one spoke. They were all thinking about the power they had just witnessed. They wondered how Rock Lee had endured such brutal attacks and still survived.

They watched Naruto slowly walk toward them, noticing his heavy breathing.

Might Guy ran to his fallen student.

"Are you all right, Naruto?" Kakashi asked.

Naruto sat down against the wall.

"Yeah, I just need a little sleep. I'll recover soon," he replied.

"You're not human," Yugito Nii said as she walked over to Naruto.

"Funny thing is, if it weren't for Kurama, I'd probably be dead already," Naruto replied with a smile, shocking many and confusing the others.

"Anyone who opens the final gate after the fifth cannot survive, except for five people. I don't like opening the gates because I have better options, but I promised Rock Lee I would fight using only taijutsu. I probably won't be able to walk properly today," Naruto said.

"Do you know them?" Sasuke asked.

"Yeah. Three of the five survivors are here. Me, Killer B, and Feng."

"What is special about them?" Sasuke asked, and everyone else tensed up.

"It's not my place to say, Sasuke," Naruto replied, getting to his feet.

Sasuke stared at him coldly.

"Gather up," Hayate said, and everyone who had passed stood in front of him.

"Is Rock Lee okay?" Naruto asked.

"Yeah... the doctors said his muscles were torn, several bones were broken, his shoulder was dislocated, and he had a concussion," Hayate replied, and everyone stared at Naruto.

"Don't worry. He'll need three weeks of bed rest before he can walk, but he'll be fine," Hayate said, and Naruto breathed a sigh of relief.

"The finals of this year's Chunin Exams will be held in one month. Here is the tournament bracket. Take a good look," Hayate said.

Hinata Hyuga VS Neji Hyuga

Feng VS Yugito Nii

Temari VS Shikamaru Nara

Naruto Uzumaki VS Sasuke Uchiha

Gaara VS Kankuro

"Looks like I'll have the chance to show you the true power of the Sharingan," Sasuke said with an arrogant smile at Naruto.

Naruto could not stop laughing, and Sasuke grew irritated.

"What's so funny?" Sasuke asked.

"The Sharingan is an amazing tool, but it isn't enough on its own," Naruto explained.

"You'll never know the Sharingan's true power. I'll prove it to you in the finals," Sasuke said with a smile.

"I suppose we will face each other too, dear cousin. I'll prove that you are a failure," Neji said to Hinata with his usual arrogant smile.

"Maybe, but I won't give up," Hinata said with a smile.

"All right, the contestants may leave the room. See you in a month. Naruto, stay behind. I want to talk to you," the Hokage said, and Naruto nodded.

## With the Hokage ##

"Your grandmaster came to the village yesterday," the Hokage said, watching Naruto's reaction.

"My grandmaster? Who is he?"

"My student Jiraiya, and one of your grandmother's former teammates," the Hokage replied, watching Naruto's jaw nearly drop in surprise.

"You mean Jiraiya, one of the Legendary Sannin?" Naruto asked, ready to find the man and train with him.

"That's him," the Hokage said with a smile. "He is probably over by... the hot springs."

Without giving it much thought, Naruto quickly headed for the hot springs to meet his grandmaster. His grandmaster was Jiraiya, one of the Legendary Sannin. He should be able to teach him all kinds of powerful techniques. He had to be an incredibly powerful, serious man. Right?