Don't Mess With a Namikaze

Chapter 23

Kagome stared in awe as the hidden cloud came into view. It was even more magnificent than she had read about. Buildings soared above them built into the high rock outcroppings. Even the air was a bit crisper than in the hidden leaf. It was a bit colder this high up than she was anticipating, but it wasn't anything she couldn't handle.

She felt a hand settle on her head and she looked up, "You ready Kiddo?" Jiraiya asked.

She nodded in determination, "I didn't work so hard and go through so much just to fail. I'll do my best, I promise."

"Yeah, you got this. My precious little student is going to dominate the competition." He exclaimed loudly.

Kagome blushed heavily as the other genin with them glared daggers at her. It wasn't her fault her sensei was a loud idiot. She let out a sigh and decided to simply ignore them. Not that she wasn't used to that. As they approached the gates of Kumogakure her mind wandered a bit.

Things had been pretty calm the past few weeks since they sealed Midoriko away. They were pretty sure that it worked as they couldn't sense her anymore, but she also hadn't heard anything from Magatsuhi since then so they weren't 100 percent sure. She was really hoping that he hadn't gotten affected by the seal as well and that his silence was just him regaining energy. She could still feel a strange phantom sensation from the sealing mark, even though she knew that she shouldn't actually feel it. The best way to describe it was the weird feeling of having a fake tattoo put on. Jiraiya had told her the feeling would pass after a while. She caught herself rubbing it unconsciously at times and Minato and Jiraiya were doing their best to break her new habit. They didn't' want any unwanted attention brought to it. For now, the cover story was that she had a small injury from training.

Kushina had taken the news of her true past rather well all things considered. She had taken a day to process everything and had come back like nothing had happened. I know this version of you, not the old you. If you don't want it to be a big deal, I won't make it one. The only thing she hadn't told Kushina was her semi-nightly talks with Kurama. Though, nobody actually knew about that other than herself and Magatsuhi.

The day they had left for the chunin exams her friends had met her at the gate and wished her luck. Minato had gotten teary-eyed and he wished he could come with her. He was needed for other missions. There were six other genins besides herself going along, plus their sensei's. With the looming war, they were taking extra precautions and two other jonin were coming along. It surprised Kagome a bit when she realized she knew both of them. Tsume Inuzuka and her wolf companion Kuromaru were the first to arrive. She had only met them the once, but they seemed nice. Kuromaru instantly bounded forward to greet her when he caught scent of her. Kagome giggled and hugged the giant wolf, his wagging tail nearly knocking Obito over.

The second escort being sent along was none other than Fugaku Uchiha himself. Kagome had eyed his back suspiciously as he apologized for his tardiness. I had clan business to settle for my absence. She hadn't thought he took active missions anymore. Not since he had taken over the Uchiha's. What was he doing escorting a bunch of nobody genin?

They had left not long after Fugaku's arrival. The Uchiha kept trying to pull her into conversations, which she kept as neutral as she possibly could. Jiraiya noticed quickly and had started keeping her close to him. Usually keeping himself between the two. When that didn't work Kagome politely excused herself to wander closer to Kuromaru and Tsume. She got to know the heiress to the Inuzuka clan a lot better during the trip, and she got plenty of wolf cuddles. She took advantage of Kuromaru's willing closeness as a buffer to Fugaku who seemed to avoid the wolf.

She came back to the present as they came to the main gates. As the most senior among them he was in charge of the official business. He signed them in and took their arrival package. They listened to the instructions, basically saying not to cause trouble, before they were let in. Jiraiya passed out maps and hotel keys to everyone. Each squad was sharing a room, with the exception of Fugaku who had his own room. Tsume was bunking with Jiraiya and Kagome.