The Chunin Exams: Proctor Yuriko

chaper 25: The Chunin Exams: Proctor Yuriko

The room was dark as several hazy humanoid images appeared, standing atop of a finger of a pair of hands, before a large stone face that seemed to have its eyes covered. "It's rather soon, calling us for a meeting, isn't it, Leader-sama?" a raspy voice questioned as the hunched-over, bulky image spoke, looking up at the image that stood higher than the rest. "I thought we weren't ready to start the operation yet?"

The image he spoke too remained silent for several moments, the ripples eyes the image bore staring at the assembled group as another spoke up. "Hey, where's Kazuku, it's rare for that guy to be missing," a rather tall individual spoke up in a careless voice, a large wrapped item on his back with a handle sticking over his shoulder.

"Kazuku has been killed," the leader spoke finally, answered both questions. "He attempted to capture Kakashi Hatake and his students in order to lure out Yuriko Uchiha, but he was the one who was overpowered by the one he sought to trap."

"He's dead? For real?" the same figure questioned in disbelief. "Well...damn. Looks like she's gotten even tougher since I fought her."

"It is to be expected," the image next to him, a shorter man with sharingan eyes spoke. "After all, she does bear the Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan… plus, it is her nature to continually train and discover new jutsu."

The leader stared at the sharingan wielder. "Will you be able to deal with her, Itachi?" he questioned pointedly, making the Uchiha rogue pause.

The pause spoke a lot on Itachi's thoughts on the matter. "No," he said finally, with blunt honesty. "Even if I were to fight her with Kisame, I do not believe we could defeat her… she is at the level of Jiraiya-sama, perhaps even higher than him."

The image of the Leader flickered momentarily. "So, she is at the level of the active Sannin, is she?" he questioned, looking somewhat disturbed by the information. Even separated, the active Sannin were considered to be in a league of their own when it came to the S-class shinobi.

"When I faced her in Konoha, she completely overwhelmed me." the Rogue confirmed. "She used jutsu that I still have no clue about, and I hear that she pulled off a feat that only Madara Uchiha himself could do during her attack on Yagura...enshrouding a Bijuu in the armour of her [Susano'o]."

The leader studied the rogue Uchiha for several moments. "Very well, from now on, you are all to avoid engaging with Yuriko Uchiha in combat," he announced to the group. "When the time comes to collect the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki and the Yonbi Jinchuuriki, myself and Konan will attend to them directly due to her closeness to those targets."

"By Leader-sama himself, eh," Kisame questioned with a grunt. "I would complain about it, but… honestly, that woman terrifies me after resetting her spine while I was fighting her, heh, it's too bad we can't get her on our side."

"It would never happen," Itachi replied quickly, shaking his head as he closed his eyes. "She is far too close to our targets to allow them to die for our objective."

"A shame, but in time she will learn the futility of standing against a God," the Leader announced in a cold tone. "Continue with your objectives, dismissed."

Without a word every one of the images buzzed out of existence, only leaving the leaders and the image of a woman standing next to him. "Yuriko Uchiha, huh," a new voice spoke up as a man wearing a spiral shaped mask stepped into view from the shadows. "Who would've thought that the young medic I dismissed as being unimportant would become such a threat," rather than sounding annoyed by the prospect, he seemed to be genuinely amused. "Funny, how life turns out like that."

"Madara," the Leader spoke, naming the masked man. "It is unlike you to make such a mistake."

'Madara' laughed in amusement. "Well, normal medics are never able to properly concentrate enough to heal themselves from death's door," he informed plainly. "But… my descendant has proven to be anything but normal in that regard, really, I should have expected such a thing to be honest."

"Your… descendant?" the Leader questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"Great-Great-Granddaughter, or something along those lines," Madara replied dismissively with a wave of his hand. "Although I didn't realise it at the time myself, I honestly thought they ended that line after my fight with Hashirama, but he always was a soft one when it came to his possible enemies."

"How close did she come to death?" the image queried.

"I stabbed her from behind, right into her liver." 'Madara' answered with a shrug. "Really...even Tsunade would have to use her Yin Seal to heal that degree of wound."

The leader remained silent for several moments. "It matters not how strong she is," he said finally, full of confidence. "As with everyone, she shall fall before the might of a God. She shall know Pein."

Madara looked at him with narrowed eyes as the images vanished from sight before snorting. "Don't be so cocky," he grumbled with a scowl. "Honestly… you are far from the level of a God of Shinobi."

Shaking his head, 'Madara' once again melded with the shadows of the room and vanished from sight, leaving only the statue remaining.

THWACK!

I grunted a bit as my forearm throbbed from being used to hastily block a punch from connecting with my face. My body ducking a swaying to avoid follow up strikes as I carefully waited for my chance to counter.

Something that was easier said than done considering my opponent.

But an opening did appear, for the briefest of moments, prompting me to surge forward with a punch of my own to the opening.

Only for the opening to be a trap that my opponent left on purpose, a trap that I fell into.

Pain blossomed in my stomach and cheek before I managed to start deflecting the blows at my body. I tried to retaliate and throw them off of me only for my opponent to hook his foot behind my own and pushed, tripping me onto my back before his fist came hurdling in to strike me in the face.

"It's over!" a voice called out making me let out a sigh as I slumped in defeat.

I let out a small irritated sigh. "You definitely are the best Taijutsu specialist, Gai-san," I groaned a bit as the spandex clad jonin laughed merrily.

"Ah! Yuriko-san, as always your Youth burns brightly!" he said in a complitatory manner as he reached down and gave me a hand up. "Your skill with taijutsu grows by leaps and bounds every time we spar with one another!"

I chuckled lightly as I regained my feet and started brushing the dirt off of me. "As does yours, Gai-san," I replied, smiling at the man before letting out a theatrical sigh. "It seems like I can never catch up with your talent."

Gai-san blinked in surprise before smiling widely at me in response before laughing.

"Amazing, Gai-sensei!" a young man wearing a green spandex outfit shouted in awe. "You can even defeat Yuriko-san in combat using your taijutsu."

"Perhaps, but this was a spar against Yuriko-san using only taijutsu," Gai-san correctly Lee-kun gently. "Should we have been fighting for real, the outcome would have been vastly different. The reason why Yuriko-san spars with me with only taijutsu is because she wishes to improve her own skill with the Uchiha style against various styles, which I assist her with."

"I see!" Lee-kun replied as he quickly jotted down notes in a notebook as Gai-san spoke. "So that was why you were not using the [Strong Fist], correct?"

Gai-san nodded approvingly. "Exactly, Lee-kun," he nodded approvingly as the genin's two teammates approached. "While a Taijutsu specialist will always focus on their chosen craft, they must be willing to expand their knowledge to the other styles if they wish to be a true taijutsu master."

I couldn't help but smile as Lee-kun listened with rapt attention to Gai-san's lecture as Neji-kun and Tenten-chan listened in with a bit of interest.

While Lee-kun was the same as ever, the same could not be said for his two teammates. Neji-kun, with the survival of his father, Hizashi, was no longer a fate obsessed brat and was more closer to how he was in Shippuden that when he was introduced. He was still a bit stiff and formal, but that would ease with age, I hoped.

As for Tenten, she was, as always, a weapon specialist through and through, but Tsunade wasn't her only role model it seems, this time around. "I still can't believe sensei can defeat Yuriko-sama," she muttered in disbelief her eyes wide as she looked between me and her sensei. "Even if she is limiting herself…"

I chuckled a bit in response as I began to heal the bruises from where Gai-san had hit me. "Even if I were to fight him normally, Gai-san would still present quite the challenge for me to overcome," I informed her honestly. "Quite truthfully, he is a bad matchup for me if I am not able to get the drop on him first."

Tenten-chan stared at me with wide eyes. "Really?" she questioned before turning back to Gai-san with a new respect in her eyes.

"Really, so learn well from him," I instructed her. "He really is one of the elites of the village for a reason."

I looked over to Gai-san, who was looking at me with a genuine smile, it wasn't one of his broad, teeth baring 'Nice Gai' smiles that he showed everyone else. Rather, it was a more subdued smile that would fill a person with the warmth it exuded. "Thank you for the compliment, Yuriko-san, coming from you, it truly does mean a lot."

I smiled at him in return, nodding my head at him in acknowledgement before the shriek of a hawk caught my attention. "Ah, looks like I am needed," I informed, recognizing the hawk. "If you will excuse me."

"Of course, again, thank you for the sparring match, Yuriko-san!" Gai said, resuming his gubalant personality as his teeth shone in the sunlight.

I smiled at them again and waved before I took off with my [Inaba Flicker], heading for Sarutobi-sama's office in the tower.

His window was open as I approached, a clear sign that I was allowed to enter through it rather than going through the ground floor and walking up. Landing outside of the window, I slipped it, smiling at Sarutobi-sama as I surveyed the room, my eyes landing on Ibiki-san and Anko-san who were standing at attention before him.

"Thank you for coming, Yuriko-chan," the elderly Hokage greeted me warmly, his eyes warm as he smiled.

"Of course, Sarutobi-sama," I replied, joining the two T&I specialists before his desk, my posture more relaxed then their own. "How may I help you today?"

Sarutobi-sama didn't replied immediately as he set about filling his pipe with a small amount of tobacco and lit it up, taking a quick puff of it before speaking. "I have call the three of you here today to inform you that I wish for the three of you to be the proctors from the upcoming chunin exams," he said finally, exhalling some smoke as he did so. "Ibiki-kun, I wish for you to handle the first exam, Anko-chan, you will be handling the second, and Yuriko-chan, the third exam."

I blinked in response to this announcement as I considered it. Being the proctor for the third exam was a rather simple affair as it always ended up being a tournament of some kind, whether it was squad based or one-on-one based, the proctor's responsibility for it was rather straightforward, but they had to be on the lookout for the genin to attempt to continue to fight or kill one another after the match ended, or to end a match when there was a clear disparity between the strength of the genin.

Most importantly, however, a proctor was forbidden from assisting the genin in any way during the time they were a part of the chunin exams, including the one month training period between the second and third exams.

I must have been making a face of some kind as Sarutobi-sama was chuckling in amusement at me. "Yes, because if Kakashi-kun does what I think he will, I want those three to be able to look beyond you for help with their training," he informed me with a chuckle.

I let out a sigh. "Very well, Sarutobi-sama, I'll play along," I said with an over dramatic sigh, getting another chuckle from the leader as the two beside me fought to maintain a professional demeanor.

That was one thing I liked about being so close to Sarutobi-sama, I didn't have to worry about that too much.

"There is something else," Sarutobi-sama informed, sobering up from his amusement, causing the two next to me to straighten instinctively as the 'Professor' made himself known. "We have gotten confirmation on the participants this year, and there are two things of note; first, Sunagakure is planning on sending in their Jinchuuriki this year, and a new village is participating, Otogakure."

My face smoothed out into a mask of cool neutrality as I took in the information. The news about Gaara-kun coming was a bit worrisome in general, but it could be easily passed off as Suna trying to make a big show of their abilities to the big names that came to the Konohagakure chunin exams.

But Otogakure was another mess altogether. Because Jiraiya-sama had confirmed that Orochimaru was the leader of the village, even if we didn't let on that we knew that fact.

"I take it you are allowing their participation?" I questioned coolly.

"I am, I know Orochimaru will be attempting something, but I believe he will restrain himself from acting until the third stage of the exam," Sarutobi-sama explained. "After all, even if he denies it to himself, my student is something of a showboater, he will want as many people as possible around to witness his 'triumph' when he strikes."

"Your orders?" I asked.

"Simple, for now, continue on as normal, but, if any of you see an opportunity, have one of the Oto participants… disappear and question them on their plans," the God of Shinobi commanded. "And when they attack… make an example… Yuriko Uchiha."

I stiffened slightly as Sarutobi-sama used my full name, showing just how deep he was as the God of Shinobi, meeting my gaze with his own as my sharingan activated out of instinct to the vastly superior shinobi in front of me.

Orochimaru was an idiot to think that Sarutobi-sama was weak. Weak? The man was capable of balancing the ruthless requirements of a Shinobi and Hokage with the mercy of a human. Unlike Orochimaru, who saw things in black and white; power and powerless, strength and weakness...so limited.

I could feel the two next to me struggle to maintain their feet as my own power began to leak from myself, much like Sarutobi-sama switched between his grandfatherly demeanor and his God of Shinobi state, I was currently neck deep in the state that my own husband called, the Bloody Scalpel.

"As you wish, Hokage-sama," I replied, nodding. "I shall ensure that all who see whatever attack that Otogakure have planned, will know the strength that resides within the walls of Konohagakure."

The God of Shinobi nodded his acceptance to my words before the pressure that was filling the room began to recede. "Good, thank you, Yuriko-chan," he said, giving me an apologetic smile as my sharingan faded, the T&I specialists breathing a sigh of relief. "The two of you are dismissed," he told the pair with a warm, apologetic, smile. "Yuriko-chan, there is something else I wish to discuss."

I raised an eyebrow as the pair left the room, and I could briefly hear Anko begin to say something on the other side of the door before a silencing seal went up. "Yuriko-chan, I know you've been working on Minato-kun's jutsu," he commented, making me blink before shrugging it off.

Honestly, it didn't surprise me that he knew, considering the fact that he could watch over the entire village with that crystal ball of his.

"Yeah, I have been," I admitted vocally. "I wanted to be able to teach Naruto-kun them when he was old enough."

Sarutobi-sama smiled at me in response. "I figured as much, however, there is something I want you to do," he said with an apologetic look. "I know you keep yourself from using them because of your respect for him, but when Otogakure attacks, I need you to lift that restriction from yourself."

I froze as my back stiffened. "Sarutobi-sama?" I questioned, because really… there was no need for me to do so, unless…?

"Yes, I am aware, you don't need them to make the example I asked you to," he said with an apologetic smile. "But, with Kumogakure looking like they may be preparing for war, and a large number of smaller villages following their lead, Konohagakure and its allies need a symbol of our strength, and a reminder."

"You wish for me to be both?" I offered up with a grimace, getting a nod from Sarutobi-sama.

It made sense, because it didn't matter how strong someone got, compared to Minato-sama's feat of obliterating an army in seconds of his arrival on the battlefield, everything else pretty much paled in comparison.

My hand drifted to my equipment pouch as I pulled out a tri-pronged kunai, staring at the seals that were wrapped around the hilt before letting out a sigh. "As you wish," I replied finally, my voice firming as I put the Hiraishin kunai away, firming my resolve.

Sarutobi-sama sagged a bit, looking relieved at my acceptance. "Thank you," he said gratefully, looking surprisingly vulnerable in front of me.

The surprise on my face must have shown as he smiled at me. "I am getting old," he said simply, chuckling a bit. "Next year, I will be 70, not even Hashirama-sensei or Tobirama-sensei lived as long as I have."

He took in a deep breath as he leaned back into his chair. "I'm afraid I can no longer live up to the title of God of Shinobi any more," he told me, being frankly honest. "My body can't move as well as it used to, it aches and I grow more tired easier, truly, time is the one thing no shinobi can ever escape."

I swallowed tightly as my leader revealed his vulnerability to me before I stepped forward and placed my hands, alight with green chakra, on his shoulders as I began to pulse my healing chakra through his body.

He let out a shuddering sigh as I eased the aches and pains he was feeling, pushing the damage that came with age back. "Thank you, Yuriko-chan," he said with soft smile as he allowed me to do my work. "I am going to retire soon," he announced, making me pause for a moment before I resumed my self-appointed task. "I plan on announcing it at the end of the third stage, but… I will be naming the Godaime Hokage."

I swallowed tightly in response as I continued to mend the damage that time had wrought to his body. "And who do you plan on succeeding you, Jiraiya-sama?" I questioned.

Sarutobi-sama snorted in amusement. "No, he is a strong and splendid shinobi, but not a leader," he said, chuckling a bit as he felt some of his fading strength return to him. "No, neither he nor Tsunade-chan have what it take to be Hokage, maybe if she had never left, Tsunade-chan could have succeeded me, but, she is no longer the passionate girl I remember."

He let out another sigh as he turned his head enough to give me a look. "Yuriko, you will be succeeding me as Hokage," he announced in a confident tone.

That shocked me out of my healing rather quickly. "I...but I'm an Uchiha!" I protested softly. "There are still those who greatly mistrust my clan, especially after Itachi! Not to mention those who will think that this has been some kind of long-term takeover plan of some sort! Besides...I'm not fit to lead the village when I can barely lead my Clan!"

"You mean those such as my ex-teammates, correct?" Sarutobi-sama deduced rather easily. "I will be pressuring them to retire also. They have served as my advisors for many years, and Minato-kun never got around to replacing them. It is time for fresh blood in the Advisors seats."

Well...that would help, I suppose...no, wait a moment!

"Tsunade isn't as broken as you might believe, Sarutobi-sama." I said with a swallow. "She would need persuading, but...she would make a good Hokage; the village would wholeheartedly support her, just for being Hashirama-sama's granddaughter, leaving aside her own skills as a Sannin."

"You are a better candidate than Tsunade." the Hokage stated firmly. "For one, you are a hero of the village who served loyally in the Third War and served as one of Minato-kun's Hokage Guard. For another, you have not been galavanting across the country drinking yourself into a stupor for a decade or so. You are popular, well-liked and, more importantly, have been the catalyst for turning your entire Clan to the Will of Fire. The people know all of this and love you for it. The issue of popularity is not important. As for ability, leading a clan isn't too much different to leading a village, simply a smaller version thereof. You handled the paperwork with me rather easily, if you will recall."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "You were testing me." I accused him.

"Guilty as charged." Sarutobi-sama smirked at me. "In truth, I have been considering you for a number of years. With Jiraiya-kun and Tsunade ruled out, the generation above yours came into my appraisal, but none of them are suited. Power-wise, Kakashi-kun and Gai-san are suited, but both are...somewhat over-eccentric and unsuited for the position, at least not without some more seasoning. You are the most powerful and most suitable Shinobi for the position produced by this village since Minato-kun was born, Yuriko. You are the one I have chosen to take up my mantle. You are the future of the Village Hidden in the Leaves."

The fact that he dropped any honorifics was to make a point, I could tell.

I shifted uncomfortably in place as I processed what he was saying. Since my reincarnation, not once have I ever considered trying to take the position for myself, my goal had always been to get Naruto-kun the seat he always wanted to get, should he wish to do so.

But… I couldn't deny his logic, nor could I deny the request from the one man who had seen me at my lowest, and offered me his hand.

"Okay," I said finally. "I will succeed, you, Saru-"

"Hiruzen," he cut me off, using his given name. "I think, you have more than earned the right to use my name, Yuriko."

I swallowed again. "Hiruzen-sama," I corrected myself, getting a smile from him. "So… you're going to announce it at the end of the exams?"

Hiruzen-sama nodded in confirmation as he leaned back into his seat, looking… lighter than he had in years with my acceptance of the position of Godaime Hokage. "To the village, yes," he confirmed with a nod. "I will be informing the Shinobi Council of my decision during our next meeting, you will need to select yourself a guard."

My lips twitched in a smirk. "Well, I think I have a few ideas," I said, shrugging as I continued to try to process this development.

"You are ready for this, Yuriko-chan," he told me gently, patting my hand. "You think that you haven't been leading your Clan properly, but that is just not true, they have flourished under your leadership. They are happy, content, and they are safe."

I closed my eyes and took in a breath before letting it out. "Okay…" I said finally, nodding at Hiruzen-sama as I began to channel my healing chakra into him once more. "I'll take your word for it."

The aged Hokage laughed a bit at me as he relaxed, allowing the room to fall into a companionable silence as we both processed what had happened.

Roshi breathed steadily as he sat, cross legged atop an outcropping of rocks, his eyes closed as he reached out with his senses, feeling the nature of the surrounding world envelope him sinking deeper into the feeling, right before his chakra flow suddenly halted before resuming, knocking him out of his trance. "Dammit…" he grunted as he panted, rubbing his forehead.

"Don't be so down," Son Goku told him patiently from within him. "You are making remarkable progress, especially without the aid of a summon clan. Senjutsu is not an easy skill to master, Roshi, even for a Bijuu such as myself."

Roshi nodded his acceptance of his partner's words before he settled himself back into his meditative position and began to resume his attempt at becoming one with nature.

It was a little known fact, but there was a reason Son Goku was called 'The Sage that Equals the Heavens', and it wasn't his own arrogance, out of all of the Bijuu, the Yonbi was the only one who managed to, or even wanted to, learn the art of Senjutsu. Something, it turned out, he had a natural talent for.

So, when Roshi asked for the Bijuu's help in growing stronger, as he wanted to be able to stand by Yuriko's side under his own power, rather than relying on Son Goku. It was at that point the Yonbi suggested that Roshi should then learn Senjutsu.

What the Yonbi didn't know was that his style of senjutsu was different from the one that was used by the summon clans. The Summon Clans channelled a select amount of Nature Chakra that was best connected to their species, and when taught to their summoners, said summoners do the exact same thing, hence them taking on characteristics of their summons.

What Son Goku does, is take all of the Nature Chakra without any filters to it, that, while more powerful, carried a heavier risk of causing irreparable damage to the user. Thankfully for Roshi, his instructor in the arts of Senjutsu also had a direct link to his chakra coils and was instantly able to stop any excessive amounts of Nature Chakra from changing his body.

Speaking of…

"Dammit!" Roshi cursed as he was knocked out of his trance.

"Perhaps this is a good stopping point for now," Son Goku suggested patiently as Roshi shifted irritably. "Your irritation will only hamper your efforts."

Roshi let out a sigh as he sagged a bit. "Alright," he agreed, nodding more to himself than to Son Goku. "Man, you're really something, to be able to learn this without any help whatsoever…"

The Yonbi chuckled a bit in response, accepting the praise easily. "It was a difficult task, I will admit," he said after a moment. "Ultimately though, the power I gain from it is worth all of the effort. Keep training as you have and you will see results."

Roshi nodded as he looked up at the sun to judge the time before letting out a sigh. "Time to head home it looks like," he grunted a bit as he stood up, dusting himself off before leaping down from the cliff he had been meditating on and began to make his way back to the gates of Konoha. "I hope I can get the hang of this soon," he admitted in a quiet voice. "Something big is coming, I can feel it in my bones…"

Son Goku hummed in assent with his host's instinct. "Indeed," he said vocally. "We will be ready for it, however, don't have to worry about that."

Roshi chuckled a bit as the gate came into view, waving to the on-duty Chuunin, who took his return with a wave of their own, his coming and going for his personal training a well known fact to the Gate Guards by this point.

He took a moment to marvel the feeling of walking through the streets of Konohagakure, he would never tire of the welcoming feeling it gave him as now known faces waved and called out to him in greeting, in a stark contrast to the cold reception he had gotten in Iwagakure during his time there.

"Ah, welcome back, Roshi-san!" one of the Uchiha guards for the Clan Building called out as he walked up. "How did your training go?"

Roshi gave him a smile in response. "Making progress, but doesn't seem like I'll be there anytime soon," he admitted to the guard, Sensui, his name was if he was remembering correctly.

"Ah, well, keep at it I guess," Sensui chuckled as he shrugged helplessly. "Good luck with your future training."

"Thanks," Roshi said, clapping the guard on his shoulder as he passed through. "You as well."

He made his way up the flights of stairs, to the top floor, greeting a few of the residence as they passed one another before finally arriving at his home. Even to this day, it was a bit of a giddy feeling as he walked in and was greeted by his wife.

"Welcome home," Yuriko called out warmly, looking at him over her shoulder as she cut some vegetables for dinner, nearby his daughter was playing with a stack of blocks, squealing in excitement whenever she knocked them down. "How was your day?"

"Not as productive as I hoped, but still pretty good," Roshi commented, taking off his sandals as he walked in, looking his wife over carefully.

While to the eye of anyone else, it would seem like she was in a perfectly good mood, to his own practiced eye, he could see the tension in her shoulders occasionally while her smile seemed to hold an uncertain edge to it.

"What happened?" he asked her in concern as he walked over to her, wrapping his hands around her waist as he pulled her closer.

Yuriko hummed a bit, enjoying the closeness of the action for a moment before replying. "A couple of things," she admitted. "I'll be proctoring the Third Round of the upcoming Chunin Exams," she explained, hm, something different, but not enough to concern her. "The Jinchuuriki of Sunagakure will be attending this year," Ah, a noticeable concern there, given what he heard about the Ichibi's host. "He also believes Orochimaru is going to be attacking during the exam, most likely the third round," Oh… that's even more trouble. "And then…" he blinked as she trailed off, a slightly troubled look on her face.

Uh oh, better brace myself.

"He is also going to announce me as his successor for the title of Hokage," she announced with a serious look.

Oh, was that all-

"Wait… what?" Roshi questioned flatly, looking as surprised as she was about that.

Yuriko gave him a dry look. "Yeah, that was my response," she commented, leaning into him a bit. "Not something I can exactly turn down…"

"How are you feeling?" Roshi questioned, a concerned look on his face.

"Kinda shocked still, too be honest," she admitted with a sigh. "I understand his logic, behind it, but… I honestly never even wanted to be Hokage…"

Roshi hummed his understanding, rubbing her stomach, his fingers brushing over her taut muscles hidden under smooth flesh. "I think… that's why you are the best choice for it," he admitted, getting a surprised look from his wife. "You know the burden that kind of position has, and you won't be one to abuse it. Plus, you are strong, a symbol for the entire village to look to for hope when times are dark."

His ever lovely wife grumbled at that. "But Naruto-kun's set his heart on becoming Hokage."

Roshi chuckled. "And he has at least a decade before he's ready for such a thing," Roshi pointed out. "Have you decided on your guard."

"Yeah… I already asked Genma, and he accepted," she admitted, smiling a little at her friend's acceptance. "I was also thinking of asking Chika-chan and Aoi-kun when we got together for our monthly get together."

Roshi hummed in response, kissing the crook of her neck. "Not bad choices," he murmured into her ear, getting a shudder from her as his warm breath ghosted across her skin.

"Mm," she moaned quietly, glancing over to Madoka. "Not now, hun," she patted his hands. "I'm making dinner."

Roshi chuckled a bit as he acquiesced and let her go. "I can wait," he commented in amusement, his eyes glinting at her as she smiled back at him, looking far more relaxed than before.

"Well, you're going to have to," she told him primly, getting a laugh from the Jinchuuriki. "Now go and wash yourself before dinner, you're filthy."

"Yes dear," he complied easily, heading to the bathroom to do so.

Letting out a small sigh of contentment, Yuriko turned back to her meal preparations and got back to work.

I smiled a bit as I watched the genin file into the classroom the first exam was taking place in, watching through a security camera. As the Third Stage Proctor, I didn't need to show myself until they got to the central tower of the Forest of Death, after all.

Both of the stages for this exam were the same as in the original timeline: Ibiki's Impossible Situation and Anko's 'Run like Hell through the Deadly Forest' (As she called it) plan. The addition of Kirigakure and Iwagakure genin was something of a shock to most of the genin from Konoha, I could tell. Not surprising really, considering how we had only just patched up with Iwa and Kiri was still in the middle of rebuilding themselves.

What worried me was the possibility that Orochimaru would pull the same tricks that he did in the original timeline. It took me a while, but I finally found the Kusa genin kunoichi that he had stolen the face from. Was it him? Or had he waited to steal her face until after this exam?

As most of the Uchiha Clan were still alive, he had no real need to go after Sasuke-kun. The only possible reason for him to do so would be some sort of twisted version of revenge against Itachi for crushing his attempt to steal his body. Then again, we policed our dead with an almost religious fervour, especially since I had been made Clan Head. This might be his best chance to steal a Sharingan and thumb his nose at Hiruzen at the same time.

"Hm, looks like quite the batch of genin," Ibiki muttered. "Yuriko-san, three of them are your trainees?"

"I've trained three of them on and off for a few years, yes." I admitted. The man nodded, his scarred face looking rather intimidating.

"I'll have to keep an eye on them then." he smirked cruelly.

"Don't go overboard." I chuckled uneasily.

"No promises." Ibiki answered before looking around at his proctors. "It's almost time. I want professional attitudes from the lot of you. We'll move in on my mark."

On the screen, I noticed that slimeball Kabuto talking to the 'Rookie Nine' and showing off his cards. Sasuke had a suspicious look in his eyes. Good. My drilling in of how valuable information was to a shinobi was making him wary of someone who was giving it out without charging for it like the bespectacled 'genin' was doing.

I watched the silver haired 'genin' carefully for several moments before turning to one of the chunin on standby. "I want the profile for Kabuto Yakushi," I told the man sternly, getting a nod from him as he moved off to complete my request.

"What's up? Thinking of getting some genin action going on behind Roshi-san's back?" Anko asked teasingly, going to rib me only to freeze as I turned my gaze to her. "Uhhh… maybe not then?"

"Something feels off about him," I replied. "Like how did he get the number and ranks of the missions a shinobi completed," I pointed out. "That's classified to the clerical chunin."

Anko blinked at my response and opened her mouth to say something only to pause as she frowned. "That's… huh…" she murmured as the chunin came back with the requested profile and handed it off to me.

I quickly read through the dossier, already knowing most of this information as I took in everything. I signaled one of the ANBU on standby for an emergency. "Keep an eye on him, if he takes a shit, I want to know about it," I told the ANBU sternly. "Record his every move and do not let him out of your sight, or allow yourself to be seen, he's ROOT trained."

The ANBU nodded before flickering away as Anko looked a the genin with wide eyes. "ROOT trained? What makes you say that?" she questioned in confusion.

"Take a look at who sponsored for him to take the genin exam without attending the academy," I told her, passing the special jonin the profile as Ibiki made his entrance.

"Danzo," she breathed, her eyes wide. "How did we miss this?"

"We didn't, we just thought he wasn't programmed," I mentioned. "He blended into society well enough, and we didn't deem him a threat to security. That has changed, however."

And hopefully, with a fully trained ANBU following him, we can get some leads on Suna joining Oto's offense, or even, where Orochimaru is hiding in the village.

"But, if he's leaking the information, who is he leaking it to?" Anko questioned with a frown. "And why not just drag him in?"

"Because, this way, we can get more info from him without him realizing it," I explained. "Don't single him out during your exam, treat him like any other genin."

Anko nodded slowly. "Right, will do," she assured with a quick nod of agreement.

I let out a hum, accepting her words as I continued to focus down on the screen.

Let the snake hunt begin.

END CHAPTER!

Yuriko's Stats

Name: Yuriko

Level: 80

EXP: 19,047/60,000

Age: 23

Gender: Female

Title: Uchiha Clan head (+50% to all reputation gains, command of the Uchiha Clan)

Secondary Title: Equal to the Clan Killer (+50% to all stats, +200 HP & CP per level, Reputation with Konohagakure and Uchiha Clan is set to [Exalted])

STATS - Current

HP - 12,000

CP - 38,500

STR - 100 (175)

INT - 140 (210)

DEX - 160 (280)

VIT - 100 (175)

WIS -140 (210)

LUK - 45 (65)

Ryo - 39,115,254