Naruto: The new beginning

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Naruto stared at the ant colony a dozen meters away and shouted, "How do you return to the nest, ants?!"

Naturally, the ants didn't respond, leaving Naruto confused. The "correct answer," as he imagined, was "with a smile or very quietly."

When he couldn't figure it out, he quickly dismissed the thought. Turning to his teammates, he declared, "The password didn't match, Sasuke! Let's set it on fire!"

Tenten looked bewildered and asked, "What kind of weird 'password' are you matching with ants, Naruto? Why even try that in the first place?"

Hydrangea was equally confused. She turned to Sakura, raising an eyebrow. "Is he... really as strong as they say?"

Sakura hesitated for a moment before answering, "…Strong. In every sense of the word."

Ignoring their doubts, Sasuke stepped forward and performed hand seals with practised precision. "Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!" he exclaimed, releasing a blazing inferno.

Naruto didn't sit idly by either. He pulled out a kunai and slashed his finger, muttering, "Biting my finger's too inconvenient." He then shouted, "Summoning Jutsu!"

With a puff of smoke, a red toad appeared at his feet, carrying a large fork in one hand and a shield on its back.

Naruto greeted the toad, Toad Gamaken, with an odd courtesy: "Have you eaten yet?"

"Not yet," Gamaken replied, scratching his head. Then he paused as if recalling something and added, "Though don't worry, I won't eat you again."

Naruto's face darkened as he stomped on Gamaken's head. "Stop bringing that up! Look at the ants ahead there's plenty for you!"

Gamaken peered at the swarm of ants sizzling under Sasuke's flames, pondered for a moment, and replied, "It's too much to eat."

Naruto sighed. "Fine. Start with the 'ingredients,' and I'll call in the rest of the squad."

"Alright," Gamaken agreed earnestly. "Though I'm clumsy, I can handle this much." With a powerful leap, he smashed into the ant colony, crushing several beneath him.

Using his fork and shield, he fought the ants like a warrior in a feast.

Naruto wasn't done yet. He jumped off Gamaken's back, his blood-dried hands performing another summoning jutsu mid-air. "Summoning Jutsu! Summon the whole crew!"

Within seconds, Toad Chief Gamabunta, Toad Shima, and Toad Kosuke appeared amidst the flames.

Seeing the colossal toads arrive, Hydrangea's jaw dropped. "So this is the power of summoning jutsu... Incredible!"

Gamabunta took a puff of his ever-present pipe, glancing around. "So, it's the Fourth Hokage's kid. Summoning us to such a dry place, huh?"

Naruto grinned sheepishly. "Hahaha, my bad. I ran into fresh ingredients and thought I'd treat you all to a feast. Gamaken said he couldn't finish it alone."

Gamabunta sighed and muttered, "What a hassle. Fine, let's get this over with. Kosuke, get to work."

Toad Kosuke brandished his twin blades. "Understood, boss!"

Naruto turned to Gamaken's head and called out, "Gamaken, start gathering the roasted ants from Sasuke's fire!"

The two smaller toads, Toad Shima and Toad Kosuke, eagerly sampled the ants.

Shima critiqued, "The heat control is uneven."

Kosuke added, "Yeah, some parts are burnt."

Naruto turned back with a sly grin. "Hey, Sasuke, you hear that? Guess you need to practice your Fire Style a bit more!"

Sasuke twitched, clearly annoyed. 'Did I learn Fire Style just to roast ants for toads?'

With the arrival of the battle-hardened toads, the fate of the ant colony was sealed.

They went from predators to prey in an instant, all because they crossed paths with a blond ninja who saw them as dinner.

By the end, a mountain of fresh ant corpses was piled high. Toad Shima poked Naruto with a giant finger and asked, "Hey, Naruto, can we deep-fry these?"

Naruto scratched his head. "I don't have a pot big enough for that…" Then, an idea struck him. "Wait! Gamaken's shield looks like a giant wok!"

Shima cheered, "Great idea! Gamaken's shield is perfect. But what about the fire?"

Naruto smirked. "Leave that to Kakashi-sensei. I'll send him to Mount Myoboku. His Earth Style Wall can act as a furnace—plus, he'll probably carve a dog's head on it for fun."

Toad Kosuke raised his hand. "Can he carve a toad's head instead?"

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Final Scene:

Hydrangea watched the ants, who had initially regarded the humans as food, become food themselves. A sense of determination burned within her. "So this is the power of summoning jutsu… I need to master this too!"

Meanwhile, Tenten struggled to process the chaotic antics of Naruto and the toads. "Is it okay to use your teacher like this?" she muttered.

When the feast ended, Naruto even packed meals for the toads to take back to Mount Myoboku. As they prepared to part ways, Hydrangea handed over the Earth Scroll to Naruto.

"This belongs to you as thanks for saving me."

Naruto refused. "We can't use it. Tenten, you want it?"

Tenten shook her head. "No way. I don't want a scroll we didn't win fairly. Neji and Lee wouldn't agree either."

Hydrangea smiled faintly. "Alright. I'll keep it then, but don't expect me to go easy on you next time!"

After saying their goodbyes, Naruto and his team headed toward their next destination, while Neji and Lee soon reunited with Tenten.

The second day passed peacefully, but on the third day of the exam, trouble was brewing…

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