Fight with the Leaf's Noble Gentleman
Gaara's footsteps echoed as he made his way up to the top viewing platform. He remembered a very long time ago how he'd walked these very same steps and paused momentarily under the archway. The corridor had been cast in shadow back then and the only sound was the rustling of the sand, screams and finally a sickening thud as two bodies fell to the floor. The Kazekage remembered it all as vividly as yesterday's sunrise.
"Nice to see you didn't get lost!" Tsunade stood immediately to greet her honoured guest.
Gaara bowed his head. "I apologise for my lateness, this place holds many memories."
"I'm sure it does." The Hokage smirked knowing full well the memories her ally was referring to, when the Sand along with the Sound Village had tried to invade Konoha. "Speaking freely, I'm surprised you took up the invitation at all."
"What better way to strengthen the bond between our nations by putting to rest past conflicts."
"What a sweet child you are, Godaime Kazekage for that remains to be seen."
Relations between the two Kage weren't exactly frosty but Gaara understood that there were many who still saw him as too young to take on the responsibility of leader. Rather than becoming frustrated with the situation he would simply have to show he was up to the job. He knew it was possible, after all despite the odds he had won the respect and trust of his people back in Suna.
The young wind shadow could feel the sly glances of the kunoichi as he tried to sit down comfortably in the chair. Although the Kazekage dress robes had been adapted for his smaller stature they will slightly tricky to manoeuvre in. The hat in particular was a menace as no amount of padding seemed to help with preventing the garment from slipping forward.
He tried to initiate an informal conversation to distract the Hokage's attention. "The program states that there are five matches in this year's finals, that is irregular."
"Yes, it is!" Tsunade agreed her golden eyes gleaming. "You were quick to spot that, perhaps another chair would suit you better?"
"That will not be necessary." He declined aware that Tsunade had not expanded upon his observation, what was she up to?
"Welcome to the Chunin Final Rounds!" a voice called from below, it was Genma Shiranui a familiar face from the previous Chunin exams.
In answer there was a thunderous roar from the crowded arena. Over 2000 people had squeezed into the stands ready to watch this year's hopefuls from across the continent. The audience surrounded the central area some forty feet above the chunin hopefuls. This ensured the observers (no matter where they sat) had a good view to watch the action.
"As a spectacular opening for this year our esteemed Hokage wishes to present a demonstration of our elite jonin forces. We hope to provide inspiration to the younger generation and a prosperous future."
Another loud boom of cheering and applause erupted. Gaara could feel the vibrations through his fingertips as he pushed himself a little higher into his seat. Why a jonin demonstration? Why share this so overtly with an audience? He couldn't help but question the wisdom of what Lady Fifth was thinking. Jonin were often sent on missions alone, showing their skills and jutsu in front of potential enemies was asking for trouble.
"You like to shake things up, don't you?"
"I try my best." Tsunade smirked as she gracefully tilted the brim of her hat to block out the sun. This woman was not one to hide in the shadow of her predecessor, even if it was the third Hokage.
As Shiranui continued, the senbon in his mouth bobbed up and down. "For this unique occasion I give you, Might Guy..."
Many members of the crowd stood up whooping their support as a deafening chorus. Might Guy beamed as he strolled casually into the centre of the stadium. He waved to the spectators confidently showing no sign of nerves whatsoever. Guy had been selected for (amongst other reasons) his ability to entertain.
"And introducing for the first time, Katashi Yasu."
Gaara's eyes immediately flew to the opposite doorway leading into the arena. It couldn't be?
"Well, hey there, if it isn't the former ambassador of Konoha, herself - a pleasure to face you in the passion of battle!" Guy gave the young woman a thumbs up and his usual dazzling smile.
Yasu walked slowly into the bright sunshine and bowed deeply. "A great honour, sir."
Her first thought was at least it wasn't Kakashi of the Sharingan eye! Then when that sweet sense of relief swept through her mind it was just as swiftly replaced with a new anxiety. She tightened her fists. Guy was a taijutsu specialist; he would hit hard and fast leaving very little time to think, this wasn't going to be a pleasant experience.
She ducked and rolled to the side immediately before the jumping kick connected.
"Heh, heh that a girl! Good to see you're on your toes!"
"You always like to make a dynamic entrance, sir!" Yasu laughed as she tightened the knot in her ninja headband.
They looked across at one another trying to decide how to get the upper hand. Guy was coming at her once more and as she threw several kunai to slow him down he responded with a series of superb front flips. After he landed, he began a barrage of punches and kicks one after another. The speed of his movement was astounding but combined with their accuracy, they were lethal! She tried her best to block the punches which for the most part was working. The inner part of her arms started to throb despite the protective gear absorbing the majority of impact. Another succession of strong fist attacks narrowly missed Yasu and instead ploughed straight into the ground leaving craters in its wake. Being on the defensive was preferable to getting hit but she was fast becoming increasingly aware of the sneaky leg sweeps that Guy was using.
As the paper bombs exploded Yasu retreated to a safe distance. This much was clear - she needed to slow him down. Wasting chakra to build barriers was out of the question, he wouldn't give her the time anyway. If she continued to engage in hand to hand combat then she was going to lose.
Suddenly there was a loud smack and a jet of water forced its way from the cracked earth shooting vertically out the ground. A green figure was hauled along with it shooting the opponent into the sky like a cannon ball.
"That was close," Yasu wheezed patting her back frantically. Had anybody seen?
When gravity had finally managed to reclaim Might Guy he could see the plucky youngster performing another water technique. He was surprised to still see her standing considering the full force of the hammer kick he'd brought down on her shoulder. Something had got in the way, something very hard, but there was no sign of it now.
With his fists pulsing with chakra he punched through the waves sent to meet him, and was met by a spiky rock formation. He greeted the unwelcome sight with laughter and took great delight in deploying his chakra once more in the form of missiles, smashing the threat into little pieces. After that came a triple somersault, landing perfectly back in the arena without even the hint of a sweat.
"Nice warm up, you've got a good set of skills, lucky lady."
Yasu tried not to smile but it was hard when faced with a man that was as optimistic and polite as Might Guy. He'd blown her attacks away no problem, and yet he still went to the trouble to compliment and encourage her. Despite his goofy bowled haircut and questionable fashion sense he remained as ever a true gentleman. In some ways this fight might be easier if he wasn't quite so nice.
The arena floor on the north side was now a sloppy mixture of mud and water, both Yasu and Guy had to maintain a concentration of chakra at their feet so they could even move. This didn't deter the green beast of prey from a further flourish of taijutsu. There was a real buzz in the stadium now with the villagers waving their flags and balling out at the top of their lungs. Guy was the favourite and had the majority of bets now still there were some who kindly put forward some faith in the underdog.
There was some bruising to her right cheek and the showers of dirt and dust made Yasu cough violently. Still, considering the statistics she'd researched just being mobile after ten minutes with Guy was a new record. Each time there was a whistle past her ears Yasu knew she'd only just avoided getting hit. She jerked awkwardly to twist away and ended up with her back against a wall.
Meanwhile far above the two Kage watched as the battle unfolded.
"I was unaware that Miss Katashi had been promoted to jonin level," Gaara pondered. He couldn't quite take in what he was seeing.
"Well." Tsunade yawned and took another sip of green tea. "In the strictest sense she isn't."
He tilted his head slightly. "I'm afraid I do not comprehend."
The Hokage's voice took on a more serious tone, "Yasu Katashi has trained up to jonin level but I'm not convinced she's got what it takes."
"Then the whole purpose of this demonstration is..."
"To see whether she can cut it."
At the last moment Yasu released her water bowl technique and dashed towards the small cluster of trees in the eastern corner. The water directed by her palm had pushed the green punching demon aside momentarily.
"Earth release: earth and stone dragon!" she yelled.
The debris from the ground began to rise slowly and crunch together – small at first but grew larger and larger until it was five times the size. It was an odd looking dragon, mosaic in nature comprising of lots of individual pieces. Its eyes glowed with an intense yellow energy as it snarled and snorted.
Guy watched spell bound as Yasu took deep breaths before sending the beast on the attack. He had to admit the craftsmanship was a little crude but then again artistic merit was not exactly the point here. There were two very sharp horns and an equally impressive set of teeth that could easily impale the careless. It was built in a slim line fashion so it could move quickly. When the dragon tried to ram him at full force he dodged and then countered with a flying kick. His leg smashed straight into the side of the creature sending small shards of stone raining in all directions.
"An impressive jutsu but my legs can handle anything. In fact my entire body is a temple of strength and vitality!"
After watching her creation torn apart Yasu should have felt more rattled. However she nodded slightly and then a mischievous little grin began to form. She scooped her hands together and lifted them up towards the sky. At once the missing pieces of the dragon floated off the floor. Next the kunoichi clapped her hands and immediately the shards flew back into place. Not only was the dragon rebuilt in seconds it had trapped the man's leg inside!
"What the..." Finally Guy was beginning to realise he was immobilised.
Yasu seized the opportunity raising the dragon's tail up high before swinging it and clouting her opponent full in the face. There was a loud crunch and afterward a blood curdling screech. Guy's leg was set free. Miraculously he stood up but swayed wildly with red crimson liquid seeping between his fingers.
There were gasps from the crowd.
"Dou boke my dose!" The injured ninja collapsed to the floor tears falling from his glistening black eyes, clutching his precious nose.
Yasu bit her lip he did look in genuine agony she could only imagine the number of nerve endings that had been hit at the same time. She winced as she remembered hitting her own nose by accident in training and how much it hurt. It took every ounce of resolve not to dive in and perform a healing jutsu on the poor man. She had to be on her guard, she couldn't give Lady Tsuande any ammunition about her performance as a ninja. That was what she was now - not a nurse.
Shiranui arrived. "Eh, Guy?" He sounded slightly wary. "You want to end the match?"
"Neber! I can binish bish. I bill neber bip bup!"
"Don't be a fool, Guy. It's only meant to be a demonstration not a fight to the death." The proctor rolled his eyes as his colleague continued to try and stand only to fall down again. When the medic nin had failed to stem the bleeding for fifteen minutes the decision was taken out of his hands.
So it was that Might Guy was rolled onto a stretcher and carried away. Yasu was struggling to fight the burning sense of guilt working its way into her heart. He was an adult he'd consented and knew the risks of what he was doing. The hospital would repair his nose and he'd be out in a couple of days. It was all standard procedure and besides, there were worse ways to be knocked out.
"Hey, Katashi, stand tall will yer? You've won the match, at least try to look pleased about it!"
"Oh!" All of a sudden Yasu was brought back to reality. "I won?"
"That bloody fool," Lady Fifth cursed under her breath. She slammed the tea cup onto the table knocking it sideways.
"It appears Miss Katashi is determined to succeed," Gaara stated as he saw the victor turn to the Hokage and bow. When she looked up there was the queerest look on her face as though she had seen a ghost. He considered how many years it had been since they last met, over three years in fact.
"And as for her I'd be embarrassed to call that a victory!" The leader of Konohagure marched to the edge of the viewing platform and glared back at the winner. "What the hell is she staring at?" she hissed.
Yasu Katashi stood 5ft 2 inches her blue eyes keenly fixed on her half sister. The loose braids of blond hair had begun to unravel leaving strands clinging to the sweat and grime on her face. So fighting Guy hadn't been enough to satisfy the bitch, what was she supposed to do now?
"Yasu, you can make your way to the exit," Shiranui whispered gently. He could see the staring match between the two females and preferred not to get involved.
Yasu shook her head. "Send another."
Genma was taken aback he'd never seen this side of the young ninja before. "I'm sorry, what did you say?"
"I said," the ex-ambassador growled, "send another. I'm not done."
