"Everyone, thank you very much for coming to the Village Hidden in the Leaves Chunin Exam." The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, began. "We will now begin the final round matches for the eight who made it through the preliminaries! Please watch until the end!"
Eight? The thought ran through the majority of the contestants heads.
The proctor looked at the contestants, "I have something to tell you before the match." The proctor pulled out what looked to be a tournament branch from his jonin vest, "Look at this." The proctor explained, "There was a slight change to the tournament. Check who you will be facing one more time."
Naruto Uzumaki versus Neji Hyuuga
Gaara versus Sasuke Uchiha
Kankuro versus Shino Aburame
Temari versus Shikamaru Nara
'So this Dosu guy dropped out.' was the prevalent thought among the remaining contestants of the arena.
"Hey!" called out Naruto to the proctor, "Sasuke still hasn't showed up yet. What'll happen with him?"
The proctor looked blankly at Naruto, a thin wooden stick being chewed between his teeth. "If a competitor fails to show up by the time of their match. He or she will lose by default."
Naruto couldn't understand why Sasuke would turn up late, it was outside of his character to show up late for something as important as this.
The proctor continued with the explanation for the rules of the tournament, "Listen up. The terrain is different, but the rules remain that there are no rules, the same as in the preliminaries." Looking between each of the competitors, the proctor noted the features of the tournament, "The matches will continue until one or the other dies, or acknowledges defeat. However, if I judge that it has been settled, I'll stop the match there. Arguments are not allowed. Understood?"
All contestants stood firm in place, with serious faces at the prospect of a life and death fight coming toward them.
"So the first match is... Naruto Uzumaki and Neji Hyuuga." The proctor called the names of the first two contestants of the match, then spoke to the remaining contestants, "Just those two remain and the rest of you go to the waiting room."
At the proctors word, all other contestants in the stadium exited toward the waiting room via a stairway inside a doorway on the side of the exam area.
As the proctor guided both Naruto and Neji to the center of the stadium to begin the match. As if the match wasn't already favored enough toward close range fighters, they place the contestants less than ten feet apart from each other.
As both Naruto and Neji stood apart from each other, Neji noticed the feral look on Naruto's face, "You seem like you want to say something."
Naruto's only response was to raise his fist to Neji and bow his head, covering his eyes. Naruto's body began trembling with some sort of severe emotion. Naruto spoke, "I said it before, too, didn't I?" Naruto referenced his words after Neji's fight with Hinata, "I'll win, no matter what!"
Neji's only response at first was to smirk arrogantly at Naruto, not in the slightest believing his words. Neji then activated his Byakugan in preparation for the fight, Neji taking his typical fighting stance. His left arm at chest height, slightly lifted and bent at the wrist and elbow, and his right arm held back slightly as well, bent in a similar way parallel with his body. His left foot placed in a wide stance in front of his right, "That makes it more worthwhile for me. I look forward to your look of disappointment when you know the true reality..."
Naruto stood up straight and puffed his chest a bit, "Stop whining!" wind began to swirl around Naruto, as if emulating his agitated strength, "Let's get started!"
The proctor, finally hearing the end of their pre-fight banter, gave the word to begin the match, "Now then, round one." He paused slightly, looking between the fighters, "Begin!"
Neji paused, waiting for any move from his blond foe.
Naruto didn't make a single move, waiting for his white eyed opponent's first move.
Neji began by slowly going an inch forward, attempting to get Naruto in closer striking range of his Jyuuken fighting style.
'I can't unveil my hand too early, I'll just start by light prodding of his technique. Maybe I won't have to use...' Naruto suddenly threw three kunai near simultaneously at Neji.
Neji countered by deflecting one kunai, and grabbing another at the same time and using it to block the third kunai. All without flinching.
Naruto immediately went on the offense, throwing a punch at Neji's face, followed by an immediate chop to the shoulder, an attempt at dislocating an arm.
Neji countered perfectly, weaving his head to the side and parrying the hand to the shoulder, Neji then countered with a perfectly executed strike to the shoulder, sealing a chakra point.
Naruto went tumbling toward the ground, but quickly recovered and rolled away from Neji.
Neji was quick to point out the obvious power of his technique, "You understand, right? You have no way of winning." The power of the Jyuuken is terrifying, the ability to manipulate an opponent's chakra with touches, taps, and slight application of chakra. But to Naruto, none of that mattered.
"Heh... all I did was verify your power. The real fight is just getting started!" Naruto proclaimed loudly. He formed the typical cross-seal for his signature technique, the... "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Quickly summoning four clones, all the Narutos brought out kunai to combat the hand-to-hand combat expert.
"I see, splitting your chakra among the clones equally so I can't tell the difference." Neji pondered loudly, "But there can only be one real one, and when I find you, you'll be at twenty percent of your normal chakra levels." Neji smirked at the foolishness of the orange boy's idea.
All the Naruto clones got in formation, with four in the front acting as vanguard to the Naruto in the back, all the Naruto's responded to Neji simultaneously, "Heh. Don't be acting tough!"
Neji was thoroughly amused by this strategy, "If you're going to come, then come."
Naruto himself was also amused by the lack of thought Neji gives to a fight, the four Narutos charged Neji at once, sweeping in at four points.
But Neji wouldn't be cornered. He tumbled over the front two Narutos and immediately counter attacked. Outclassing the Narutos Neji took them out in twos.
But Naruto wasn't even concerned about this, he saw Neji's moves and understood them better. The Naruto in the back line watched raptly as he studied Neji's fighting style.
"You will become hokage someday?" Neji asked, "Intrinsic abilities are set, I can see that with these eyes. Everything inherent about people is set." Neji looked harshly at Naruto, "Not everyone can become the hokage, you can't become hokage by just working hard. It's not something you become by trying to become it. It's determined by destiny."
Naruto looked heatedly back at Neji, "So what? I'll do whatever it takes, I'll fight against destiny itself if I have to. Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
This time, Naruto made an obscene amount of clones to fight Neji. The number of clones seemingly near the triple digits.
Neji himself was shocked by the number of clones created in that instant, each of them with equal amounts of chakra, "How do you still have so much chakra left!" Neji called out to Naruto.
Naruto just smiled. He didn't need the majority of his chakra to use his more severe techniques, he just needed to try and force Neji to his limits to find if he had any aces to worry about.
The Naruto army seemed to have no concern for Neji's stupification and charged right for him, opening up with a variety of assaults. Not a single one landing.
Neji side stepped, punched, chopped, parried, kicked, and did all manor of beatings to the various Naruto clones. Though realizing how pointless the brawl was getting, Neji ran for the back-most Naruto from him.
Bobbing and weaving through the army of Narutos, Neji finally got to the Naruto waiting for him in the back and delivered a fatal instant-kill hit to the heart.
"You've been waiting in the back lines, throwing the least hits, and safe-guarding yourself to protect your chakra points this whole time." Neji said loudly for Naruto to hear.
As if proving his statement, clones began disappearing left and right, and Naruto began spitting up blood from his mouth.
Naruto panted, coughing up a bit more blood. Then spoke one last time, "I told you before, not to assume such things of me." The near-death Naruto suddenly burst out of existence in a cloud of smoke.
Neji gasped and searched with his Byakugan for where the real Naruto was. Only to find him as soon as he turned around, barreling toward Neji with a fist ready.
"I've been striking the most from the beginning, prepared for an honorable death!"
Just as Naruto's fist was about to land on Neji's cheek, it was stopped just short by an invisible barrier.
Naruto seemed to hang in mid-air as a soft wind started to blow through the immediate area around Neji. Neji suddenly spun around on his heal and Naruto was sent flying backwards by a large force of visible blue chakra spiraling around Neji.
Naruto shakily got up, softly asking, "What was that?" as he got to his feet.
Neji arrogantly smiled down on Naruto again, "Did you think you'd won?" He almost laughed out.
Naruto didn't comment this time, and decided to call out another "Shadow Clone Jutsu." This time only making about six Naruto clones.
They all surrounded Neji and attacked at the same time, testing out the capabilities of this new factor.
Neji pivoted on his feet again and spun, blue chakra becoming visible around him once more as the direct area around him became a violent storm of chakra, sending all clones back and immediately dispersing them.
Naruto got up unsteadily again, clumsily reaching his feet, "Dang it, that hurt."
"This match is already over." Proclaimed Neji with absolute seriousness, "You're within the area of my Eight Trigrams." Neji immediately began to take this match seriously the moment he began to see Naruto's stamina and chakra abilities, Neji would now pull out his ace, "Gentle Fist Art. Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms."
With no time to react, Naruto was completely caught off guard by Neji's sudden rush toward him.
Neji spun on his right foot, "Eight Tetragrams... Two Palms!" Neji sealed off two chakra points immediately, "Four Palms. Eight Palms. Sixteen Palms. Thirty-Two Palms. Sixty-Four Palms!" With the ruthless assaulting technique finished, Naruto was launched backwards with all of his chakra points sealed.
Naruto just lie on the ground, curled up in a pseudo fetal position. The proctor began to walk over to the downed body of the orange ninja. However, the proctor stopped once Naruto began trying to get up again, instead taking a step back to continue watching the match.
"I've pressed the sixty-four chakra points all over your body, you can't even stand." Neji deactivated his Byakugan, looking down upon the defeated boy in the orange jumpsuit below him. "Are you frustrated? Kneeling down before power that can't be changed and knowing your powerlessness." Neji smirked as he continued seeing Naruto struggle to stand upright, "Your dreams will come true if you work hard. That's just an illusion."
Naruto managed to stand up straight, putting his hand over his stomach to try and contact the Kyuubi, but with his chakra blocked, there was no way to push chakra to the seal to communicate. It seemed like he was stuck if the ball of fur was still sleeping.
Neji saw Naruto's passion and understood that he still wished to continue the match, "Stop already... It'll be the same even if you fight more than this." Neji looked almost sympathetic toward Naruto, "I don't have a grudge particularly against you."
Naruto was almost shocked at his words, but recovered quickly, "S-shut up. Even if you say that, I still have something against you." Naruto started to try and use chakra to communicate with the Kyuubi, but it seemed like he couldn't even feel his chakra anymore, "I can't forgive those who would label others failures, preach about how we have inescapable destinies, and how you're living on a set path."
Neji frowned at Naruto, "You shouldn't meddle in other's affairs. But if it's a lesson that you want. I'll give you one on the Hyuuga clan's destiny of hatred." Neji looked rightly demonic at the thought of everything in the Hyuuga clan, "There's a special technique, passed down through the head family, a Curse Seal Technique. It's a mark given to those of the side branch, binding them to a destiny of servitude that they can't escape." Neji removed his headband, revealing an "X" shaped seal with lines stretching across his forehead.
Naruto couldn't believe what he was seeing, a curse seal. Meant for enslavement. In the Leaf Village?
Neji continued to explain the tragedies that befell him in his life; getting the curse seal placed on him, seeing it used on his father, and how his father was sent to the Hidden Cloud Village as appeasement in place of the head family's father.
"The fate of my father was decided the moment his brother was born before him. Just as your destiny was decided at the point when I became your opponent." Neji proclaimed at the end of his speech. "Your destiny was to lose to me. So you will lose against me."
Naruto was slowly gaining strength back, he could almost feel like he could walk normally, though he still couldn't feel the slightest trace of his chakra pool, "I can't say much about your screwed up family. But you don't know if you'll lose until you try!"
Neji put his head band back on, once more covering up the curse seal marring his forehead, "You're hopeless." Neji reactivated his Byakugan intended to end Naruto in a single hit. Neji sped toward Naruto and landed a single palm thrust on his solar plexus. With no chakra added to the hit, Naruto didn't die, but was sent tumbling meters away from Neji. Neji proclaimed once more, "Proctor... it's over."
Naruto lay limply on the ground, feeling the pain of having all of his chakra points sealed, and being beaten and battered by someone who far outclassed him in raw speed and potential. But Naruto doesn't know how to give up. Once more Naruto returned to his feet, calling out to Neji, "Don't... run away. I won't... run..." Naruto stands limply there once more, with his hand still hovering over his stomach, "I'll stand by my own words. That's my ninja way!"
Neji's eye nearly twitched. Seeing the same failure getting up from beatings and batters that would have many hardened shinobi down on the ground ready to give up was beginning to frustrate him. The look plastered on Neji's face screamed out disgust and loathing for everything that Naruto stood for in his eyes.
"You with all of your destiny stuff... I won't lose to a jerk with cold feet like you, no matter what!"
Neji continued to stare at the runt that dared question his ideals and long standing beliefs, "A brat who knows nothing... Shouldn't lecture arrogantly! People are born burdened with an inherent destiny that they cannot defy. You can't possible understand the destiny of being burdened with a mark that cannot be wiped off for life!" Neji pointed his right hand at Naruto, trying to focus his frustrations out on him, trying to make Naruto see the hypocrisy of his foolish beliefs.
Naruto was panting for breath, barely able to stand at all. But kept his hand firmly locked on his stomach, even more so now as he recalled learning about the Nine Tails sealed within him. About meeting the Kyuubi and understanding his side of the story a bit better. He recalled the torment of his early years of life as a child, because of this seal that would always be stuck on him. If it breaks he dies, if it loosens he loses his mind, just having it makes people scorn you and drives people away.
He who knows nothing about destiny and seals...
"Yeah... I do understand it. So... what of it?" Naruto asked Neji, "Don't be acting cool... It's not just you who's special! Hinata was also suffering the same as you! Even though she's the head family, not being acknowledged as such – trying desperately to change herself..." Naruto continued to wobble on his legs while speaking, "She fought you while coughing up blood with that in mind! You too! The branch family that protects the head family... Doing all that to Hinata just because it's an exam. In actuality, you were just as frantic in attempting to go against destiny, right?"
Naruto began coughing again, as blood spat up from the internal injuries he suffered from Neji's previous beatings. "Your sixty-four chakra points are shut. How are you planning on fighting me if you can't use chakra?" The proctor seemed curious to that answer too, almost intending on stopping the fight then and there to prevent a premature death, "You and Lady Hinata have the same destiny! Show me that anything you've said so far has any merit!"
"I will! I'll defeat you no matter what and prove it to you!" Naruto was having an internal panic still though, he now has the ability to move semi-freely again, but still can't feel any chakra within him at all. 'Come on Kyuubi! Come on you furry bastard! I know you're in there!'
"That's enough talking. Proctor, from this point forward I'm going at him with the intent to kill. If you're going to stop me, please feel free." Neji proclaimed, slightly on edge about actually having to go full out versus the blond failure.
Naruto gave a harrumph sound as he felt part of his chakra start returning to him, that was enough... Putting his hand over his gut, and sending a small amount of chakra there, Naruto let out a massive, mental scream, 'Fox! Help me out here! I need you to clear out my chakra points!'
Suddenly, Naruto felt a massive flood of energy flow through him. Wind began spiraling around Naruto as red strings of energy began seeping from him. Nine streams of red energy flowed from Naruto's body as he kept his hand on his stomach for when he had enough of his own chakra back to communicate with Kyuubi.
Neji was freaking out though, as was much of the audience at seeing Naruto free himself from having all of his chakra points pressed.
The winds began to calm down more and more as the red energy quickly seeped back into Naruto, not leaving any hint of the Nine Tails' chakra.
Naruto noticed immediately that a large part of his chakra was missing, likely due to that give-take relationship with the seal when he took the fox's chakra. Though Naruto immediately sent some of the small amount of chakra that he had left to the seal on his stomach, 'Thanks for the help Kyuubi. Though you could've kept the display down to a minimum.'
Naruto could feel the ire coming from the Fox after saying that, 'I'd like to see you try to unblock all of your body's chakra points in one go, right after waking up! It's not easy without a little excessive force! Now, you better stop screwing around and start taking this seriously.'
Naruto had an internal laugh at almost having lost in such a stupid way because he didn't want to show off too much, too late for that now though, 'Got it, got it.'
Naruto stood up straight, not a single cut or injury on him anymore. And if not for Neji's Byakugan, that showed how little of Naruto's chakra was actually left after that show of power, Neji would believe Naruto was back in perfect health again. "That was completely pointless. You've expended all of your chakra to heal up and unblock your chakra points. You didn't have anything else up your sleeve? Just a redo of your beating?"
Naruto gave a thoughtful look, "It's really uncomfortable not being able to feel your chakra, being able to feel it at all is better than not at all, even if it's so little." Naruto smiled, "Besides, I don't need chakra for anything else from this point on."
Neji scoffed, believing Naruto to have lost the last remaining sanity he may have had, "You're suicidal to think you could match me in a fight without chakra, when you couldn't even scratch me with chakra."
The proctor himself continued to watch the two of them, and while shocked at the recovery of the Uzumaki, stood at the ready, knowing the Hyuuga was going to hold his word about going in for the kill from here on out.
Neji, instead of waiting for Naruto's first move like at the beginning of the match, rushed straight for him, hand rushing straight for the heart to land an instant-kill blow on the orange ninja.
Naruto smiled widely in his normal way. Naruto raised up his right hand and pointed his finger at Neji, with his thumb pointing to the sky, "Naruto Uzumaki Style: Push."
Like a hammer, his thumb smacked into his pointed finger, setting the technique into motion.
Neji saw a brief light from below his feet after Naruto's technique, appearing as some sort of circle below him. Suddenly, Neji felt the ground below him removed as he was a mere few paces from hitting Naruto.
Neji's flight stopped after a few meters, causing him to tumble on the ground another few feet. It hardly hurt, but the practice of what Naruto's technique had done sent a shock through his system.
Naruto sent him flying back with hardly an effort, with a mere pointed finger. And from what he could see with his Byakugan, Naruto didn't expend any chakra with the technique, no chakra ran through any of his coils with the technique. "Impossible..." Neji said as he started to regain his footing, the audience in just as much shock.
Naruto walked forward a few paces, his huge smile still on his face, "What was that Neji?" Naruto laughed a bit at the fun of it.
"Impossible!" Yelled Neji the moment he was standing upright again, "A technique like that, that takes no chakra?! It's impossible!" Neji's rational mind went into overdrive, a technique like that had to have some sort of weakness, every technique needed a weakness. Maybe if he avoided the finger? "Heh, so that's it." Neji blurred and swerved at a pace almost undetectable to Naruto.
Naruto still maintained his smile though, dropping his hand from its pointed position. Naruto knew he had about another few seconds before Neji would reach him and kill him, so he would react before then, "Naruto Uzumaki Style: Push." Naruto's hand were to his side, not pointing at anything.
At this moment, Neji knew something was wrong, but it was too late.
"You're terrible with names, Naruto. Why don't you just keep their normal names. Movement Type Magic: Launcher has a much better ring to it." The Kyuubi asked to his blonde container.
"Because it doesn't have that Naruto Uzumaki flavor in it! Beside, what does it matter anyways. I'd rather people think I'm pushing them than launching them. It seems more impossible that way, and makes it harder to predict what the technique can do." Naruto responded calmly, thinking about his newest technique that he learned.
The Kyuubi wasn't impressed though, "I suppose."
Naruto was thinking heavily about what he'd learned through the past weeks, "There is still an issue though. I need a target to launch them with the technique. Most of these techniques I have need targets for them to work."
"So, what's the matter? You just look or point at them and the technique will work. There's no easier way to do it." The Kyuubi felt Naruto's nitpicking of the techniques was pointless, "Beside, if you really don't want to have to look at them, just use-"
"No. I need a way to fight someone blindly without killing them." Naruto was against killing pointlessly. It was inevitable, regardless of what time you're in, as the Shinju Tree's memories had pointed out, but if it could be avoided... "What if, instead of setting an object to move at a certain vector. I set all targets in an area to move at a vector opposite of a target."
The Kyuubi was mindful, understanding the benefit of the technique, "I'm not sure. Keep working on it, and move on to the next technique once you've figured out whatever it is you're trying."
"Naruto Uzumaki Style: Push."
Once again, as Neji came close to striking range, he was blown back off his feet and went tumbling away from Naruto. Even though he was sure Naruto couldn't even see him, let alone be able to target him with that technique. "That's an annoying technique." Neji huffed as he stood up again, a bit dirty, but otherwise unharmed.
Naruto still maintained his smile nonetheless, "I told you Neji. I will win. And I'll prove once and for all, that Hinata wasn't wrong." Naruto pointed his finger at Neji, with the same hand positioning as before, index finger outstretched toward Neji, and his opposable finger pointing toward the sky. "Naruto Uzumaki Style: Down."
"Why do you even need to say the technique names. Isn't is counter productive to let the enemy know when you're using a technique?" The Kyuubi stared at the boy practicing his techniques.
"Because it makes them unique to me! Gives them a name for people to fear!" Naruto said as he prepared to cast the Weight Type Magic: Aggravation. "Naruto Uzumaki Style: Down! Beside, won't it be surprising when someone suddenly finds themselves on the ground with no way of knowing how it happened? Hehehe."
Kyuubi was skeptical, but if Naruto believed it would help then he wouldn't bother.
Neji felt a pressure flatten him on the ground, causing him to be unable to get up. "Grrugk," Neji grunted as he tried to get up, but his body could hardly move enough to make out any words. He could feel his own blood struggling to move throughout his body, causing him to feel slightly feight as blood couldn't move freely to his brain. It would be a matter of time before he loses consciousness and the match.
"I told you Neji, destiny isn't set in stone. Hinata wasn't wrong. I'm going to win today because I'm right, there is no destiny controlling you." Naruto knelt down next to Neji, confident that Neji couldn't strike back against him. "Fate is the lie Neji, you can achieve whatever you want to with effort and determination. Even a failure like me could beat a genius like you, because I worked for it."
Neji heard every last word that Naruto said before he passed out.
The proctor, seeing Neji unable to move and now passed out, declared the winner of the match, "Winner! Naruto Uzumaki!"
The crowds cheered for the exciting match where beliefs fought against each other and the Hyuuga prodigy was defeated by the orange failure.
And the crowds were anxious for more. Sasuke Uchiha was up next!
