The Rise of a Warrior: Naruto

by The Legendary Dragon Reaper

My OC in Naruto. Major changes in some areas, minor in others, some not at all. Some characters are OOC, but that's for the sake of the story. Some concepts from movies and games are used, but the overall plot should be the same. Please read each chapter until the very end and check for authors notes. Warning, Sakura bashing.

6. Harsh Preliminaries, Tatsu vs Gaara

Tatsu noticed that a total of 7 teams had made it through the Forest of Death 'So our team, Kabuto's team, Lee's team, Ino's team, Kiba's team, the Sound team and the Sand team. Looks like we'll have some tough competition.'

Anko soon addressed them "First of all, congratulations on finishing the second exam. There were 78 team, frankly I'm surprised that even 21 passed. I knew that less than half would make it, but I really thought the number would be in the single digits. Alright now pay attention, Lord Hokage is going to explain the third exam to you! You'd better listen carefully maggots! Lord Hokage, they're all yours."

Sarutobi stepped forward "First, before I tell you what the third exam entails, I want to explain something about the test itself. Listen closely now, it's something all of you need to understand. I'm going to tell you the true purpose of these exams. Why do you suppose our country holds these exams in conjunction with our allies? To raise the ability levels of the shinobi an increase friendship between allied nations to be sure, but it's important that you understand it's true meaning. The exams are, so to speak, a representation of the battle between allied nations. Now if we look at our history, all of the countries we're currently allied with were once neighboring nations that continuously fought with each other for power. In order to avoid destroying each other's military strength meaninglessly, those nations picked champions to do battle on behalf of their countries in a mutually selected location. That was how the Chunin Exams originally began."

"Well that's great but why do we have to go through these exams then?" asked Naruto "I mean, it's not like we're doing this to pick chunin to go fight."

"Well actually, there is no question that part of the point of these exams is to select shinobi worthy of becoming chunin, but that's just not the whole story. These exams also allow for a place where shinobi can carry the pride of their nation on their back and fight against other ninja for their very lives. Many leaders and people of prominence from various countries are invited to attend this exam as guests, and also possibly to seek shinobi to work for them. This exam could determine the course of your ninja work, from here on out and more importantly those rulers will watch your battles and take note of the strengths that each ninja and each nation is developing. If there is a gap in power between the countries then the strong nations are inundated with job requests for their ninja, and conversely the requests to countries that are deemed weak decline. Therefore, the stronger our nation is the better our position when it comes to negotiating with neighboring countries, so it's important to show how much military strength our village has."

"Okay but even so, why is it necessary for us to risk our lives?" asked Kiba.

"The country's strength is the village's strength, the village's strength is the shinobi's strength, and the true strength of the shinobi is only achieved when it's pushed to its limit, such as in a life or death battle. This exam is a chance for each nation to display the strength of its shinobi and hence, the strength of the nation itself. It's because this is an exam where your life is on the line that it has meaning, and it's for this very reason that for the strength of the nation that your forerunners fought in this exam. It's truly a dream worth striving for."

"But then why did you use the expression friendship before?" asked Tenten.

"But you've only remembered half of what I said, you also mustn't have the wrong idea of the exam's meaning. This is a custom in which balance is preserved by fighting and dying, in the world of the shinobi that it friendship. The third exam is a fight for life with the pride of the village and your own dreams at stake. Now listen closely, I'm going to tell you exactly what you'll be doing on the third exam."

That was when Hayate appeared "Lord Hokage, before you do, please allow me to speak first."

"So be it."

Hayate turned to the genin teams "It's nice to meet you all, there's something I would like all of you to do here before the third exam." he let out a hacking cough.

"Hey man, you alright?" asked Kiba.

"Just fine, thanks. We have to have a preliminary exam before we can move onto the third one."

"I've got it from here Hayate-sensei." Tatsu cut in "It's basically to cut down the numbers because so many teams passed. At this stage, they've gotta speed things up a bit. As the Hokage said, a lot of important guests will be watching so they can't afford to waste people's time. They only wanna see the best."

"Exactly, so if anyone feels like they're not in top physical condition then now's the time to bow out. The preliminaries will start immediately." nobody bowed out "Alright then, we'll now begin the preliminary round. This round will consist of 1-on-1 individual combat at full battle intensity. This is not an exercise. There are 22 of you remaining, so that means there will be 11 matches. The surviving candidates from these 10 matches will advance to the third exam. As for the rules, there are none. You will fight until one dies or concedes defeat, or is rendered physically incapable of continuing. Naturally, those who concede defeat are urged to forfeit properly to avoid a fatal outcome. Furthermore, as proctor I'm given a certain amount of leeway in judging the matches. I will occasionally intervene if the match seems hopeless in order to save as many lives as possible. Now it's time to reveal what fate has been chosen for you." the panel behind him opened, revealing an electronic screen "The names of each pair of opponents are chosen completely at random. Before each match, these names will appear on the display behind me. I have nothing more to say, so let's begin. In a moment, the name's of the first 2 opponents will appear."

Sasuke smirked at the names that appeared 'Didn't waste any time, did they?'

"Alright now, those whose names have been drawn, come forward."

Sasuke and Yoroi, one of Kabuto's teammates, stepped forward.

"You have been chosen for the first match, Yoroi Akado and Sasuke Uchiha. Are there any objections?"

None.

"Alright then, let's begin the first match. Everyone other than the two opposing candidates will now clear the area and move to the upper level."

Everyone did so.

Match 1:

Sasuke soon found that Yoroi could absorb chakra, so he quickly finished it with a Lion's Barrage.

Match 2: Shino Aburame vs Zaku Abumi

Same as canon.

Match 3: Kankuro vs Misumi Tsurugi

Same as canon.

Match 4: Sakura Haruno vs Ino Yamanaka

Sakura glared at Ino "Just give up Ino-pig, Sasuke's mine."

Ino looked at Sakura like she was stupid "Have you not been listening this whole time? I'm not interested in Sasuke."

"Wh-What?"

"Unlike you, I know what it means to be a kunoichi and a friend who doesn't abandon her teammates."

"Shut up! It was their fault for acting so cool!" Sakura charged in a rage.

Ino formed a hand sign, caught her fist with ease, then punched her in the gut very hard, knocking her out cold. Then she noticed the looks she was getting "What? Gravity Seals."

Match 5: Tenten vs Temari

Same as canon.

Match 6: Shikamaru Nara vs Kin

Same as canon.

Match 7: Naruto Uzumaki vs Kiba Inuzuka

Same as canon.

(A/N: This is because all of Naruto's jutsu, aside from Shadow Clones, aren't accessible due to the seal Orochimaru put on him)

Match 8: Hinata Hyuga vs Neji Hyuga:

Same as canon.

Match 9: Rock Lee vs Kabuto Yakushi

"I forfeit!" Kabuto called.

Hayate nodded "Very well. Winner, Rock Lee!"

Tatsu looked at the names that next appeared on the screen and gripped the railing, a bead of sweat dripping from his forehead 'Shit…'

"Tatsu." said Sasuke "You know you're up against Gaara after this, right?"

"Yeah, I know."

"Just be careful."

"I'll try. There aren't many things or people who can make me sweat like this, but Gaara is definitely one of them.'

Match 10: Choji Akimichi vs Dosu Kinuta

Same as canon.

"Now for the final match." Hayate announced.

Match 11: Tatsu Kamikaze vs Gaara of the Desert

'This is it.' Tatsu jumped down into the arena and formed some quick hand signs 'I might have to release

'Finally.' Gaara appeared on the arena floor in a swirl of sand, his cold eyes making Tatsu sweat slightly, eyes full of rage, hatred and bloodlust.

Tatsu took a moment to compose himself 'I haven't been scared of an opponent since Orochimaru or… Itachi. I know he's a jinchuuriki, but he's so different from Naruto in just about every way. Well either way, I've gotta give it my all. Kazuma wouldn't back down, and neither will I.'

The cork on Gaara's gourd wriggled, then shot towards Tatsu like a bullet.

Tatsu cranked his neck to the side, the cork whizzing past and missing by mere inches, then looked at where the cork was stuck tight in the wall behind him.

Sand emerged from Gaara's gourd and circled around him.

Tatsu dropped into a taijutsu stance 'Just to get a hold of his attack power and style.' he listened as Hayate called for the match to begin.

Gaara's sand lunged forward.

Tatsu quickly fired a volley of shuriken and formed several hand signs "Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Shuriken Jutsu!" he fired a barrage of fire-enhanced shuriken, just enough to cancel out the sand, the force causing multiple explosions that shook the stadium. Tatsu's foot touched the ground and leapt sideways in order to get an angle on Gaara, and found a chance when he saw him standing there motionless 'This is my chance! Lightning Style: Purple Thunder!" he fired a blast of purple lighting from his left hand, then jumped up onto the ceiling "Fire Style: Crimson Dragon!" he finished the assault with a crimson fire dragon, the colliding fire and lightning resulting in a fiery explosion, and he waited to see if any damage had been done.

When the blast subsided, the smoke cleared and revealed Gaara, completely unharmed.

'That's not possible, even if he's a jinchuuriki he should've taken at least some damage! And the sand around him doesn't help, it's acting like a shield and protecting him subconsciously.'

The top of the sand shield writhed around, and another sand pillar shot forward.

Tatsu began phasing out, disappearing and reappearing as he dodged the barrage of sand needles being hurled at him "Take this!" he channeled some chakra into his fist and thrusted it forward.

Gaara's sand sprang up to protect him without him even having to move.

Tatsu's fist met the sand with a thud that echoed across the room and made the very floor itself shake, blood dripping from his wound due to the contact with the sand 'Dammit, it's like punching a wall of steel! Even enhancing it with chakra didn't work!'

A spike shot forward from the shield.

"Shit!" Tatsu threw himself back and flinched when the spike grazed his cheek, opening a noticeable cut, before he did a few backflips to gain some distance.

Sand shot towards him during the third backflip.

Tatsu blitzed through hand signs "Wind Style: Skybound Wind!" he fired a sharp blast of wind, the sand exploding effectively.

The grains of sand shot down from above, and Gaara had yet to even move or turn to look at what Tatsu was doing. Sand sprang up in anticipation of the attack and defended against it, though it received a shallow slash.

Tatsu leapt above Gaara and flashed through hand signs "Fire Style: Crimson Dragon!" a flaming red dragon shot downwards, slamming violently towards Gaara in a fiery explosion.

When everything settled, an umbrella of sand was present above Gaara's head.

"Dammit." Tatsu touched down on the floor and had a brief staredown with his opponent 'As I expected, he's tough. He doesn't have a scratch on him even after all that.'

"Is that all?" Gaara's rasping voice indicated his ever-growing fury "Is that all you've got?!" a huge tidal wave of sand rose from beneath him and shot towards Tatsu like a runaway train.

"Crap!" Tatsu bolted in the opposite direction in an attempt to get airborne, jumping and ducking under tendrils coming from the wave of sand chasing him. Thinking quick, he hit the wall and ran straight up it and onto the ceiling, then formed hand signs "Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!" he fired several small fireballs.

Gaara's sand once again rose up and protected him, and when the smoke cleared, it revealed a slowly dissolving sand wall "You're nothing but a bug!" a sand pillar burst forward and took a quick swipe.

Tatsu ducked under it, fazed out and re-appeared on top of the gigantic hand sign statue 'This isn't good, I'll have to get serious if I wanna win. Sorry Kakashi, but I'm gonna have to take them off if I wanna come out on top." he pulled up the pants on his gi, bit down on both of his thumbs, and placed one thumb on each leg, revealing weights 'Gravity Seals are actually weights sealed inside of tags, making them really effective for physical strength training.' he dropped them and let them fall to the ground.

Temari smirked 'Come on, you really think he'll be able to get through Gaara's defences just by dropping a couple of pounds of weight?'

Tatsu's weights hit the ground and the floor exploded, leaving two very deep craters where the weights once were "Oh yeah, that's better. Now I can breathe easy."

Everyone but Team 7 gaped at the hole, then started gawking at Tatsu.

"What?"

"Go for it Tatsu, kick his ass back to where he came from!" surprisingly enough, it was Sasuke who cheered this.

"That's the plan." Tatsu gave a thumbs up, then vanished.

'What the-?' Gaara blinked when his sand shield sprang up behind him only to explode, and he turned towards the disturbance. It happened again, multiple times in fact.

Picking up speed until the shield couldn't form without exploding, Tatsu became only a blur as he hit the shield and moved on, slowly managing to overwhelm the defenses bit by bit "This is it! Rasengan!"

Gaara found a spiralling ball of chakra filling his vision, before he was sent spiralling across the arena and slammed into the hand statue, which soon crumbled into a cloud.

Tatsu straightened himself up and watched the cloud expand "Come on out already. I know you're not dead, I can sense your chakra and your bloodlust.

A shape slowly became visible, and Gaara emerged, seemingly unharmed, his gourd shattered and sticking out behind him, his face crumbling away and his skin just falling off, but it appeared as if he was using a sort of armor that had protected him from the blow. He was grinning, a psychotic and insane grin that sent chills down Tatsu's spine.

'Of course, how did I not see it? The gourd is made of sand too, he used it to cushion the blow! Stupid stupid stupid!'

"Finally!" Gaara's sanity leached away before everyone's eyes "Finally, I can kill you and prove my existence!"

"Kill me to prove your existence?" for once, Tatsu was completely lost 'Not gonna lie, that's a new one.'

"Die!" Gaara thrusted one arm forward and sand shot forward like a bullet, much faster than before.

'It's faster!' Tatsu threw himself out of the way, the sand just barely catching him and tearing a gash in the stomach of his shirt 'Way faster! Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!" he unleashed a fireball.

The sand shield formed, again much faster than before, and the attack detonated harmlessly.

Tatsu shot forward, becoming a blur, and there was a clapping noise as he slammed a Rasengan fist into the shield, shattering it like a piece of armor, before the attack drilled into Gaara's gut, shattering the sand and sending him tumbling back.

Then a kick snapped forward and caught Gaara in the chin, lifting him into the air.

Sand began circling around Tatsu's feet, signalling he had to act then, so he grabbed Gaara's sash and tugged him towards him "Where the f*ck do you think you're going?!" he unloaded into Gaara's stomach so hard and fast he sprouted multiple fists.

Gaara let out a pained gasp, blood coming up soon after.

Noticing sand rising up behind him, Tatsu knew he was out of time and used a chakra-enhanced fist to punch Gaara away into the wall beneath one of the balconies, and he then watched as the sand sped after Gaara 'Good, just as I'd hoped. I had to take a risk since I didn't know if the sand would go for me or save Gaara fist. I guess my hunch was right.' he heard a maniacal laughter filling the air 'Oh shit.'

"So strong!" Gaara lunged forward from the cloud obscuring him "So strong! I will have your blood!" blood covered his teeth and lowered face, making him seem that much more insane and terrifying, like he'd just devoured someone, and sand began clumping up on his right arm.

Tatsu gulped slightly 'Well that evil feeling I'd been getting just increased about 100-fold.' then he staggered and held his head, another wave of sand slamming down on him.

"Kill you… kill you… I will… I WILL KILL YOU!" the sand on Gaara's arm shot out and caught Tatsu off guard.

'Its speed shot up again!' Tatsu found himself scooped off his feet and flung across the arena before slamming into the wall with enough force to knock even a couple of the shinobi present off their feet.

"TATSU!" Ino, Lee, Naruto, Sasuke and everyone else present leaned over the rail in order to clarify what had happened.

A yell and a flash lit the air and the sand and expanding cloud of powder were blown away, revealing Tatsu, panting heavily with blood running down the side of his face, one eye forced shut 'Okay… that hurt…'

Sand gathered again for another strike.

Tatsu wiped the blood from his face to get both eyes back 'I'll need both of them if I wanna survive, let alone win…'

The sand finished gathering and shot towards him again, the end opening up and appearing like a giant hand reaching towards him.

Tatsu quickly rolled, the attack just barely missing and slamming through a wall, a section disconnecting and coming at him like the arc of a water fountain, forcing him to keep rolling to survive, before eventually bumping into a wall 'Okay, this is gonna hurt…'

"Now I've got you!" Gaara let out a victorious howl, his sand quickly descending. Another explosion rang out, the smoke roaring out from beneath their balcony like a hurricane.

"Tatsu!" Naruto was the first one to round on Gaara "I'll make you pay for that you son of a bitch!"

"Thanks for the vote of confidence Naruto, but I'll take it from here." a voice said dryly, and a shadow emerged from within the smoke 'I might be used to heavy-hitting fights like this, but I've never taken on a jinchuuriki in a life or death battle before. If I'm not careful, I will die.'

Gaara actually looked confused for once "Why? Why can't I kill you?!"

"The better question is, why do you want to kill me? What could I have possibly done to earn your hatred? I barely even know your name!"

"Because you're strong!" Gaara's right eye faded from teal to a faint gold, a star-shaped pupil with 4 dots in between points of the star, sand slowly creeping over the side of his face "I'll kill you for that reason, and then everyone will know that I exist?"

"That's your reason? You're basically killing me just because, you're no better than a f*cking wild animal!"

"Yes, I'm an animal! Hated and despised by my village, I have nothing! And you…" his gaze wandered over to Ino and the ret on the balcony "You have everything, and I hate you for it! So let me show you what it's like to have nothing!" his arm shot out, but this time at the spectators on the Leaf's balcony.

The jonin moved to protect their students, but they were rather startled when a shape appeared in front of them, revealed to be Tatsu, sword drawn to beat back the sand, and was slammed into the wall between Naruto and Sasuke, who watched in horror as Tatsu spat up blood and was dragged from the hole in the wall and slowly lowered to Gaara's mercy, or lack thereof.

The sand arm detached and started floating, held in the air by Gaara's chakra and slowly began enveloping Tatsu "Don't bother, no one's ever escaped my Sand Coffin."

Tatsu ignored him and tried to dislodge the sand and get an arm free 'If I try to get my arms free and use a jutsu like this, the explosion would probably just tear my arm clean off.'

The sand continued advancing, passing his elbows and moving on like a glacier.

Tatsu found himself losing more and more movement room 'This is bad…' he was almost entirely enveloped in sand, with only his face showing. He tried to break free, but the sand passed over his face, forcing him to either stop or suffocate.

"Now you die!" Gaara extended his partially sand free arm "Enjoy Hell! Sand Burial!" the sand moved half an inch, then stopped "What?!" the sand began cracking and a bright cyan light pierced the shell, the cocoon shaking and trembling, before a roar was known, muffled by the sand but still there, slowly growing in pitch and volume as more rays burst from the Sand Coffin.

A flash of light appeared and exploded outwards, the screaming almost deafening, the shockwave reaching the stands and almost sending everyone flying. A massive cloud was left in the center of the arena, hanging like a thick fog over where Tatsu had one been trapped.

Gaara released himself from the remains of the hand statue after he'd been blow into it by the previous shockwave, his sand swirling faster and faster as a chirping noise became noticeable.

"You can beat on me all you like, you can even kill be and I'd be fine with it." a voice rang through the air "But involving my friends and the people I've sworn to protect is crossing the line that forfeits your life." Tatsu emerged, now clad in a cyan-coloured chakra cloak "I'm going to end this here and now. I've already used up most of my chakra, so I'd better make these next few attacks count.'

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"What is that?" asked Naruto "Is that Tatsu?"

Kakashi smirked underneath his mask "That's what happens when Tatsu goes at 100% of his full power, with the power of his eyes. You guys better brace yourselves, this battle is going to heat up again."

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Tatsu gestured at Gaara, beckoning with one finger "Come on."

"DIE!" Gaara's arm flew forward.

Tatsu ducked, then blitzed forward with enough force to shatter the ground beneath him, his chakra-enhanced fist being burrowed into Gaara's face, going through the sand and hitting the flesh beneath it, bouncing him off the wall behind him.

"DIE!" Gaara twisted in the air and launched his other hand at Gohan, sprouting a tail like a raccoon.

Tatsu raised one hand and caught the attack with ease, his chakra flaring wildly, the shock blowing the hand apart "Sorry, but that won't work on me again." he blitzed towards Gaara and kicked him in the ribs, sending him flying into the wall above the double doors. Then he formed a hand seal "Sorry, but if you're gonna hurt my friends then I'll do whatever it takes to stop you. Fire Style: Crimson Dragon!" the red fire dragon rocketed forward, but Tatsu then formed more hand signs "Wind Style: Skybound Wind!" he fired the blast of wind forward, enhancing the fire dragon and changing its color "Combination Jutsu: Scorch Style: Blazing Purple Dragon!"

Gaara looked stunned by the size of the attack heading for him, only to be lost amid the fiery purple of the attack, the ensuing explosion shaking the room itself.

"Did I get him?"

A low rumbling noise emerged, and the smoke cleared, revealing a startling surprise in the form of a wedge-shaped shield of sand, sparkling like diamond.

"Son of a bitch!"

The sand dissolved and revealed Gaara, now covered in sand and unharmed. He tapped the sparkle hanging in the air, and the sand shattered.

'So that's it, the wedge of sand split and deflected the force of the blast instead of trying to absorb it all at once.' I'm having a hard time with this guy, I've got him outclassed in terms of sheer power, but he's got range and flexibility, not to mention his attacks have been getting fiercer with his boost in speed, like he's borrowing power from… wait, that's it! He's borrowing power from the Shukaku, and now it's starting to take over! I've gotta get him on the defensive fast!' he blitzed out.

Gaara's eyes went wide as a foot smashed into his jaw, launching him into the ceiling, and he bounced off and began to head down.

Tatsu appeared next to him and slammed him across the arena again, catching and passing by him before belting him into the ground

Gaara bounced off with a loud crunch, then rose just enough for the next kick to get underneath and push him straight up.

"Rasengan!" Tatsu appeared above him, Rasengan in hand, and down it went and burrowed its way into Gaara's gut, folding Gaara around him before the attack finally blasted back towards the ground, tearing a hole in the ceiling.

Gaara slammed through the last level and crashed into the ground in a blast of wind and dust, leaving a massive crater in the center of the arena with a single arm sticking up, the sand streaming away until it was completely human again.

Tatsu appeared and slowly touched the ground 'Is it over?'

Silence fell.

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"No… way…" was all Kankuro could manage.

"He… He did it?" Temari stammered "He really… beat Gaara?"

"To defeat Gaara in 1-on-1 combat, such a thing is unheard of." Baki, their sensei, noted.

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'I think it's over…' Tatsu dropped out of his Tenseigan Chakra Mode, panting heavily 'Okay, clearly the fight with Gaara drained me more than I would've guessed. If this had gone on any longer, there'd be a fair chance of the power corrupting me as long as I was in the mode. Then again, it almost always depends on the user's willpower, and my will isn't exactly weak.'

Hayate warily stepped forward "Winner, Tatsu-" he trailed off for obvious reasons.

The ground started shaking and rumbling, a flash of light appeared, and once more the arena was filled with the chirping noise of an aura as cracks began forming in the ground.

Tatsu quickly leapt back as a crack snapped open beneath him and spewed sand 'Dammit, after all that all I did was awaken the demon in him!'

Fractures opened and began spewing sand all over the floor.

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"Baki, we've gotta split!" Kankuro yelled "We've gotta go now!"

"But Gaara… what about Gaara?" Temari protested.

"There's nothing we can do for him." Baki answered grimly "You've all won your matches, let's go."

They ran for the exit, but a wall of sand blocked their way and forced them onto the balcony with the Leaf group.

"Nobody's going anywhere!" a voice shrieked, coming from Gaara, his hand twitching and jerking violently "Not unless they're in a body bag!" with what sounded like an explosion, Gaara rose up as an indistinct shadow with glowing golden eyes, and pointed a finger at Tatsu "And you, I'll start with you!"

Tatsu tried to stop himself from shaking 'Dammit, as much as I hate to admit it I'm kind of scared of this thing.' he noticed the sand piling up around him 'Still though, this was how I felt with Zabuza and with Orochimaru, so I'm not gonna let this be any different.'

The creature across from him laughed maniacally, then let out a sigh as he began flexing Gaara's sand-covered body parts "It feels great to get a chance to stretch my legs, I haven't been able to for a few months now."

"What are you… Just what are you?"

"Who, me?" Gaara's human form totally gave way to the creature "You can call me Shukaku, but I'd prefer it if you called me your executioner!"

Tatsu noticed a shadow falling over him, and he looked behind him and paled at the massive wall of sand that he saw. As the wall began coming down, Tatsu flashed back into his Tenseigan Chakra Mode quickly formed hand signs "Wind Style: Great Breach!" he fired a blast of wind, pushing back the sand in front of him as the sand passed by him harmlessly.

A large arm of sand slammed Tatsu from behind and carried him straight into the wall, smashing him into it and pinning him down.

Tatsu let out a hiss of pain as the hand tightened its hold, grinding his elbows into his ribs.

Shukaku crowed out a laugh "This is gonna be fun! Hope you last awhile kid, cause you're gonna die slowly!" he withdrew the arm holding Tatsu, then shot it out again, slamming him headlong into the arena's door.

Tatsu cried out when his forehead hit the concrete, causing everyone to wince.

The hand dragged him sideways, running his head through the walls before slamming all around the arena, from the floor repeatedly to every wall, Tatsu crying out in pain each time as the beating kept getting worse and worse.

It wasn't long before his face and shoulders, the only parts of him they could see, were cut and nearly mangled, blood flying everywhere as he was thrown around like a ragdoll.

"Let's see how you like being put through the ceiling, huh?!" Shukaku roared, followed by a loud crunch as the hand slammed through the roof before dissolving.

Tatsu began to fall, tumbling limpy, though his Tenseigan Chakra Mode didn't fade so he was still conscious, and more importantly, alive.

"Not done yet!" Shukaku launched his left arm forward.

"Tatsu look out!" Naruto screamed.

That breathed new like into Tatsu, his eyes snapping open once more as he twisted halfway through the fall, the sandy claw scraping over his back and opening a few minor abrasions. He blitzed through some hand signs "Fire Style: Crimson Dragon!" he unleashed another red fire dragon that shot across the arena.

A shield of sand sprang up and intercepted the attack long before it would've hit Shukaku.

Tatsu landed lightly on the sand, only to be tangled by it.

Shukaku's arms retreated before they shot out again "Take this!" the arms slammed together.

Tatsu's cries of pain echoed through the chamber 'Dammit, I've gotta take him down if I want to survive let alone get to the finals, but his attacks come from wherever the sand is and right now this whole place is basically his playground.'

Shukaku held up an arm, the surface rippling "Sand Shuriken!" bulges of sand shot out and burst forward.

Tatsu was taken off guard and quickly drew his sword to defend as about half of the projectiles made contact, while the other half hit and opened gashes on his arms.

Another arm of sand caught him, this one from behind having sprouted from the ground. Then Shukaku swept Tatsu off his feet with his sand and carried him towards him, then shot his arm out at him.

Tatsu let out a yell, sending out a shockwave that blew away both of Shukaku's hands, opening up a spot on the floor and shoving Shukaku back slightly.

"An opening!" Ino yelled "Come on Tatsu, get him!"

"Fire Style: Crimson Dragon!" Tatsu shot out another red fire dragon that hit Shukaku full in the face and blew him head over heels, enveloping the area in smoke.

"Hell yeah, that's the way!" Lee cheered "Beat him back to kingdom come!"

"I'll try." Tatsu was already skimming over the sand.

A small wake rose behind Tatsu, reaching Shukaku just as its feet got under him. Shukaku then caught a flash of a foot, only to then wind up flying through the air, before he flipped and got ready for an attack.

Sand lunged for Tatsu's angle, but he leapt into the air, breaking the bond before it had enough time to form. With his eyes burning cyan, his chakra cloak burned even brighter and burst forward with renewed speed, drawing back as he prepared to throw his momentum and body weight behind the attack.

The sand on Gaara's body rushed forward and created a shield, the blow hit and Shukaku was sent speeding towards the floor, the sand forming a cushion and catching him, turning into a sphere.

That was when Tatsu dropped from above with a massive axe kick that was heavy enough to deform the sphere.

Spikes of sand formed.

Tatsu had already leapt away, inches ahead of the sand 'Now way I'll get through that if it's as hard as the rest of the sand, I'm gonna need to use a technique that can cut through it. I can't use my elemental Crescent Moon Dance, the sand is too hard for my sword to cut through even with my elemental chakra enhancing it. There's gotta be another technique I have that can cut… wait… that's it! It's been awhile since I've used this, I haven't really mastered it yet, but it's my only shot.' white chakra began rapidly circling around his feet as he dropped out of his Tenseigan Chakra Mode 'Come on, build up the chakra, build up the chakra… Good, nice and easy, just don't move for another minute or so and I'm home free.'

The outside of the sphere roiled, and a claw of sand shot out and headed straight for him.

'Dammit, I can't move or I'll lose my concentration and then I'll be screwed. I've only got one shot at this, so it's gotta count.'

"I don't know what you're planning, but it won't work!" Shukaku thrusted another claw forward.

"Wanna bet? Leaf Dragon God!" Tatsu initiated the upward spin kick, and the tornado took on the form of a dragon, the mouth of which quickly engulfed Shukaku and sent him into the air, sharp and powerful cuts being dealt all over the body, with sand spewing out in place of blood.

"You think something like this will stop me?!"

"Maybe not, but what about this?!"

Shukaku looked up to see Tatsu above him with a Shadow Clone beside him, a massive Rasengan in his hand "What?!"

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"But… But how?" Lee wondered "When did he-?"

"It was under the cover of the smoke." Neji clarified for him "That last fire dragon he used wasn't meant to hurt him, it was to provide a cover so he could use the clones and make that last attack. The tornado dragon was just the first part of his plan."

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"Take this Shukaku, straight from the 4th Hokage's handbook! Giant Rasengan!" Tatsu fired an enhanced Rasengan that grinded against Shukaku's stomach, sending him crashing to the ground at the bottom of the pit below.

"You… little…" when Gaara emerged, it wasn't a pretty sight. A ragged and bloody mark had been grinded into his stomach, missing vital organs by just a few inches to the point where if Tatsu had gone a little further with the attack, it wouldn't cut him in half if not killed him.

"It's over…" Tatsu let out several heavy, exhausted pants "You're too… wounded to fight…"

"Never!" Shukaku raised a hand, summoning sand, and thrusted it at Tatsu again.

Tatsu wanted to, but he knew he couldn't avoid it 'So this is where the Chunin Exams end for me. Sorry, I tried… Kazuma… everyone…' he shut his eyes, expecting the impact, but nothing came.

The sand began dissolving, Shukaku let out a long blood-curdling scream, and Gaara took advantage of Shukaku's weakened state to regain control. When that was done, he coughed violently before passing out and collapsing.

Hayate dropped back to the ground "The winner is Tatsu Kamikaze."

Cheers erupted from the balcony.

Tatsu managed a weak smile 'It's over… I won… sure I'd beaten him by chance, but I didn't expect him to be so damn wild. But that's not gonna happen again, next time I'll beat him no question and I'll do it on my own power, no Tenseigan or anything.' he wasn't sure when he passed out after that, but he did, and hit the ground with a loud yet dull thud, before he was taken away on a stretcher.

Hayate breathed a sigh of relief 'It's finally over. And with that match, the Third Exam preliminaries are now finished."

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The next hour was used to repair the floors using Earth-style jutsu.

Once that was done, Hayate addressed the remaining candidates "I commend all those who have advanced to the finals of the third level of the Chunin Exams. There's one person missing but still, congratulations."

Sarutobi counted it down 'Including the absent Tatsu, we have 8 ninja from the Hidden Leaf, 2 from the Sand, and 1 from the Sound. And now I will begin the explanation of the final rounds."

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Orochimaru was discussing with his subordinate, Kabuto, and ordered him to abduct Zaku and Kin for their plans.

Still though, Orochimaru was concerned about Tatsu and Naruto and their influence on Sasuke, as well as the power they were capable of.

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"In the final rounds, each of you will put your battle skills on display." explained Sarutobi "You will demonstrate the power and control that you've achieved in your respective disciplines. Accordingly, the final battles will commence one month from now."

"Wait, we're not doing it right here and now?" asked Naruto.

"This is to provide a suitable period of preparation."

"What do you mean by that?" asked Neji.

"Simply this: In addition to announcing the conclusion of the preliminary matches to each country's leaders, we must also have some time to prepare and distribute the summit for the final selection, not to mention that you examinees are going to need time to prepare for something this important. To know your adversaries and prepare yourselves, you'll need time. Even though up to this point, all of your battles have been real battles as I'm sure you can all attest, they were conducted on the premise that you were fighting an unknown enemy. But that's no longer the case now that you've battled each other, so in order to make the finals fair and just, we're giving you this month. Each of you must embrace the opportunity and practice hard and learn some new tricks because by now everyone knows your techniques, so using your old tired tricks is a sure way to lose in the finals, and remember to get some rest as well."

Naruto knew well how serious it was 'This isn't some vacation, I won't have any time to relax. I've gotta train harder than ever.'

"Now with all of that behind us, I'd like to begin winding things up. But before we can bring this to an end, first there is one more important matter to take care of for the final rounds."

"Let's get on with it, how long do we have to wait until we start training?"

"In a calm orderly fashion, all of you are going to take one slip of paper from the box Anko is holding."

They did.

"Good, now everyone has one." Ibiki noted "Going from left to right, tell me the number written on your slip of paper."

"10." said Dosu.

"1." said Naruto.

"7." said Temari.

"5." said Kankuro.

"3." said Lee.

"6." said Shino.

"8." said Shikamaru.

"2." said Neji.

"11." said Sasuke.

"And that would make Tatsu 4." Sarutobi noted "Very good, now I'm going to tell you about how the finals are going to work."

"Is that what the numbers are for?" Shikamaru guessed "Drawing lots?"

"Ibiki, you may reveal which ninja have been paired up."

"Yes sir." Ibiki held out a chart revealing the matches:

Match 1: Naruto vs Neji

Match 2: Lee vs Tatsu

Match 3: Kankuro vs Shino

Match 4: Temari vs Shikamaru

Match 5: Sasuke vs Winner of Match 1

Match 6: Ino vs Dosu

"If I may." Sasuke spoke up "If this is a tournament, does that mean there will only be one winner? As in only one can become a chunin?"

"Quite the contrary actually." Sarutobi told him "There are going to be several judges for the final rounds, including myself, the shinobi leaders, and the Kazekage, the lords from the various countries that ultimately will be assigning your missions to you. Through this tournament, the judges will be able to make a thorough evaluation of your abilities. They will then decide whether any or all of you possess the qualities required of a chunin. Even if someone loses the first round, they could still become a chunin."

"So there's a chance all of us could become chunin?" asked Lee.

"Correct, but there's also conversely a chance that none of you will be chosen. The advantage in fighting more rounds in the tournament means getting more chances to display your talents to the judges who will decide your fate. Now then Sasuke, does that answer your question?"

Sasuke nodded "It does."

"I thank you all for your patience, now let us adjourn until next month."

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Kakashi soon met up with Naruto outside the hospital "First off Naruto, congratulations on making it to the finals. Now about your training-"

"Hold on a second." Naruto cut him off "About my training, I was actually hoping to wait until Tatsu woke up."

"Alright. By the way, where's Sasuke?"

"He said he had something to check on and took off."

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Sasuke entered a room and found Dosu in front of him "Where's your teammates?"

"Gone." Dosu told him grimly "Kabuto got them."

"I knew there was something off about that guy." Sasuke knelt down and checked for any signs of Kabuto's movements "I think I can track him, let's move."

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Kabuto looked down at Zaku and Kin, bound in front of him "What a shame, it seems you've just about outlived your usefulness to Lord Orochimaru."

"Let us go you son of a bitch!" Zaku barked.

"Such disrespect, you're lucky Lord Orochimaru still has some use for you."

"We did everything he told us, let us go!" Kin barked.

"Again with the disrespect, it makes me wonder why Lord Orochimaru has kept you around for as long as he has." he drew a knife and threw it behind him, then addressed the one who caught it without looking at him "Well well Kakashi, foiling my attack by striking from my blindspot? But now are you ready to take me on? Next time you should station at least 10 guards."

Kakashi looked at the Anbu corpses on the floor 'The Anbu Black Ops unit I assembled was defeated so easily. You're not an ordinary genin, you caught a whiff of me and immediately readied your weapon. Quite impressive."

"You overestimate me."

"So what do you want with these two? Finding you like this, standing before two genin from another village tied up against their will, I oughta haul you in for questioning."

"What, just you? I wonder if you could."

"Are you looking to take me on? I know who you are, you're the Leaf Medical Corps Chief's son. Your name, what was it? Kabuto Yakushi. What are you, one of Orochimaru's puppets?"

"Even if you did take me into custody, you'd never be able to prove I have any connection to him."

"Just answer my question."

"And if I say no?"

"I'm the one asking the questions, now give me some answers."

"Look you'll have your answers soon enough, even if I'm not here. So why don't we skip the middleman and let me go?"

"You smart-alecky little brat, I'll teach you to mess around with grownups." Kakashi drew a kunai.

Kabuto drew a knife "Come on give me a break, don't be so arrogant. The cards are clearly in my favor here." he pointed it at Kin and Zaku, a bead of sweat running down his cheek.

Kakashi quickly blitzed forward and disarmed him, then pinned him to the ground and caught him in an armlock "I should've known."

His Shadow Clone stopped one of the Anbu from making for the door.

Then another Anbu bolted up, broke a window and jumped through, removing his mask to reveal the real Kabuto as he disappeared into the trees below.

"I can't believe I let him escape." Kakashi looked as the other Anbu collapsed, then he went over to Kabuto's fake corpse "Impressive. Just as I suspected, the Dead Soul Jutsu, where a ninja temporarily animates and controls a dead body, even transforming its face. Kabuto even stopped his own heart and eliminated all traces of his scent in order to escape by impersonating a murder Anbu. Being raised as the adopted son of the chief of the Medical Corp is a powerful asset of his, if it turns out that someone as good as him is working for Orochimaru then I've got to work harder."

"Kakashi."

He looked to see Sasuke and Dosu in the doorway "Sasuke…"

"Kabuto's working for Orochimaru."

"Looks that way."

"First, let me make something clear. These ninja, Orochimaru used them, treated them just like any other pawn. They're not the bad guys here."

"I know. Kabuto said he could make some use out of these two here, probably test subjects for a forbidden jutsu Orochimaru plans to use." he quickly cut them free.

Kin stood first, with Zaku following "Thanks for the save, now we'll be on our way."

"To where?" asked Sasuke "Let's be real, there's no way you can even get out of this village without Orochimaru or one of his goons tracking you down and capturing you, if not killing you right then and there."

"Then what do you suggest?"

"Well, I've been thinking about what to do with you guys and I think I've come up with something that should work, at least for the time being. Dosu can stay with me in my clan's compound and train with the others, while you two can hide out somewhere Orochimaru and Kabuto will never be able to find you."

"Where would this be?"

"Give me a second." Sasuke pulled out a small vile.

"What's that?"

"Some of Tatsu's blood, I need it for the jutsu." he poured it on the ground, formed some hand seals, and slammed his hand into the ground "Summoning Jutsu!"

A medium-sized red dragon appeared "Tatsu, I told you not to- Oh Sasuke, it's been awhile. Where's Tatsu?"

"I was the one who summoned you here Hiryu, I need a favor."

"Name it."

"You see these two?" Sasuke gestured to Kin and Zaku "They're being targeted by Orochimaru."

"And you want me to hide them in my home so he can't find them. So be it, just have them each place a hand on me."

They did so.

"Alright, when should they be brought back?"

"After the finals in a month. I really appreciate this."

"Sure, just be sure to let Tatsu know about this." and Hiryu, Zaku and Kin all disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"Alright, that's done."

"So you sent them to the home of a summoning animal." Dosu realized "You knew that Orochimaru would never be able to get there because he can't do the Reverse-Summoning without the contract."

"Exactly. Now then…" Sasuke turned to Dosu "What do you know about his plans?"

"I know he planned to give you a Curse Mark, and I know he's planning something for the finals, but I don't know what. That's about it."

"I see." Sasuke turned to Kakashi "We should tell the Hokage."

"But we can't without gathering evidence." Kakashi pointed out "He knows something's going on with Orochimaru, but none of us know what. In any case, we're already on high alert for that reason, so just keep an eye on this one for now."

"Right."

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"Ow…" Tatsu slowly came to and winced at the light directly above him "Whoever came up with the idea to put the light right above someone's face, I'll find you and punch you." he tried to sit up but winced from the pain "Ow…"

Then a nurse came in and dropped her clipboard in shock "You're awake? With those injuries we thought you'd be out for at least a week."

"Well to be fair I've always been a fighter. How long was I out anyway?"

"About 3 days, though you've been feverish some of the time." she got to work changing the bandages on his wounds "Now don't move, your jonin will be here soon to check on you." and she left.

'Okay, knowing Kakashi, that means I've got about 2 hours.'

"Tatsu!" then Naruto, Sasuke, Lee and Kakashi all came barging in.

'Son of a- couldn't I be right for one?'

"Tatsu!" Naruto all but jumped on him "That was so awesome, you showed his ass!"

"I hope so, I feel like I just got run over by a stampede of angry rhinos. Or Choji when someone calls him fat. Honestly I'm not sure which is worse."

Kakashi cleared his throat "As thrilling as it is to have you back, we need to fill you in on what's been going on."

"Oh I know, I could hear everything while I was unconscious. So that Sound guy Dosu is on our side now?"

"Essentially."

"Now who's fighting who in the finals?"

"Right here." Lee showed him the scroll "We're fighting in the second match."

"...Alright!" they high-fived "So anyway, here's my plan: I've already got my own training regimen down so I'm gonna teach you and Ino some elemental jutsu. Where is Ino anyway?"

"She got held up at her family's shop, I don't think she even knows you're awake."

"Fair enough." then he looked over at Dosu in the doorway "You can join us if you want."

Dosu stared long and hard at the Sound Gauntlet on his right arm, then slowly removed it and crushed it "I'm in. I'm done with Sound, now I'm living for me."

"Okay then."

"By the way, I've already got a trainer." Naruto pointed out.

"I know, I met the guy before. Anyway, Dosu was it? Come on, I'll fill you in on the whole deal."

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Tatsu was later leading Dosu around the Leaf "So what're you gonna do once the exams are over with?"

Dosu sighed "I'm not sure really."

"I'm sure I can get the Third to make some kind of arrangement."

"If you're- Wait, what's going on over there?"

"What?"

"That." Dosu pointed to a large crowd, then went over to one of the spectators "What's going on?"

"See for yourself." the guy pointed to where Ino and Sakura were arguing, and from the look of it things were getting really intense.

"What's your problem Forehead?" Ino yelled "I've got more important things to do than stay here and argue with you!"

"My problem is you!" Sakura barked "How could you do that to me? Now everywhere I go people give me this dirty look like I did something wrong!"

"Well guess what Forehead, you did do something wrong! So what if Naruto doesn't have the best reputation and Tatsu by extension for siding with him, no ninja would just abandon them after they came to save their lives, not to mention how you blatantly disregarded what Sasuke might've wanted and dragged him with you! What happened to you is your own damn fault because you were such a coward!"

"I'm not a coward! So what if I left Naruto and Tatsu alone, it's their fault for acting so cool all the time!"

"Would you listen to yourself? How far have you fallen Haruno? You know what, I don't care anymore. If you wanna be a selfish cold-hearted bitch then go ahead, just stay the hell away from me!" and she turned her back to her.

"Don't turn your back on me swine!" Sakura furiously whipped out a kunai and thrusted it towards the back of Ino's neck.

That was when Dosu stepped in and stopped Sakura's kunai with his own "I think that's enough of that."

"This isn't any of your business outsider, get lost."

"Well I'm making it my business. Is this how kunoichi are in this village, you don't like what people say and you hurl a kunai at them? You basically just attempted murder."

"Is that so?" that was when the older generation of the Ino-Shika-Cho showed up, glaring holes into Sakura, who gulped and backed away, only to be caught via shadow and restrained "Sakura Haruno, in compliance of the Shinobi Code, you are hereby under arrest on the charge of attempted murder."

Choza and Shikaku took her away.

Inoichi turned to Dosu "I have to thank you for protecting my daughter…"

"Dosu, Dosu Kinuta." Dosu told him.

"Right, thank you Dosu. I'm a little surprised, I expected someone else."

"You mean me?" Tatsu walked up "I would've, but Dosu here clearly had it covered. Anyway, Ino, Dosu, I want you two to meet me at the Training Grounds in an hour. I'm gonna teach you something going outside of what you're used to."

"And that would be?" asked Dosu.

"Elemental jutsu."

A/N: Notes:

So yes, Tatsu won and Gaara isn't in the finals, and this is by far the longest fight scene I've ever written that isn't a huge final battle.

I'm not writing out the training because that's boring as f*ck, let me just say that Naruto has the 5-Pronged Seal removed and he can access Kurama's chakra again, and Ino and Dosu learn some elemental jutsu of their own, as well as some other stuff.

Just to point this out, Tatsu won't use the Tenseigan Chakra Mode very often without being potentially corrupted by the power, mainly because it's unstable. Like a wise man once said, absolute power corrupts absolutely. So, he won't be using it that much for quite some time, and until then it'll only be against opponents he know will kill him.

Yes, Sasuke and the others know that Kabuto is a bad guy, and now Dosu is training with Tatsu and the others for the finals, while Zaku and Kin are at the home of the dragon summons.