Disclaimer: Ranma Saotome is a copyright of Rumiko Takahashi, Shounen Sunday, Kitty and Viz Video. Naruto characters are copyrights of whomever owns it because I forgot who does.
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Ranma stared coldly at Ryuunosuke after it fell from the 'sky'. The Hiryuu Shoten Ha, the Flying Dragon Ascends to Heaven attack or Heavenly Blast of the Dragon, finally settled down and dropped the demon dragon from it's clutches.
But Ranma didn't feel happy that he defeated the beast. No, not one bit. He moved closer to the unmoving beast, breathing heavily after exterting so much strength for so long.
Over fourteen years, he guessed, that he has been fighting the demon dragon. Fourteen years of his life he was once again missing. Sure, his life would of been tough and weird because he had all this knowledge of martial arts from his own world. But at least he didn't have to deal with fiancee's and the curse anymore. The Nyannichuan curse from Jusenkyo. It was just like this dragon. Sealed away so it wouldn't bother him any more. He wouldn't be a girl again!
But then he realized another problem. His eyes widened.
Ryuunosuke was up and glaring at him, a powerful aura surrounding and pulsing along it's now human-like body.
"RRROOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRR!!!" came the dragon-man's powerful bellow, literally blasting Ranma back by just the sound-waves alone.
For the first in his life, Ranma knew true fear.
-----
Horse of the Leaf by Bud
Chapter 9: How Can You Lose, but Win?
At the end of the second exam, those that arrived on the last day were allowed an extra four hours of rest before moving onto the next stage. That ment more waiting for those that arrived earlier. When the four hours were finished, the assembled 21 genin were escorted to the largest and inner most room within the tower. They were assembled before a giant statue which was a pair of hands in the form of the seal of the 'Ram'.
On the stage in front of the genin, their Jounin instructors stood in front of the statue while the examiners stood off of the stage and to the side. Anko Mitarashi and Ibiki Morino were present along with chuunin examiners. But the main attraction was not the Jounin's or chuunin's. It was the man standing at the center of the stage smiling at seeing those whom passed the difficult second exam.
Sandaime, the Third Hokage.
"First off," began Anko. "Congradulations on passing the second exam." Of the 27 teams, only seven made it. I said I was cutting them in half but I was expecting less than his, more like single digits, she thought.
Ranma looked around. His team was was at the center of the group next to Sasuke's team on the left and that Kabuto guy's team on his right. He was standing in the middle row with Neji in front of him and Tenten behind. He leaned forward a little bit and caught Hinata's eye, whom was standing next to Sasuke, and gave her a thumbs up and showed his pearly whites.
'Sempai...' she blushed and nervously toyed with her fingers. She also looked at the front row and saw Naruto. 'Oh good... Naruto-kun passes too..'
'There's Gai-sensei!' Ranma saw his sensei and gave him a thumbs up.
Gai returned the gesture and spoke with his eternal rival.
"You team isn't too bad. Maybe they were lucky. But as long as my team is around, getting any farther is impossible," he said to Kakashi Hatake with confidence. "Since, in the next stage, personal abilities are critical." He looked at Kakashi. "With youth there are sweet times and there are sour times, eh Kakashi?"
"Huh? You saying something?"
'OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!!!' Gai turned away from Kakashi and clenched his fist.
'That was pretty good, rival Kakashi...' Flames appeared around Gai. 'That attitude is some-what "Modern", and it pisses me off.'
Tenten giggled to herself. 'Ahh.. that's Gai-sensei's eternal rival. Gai-sensei totally loses to him in terms of looks though...'
'I knew it!' Ranma thought, clutching his fist and mimicing Gai. 'Among all the Jounin, Gai-sensei is the coolest! He's shining! Alright... Watch me as I shine too!!' Fire burned in his eyes.
'All the main guy's survived...' Neji didn't have to look back to see the person next to Ranma. 'Sasuke Uchiha...'
Ranma looked over at Sasuke and noticed him rubbing the side of his neck. He wondered what happened to him. 'Could it be from that fight...? Or could it be something else?'
"Hokage-sama will now explain the third exam. Listen carefully!" Anko stated. "Hokage-sama, please."
Sandaime nodded.
"The Third Exam will now begin." stated the Hokage. "But before the explaination, there's one thing I want to make clear with all of you. It's about the true purpose of this exam."
"Why do we do the joint exams with allied nations. 'To maintain good relations with the allied nations' and 'heighten the level of ninja'. Do not let those reasons deceive you. This 'exam', so to speak, is... The epitome of war between the allied nations."
Ranma frowned.
"What do you mean?" Tenten asked, leaning to the side from behind Ranma.
"If we go back through history, the allied nations right now were neighboring countries that have fought each other over and over again. To avoid wasting military power, those countries decided to choose a place to fight. That is the beginning of the Chuunin Selection Exam."
Ranma gritted his teeth. He didn't like the way this was going.
"Why do we have to do that?" asked Naruto, loud as ever. "We are not doing this to select Chuunins?"
"Yes, this Exam does examine those that are worthy of the Chuunin title. But, on the other hand, it's also a place where Ninja fight and carry on their countries dignity. In the Third Exam, feudal lords and famous people from various countries who may be potential clients are invited here as guests. And feudal lords from countries with Hidden Villages and ninja leaders will see your battles. If there is a significant difference in power, the strong country will be flooded with jobs. If a country is seen as being weak, their jobs will decrease. And at the same time, countries are able to show how their village has grown and possess excellent military power to the adjacent countries. In other words, they can put foreign pressure on them."
Ranma sighed. He understood now. And why his father was proud to be a chuunin.
"So why do we have to fight with the risk of losing our lives?" asked Kiba Inuzuka, just as loud as Naruto.
Ranma spoke up. "Don't you get it? A countries power is a villages power. A villages power is in the ninja's power." He chuckled. "The only way for someone to show their real power is through a life-and-death battle."
Gai felt proud of Ranma.
The Hokage nodded. It seems like Stone Lee's son was just as understanding as he was. "That is correct, Ranma. Good observation."
"This Exam is also a place to show off the ninja power of one's country. Since this exam is where you fight with your life on the line, it has a meaning and your predecessors have fought and dreamed of being in the Chuunin Exam because of it."
"But why do you say it is to promote good relations?"
Sandaime removed his pipe and held it. "I told you in the beginning to not get confused by that." He shook his head. "By losing life and establishing balance. This is the shape of friendship in the world of... Ninja. This is a life or death battle for your dream and dignity."
"Heh.. I understand now." Naruto said, arms crossed with a confident look."
"I don't care." said Gaara from the Hidden Sand. "Tell us the details of this life-or-death Exam."
The Third nodded. "Then I will now begin the explaination of the Third Exam, but.."
A nin dropped down and landed in a kneeling position in front of the Hokage. By the looks of his clothing, he was clearly a Jounin of Konoha.
"Excuse me, Hokage-sama... I, Hayate Gekkou, the judge, will explain."
"Please do."
He stood and coughed a little before turning around to address the nin's. "Hello everyone. I am Hayate." He coughed again. He looked REALLY sick. "Umm... before the third test, there's something that I would like to do." Cough. "There will be preliminary matches before the third test. This will decide who gets to participate in the main event."
"Preliminary?! What do you mean?!" shouted Shikamaru. This was troublesome.
"Sensei.. I don't understand this preliminary test, but why aren't all the people here allowed to participate in the Third Exam?" asked Sakura.
"Because the first and second exam have been too easy this year. We have a bit too many people remaining." Cough. "According to chuunin exam rules, we must have preliminary bouts to reduce the number of participants for the Third Exam. As Hokage-sama indicated, there will be many guest at the Third Exam, so the fights could take too long. We are limited in time."
"So anyway, those who are not feeling well, those who feel like quitting after these explainations. Please raise your hand and come forward now. We will be starting the preliminary matched immediately."
"YES!" Ranma shouted. He clutched his fist and had a confident look. He was the ONLY one from Konoha that was eager for a right-here-right-now fight.
"I umm.. I will leave."
Ranma turned his head along with everyone else. It was that Kabuto guy. Why was he leaving? he thought. Why are a Konoha genin leaving?! Ranma sent him a strong glare.
Hayate looked at some paper-word. "umm... You're Kabuto Yakushi of Konoha, correct? You may leave now." He looked at the assembled. "Umm.. does anyone else wish to retire? Oh umm.. I forgot to tell you that from now on it will be individual battling, one-on-one. You may raise your hand based on your own judgement."
After Kabuto exchange words with Naruto, he proceeded to walk out of the arena. Just as he passed by Ranma, the pigtailed genin grabbed his by the arm and completely stopped his movement.
"Hey you," Ranma said acidly. Everyone eyes, including those of the Hokage, Gai and the Jounin's and all of the genin's turn to Ranma and Kabuto. "You're quitting?"
Kabuto sweated. He tried to get his arm loose but his fellow Konoha genin's grip was too strong.
"You heard what I told Naruto..so, yes."
Ranma gripped him harder. He didn't even look at Kabuto. "My sensei always tells me that 'Youth and mistakes go naturally together. In youth, you have choices to make that will decide how quickly or how slowly you evolve from the spring time of life to explode into adulthood'. You took this Chuunin Selection Exam for reason's I don't know or don't care for. But to make it to the ultimate stage were one could shine forever and suddenly quit..."
Ranma's eyes locked onto Kabuto's. The fire burning within Ranma pierced into Kabuto's mind causing the older genin to shake. He shoved Kabuto towards the exit and release his arm, causing the man to stumble.
"YOUR NOT WORTHY OF THE TITLE OF CHUUNIN!!" he shouted, shocking many of the Jounin and genin. "If you leave now... don't ever come back."
Ibiki Morino was chuckling along with his chuunin examiners. He liked this Ranma guy. He couldn't wait to see what would happen next.
"Ranma!" Gai shouted. "That's enough." His student nodded and composed himself.
'Holy shit.. I never seen Ranma like that..' Tenten and Neji both thought. The same thoughts came Sasuke, Sakura, Naruto and even Hinata.
Ranma blinked when Sasuke hunched as if he was in pain. "Hey.. are you okay?" he asked, completely forgetting about what transpired between him and the quitter.
"None of your business." Sasuke muttered, rubbing the crook of his neck by on his left shoulder.
"Huh?! Sasuke-kun, you should also quit the prelims!" said Sakura. Sasuke stared at her. "You have been acting strange since that Orochimaru guy attacked you. That mark still hurts, right?!"
Orochimaru? Ranma thought back to his father's stories. Wasn't he one of the Legendary Sannin's? (Three Ninja's)
"Please.. please quit...I'm afraid..." She looked at him with tears in her eyes. "You are in no condition to fight!!"
"Shut up!" Sasuke told her.
"Yeah, shut up, Uncute forehead girl." Ranma was tired of hearing Sakura try to convince her own teammate - her teammate! - to quit.
"Shut up you lame bastard! And stay out of our business!" shouted the pink-haired girl. It wasn't loud enough to draw attention though.
"Do you know how bad your sensei would feel if any of your team suddenly quit? Do you know how the Hokage feels when he see's his own nin's quitting? Did you see the expression on his face when that Kabuto guy quit? If Sasuke quits, it'll bring shame to the Uchiha name."
Sakura looked down. Sasuke nodded his thanks to Ranma.
"Sakura, I have told you before... I am an Avenger." he stared into her eyes. "This just isn't a test to me. I don't care about chuunin or whatever. 'Am I strong?' I just want the answer to that. Just to fight strong guys here.." He turned his head and spied Gaara out of the corner of his eye. He didn't have to turn around to see Neji. He nodded to Ranma again. He saw the Sound guys at the end. "And they are all here."
"I can't forgive even you if you take that way from me."
"You bastard! Stop acting so cool!" yelled Naruto. "Idiot! Can't you see Sakura is worried about you."
"Naruto..." Sasuke smirked. "I want to fight you too..."
"Umm.. now let's begin the preliminary matches. These matches will consist of one on one fighting. You will basically fight as if this was a real-life confrontation." said Hayate. "Since how that we have exactly 20 entrants, we will conduct 10 matches and.." cough "the winners will proceed to the third exam."
"There are basically no rules. The fight continued until one of you dies or is knocked unconscious or admits defeat. If you do not wish to die, then quickly acknowledge your defeat. But I decide when the winner is clearly established... since we don't want to pointlessly increase the amount of corpses. I'll jump in and stop things."
'Anything goes, huh?' For some reason, Ranma liked those type of rules. It fueled his fire just thinking of it.
-----
Ranma slammed in the invisible wall once again. He was in bad shape. His spiritual body felt like shit. He was numb all over. He couldn't even feel the powerful strikes Ryuunosuke layed down upon him.
"GAAH!!" he cried out when he was once again thrown, landing hard upon the 'ground'.
"In the end, human. You have lost."
Ryuunosuke's eyes widened. Even with his life-force slowly ebbing away...
Ranma got back up.
-----
"No way..." Ranma muttered, staring at the scene below.
"Tenten's weapon attacks were rendered useless..." Neji said, also staring at the two girl who just fought. "This fight was... a more than uneven..."
Below in the arena, a blonde girl with four bushy pigtails was standing confidently and holding out a huge fan that was folded up and almost her height. On top of the fan, Tenten was limply laying on the tip after being caught. She was badly beaten up, bleeding and unconscious.
"The winner, Temari of the Sand." stated Hayate. Ranma saw Temari smirk.
"Oh no..!" He disppeared quickly.
"Nnnn!!" Temari used her strength and launched the unconscious girl toward the opposite wall. But fortunately, Ranma caught his teammate and gently laid her down. He glared at the Sand-Nin. "Nice catch." Temari said, an sinister grin upon her visage.
"What are you doing?!" Ranma shouted, clenching his fish. "Is that how you treat someone who gave you their all in battle?!!"
"Shut up. Take that piece of trash and leave."
That did it. He was pissed. Ranma set Tenten down and charged the Sand-Nin.
"Stop, Lee!" Neji called out in warning.
"KONOHA WHIRLWIND!!" Ranma leaped up a good 20 feet away from the blonde girl and launched a powerful spinning crescent kick. But Temari brought up her fan and simply blocked the powerful attack, also haulting Ranma's combo. "What?"
"Just as I thought," said Temari, smiling evily. "Your just as pathetic as I thought; stupid too."
Ranma growled. "What did you say?" Gai appeared next to Ranma.
"Stop it, Ranma." he commanded.
"Gai-sensei."
Temari scoffed.
"Temari, get up here!!" Gaara said, surprising his older sister. "You've been declared the winner. Stop dealing with that pathetic guy and his guardian.."
Ranma glared at this Gaara guy. "What?!" Both of them stared at each other for a long moment. Ranma was clenching his fist tightly, drawing blood from his palm.
"That's enough, Ranma." said Gai, placing his hand on his charge's shoulder. He closed his eyes and smirked, exhaling a breath. "Heh..." He opened his eyes again. "Gentlemen from the Sand, if I may warn you about one thing?"
Kankuro and Gaara looked at Gai.
Gai was smirking. "This boy... he's strong."
He then thought back to the day the 'other' Ranma struck him.
"VERY strong."
-----
"I... will... win..." Ranma muttered, blood running down his arms. He stared at Ryuunosuke in defiance.
'Impossible,' thought the dragon. 'His spirit is dying, yet he still has enough power to-- no. The boy's will is strong...'
Ranma brought his hand up to his face and formed the seal of the ram. He never used this move before and he wouldn't know if it will work for him, since it was taught to his external personality. But he'll die before giving up his own body. He'll do anything to survive!!
"RRAAAHHH!!" Ranma roar, whatever remained of his ki blazed around him in an inferno.
"What you are doing is futile, human. You are just going to--- UGH!!!"
Ranma appeared under the dragon-man and launched a vicious rising kick that sent Ryuunosuke flying into the 'air'! The dragon-man's eyes were wide in surprise and astonishment. Ranma suddenly appeared under him, following him as if he were the dragon's shadow. He then grabbed him with all his strength around the waist, locking his arms in place. Pulling back, Ranma put them into a power dive and twisted his body, spinning the two of them like a drill.
"INITIAL LOTUS!!!" Ranma cried, pile-driving the dragon-man into the 'ground'. He jumped away when he felt the impact and fell to his knees upon landing.
He coughed up and vomited blood. His spirit felt extremely weak. His muscles, he couldn't move at all. He couldn't feel them. Looking upon himself, his arms were unnaturally sagging and very heavy, as if his muscles have ripped themselves apart when using that move.
"he he he..." Ranma chuckled, falling to his side. "I win... I win..." He choked suddenly and spasmed as his heart started beating rapidly. His breathing became shallower with each breath.
He was dying.
And as his vision faded, the last thing he saw was the form of Ryuunosuke in it's human form, staring down at him with glowing eyes.
"You lose, human."
-----
Ranma clenched his fist and cheered. "Excellent move, Naruto!" He just finished watching Naruto to an excellent combo to that Kiba guy from Hinata's team to win the match. He didn't care that it was similiar to Sasuke's 'Lion Combo' or that it started off with the initial hit for 'Lotus'.
After giving Naruto a bottle of ointment, Hinata made her way down to the ground floor and met up with the medic team carrying Kiba on a stretcher.
"Umm..." she moved closer, a bit shy. "This is medicine.. for Kiba-kun and Akamaru.."
Kiba waved her off. "Heh, you better start worrying about yourself. The only remaining guys are you and Chouji, Neji, Lee, and the Sound and Sand guy... only six people." He looked serious. "Listen, Hinata. If you get the Sand guy, forfeit immediately." She nodded.
"And one more..." he glanced up at the second level before looking at her. "If you get Neji, do the same and forfeit. He's cruel to you... you'll get beaten to a pulp..."
Hinata looked worried.
"Now, we'll announce the next match."
The board in the corner started randomizing the named. After a moment, it came to a stop.
Hinata Hyuuga Vs. Neji Hyuuga
'Oh shit..' Ranma mentally cursed.
"Damn..." Kiba muttered under his breath.
'Interesting match-up...' The Third thought. Kurenai, Hinata's Jounin, looked worried.
"....." Gai knew it would eventually come to this.
Neji and Hinata approached the center of the arena and faced each other. The Hyuuga boy stared at the Hyuuga girl. Hinata was almost shaking in fear.
"I never thought I would be facing you...Hinata-sama."
Hinata gulped. "Neji-nii-san..."
"HUH?!! Sibling?!" Naruto loudly asked.
"No, they are not." Ranma stated, staring down at the match in worry. "They both are from the oldest and greatest bloodline, the House of the Hyuuga Clan. But they are cousin's, not siblings." He sighed. "They are each respectively from the 'Head' and 'Branch' family houses of the Hyuuga Clan."
"Main and branch families?" Naruto asked curiously.
"Yes. Neji is from the lower branch family while Hinata is from the head family. Their father's were twin brothers so that makes them cousins." Ranma said, his hand gripped the railing tightly. "But many things have happened between the two houses over the years and right now, they do not get along very well."
"To protect the the blood and house of the head family, many rules and restrictions have been established to put the main family in an advantageous situation... because of this the branch family feels slighted."
"So they hate each other..." Sakura muttered. Ranma nodded sadly.
"Hinata Hyuuga versus Neji Hyuuga..." Hayate raised his hand. "Now begin the match! cough..."
Neji planted his foot and stared at Hinata.
"Before we begin the fight, I'd like to say something, Hinata-sama."
"....?"
"You don't make a good shinobi... forfeit now!" Hinata stared in surprise at him. "You are too kind. You wish for harmony and avoid conflict. You agree with others, never resisting." He continued as Hinata started looking down. "And you have no confidence in yourself. I always feel your sense of inferiority.. that's why I thought it would be best for you to remain a genin."
"But the Chuunin Selection Exam can only be taking as a team of three. You couldn't turn down your teammate's request and unwillingly entered." He paused. "This is true, am I wrong?"
"n... no.. I... I just wanted.." she gulped. "I just wanted to change myself... do it myself..."
"Hinata-sama. Just as I thought. You are a spoiled brat of the head family."
"Huh?"
"People cannot change themselves!!"
Hinata stared at him, scared.
Ranma frowned, gripping the railing even tighter.
"Losers are losers. Their personality and strength will no change. Because people cannot change, differences are born. Expressions like elite and loser are created. Looks, brains, ability, size and personality.. All people judge and are judged in these values. Based on these unchangable factors, people discriminate and are discriminated against. And they suffer within their own means." Neji's eyes narrowed. "Just like the fact that I am from the branch family and you are from the head family cannot be changed...."
Ranma gritted his teeth. He was visibly shaking. Gai looked worried.
"I have seen through many things with this Byakugan, so I know. You are just acting strong... deep inside you just want to run away from here and hide."
"N--no.. I really....!"
'Byakyugan!!' Neji's eyes widened and veins appeared around his eye-sockets around on his face. Hinata's knees started to shake and she tried diverting her eyes from Neji's own.
"You can't fool my eyes." Neji started. "Against my pressure just now... you floated your eyes to the upper left. This is a sign that you are remembering past experiences. Your painful past. And after that you looked to the lower right. That is a sign that you are imagining physical and mental pain. Basically, you are thinking about yourself and from the all experience until now, you are imagining the results of this match. Imagining that... You'll Lose!!"
"The action of raising your arms in front of your body. That shows that you are trying to create a barrier between us, create distance from me. That you are trying to prevent me from figuring out how you are truely feeling. Because everything I have said is totally correct. Furthermore..."
Ranma's eye were widened. His hands were gripping the railing so tightly they they were being warped by his small movements. Everyone including Gai and Kakashi backed away from Ranma. They could feel the killing intent coming from him.
"Furthermore.. Touching your lip is a personality trait revealing a disturbance. It is a defense mechanism to soften the nervousness and worrying." Hinata was sweating and had tears running from her eyes. "So basically in reality.. Haven't you already realized...?"
"That you cannot change your..."
"RAAAAAHH!!!!" Ranma literally ripped off a portion of the steel railing before turning around and drilling into into the wall behind him with his barehands.
"SHUT UP!!! SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP!!!" He screamed, leaning over another portion of the railing that didn't feel his wrath.
'Ranma?!' Neji looked back. What has gotten into him? He looked at Hinata and saw that all the fear inside her disappeared.
"HINATA!!!" Ranma shouted down at her. "YOU CAN CHANGE YOURSELF!! STOP LISTENING TO THAT BASTARD AND KICK HIS ASS!!!!"
"....." 'Sempai..."
"Stand up for yourself damn it!!" Ranma had tears in his eyes. "Be the Hinata that I know, not this person I see in front of me!!"
"Yeah, Hinata!! Stand up for yourself!" Naruto joined Ranma. "Everyone is getting upset just watching this!!"
Ranma-sempai and Naruto-kun are cheering me on, thought Hinata. Her eyes became like steel and she initiated the Byakugan. She moved into the stand of the gentle fist - left hand palm facing forward and right hand down at her side loosely closed.
"...." Neji stared at her. "So you won't forfiet. I won't be responsible for what happens."
"I not longer wish to run away!" She said loudly. "Neji-nii-san... Let's fight!"
Neji also moved into a similiar stance and activated his own Byakugan. "Very well." The two of them stared at each other, trying to guage each other.
In a matter of moments, the two Hyuuga's charged at each other. Hinata struck first with a heavy palm strike at that Neji blocked. She followed up with several more left and right palm stricks that the male Hyuuga dodged. Neji turned his head from one of her strikes and attacked with his own palm strike. Hinata bobbed her head from left to right, twisting her body away from several other attacks and leaned back from a strike to the chest. She struck at him again but he blocked, slapping her hand away and she did the same to his hand.
For a short moment it seemed even. Both Hyuuga genin's were attacking relentlessly, yet each of them were either dodging and blocking attacks at the same time. But the momentum shifted when one of Hinata's palm strikes forced Neji to step back. She reared back and prepared to deal heavy damage to her cousin. Pushing off with her right foot and brought her left hand back and came in with a hooking palm-strike to his mid-section. 'Here!' she thought, waiting for his reaction.
Neji bent forward hopping back to avoid it. She only nicked him.
Hinata smirked. Neji's eyes widened when he saw her left hand coming right for him.
"HAAAA!!" she cried as her palm struck Neji in the sternum. The Hyuuga boy literally flew back and impacted against the surrounding wall.
When Neji shook the cob-webs out of his head, he realized what just happened. Hinata used the hook as a feint to disquise the real attack from her other arm. And not only that, she struck with enough force to sent him flying a good distance away. Her strike didn't just consist of injecting chakra, she was also strong!
'How did she get this strong...?' Neji thought, getting back up and facing off once again with the smirking Hinata.
'Yes, Neji-nii-san. Take me seriously now.' she thought.
'Holy cow...' thought Kurenai. 'Hinata is strong. Has she been holding back all this time?' The same thoughts came also from Shino Aburame, her teammate.
Ranma was smirking. "Yeah! Get him, Hinata!!"
Neji spat blood on the floor. He narrowed his eyes at Hinata. The short-haired girl taunted him by calling him to her with her finger. Both gritted their teeth and shot forward. At the same time the two planted a foot and struck.
"Uck!" Hinata coughed, blood flowing from her mouth. Her attack completely missed Neji because of his longer reach. He had one hand on her chest and the other poking two fingers at her shoulder.
"So this is it... the extend of the head families strength?"
"HAAA!!" Hinata brough her left hand back and struck at Neji. But the boy was quicker, grabbing Hinata by the wrist and jabbing two fingers into her arm. "AAhhhh!!"
Neji stared at her. He simply pulled her sleave down her arm and revealed that it was dotted in an angry-red all over her arm. Hinata's eyes widened.
"No way..." she gasped. "So from the beginning..."
"Exactly," Neji confirmed. "I can see the opening points." He brought his arm back and slammed it into her chest, similiar to what she did to him earlier. But only flew back a few feet.
"Kyyaaa!!" She cried, landing hard on her back. She slowly tried to get up.
"Hinata-sama. This is the difference in talent that will never change. The difference that divided elites from losers. This is a reality that cannot be changed." He relaxed his stance. "At the point you said 'I do not want to run' you were setting yourself up for regret. You should be overcome with desperation now."
"......"
"Forfiet!" Neji demanded.
"I...." Hinata started to get up slowly. "... don't go back... on my words..." she stood upright and moved into the Jyuuken stance. "And a loser... will defeat an elite with.. hard work..." she smirked at him seeing his upset eyes. ".. That is also... my way of the ninja!"
"I... never knew Hinata was this incredible.." Naruto said softly, gazing at Hinata. He felt Ranma's hand lay gently on his shoulder.
"Hinata and I trained everyday before I became apart of Gai-sensei's team, and even before I graduated the academy. She was always strong from the beginning, it was just that she was too shy to use her full strength."
"Come." Neji said to Hinata, glaring hatred.
Hinata took a step forward. Her eyes widened and she gasped, coughing up blood.
Ranma's eyes widened. He gripped the rail once again and stared at his best friend. "Hinata!!"
Naruto's teacher, Kakashi, spoke. "Neji's 'Opening Point' attacks have completely shut down her chakra flow. So basically.. she can no longer do her Jyuuken, 'Gentle-fist' attacks." He sighed. "This match is over."
"Shut up. You don't know anything about her." Ranma said, not looking at Kakashi. "HINATA!! STOP HOLDING BACK DAMN IT! YOU CAN STILL WIN!! FORGET THAT HE'S FAMILY! THINK OF ALL THE TIMES THAT HE'S TREATED YOU BADLY IN THE PAST!! LOOK AT HIS EYES!! HE WANTS TO DO MORE THAN PUT YOU IN THE HOSPITAL!!"
Hinata looked up from Ranma and down to Neji. She saw it in his eyes. Like Neji, her Byakugan can see all. And she could see the intent to kill from Neji. She could see that he wanted to torture her, just because she was a head family member.
She thought back to the times when her and Neji use to be the best of friends. Playing together and having the best of fun. But after his father died, her uncle, he changed dramatically and treated her badly. Always picking on her.
Looking back up at Ranma again, she nodded firmly. Ranma nodded back in acknowledgement.
The Hyuuga girl stared at Neji. Unzipping her jacket, she tosses it aside. She wore a body hugging sleaveless shinobi shirt. Many stared at her body. Instead of the frail girl that they expected, she was very well toned and muscular for a girl of her age. Her body alone made her seem two years older.
To Neji's and many other's surprise, Hinata moved into a different stance other than the gentle-fist. She had her right and forward, elbow bent with her palm facing upward. He left arm was behind her back with her fist clenched.
It was the primary stance of Gouken.
Gai looked at the smirking Ranma. "You didn't.. did you?" he asked, surprised that someone other than him and Ranma practiced the style.
The pigtailed genin shook his head. "She was my sparring partner when we both were not on missions and were not training. She picked it up on her own, Gai-sensei." Ranma smirked once more. "When she adopted our style, her strength increased to the point where I first began training in Gouken."
"....."
'That is... Gai-sensei and Ranma's style...' Neji observed. 'Here she comes!'
Hinata charged at Neji with speed Kurenai and Shino thought she never had. It wasn't until she was twenty feet from her cousin that she initiated a move the caused Gai, Neji, Kakashi and Kurenai to gasped in amazement.
"KONOHA WHIRLWIND!!"
Neji blocked the first spinning crescent kick and leaped over the break-dancing style low-roundhouse kick. He then blocked the following and final kick and found an opening. He thrusted his hand in a powerful palm strike, but Hinata batted it up and away. To his surprise, she suddenly switched styles in the middle of her move and struck with both hands at his chest, sending him flying once more into the wall.
'I can feel it.. I can feel strength...' thought Hinata.
Neji and Hinata started trading blows. Instead of palm-strikes, she was punching in patterns that she remembered Ranma using upon her. She also ducked and waved passed Neji's own strikes as quickly as her sore body allowed her.
'Naruto-kun.. Ranma-sempai... In the past, I was the one looking upon you ...'
Hinata grabbed Neji's wrist and thrusted a hard elbow into his chest. He retaliated by striking another opening point and shoving her back with a hard palm-strike.
'..but right now you are both watching me.'
She started another Konoha whirlwind, but Neji caught her kick this time and struck more opening points. She ignored the pain and twisted, floating her body and free leg into an insugiri that Neji barely ducked. Pushing her back, they both shot at each other with palm-strikes.
'And Ranma-sempai... he's smiling at me, because he knows I have already changed.. from the person I once was...'
"GAH!!"
Neji's palm struck just above Hinata's chest. She coughed up alot of blood and and fell to the floor face first. Neji stood over her, eyes closed.
Ranma stared, wide-eyed.
"Maybe you have changed, Hinata.. but that still does not change your destiny. You are and and always will be a loser and spoiled brat of the Head family."
"A deciding blow to the heart." Gai observed. "I feel bad for her but she will not get up again."
"Continuing is impossible and this---" Hayate started.
"DON'T STOP IT!!!" Ranma shouted in anger.
Sakura looked at him as if he grown a third head. "What you saying, lame brain?! She's at her limit! She's unconscious!!"
"You call that unconscious?" he asked, pointing at the arena floor.
Neji stared, wide-eyed once again at his cousin. Everyone, especially Kurenai and Shino gasped in complete surprises and disbelief.
Even with blood freely dripping from her mouth, Hinata slowly struggled to stand. First to one knee, then slowly rose until she was standing on two feet, though her legs and body trembled.
'In front of the man I admire the most... I will always rise to make him proud of me...because he is the man I love...' she thought, looking up at Ranma for a moment before looking back at Neji. She forced her body to move into the Gouken stance. She didn't have enough chakra to use her Byakugan anymore.
"Why do you stand..." Neji asked in disbelief. "If you keep pushing yourself, you will die..."
"It's not over." she gasped.
"Acting tough is useless. You can barely stand and I can see that. From the time of your birth the responsibility of the Hyuuga Head family has been forced upon you. You have always hated yourself for your own weakness.. But people cannot change.. That is destiny..." Neji stated. "There is no need to suffer anymore.. Let it go!"
"That's not true... Neji-nii-san." she breathed, moving her hand to clutch her stomach. "Because.. I can see it.. It's not me at all..."
"The person lost and suffering within the Head and branch families... is you..."
Neji's byakugan activated and he narrowed his eyes. He charged at Hinata with all intent to kill.
"Neji-kun! This match is over!!" shouted Hayate Gekkou.
Neji suddenly found himself restained. Gai had his arms around his neck. Kakashi had a firm grasped on his right arm while Kurenai kneeled and held his left. Hayate had his fingers poking Neji's forehead.
"Neji, give it a rest." Gai said to him. "You gave me a warm promise not to lose you head over this Head family stuff."
"Why do even the other Jounin's jump it..." Neji narrowed his eyes. "Oh, more special treatment for the Head family..."
"GAAH!! GAH!!" Hinata suddenly doubled over and fell to her knees, blood coughing out of her mouth even more than last time.
"HINATA!!" Kurenai screamed, moving quickly to her charge.
'Oh no!' Ranma and Naruto dropped down, also moving to Hinata. Ranma knelt by his friend and checked her pulse. He looked over her skin and felt her forehead. "Hinata..."
"Her color is bad..." Sakura said, joining the other two.
Ranma quickly called over the medics. "What are you assholes waiting for?!! Hurry up damn it!!"
"Ranma-san..." Sakura felt sorry for him. He said Hinata is his best friend, she would be feeling the same to Ino if this happened to her, despite being rivals now.
Ranma stood and closed his eyes. But it wasn't enough to hold back the tear running down his face.
"Hey you, loser over there." Neji called out. Naruto turned to Neji with a glare. "I'd like to tell you two things. If you are a shinobi, the cut out the pathetic cheering of others. And one more... In the end, a loser is a loser. They cannot change!!"
"You wanna test me?" Naruto asked acidly.
"Heh."
Naruto charged at Neji quickly. But he suddenly stopped and turned around when a voice of anger, pain and depression filled the air.
"NEEEEEJIIIIIIIIII!!!!"
Ranma turned around slowly, his eyes locking onto Neji's own. In his eyes, Neji could see the blazing inferno of power hidden behind them. It caused him to sweat and instinctively take a step back.
"You.... bastard.." Ranma whispered, now fully facing his teammate. "You promised you would not bring that head and branch family bullshit into the exam, yet you did. You broke a promise to Gai-sensei.." He growled. ".. AND YOU TRIED KILLED MY BEST FRIEND!!! YOUR OWN FLESH AND BLOOD!!!"
Ranma squated down where Hinata once stood before the medics took her off. He placed his hand in her blood and left it there.
"I have lost all respect for you.. Neji Hyuuga." he said acidly. He slowly stood and let his hand hang, dripping with Hinata's blood. "I once thought of your as my rival, a person I wanted to defeat to better myself and prove that hard-work can defeat a genieous. Someone that I trusted and depended upon when the going got tough."
Ranma's eyes narrowed. "I hate you, Neji Hyuuga. I have always have. And always will. From day one you treated me like crap, mocking my words because I was a three-time drop-out before I graduated the academy. Even after the matches I challenged you two, you would always taunt me and say that I will never defeat you, that it's written in destiny. It took me from that the time that we shared in class up to this match for me to realize how much of a petty little bitch you are."
He clenched his fist covered with Hinata's blood and raised up and pointed it at Neji so he can see it. See the blood the flows through him drip from Ranma's hand onto the ground.
"Neji Hyuuga. If Hinata doesn't live to see another day..."
Ranma's eyes lit up again and his smile became evil.
"Omae Korosu."
I will kill you.
-----
Ranma slowly opened his eyes.
"Is this... heaven..? Kinda dark..."
"Heh."
Ranma's eyes snapped to attention and he sat up quickly. The last thing he remembered was performing the Lotus and dying. And the dragon was still alive. He turned his head and finally saw him.
"Pathetic." said Ryuunosuke. The dragon in human form stood, hands on hips and shaking his head. "Very pathetic."
"why... am I not dead?" he asked, curious.
Ryuunosuke paused.
"For over the 4000 years I have lived, I have always thought of human kind as weak beings that never did deserve the right to rule this world. Sorrid little creatures that were more of an annoyance than anything else. Because of humans, many of the old magic has left this world, replaced by things like.. technology."
"Human's have also taken away many of my kind by summoning creatures from other worlds to battle us. I was the last full-blooded dragon in the living world."
"I kill humans for fun, Ranma Saotome. Oh do not look surprised. I remembered who you were. It is fun to try and remember the names of the humans I have slain and gutted with my own claws."
Ryuunosuke turned around and stared at Ranma.
"But here in lies the problem with you... you refused to die." He started to pace around the confused martial artist. "In this world, we actually battle with our spirits. Our wills. We fought non-stop for possibly years in real-time, and everytime I would send you down you would get right back up. I at first thought of you as a cock-roach that just kept coming back. But something in my mind decided that you were something else completely. Something special."
"With the 4000 plus years I have lived, I have never fought against a human with such a strong will. I was actually having fun fighting against such a strong human. You surprised me time and time again." Ryuunosuke grinned. "I like you... human."
Ranma followed Ryuunosuke's eyes upward. He gasped when he saw the symbol of the dragon's seal and the seal made by Yondaime to lock the other seal. Inside the second seal, the Dragon's seal disappeared completely.
"You should feel honored, Human. You are the first human to ever again my respect." Ranma's eyes widened. "You can have your body. You deserve it more than I do."
With that, Ryuunosuke rose up and entered the seal, to be locked away for eternity inside the pigtailed genin.
Ranma just stared.
"You may have lost the battle, Ranma Saotome. But in the end, you have won my respect."
End of Chapter 9 -----
Author's Notes:
HAHAH!! You didn't expect all that huh?! I bet everyone was thinking Ranma would eventually beat the dragon. HA! Fooled you all! He lost. But he gained something even better in losing. A second chance at life.
On a note, I skipped almost all the matches in the prelim bouts because it was just a waste of time. All matches went the same way in the story as they did in the manga. Sasuke, Kankuro, Naruto, Shino and Shikamaru of course won their matches. And of course Neji and Temari.
Why did I have Neji win against this stronger Hinata? Well if Neji can beat Rock at his current level, then why should Hinata win also? I would also like to make note that the ONLY reason Neji can consistantly beat Rock Lee is due to the promises he made to Gai. He cannot remove his weights unless he is protecting many important people. He cannot use Initial Lotus unless he is defending someone really important. He could use Primary Lotus and open the heavenly gates, but that is a last resort move to defend his way of the Ninja.
You might also seem to notice that in this story, Ranma Lee is more observive than Rock Lee. You could say that because of his upbringing by his father, Ranma learned to observe more than Rock Lee did in the manga and anime.
Next is Chapter 10: Watch out Gaara! Here comes Ranma!
-----
Ranma stared coldly at Ryuunosuke after it fell from the 'sky'. The Hiryuu Shoten Ha, the Flying Dragon Ascends to Heaven attack or Heavenly Blast of the Dragon, finally settled down and dropped the demon dragon from it's clutches.
But Ranma didn't feel happy that he defeated the beast. No, not one bit. He moved closer to the unmoving beast, breathing heavily after exterting so much strength for so long.
Over fourteen years, he guessed, that he has been fighting the demon dragon. Fourteen years of his life he was once again missing. Sure, his life would of been tough and weird because he had all this knowledge of martial arts from his own world. But at least he didn't have to deal with fiancee's and the curse anymore. The Nyannichuan curse from Jusenkyo. It was just like this dragon. Sealed away so it wouldn't bother him any more. He wouldn't be a girl again!
But then he realized another problem. His eyes widened.
Ryuunosuke was up and glaring at him, a powerful aura surrounding and pulsing along it's now human-like body.
"RRROOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRR!!!" came the dragon-man's powerful bellow, literally blasting Ranma back by just the sound-waves alone.
For the first in his life, Ranma knew true fear.
-----
Horse of the Leaf by Bud
Chapter 9: How Can You Lose, but Win?
At the end of the second exam, those that arrived on the last day were allowed an extra four hours of rest before moving onto the next stage. That ment more waiting for those that arrived earlier. When the four hours were finished, the assembled 21 genin were escorted to the largest and inner most room within the tower. They were assembled before a giant statue which was a pair of hands in the form of the seal of the 'Ram'.
On the stage in front of the genin, their Jounin instructors stood in front of the statue while the examiners stood off of the stage and to the side. Anko Mitarashi and Ibiki Morino were present along with chuunin examiners. But the main attraction was not the Jounin's or chuunin's. It was the man standing at the center of the stage smiling at seeing those whom passed the difficult second exam.
Sandaime, the Third Hokage.
"First off," began Anko. "Congradulations on passing the second exam." Of the 27 teams, only seven made it. I said I was cutting them in half but I was expecting less than his, more like single digits, she thought.
Ranma looked around. His team was was at the center of the group next to Sasuke's team on the left and that Kabuto guy's team on his right. He was standing in the middle row with Neji in front of him and Tenten behind. He leaned forward a little bit and caught Hinata's eye, whom was standing next to Sasuke, and gave her a thumbs up and showed his pearly whites.
'Sempai...' she blushed and nervously toyed with her fingers. She also looked at the front row and saw Naruto. 'Oh good... Naruto-kun passes too..'
'There's Gai-sensei!' Ranma saw his sensei and gave him a thumbs up.
Gai returned the gesture and spoke with his eternal rival.
"You team isn't too bad. Maybe they were lucky. But as long as my team is around, getting any farther is impossible," he said to Kakashi Hatake with confidence. "Since, in the next stage, personal abilities are critical." He looked at Kakashi. "With youth there are sweet times and there are sour times, eh Kakashi?"
"Huh? You saying something?"
'OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!!!' Gai turned away from Kakashi and clenched his fist.
'That was pretty good, rival Kakashi...' Flames appeared around Gai. 'That attitude is some-what "Modern", and it pisses me off.'
Tenten giggled to herself. 'Ahh.. that's Gai-sensei's eternal rival. Gai-sensei totally loses to him in terms of looks though...'
'I knew it!' Ranma thought, clutching his fist and mimicing Gai. 'Among all the Jounin, Gai-sensei is the coolest! He's shining! Alright... Watch me as I shine too!!' Fire burned in his eyes.
'All the main guy's survived...' Neji didn't have to look back to see the person next to Ranma. 'Sasuke Uchiha...'
Ranma looked over at Sasuke and noticed him rubbing the side of his neck. He wondered what happened to him. 'Could it be from that fight...? Or could it be something else?'
"Hokage-sama will now explain the third exam. Listen carefully!" Anko stated. "Hokage-sama, please."
Sandaime nodded.
"The Third Exam will now begin." stated the Hokage. "But before the explaination, there's one thing I want to make clear with all of you. It's about the true purpose of this exam."
"Why do we do the joint exams with allied nations. 'To maintain good relations with the allied nations' and 'heighten the level of ninja'. Do not let those reasons deceive you. This 'exam', so to speak, is... The epitome of war between the allied nations."
Ranma frowned.
"What do you mean?" Tenten asked, leaning to the side from behind Ranma.
"If we go back through history, the allied nations right now were neighboring countries that have fought each other over and over again. To avoid wasting military power, those countries decided to choose a place to fight. That is the beginning of the Chuunin Selection Exam."
Ranma gritted his teeth. He didn't like the way this was going.
"Why do we have to do that?" asked Naruto, loud as ever. "We are not doing this to select Chuunins?"
"Yes, this Exam does examine those that are worthy of the Chuunin title. But, on the other hand, it's also a place where Ninja fight and carry on their countries dignity. In the Third Exam, feudal lords and famous people from various countries who may be potential clients are invited here as guests. And feudal lords from countries with Hidden Villages and ninja leaders will see your battles. If there is a significant difference in power, the strong country will be flooded with jobs. If a country is seen as being weak, their jobs will decrease. And at the same time, countries are able to show how their village has grown and possess excellent military power to the adjacent countries. In other words, they can put foreign pressure on them."
Ranma sighed. He understood now. And why his father was proud to be a chuunin.
"So why do we have to fight with the risk of losing our lives?" asked Kiba Inuzuka, just as loud as Naruto.
Ranma spoke up. "Don't you get it? A countries power is a villages power. A villages power is in the ninja's power." He chuckled. "The only way for someone to show their real power is through a life-and-death battle."
Gai felt proud of Ranma.
The Hokage nodded. It seems like Stone Lee's son was just as understanding as he was. "That is correct, Ranma. Good observation."
"This Exam is also a place to show off the ninja power of one's country. Since this exam is where you fight with your life on the line, it has a meaning and your predecessors have fought and dreamed of being in the Chuunin Exam because of it."
"But why do you say it is to promote good relations?"
Sandaime removed his pipe and held it. "I told you in the beginning to not get confused by that." He shook his head. "By losing life and establishing balance. This is the shape of friendship in the world of... Ninja. This is a life or death battle for your dream and dignity."
"Heh.. I understand now." Naruto said, arms crossed with a confident look."
"I don't care." said Gaara from the Hidden Sand. "Tell us the details of this life-or-death Exam."
The Third nodded. "Then I will now begin the explaination of the Third Exam, but.."
A nin dropped down and landed in a kneeling position in front of the Hokage. By the looks of his clothing, he was clearly a Jounin of Konoha.
"Excuse me, Hokage-sama... I, Hayate Gekkou, the judge, will explain."
"Please do."
He stood and coughed a little before turning around to address the nin's. "Hello everyone. I am Hayate." He coughed again. He looked REALLY sick. "Umm... before the third test, there's something that I would like to do." Cough. "There will be preliminary matches before the third test. This will decide who gets to participate in the main event."
"Preliminary?! What do you mean?!" shouted Shikamaru. This was troublesome.
"Sensei.. I don't understand this preliminary test, but why aren't all the people here allowed to participate in the Third Exam?" asked Sakura.
"Because the first and second exam have been too easy this year. We have a bit too many people remaining." Cough. "According to chuunin exam rules, we must have preliminary bouts to reduce the number of participants for the Third Exam. As Hokage-sama indicated, there will be many guest at the Third Exam, so the fights could take too long. We are limited in time."
"So anyway, those who are not feeling well, those who feel like quitting after these explainations. Please raise your hand and come forward now. We will be starting the preliminary matched immediately."
"YES!" Ranma shouted. He clutched his fist and had a confident look. He was the ONLY one from Konoha that was eager for a right-here-right-now fight.
"I umm.. I will leave."
Ranma turned his head along with everyone else. It was that Kabuto guy. Why was he leaving? he thought. Why are a Konoha genin leaving?! Ranma sent him a strong glare.
Hayate looked at some paper-word. "umm... You're Kabuto Yakushi of Konoha, correct? You may leave now." He looked at the assembled. "Umm.. does anyone else wish to retire? Oh umm.. I forgot to tell you that from now on it will be individual battling, one-on-one. You may raise your hand based on your own judgement."
After Kabuto exchange words with Naruto, he proceeded to walk out of the arena. Just as he passed by Ranma, the pigtailed genin grabbed his by the arm and completely stopped his movement.
"Hey you," Ranma said acidly. Everyone eyes, including those of the Hokage, Gai and the Jounin's and all of the genin's turn to Ranma and Kabuto. "You're quitting?"
Kabuto sweated. He tried to get his arm loose but his fellow Konoha genin's grip was too strong.
"You heard what I told Naruto..so, yes."
Ranma gripped him harder. He didn't even look at Kabuto. "My sensei always tells me that 'Youth and mistakes go naturally together. In youth, you have choices to make that will decide how quickly or how slowly you evolve from the spring time of life to explode into adulthood'. You took this Chuunin Selection Exam for reason's I don't know or don't care for. But to make it to the ultimate stage were one could shine forever and suddenly quit..."
Ranma's eyes locked onto Kabuto's. The fire burning within Ranma pierced into Kabuto's mind causing the older genin to shake. He shoved Kabuto towards the exit and release his arm, causing the man to stumble.
"YOUR NOT WORTHY OF THE TITLE OF CHUUNIN!!" he shouted, shocking many of the Jounin and genin. "If you leave now... don't ever come back."
Ibiki Morino was chuckling along with his chuunin examiners. He liked this Ranma guy. He couldn't wait to see what would happen next.
"Ranma!" Gai shouted. "That's enough." His student nodded and composed himself.
'Holy shit.. I never seen Ranma like that..' Tenten and Neji both thought. The same thoughts came Sasuke, Sakura, Naruto and even Hinata.
Ranma blinked when Sasuke hunched as if he was in pain. "Hey.. are you okay?" he asked, completely forgetting about what transpired between him and the quitter.
"None of your business." Sasuke muttered, rubbing the crook of his neck by on his left shoulder.
"Huh?! Sasuke-kun, you should also quit the prelims!" said Sakura. Sasuke stared at her. "You have been acting strange since that Orochimaru guy attacked you. That mark still hurts, right?!"
Orochimaru? Ranma thought back to his father's stories. Wasn't he one of the Legendary Sannin's? (Three Ninja's)
"Please.. please quit...I'm afraid..." She looked at him with tears in her eyes. "You are in no condition to fight!!"
"Shut up!" Sasuke told her.
"Yeah, shut up, Uncute forehead girl." Ranma was tired of hearing Sakura try to convince her own teammate - her teammate! - to quit.
"Shut up you lame bastard! And stay out of our business!" shouted the pink-haired girl. It wasn't loud enough to draw attention though.
"Do you know how bad your sensei would feel if any of your team suddenly quit? Do you know how the Hokage feels when he see's his own nin's quitting? Did you see the expression on his face when that Kabuto guy quit? If Sasuke quits, it'll bring shame to the Uchiha name."
Sakura looked down. Sasuke nodded his thanks to Ranma.
"Sakura, I have told you before... I am an Avenger." he stared into her eyes. "This just isn't a test to me. I don't care about chuunin or whatever. 'Am I strong?' I just want the answer to that. Just to fight strong guys here.." He turned his head and spied Gaara out of the corner of his eye. He didn't have to turn around to see Neji. He nodded to Ranma again. He saw the Sound guys at the end. "And they are all here."
"I can't forgive even you if you take that way from me."
"You bastard! Stop acting so cool!" yelled Naruto. "Idiot! Can't you see Sakura is worried about you."
"Naruto..." Sasuke smirked. "I want to fight you too..."
"Umm.. now let's begin the preliminary matches. These matches will consist of one on one fighting. You will basically fight as if this was a real-life confrontation." said Hayate. "Since how that we have exactly 20 entrants, we will conduct 10 matches and.." cough "the winners will proceed to the third exam."
"There are basically no rules. The fight continued until one of you dies or is knocked unconscious or admits defeat. If you do not wish to die, then quickly acknowledge your defeat. But I decide when the winner is clearly established... since we don't want to pointlessly increase the amount of corpses. I'll jump in and stop things."
'Anything goes, huh?' For some reason, Ranma liked those type of rules. It fueled his fire just thinking of it.
-----
Ranma slammed in the invisible wall once again. He was in bad shape. His spiritual body felt like shit. He was numb all over. He couldn't even feel the powerful strikes Ryuunosuke layed down upon him.
"GAAH!!" he cried out when he was once again thrown, landing hard upon the 'ground'.
"In the end, human. You have lost."
Ryuunosuke's eyes widened. Even with his life-force slowly ebbing away...
Ranma got back up.
-----
"No way..." Ranma muttered, staring at the scene below.
"Tenten's weapon attacks were rendered useless..." Neji said, also staring at the two girl who just fought. "This fight was... a more than uneven..."
Below in the arena, a blonde girl with four bushy pigtails was standing confidently and holding out a huge fan that was folded up and almost her height. On top of the fan, Tenten was limply laying on the tip after being caught. She was badly beaten up, bleeding and unconscious.
"The winner, Temari of the Sand." stated Hayate. Ranma saw Temari smirk.
"Oh no..!" He disppeared quickly.
"Nnnn!!" Temari used her strength and launched the unconscious girl toward the opposite wall. But fortunately, Ranma caught his teammate and gently laid her down. He glared at the Sand-Nin. "Nice catch." Temari said, an sinister grin upon her visage.
"What are you doing?!" Ranma shouted, clenching his fish. "Is that how you treat someone who gave you their all in battle?!!"
"Shut up. Take that piece of trash and leave."
That did it. He was pissed. Ranma set Tenten down and charged the Sand-Nin.
"Stop, Lee!" Neji called out in warning.
"KONOHA WHIRLWIND!!" Ranma leaped up a good 20 feet away from the blonde girl and launched a powerful spinning crescent kick. But Temari brought up her fan and simply blocked the powerful attack, also haulting Ranma's combo. "What?"
"Just as I thought," said Temari, smiling evily. "Your just as pathetic as I thought; stupid too."
Ranma growled. "What did you say?" Gai appeared next to Ranma.
"Stop it, Ranma." he commanded.
"Gai-sensei."
Temari scoffed.
"Temari, get up here!!" Gaara said, surprising his older sister. "You've been declared the winner. Stop dealing with that pathetic guy and his guardian.."
Ranma glared at this Gaara guy. "What?!" Both of them stared at each other for a long moment. Ranma was clenching his fist tightly, drawing blood from his palm.
"That's enough, Ranma." said Gai, placing his hand on his charge's shoulder. He closed his eyes and smirked, exhaling a breath. "Heh..." He opened his eyes again. "Gentlemen from the Sand, if I may warn you about one thing?"
Kankuro and Gaara looked at Gai.
Gai was smirking. "This boy... he's strong."
He then thought back to the day the 'other' Ranma struck him.
"VERY strong."
-----
"I... will... win..." Ranma muttered, blood running down his arms. He stared at Ryuunosuke in defiance.
'Impossible,' thought the dragon. 'His spirit is dying, yet he still has enough power to-- no. The boy's will is strong...'
Ranma brought his hand up to his face and formed the seal of the ram. He never used this move before and he wouldn't know if it will work for him, since it was taught to his external personality. But he'll die before giving up his own body. He'll do anything to survive!!
"RRAAAHHH!!" Ranma roar, whatever remained of his ki blazed around him in an inferno.
"What you are doing is futile, human. You are just going to--- UGH!!!"
Ranma appeared under the dragon-man and launched a vicious rising kick that sent Ryuunosuke flying into the 'air'! The dragon-man's eyes were wide in surprise and astonishment. Ranma suddenly appeared under him, following him as if he were the dragon's shadow. He then grabbed him with all his strength around the waist, locking his arms in place. Pulling back, Ranma put them into a power dive and twisted his body, spinning the two of them like a drill.
"INITIAL LOTUS!!!" Ranma cried, pile-driving the dragon-man into the 'ground'. He jumped away when he felt the impact and fell to his knees upon landing.
He coughed up and vomited blood. His spirit felt extremely weak. His muscles, he couldn't move at all. He couldn't feel them. Looking upon himself, his arms were unnaturally sagging and very heavy, as if his muscles have ripped themselves apart when using that move.
"he he he..." Ranma chuckled, falling to his side. "I win... I win..." He choked suddenly and spasmed as his heart started beating rapidly. His breathing became shallower with each breath.
He was dying.
And as his vision faded, the last thing he saw was the form of Ryuunosuke in it's human form, staring down at him with glowing eyes.
"You lose, human."
-----
Ranma clenched his fist and cheered. "Excellent move, Naruto!" He just finished watching Naruto to an excellent combo to that Kiba guy from Hinata's team to win the match. He didn't care that it was similiar to Sasuke's 'Lion Combo' or that it started off with the initial hit for 'Lotus'.
After giving Naruto a bottle of ointment, Hinata made her way down to the ground floor and met up with the medic team carrying Kiba on a stretcher.
"Umm..." she moved closer, a bit shy. "This is medicine.. for Kiba-kun and Akamaru.."
Kiba waved her off. "Heh, you better start worrying about yourself. The only remaining guys are you and Chouji, Neji, Lee, and the Sound and Sand guy... only six people." He looked serious. "Listen, Hinata. If you get the Sand guy, forfeit immediately." She nodded.
"And one more..." he glanced up at the second level before looking at her. "If you get Neji, do the same and forfeit. He's cruel to you... you'll get beaten to a pulp..."
Hinata looked worried.
"Now, we'll announce the next match."
The board in the corner started randomizing the named. After a moment, it came to a stop.
Hinata Hyuuga Vs. Neji Hyuuga
'Oh shit..' Ranma mentally cursed.
"Damn..." Kiba muttered under his breath.
'Interesting match-up...' The Third thought. Kurenai, Hinata's Jounin, looked worried.
"....." Gai knew it would eventually come to this.
Neji and Hinata approached the center of the arena and faced each other. The Hyuuga boy stared at the Hyuuga girl. Hinata was almost shaking in fear.
"I never thought I would be facing you...Hinata-sama."
Hinata gulped. "Neji-nii-san..."
"HUH?!! Sibling?!" Naruto loudly asked.
"No, they are not." Ranma stated, staring down at the match in worry. "They both are from the oldest and greatest bloodline, the House of the Hyuuga Clan. But they are cousin's, not siblings." He sighed. "They are each respectively from the 'Head' and 'Branch' family houses of the Hyuuga Clan."
"Main and branch families?" Naruto asked curiously.
"Yes. Neji is from the lower branch family while Hinata is from the head family. Their father's were twin brothers so that makes them cousins." Ranma said, his hand gripped the railing tightly. "But many things have happened between the two houses over the years and right now, they do not get along very well."
"To protect the the blood and house of the head family, many rules and restrictions have been established to put the main family in an advantageous situation... because of this the branch family feels slighted."
"So they hate each other..." Sakura muttered. Ranma nodded sadly.
"Hinata Hyuuga versus Neji Hyuuga..." Hayate raised his hand. "Now begin the match! cough..."
Neji planted his foot and stared at Hinata.
"Before we begin the fight, I'd like to say something, Hinata-sama."
"....?"
"You don't make a good shinobi... forfeit now!" Hinata stared in surprise at him. "You are too kind. You wish for harmony and avoid conflict. You agree with others, never resisting." He continued as Hinata started looking down. "And you have no confidence in yourself. I always feel your sense of inferiority.. that's why I thought it would be best for you to remain a genin."
"But the Chuunin Selection Exam can only be taking as a team of three. You couldn't turn down your teammate's request and unwillingly entered." He paused. "This is true, am I wrong?"
"n... no.. I... I just wanted.." she gulped. "I just wanted to change myself... do it myself..."
"Hinata-sama. Just as I thought. You are a spoiled brat of the head family."
"Huh?"
"People cannot change themselves!!"
Hinata stared at him, scared.
Ranma frowned, gripping the railing even tighter.
"Losers are losers. Their personality and strength will no change. Because people cannot change, differences are born. Expressions like elite and loser are created. Looks, brains, ability, size and personality.. All people judge and are judged in these values. Based on these unchangable factors, people discriminate and are discriminated against. And they suffer within their own means." Neji's eyes narrowed. "Just like the fact that I am from the branch family and you are from the head family cannot be changed...."
Ranma gritted his teeth. He was visibly shaking. Gai looked worried.
"I have seen through many things with this Byakugan, so I know. You are just acting strong... deep inside you just want to run away from here and hide."
"N--no.. I really....!"
'Byakyugan!!' Neji's eyes widened and veins appeared around his eye-sockets around on his face. Hinata's knees started to shake and she tried diverting her eyes from Neji's own.
"You can't fool my eyes." Neji started. "Against my pressure just now... you floated your eyes to the upper left. This is a sign that you are remembering past experiences. Your painful past. And after that you looked to the lower right. That is a sign that you are imagining physical and mental pain. Basically, you are thinking about yourself and from the all experience until now, you are imagining the results of this match. Imagining that... You'll Lose!!"
"The action of raising your arms in front of your body. That shows that you are trying to create a barrier between us, create distance from me. That you are trying to prevent me from figuring out how you are truely feeling. Because everything I have said is totally correct. Furthermore..."
Ranma's eye were widened. His hands were gripping the railing so tightly they they were being warped by his small movements. Everyone including Gai and Kakashi backed away from Ranma. They could feel the killing intent coming from him.
"Furthermore.. Touching your lip is a personality trait revealing a disturbance. It is a defense mechanism to soften the nervousness and worrying." Hinata was sweating and had tears running from her eyes. "So basically in reality.. Haven't you already realized...?"
"That you cannot change your..."
"RAAAAAHH!!!!" Ranma literally ripped off a portion of the steel railing before turning around and drilling into into the wall behind him with his barehands.
"SHUT UP!!! SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP!!!" He screamed, leaning over another portion of the railing that didn't feel his wrath.
'Ranma?!' Neji looked back. What has gotten into him? He looked at Hinata and saw that all the fear inside her disappeared.
"HINATA!!!" Ranma shouted down at her. "YOU CAN CHANGE YOURSELF!! STOP LISTENING TO THAT BASTARD AND KICK HIS ASS!!!!"
"....." 'Sempai..."
"Stand up for yourself damn it!!" Ranma had tears in his eyes. "Be the Hinata that I know, not this person I see in front of me!!"
"Yeah, Hinata!! Stand up for yourself!" Naruto joined Ranma. "Everyone is getting upset just watching this!!"
Ranma-sempai and Naruto-kun are cheering me on, thought Hinata. Her eyes became like steel and she initiated the Byakugan. She moved into the stand of the gentle fist - left hand palm facing forward and right hand down at her side loosely closed.
"...." Neji stared at her. "So you won't forfiet. I won't be responsible for what happens."
"I not longer wish to run away!" She said loudly. "Neji-nii-san... Let's fight!"
Neji also moved into a similiar stance and activated his own Byakugan. "Very well." The two of them stared at each other, trying to guage each other.
In a matter of moments, the two Hyuuga's charged at each other. Hinata struck first with a heavy palm strike at that Neji blocked. She followed up with several more left and right palm stricks that the male Hyuuga dodged. Neji turned his head from one of her strikes and attacked with his own palm strike. Hinata bobbed her head from left to right, twisting her body away from several other attacks and leaned back from a strike to the chest. She struck at him again but he blocked, slapping her hand away and she did the same to his hand.
For a short moment it seemed even. Both Hyuuga genin's were attacking relentlessly, yet each of them were either dodging and blocking attacks at the same time. But the momentum shifted when one of Hinata's palm strikes forced Neji to step back. She reared back and prepared to deal heavy damage to her cousin. Pushing off with her right foot and brought her left hand back and came in with a hooking palm-strike to his mid-section. 'Here!' she thought, waiting for his reaction.
Neji bent forward hopping back to avoid it. She only nicked him.
Hinata smirked. Neji's eyes widened when he saw her left hand coming right for him.
"HAAAA!!" she cried as her palm struck Neji in the sternum. The Hyuuga boy literally flew back and impacted against the surrounding wall.
When Neji shook the cob-webs out of his head, he realized what just happened. Hinata used the hook as a feint to disquise the real attack from her other arm. And not only that, she struck with enough force to sent him flying a good distance away. Her strike didn't just consist of injecting chakra, she was also strong!
'How did she get this strong...?' Neji thought, getting back up and facing off once again with the smirking Hinata.
'Yes, Neji-nii-san. Take me seriously now.' she thought.
'Holy cow...' thought Kurenai. 'Hinata is strong. Has she been holding back all this time?' The same thoughts came also from Shino Aburame, her teammate.
Ranma was smirking. "Yeah! Get him, Hinata!!"
Neji spat blood on the floor. He narrowed his eyes at Hinata. The short-haired girl taunted him by calling him to her with her finger. Both gritted their teeth and shot forward. At the same time the two planted a foot and struck.
"Uck!" Hinata coughed, blood flowing from her mouth. Her attack completely missed Neji because of his longer reach. He had one hand on her chest and the other poking two fingers at her shoulder.
"So this is it... the extend of the head families strength?"
"HAAA!!" Hinata brough her left hand back and struck at Neji. But the boy was quicker, grabbing Hinata by the wrist and jabbing two fingers into her arm. "AAhhhh!!"
Neji stared at her. He simply pulled her sleave down her arm and revealed that it was dotted in an angry-red all over her arm. Hinata's eyes widened.
"No way..." she gasped. "So from the beginning..."
"Exactly," Neji confirmed. "I can see the opening points." He brought his arm back and slammed it into her chest, similiar to what she did to him earlier. But only flew back a few feet.
"Kyyaaa!!" She cried, landing hard on her back. She slowly tried to get up.
"Hinata-sama. This is the difference in talent that will never change. The difference that divided elites from losers. This is a reality that cannot be changed." He relaxed his stance. "At the point you said 'I do not want to run' you were setting yourself up for regret. You should be overcome with desperation now."
"......"
"Forfiet!" Neji demanded.
"I...." Hinata started to get up slowly. "... don't go back... on my words..." she stood upright and moved into the Jyuuken stance. "And a loser... will defeat an elite with.. hard work..." she smirked at him seeing his upset eyes. ".. That is also... my way of the ninja!"
"I... never knew Hinata was this incredible.." Naruto said softly, gazing at Hinata. He felt Ranma's hand lay gently on his shoulder.
"Hinata and I trained everyday before I became apart of Gai-sensei's team, and even before I graduated the academy. She was always strong from the beginning, it was just that she was too shy to use her full strength."
"Come." Neji said to Hinata, glaring hatred.
Hinata took a step forward. Her eyes widened and she gasped, coughing up blood.
Ranma's eyes widened. He gripped the rail once again and stared at his best friend. "Hinata!!"
Naruto's teacher, Kakashi, spoke. "Neji's 'Opening Point' attacks have completely shut down her chakra flow. So basically.. she can no longer do her Jyuuken, 'Gentle-fist' attacks." He sighed. "This match is over."
"Shut up. You don't know anything about her." Ranma said, not looking at Kakashi. "HINATA!! STOP HOLDING BACK DAMN IT! YOU CAN STILL WIN!! FORGET THAT HE'S FAMILY! THINK OF ALL THE TIMES THAT HE'S TREATED YOU BADLY IN THE PAST!! LOOK AT HIS EYES!! HE WANTS TO DO MORE THAN PUT YOU IN THE HOSPITAL!!"
Hinata looked up from Ranma and down to Neji. She saw it in his eyes. Like Neji, her Byakugan can see all. And she could see the intent to kill from Neji. She could see that he wanted to torture her, just because she was a head family member.
She thought back to the times when her and Neji use to be the best of friends. Playing together and having the best of fun. But after his father died, her uncle, he changed dramatically and treated her badly. Always picking on her.
Looking back up at Ranma again, she nodded firmly. Ranma nodded back in acknowledgement.
The Hyuuga girl stared at Neji. Unzipping her jacket, she tosses it aside. She wore a body hugging sleaveless shinobi shirt. Many stared at her body. Instead of the frail girl that they expected, she was very well toned and muscular for a girl of her age. Her body alone made her seem two years older.
To Neji's and many other's surprise, Hinata moved into a different stance other than the gentle-fist. She had her right and forward, elbow bent with her palm facing upward. He left arm was behind her back with her fist clenched.
It was the primary stance of Gouken.
Gai looked at the smirking Ranma. "You didn't.. did you?" he asked, surprised that someone other than him and Ranma practiced the style.
The pigtailed genin shook his head. "She was my sparring partner when we both were not on missions and were not training. She picked it up on her own, Gai-sensei." Ranma smirked once more. "When she adopted our style, her strength increased to the point where I first began training in Gouken."
"....."
'That is... Gai-sensei and Ranma's style...' Neji observed. 'Here she comes!'
Hinata charged at Neji with speed Kurenai and Shino thought she never had. It wasn't until she was twenty feet from her cousin that she initiated a move the caused Gai, Neji, Kakashi and Kurenai to gasped in amazement.
"KONOHA WHIRLWIND!!"
Neji blocked the first spinning crescent kick and leaped over the break-dancing style low-roundhouse kick. He then blocked the following and final kick and found an opening. He thrusted his hand in a powerful palm strike, but Hinata batted it up and away. To his surprise, she suddenly switched styles in the middle of her move and struck with both hands at his chest, sending him flying once more into the wall.
'I can feel it.. I can feel strength...' thought Hinata.
Neji and Hinata started trading blows. Instead of palm-strikes, she was punching in patterns that she remembered Ranma using upon her. She also ducked and waved passed Neji's own strikes as quickly as her sore body allowed her.
'Naruto-kun.. Ranma-sempai... In the past, I was the one looking upon you ...'
Hinata grabbed Neji's wrist and thrusted a hard elbow into his chest. He retaliated by striking another opening point and shoving her back with a hard palm-strike.
'..but right now you are both watching me.'
She started another Konoha whirlwind, but Neji caught her kick this time and struck more opening points. She ignored the pain and twisted, floating her body and free leg into an insugiri that Neji barely ducked. Pushing her back, they both shot at each other with palm-strikes.
'And Ranma-sempai... he's smiling at me, because he knows I have already changed.. from the person I once was...'
"GAH!!"
Neji's palm struck just above Hinata's chest. She coughed up alot of blood and and fell to the floor face first. Neji stood over her, eyes closed.
Ranma stared, wide-eyed.
"Maybe you have changed, Hinata.. but that still does not change your destiny. You are and and always will be a loser and spoiled brat of the Head family."
"A deciding blow to the heart." Gai observed. "I feel bad for her but she will not get up again."
"Continuing is impossible and this---" Hayate started.
"DON'T STOP IT!!!" Ranma shouted in anger.
Sakura looked at him as if he grown a third head. "What you saying, lame brain?! She's at her limit! She's unconscious!!"
"You call that unconscious?" he asked, pointing at the arena floor.
Neji stared, wide-eyed once again at his cousin. Everyone, especially Kurenai and Shino gasped in complete surprises and disbelief.
Even with blood freely dripping from her mouth, Hinata slowly struggled to stand. First to one knee, then slowly rose until she was standing on two feet, though her legs and body trembled.
'In front of the man I admire the most... I will always rise to make him proud of me...because he is the man I love...' she thought, looking up at Ranma for a moment before looking back at Neji. She forced her body to move into the Gouken stance. She didn't have enough chakra to use her Byakugan anymore.
"Why do you stand..." Neji asked in disbelief. "If you keep pushing yourself, you will die..."
"It's not over." she gasped.
"Acting tough is useless. You can barely stand and I can see that. From the time of your birth the responsibility of the Hyuuga Head family has been forced upon you. You have always hated yourself for your own weakness.. But people cannot change.. That is destiny..." Neji stated. "There is no need to suffer anymore.. Let it go!"
"That's not true... Neji-nii-san." she breathed, moving her hand to clutch her stomach. "Because.. I can see it.. It's not me at all..."
"The person lost and suffering within the Head and branch families... is you..."
Neji's byakugan activated and he narrowed his eyes. He charged at Hinata with all intent to kill.
"Neji-kun! This match is over!!" shouted Hayate Gekkou.
Neji suddenly found himself restained. Gai had his arms around his neck. Kakashi had a firm grasped on his right arm while Kurenai kneeled and held his left. Hayate had his fingers poking Neji's forehead.
"Neji, give it a rest." Gai said to him. "You gave me a warm promise not to lose you head over this Head family stuff."
"Why do even the other Jounin's jump it..." Neji narrowed his eyes. "Oh, more special treatment for the Head family..."
"GAAH!! GAH!!" Hinata suddenly doubled over and fell to her knees, blood coughing out of her mouth even more than last time.
"HINATA!!" Kurenai screamed, moving quickly to her charge.
'Oh no!' Ranma and Naruto dropped down, also moving to Hinata. Ranma knelt by his friend and checked her pulse. He looked over her skin and felt her forehead. "Hinata..."
"Her color is bad..." Sakura said, joining the other two.
Ranma quickly called over the medics. "What are you assholes waiting for?!! Hurry up damn it!!"
"Ranma-san..." Sakura felt sorry for him. He said Hinata is his best friend, she would be feeling the same to Ino if this happened to her, despite being rivals now.
Ranma stood and closed his eyes. But it wasn't enough to hold back the tear running down his face.
"Hey you, loser over there." Neji called out. Naruto turned to Neji with a glare. "I'd like to tell you two things. If you are a shinobi, the cut out the pathetic cheering of others. And one more... In the end, a loser is a loser. They cannot change!!"
"You wanna test me?" Naruto asked acidly.
"Heh."
Naruto charged at Neji quickly. But he suddenly stopped and turned around when a voice of anger, pain and depression filled the air.
"NEEEEEJIIIIIIIIII!!!!"
Ranma turned around slowly, his eyes locking onto Neji's own. In his eyes, Neji could see the blazing inferno of power hidden behind them. It caused him to sweat and instinctively take a step back.
"You.... bastard.." Ranma whispered, now fully facing his teammate. "You promised you would not bring that head and branch family bullshit into the exam, yet you did. You broke a promise to Gai-sensei.." He growled. ".. AND YOU TRIED KILLED MY BEST FRIEND!!! YOUR OWN FLESH AND BLOOD!!!"
Ranma squated down where Hinata once stood before the medics took her off. He placed his hand in her blood and left it there.
"I have lost all respect for you.. Neji Hyuuga." he said acidly. He slowly stood and let his hand hang, dripping with Hinata's blood. "I once thought of your as my rival, a person I wanted to defeat to better myself and prove that hard-work can defeat a genieous. Someone that I trusted and depended upon when the going got tough."
Ranma's eyes narrowed. "I hate you, Neji Hyuuga. I have always have. And always will. From day one you treated me like crap, mocking my words because I was a three-time drop-out before I graduated the academy. Even after the matches I challenged you two, you would always taunt me and say that I will never defeat you, that it's written in destiny. It took me from that the time that we shared in class up to this match for me to realize how much of a petty little bitch you are."
He clenched his fist covered with Hinata's blood and raised up and pointed it at Neji so he can see it. See the blood the flows through him drip from Ranma's hand onto the ground.
"Neji Hyuuga. If Hinata doesn't live to see another day..."
Ranma's eyes lit up again and his smile became evil.
"Omae Korosu."
I will kill you.
-----
Ranma slowly opened his eyes.
"Is this... heaven..? Kinda dark..."
"Heh."
Ranma's eyes snapped to attention and he sat up quickly. The last thing he remembered was performing the Lotus and dying. And the dragon was still alive. He turned his head and finally saw him.
"Pathetic." said Ryuunosuke. The dragon in human form stood, hands on hips and shaking his head. "Very pathetic."
"why... am I not dead?" he asked, curious.
Ryuunosuke paused.
"For over the 4000 years I have lived, I have always thought of human kind as weak beings that never did deserve the right to rule this world. Sorrid little creatures that were more of an annoyance than anything else. Because of humans, many of the old magic has left this world, replaced by things like.. technology."
"Human's have also taken away many of my kind by summoning creatures from other worlds to battle us. I was the last full-blooded dragon in the living world."
"I kill humans for fun, Ranma Saotome. Oh do not look surprised. I remembered who you were. It is fun to try and remember the names of the humans I have slain and gutted with my own claws."
Ryuunosuke turned around and stared at Ranma.
"But here in lies the problem with you... you refused to die." He started to pace around the confused martial artist. "In this world, we actually battle with our spirits. Our wills. We fought non-stop for possibly years in real-time, and everytime I would send you down you would get right back up. I at first thought of you as a cock-roach that just kept coming back. But something in my mind decided that you were something else completely. Something special."
"With the 4000 plus years I have lived, I have never fought against a human with such a strong will. I was actually having fun fighting against such a strong human. You surprised me time and time again." Ryuunosuke grinned. "I like you... human."
Ranma followed Ryuunosuke's eyes upward. He gasped when he saw the symbol of the dragon's seal and the seal made by Yondaime to lock the other seal. Inside the second seal, the Dragon's seal disappeared completely.
"You should feel honored, Human. You are the first human to ever again my respect." Ranma's eyes widened. "You can have your body. You deserve it more than I do."
With that, Ryuunosuke rose up and entered the seal, to be locked away for eternity inside the pigtailed genin.
Ranma just stared.
"You may have lost the battle, Ranma Saotome. But in the end, you have won my respect."
End of Chapter 9 -----
Author's Notes:
HAHAH!! You didn't expect all that huh?! I bet everyone was thinking Ranma would eventually beat the dragon. HA! Fooled you all! He lost. But he gained something even better in losing. A second chance at life.
On a note, I skipped almost all the matches in the prelim bouts because it was just a waste of time. All matches went the same way in the story as they did in the manga. Sasuke, Kankuro, Naruto, Shino and Shikamaru of course won their matches. And of course Neji and Temari.
Why did I have Neji win against this stronger Hinata? Well if Neji can beat Rock at his current level, then why should Hinata win also? I would also like to make note that the ONLY reason Neji can consistantly beat Rock Lee is due to the promises he made to Gai. He cannot remove his weights unless he is protecting many important people. He cannot use Initial Lotus unless he is defending someone really important. He could use Primary Lotus and open the heavenly gates, but that is a last resort move to defend his way of the Ninja.
You might also seem to notice that in this story, Ranma Lee is more observive than Rock Lee. You could say that because of his upbringing by his father, Ranma learned to observe more than Rock Lee did in the manga and anime.
Next is Chapter 10: Watch out Gaara! Here comes Ranma!