Soups! Sausages! Sushi! Tempuras and rice balls! The vendors moved around, selling to hungry customers during the lunch break. People unglued themselves from their seats and stretched. They left for the toilet or went to buy a snack.
The gambling booth was crowded again. It had become so rude, the workers stopped selling alcohol. Masks guards stood there to stop unhappy gamblers.
Thankfully, our rows were clear of people. Our seats were for the rich, famous, or powerful people, who all went into air conditioned rooms. That gave me plenty of space, as I kicked my feet up.
Gin returned with my change and food. I thanked him and took a rice ball.
To save a few bucks, we skipped the bento and settled for two rice balls each. That, and a vanilla shake. I stuck my straw in and took the first sip, before handing the shake over to Gin. He chewed on his rice ball and shook his head, so I put the drink between us.
"It's so sunny today," Gin complained, tugging his t-shirt.
"Hey, you've got a hat." As I wiped away my sweat, I remembered something. I dug into my backpack and pulled out my present. The hand fan!
Gin blinked. I offered the fan to him, but he backed away. "Dude, Ayae, is that a fan? That's so girly!"
I rolled my eyes. "The Fire Daimyo has one, you know. You going to take it or not?"
"No thanks!"
I did offer. With a flick of my hand, the fan opened. I flipped the fan back and forth, squinting at the calligraphy.
Fortune. Peace. Happiness. Prosperity. Love.
The back had a phrase.
"Captivate us all," I read. My thumb traced the swirl of ink. Why did this calligraphy look familiar?
I flicked my wrist, and the fan snapped back. With another flick, the fan flapped wide open. The fan fitted in my palm really well! But the biggest shock was when I fanned it.
Instead of a hot breeze, cold wind gushed out. I fanned again. The same wind lashed out, leaving Gin and I wide-eyed and afro-haired.
"How did you do that?" Gin took the fan and flapped it a few times. Strokes of wind blew out. "Whoa!"
"Wind country specialty, buddy. Crafted from bamboo and silk, infused with wind chakra, and finished with a brushing of the richest black and red inks. Oh, and a touch of L. O. V. E. from the maker and moi."
"Shisui!"
Shisui stretched out on an empty chair behind us. His feet landed smack between Gin and me, almost spilling our shake.
"The one and only."
Gin scowled. "What are you doing here?"
I turned to where my clan was at. There, another Shisui munched down on rice and pretended to listen to a clan officer. "How are you both there and here?" I asked, confused.
"Water clone," Shisui said. "Although they should stop badgering it so much. If it gets any more unstable, it'll explode."
"Explode as in… explode?"
"Eh, maybe it's for the best. Everyone needs to hose down. Tension's getting crazy since the Hyuuga decided to spy on us. And when Itachi wins, things will overheat." Shisui swayed his feet, nearly knocking Gin in the nose.
Gin got annoyed, trying to push away Shisui's foot. Shisui played oblivious, so Gin accidentally spilled our vanilla shake him. The shake was mostly full. Gin owed me my half of the money.
Shisui time-reversed the shake back into the cup. "Thanks, buddy." Shisui gave a toast, then drank our shake. Now Shisui owed me money. I was serious. That drink was twenty ryou. I took less than two sips of it.
"How are you so sure Itachi will win?" I asked. "The semi-finalists all look strong."
Shisui wiped his milk mustache. "Eh, challenges make a fight all the sweeter. I'm dying to fight that Kiri blademaster."
"Blademaster?"
"He's funny. I don't think he's a genin. Heck, I'd bet he's jounin. Then again, I think the Iwa duo could be high chuunin or even jounin too."
"They are all genin," Gin pointed out, just to be disagreeable.
"Don't assume that," Shisui said. "A person's rank and what they are capable of are two different things. Sometimes, things come up that hinder promotions. And who is fighting who is important too. Some have natural advantages over others."
I felt uneasy. "Is Itachi going-"
"To do fine?" Shisui said. "Oh yeah. I want to fight him the most."
"Weren't you on the same team as him?" Gin asked.
"And?"
"You never sparred with your own teammate?"
"Spar, yes. Fight, no. Itachi would never fight me."
"Because he's afraid of getting the shit beat out of him?"
Shisui laughed. Then, with a straight face, Shisui said, "No. He's afraid of beating the shit out of me."
There was a silence.
Then, we all burst out laughing.
When Shisui came around, he jiggled the empty cup in his hand. "Oh, where did you buy these? They're fantastic!"
"Vendor at the back. Why don't you leave and go buy one?" Gin suggested.
"Great idea, buddy!" Shisui tossed Gin the empty cup. "Fetch me another one, will ya? Eh? Eh?"
Gin gave him the dirtiest look ever. His fists squeezed the life out of his rice ball.
I moaned, waiting for one of them to give in. When no one did, I snatched the cup. "I'll get one!"
Horrified by the idea of being left alone with my cousin, Gin grabbed the cup. "Fine, I'll go. But you better be gone after you get it."
"Wait! Buy another one for us too?" I said, giving Gin the rest of my change.
"Yeah sure." Gin pushed his cap down and left.
When Gin was gone, Shisui dropped his feet and leaned forward, grin in place. "I believe now would be the opportune time to announce… I win!"
Gin's squished rice ball landed splat on Shisui's face. "Rub it in, and you will get a vanilla shake shampooing," I said.
His hands pushed air. "I would not want my fabulous hair vanilla shampooed," he agreed. "Why are you here with the detention buddy? What happened to your dad?"
"He couldn't come," I said. "A meeting."
"Ah. Well, he might not approve this kind of fighting anyway."
I snorted. My dad would have a heart attack if he saw this. I would be pulled out of the Ninja Academy in an instant.
Before we could talk any more, there was a scream of fury. "SHISUI!" At the clan seats, three men were soaked from head to toe, like hissing wet cats.
"Uh-oh. Pops popped the clone, didn't he?" Shisui ducked and poofed out.
A minute later, Gin stood with two shakes in his hand. "He's gone?"
"Um, yeah. Had family things."
Gin thanked the lord. "Oh, and look. There was a chocolate left! You like chocolate, right?"
"Sweet!"
As I sipped my chocolate shake, I looked around.
At the contestant's balcony, the Iwa duo chatted. The shinobi was flexing his biceps, lifting weights. He laughed whole-heartedly, but the kunoichi looked disinterested. She crushed the water bottle in her hands and threw it into the arena below. The bottle smacked the head of a cleaning crew member.
The crew member shouted at the kunoichi that it was not nice to litter. A glare later, he shut up. He picked up the bottle and scurried away. He went to the other cleaning crew members, who were trying to level the crater.
Meanwhile, the Kiri ninja leaned against a wall, his arms folded. His masked made it hard to tell what he thought. Someone poked him with a chopstick. His hand went to his sword. He relaxed when he saw the Kumo ninja, who had become whole again. Mouth full, he offered sushi to the Kiri ninja.
Finally, by the exit was Itachi. I was surprised to see he was not alone either. Half hidden in the hallway was someone his size, but dressed in rosy pink. She had a fan in one hand.
I craned my neck. Was that the Fire princess?
The princess leaned closer to Itachi, taking a hold of his hand. They were saying something.
When Itachi's gaze drifted in my direction, I looked down and furiously sipped my shake. I gave a delayed reply to Gin, who was talking about his plan to master rock smashing. Or something. I glanced up again.
Itachi had returned to talking with the princess.
I pouted, trying to figure out what they could be talking about. Maybe the Fire Daimyo had a message for him. Or maybe they were talking about the exam. She could be asking about his techniques. Or maybe she was lost and asking him where the bathroom was!
But then, all my guesses were thrown out the window. Leaning forward, the princess kissed him.
And thus, my shake went down my windpipe.
Gin stopped talking. "Hey, you okay?"
"Mhm! Juss… drun alittle too fast." A cough or two later, I sat upright. "You saying?"
Gin continued. "So, I think my bro can teach me since he knows chakra stuff better than me…"
I stopped listening again. My grip was so weak, my drink slipped and fell on the floor. Gin stopped mid-sentence again to pick up the cup. The cup had little shake left, so he threw it back on the floor.
"Ayae, I think the sun's getting to you." He put his hand on my forehead. "You're getting all red and shaky. Are you hot?"
"No!" I pushed his hand away. "Just, uh, tired. Sitting here and all. I'm fine. Really."
He furrowed his eyebrows. Sensing something was up, he looked around the arena. Luckily for me, he skimmed past the contestant's balcony and found nothing weird.
He lifted his own drink. "Here, want some of mine?"
"S-sure," I said and took a sip.
Calm down, I told myself. I mean, it was not like they were- I mean, they were just- Itachi would never- BAH! I took a long sip.
I stole another peek back at the balcony. The Fire princess was smiling. The smile looked so gentle and innocent, and apparently, Itachi liked it very much. From her sleeve, she showed him an omamori charm and closed it around his palm. With that, she disappeared into the halls.
When she was gone, Itachi looked at the charm. A smile crossed his face, before he went on to wipe the lipstick off his cheek.
My teeth bit into the straw. Okay, I was unhappy.
"Better?" Gin asked.
"Yeah."
"You know, I think your cousin is making you weird," Gin said.
I jumped in my seat. Gin took my straw, eying me carefully. "Did he say something to you? I knew I shouldn't have left you alone with him."
I blinked, then realized he was talking about annoying cousin number two. Speaking of Shisui, can I kill him? I did not come to watch Itachi and princess what's-her-face flirt.
Wait. No, I did not care about Itachi. I was here to watch epic battles, and learn different jutsu, and- oh, whatever! What were Itachi and the princess talking about! I wanna know, I wanna know! I was so mad now!
The semi-finals began. I needed the distraction.
Itachi was fighting in this one. Some distraction!
He faced the Iwa ninja.
"The Uchiha prodigy! I've been looking forward to this match. You were impressive during preliminaries," the Iwa ninja praised, stretching his muscles.
Itachi returned the respect. The Iwa ninja took his hand whole. He gave a firm shake.
"I have a proposition," the Iwa ninja said.
Itachi listened. The match had started, but they decided it could wait.
"I know your battle style, but I personally find evasion long-winded and boring, and so does the crowd. I like to entertain, and if I am to fight, I do not want to be the sole performer."
"What do you imply?" Itachi asked.
"Don't get me wrong. Your skills are commendable. I just find little honor in attacking a boy who runs away."
Itachi understood. "You want an offensive fight."
"Straightforward and fair. Can you handle it?"
Itachi nodded, shifting his body into a battle stance.
"Good." The Iwa ninja grinned. "Then you wouldn't mind if I did this!"
The show started.
The Iwa ninja slammed his palms into the ground. The ground rumbled. Stone walls rose from the ground, surrounding them. From the walls, spikes came out. The match narrowed to a small circle in the middle of the arena.
A boulder flung toward Itachi.
My eyes widened. Dodge it. Dodge it. Dodge it.
Itachi could not. A kunai appeared in his grasp, and he leaped toward the boulder. With a jerk of his arm, he stabbed the boulder hard enough that the kunai in his hand cracked. The boulder shattered.
While still in the air, Itachi flipped and kicked on one of the rock pieces. It flew back at the Iwa ninja.
The Iwa ninja punched. The rock crumbled to dust.
Already, Itachi had reappeared behind him. The Iwa ninja raised his arm to block, then grabbed Itachi's wrist.
Itachi slipped away with another kick, and jumped off his opponent's shoulder into the air. The shuriken Itachi threw were caught and sent back. They were deflected by kunai, finally landing in a circle around the Iwa ninja.
With a grin, Itachi pulled the wire that looped around each shuriken. The befallen shuriken sprung back to life, lassoing his opponent like a bull.
Not enough. Rock covered the Iwa ninja like armor, then pushed out like a wall in all directions.
The inner wall and outer wall looked like they would squish Itachi into a sandwich, or shove him toward the spikes. Itachi broke off a spike and kicked it forward. The inner wall cracked, leaving an opening for Itachi to tumble through just as the two walls smashed together.
"How are you able to do that, eh?" The Iwa ninja shoot rocks to meet the kunai Itachi had thrown.
"Stone has imperfections," Itachi said.
The two contestants abandoned weapons in favor of hand-to-hand.
"And one little stab in the right place can destroy the composition. Bravo." The Iwa ninja clapped in between his kicks.
Every attack was spontaneous, one movement to the next without break. Every offense was countered by a returning offense. Blink, and you would have no idea how the person with the lower hand gained the upper. Blink twice, and the match could have been well over.
For the most part, the Iwa ninja stood stable, strong and steady. He was planted to the earth and refused to fall.
But Itachi was scattered. He switched places in a second, molding into any position. Whether a punch, kick, or block, every movement was swifter than wind and smoother than water. And like fire, his actions were whimsical. There was no following it, no predicting it.
It put ballet to shame. It turned any forms of art into gauche, tasteless child-play.
I was speechless.
Their arms met at a standstill.
"Locked again, eh mate?"
They broke apart. Fire launched. Rock missiles flew back. The fire chakra incinerated the earth, but the earth also doused out the fire. The wall surrounding them began to spot misshaped craters and burns.
Whether from the exercise or the heat, the Iwa ninja broke first sweat.
Itachi slowed down. His breathing got faster too.
The match was taking a toll, though neither could drop their guard.
Finally, the first to fall was the wall. It collapsed. Dust blinded everyone, but the brawl inside continued. The sounds clashed on and on, until finally, giant thud after thud shook the arena.
A booming silence.
When the dust settled, I saw the reason the fighting stopped.
A circle of giant stone statues had Itachi trapped, their arms like cages that pinned him to a corner. The Iwa ninja had a boulder lifted to end the match. Yet, even when trapped, with one hand on the floor to not fall, Itachi was also in the middle of his next move. His fingers stopped before his seal could finish.
The fighting had stopped, because in the arena, a third figure had appeared.
The Iwa kunoichi had her body twisted in an attacking position, her falchion blade pointed at Itachi's neck. In her free hand was a piece of paper with a kanji on it.
Her eyes had so much hate, she could burn holes. Itachi took her hate with a blank expression.
"Kill my teammate," she warned, "and I kill you."
The tension was heavy. The kunoichi released such a dangerous blast of chakra that everyone in the audience felt it.
It was only when Itachi let his fingers drop that the kunoichi unraveled.
The Iwa ninja dropped his boulder. "What- Have you gone nuts?" he began. "I'm in the middle of a match here!"
The kunoichi lost her cool. With a slice of her blade, she chopped off a stone arm. She freed Itachi from his stone prison, out of duty, respect, or plain anger. Then, she sliced every statue into cubes of stone. Definitely anger.
"You crazy woman!" The Iwa ninja clapped his face in horror. "You know how long I've worked on th-"
"If it wasn't for this crazy woman," she gritted out, "some pig-head would have been blasted to oblivion."
Her hand flew across him. I thought she slapped him, but she only snatched something. Suddenly, another piece of paper was between her fingers. Like a lion, she stalked over to his back and snatched another piece of paper.
And another hidden on the Iwa ninja's shoulder. Another on his leg. The papers were planted all over his body, yet no one had seen them until now.
When she was done, she had a total of nine tags. She shot them out high into the air.
"Kai!"
The papers exploded in a heavy fireballs. Everyone stared in awe, before one final explosion scattered debris everywhere. I shielded myself so shards of debris would not get into my eyes. Everyone in the audience was covered in dust.
The kunoichi was unfazed, though the Iwa ninja looked startled.
"While you were playing around with your little figures, you didn't notice yourself being transformed into a human bomb. Had I not caught him…" Her tone rose, but she stopped herself. She closed her eyes. "This match is over." To Itachi, she said, "You win."
She stepped toward him and added, "For now." With a flick of her fingers, she vanished.
While the Iwa ninja wept, more for the destruction of his statues than his defeat, Itachi got back up to his feet again.
The proctor had his mouth open. We waited for him to come around. "B-by means of interference, the winner shall be automatically be granted to Konoha shinobi, Uchiha Itachi!"
The audience gave half-hearted clap that grew to a full out boom. What a match! What a finale that could have been! Cheers were divided. Many rooted for the Iwa ninja, who, despite his close call with death, pulled it off into a heroic escape from death. He rocked his fists in the air and applauded for himself.
"Thank you! Too kind, too kind!" He laughed. "I love you all!"
As he was leaving, he placed a hand on Itachi's shoulder. "Honor fighting you. Go for the championship, eh mate?"
Itachi met his eyes. A nod, then Itachi disappeared as well. From the balconies, he waited to see who would be his final opponent.
.
"Who…" The blades met. The kunoichi landed on three limbs. "Was your master?"
Both the Iwa kunoichi and the Kiri ninja used heavy swords. They had been dueling nonstop the moment the match started. The kunoichi had stolen the offensive position, but was unsuccessful in her attacks. She wielded her falchion with skill, switching from a stab to a slice with a twirl of her fingers. But no matter what she did, the Kiri ninja used the size of his sword to block. The sword was both a weapon and a shield, the worst obstacle in her path.
"Many people," the Kiri ninja said.
At a standstill, they clashed again and again. Metal clanged metal like a blacksmith hammering. Blue sparks ignited.
The kunoichi breathed heavily. Every time she went in, she was blocked. Then she had to retreat to avoid his attack, which was hard given the size of his sword. The Kumo ninja had faced the same problem: how to get around that sword.
Disliking his answer, she pressed. "You have the qualifications of the Seven Mist Swordsmen."
The Kiri ninja touched his mask. "Interesting deduction."
Her eyes narrowed. Then, she did something unexpected. She tossed away her sword, letting it skid away, and unlatched a summoning scroll instead.
"I am no fool. I will not try to out duel you in swordsmanship."
Amused, the Kiri ninja said, "You can keep going."
A war hammer hung over her shoulder. Smirking, she placed her weight on one leg. "Oh, I will."
With a stomp of her foot, rocks floated up midair, each about the size of an overgrown watermelon. She swung her hammer at one rock. The outer shell smashed, an fiery meteor flying out.
The Kiri ninja rose his sword to block. But the impact pushed him back, and he dug his heels into the earth. The stone hissed and fell to the ground, still burning.
The kunoichi was not done. She whacked another rock in an ear-popping bang. Another missile flew. And another. The bangs were so loud, that even muffling my ears, my head was vibrating.
The Kiri ninja shielded against the meteor shower. The heat had scorched the steel of his blade raw.
After the second shower, he changed tactics. He swiped his hand along the edge of the blade. With his blood, he wrote a word on the flat of his blade. Water.
He slammed his palm on the kanji, and a hydra of water spiraled out.
Scratch that.
It was a flood. A hurricane. A tsunami.
The amount of water was crazy. The kunoichi braced herself against the colossal wall of water, and then vanished into the sea.
Both she and Kiri ninja drowned into the flood. The water rose, up hundreds of meters. Soon, water pooled over, and I lifted my feet up to my seat. Gin did the same.
The nobleman next to me freaked out. He demanded a footstool. Several other noblemen had footstools too, though the noble next to me came extra prepared. He whipped out an umbrella and hid behind it.
I rolled my eyes. That was totally going to help him.
Luckily for us, the water did not reach any higher.
The arena turned into a swimming pool. The Kiri ninja resurfaced, lifted by the water. Now that he was level with the audience, he looked giant.
With a blast, the kunoichi leaped out as well.
On her way down, she smashed the surface of the pool with her war hammer. It created ripples, which turned into tides, which became crashing waves. The Kiri ninja redirected the water sent his way.
The audience could not do that.
The barrier guards were still gawking. Before they could react, the first and worst wave was already here. The wave went through the half-on barrier, soaking me head-to-toe with sea water that smelled of rotten seaweed and fish.
"Nice," I muttered, holding up a wet bang tangled in mucus. Gin lifted his cap and was greeted by a shower. Nested in his hair was a flopping fish. His expression was priceless.
The kunoichi stood on her surface of the water, the war hammer over her shoulder.
"I seem to have underestimated your chakra reserves," she said. "It's inhuman."
She lifted her arm. The water beneath her feet bubbled, and then spat out a soggy rock covered in mildew. She frowned. The rock sunk back down.
"You recomposed the minerals in the soil into unusable sediments. And replaced water as the matrix."
"I hope you aren't too disappointed." The Kiri ninja said. "I doubt water is your nature."
Displeased, she dropped her hammer. "Never assume. Still, I cannot dry this puddle, so…" A spear appeared in her hands. "I guess I'll go fishing."
The kunoichi was at a disadvantage. Yet, she did not bat an eyelash. She began her own tango, fearless.
Her style was not like Itachi's. He was drawn into his surroundings and flowed with the air. Like fire.
Her style was not like the Kumo ninja's. His swift motions allowed him to slash through and avoid. Like lightning.
Nor was her style like her teammate's. He molded the world around him to suit his needs. Like rock.
She did not join nature, nor avoid it, nor change it. Instead, she made her own path, going straight through the tide of water. Just like...
"Metal," the Kiri ninja said, impressed when her spear drew the first wound of battle. "It bears water." He drew second blood. His sword sliced into her thigh.
"A blow for a blow." She pulled the spear out of his lungs.
"Whether a trade or a sacrifice," the Kiri ninja said, "both were... such a pity..."
His clone exploded into a burst of water. "Don't you agree?" the real Kiri ninja asked, his weapon at her shoulder.
"Don't flatter yourself." She grinned, but her blood weakened her look. The wound kept her from dodging, and the Kiri ninja sliced her in half. "The two are hardly equal," her clone said, disappearing. Her spear sunk into the water.
From behind, a flail dug into the Kiri ninja's side, the chains wrapped around him. She tightened the chains around the Kiri ninja and his sword, digging the spiked mace deeper into him.
"Barbaric woman," the Kiri ninja said. "Really is a pity." She did not flinch.
She was rarely impressed. He did not impress her, as she snagged the chains to pull him towards her. Close, she stared into the holes of his mask, and caught a glimpse of the person none of us could see.
"I refuse…" she snarled, her breath leaving a mist on his mask. Her falchion rose from the water and flew into her free hand. "To go down without taking down a bloody Mist Swordsman first. If I can't touch the Uchiha, at least I'll have the pleasure of doing this!"
With that, she stabbed her opponent in the chest.
"A blow…"
"For a blow."
The water shot her spear through her body.
When she collapsed, the water released her ankles. She fell into the pool, defeated.
"Metal carries water," the Kiri ninja chuckled, as he broke free of her chains. "But water rusts metal."
The Iwa ninja dove into the arena after the kunoichi.
The proctor announced the winner, and the crowd was in an uproar. The kunoichi was popular. After her defeat, insults were thrown everywhere. Iwa was mad, since the semi-finals did a double knockout of their players.
The Kiri ninja ignored the booing from the crowd, and pulled out the falchion from his chest. His trench coat was sliced and bloody, but the kunoichi did not hurt him anywhere important. She must had known she was out of the game, and spared the Kiri ninja a chance against Itachi.
The Kiri ninja must have been thankful for that. He stole another glance at the red water where the kunoichi sunk in, before he jumped to the medics.
From the balcony, Itachi had his own thoughts. Then, he left for the halls.
Minutes later, a head burst out of the water.
"Crazy woman… destroying my hard work… making me all wet…" The Iwa ninja lifted his teammate out of the water.
Uneasy, I watched the medics crowd around them.
The blood made me scared for Itachi again. There was a chance Itachi would succeed where Kumo and Iwa failed. There was a chance for him to be with Shisui in ranks again. There was a change to have his father stop being so harsh on him. But the more I watched this tournament, the more afraid I became. Because there was a chance he could get hurt too.
I buried myself into my lap. I wondered who I was really worried for. Itachi, child prodigy of the Uchiha clan. Or me, who would not survive a match like this in a million years.
"You okay?" Gin asked.
"Yeah." I shivered and hugged my knees tighter, wondering why the sun had to hide behind a cloud when I needed it most.
Gin did not buy my lie. "You don't look okay."
"No, I'm to-tot-totaa-A-ACHOO!"
I sneezed, splashing Gin with algae. The nobleman hiding behind his umbrella glanced over just in time to be in the line of fire as well. With a pinched expression, he wiped his face of my gunk.
"I'm totally fine?" I laughed, rubbing my nose.
Gin gave me the deadpan, then got up. He offered a hand. "Come on, let's get you a towel."
Good plan. My dad and I were both prone to colds when we got wet. Last thing I wanted was to get sick.
As Gin and I walked around during intermission, I saw vendors selling towels, umbrellas, and raincoats. They also sold fireproof jackets, suntan oils, insect repellents, army boots, goggles and ear plugs, breathing masks, moist towelettes, and ghost exorcising charms. Apparently, getting hit by an ocean was not worst thing to happen during these matches.
A towel would be great, but Gin and I were broke. So I went looking for a bathroom, while Gin tried to cash in Mr. Floppers, his fish. No fresher sushi than that!
I trudged through the flood, past the floating cups and garbage. I found an entrance to the hallways and climbed the stairs. My sandals squeaked with each step.
However, there was no bathroom in sight. I regretted not asking for directions.
"Ah shi- aACHOO!" I sneezed again. And again.
Annoyed, I was ready to rant about the engineers behind the arena. Why was there no AC during noon, when it was boiling hot, and plenty of AC during the afternoon, when it then was freezing, especially after a dip in sea water!
A voice broke me out of my angry thoughts.
"Bless you."
My mind went from a roller coaster to a crash stop.
No, Ayae. That eerily familiar voice that could not possibly be from him. Just some stranger that sounded an awful lot like him.
I was ready to turn around and say "Thank you" to the stranger, when I felt something warm wrap around me.
Since when did strangers give out free towels?
"Are you lost, Ayae?"
SINCE WHEN DID FREE-TOWEL-GIVING STRANGERS THAT HAVE AN EERILY FAMILIAR VOICE KNOW MY NAME?
"I-Itachi?"
Itachi was still there when I turned around. I rubbed my eyes and did a triple-quadruple check, because the chances of Itachi standing within twenty meters from me and giving me a towel would be, let's see, none.
Flabbergasted, I did what I did best. I blabbed.
"Wha- When- How- I thought-" I made myself stop. Instead, I asked, "Are you real?" I patted him all over, just to make sure I was not crazy.
"I'm not a clone, if that is your question," Itachi said, uncomfortable when I tugged on a few strands of his hair. His hair had really gotten long.
I met his eyes.
In that moment, I realized two years change people. Up close, I could see he looked strange. Different.
It was not his face, or his clothes, or anything in particular than made him different. Though, like me, he did grow a lot. It was mostly his eyes. From his eyes, I could tell he thought a little differently than the Itachi I knew. Acted a little differently. Talked a little differently. Was a little different.
He was the boy I met when I first came to Konoha. He was not the same boy.
"Ayae?"
I snapped out of my thoughts. I realized I was too close to his face. My cheeks burned red, and I backed off like he was the plague.
As if that was not awkward enough, the silence afterward was horrible.
I was at a loss for words. I only came to the Chuunin Exam to make sure after all these years, Itachi was doing okay. I did not think I would ever go back to being a part of his life again. I did not think I would meet him like this.
I wanted for him to say something first, anything at all. But he was waiting for me.
Halfheartedly, I wished I could remember the Itachi is a horrible friend for avoiding me rants I had come up with.
Halfheartedly, Itachi gave a small smile, looking like he was ready to listen to them all.
But I had no rants. I had nothing but a why?
His smile faded, before he looked away. He could not say anything.
I kept my mouth glued shut. Itachi should not expect me to be the one to always talk.
We were at a stalemate.
I was surprised when Itachi cracked first.
"Ayae…" he began, taking a step closer.
My feet took the same step back.
Itachi stopped. Suddenly, he looked scared of coming closer. "Maybe I shouldn't have come," he whispered. "I'm sorry."
I was alarmed. I needed my mouth to make words, to stop him from leaving. "Stop! Err… Itachi, wait. I, um, can we talk… a bit?"
He took another step back. He said nothing, only looking at me and waiting. I did not know what he wanted from me. Whatever magic that drove Itachi to meet me had turned to dried-up pixie dust.
"There is nothing to talk about. I owed an apology. That's all." With that, he turned away.
Something was at the tip of my tongue, but it came too late. He already vanished.
I stood in the hallway, dumbfounded.
Finally, I banged my head against the wall. Itachi had walked up to me, offered me a towel, and waited for me to talk. And I let the chance go. Oh, let me die!
I let out another sneeze.
That was when I heard my name called. "Ayae!"
Itachi's name was on my lips.
But this was not him. I saw a red cap. Gin ran to me at a crazy speed, half water sliding, half long jumping over. I raised a hand to greet him when he knocked the air out of me and dragged me along with him in his insane sprint. As I half darted, half hopped on one leg to keep up with him, I muffled angrily through his palm.
The next thing I knew, Gin was shaking a knob of some door. I was rudely shoved in, and my butt fell flat on a wet mop. Meanwhile, Gin closed the door and pulled me deeper into the janitor's closet.
"Wh-"
Gin covered my mouth. "Don't. Talk."
I pried his hand away. "Gin-" I got muffled again.
"Ayae… shh." He sounded scared.
I went quiet and sat still, my leg in a bucket. My back pressed against coils of tubing, my elbow against a box of detergent. I lowered one knee and tried to untangle our legs, causing a plastic bottle to drop. Gin winced at the noise, and locked my arms tighter with his.
A minute or so of silence later, I heard footsteps approaching, one set heavy, another tiptoed.
I heard voices with the footsteps. I could not tell who they were until they came close to the closet we were in.
"-impaled by a girl?" the nobleman scoffed. "And that little rodent is still unharmed! Hmph! Well, that can be good. People are fickle. They'll put all their money on him now, seeing you were injured by a girl. How pathetic."
The Kiri ninja growled but said nothing.
Their footsteps got closer and closer. They stopped right in front of our door. Gin and I exchanged a look. We peeked into the keyhole.
"Yet, the odds will make all the more money when I win," the sake-breath noble said, thoughtfully. He jabbed a boney finger at the Kiri ninja's chest. "But you are getting sloppy. It's one thing to look convincing, but you still have to win. Remember, I have twenty million ryou on you. If you don't pull through- Eeh! H-how dare you touch me! P-put me d-down or… or…"
"Or what?" The Kiri ninja had the nobleman by the collar.
Sake-breath would have peed in his pants. "O-or you'll be the one to p-pay for it! You'll never see a cent of mine! N-now, let me d-down! This is one hundred percent silk. Look, you're creasing it!"
"Five thousand ryou? I think I can manage without." The Kiri ninja dropped him and walked down the hall.
Sake-breath scrambled to get up. "You will win!" he shouted, pointing at him.
"You talk as if I won't."
Soon, their footsteps trailed off.
Gin pressed his ears to the door. When he was sure they were gone, he turned to me.
"Ayae, you heard that, right?"
"Yeah? So what?" I asked. Just seemed like the Kiri ninja and my seat neighbor were not buddy-buddy.
"So what?!" Gin was distressed that I was not distressed.
"I don't see why you dragged me-"
"Ayae! Remember lecture! Remember what Teacher Funeno told us in the beginning of the year!"
I sighed, wondering why Gin was bringing my failing grades into this. "Something about missions, ranks, status and… stuff…"
"And that ninjas are hired!" Gin said. "That guy you sat next to hired a jounin-leveled ninja to enter the tournament. They rigged the whole thing!"
"What?"
"Listen, we need to bail your cousin out of his next match now," he said. "I have no idea how the Kiri guy managed to fool the proctors but-"
I shook my head. "Okay, what? No! That can't be, because that would be cheating and-"
The door slammed open.
"Illegal?" a voice chuckled.
We grew wide eyed as the lock fell in pieces on the ground.
"I thought I spotted a few bugs."
Below in the arena, the Kiri ninja had not looked too big. When the water leveled him to the audience, he looked giant. But right now, up close, he was enormous enough to eat me.
"If Konoha children think they could conceal their presence by hiding in a closet, I pity." He jerked his head in the direction of the floor.
I looked down and wanted to slap myself. On the hallway floor were wet footprints leading right to our door, and none leading out.
Sometimes, mistakes like that are fatal. Everything sunk in, mostly the fact that an illegal assassin, who was in a scam with a nobleman to make millions of ryou, just found two kids who heard it all. I briefly calculated my chances of survival.
Then I screamed.
That was the plan A taught in the Academy. Though truthfully, my mind was nowhere near safety rules. Kids tended to scream when they realized they were fish food.
Gin slammed a broom at the Kiri ninja. The Kiri ninja caught the broom and snapped it in his fist, but Gin stalled him long enough to take my arm and slip past.
We ran like no tomorrow for the nearest exit. We got ten meters in before plan B failed too. The Kiri ninja had flickered in front of us, blocking the stairwell. Gin yanked me the other way before we got blocked again.
That left plan C. Bluff. "Y-you can't hurt us," Gin said. "There will be security guards, and you'll go to jail."
The Kiri ninja chuckled. "I don't see any right now."
He had a point. I slapped myself for agreeing.
Plan D. Beg for mercy. "We won't tell anyone!" I said. The Kiri ninja saw through my lie. Hell, even I saw right through my lie.
That left plan E. Man, the Ninja Academy was useless. Who wrote our textbooks? I needed to send a complaint to the publisher, because who seriously puts down 'Pray for a miracle' as plan E?
My world went black.
If I survived this, I was bringing up the stupidity of our survival books to the teachers.
.
"-ae? Ayae! AYAE!"
My head hurt. I whacked at Gin to stop shaking me. The world was a blur, and I wanted to curl inward and go back to sleep.
"She's conscious," said a female voice. "Let's go."
"Eh? We can't leave these children here after finding them tied up in a closet." A male voice. "We should bring them to a medic."
"No, we are going to watch the match. I want to see the Uchiha shredded to pieces and the bastard that cut me blasted to oblivion." There was a step, then a strained pause.
"You'll reopen your wound if you keep moving like that." A sigh. "Should we not give any consideration to the boy's story? The star pupil of our master defeated in a mere Chuunin Exam? No way, mate. That was a cheat, and your opponent had to be a jounin."
"Who's to say that Uchiha brat didn't cheat either?"
"You defending my loss? Aw, how swee-" An oomph.
"Don't flatter yourself. As far as I know, those children could be part of Konoha's plot to force us to interfere and get disqualified again, though they're lacking originality on this one. You've lost your previous Exam, because you defended some Suna-nin who played you like a fool. I've already stepped in once to save your ass. If either of us stops a match twice, we're out."
"Eh, if you won't, then I will."
"You fool."
"It's a small price compared to what the Uchiha child will pay. The best would be incapacitated, the worst be death."
"And yet, I seem to recall that he would have killed you. The Uchiha has the option to forfeit. If he does not, that's his own downfall. If anything, he and the rest of his clan deserve a taste of their own bitter medicine."
The man's voice sounded sad. "You'd risk an innocent life for the suffering of others?"
"Because of the Uchiha, Iwa lost over fifty thousand lives! Go if you want, but I will not. I will watch the match."
Heels trailed down the hall.
The Iwa ninja stood, frowning. He noticed I was looking his way and let his shoulders drop. He squatted down. "Is your friend okay now, mate? Good thing my partner insisted on leaving early, or we'd have never heard you."
"I think Ayae's coming around," Gin said.
"Yeah, I'm fine," I said. As Gin helped me up, I wobbled, hanging on to the ledge of the closet. I felt coils of rope slide off me. "What happened?"
Everything came back to me. I jumped up. "Itachi. We've got to help Itachi. He's going to get hurt!"
"About time you're back," Gin grunted. "Hey! Where are you-"
I broke into a run, trying to find the way back to the arena. I climbed two steps at a time at the stairwell and headed toward the noise of the crowds. The light outside blinded me.
I had found the contestant's balcony. The Iwa kunoichi stood against the railing, eyes on the match. She was unfazed when something whipped up past her, fluttering her hair.
I fell back. A water shark had seared through the sky, and then crashed down into the pool below, splashing the arena.
Cautiously, I clutched the railings next to the kunoichi. I dared to look down.
The Kiri ninja stood on the surface of the pool. Itachi was nowhere to be seen.
Without warning, a water dragon shot up. The Kiri ninja was sent into the air, snarled between the teeth of the dragon. He sliced the dragon down the mouth with his sword. The dragon split into two twin dragons, weaving with each other and dancing in the air. They reunited into one and came back down to attack the Kiri ninja again.
A water shark shot up to match the dragon. Both clashed in an explosion of water. The shock wave shook the arena. I braced myself for the showers of water crashing my way. When the showers were over, I gasped for breath, wiping the water from my eyes.
A hand broke free and slammed down on the surface of pool. Water steamed as Itachi pulled himself up from his underwater prison. He knelt, clutching his chest and coughing. His clothes clung to his body, water dripped from his hair. Surrounding him was a thin veil of steam.
"I hope I captured your attention," the Kiri ninja said. His voice was different now. It was sinister, enough to send me shivering all over. "You seemed distracted."
When Itachi found his breath, he forced himself up. "It will not happen again," he whispered, wiping his mouth.
The kunoichi chuckled. "Looks like the boy learned from my match. He should have been finished the moment the water dragged him down, but he manipulated the water on the surface instead. Distracted his opponent long enough to break free. Now he's burning the soles of his feet with fire chakra to prevent from being stuck to the water again."
The Iwa ninja arrived with Gin. "He's duo natured?"
"I'm surprised too," she said. "Before you call the proctors, why not watch first and see how far the Uchiha can take this?"
Gin clung to the railing next to me. Neither of us could keep track of what was going on. Bullets, walls, and vortexes of water happened so fast that I did not know who was creating what.
"Your cousin is using the water like that Kiri guy!" Gin said, shocked. "That can't be possible!"
A tornado of water crashed our way, met by another tornado. Gin and I backed away from the railing, gasping at the sheer force of the winds. Gin and I turned and ran, both tripping. Thankfully, the Iwa ninja caught us. I glanced back in time to be hit with a wave of heat from a fireball, followed by another pellet of rain. I could not see what was happened below, but I saw the sky, how the clouds swirled from the heating and cooling.
"So it seems, eh?" the Iwa ninja mused. "Maybe you would not have won after all," he told the kunoichi. "You were the strongest in this competition, able to combine the elements of earth and fire, but even you don't have the skill to use both separately at once, and polar natures at that."
She snarled. "Someone else could be commanding the water."
"You can tell from his movements that he's choreographing everything," the Iwa ninja said. "Fire is directed to his feet to steer clear the water's pull. At the same time the water is commanded by his hands."
"Tch."
Peeking below the railings again, I watched Itachi dodge spikes of water trying to trap his ankles, dancing on the surface of the water. His body moved to avoid the traps, as his hands blurred from one sign to the next, his eyes focused on the water dragon.
But the water at his feet got smarter. It shaped into a net, snatching his leg and pulling him to a stop. Itachi took a second to cut the water chain with fire. In that one second, he lost connection with the dragon. The shark devoured the dragon, then dove down. Itachi somersaulted away again in time, but got caught in the shock wave.
Itachi was slowing down. On the other hand, Kiri ninja never moved from his spot.
"Tired yet?" the Kiri ninja taunted. "There's no place to run to. The entire field is water, and where there's water, it will trap you. You're in a minefield."
Not able to keep up to speed with the water, Itachi let the water claim him. He exploded, revealing to be a clone.
"I am aware," Itachi muttered from a different location. The water got that clone too.
"Perhaps it's not wise to delay this anymore." Another explosion.
By the time I found where the real one was, something unlocked. A bracelet fell, making a giant splash in the water.
"About time," the Kiri ninja laughed. "Let's end this."
He disappeared. Itachi disappeared.
Everyone was quiet, listening to the disturbances in the field, the monsters of water clawing at each other, the clashes of metal.
This was no longer a Chuunin Exam. The two contestants moved at speeds the eye cannot see. The crowd was in awe. The proctors were alerted. The guards were stiff. The Hokage and Mizukage smiled, as if both knew something no one else did.
My eyes followed the shark. It flew past the Uchiha clan, and through the blizzard of water, I saw Shisui grinning.
I was left breathless, as a phoenix screeched into the sky, overshadowing the sun. The swirling clouds above had darkened, and the arena flooded with pouring rain. Umbrellas were barely opened when the match ended.
"You've wasted the last of your chakra with that move. You've missed. And now, you've lost," the Kiri ninja said, flashing and appearing in the middle of the arena.
Itachi appeared too, collapsing back and sitting a few meters away from his opponent, breathing heavily. Chains of water crept up his limbs, trapping him again, but he kept his eyes on the crying sky.
I was surprised to see Itachi was smiling. It was as if the match did not matter much anymore. Nothing mattered anymore. Itachi was not scared. He found his peace in the eye of the storm.
"You were stronger than I thought. Who sent you to fight me?" Itachi asked, looking up at the Kiri ninja.
Ignoring the question, the Kiri ninja growled, "Why didn't you use the Sharingan?"
"How did you know I possessed the Sharingan?" Itachi played.
"Everyone knows you do." The Kiri ninja slammed his sword next to his opponent. "So. Why. Did. You. Not. Use. It."
"Does it bother you if I don't?" Itachi asked, closing his eyes. "Very well, then."
When his eyes reopened, his eyes were red.
Shocked, I stepped a foot back. "W-what's with Itachi's eyes?"
"I think that's…"
"The Sharingan finally showed itself," the kunoichi said, her hand grasping the railing so hard that the metal started to bend.
"Why do you insist on seeing these eyes?" Itachi asked. "Am I that much of a bore without them?"
The Kiri ninja was done. "You are too arrogant for your own good." He lifted his sword and slammed it down. The sword stopped before Itachi's face. The water had risen to make a shield. The metal chipped, and the sword broke apart.
The water chains around Itachi's limbs loosened and splashed down. Instead, the water began to snake around the Kiri ninja.
"Perhaps I am."
A fin circled around Itachi, before the water shark appeared by Itachi's side, revealing its teeth to the Kiri ninja.
"Perhaps it was foolish to think I would win without using what my blood gifted me with."
The rain poured. The shark attacked the Kiri ninja. The arena was in a wild storm. Barriers were on full force to protect the audience, as tidal waves and sharks ate the Kiri ninja, pulling him into the watery depths.
"Perhaps I should stop running away now," Itachi whispered, before a wave of water blocked him from my view.
Everyone in was amidst a hurricane. Water funneled toward the sky, fueling the black sky. Plates of rock rose to protect us. By the time the Iwa ninja lowered the rocks, the arena was a muddied battlefield, the pool gone. Instead, rain poured from the skies.
The Kiri ninja was spat out of the hurricane, fallen to the ground. Itachi was sitting as well, leaning against a fragment of the Kiri ninja's giant sword. For a while, two opponents sat in the middle of the mess, saying no words and letting the rain clean. The dirt on smeared on Itachi's cheek was washing off, his hair continuing to drip.
Itachi stood up. His eyes were normal.
"Then again, I thought it would have been anti-climatic if the match ended so abruptly. It's time to wake up. I have nothing left to prove."
I did not understand what he meant. Neither did anyone else.
Then, I felt light beams shine down on my back.
The sun? But the rain-
I looked up. To my surprise, it was sunny. There was not a cloud in the sky, let alone any rain.
It really was time to wake up.
The field was dry. Slowly, the illusion faded, as Itachi stood in the center of the arena, without a scratch, without a blemish, without a drop of water on him. He was leaning against the Kiri ninja's sword, which was undamaged and half planted in the earth. The character drawn in blood was still here.
My own hair was wet from before the match, but my skin was dry. The crowd looked confused as they lifted and looked at their dry umbrellas, the same battered umbrellas that became brand new, having never touched a drop of rain.
Their clothes were dry.
Their seats were dry.
The railing was dry.
The floor was dry.
Everything was dry.
There were birds in the sky.
"I believe I won," Itachi said.
The Kiri ninja made no move to get up. "We will meet again."
"You will reveal your identity the next time," Itachi said, offering a hand.
Surprised, the Kiri ninja said nothing. Then he laughed. "No gloves. No mask. And no mercy the next time I see you, Uchiha. Your genjutsu trick won't work on me twice." The Kiri ninja was still chuckling when he vanished into vapor.
While the audience was in shell shock, the Kages were entertained. The Mizukage was the first to clap.
"My, you have a prodigy here in Konoha, Respected Hokage," the Mizukage congratulated. "I believe that child there has just captured the attention of every client in the crowd. Ninjutsu in the first match. Taijutsu in second. And genjutsu in the finale. He sure knows how to entertain, and to sell himself as a ninja." Getting up, he walked away, his robes fluttering behind. "He even defeated our best. I'm almost jealous..."
His voice ebbed away, but his clap spread and echoed throughout the stadium. The clapping was contagious, and before long, the crowd was standing, cheering, laughing, roaring. I clapped my hands together too, numbly.
Itachi won the tournament. He won the tournament, yet was not affected. He stared up at the contestant's balcony. Stared at me. And he was smiling, though sadly. He whispered something. Unfortunately, those words were lost in the noise of the stadium.
And maybe that was part of his intention too.