Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. If I did I'd be a rich bastard with millions of fans.
Chapter 11: Ready…FIGHT!
Last Time, on Konoha's Golden Viper...
"This is troublesome."
"Oh hell yes! I get to beat the lazy-ass into the ground."
As the two chosen to fight walked to take their positions the rest of the gathered shinobi made their way to one of two balconies overlooking the chamber. As Naruto and his team took their preferred spot lounging against the wall on the side of the room mostly dominated by Konoha shinobi, the blond genin smirked. Only the first fight and already he was sure he was going to enjoy this.
The screen on the wall continued to flash the two names of the next match while their owners readied themselves.
Nara Shikamaru
VS
Inuzuka Kiba.
Kiba and Akamaru faced off with Shikamaru as Hayate took his position as referee. Kiba was grinning widely while Shikamaru just looked bored and annoyed.
"You better give me a good fight, Shikamaru, or else I'm gonna pound you into the dust."
Shikamaru just sighed and shook his head.
As Hayate prepared to start the match Shikamaru narrowed his eyes, a simple plan to end the match quickly entering his head.
"Troublesome." He muttered as Hayate lowered his hand between them and shouted begin.
Kiba and Akamaru rushed Shikamaru immediately. Shikamaru just remained standing in position, watching closely as the feral boy rushed towards him. In the balconies above many of his fellow rookies let out gasps of fear as they saw he wasn't attempting to do anything to dodge Kiba's rush. The exceptions were Ino and Chouji, who were both smirking, and Naruto, who's eyes were narrowed.
Just what are you playing at, Shikamaru?
Just as Kiba was about to lash out with a punch Shikamaru smirked and his hands blurred through a set of seals. By the time Kiba's fist was an inch in front of his face he had finished, and suddenly the feral boy was not moving. Or rather, he was struggling to move, but found that his body wasn't responding. Akamaru had been aiming to prevent Shikamaru from dodging away, so he went skidding past since his intended victim hadn't moved. He too suddenly let out a yelp as he became trapped in the same jutsu as his master. Kiba's eyes widened as he finally took notice of the floor between him and Akamaru.
"So, you noticed." Shikamaru muttered. "I can use my shadow to take control of my opponent's movements. If you don't surrender immediately I will be forced to make your precious Akamaru run head first into the wall until he knocks himself unconscious. I will then make you draw one of your kunai and disable yourself."
Shikamaru smirked at Kiba as his eyes widened further.
"Well, what is your choice?"
Kiba growled and would have clenched his fists had he been control. Instead he closed his eyes and muttered, barely loud enough for Hayate to hear.
"I give up…please don't hurt Akamaru."
Shikamaru smirked and released the technique as soon as Hayate had confirmed his victory. He was after all a lazy ass and did not want to have to fight a prolonged battle…especially against an opponent he'd have to deal with on a regular basis should he hold a grudge after words.
Things were just too…troublesome.
In the balcony above Naruto smirked as his pineapple haired friend walked past with his hands in his pockets.
A quite beep alerted the gathered shinobi that the screen had flashed again, and they all turned to look up to see the next match.
Tenten
Vs
Sabaku no Kankuro
Next to him Sasuke looked across the room to see the face-paint-wearing black-clothed shinobi from Suna who appeared to use puppets to fight smirk and start to walk down the stairs. To his right he caught sight of the girl on Maito Gai's team with her hair in buns walk towards and past him, heading down the stairs her self. Sasuke smirked and leant back against the wall.
As the two competitors took their positions below he triggered his Sharingan silently so that he could observe Kankuro. The Suna-genin was on the same team as the creepy red-haired genin-
Sure, I'm one to call someone creepy. My teammate scares the crap out of pretty much everybody except his fan girls and I'm calling someone else creepy? What's wrong with me?
-that Naruto had told him was the Shukaku. That meant that he was a very possible enemy, and it would be safest to have an advantage should he be forced to fight him. Thus he had his Sharingan activated, and he was certain that next to him both Naruto and Sakura had their entire attentions focused on the fight below as well.
On the arena floor Hayate dropped his hand again and Tenten leapt backwards into the air. As she dropped towards the floor she unrolled a pair of scrolls which vanished in two puffs of smoke and rose into the air like a pair of dragons. Suddenly a huge swarm of bladed weapons went flying out of the smoke towards Kankuro. The Suna genin smirked and discarded the object on his back and crossed his arms before him while Tenten watched and smirked as her weapons neared and then impacted, spearing through her target.
"Yes!" She yelled out, moments before the bandage wrapped object that Kankuro had discarded suddenly shot upwards and unraveled, revealing Kankuro whole and unharmed.
"Not yet, bitch." He said, leaping towards Tenten and lashing out with a kunai.
Tenten dodged it worriedly, trying to pull her weapons back using the wires connected to them, but all she succeeded in doing was dragging 'Kankuro', or rather the one that was now revealed to be a puppet, towards her. The fake Kankuro kept moving though, and rather than colliding with his real self ran straight towards her. From the stands above Team 7 watched dispassionately as the Suna genin and his copy rammed their fists into Tenten's stomach, dropping the poor girl like a stone. Hayate called the match a few moments later and medic nins entered the room to carry Tenten away to be examined.
"He fights using the puppet. It may not have looked it, but he clearly favors using it to fight while he stays out of reach." Sasuke said to his teammates as the board began to beep, preparing to display the next match.
"Hn." Naruto agreed. He crossed his arms as he evaluated what he had witnessed.
Kankuro used poison on his weapons. Sasuke and Sakura lack my immunity to poisons. That means that given the choice, I should be the one to engage him.
"I wonder who will fight next." Sakura said as she looked up to the board, her ponytail swinging back over her shoulder with the motion.
When the board finally displayed the names there were gasps around the room, and Naruto noticed a dark-haired boy he recognized from official functions as the nephew of the Hyuuga clan head turn and smirk superiorly at his younger cousin.
Hyuuga Neji
Vs
Hyuuga Hinata
Naruto groaned. While this was certainly a good chance to gather combat data on the Byakugan, he just knew that this couldn't end well. The Hyuuga heir had always been shy, and he was well aware that she had had a crush on him for years. Her cousin on the other hand was reported to hate the main branch with a vengeance, and Naruto didn't doubt that the boy would be aiming to deal as much damage to the poor girl as he could.
Poor girl. She will either forfeit or she will die. I really don't see any two ways around this match.
As the pair of Hyuuga walked down to the floor below Sakura noticed the way Naruto was watching Hinata closely and she elbowed him in the rib. Rather than grunt or cry out in pain Naruto just turned his head to look at her, causing Sakura to raise her eyebrow and put a pouting angry face on.
"I'm evaluating her chances and the outcomes of the match, my love. Do not worry." Naruto smiled and uncrossed his arms, cupping Sakura's face in one hand and pulling her down into a kiss.
The pair was so engrossed in their kiss that neither of them noticed as after just a few words of taunting and a glance up to see the boy she liked making out with another girl rather than watching her fight, Hinata crumbled and gave up, running crying to her team where her sensei Kurenai and her teammate Kiba attempted to comfort her. Kazumi merely snorted at the girl, but then again she was Katsumi's lackey, and was pleased that one more obstacle to her cousin's goals had been removed.
As Naruto and Sakura finally broke their kiss to catch their breath, smiling as they gazed deep into each other's eyes, the board beeped and the fourth match was displayed. Looking up at it the pair smirked in unison.
This match should be interesting for a change.
On the screen two names were once again displayed, causing a pair of kunoichi to glare at one another across the room.
Inuzuka Kaede
Vs
Sabaku no Temari
Inuzuka Kaede let out a cheer of "Let's do this Ryoushimaru!" as she leapt over the railing and landed lightly on the ground below in a crouch, grinning ferally at the blonde who was currently walking down the steps from the opposite side of the room.
Temari in contrast silently walked to the ground, smirking at the watching Konoha genin. This loud Konoha girl was going down; she was going to make sure of it. Suna needed to be represented well during the exams, regardless of what other plans were currently in place.
In the stands above two pairs of eyes on opposing balconies narrowed as they eyed the girls squaring off below. Naruto had never seen Kaede fight in concert with her partner Ryoushimaru before and he was eager to see just what the black-furred pup was capable of. He was also curious as to what the Suna girl could do, since she was on a team with the container of the Shukaku. Gaara on the other hand was merely observing to see if this girl that his sister was about to fight would have blood worthy of feeding to Mother.
Next to Naruto Sasuke was also watching closely, but if the dark-haired boy would have been honest with him self then he would have admitted that he was really watching to admire Temari's figure more than to assess her combat ability.
As Temari squared off with Kaede and Ryoushimaru the older girl placed one hand lightly on her fan in preparation of launching a kamaitachi as soon as the battle began. She figured that the dark-haired girl would likely move for a direct attack, thus leaving her vulnerable to Temari's wind techniques.
When Hayate dropped his arms to indicate the beginning of the fight Kaede growled and crouched, performing a series of hand seals as Ryoushimaru leapt on top of her back.
"Jūjin Bunshin!" The dark-haired girl cried out as both she and her pup vanished in a burst of chakra smoke just when Temari began to swing her fan to form a kamaitachi.
As the smoke cleared two copies of Kaede were revealed, one crouched on top of the other, and both copies looked decidedly feral. Before Temari could react the two copies of her opponent leapt away in different directions, rushing Temari from both sides as the blond-haired girl swiftly tried to turn her abortive attempt to launch a kamaitachi into a defensive measure instead. Just as the pair of Kaede's were about to strike with their decidedly claw-like fingers Temari spun in place, her fan whipping the winds up around her into a violent cyclone of wind that battered the pair of girls away.
Not wasting any time Temari went after the one that had just vanished in a puff of smoke, swinging her closed fan around to slam into Ryoushimaru and propel the injured black pup into the nearest wall.
"No! Ryoushimaru!" Temari heard Kaede cry from across the room.
Temari smirked. Shikamaru's fight with Kiba earlier had unintentionally provided Temari with an understanding of the Inuzuka clan's behavior, giving her an edge in her match which she was more than happy to take advantage of.
"Take another step and the dog gets it." Temari said as she drew a kunai and dropped to one knee, holding the tip of the blade against the throat of Kaede's unconscious partner.
Kaede ceased moving immediately, growling deep in her throat as she glared at the blond kunoichi.
"Now, you have two choices. You can either win this match at the cost of your partner's life, or you can give up and spare yourself the guilt of knowing that the blood of your beloved pet is on your hands." Temari said, grinning.
This is too easy. The blond Suna kunoichi thought to her self.
"Or I take option C." Kaede's growling voice came from behind Temari. "You surrender or I kill you. Your choice."
The blond girl's eyes widened as she realized that the 'puppy' she was holding a knife to had been replaced by a section of floor tile and that two copies of Kaede now stood in the room. One stood across from her and was growling at her while the other held a pair of kunai, one against her throat and the other pinned against the back of her neck.
Temari glared at one of the copies as best she could, but as soon as she felt Kaede begin to press the kunai against her neck against her she cried out.
"All right, all right, you win. I give up." Temari said, letting out her breath as soon as the pressure from the kunai against her neck slackened.
As she stood and rubbed her neck, checking for wounds, she saw the Kaede that had been standing before her transform back into a Ryoushimaru, who was happily wagging his tail as he ran over to a grinning Kaede. Together the pair walked back up to their balcony as Temari groaned and trudged back to her balcony, hoping that her brother wasn't too angry that she had failed.
As the boisterous pair of Kaede and Ryoushimaru passed him Naruto looked up at the screen, his arm around Sakura's waist as they waited for the next match to appear. When it did his eyes narrowed and he felt Sakura tense beside him.
On the board above the statue between the two balconies were displayed a pair of names that caused Naruto no end of worry.
Haruno Sakura
Vs
Uchiha Katsumi
Naruto hugged Sakura to him and leant his head against hers, whispering in her ear.
"Don't worry, baby. I'm sure you can take her. Just remember everything we've worked on together and you'll do fine." He said as he kissed her lightly on the cheek and gave her one last squeeze before letting her go, the pair of lovers glaring at a smug Uchiha Katsumi as the girl trudged past. "And if you think you are going to lose, then please, baby, don't hesitate to give up. I won't think any less of you, and I'm afraid of the distances Katsumi might go to get her way."
Sakura nodded and then steeled her self for the fight.
I don't care what Naruto says, I'm going to prove my strength to him. I'll prove that I don't always need to be protected.
Outside the sun was beginning to set, and as the sky began to darken to twilight something stirred within Sakura's soul as she walked down the steps to stand across from the smirking Katsumi.
"It's time it's time it's time!" Hakumei shouted excitedly from her home within the necklace, excited as she felt the bridge of power between her and her Summoner finally stabilizing. "Come on come on come on! Pick me! I'll help! I wanna help! Please?!!!! Come on Summoner-sama!!"
Sakura shook her head as Hayate stepped forward, attempting to shake loose the illusion that had some how entered her mind. She wasn't sure who, but someone was apparently attempting to use a discrete genjutsu to interfere with her match, but she wasn't going to say anything. Naruto would want her to be able to deal with it on her own, so she would.
"You won't win by trying underhanded tricks like that." Sakura muttered.
Katsumi couldn't hear what she said, so the brown haired girl merely blinked in confusion.
"Ready? Fight!" Hayate said, leaping back as he said so.
Sakura immediately rushed forward while flipping her hands through a series of hand seals.
"Suiton: Kawa o Chikara!" She cried out, bringing her hands together in a triangular seal that Katsumi didn't recognize.
The Uchiha girl was so surprised by what happened next that she barely managed to dodge as the air in the room suddenly became bone dry and a powerful stream of water shot out from Sakura's palms, cracking the wall behind where Katsumi had been standing but moments before.
"Kyaa!" Sakura cried out as she dodged a thrown kunai from Katsumi, rolling to her feet with a pair of shuriken that she had palmed ready to be thrown.
"I'm going to prove here and now to Naruto-kun that I'M the one he should be dating. You're just useless trash from a no-name clan. You don't even have any special abilities." Katsumi taunted her pink haired nemesis.
"Get back here you bitch!" Sakura cried out as she chased towards where Katsumi was retreating towards the wall, launching the pair of shuriken at her.
Katsumi smirked and leapt into the air, dodging the projectiles. Before Sakura could react she brought her hands together and sucked in a deep breath.
"Katon: Goukakyu no Jutsu!!" Katsumi cried out as she breathed out, launching a massive fireball down towards her opponent. Sakura was so close there was no way that she could completely dodge the attack.
Sure enough, as soon as the fireball impacted with the ground and exploded Katsumi had the pleasure of seeing Sakura flung across the room away from where Katsumi was standing on top of the statue. Katsumi smiled in triumph as her pink haired nemesis struggled to her feet, batting frantically at burnt holes in her clothes.
"My my, just look at that hair. That just won't do, not at all. My Naruto deserves a girl who takes care of her hair properly." Katsumi taunted again as she stroked a hand through her own hair, silently palmed a set of senbon needles she had hid there.
Sakura reached up and felt her hair in confusion, her eyes widening as she realized that most of her ponytail was now missing, burnt off by the blaze of flame she had just barely managed to dodge. Sakura began to tremble as the realization that the bitch before her had ruined her hair sank in. She was about to rush in out of rage when Naruto's voice echoed from above, snapping her out of her fury for a moment and reinvigorating her courage and determination.
"Come on Sakura, don't let her taunting get to you. You can do this. I believe in you!" Naruto cried out as he leant over the rail, cupping his hands to amplify his voice as he cheered on the woman he loved.
"Yeah!" Sakura heard another voice cry out, one she didn't recognize. It was feminine, but it had an odd growling undertone to it that she couldn't place. "Come on, let me help. Together we'll teach this bitch not to mess with us foxes. Come on, what do you say? Let a girl out of her cage for a change? I'll be good, I promise!"
Sakura blinked as her vision was once again overtaken by a vision of a spherical chamber bathed in twilight. In the center of the chamber a small pale red fox with three blue-tinted tails and a blue diamond on her forehead was jumping up and down yammering excitedly. It took Sakura a moment to realize that the voice she was hearing was coming from the fox before her, whose eyes were slitted and a pure crystalline blue, reminding Sakura of that strange grove she had found back in the Wave Country.
"Come on, please?! I know Brother must be around and I wanna show him how much I've grown. Come on, pretty please? Hakumei will be a good girl if you let me help, I promise!!"
Sakura blinked again, unaware that back outside her mind her opponent was watching her still form in confusion.
Just what are you planning Haruno Sakura?
"Just what are you?" Sakura asked as she looked around in her confusion. "What is this place?"
The fox smiled happily and padded over to her and bowed.
"I am Hakumei, Summoner-sama, and since you took my focus from the Grove of Twilight I am your humble servant and partner." Hakumei said in her bubbly voice. "And this is a representation of my vessel linked to your mind, a method for us to communicate while I sleep and regain my power."
Sakura blinked again.
"Dwah?"
Hakumei sat back on her haunches.
"Your people call my kind demons or summon animals, I suppose, although neither is entirely accurate. Most so-called demons are merely members of my species who have been very very bad and disobeyed the covenants. And summon animals, icky, they are too social for my taste. They gather in groups because they are too weak on their own."
Sakura blinked again.
"O-kay…so what does that have to do with me?" She asked, now curious as to what was going on.
"I am your summon, Summoner-sama. You are the first human in over three thousand years to be chosen by the Twilight to bear its power. I am merely an agent of the Twilight, bound to aid those it chooses to give the gift to in exchange for power and eternal life." Hakumei said with a smile. "And if you will allow, I am ready to assist you in fighting this human bitch who is attempting to steal your mate from you."
Hakumei chuckled.
"I must say, after the nights he's given you, I don't see why you even allow that little one to challenge you."
Sakura blushed and then smiled. She liked this fox, even if she was just likely going insane.
"Ok, well, what do I need to do to gain your help then?" She asked.
Hakumei smiled again and walked over to her.
"It is simple, Sakura-san. You merely need to accept the bond of the Twilight. The power will be yours to command once you do that. I will train you in its use when we have more time. For now, all you need know is how to draw it to yourself, and how to summon me to your aid."
Hakumei leapt forward and disappeared into Sakura's chest. Immediately Sakura felt the knowledge of how to use the summoning technique enter her mind before the world suddenly returned to normal-
FFFWWWOOOSSSHHHH
-just in time to see a spread of small fireballs flying towards her.
"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" Sakura cried out as she frantically bit her thumb and performed a series of five hand seals and then slid the bloody digit down her right arm, which was bare of her arm warmers thanks to Katsumi's previous fire attack. There was a summoning tattoo on her arm now, still glowing faintly gold from its imprinting, and as Sakura finished streaking the blood along it there was a massive puff of smoke and a burst of blue fire that surrounded her, much to the surprise of Uchiha Katsumi and all those watching.
When the smoke and flame cleared Sakura was revealed to be standing in a ready stance with a pair of kunai held in her hands. Her pupils were glowing with a blue light and her face almost looked like it had faint whisker marks on it. Before her a strange fox crouched on all fours, baring its teeth and snarling at Uchiha Katsumi. In the stands above all the adult Konoha shinobi widened their eyes in surprise.
The small fox that stood before Sakura was a pale red with three tails waving in the air behind it. The tails appeared to be tinted blue towards the tips, and some of the adults could see a faint blue diamond on the forehead of the beast. The fox was about three feet in length from its red nose to the blue-tinged tips of its tails, but its snarling and its wildly waving tails made it seem larger to the gathered shinobi. To many of the Konoha shinobi, the fact that the lover (some would say 'demon whore') of the Kyuubi jinchuriki had summoned a fox was troubling at best.
"You want to try that again, huh bitch?" Sakura growled out between clenched teeth, her new fangs biting into her lip and drawing blood. "Well then, let's do things your way!"
Sakura grasped one of the kunai tighter and focused before tossing it, the blade igniting with a bright blue flame just like the one that had protected her from Katsumi's attack. The Uchiha girl barely managed to dodge the attack, the heat from the kunai's passing nearly igniting her own hair.
"Heh, can't take the heat, can you bitch? Well, you should know better than to mess with foxfyre." Sakura continued as she concentrated on the second kunai and then sent another flaming spear of blue death towards her rival.
Before her Hakumei remained in place, continuing to growl and watch for any sign of attack as her tails raged through the air above her. In the stands above Naruto's eyes were widening, both in surprise at the change in his girlfriend and at what the Kyuubi was now relating to him.
Inside Naruto's mindscape the Kyuubi had been dumbstruck as he watched what could only be one of his brethren appear at the side of his host's mate. She was older than when he had last seen her, and had at some point acquired her third tail. But what was she doing here with his host's mate? Had Sakura somehow formed a contract with the Twilight?
Hakumei… He growled inside Naruto's mind, drawing the poor surprised blonde's attention.
What was that, Kyuubi? He asked as Lachesis slithered up beside the pair within the jungle of the Naruto's mindscape while simultaneously poking her head out of Naruto's coat in the real world.
That's my sister, Hakumei. But what she is doing here I cannot understand. There has not been a Summoner of the Twilight in over three of your millennia.
Kyuubi narrowed his eyes contemplatively.
I wonder just how much the little one has grown. She was always too kind for her own good.
Naruto didn't respond. His lover had begun her counterattack, and Naruto was too busy dealing with the realization that Sakura's new feral transformation was simply fucking hot, and was garnering a number of unfortunately timed reactions from his body.
Back on the arena floor Sakura was smirking as Katsumi attempted to catch her breath after dodging the second of Sakura's flaming projectiles. As Katsumi watched Sakura's pupils continued to glow blue as the pink-haired girl narrowed her eyes at her opponent.
What the hell is going on? When did she get so strong? This isn't FAIR!! I'm supposed to be the one Naruto-kun falls in love with! Me!!
"Do you surrender now, bitch, or do I have to take out my revenge for what you Uchiha did to my beloved on you personally?" Sakura asked as she drew some senbon. "Well, I don't have all day. I've got a boy in the stands above I desperately want to get it on with right now, and every second you waste is a second that my pleasure is delayed."
Sakura dropped to one knee and pet Hakumei as she stepped up to the red-furred fox.
"This is Hakumei, my partner. She doesn't like you. She thinks you are an inferior female, not worthy to mate with my beloved. I suggest you surrender before she shows you just what she does to unworthy females." Sakura's grin widened as Katsumi paled in fear.
Everything she had seen, done, and been taught hadn't prepared her for this. It was subtle, but Sakura and her fox were radiating a power and killing intent second only to that which she had felt on that bridge in the Wave Country. It reminded Katsumi of Naruto's, only it was far less cold and deadening.
"I…" Katsumi began hesitantly before swallowing and hardening her resolve. "I am Uchiha Katsumi. I will never be beaten by a no-name like you! I WILL have Naruto-kun for myself! Believe it!"
Everyone in the room shivered as Katsumi said that last line, as if a thousand deaths had just been experienced by each of them at the presence of something so…wrong existing in the world.
Sakura just kept grinning.
"So be it then. Hakumei, sic her."
Hakumei let out a foxy bark and then leapt forward, speeding towards Katsumi faster than the poor girl had expected. As she hastily tried to bring her kunai down to block Hakumei leapt into the air on a burst of blue foxfyre and plowed into Katsumi with a head butt, forcing the dark-haired girl back off the statue and into the wall behind it.
Katsumi collided with the wall, her head slamming into it with a resounding crack, and then slumped to the ground, still as the grave. Hakumei snorted at the fallen girl before turning and trotting back over to Sakura's side as Hayate appeared by Katsumi's side in a shunshin. Hayate quickly checked to confirm that Katsumi was in fact unconscious and then declared Sakura the winner. As medic nins rushed the floor to carry Katsumi out for medical attention Kakashi watched with narrowed eyes as Sakura traipsed happily up the stairs to rejoin Naruto, the strange fox following obediently at her heels.
"Naruto-kun!" Sakura cooed as she snuggled into his arms, her eyes still glowing faintly although her other markings had receded. "Did you see me?! Did I do good?!"
Naruto smiled and kissed Sakura deeply before replying.
"You did amazing love, though we are going to have to have a talk later about keeping secrets from one another. Why didn't you tell me you had a fox summon?"
Sakura giggled as she brought a finger up to place the tip over Naruto's lips.
"I didn't know myself until a few minutes ago." She whispered as she leant in close to him. "And that's all I'm saying until we're alone and I've had my wicked way with you again."
Naruto grinned and kissed her again.
"Now that's a proposition I can accept." He said with a smile on his face.
"Well, looks like it's me against one of your mom's students, Naruto." Sasuke said from their side, drawing the couple's attention away from each other.
Naruto and Sakura looked up at the board to see who was to compete next.
Uchiha Sasuke
Vs
Akamichi Chouji
AN: Well, here is chapter 11 for you all to enjoy. Don't worry, its shorter length is because I felt that this was a good stopping point for the chapter, not because I wanted to derive you of Golden Viper goodness. Chapter 12 of KGV is the next one on my plate before I continue the cycle. Also, this chapter marks the first time I have a chapter completely beta'd. I.E.T.S., one of my readers and whom I am acting as a beta for, has graciously agreed to beta KGV for me. Her aid has helped me tighten up a few parts of this chapter, fix a few grammatical errors, and even gave me inspiration for a piece or two. So please, everyone give her a big round of applause for taking on the daunting task of beta'ing the ramblings of my insane mind.
-ZI
Review Responses
Sweet Heavens – Kin serves a role in the story, and one which saved her by death since she was the most readily available and useful to fill the slot. But I am sorry, for I am not turning Sakura bi. This Naruto is a one-woman fox-er-snake-er-mAN! That's what I meant to say. Yes. Yes, that's precisely what I meant to say.
Catsi563 – Well thank you. I really appreciate your consideration.
Oh, trust me, without Sakura Naruto would have become FAR darker. She's his literal anchor. This is a "darker" Naruto fic, not a "dark" Naruto fic. He will not lose all empathy or turn into some death loving demon. He's merely reacting to the way he is treated and his actions will ultimately be decided for him by the mistakes of others.
As to that truly horrific thing, well, you'll all find out. In good time.
-ZI
PS: I'll try to check out your stories this weekend. Thanks for the review Catsi.
Lord Ezra'eil – Haha, its ok man. And again, sorry, but this story was always envisioned as just Naruto and Sakura. The whole 'foxes mate for life' thing is kinda important for the story.
Getsuga Tensou – Kin will survive. She has many uses. Many uses indeed.
Leaprechaun1 – Thanks. ^^
Maileesaeya – I tend to be a TemaxShika fan myself, but I'm obviously not averse to breaking canonical pairings when the stories diverge from canon. And given the plans for the story, there really aren't a lot of canon females who can possibly act as Sasuke's love interest.
Thanks. Hope you enjoyed this chapter.
ZaBuchar – The OCs are important to the story, but not in the "Oh, they turn out to be uber powerful and totally kick the good guy's ass" way, more as in the "they are important to the plot but are ultimately ancillary characters." Naruto's true opponents have yet to fully reveal them selves. Likewise with his true allies. And as you must have seen last chapter, Orochimaru went after him, though not to use him as a host body. He wanted the power of the Yondaime's Legacy. He's a spiteful bastard afterall. But Lachesis got him but good.
Hawkgirl90 – I always try to warn when a chapter has more descriptive parts in it (I've done this to a chapter or two of my other projects already) and any time I do so I am willing to create an edited version of the chapter and email it upon request.
Thanks.
Paladin13 – I just did what I expected would happen, as well as attempting to explain what happened to Orochimaru's two subordinates in the forest. I've actually seen the seal be BLOWN off using an overload of Kyuubi's chakra, which is part of what inspired Naruto burning the damn thing away. The other part was that without really thinking about it, the way I established the seal and its power in this story unintentionally gave Naruto a weapon to aid in fighting off the damn curse seal. And yes, Naruto still has most, if not all, of his core beliefs. Hell, at this point, despite everything they've done to him, he still wants little more than to protect Konoha.
Lexor – Well, I'm trying to show that while he still has the happy side, he is more sadistic and ruthless. He is not the naïve foolish innocent boy he once was anymore.
KunochiDreamer – Hehe, thanks. I felt it was time the teme got bit him self.
Hells-fox – Thanks. Hopefully you enjoyed the fight scenes, and the cat fight at the end.
Kontraband – Thanks man.
Ah, haha. Well, intriguing to know.
There is a damn good reason for the curse seal thing. First, I thought long and hard about it and realized that with Naruto's ancestry known, Orochimaru still planning his invasion, and all that entailed, that the snake-teme would most likely go after Naruto. If the curse seal took hold and Naruto survived, he'd be able to twist the son of the man who received the title of Yondaime instead of him. If Naruto didn't survive, well, then Naruto had the pleasure of wiping the son of the Yondaime from the world. As to the removal of the curse seal, I inadvertently set that up back in the early chapters when I established the way the Yondaime's seal protected Naruto from the Kyuubi influencing his mind.
It also set up getting the damn teme near enough and vulnerable enough for Lachesis to take a bite out of the man, and ultimately leads to Orochimaru figuring out that Naruto somehow stumbled upon (read: got injected by) his little boobytrap. When Orochimaru figures that out he tries to exert his control he had expected to have on the boy. That leads to some interesting scenes.
Hehe, yup. But unlike her son she didn't get any undergarments.
No rush man. Just give me an email (it should be in my profile) and I'll give you some more detailed descriptions of the weapons.
Jaa for now.
-Zaion the Currently-Indisposed-by-Chinese-Food
Moonfal – Thanks. Hopefully you get a laugh out of the catfight in this chapter.
-ZI the Effervescent.
PS: Yeah…not really sure what I just called myself there. Haha.
Kyuubiwolf23 – Sorry, Naruto's fight is going to be in the next chapter. And why would I have him fight Gaara now? I don't want him KILLING EVERYBODY…well…not yet at any rate…*looks around shiftily*
Jaa.
-ZI
Bobboky – Thanks.
DustBunnyQueen – If I ever get around to writing it, absolutely.
Lee-Aeront – Why thank you. If I can provide inspiration to get others back to writing then I have succeeded in my goals. And I think I sent you a pm already, but I'll repeat some stuff here. The basic idea for the familiars is to really develop your ideas as to what they are, what they can do, how they act, etc. I developed a complex backstory that ultimately explains summon animals, familiars, and tailed-ones in my story.
Bandgsecurtiyaw – Thank you.
NorthernLights25 – Thank you as well.
Darthdrew1704 – Why thank you darth. I appreciate you saying so.
Shanedude – I shall respond to each of your reviews in the order they were received. Thanks for reviewing most of the chapters as you read my story.
-Thanks.
-He didn't kill the clan because the proof that an Uchiha had attacked Naruto caused the clan to put their plans on hold as they were already under suspicion. Thus, when Itachi was found out to be a spy for the Hokage, he was forced to kill his cousin and was then assigned a deep cover assignment to get him to safety. The Sandaime's thanks for the Uchiha's loyalty right there. Also, they are twelve, going on thirteen, and I knew people in high school who were outright fucking at age twelve. So no, in a society where they are viewed as adults and with the sort of the life spans they are expected to have, I honestly don't think twelve is a bit young for them for kissing and being romantic.
-She does lose some of her hair in this chapter, unfortunately, but do not worry. In the long run it does grow back nice and long again. And here, unfortunately, as I wrote the scene, I realized that such a blast would take out a lot of her hair, so I had to do what I could to justify minimizing the damage while still having the attack work properly.
-Thanks.
-Thanks. I honestly thought that that would be a great use for the vision, and I had intended to use that fight to display just what sort of uses he could put it to in an actual combat situation.
-Yes, it was. I was trying to get a laugh, and to indicate that Naruto hasn't completely changed from his original self.
-No, Orochimaru captured an Uchiha, an older one who had awakened his Sharingan.
-Thank you.
Darkmanu – Well, I'm hoping that you will enjoy this chapter. I worked hard on it, and the next chapter is the one currently on my work list before I continue on with my normal cycling.
I.E.T.S. – And who said he was after a new body, hmm? *chuckles* And don't worry, as I am currently beta'ing it, as you well know. Again, I would like to thank you for your excellent work as a beta on the story.
Buzzbumble – Naw, Orochi-teme is pretty much recovered by the finals of the exams. He just needed some medical help to fight off the venom was all.
King Hawke – Thank you very much. Hehe, Gaara will be quite interesting indeed, but Kabuto alas will be allowed to spy to his little black heart's content, as the Hokage is hoping that he might be able to be fed false information to lead Orochimaru into a trap. Gaara though, I have big plans for him, yes, I do indeed.
Chloe0921 – Hmm, does that mean as short or does that mean you usually only read one-shots? Either way, I appreciate the fact that you are giving my story a chance. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, even if it was a bit shorter than usual.
narutoFMA-LOVER – This Naruto has, among other things, met Ibiki, and been trained by his mother in a number of interrogation tactics and techniques. It was almost blatantly obvious to him what the real purpose of the exam was. And yes, I agree, those are very annoying. The correct term for that btw is a 'Gary Stu". I'm merely trying to put Naruto where I would expect him to be after being trained properly as a youngster. Though some of his power is thanks to Orochi-teme's ill-advised 'booby-trap'.
IdeyaDreamer – Thank you.
AlphaDelta1001 – I think I may have sent you a pm already, but not sure. Anyways, Naruto and Sasuke both have their strengths, though Naruto has a bit more of an advantage on some aspects because of his partner and his prisoner. Sakura is still overall weaker, though obviously that is changing a little bit. And yes, Sasuke definitely has a thing for Temari. I'm so mean to the poor boy in my other fic's that I decided to get him properly and happily laid before this one is over.
Blazevoir – Hehe, why thank you. Prankster Sakura I decided was acceptable even by canon thanks to her inner Sakura responses to some of Naruto's pranks. And I specifically set up events to ensure that Sakura's attention was grabbed by Naruto before Sasuke ever entered the picture.
Hehe, I think so too. Thus the story. That and the character of Lachesis just wouldn't leave my mind.
I honestly felt that the cage was just a metaphor for the seal. In this story, the cage is represented by the collar on the Kyuubi, while the golden glow around Naruto is the seal's way of protecting his mind against foreign influences.
Thanks again, and I hope you enjoyed this chapter.
Lioness 10784 – Whether Sasuke has any fun with Kin or not is still to be seen. If he has any fun with her, I'm telling you now that Temari will still be his as well.
I-Eat-My-Vegetables – Hehe, like the bloody catfight I inserted into this chapter? And I'm really only following canon because I feel this is what would have happened, and I also know that soon events will cause it to change from canon. Here's a hint: The Uchiha Clan still being alive will drastically alter events during and after the Finals of the Chunin Exams.
Aikori Shukrai – Lachesis is an amalgamation of a number of extremely deadly snake species. I really don't think she would be SAFE to have in real life. Haha.
Nequam-tenshi – As I think I said in a pm, it hasn't been half a year. The story was last updated back in December, and I am putting up now the next chapter, as I have finally completed it and received it back from my beta.
Imgonnadie – Thanks.
Shadow of a Life – Well, I can point you to some stories that are even better imho, including those writers who's works inspired me to actually begin writing my own projects. Whether Naruto will actually be trained by Jiraiya, I'm still thinking on. Whether he is or isn't, I guarantee you he will have some tricks up his sleeves for the finals.