Disclaimer: Naruto is NOT mine! It all belongs to Kishimoto, if it had belonged to me, I would have tried to not rush the finale and pretty much destroy any character development that had occurred in the 15 years building to this point. But that wasn't my decision.
Jutsu Name
'Thoughts'
'Inner, Demon or Demon-influence speak'
"Are you two ready?" Hayate asked. Neji and Kenshin nodded. "Then begin!"
"You should give up," Neji said. "Fate has decreed that I will be the victor of this battle. You have no chance of beating me."
"Sorry mate, but I don't believe in giving up or no-win scenarios," Kenshin said with a confident grin. "I never back down from a fight and I don't intend to start now."
The green-haired boy reached up and tightened the headband around his head. Then Kenshin gripped the hilt of the massive sword attached to his back. It was just as tall as the boy himself.
"So you are a swordsman then?" Neji asked. Kenshin nodded. "It makes no difference, you shall still lose here."
"You talk big Hyuga but you still haven't attacked," Kenshin said. "Are you sure you aren't scared of getting too close. The Hyuga clan is known the world over for its skill in taijutsu and how coupled with your Byakugan; you are nearly unstoppable in hand-to-hand combat. But nearly unbeatable does not mean invincible."
"You are delusional to think that you can defeat Fate," Neji sneered.
"I am not fighting Fate, I am fighting you," Kenshin retorted. "Enough banter, let's fight!"
Kenshin shot forward, his sword quickly coming into play as he slashed at Neji. The Hyuga ducked under the slash and sent a Juken strike at Kenshin's chest, aiming to disable his opponent in one blow. But Kenshin blocked the strike with the pommel of his sword, much to the surprise of Neji.
Kenshin leapt backward to gain space before rocketing forward, his sword slicing through the air. Neji heard the sword whistling through the air and ducked gracefully and nimbly underneath the sword strike. Neji's right hand shot forward, his fingers glowing blue with chakra, Kenshin twisted his body rapidly on his right foot to just barely avoid Neji's strike.
"You were able to avoid my Juken, impressive," Neji commented as he straightened up and faced Kenshin.
"Thanks, I think," Kenshin said. "You are pretty quick yourself, in fact I think I should take this up a notch, don't you? We've had enough of a warm up."
Neji arched an eyebrow at Kenshin's claim. "You say you are holding back, then show me," Neji said. "It will not matter how much you have been holding back, Fate has already decided that I will be the victor."
"We'll see," Kenshin said. The green-haired boy placed his palm flat on the blade of his sword and whispered something. The sword glowed a deep luminescent blue before Kenshin swung it several times, as if to test its weight. "That's better, now we can start round two."
Neji activated his bloodline, the Byakugan, and readied himself. He could tell that something was different now; his opponent seemed to be holding his blade easier now.
Kenshin rocked back on his heels before shooting forward, his blade held down at his hip. Neji's eyes widened in surprise as Kenshin appeared much quicker than before. Neji leaned backward as Kenshin drew his sword in an upward slash; one that would have spilt Neji in two had the Hyuga not moved backward. Before Neji could even think about countering, Kenshin's grip shifted and was now bringing the sword down in a powerful overhand slash.
Neji nimbly leapt out of the way, and was stunned to see a large crack in the floor where Kenshin's sword was resting. Neji looked up to see Kenshin grinning at him.
"What are you smiling at?" Neji asked.
"Just wondering when you were going to get serious," Kenshin said. "I can tell you're just testing me, come on Hyuga, show me what you've got!"
"Very well Kusa ninja," Neji retorted. "If you wish to see the full might of the Hyuga clan, the strongest clan in all of Konoha, then I will not be responsible for the injuries that you receive. Prepare yourself."
Neji raced forward, his fingers glowing and eyes bulging, aiming to end the fight in a single blow. Kenshin slashed at Neji, hoping to divert the Hyuga's charge. But Neji nimbly ducked around the slash and his arm shot out to strike Kenshin's left arm. But Kenshin rotated his upper body just enough to avoid the strike.
Neji ducked under another slash that would have left him a head shorter however he did notice that he felt a breeze across the back of his neck. Looking down, Neji growled when he saw that while he had avoided the sword strike, his hair hadn't and was now lying on the ground in a clump at his feet.
"Well, look on the bright side, now you won't be mistaken for a girl," Kenshin joked with a grin.
"Let's see if you can make those quips when you are drooling in a hospital bed," Neji snarled. "You are within my range of divination." Neji lowered himself into a peculiar stance; his upper body was bent down over his right leg while his arms were outstretched in both directions with his palms facing upward.
Kenshin's eyes narrowed and readied himself. But before he could even take a step toward Neji, the Hyuga boy surged forward and struck.
"Two palms!"
"Four palms!"
"Eight palms!"
"Sixteen palms!"
"Thirty-two palms!"
Neji's arms were a blur as he struck at Kenshin. The Kusa ninja tried to bring his sword up to block some of the blows but Neji was too quick and agile. The spectators watched in awe, and a bit of fear, as Neji swept through Kenshin's defenses like they were nothing. Bursts of chakra flashed at each blow, and with each strike Kenshin's stance crumbled more and more until the only thing keeping the boy upright was his grip on his sword.
"This match is over," Neji declared. "You are lucky to be alive let alone standing I have closed off most of your chakra points in your arms and legs. Be grateful I didn't aim for your heart and lungs."
"Winner Neji Hyuga," Hayate announced. Lee shouted in excitement, as did Gai, but they were the only noises of congratulations. Most of the spectators were looking on in fear and trepidation at the display Neji had just put on.
"Are the Hyuga really that strong?" Sakura asked.
"Well, Neji is said to be a prodigy in their taijutsu and clan jutsus," Kakashi said. "They are a tough opponent for sure, and are nearly unstoppable at taijutsu thanks to their Byakugan but they can be beaten, you just have to figure out how."
The board beeped, drawing attention of the hall once again.
"Would Sakura Haruno and Ino Yamanaka please report to the arena floor?" Hayate called.
"Good luck Sakura-chan, wipe the floor with Ino," Naruto said. Sasuke merely nodded as Sakura looked to him for encouragement.
"You're going down Sakura," Ino said when the two kunoichi faced each other. "I have gotten loads stronger since the Wave, and I'll show Sasuke-kun that I am the one for him."
"Dream on Ino-pig," Sakura growled. "And while you might have gotten stronger since then, I haven't gotten weaker. I've been training even harder since the Wave, you don't even hold a candle to me now."
"Prove it Forehead," Ino snapped, reaching for a kunai.
"Begin!" Hayate shouted before leaping out of the way. Ino and Sakura charged at each other, with a kunai in hand.
"You will never measure up to me Sakura," Ino laughed as she and Sakura's kunai ground against each other, the two kunoichi trying to gain leverage on one another. "You are nothing but a rider of coat tails. I am the heir to one of Konoha's most prestigious clans, how could you ever hope to gain the attention of another clan heir? Face it Forehead, all you will ever be is a weak little girl who managed to slip through the cracks by riding the coattails of her more powerful teammates, you and Naruto both."
Naruto and Sasuke glared down at the fight. Kakashi arched an eyebrow at the sound of the railing creaking under Naruto's grip.
"What the hell Shikamaru!" Naruto snapped. "Why is Ino acting so, so Sasuke-like? And calling Sakura-chan names like that?"
"That's part of Ino's strategy," Shikamaru answered. "The Yamanaka clan is famous for their mind techniques, they are experts in psychological warfare, getting into their opponents' heads and wrecking havoc. Ino is trying to rile Sakura up, to make her make a mistake. A key trait of a successful shinobi is to keep their emotions in check, let's see if Sakura can handle this."
"Of course she can," Naruto shouted. "Sakura-chan is really strong, she's going to wipe the floor with Ino."
"I might not be from a shinobi clan," Sakura said. "But that doesn't mean I am weak! I will prove to you Ino-pig, and to the world that one doesn't have to be from a famous clan to become a strong ninja." With a loud shout, Sakura summoned another level of strength and pushed Ino away.
Sakura's hands blurred through a set of hand signs. "Clone Jutsu!" Two copies of Sakura appeared next to the real Sakura, who grabbed a pair of smoke bombs from her hip pouch and threw them on the ground. Ino leapt backward to avoid being caught in the smoke cloud.
Ino's arm came up on instinct as she deflected the several shuriken that came whistling out of the smoke. "You are going to have to do better than that, Forehead, to beat me," Ino said as the smoke began to dissipate. "Cheap tricks won't be enough."
Two copies of Sakura came rushing out of the smoke, angling to flank and surround Ino.
"That won't work on me," Ino cried as she took off toward the Sakura to her right. "My team is known for trapping out opponents, I won't let you try and turn the tables on me."
The blonde kunoichi hurled two kunai at her target, hoping to disrupt Sakura's attack plan. Ino watched as Sakura easily dodged the kunai and continued to try and get around to Ino's blindside.
"Gotcha!" Ino shouted, catching up to Sakura with a surprising burst of chakra-enhanced speed. Sakura's green eyes widened as Ino appeared in front of her but that surprise quickly vanished. Ino watched in detached horror as her kunai passed through Sakura's grinning face without resistance. The clone Sakura faded from sight, leaving Ino blinking rapidly in shock.
"Ino! Behind you!"
Shikamaru's shout broke Ino's shock as she spun around to see another Sakura rushing toward her, with a kunai drawn.
"You are not fooling me this time Sakura!" Ino shouted as she hurled another kunai at Sakura. The kunai passed right through the clone and Ino heard rapid footsteps approaching her from behind. She whirled around and Ino's world spun as Sakura's fist slammed into her cheek.
Shikamaru and Asuma both winced as Ino was sent skidding across the floor and came to a rolling stop in a heap.
"All right Sakura-chan!" Naruto shouted from the platform. "Show everyone how strong you are!"
Ino slowly got to her feet, and gingerly touched her throbbing cheek. She winced as pain flared in her cheek. The tie holding Ino's hair back in a ponytail had loosened and her hair was now hanging freely and shielding her face from view.
"You are going to pay for that Forehead," Ino growled as she grabbed her hair and with a swift swing, Ino's kunai sliced through her hair leaving it only long enough to reach her shoulders. Ino threw aside her cut hair and glared at the real Sakura. The pinkette's remaining clone had long since evaporated.
"Make me pig!" Sakura challenged. She had been stunned when Ino had cut her hair, the Ino that Sakura had known always tried to balance her looks and being a serious ninja. Ino's bruised face painfully stretched into a grin.
"Don't worry Sakura-chan," Ino mocked. "You'll soon see the gap between us." The Yamanaka heir suddenly charged at Sakura, rearing her fist back.
"Have it your way then Ino!" Sakura growled as she rushed forward.
The match dissolved into a taijutsu brawl between the two former friends. Neither girl had been top of their Academy class in taijutsu, and even after six months of being in the real world, little had changed. Sakura and Ino were still lacking in skill in hand to hand combat, and were sloppily trading blows
"Face it Ino-pig, you can't beat me," Sakura said as she ducked under a sloppy punch and countered with a punch to Ino's stomach, causing the blonde to fall to her knees at Sakura's feet. "Give it up Ino, you can barely stay on your feet…What's going on! I can't move!"
A weak and pained giggle came from Ino, who had one hand clutching her stomach and the other was holding herself up from the floor in the middle of her hair.
"Gotcha!" Ino said, drops of blood falling from her mouth and staining the floor. Sakura looked down and saw that her feet were entangled with the fallen strands of Ino's hair, which was glowing a light blue.
"What did you do?" Sakura asked as she struggled to escape Ino's hair.
"I told you that my team specializes in trapping our opponents," Ino smiled, spitting a gobble of blood from her mouth, destroying her princess image in the mind of Sakura. "Shikamaru isn't the only one who can come up with a plan to capture an unsuspecting opponent. Now Forehead, I thinks its time to end this. Mind Transfer Jutsu!" Ino cried, holding her arms out with her hands in an unusual sign.
A streak of white light shot from Ino's hands and struck Sakura in the chest, causing the pinkette to nearly fall over, only being held up by Ino's hair.
"This fight is over," Shikamaru said with a small smile.
"No way! Sakura-chan won't go down so easily," Naruto argued. "Come on Sakura-chan, snap out of it!"
"The Yamanaka Clan's Mind Transfer Jutsu is something that can't be snapped out of," Shikamaru said. "Right now, Ino's spirit is in Sakura's body and has taken control of it. Ino is probably going to force Sakura to forfeit."
'Man it really is spacious in here,' Ino commented as she took in her surroundings. 'Kami, Forehead, how can you be so smart when there is so much empty space in here?'
Dimly, Ino thought she heard someone shout out. 'That's probably Naruto, that idiot, Sakura isn't here and…'
'What the hell are you doing here Ino-pig!' a booming shout shook the ground beneath Ino's feet.
'What?' Ino cried. The empty space that had been a brilliant white suddenly turned black with a reddish glow coming from beneath Ino. The blonde looked down and froze when she saw a pair of blazing green eyes glaring up at her. Ino then realized that she was standing on a sheet of water. Two massive hands rose from beneath the water, reaching for the blonde.
'There is no way in hell that you are making me lose this fight Ino-pig!' the booming voice roared. The blazing green eyes now had a face with them; it looked like Sakura's face only older and it had the word 'Inner' written on its forehead. 'You don't control this place mind walker, I do!' Inner Sakura roared, her hands closing in on Ino.
'Release!' Ino shouted. Her body glowed white and vanished just before the two hands closed around her.
"What are you Sakura?" Ino asked, panting heavily. Her father had told her that only those with great mental strength and sufficient chakra reserves could expel a user of the Mind Transfer Jutsu.
"I'm complicated," Sakura answered, also panting. Expelling Ino had taken up most of her remaining chakra reserves. "It's time we end this Ino." Sakura raised a hand and made the Ram sign with her fingers. "Activate!"
"Ah!" Ino cried as she suddenly fell to a knee. It felt like her body weight had suddenly doubled. "What is this?"
"A gravity seal," Sakura said, still holding the Ram sign. "Right now, your body is feeling four times the normal weight of gravity. And unless you give up, I'll keep raising the gravity level until you can't move. So give up!"
"Never!" Ino growled, struggling back to her feet but the room could see that her legs were trembling slightly.
"Have it your way," Sakura said without emotion. She pulsed her chakra and Ino crashed back down to the floor. "Now you are feeling five times the normal gravity, please Ino, just give up."
"No! I will not give up," Ino shouted. "You will not make me look weak in front of Sasuke-kun or anyone else!"
Sakura sighed and pulsed her chakra twice in quick succession. Ino cried out as she was flattened. "Now the seal is at seven times normal gravity," Sakura said. "You need to find another reason to become strong Ino, trying to impress someone is not enough. The world is a cruel place; you should know this from the mission to the Wave. Find you own way Ino, focus on yourself, not Sasuke-kun, in order to become strong."
Ino had tears welling up in her eyes as Sakura walked up and chopped the blonde in the back of the neck causing Ino's world to go dark.
"Winner Sakura Haruno," Hayate announced.
"All right!" Naruto shouted. "Way to go Sakura-chan, you were awesome!"
"Well done Sakura, I'm proud of you," Kakashi said with a smile when Sakura reached her teammates.
"You did good," Sasuke said with a nod. Sakura smiled at Sasuke and turned to stand next to Sasuke with Naruto on the other side of Sasuke.
"Would Gaara of Suna and Rock Lee of Konoha please come down here?" Hayate asked. The redheaded boy appeared in a swirl of sand at one end of the arena while Lee leapt over the railing and rushed over to his spot, his body trembling in excitement.
"Lee better not hold bock against Gaara," Naruto said quietly. "If he does hold back, Lee might be killed."
"Naruto, you should have more faith in your comrades," Kakashi chided. "Though there is something different about Gaara," he admitted.
"I don't know why but I feel a kinship or something with Gaara," Naruto said. "Like I am looking at a mirror image of myself."
Kakashi glanced down at his blonde student with a sharp stare. 'Could Naruto know something more than we do?' Kakashi thought.
(You all know what happens in Lee and Gaara's fight, so I won't even try and describe it.)
"Would Sasuke Uchiha and Kabuto Yakushi please come down here?" Hayate asked once everything had been cleared away from Gaara and Lee's battle.
"Good luck Sasuke," Naruto said. "Be careful, there is more to this guy than it seems."
"Good luck Sasuke-kun," Sakura repeated. Sasuke grunted and made his way down the staircase. Kabuto and Hayate were waiting for him, Sasuke locked eyes with his gray-haired opponent and felt a shiver race up his spine. While Kabuto was smiling, to Sasuke it looked like the older teen was dissecting Sasuke with his eyes.
"So I get to fight Sasuke-kun," Kabuto said pleasantly. "This should be quite enjoyable. I hope that I don't disappoint you Sasuke-kun."
Sasuke grunted, trying to get rid of the oily and dirty feeling that had come over him just from listening to Kabuto speak.
"The final match of the preliminaries, between Sasuke Uchiha and Kabuto Yakushi will now begin!" Hayate announced before leaping backward.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu!" Sasuke shouted before sending a large fireball speeding toward Kabuto. The gray-haired teen just barely rolled out of the way and jumped to his feet.
"Whoa, close one," Kabuto said. "You aren't holding back, are you Sasuke-kun? Well then, I guess I have only one choice."
"And what is that?" Sasuke asked.
"Ah, now that would be telling," Kabuto chuckled. He reached down and pulled out a curved kunai and rushed Sasuke with surprising speed. Sasuke managed to draw a kunai of his own and blocked the swiped from Kabuto.
For several minutes, the only noises coming from the battle were the clanging of kunai crashing and scraping against one another and the low huffs as both Sasuke and Kabuto tried to gain the upper hand. Kabuto, with his longer reach and larger body, began to face Sasuke on the defensive, pushing the boy back toward the wall.
"Come on now Sasuke-kun, surely the heir to the famed Uchiha clan can do better than this," Kabuto chided, leaning over the shorter boy, the reflective glare of Kabuto's glasses obscuring his eyes.
Sasuke grit his teeth and pushed off the wall with all his strength, sending Kabuto stumbling backward. Sasuke's Sharingan had spun into existence and his hands blurred through a set of hand signs. "Fire Release: Dragon Flame Jutsu!"
A large stream of fire spewed from Sasuke's mouth and rose high into the air, scorching the ceiling.
"Impressive," Kabuto commented, pushing his glasses back onto his nose with a finger. "You certainly have exceptional control over your Fire affinity, like all Uchiha."
"You sure like to praise your opponents, don't you?" Sasuke said as the flame dragon soared down and slammed into the floor, sending flames spewing everywhere. Sasuke's eye narrowed, Kabuto had vanished from sight.
"Very powerful too," Kabuto said appearing behind Sasuke. "You are quite deserving of the Rookie of the Year title."
"Tch," Sasuke grunted. "Enough talk!" Sasuke drew several shuriken and hurled them at Kabuto. "Shuriken Multiplication Jutsu!" The shuriken multiplied into a storm of metal and forced Kabuto to sink into the ground to avoid the jutsu.
"Kai!" Kabuto cried after rising from the ground and not seeing Sasuke anywhere.
"Make another move, and I will slit your throat," Sasuke growled. He was behind Kabuto with a kunai to the older teen's throat.
"Excellent use of your Sharingan Sasuke-kun," Kabuto said, acting as if there was nothing wrong with having a kunai at his throat. "You are truly talented to put me under a genjutsu with just a glance. It seems that you have won this fight, proctor I give up."
"Winner by forfeit, Sasuke Uchiha," Hayate announced. Sasuke lowered and holstered his kunai.
"All right!" Naruto shouted, pumping his fist in excitement. "We all won!"
"We did it!" Sakura squealed. "Team 7 rocks!"
Kakashi grinned down at his genin. He was immensely proud of the three young shinobi under his command. They had certainly grown from the pathetic lumps of clay that they had been only six months ago.
"Yes, well done Sasuke-kun, well done to all the victors," the Hokage said. "But your trials do not end here. You eight winners have advanced to the Third Stage."
"Third Stage?" Sakura asked.
"Yes, in one month's time, you will be pitted against one another in front of the village, guests and other Kages to show if you have what it takes to be promoted," Hiruzen said. "You will all draw numbered lots to see who your opponents shall be. Anko?"
The proctor of the Second Exam, Anko, stepped forward with a box in her hands. "All right you brats, each one of you will get a number and then you'll show those numbers to me so we can figure out the tournament order," she ordered.
"Tournament?" Shikamaru asked.
"Yes, the Third Exam will be a series of one-on-one matches in which all of you will have the chance to show your skills," Hiruzen said. "The format will be a tournament."
"Won't that mean only one person can be promoted?" Temari asked.
"No, winning the tournament will not necessarily mean you will be promoted," Hiruzen said with a smile. "Nor will losing your first match eliminate you from being promoted. Of course, the more times you fight the more opportunities you will have to impress the judges."
Anko came to each of the genin and the young ninja reached into the box and selected a number.
"Two."
"Six."
"Three."
"Seven."
"Four."
"One."
"Five."
"Eight."
"Excellent, we have our matches," Hiruzen said. "The first match will be Neji Hyuga vs. Sakura Haruno, followed by Sasuke Uchiha against Temari Sabaku. Then Shikamaru Nara will face Karin, and finally Naruto Uzumaki vs. Gaara Sabaku. You will have one month's time to prepare, your senseis will escort you from the Tower and Forest. Good luck."
"Come on you three, let's get out of here," Kakashi said. "We need to discuss how you three will be trained in this month layoff."
"Can we go to Ichirakus?" Naruto asked. "I haven't had ramen in like forever."
"Ramen addict," Sasuke snorted. "But that sounds good to me." Sakura nodded.
"All right then, Ichirakus it is," Kakashi said.
"All right!" Naruto shouted.
"There you are Naruto-kun," Ayame said as Team 7 and Kakashi entered the small ramen stand. "Where have you been? Dad and I haven't seen you in forever."
"Sorry Ayame-nee-chan but we were taking the Chunin Exams and we were in this scary forest for five days. But we all passed!"
"That's great Naruto-kun!" Teuchi said. "This first bowl is on the house for all four of you, for passing of course."
"Thank you very much," Team 7 chirped.
"So Kakashi-sensei, what's the plan for our training?" Naruto asked after pushing aside his tenth bowl of ramen.
"Well, since all three of you have passed the Second Exam and might have to face each other in the Finals, I won't be able to train you all individually," Kakashi said. "Now that doesn't mean I will just abandon you all. This first week, we will work together as a group, working on your physical abilities, and I will try and find each of you a teacher for those final three weeks."
"Ok sensei," Sasuke said. "So when do we start?"
"Meet me at Training Ground 3 tomorrow morning at dawn," Kakashi ordered. "You three will need a lot of work if you want to be ready."
"Ready for what?" Naruto asked but Kakashi had already vanished in a swirl of leaves, leaving all three genin wondering what their sensei meant.
A/N: Well there you have it, the newest and shortest installment of Naruto: Hidden Legacy. Sorry about that by the way, but these fights aren't the best, and obviously skipping Lee and Gaara's fight made the chapter shorter than the others but since there is no way I could write the fight as well as it is done in the manga/anime, just use that as your reference. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, but now that the preliminaries are over, we can really start moving on with this story. Til next time,
SlytherinNinjaKnight