Chapter Thirteen

Go, Go, FIGHT!

Five days passed, and seven other teams managed to make it to the tower. Among them were Team Seven, having woken up next to the scrolls a day after being dropped there, Team Eight, having finally wiped the blood off themselves, and Team Ten, having sucessfully avoided the vines that continued to plague both Chōji and Shikamaru. The Suna Trio naturally made it through, without a scratch, as did Kabuto's Team. Team Gai made it through, but not before Lee attempted to challenge an enormous panther to a fight. The poor thing never stood a chance. Also among their numbers were the team from Oto, and a team from Kumo. Team Seven had spent most of their time getting to know the other teams, including the one from Kumo, seeing as they weren't there in Alpha. The Oto team was suprisingly quite nice, seeing as Naruto had told them of Orochi-Atama's predicament. Those among the Rookies were also suprised at the fact that Naruto had managed to take down one of the Sannin. The team from Kumo, having never really heard of the Sannin's reputation, were a bit lacking in both suprise, and respect. The team consisted of two men, and one kunoichi. The guys were called Monkey D. Luffy, and Ronoa Zoro, and the kunoichi was known only as Nami. Luffy wore a pair of jeans, a red vest, and a straw hat with a red band, while Zoro wore a pair of black pants, with a green and black belt, with three swords attached. Nami wore blue striped white shirt, along with a pair of orange shorts, and had three blue poles attached to her leg.

At long last, it was the end of the fifth day, and an announcement was given to travel to the arena in the center of the tower. The Bijū and Team Seven gathered up their things, before the lower Nine dispelled, leaving Naruto, Hinata, and Fūryu to proceed to the arena. Upon arrival, they found to their surprise the Jonin population of Konoha, and the Hokage himself, awaiting them. Before any questions could be asked by the assembled Genin, A sickly looking Jonin stepped forward.

"Before you all wonder why you're here, let me," He paused as he coughed visciously. "Allow me to explain. My name is Gekkō Hayate, and I will be the proctor for the Third portion of the exam. However, before we can hold the Third exam itself, we must hold a preliminary. Unfortunately, there are too many of you to advance, so we will hold a *cough* one on one set of battles, randomly selected by the screen behind me. Who ever is left afterwards will receive a free pass to the finals. Now, *cough* let the preliminaries begin." With that, the screen began flipping through the names available, finally landing on Chōji and Dosu.

The match went just as it had the first time, Chōji using his Nikudan Shensha (Human Boulder), and attemptig to bash Dosu with it. Dosu had dodged, and the launched an attack with his bracer to flood Chōji's form with sound waves. The result was he was knocked out due to the amplifing effect of the water in his body. As the medics carried his sleeping form away, the screen began to go through names again. Finally, it landed on Ino and Sakura. Once they had both arrived at the arena, Hayate gave the signal, and the 'epic' fight began.

Once Hayate had given the signal, Ino reacted immediatly by preforming a backflip to gain some distance, launching several kunai using the rotational energy of her spin to slingshot them even faster than normal. It was all Sakura could do to flee as the projectiles came hurtling at her. She responded in kind with a barrage of shuriken, most of which were under powered, and couldn't have hurt Ino even if they had come close to hitting her. Once she reached the back wall of the arena, Ino began to run through handsigns, finally landing on her favorite. Her consciousness flew from her body, latching on to Sakura's body. Before Hayate could even attempt to call the match, Ino forced Sakura to raise her hand, and announce that she forfeit. Having done so, Ino leaped back into her body, standing up to the applause of the crowd. All in all the match had taken no more than five minutes. Once more, the names began to spin.

Kankuro was prepared to fight just about anyone, but seeing his name come up against his brother's caused him to forfeit without a second thought. If he had to face him, he would be royally fucked. With a cry of anger from the watching crowd, the names again picked up speed.

Kabuto chuckled to himself when he found himself up against the Hyūga Heiress. From what he had heard, she was one of the weakest here, and he was quite prepared to take her out, just to spite the Kyūbi brat. As he leaped down to the arena, he was surprised to find her already there, the effects of a pure chakra shunshin just beginning to fade away. The fact that a genin could shunshin in the first place was bizzare, but the fact that she could do it with pure chakra, which produced an effect similar to a portal, was insane. Despite his growing doubts about the match, Kabuto quickly took up his stance.

Once the proctor had given the shout of hajime, he leaped at the girl, chakra scalpels ablaze, only to be thrown back by the force of a single strike. He growled, before launching an onslaught of kunai, hiding himself behind them, as he raced forward, intent on cutting at least one fatal artery. To his surprise again, she began to run through handsigns, landing on Tora-Inu. She braced herself, before launching forwad with a battle cry. As the first shuriken neared her, Hinata merely tapped it, before rapidly leaping away as a net of raiton chakra spread throughout the kunai as they impacted the wall behind her. As it completed, all she said was Six Words.

"Raiton: Kaminari Megami, Kanden no Nami." (Lightning Godess, Electrocution wave, for those of you without access to google translate.)

Suddenly, the net of electricity leaped from the kunai, forming a wave of pure lightning, which filled the arena, barely missing Hinata, and blowing Kabuto through a wall. After a few minutes of silence, the Jonin burst out in applause, as Naruto leaped down to give his teammate a kiss. To all those present's shock, Hinata sat there dazed for a moment, before turning to the blonde boy in front of her and returning an even deeper kiss. Those present from the Inuzuka clan let off a round of whistles as the now initiated duo blushed. Naruto took Hinata's hand, and preformed a Fūton Shunshin back to the rest of the genin. He was met with a round of applause as those present congratulated the pair. In the background, Kurenai could be seen forking over several Ryo to Anko, the result of a rather unfortunate bet. Once everyone had given Naruto their praise, the screen began to flash again.

Sasuke and Yoroi went down to enact their fight, which unfortunately for Yoroi ended exactly as it had originally. The same happened in the next fight, which consisted of Shino against Zaku, except Shino had unplugged his arms with at the last second, having gotten Zaku to give up after an uncomfortable amount of pressure was present. Temari versus Tenten went as expected, unless you count a kenjutsu versus ninjutsu fight different from what had happened. Despite going to close range, Tenten still lost the fight due to the immense weight of the fan, however the fight was over before any serious damage could occur. At long last, the reels landed on a fight that should never have happened. Zoro Versus Fūryu.

As both arrived in the arena, the swordsmen nodded to each other before taking their respective stances. Fūryu had taken the time to put on his combat suit, which literally consisted of a suit reinforced with steel fibers. The black suit was matched by the white shirt, red tie, and black glasses he wore. Once the match began, both went for their swords. Before anyone could even blink, both were where the other had started, swords just barely out of the sheath. As one, they finished the motion with a resounding clink, before both dissapeared in clouds of blood. Once the mist cleared, All that could be seen were the two both lying motionless on the ground. Luffy and Naruto both leaped to their friends, Naruto already running through hand signs along with a Bunshin. The two Narutos landed next to each of the combatants, hands glowing green, before they plunged their hands into the swordsmen's chests in unison. All that could be seen was a green glow resonating within the two's chest's, before they both began to cough and slowly sit up. Both Luffy and Naruto gave a sigh of relief, for if either had lost their friend, they would most likely have gone on a rampage, vaporising Konoha. As the medics took the begrudging swordsmen, now allies in strength and respect for the other, the reels spun once more.

The next fight was Nami versus Kin. The two Kunoichi leapt to the arena, before nodding to each other in respect, before taking their stances. As the fight began, Nami pulled up the poles on her leg, connected them, and spun it around, inciting blue and red bubbles to form, slowly generating an immense black cloud above the arena. Before Kin could even throw a senbon, Nami put the poles away, and leapt back.

"Raiton: Tenki no Āto: Sandāborutotenpo!" She cried as she launched a yellow bubble into the cloud, causing an enormous lightning bolt to form, striking Kin, and forcing her into unconsciousness.

As those present stood in shock, the board again choose two names. Luffy and Lee. The horror.

The two leapt to the arena, both prepared for an interesting fight. As Hayate announced the match, and leapt to what he hopped was a safe distance, given what had occured, the two flew at each other. The combatants traded blows for a period, before leaping away, Luffy to the top of the statue, and Lee to the other end of the arena.

"Oi, Nami/Gai-Sensei? Can I go all out? This guy's Strong!" They called out to their respective semi-sane persons. The two chuckled before they nodded. The two fighters smirked, before Luffy tossed his hat to Nami, and Lee took off his weights. Their smirks grew as both dissapeared. They continued to appear, and then dissapear throughout the arena, trading a flurry of blows, and then separating. Their speed increased as the two were barely visible, even to the Hokage. Finally, both landed where they had before, and once more asked if they could go even further. So long as they promised not to destroy the entire building. Their smirks grew to full blown grins, as Luffy blew air into his arm, and Lee went through two of the gates. The air in Luffy's arm shot down to his legs, super pumping the blood in his body, as both of their skin turned a bright red. The two dissapeared completely as shockwaves shock the air, for a good ten minutes, before both landed in front of each other, in the center of the arena. Each had a fist in the other's face, and before anyone could do anything, both fell backward unconscious, their skin returning to normal.

After the chuckles at the fact that another round had ended in a tie, and after such an amazing battle, the screen began the choosing process. Finally, it landed on Aburame Shizuka, and Tsurugu Misumi. Misumi leapt to the arena as Shizuka burst into a cloud of insects, reforming on the ground.

"Heh. Prepare to die, Baka Megane." (Idiot glasses)

"I'm afraid it's time for you to retire. Why? Because no-one gets away with insulting my glasses. No-one." With that, Shizuka burst into a cloud again, forming an immense cloud in front of Misumi. Being the idiot he was, Misumi assumed that she was still within the cloud, as he streched his limbs deep inside. Imagine his surprise when he found a source of great pain, and retracted his arms, only to find two stumps where his hands should have been, and a thin layer of purple rapidly spreading across his skin. Once it had completely covered him, restricting his movement, excluding his face, Shizuka gave him one chance to surrender. The idiot refused.

"Nano Kikaichū: Muchū o Kanryō" (Nano Parasitic Insects: Complete Devouring) She said, barely above a whisper, as the insects spread across his face, covering him completely. Once that was done, the insects at his extremeties began to fly away, leaving nothing but dust, untill all had rejoined the whole, shown by Shizuka's coat collar being slowly reconstructed, before the rest of her head, and her glasses at the same time, reformed. A moment passed before applause broke the silence, slowly growing to a dull roar.

The reels landed on Karin and Neji, however Karin gave up, being quite knowledgable about just how badly she would have lost.

For the last time, the reels chose, and they chose well. Naruto Versus Kiba. Let the battle commence.

Kiba realized almost, not quite, but almost, just how badly he was screwed. For what he didn't know, was that Naruto had decided that now was the perfect time to test the Bijūgan's limits, seeing as there was a time limit of twenty minutes, which meant he couldn't have it on for too long. He used a Fūton shunshin to reach the floor, arriving just as Kiba landed. Once poor, beat up Hayate began the match, and leapt to the Hokage's box for safety, Naruto activated his dōjutsu, and flipped backward. The Bijūgan did indeed grant him a vision similar to the Byakugan, a fact which he was able to attest to now, having gained it through the kiss with Hinata. (NO IT DOES NOT REQUIRE A KISS! ANY DNA WILL DO! AND OR BLOOD! I'M YELLING!) However, it improved on that by showing the entire cardio-vascular system, all those little arteries and veins, while still seeming to be transparent. Those present gasped at the sight of Naruto's pupil lengthening, and at his iris's taking a golden color, thanks to the use of Shura's yōkai. He was surprised at the fact that after looking over Kiba with it, he felt as if he instinctively knew his stance, and rapidly adopted it as well, to the poor Inuzuka's surprise.

Kiba growled at the fact that Naruto was apparently mocking him, and tossed a soldier pill to Akamaru, looking to end the fight quickly.

"Gijū Ninpō: Jūjin Bunshin: Shiyaku no Jutsu!" (Imitation Beast Shinobi Art: Beast Human Clone: Four Legs Jutsu)

With that, Akamaru transformed into a perfect Bunshin of Kiba, while both became more animalistic. The two began to race toward Naruto as he chuckled.

"GIJŪ NINPŌ: GATSŪGA!" (Imitation Beast Shinobi Art: Fang Passing Fang, as you all should know.) The duo began to spin at an immense rate as the air around them seemed to spiral with them, forming into an elongated, pointy, teardrop. Naruto's smirk grew even wider as he realized the Bijūgan allowed him to copy any move, including those restricted by Kekkei Genkai. He briefly wondered what would happen with Gaara, and the other Bijū skills, and if he gained the entire blood-line, or just the technique. However, just prior to Kiba and Akamaru hitting him, he laughed aloud.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu: Ōkina Hebi no Kabe." (Summoning Jutsu: Great Snake Wall)

An immense puff of smoke appeared, before what looked like a writhing wall of snakes appeared before Naruto. In their surprise, Kiba and Akamaru couldn't stop in time, and found themselves receiving hundreds of small bites from the various snakes that made up the wall. Once they finally got away, Kiba found himself growling even louder at the fact that his most powerful move was blocked so simply. He nodded to Akamaru as he pulled out a smoke bomb. The smoke rapidly filled the room, obscuring the combatants from regular vision. The Hyūga present activated their Byakugan, intent on describing the fight to those around them. To their surprise, what seemed to be a snake the size of a large wolf was next to Naruto, and what happened next was even more surprising.

"Hebi Ninpō: Ningen no Hachūrui Kurōn: Inshō-tekina Hebi!" (Snake Shinobi Art: Human Reptile Clone: Striking Snake)

Both Naruto, and the snake dissapeared into a cloud of dense, chakra filled smoke, before emerging. They looked identical, and the look was a strange one. They looked like the love child of Naruto and Orochimaru, but at the same time, completely different. Naruto had grown taller, his hair had elongated, and he had grown the equivalent of fangs within his mouth. His clothes had changed as well, becoming his cloak, which now had purple highlights, a pair of black shinobi pants, a deep gold shirt, and deep purple Vambraces and Greaves. (Vambraces are arm bracers, Greaves are leg bracers.) If one looked closely, they could see a long, dark gold tail emerging from the back of the cloak.

The Naruto's stepped forward, nodded to each other, and threw off the cloaks, both landing on the rim of the arena. They grew identical smirks before running through a few hand seals, ending in Usagi-Hebi.

"Fūton: Daitoppa!" The smoke filling the arena flew away, revealing the combatants exactly where they were. The smoke had been in place only twenty seconds. Their smirks grew again, as the two raced toward the one they could smell was Kiba. The poor bum was so surprised that he could only stand there stunned. One appeared behind him, and launched him high in the air, while the other appeared and began to beat the living crap out of Kiba, before both phased into existence above him, and promptly drop kicked him to the floor.

"HEBI NO GEIJUTSU: GIGASUNĒKUBUREIKĀ!" (Snake Art: Giga Snake Breaker. Can you tell I've been watching Gurren Lagann?

)

The resulting dust cloud filled the arena, and upon clearing, showed the expected result. Kiba, out cold next to a whimpering Akamaru, within a several foot deep crater. The shock of it all, despite the insanity of the previous matches, was enough to keep everyone present quiet for a moment, before bursting out in the largest round of applause seen yet. Naruto chuckled as he walked off, leaving Kiba to the Medic team. They hadn't seen anything yet.

End Chapter Thirteen

Auther's Notes: So. Turns out I need another week to finish the Chunin Exams. Maa maa. Mendokusē. So much work. Ah well. I suppose it makes sense that if I actually bothered to make the exams happen, then this has to also. SO~! Next week is once more Sage Of The Bijū! BECAUSE REASONS AND I'M ON A ROLL! VICTORY TO THE WRITERS! Ja Ne.

~Lux Out