And now comes the chapter you all waited for: The beginning of the tournament

Yaaay! I'll keep the first fights rather short so please don't be too disappointed

Anyway, I realized that usually a chapter is only like 2500 words.. but mine have an average of 3500.. sometimes they even have 5000 or 6000

if I shortened them I could update more often.. but this chapter has more than 3500 as well -.-

guess it can't be helped..


Sayuri vs. Utakata

The arena was filled with a huge mass of people. Nearly whole Konoha was there to witness the last part of the Chuunin exams: The big tournament. But also a lot of people from Kirigakure and other Ninja villages were there. Most people had been drawn the long way by some big names. Uchiha, Hyuuga, Anko Mitarashi, White fang's daughter. Speculations, bets, the arena was filled with hot discussions. And in the middle of the arena the main actors of the day were standing in a row, reduced to only 8 people. They all had the chance to become Chuunin that day, but only one would be on top. Only one could be the strongest of them all and eight Genin were determined to be that one, surpassing all the others. Well, seven in fact. Sayuri didn't know what she wanted. She didn't know what she should feel. The first time in one month she was standing next to Itachi again. And even though they hadn't seen each other, hadn't talked to each other, he wasted no glance on her. She wanted to break in tears again, to just wrap her arms around him, not letting go until he had accepted her for what she was. Seishi had told her it would be alright when she gave him enough time. Shouldn't one month be enough? Hadn't that been enough time to think about it? But maybe he had already made up his mind. Maybe that was his answer. He'd never talk to her again. He'd never look at her again.

She looked at Seishi, her voice was weak. "Will he.." "It'll be alright!" Yet Seishi's determination was fake. He hadn't told Sayuri that Itachi was planning to leave the team. It would destroy her. Would there be a happy end? Would everything be as it was? And what could he do for that sake? How could he cause Itachi to stay? He had this questions in mind for the whole month. And finally he had found an answer to it. When the new examiner had repeated the rules and everyone but Sayuri and Utakata had left the battlefield he turned towards Itachi and held his hand towards him. "What do you want? Give it up already!" Ever since their discussion one month ago Seishi had tried to come in touch with Itachi to convince him to stay. But he had kept falling on deaf ears. "Let's make a deal! We'll meat in the half-finals and if I win, you'll stop making such a fuss about Sayuri and you'll stay with us! And if I lose or don't even come that far you can do whatever you want, I won't stop you! Deal?" Itachi raised his brow. "That's ridiculous. It's already decided!" But Seishi didn't draw his hand back. His eyes stayed determined. "What is it? Afraid you'll lose?" Itachi bit on his lips. He sighed and took Seishi's hand. "Of course not. But you really think you have the slightest chance? To win against Anko and then me?" Seishi shrugged. "I'll win against Anko, I'll win against you and I'll even beat Sayuri in the end. I have no choice. And now even less." Itachi had no idea what he meant by that. But he looked like he was pressured a lot. Like there was something really big depending on his success in the tournament. And not only becoming Chuunin, or getting the team back, something really important to him.

They searched their places on the tribune and looked down towards Sayuri and the guy called Utakata. As the arena started to quiet down and the atmosphere grew more tense they got in fighting position. "You'll watch it?" Seishi was pretty surprised that Itachi was still here. After all that had happened he had doubted that Itachi would watch Sayuri's fight. "It's not like I needed to, is it? It's pretty obvious what will happen.. she'll go at him with furious attacks and big Ninjutsu until the guy is either dead or gives up in tears. It's always that way. So I could just go.." "So why are you still here?" Itachi didn't say anything. He didn't know why himself. Maybe.. Sayuri meant something to him after all.. maybe only a little. Itachi shook his head as if he had just thought the same thing and wanted to forget it. "I'll just leave and.." But Seishi restrained him. "Just watch it. We both know that Sayuri is always good for a surprise." He was alluding to the fact that she was a Tengu although that most likely wasn't that smart towards Itachi. But he just laughed through his nose and sat down. "Too true." He didn't look pissed or disgusted or angry at the thought of Sayuri's truth. Pretty strange regarding the way he behaved. "Well then.. let's enjoy the fight."

Even the last voices were cut down by the overwhelming introduction of the third Hokage resounding in the whole arena. "Welcome, Ladies an Gentlemen, to the final tournament of the Chuunin elation exams. The eight Genin left will show their strength in seven fights! Watch them all and enjoy them until the very end!"

After that speech all eyes gathered on the opponents of the first fight. Sayuri and Utakata watched each other carefully, trying to find weaknesses in the other's position. Finally the examiner raised his hand. "First fight! Start!" The whole tribune panted for air when the guy from Kirigakure started a move no one of them had ever seen before. The examiner had barely finished his words and he was already blowing in a strange tube out of bamboo. A few dozens of bubbles appeared around him flying straight towards Sayuri. She looked pretty startled. This was the first time she's been attacked by soap bubbles, the most harmless thing in the world. "He's a quite impatient one. Attacking her right at the start.." Seishi was surprised. That guy looked so similar to Itachi, he had been sure he would have let Sayuri make the first move to counter it. "He wants to know her abilities. That's why he's starting right off with confusing her." That Itachi. A mere minute before he had wanted to go, now his eyes where fixated on the battlefield and he started analyzing.

No second later Sayuri was surrounded by beautifully shining bubbles. She watched them with great interest and without any intention to do something about them. "She's careless as ever." Itachi's eyes became darker while Utakata grinned. "Suiton: Exploding Bubbles!" Right on cue the bubbles exploded, leaving the shocked Sayuri in a smoke screen. The audience gasped. Was this already the end? Just when Seishi wanted to activate his Byakuugan, Sayuri was already jumping out of the smoke with a perfect back salto, completely unharmed, while throwing Shuriken at her opponent. Shuriken, razor-sharp blades spinning in high speed. Usually you'd expect such killer weapons to run through soap bubbles as through air. But not in this case. The bubbles didn't even burst, they trapped the Shuriken inside and they suddenly calmed down and stopped spinning, as if they never had been thrown. Finally, the bubbles burst and the Shuriken fell on the ground. Now it was obvious: Those bubbles weren't normal. Well, this had actually already been obvious when they exploded. "You better don't underestimate me!" Utakata seemed confident. Sayuri bit on her lip. She definitely wouldn't be beaten by some bubbles. No matter how weird they were. "Same here!" Sayuri seemed to have changed strategy and ran right towards his opponent. She jumped up and lifted her arm to strike a blow. But before her fist was even close to Utakata's face it got caught in another bubble. Sayuri desperately tried to shake it off, she tried to stab it with a Kunai. It was useless, the bubble spread over the knife to her second hand. Now she couldn't use her hands, the bubble was like a handcuff. "What the f-" The more she moved her hands, the more she tried to get rid of it, the more the bubble spread over her whole buddy. It was sticky like bubble gum, only that it was impossible to bite through. Before she knew it, Sayuri was fully caught in the huge bubble. She hit it with her fist, but the substance suddenly was as hard as cement. The audience watched as she screamed inside, her lips formed words, but no whisper reached outside.

Utakata grinned broader. "I'm sorry for the audience, but this fight was over pretty fast." He formed fingersigns and the bubble started to fill with water. The surface rose rapidly. With every second another part of Sayuri was soaked in water, her feet, her legs, her belly, her breasts. With every second her face got more frantic. She screamed, but no one heard her. Seishi jumped up. "Is he trying to kill her? He can't be serious! We have to do something." Itachi sat on his place with activated Sharingan. His face was as calm as ever. "Sit down and watch the fight!" Seishi stared at him disbelieving. "Are you serious? She's drowning down there!" But Itachi's face didn't change. "Don't make me repeat myself." That was all he had to say. What was the meaning of this? Did he really care so little?

The water reached her head and Sayuri struggled. How long does it take a Tengu to drown? What was going to happen to her? Seishi couldn't sit still. It went on like this for several seconds. Sayuri tried to break the soap bubble, but still nothing happened. After a while she was still. She stopped moving. Only her lips moved. She said something. Whatever it was, nobody could hear it. Only Itachi's Sharingan was able to read her lips. But he stayed quiet. And then something happened that nobody would have expected. Sayuri smiled. It was the same smile Utakata had on his lips. Confident and mischievous. While everyone was wondering about the meaning of this, Sayuri disappeared. Her body just dissolved in smoke. A third time the whole tribune panted for air. A Kagebunshin? Utakata was just as shocked. He let the soap bubble burst and looked around him. Where was she? Where was Sayuri's real self? Everyone searched for her in the arena. She wasn't on the ground, but she wasn't in the air either. Utakata's confident smile was gone. He turned around nervously. But as the thought finally stroke his mind, it had already been to late. "Doton: Shinju-Zanshu no Jutsu!" (Earth Release: Double Suicide Decapitation Technique, see Naruto ch. 7)

In only the blink of an eye, Sayuri's hand appeared from the ground and dragged Utakata down. Before anyone realized what had happened, Utakata stuck in the ground neck downwards and Sayuri bowed in front of him. "How does it feel not being able to move?" Sayuri smiled at him. Now it was her angel smile. The smile she had when she was really happy. She drew a scroll out of her bag, activated it and held one of her double blades in her hand. "As expected. Now she beheads him." As expected. Itachi was the only person in the arena who hadn't been surprised about the outcome. He had known it all along. Sayuri held her blade at the open spot left on Utakata's neck. "Now be a good boy and give up." Now Itachi was surprised after all. It was rare sight that Sayuri would spare someone's life once she had the choice to kill him. The whole fight was pretty untypical for Sayuri. But in the end, the results counted. And the result was that Utakata gave in and Sayuri had won her first match. The audience devoted a standing ovation to her and as Sayuri was Sayuri she gave them her most elegant bows as thanks.

"Wow.. my heart stopped a couple of times, but she hadn't been in danger for one second." Itachi shrugged. "I told you all along." He could have told him a little more. Seishi had been worrying sick and Itachi might have even enjoyed that. "So? Your résumé? I still have no clue what actually happened." Itachi laid back, folded his arms and sighed. "Well, it's actually pretty simple. Utakata sent the exploding bubbles after her. Sayuri expected the explosions, she dodged them by hiding in the ground and used the smoke screen to disappear and create a Kagebunshin to replace her without being noticed. The Kagebunshin appeared and dragged the attention on itself by throwing Kunai and starting Taijutsu. That way Utakata had been too busy with protecting himself and had no time to realize that the real Sayuri was long gone. She let herself being trapped in the bubble and started a pretty convincing and entertaining show. By acting desperately and close to drowning she wanted to assure Utakata of his victory so he let his guard down. When she dissolved the Kagebunshin, Utakata was absolutely confused and had no idea what had happened. That's what she made use of and she got him while he was defenseless. And trapped in the ground he was completely out of options. Sayuri had won. I have to say, she was pretty good in that bubble. She has some talent as an actor, but we both knew this all along, right?" Seishi nodded. He simply missed the last sentence. "What did she say when she was in there? I mean.. just before she solved the Jutsu." Itachi hesitated. Then he sighed again. "It was a pretty failed attempt to be dramatic. She said 'I'm sorry that you're right, but this fight was really over pretty fast!' Really unnecessary. No one could hear her anyway." Seishi's eyes sparkled. "Sayuri's soo cool in battle mode!" Right, Sayuri's two faces. The one when she fought and the one when she not. "You never saw her in her real battle mode, though." It was really creepy when Itachi's voice got that tone. Like he'd burst any moment because of the piled up hatred inside of him. "Well anyway.. let's go!" Seishi jumped up. Itachi watched him startled. "Where to?" "To Sayuri! We have to congratulate her. She passed the first fight!" Itachi looked like someone had slapped him in the face. "What? N-no.. go alone.. I don't.. the second fight.." Seishi grinned at him. It was hard to get Itachi in such a speechless situation, but Seishi managed it again and again. "The second fight is boooring. We don't even know those people. So who cares? Come on!" He grabbed Itachi's arm and dragged him along.

They went to the little room beneath the tribune where the hurt ones were treated. Sayuri and Utakata had both been brought there, even though they had no wounds at all. When Seishi entered the room he ran right towards Sayuri while Itachi stayed at the door. Why was he here? Why did he let Seishi drag him? Why didn't he push him away? This was the last place on earth he wanted to be. Close to Sayuri..

Seishi grinned at her and she smiled back at him. "Hey", she said with her sweet voice. Something was strange in Seishi's smile. It was kinda.. frozen. "Are you nuts?" It never was a good sign when Seishi's mimic didn't match his words. Sayuri looked at him dumbfounded. "What's wrong?" Seishi's eyebrow twitched once, then he finally lost his calm. "You know how much I worried about you? I thought you'd die! My heart was about to stop and you were just playing some damn theater? Were you thinking about me for only one second?" Sayuri was shocked. She hadn't thought at all as it seemed. "I'm sorry.. I didn't knew you'd care so much.. I was just.. I really felt sorry for the audience.. that the fight was so short.. so I wanted to extend it a little.. you know.. put a little drama in it. And they seemed to have really liked it.. so I thought." She avoided to look at Seishi and wanted to stare at the wall. But there stood Itachi so she felt even worse and stared on the ground. "Well, I hated it." Seishi's voice went down a bit. He was like a volcano sometimes, quiet and nice to look at, but from time to time he erupted just like that for a minute and then everything was fine again. "But Itachi really liked it. He told me so. Right, Itachi? Don't you want to tell Sayuri how much you admire her talent." Sayuri looked up. Her eyes suddenly were twice as big. She looked at Itachi, a little bit of hope hidden behind her gaze. Itachi blushed and looked away. "Don't be so full of yourself. I said nothing that way. I was just analyzing the fight as you were too dumb to get anything. It's not my fault that you don't even have the brains to understand what I am saying. So just shut up, idiot!" He looked at Sayuri and opened his mouth to say something to her, as well. But the words got stuck in his throat and he turned away and left quickly. "Ita-" Sayuri wanted to run after him. It had been the first time he had looked at her, the first time for a whole month their eyes had met. It made her so happy and at the same time sad. Seishi held her back. "Wait. I'm sorry, Sayuri. I really thought he'd be ready. I really thought he'd be a little bit back to normal now.. but he isn't.. he still needs more time.. I just hope it's time we have." Sayuri looked at him confused. She didn't understand. She still didn't know.. that this could be the last day the three of them could be called a team. "I guess it was obvious.. he wouldn't be an Uchiha if it was that easy after all."

Itachi closed the door hastily behind him and bumped right into someone. He made a few steps backwards and bowed. "I'm sorry." "You better are." Itachi flinched hearing the familiar voice. "Shisui.." Itachi's cousin and best friend looked really pissed. "What the hell are you doing here?" Itachi avoided his glare. "It's not as it seems.." "Shut up!" It was a very rare sight to see Shisui that way. "You asked.." "Shut up I said!" Shisui glared at him, shook his head and glared on. "I really hate to be the moralizer here, but I guess I.. we all.. have told you often enough how important it is to our Clan that you cut any connection you have with that girl! Isn't that right?" Itachi bit on his lips. How could he forget that? The day half the Clan had gathered and every single one had told him, that Sayuri was the incarnation of evil. The poison in Konoha's veins his Clan had to get rid off. In other words: He, who used to treasure her more than his own life, had to become her greatest enemy. And no matter what Seishi told him about her, and no matter how much he wanted to believe it, that wouldn't change. "I know that.." "Then can you tell me why I find you here, right where that girl is? What did you do? Congratulate her? Talk to her? Maybe giving her a hug?" Itachi shook his head vehemently. "Of course not! Seishi dragged me here! I didn't even look at her!" That was a lie. He had looked at her. He had wanted to talk to her. He still wanted to believe that she was the girl she always had been. Deep inside he wanted to forgive her and return back to the old days. But it was already too late. His family would never allow it. "I hope for you that it's that way.. " Shisui's eyes changed and he sighed. "You know, I'm just worried about you. You might be the son of the chief, but if anything happens.. You better know your place and do as you're told. Otherwise it might end ugly." Itachi nodded. "I know." Shisui smiled again and patted Itachi's head. "Of course you do." Itachi's life was full of moments he wanted to die. This was one of them. Fortunately the moment was stopped by the voice of the examiner. "The winner of the second fight is Yugao! She will fight Sayuri in the second row! Next are Itachi Uchiha and Hayate Gekko!" So the purple-haired girl won? Itachi was pretty surprised. She hadn't looked like a fighter. And the guy she had fought, the one with the sharp teeth, had looked really creepy. Now Itachi wished he had seen the fight. "So you're next? Well, Itachi I'm counting on you. But I'm sure you'll win anyway." Itachi nodded and turned to go. "For the sake of our Clan, right?" Itachi stopped for a second before he went on. Right. For the sake of the Clan.


So much for the first fight^^ I hope you enjoyed even though it was really a little short

but let's see how Itachi will fight next time ;)