A/N: Merry Christmas people! I know I'm one day late but it can't be helped. I had three teeth pulled out on the twenty fifth of December, and was hurting like crazy all day, so I admit I should have gotten this chap out much faster, but alas it can't be helped. Hope you guys all had a better Christmas than me.

Action, action, action. Gotta love them, heh. Anyway, I'm gonna see how much I can cover. If lucky, by the start of next chapter, you guys will be getting your much awaited Naruto vs Gaara fight. I think I'll manage.

And before I begin, let me say thanks to those that took the time to review. XD

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

I Will Believe

Chapter 36: Exam Continues

The crowd was in an absolute frenzy. The fight was amazing, fantastic, fabulous, whatever! To say the Konoha citizens watching were proud would be a severe understatement. They were ecstatic! These were future pillars of the village. These were the crème de la crème of the batch, and in a few years, they would all move on to become respectable ninja of the world. Their lives would be protected by these young men and women, and it made them feel immensely secure that they were entrusting their futures to them.

Sasuke was helped off the field using a stretcher while Neji slowly ambled off. He didn't sustain major injuries, just certain burns here and there, along with minor cuts, but it was the fatigue that got to him. Once the adrenaline rush was over, he felt strangely weak and quietly told himself that he would have to strengthen his training regime once again.

Hinata had charged off to the infirmary as soon as she could, wanting to congratulate Neji on his latest win, an act that raised the eyebrows of both Hitomi and Hiashi. This seemed a bit too familiar, where young Hinata would always visit little Neji after his training sessions. The cheerful atmosphere was a huge contrast to what they had before, what with Neji having all that hatred and what not.

Hanabi instead, asked if she could go chat with Naruto for a while, and to her pleasant surprise, Hitomi had volunteered to bring her over. Hiashi hesitated for awhile, wondering the possible influences this might have on Konoha's political status. Having one of the most prestigious clans of Konoha visiting a genin that was supposed to be in no way related to said clan might seem more than a little suspicious to the outside world, but once he was set up against Hanabi's tearful gaze, he had no choice but to relent.

Giggling like the little girl she was, said Hyuga was about to rush off to see her beloved ni-chan when Hitomi gave her a stern glare, causing her enthusiasm to be withdrawn somewhat. Hence, it was the sight of Hanabi obediently holding Hitomi's hand that greeted a very surprised Naruto as he was chatting with Shikamaru.

"Hanabi!"

"Naruto-ni-chan!!"

Throwing all lessons of etiquette away from her brain, she took two steps and latched herself onto Naruto's shoulder, plopping herself onto Naruto's hair like she always did, nuzzling his head lovingly as she sighed in bliss at being able to nest in her favorite resting space.

Deadpanning, Naruto shook his head and waved at Hitomi who gave him a small smile, before walking gracefully over to him.

In the time where Hitomi walked towards Naruto, said blond couldn't help but be reminded once again that this was the wife of the Hyuga leader, Hyuga Hitomi. The aura of power and elegance she revealed by simply walking was amazing. The genin waiting in the area were unconsciously moving out of her way simply by looking at her and even Gaara had grunted and sidestepped after Hitomi gave him a short, polite bow.

Shikamaru blinked a few times before muttering, "No way… that's…"

"Who? Who's the beautiful woman?" Kiba asked, his eyes unable to tell him if what he was seeing was the truth. Since when did Naruto know such a hot, mature woman?! He thought Kireki-san had been the most graceful lady among Naruto's associates but this took the cake.

Chouji continued munching on his chips before tilting his head, "You know her Shikamaru?"

There were a few twitches at the corners of Shino's mouth but he remained silent.

Temari and Gaara didn't say anything, and chose instead to listen quietly to the conversation, wanting to gather as much information as they could.

Naruto, on the other hand, was happily playing with Hanabi, chatting about all the things that were random in this world. The time spent with little Hanabi was never boring, and right now, anything to help him relieve the tension in this atmosphere was a plus. Hitomi merely smiled and watched on as brother and sister played without a worry in the world. She was quite amazed that Naruto would still able to keep such a positive attitude even after finding out who he was going against. This kid either had nerves of steel or he simply hid it well.

Just then, Hinata had accompanied Neji back into the waiting area, where the older of the two Hyugas was seen to be actually smiling and having an amiable conversation with Hinata, who seemed to be having an even better time, if her smile was any indication.

Naruto chuckled, "Ohhhh, Neji is smiling! Look Hanabi! It's a miracle!"

"Miracle!"

"Big bad Neji is being nice! The world is going to end!"

"World's gonna end!"

"We're all gonna perish before the might of softy Neji!"

"Perish!"

"Shut up!" By now, a slightly embarrassed Hyuga stood before the blond and his fellow mischievous sister, arms crossed, face contorted into a snarl almost, and had it not been for the presence of Hitomi, Naruto was pretty sure Neji would have blasted him to oblivion with his almighty Juken.

Hanabi gleefully laughed as she stuck out her tongue, "Yaaaada! You're just angry that we've gotten you right on the dot, oh big meanie!"

Naruto's eyes widened before he burst out into a fit of uncontrollable laughter, "Hahaha! You hear that! Hyuga Neji's a big meanie!!! Hahahahaha!!!"

Apparently, the others who standing nearby weren't deaf and hence, it wasn't too much of a surprise that Kiba had suddenly began sniggering after Naruto's declaration. Till the point where Naruto seemed to cackle, Shikamaru gave an exasperated snort while Chouji simply chortled merrily. Hinata herself seemed to find it amusing as well and her soft giggle sealed the deal.

Hyuga Neji was embarrassed. Now, if it were possible, smoke might be coming out of his ears and nose just to show how much anger he was currently building up within himself, but alas, seeing how that feat was impossible, Neji settled for glaring his meanest expression available at the duo that were pretty much laughing their heads off.

"Wow, you guys certainly seem happy. Sure you're not going crazy Naru-kun?" A familiar voice reached his ears and before he could react, Naruto felt two arms lace themselves around his neck, before proceeding slowly down his torso, ending at his waist. Her breath felt ticklish as she whispered, "I hope I'm not aiding the process…"

Completely ignoring the perverted faces of certain friends of his, Naruto chose to turn his head to the source of affection and catch her lips in an affectionate kiss, "Unfortunately, you always drive me insane…"

"Hm… hn… ah… hmmm…" Ino didn't respond as she merely deepened the kiss, loving every second it.

As a side note, Kiba had to stuff his nose with tissue lest he suffered severe blood loss before his match.

"Ano… Naruto-ni-chan?"

The passionately kissing couple suddenly froze, before Naruto quickly stopped the kiss and gave a slight gasp, "Hanabi!"

Ino blinked before fighting the urge to face palm. How could she not have noticed that familiar figure on Naruto's back before she…

"Why were you kissing her like that?" A young Hanabi asked in curiosity.

Naruto breathed a sigh of relief at the easy question, "Because I love her."

Hanabi raised her eyebrows, "Oh really? Wow… but you were playing with her tongue!"

Massive spurt of blood from Kiba's nose.

Plus a chuckle from Hitomi and what sounded like a soft whisper of 'my, my'.

For some reason, Temari seemed to be blushing hard while Gaara was staring at them with a confused expression.

"Yes… Hanabi, I would appreciate it if you would not tell the world just what her tongue does to me… ok that just sounded wrong…" Naruto rolled his eyes as he realized the mistake in wording his sentence that way.

Hanabi giggled, "Alright! I won't tell how you licked her – "

"That's enough thank you!"

Ino was blushing slightly, when Sakura entered the place, "Man, it's so crowded here, took me ages to get… oh my god, Ino, are you blushing?"

"Shut up forehead."

"Heh heh heh… Queen of Piggies is blushing!" Sakura grinned before looking over at Naruto, "Though I can always guess just why… oh, Hanabi-chan!"

"Sakura ne-san!" Cheerfully, Hanabi waved 'hi'.

Perhaps it was because of the fact that the whole atmosphere permeated 'happiness' that Gaara seemed extremely awkward. Never before was he shown so many different kinds of affection and care at once. And right now, before him were fun within the family, fondness of friends and love of two different individuals. It was peculiar and somehow soothing, for at that moment, Gaara could not detect any signs of insanity from the Shukaku, and that itself was extremely surprising, for the one-tailed demon was shouting and yelling day and night, never giving him a moment of peace.

"Will Inuzuka Kiba and Aburame Shino please come down to the arena." Genma's voice echoed throughout the arena as he waited patiently for the next two genins to battle it out.

Kiba had to wipe furiously at his nose many times before waking up Akamaru who had long since fallen asleep on his head and moving towards the stairs. Shino had already gone down quietly, and was waiting along with Genma.

Naruto looked out of the balcony and yelled, "Go get him, Kiba! Shino, suck him dry!"

Noticing an eerie silence from behind him, the blond turned around only to find Sakura and Ino both with raised eyebrows looking at him with an expression that clearly said 'what the hell?'

"What?"

"Did you know how wrong that sounded?"

"What do you mean?" Naruto's eyebrow twitched, "What exactly are you on about hm? Why don't you tell me just exactly where that sounded wrong?"

"Yeah, yeah! Hanabi wants to know too!"

Now that was awkward. Ino bit her lips, "Er… it's nothing."

"No, it's not. You said it sounded wrong. Pray tell, just where I was wrong?" Naruto's face was schooled into one of indifference, "Ino…"

"Alright, alright, so I was thinking in a different direction, but hey! I wasn't the only one!"

Sakura chuckled nervously, "Yeah, yeah, forget about that."

In that split second, Naruto gave a foxy grin, before forming a Kage bunshin that appeared behind the two girls who yelped as the clone pulled them both into an embrace and whispered something to their ears.

The way they blushed so hard was a testament to Naruto's victory.

Though the moment was in a way ruined when Sakura had hissed, "No, I do not want to suck you dry, okay?!"

A few seconds later, Ino retorted, "No, I'm not a yaoi fan!"

Following that, Sakura looked startled, "S-say that again?"

"You would?!" was Ino's surprised reply.

"O-oh… I… I would like that…" their blushes simply grew even more spectacular.

"My, Naruto, you're such a …"

At that precise moment, a very bewildered Naruto received the information of just exactly what his clone had said during the flirting session with the two girls. Quickly covering his nose with his palm, he prevented the spray of blood that might have been emitted due to certain thoughts running through his mind.

It was then when Hitomi clapped her hand on his shoulder, shaking him out of his reverie, "Alright, let's keep those things to the privacy of our bedrooms if you do not mind? By the way, Naruto, I didn't know you were asking Hanabi for a facial massage. It must feel so good for you to be speechless."

"Eh? EH! OUCH! What the?! Ha-hanabi? OW! OI! Get off… ARGH! OI!!!"

During the time in which he was imagining all sorts of possible future H scenes in his mind, Hanabi decided to snap her brother out of it by playing with his facial muscles, and to say it was painful would be an understatement.

Sakura and Ino eventually got the little girl to stop her antics and took her closer to the balcony to enjoy the fight between Kiba and Shino, which had already gotten under way while they were having this short interlude of fun.

The mischievous gaze Ino sent him combined with the skeptical look from Sakura, along with the simultaneous whisper, "Hentai" made Naruto blush slightly. Hey! He was a male! He couldn't help it!

Seeing how he was temporarily ignored by both females, he shrugged and walked over to Hitomi and Shikamaru, who were, strangely enough, having a simple conversation. It would seem that the Nara and the Hyuga have met on a couple of occasions.

"Man, Naruto, they've already begun while you were in your own little world."

"Right, right, geez, cut me some slack will ya?"

"Gatsuga!"

A loud crash followed as Kiba's attack destroyed more than a few Kikaichu of Shino's and the momentum caused him to ram into the wall.

Apparently, the Inuzuka had already activated his Juujin bunshin (Beast-man clone) while Shino had taken on drastic defensive measures. The problem with fighting Kiba for an Aburame was that the kikaichu needed to be able to suck the chakra from the body, but with an Inuzuka, that became close to impossible as the moves of that particular clan were as feral as that of a real beast. Moves like Tsuga and Gatsuga all involve rotating the body at a high speed, and simply put, the chakra output would ruin any chances of the kikaichu sticking onto the user's body.

The use of soldier pills as well, proved to be a problem for Shino in the fact that Kiba's movements simply got more violent and in a sense, much harder for Shino to attack in any way. Sending Kikaichu his way would be a loss right now because the Inuzuka would simply shred them to bits.

The conclusion Shino arrived was to attack Akamaru first. To break up Kiba's defense, he would have to ruin their teamwork. And the good thing was… for an Aburame to detect a person's chakra signature was supposedly the easiest thing in the world. It wasn't the Aburame that did the job, but rather the feedback that the Kikaichu brought. One simple touch, and the bug would instantly pass the message to the user.

Kikaichu, a chakra absorbing insect, lethal and deadly, are divided into two groups, ones with poison and ones without. The ones Shino were using right now were the ones without poison because his own body had not developed to the stage where he would get used to the substances the kikaichu secrete within his body. The thing about Kikaichu was that they didn't really have a brain. No, in effect, they all shared one single brain, or rather, a huge network of impulse activity where information received by one would instantly be transmitted to another. The simplest way to express this would be that the kikaichu and the user share one thinking core after they were successfully inhibited within the Aburame. Hence, even if the kikaichu was destroyed, the user still would receive a certain amount of data of his opponent. This was why the Aburame were one of the most feared insect using clans in all five lands.

This was something Kiba would never have expected. Normally, during Juujin Bunshin, there always was the underlying factor as to which of the two 'Kibas' was the real one, and because of this, the enemy wouldn't dream of going all out on simply one of them.

Imagine his shock when not only did Shino sent at least eighty percent of his hive over to attack Akamaru. At first he thought Shino had fell into his trap and was just about to use Tsuga to end the battle, when Akamaru let out a sharp cry, before bursting in a cloud of smoke, revealing his battered form.

"Akamaru!" Kiba yelled in fury as he watched his partner whine in agony. The lack of chakra for an animal such as Akamaru was much more severe compared to that of humans, simply because of that fact that they have a rougher chakra system, meaning one not as efficient as that of humans. Added on top of that was Akamaru's size, which was considerably smaller than that of a human, hence the quick speed at which it was taken down.

Shino inwardly breathed a sigh of relief at Kiba's lack of experience. It was good that he had learned a lot from the elders of the clan, in which their battle strategies and other aspects of knowledge had helped him increase the ability to devise a plan on the spot. Had Kiba been a little more firm in his want to attack, Shino would have lost the battle. It was but a five second difference, yet it could mean all the difference in the world.

Growling, Kiba let all restrictions go. Now that Akamaru was down, he had nothing left to lose. Crouching low, Kiba summoned up his chakra, "Shikyaku no jutsu! (Four Legs technique)"

Without any hesitation now, as though he were acting on pure instinct, Kiba dashed towards the kikaichu that were surrounding Akamaru. Shino frowned as he watched this, wondering just what the Inuzuka was thinking. Kikaichu have the highest efficiency when attack in swarms, so why was he charging directly into the group? Was anger really affecting him that much?

On the balcony however, Naruto gave a low whistle. Shino probably didn't fully comprehend the extent to which Inuzuka rely on their instincts in battle. Anger, in some cases, work extremely well for Inuzuka, for most of their attacks rely on determination, and it's a well known fact that with anger, comes the need to beat the crap out of your opponent, and with that, hey presto, you get determination.

"Okamimaki! (Wolf Coil)" Feeling his claws lengthen, Kiba instead of using his usual airborne spin, chose instead spin whilst gaining momentum on the ground, having all four limbs to maintain balance as he sped up. The effect was instantaneous. Kikaichu had nothing against the sheer force of the attack, the ground itself had several claw marks all over.

However, Kiba didn't stop there, suddenly flinging himself off one huge spin, he appeared right in front of a shocked Shino, who could only use the remaining Kikaichu to act as a final shield between him and the ferocious Inuzuka.

"Tessou! (Steel Claws)" Layering chakra over his hands and nails, he swiped once to dispel the bugs, before his left claw was placed directly in front of Shino's face, poised to strike with the least amount of movement.

"Give up. Now." The adrenaline rush still had no receded and Kiba felt his senses almost amplified due to the absolute satisfaction that he had gotten the enemy for Akamaru.

The crowd was hushed because most of the spectators didn't even adjust their brains to take in the fact that, yes, indeed, the battle was over. A few minutes ago, the Inuzuka kid just had his partner defeated, and just like that, he had… exploded in terms of power and just… won the match.

Genma himself gave a subtle nod as his lips showed a small smile. This was exactly why Inuzukas were feared all around the five countries. Tsume would be proud.

Shino could only stare at the claw placed before his very eyes and curse his lack of attention. Had he been a little more careful, he would have detected the underlying strength behind Kiba. Guess he did underestimate him.

In a quiet tone, Shino raised his hand, "Examiner. I forfeit."

At that, Kiba's arm twitched, before relaxing and expelling the chakra that was built up in his limbs.

Genma nodded, before ending the match, "Aburame Shino has given up. Shousha, Inuzuka Kiba!"

The crowd finally got over their initial shock and started cheering madly. This had to be the quickest turn about they had witnessed! To think that one could change a disadvantage to an advantage just like that. The foreign nin were definitely reassessing the abilities of Konoha nin. Most had already heard of the almighty Uchiha, but it had been proved that clan status wasn't everything, seeing how Neji was a branch member. Then we had the fights between what other countries would have called a mutt against a bug. Most had thought the bug would win, yet it would seem the mutt had more beast-like instincts.

No one dared to say what the next battle would hold anymore. Most had deemed the two sand-nins instant victors given the stats that Sand-nin survive under the toughest conditions of the five countries, and since this genin team held children of the Kazekage, they were definitely favorites to the Chunin exams. However, the Naras were never one to be estimated. Their tactics and shadow manipulating abilities were unique, though from what they had gathered, the lazy qualities seemed to run in the family.

The next match would definitely be something to look out for.

Definitely…

Yeah…

"Oi Shikamaru! You're up in ten minutes! Get some energy man!" Naruto exclaimed while giving Kiba a high five, congratulating him on his fabulous win.

Of course, Naruto had used the special body language to give Shino encouragement, of which, the Aburame replied using that subtle body language as well.

The Nara merely yawned before leaning on the wall, "Whatever. I just can't be bothered… Ah, what a drag…"

"Mo! Shika! You better not lose to that sand woman or I'll beat you into the ground!" Ino grumbled. Sakura too was complimenting Kiba on his use of chakra, before going with him to the medic's bay to check on Akamaru.

"Sigh… why are my enemies always female…?"

Rolling her eyes, Ino retorted, "Why do you always lose to females then?!"

"Just because you're an overpowered freakish woman…"

"What was that?!"

"Ma, ma, Ino-chan, calm down." Naruto deftly pulled the woman backwards, preventing her from killing the contestant before he even began the match, "But she's right Shikamaru, if you even try just one tiny bit, there's no way you can lose."

Shikamaru snorted, "Yeah, right. All I've got is shadow manipulation. She's got a huge fan. Need I say more?"

Naruto scratched the back of his head, "Well, I guess you have a point. Long range fighters aren't exactly your favorite opponents."

"Pft, he's just making excuses. There's no such thing as favorite opponents for this guy."

"Heh, you got that right."

"SHIKA!!!"

"Alright, alright, woman! Jeez! Shush, I'm trying to relax."

The murderous expression on Ino's face said it all, and it took Naruto quite some strength to prevent Ino from maiming one of her childhood friends.

"Chouji! Tell him to get his ass in gear!"

"Munch, munch, hm?"

"Stop eating and help your friend out!"

"Munch, munch, munch, munch…"

"CHOUJI!!!!"

"Munch, munch, Ino, munch, you're too loud, munch…"

"……"

"Now, now, Ino, violence is not the way to go…"

"Let me go! I'll kill them!"

Temari on the other hand, seemed oddly quiet. If anything, her confidence had simply been boosted over this period. Just watching that Nara guy laze around was enough to get anyone ready to win. At first, she considered the possibility that he was merely pretending, but soon, that thought was thrown away because there simply wasn't anybody that could pretend to be lazy for that long.

From what she had gathered about Nara Shikamaru, the guy liked to spend his free time watching clouds or sleeping. He liked to play Shogi and Go apparently, so perhaps he did have that bit of talent. Even so, he was clearly a short ranged fighter. This match was in the bag, without doubt.

Just as Sakura and Kiba returned, Genma's voice reached them, "Will Nara Shikamaru and Sabaku no Temari please come down to the arena."

Deciding to show a bit of flair, Temari spread open her fan, blasted a small kamaitachi to create an air current before gently floating down to the field, landing with a grace that few genin kunoichi could match. Flower of the desert indeed.

Shikamaru on the other hand was slouching, with pretty much no energy, or rather, no fighting spirit at all. His eyes were unfocused, as though daydreaming about all the wonderful things he could be doing right now.

"Oi Shikamaru! Get going!" Ino had simply raised her leg and given Shikamaru one simple kick in the butt.

The result was hilarious. Because of that kick, the Nara lost balance. By losing balance, he tipped himself over the metal fence and before long, he found himself face down on the ground with his butt in the air.

Watching this, Kurenai couldn't help but facepalm. The extent to which her student could be so without drive never failed to amaze her. In a way, she was impressed. Either Shikamaru simply didn't care, or he had that much confidence. But obviously, common sense would say that the former was more accurate. With Shikamaru, there was no thing such as confidence before a match.

Kurenai ignored the teasing looks from the other jonins and held her head high. They didn't understand how Shikamaru worked, and frankly, she wouldn't dare say she knew either. However, from all the missions they have carried out, she did have him figured out a little bit. Frankly, for someone like Shikamaru, the more laid back he was before a major battle, the better he would perform. That had been an undeniable fact so far.

Shikamaru had one good quality that was related to his laziness. He never underestimated an enemy, simply because he couldn't be bothered to do that. When Kurenai once questioned him, he replied with "Why bother making yourself feel good when you can just go in and prove it?"

To her, that was a classic brawler-ish comment, suited more for someone like Kiba or Naruto, but after thinking about it, she realized it must be the Shogi. Shikamaru, being a veteran at that game, knew exactly when to hang on and when to let go. Though it was common knowledge that Shikamaru had an IQ of over two hundred (at least among his friends and family), no one really comprehended the extent to which he could plan ahead.

Kurenai smiled slightly as she watched Shikamaru glare at Naruto while the later was apologizing profusely for Ino. This was definitely a match to see, and as of now, she couldn't wait to see the plan Shikamaru would come up with in the match against a long range fighter. For some reason, impromptu thinking simply didn't begin to match the genius of Shikamaru.

"Mendokuse…" The genin with pineapple-shaped hair yawned before slowly walking to the centre of the field in a slouch, ignoring the curses and yells from one Yamanaka Ino. Women were bloody troublesome…

Temari simply gazed at him condescendingly before opening her fan once again, ready to fight any time. Genma raised an eyebrow at Shikamaru's form and shook his head wryly, before announcing, "Let the match begin!"

The blonde didn't waste any time at all, "Kamaitachi no jutsu!"

The tunnel of wind formed blades before assaulting Shikamaru face on. The lazy genin barely rolled out of the way, steadying himself quickly, then rushed to the left to avoid a smash from the metal fan.

"Geez, what's the hurry?"

"Get back here you coward!"

"Pft, nice taunt."

"Shut up!"

It seemed like an one-sided match, with Shikamaru simply dodging whatever was sent his way, and Temari sending wind blasts constantly while occasionally going physical with that fan of hers.

"Ah… look at the poor trees…"

"DIE!!!"

"Whoa… that was close."

"Grrrr…"

"Do I see wrinkles?"

"WHY YOU?!!!"

If Shikamaru was aiming to taunt, then he certainly was doing a good job. Though many failed to see the point of him simply dodging and never going on the offensive. Temari clenched her fist, thinking, 'So you want me to use up all my energy? Hah, don't make me laugh.'

She was kinda right on that one, and detecting the still bored expression on Shikamaru's face, she decided to just continue attacking. This fan and style of attack had accompanied her for years and it would take much longer before she even felt the hints of fatigue. This was the extent to which Suna kunoichi trained themselves.

"Hate to say it, but you fight like a man just a bit too much for my liking…"

"Ha! Scared?"

"Nah, just thinking if you were a bi."

"… A WHAT?!"

"Bi. You know, bisexual. I mean you being so manly and all does lead others to think of …"

"YOU BASTARD!!!"

Throwing all caution out into the wind, Temari heaved her fan into the air, "Daikamaitachi!!!"

Shikamaru felt the full force of the attack and cursed himself for pushing the woman a little too far, before running over to the trees and hiding behind them to get some cover.

The wind swept over the entire arena, blasting in the faces of the crowd, making them lean backwards to avoid the dangerous currents. Tenten gritted her teeth while she remembered how she was defeated in the preliminaries. The force of the attack only seemed to increase compared to one month ago, and this left the weapons mistress slightly disheartened. All she had were weapons… so how was she to make use of that fact and improve on it? At this rate, she would never be able to fight against opponents with projectile attacks.

"Get your ass out here at once!!"

Temari didn't seem to let up and sent one more wave of wind blades at the trees, intent on getting Shikamaru out of his hiding place.

Suddenly, as though answering her attack, a string of shadow emerged from the trees, poised to latch onto hers any moment.

Remembering the battle he had with that sound genin in the preliminaries, she quickly leapt backwards to avoid it. Landing after she flipped backwards for the third time, she realized that the shadow had reached its limit. Unable to resist a smirk, she drew a line on the ground with her foot, eyeing Shikamaru like a predator before announcing, "This is it. You can't go any further. Heh, you're screwed."

The Nara simply shrugged as he rotated his neck, "You never know." His lazy expression changed into a serious one, as he sat with his legs crossed, fingers from both hands met each other tip to tip, assuming his standard 'thinking' pose.

Temari stepped back once, wondering what jutsu he was going to use. She had never seen that seal before.

Kurenai grinned, "That isn't a seal. That's just the way he works."

Asuma, who was sitting beside her raised an eyebrow, "Oh?"

"Whenever he's facing a crisis in Shogi, that's the standard procedure he goes through. Do watch, Asuma, because you'll see a whole new level of strategy."

"Ha, alright, I'll await this show then."

The crowd remained silent, the tension in the atmosphere rising quickly. No one knew what was going to happen. Even Ino was surprised by how seriously Shikamaru took this.

Temari tensed for a moment, before charging forward, "You actually think I'm going to let you just think a plan?"

The corners of his mouth twitched before a smirk formed on his face, "Yes."

"Why you… what the?!"

"Kage Kunai no jutsu."

Before Temari could move any further, kunais emerged from all over the place, launching themselves at the blonde, forcing her to go on the defensive.

"Where did they come from?!" Temari's eyes swept across the field, only to remember how Shikamaru's feet always seemed to tap once after he landed while dodging her strikes earlier, "No way…"

The Kunai were easily blown apart by her kamaitachi no jutsu but that was not what worried her. The ability to sink objects into mere shadows was completely unheard of.

"Gotcha."

"Huh?" Temari's eyes widened as Shikamaru stood up from his position, and formed the seals once again, "Kage mane no jutsu! (Shadow imitation technique)" The string of shadow appeared once again and shot towards Temari, who merely retreated back to where she drew the line, "Ha! You won't be able to pass this line…"

Her words died in her mouth as she realized the shadow was never meant for her, but instead, the shadow attached itself to the shadow of the kunai, interlinking them all, slowly surrounding her.

"Kage Rou… (Shadow Prison)"

Her mind working fast, Temari crouched before placing her fan on the ground, spinning it as she balanced herself on the fan, "Futon: Refuupa! (Violent Wind Blast)" The wind-natured chakra shockwave spread outwards, hitting all the kunai on the ground, causing them to fly apart, temporarily disconnecting the shadows.

Making use of that time, she quickly picked up her fan and summoned up all her remaining chakra, intending on making this last attack hit, "Daikamaitachi no jutsu!"

Shikamaru winced as he took the attack full on, using merely his hands to shield himself from the attack. Temari grinned victoriously as the attack subsided, revealing a tired and cut-up Nara with what seemed like blood pouring out of all his wounds.

"Shika!" Ino yelled, unable to believe the sight before her eyes.

"Oh hell no…" Naruto slammed his fist onto the wall, grimacing at the sight of the bleeding Shikamaru.

Kurenai gasped as she saw her student. There was simply no way he could still be alive! The blood just kept pouring… and pouring… and pouring… wait…

Temari took in deep breaths as she panted, exhaustion clearly getting to her, "Damn, can't believe I actually got you with that. I admit, your prison thing was very effective, and if I hadn't got them out of the way, I would have lost." She slowly stood up straight, before giving a slight bow, "I apologize for underestimating you, it was a good match."

The crowd was silent as they witnessed the death of a Konoha nin before their very eyes. Chouji and the others all expressed their anger in the form of shouts and yells. It was just unbelievable! This was Shikamaru they were talking about! The genius! The tactical god!

Just when Temari was about to tell Genma to announce the match, a voice echoed through the arena, "Why thank you."

The 'Shikamaru' that was currently bleeding like crazy burst into a blob of black before retreating into the ground. Temari blinked before cursing. Instantly readying her battle fan, she tensed as the voice permeated to her ears once again, "Let's just get this over with. Kage Rou…"

The kunai that were previously scattered instantly revealed the shadows interlinked amongst them once again, shocking Temari, "But, but I blew them off!"

"Kage Nui (Shadow sewing)"

Streams of shadow latched themselves onto Temari, pinning her on the spot and acted as a real bind where the shadows connected to the kunai impaled themselves on the ground as a pivot. Feeling the ability to move her muscles fade away, Temari couldn't help but drop her head.

It was over.

Shikamaru then emerged from the trees that he had first hid in, before grinning, "Would you prefer a kunai or shuriken to the head hm?"

Temari gasped as realization dawned on her, "So you've been back there all this time?!"

"Yeah."

"So what was that, that blob…"

"No name so far. It's just a shadow liquefied. A decoy, if you will."

"But how did you… ah…"

"I control shadows. What you just witnessed was Kage Kugetsu (Shadow puppet). I'm sure you'll figure out the rest."

Temari sighed, shaking her head before holding her head high, "Well, what are you waiting for?"

Shikamaru raised an eyebrow, "Finish you off?"

"Yes."

"Ha… you've got spunk."

"… Just shut up."

Shikamaru laughed before removing his accessory pouch and emptying the contents… to show nothing. "Unfortunately, I've got nothing left to kill you with. Your wind attack disintegrated one of my kunai and I had to use the last one to replace it."

Temari's eyes widened, remembering that shattering sound she heard back then.

"And on top of that, I'm running out of chakra…" Sure enough, the holds on her muscles weakened, and slowly bit by bit, she could squirm around a little.

"And considering how I'm going to fighting all the powerhouses next round…" Shikamaru glanced in the direction of the balcony, before sighing, "Nah, too much trouble. Oi examiner!"

Genma looked in his direction, "Hm?"

"I forfeit."

Silence.

More silence.

CHAOS.

"What the fuck is wrong with that dude?!"

"He has her right where he wants her! What the hell?!"

"I'm not hearing right, what did he say?!"

Ino was having a field day with her rage right now, "That bastard! That lazy no good son of a – "

Naruto rolled his eyes, "Language Ino."

"You shut the fuck up!"

"Ouch…"

Kurenai herself was sighing, "Why did I see this happening…"

Asuma chuckled, "Very interesting student you've got there Kurenai."

"Sometimes, I wish he was more normal… sigh…"

Temari herself was furious, "What is this? Pity?!"

"Pft, nah. Simple truth. I thought I had taunted you enough, but apparently, feminine rage is too scary." Shikamaru shrugged as all the shadows retreated back to the ground or himself, releasing the hold on Temari, letting the girl regain her mobility.

Staring at the teenager in front of her, Temari didn't know what to say. To think she won in this way…

Shikamaru yawned, "Ah what the heck. I gave it my all. You topped that." Stretching, he shrugged, "It's not that big a deal. Get over it."

Rooted to the spot, Temari tried to understand the emotions that were going through her at the moment. She had thought her intelligence was enough, and was proven wrong. In the end, her strength was bested by the very guy she thought she could win. The laziness, the lack of drive… she couldn't remember a time where she had witnessed a guy so completely… changed during a fight.

The amount of concentration and forethought he must have maintained throughout the match floored her. She was never so impressed with a man as she was right now.

Not understanding what caused her to act this way, even when she looked back at this moment years later, she rushed over to him, pulled him around and kissed him right on the lips.

Poor Shikamaru could only freeze up as he felt two soft surfaces touch his lips. The kiss lasted for five seconds before Temari broke it and whispered, "You better not be dead for our rematch…"

With that, said Suna genin made her way back to the balcony, completely ignoring a flabbergasted Shikamaru that stood rooted to his spot, with his mouth slightly open, his pupils unfocused.

Genma chuckled slightly, before muttering, "Man's got it good." Then shaking away the random thoughts, he announced, "Shousha, Temari!"

There, got that done. I specifically enjoyed writing the end to this chap even with my gums and all that in pain lol. It was fun. I didn't make too much use of Kage Mane because well… it'd just be very drawn out like in the anime. Hope you liked how I edited these two fights. Any new jutsu belongs to ME. Booya.

Review please, and tell me what you think. Next chapter would be the long-awaited Naruto vs Gaara. Do stay tuned. XD

As a final note, once more, I wish you all a merry Christmas!