Chapter 38: The Proud Failure

A/N: Here's the long awaited chapter that everyone's been dying to see! (Or at least I hope so) It's finally the match between Naruto and Neji. How will it end and who will win? I think this has to be the longest chapter that I've written so far for this story, so Yay for me!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Final Fantasy 7; I do own Mikomi, Usagi and Yuri while Bakuto Masaki owns Bakuto, Taimat and Myou.

Enjoy!

"Talking"

"Thinking"

"Usagi Talking"

"Aerith Talking"

The next morning was hectic. Feudal lords and guests from different nations were all coming to the Hidden Leaf village. Preparations were being made for the finals that were about to commence. Everyone was in high spirits as they waited for the battles that would happen shortly.

At the Uzumaki residence, things were hectic as well. Or rather, Yuri was making things hectic. She was running around the house and grabbing things Naruto would need for the finals.

"Ok. You've got shurikens, Kunai Knives, scrolls, smoke bombs, paper bombs, military ration pills, blood pills. Am I missing anything?"

Naruto tried to shuffle all of the items that Yuri gave him.

Mikomi sweat dropped at the kitchen table. Only Yuri could turn something so simple into a nightmare. She didn't even want to remember when she did this to her when she took the exams.

Naruto managed to put everything away into a scroll. Yuri started to list things off of her fingers.

"Weapons, medicine, pills. That should do it"

She looked at her godson.

"Did you have a good night sleep?"

"Yes"

"Have a healthy breakfast?"

"Yes"

"Brush your teeth?"

"Yes"

"Change your underwear?"

"Yuri!"

The medic turned to her goddaughter to see her give her a dirty look.

Yuri laughed nervously.

"Opps, sorry"

Mikomi just rolled her eyes and up from the table.

"Come on, Naruto. Let's go before Yuri scars you for life"

The young blond followed his sister out of the house.

Yuri stood near the doorway and waved at them.

"Don't forget to change your underwear!"

"Shut up!"

The walk to the stadium was quiet. Naruto just looked at the ground. He kept kicking at a pebble that was in his path. Mikomi rubbed his shoulder.

"You nervous, Naruto?"

He tried to give her a brave smile.

"Nervous? Why should I be nervous? I get to fight Neji Hyuga, so I'm not nervous"

Mikomi gave him a knowing look.

"Maybe I am a little nervous" he admitted.

Mikomi crouched down so she was eye level with him.

"You've have nothing to worry about" She said. "You've trained really hard this past month. You'll do fine"

Naruto looked at the ground.

"But everyone says that Neji is a real genius"

"So what? Brains aren't everything. You've gotten this far with your strength alone"

"But…what if I lose?"

"Naruto"

She placed her hands on his shoulders. She gave him the sweetest smile she could muster.

"You should know that I don't care if you win or lose, I'm proud of you either way. As long as you come out of this alive, then that's all I need"

She pulled him into a fierce hug.

"Just do your best and be safe. That's all I ask"

Naruto hugged his sister in return.

She was the only person who could show him so much love.

Mikomi stood up and looked at her brother.

"Let's go. Everyone is waiting to see you shine today, so let's not keep them waiting"

Naruto grinned at that and continued to walk to the stadium.

They saw AVALANCE near the entrance. They came early so they could get good seats.

Naruto beamed when he saw his family. He was happy knowing that they came here to see him.

Yuffie pounced on Naruto when he got closer.

"Good luck, Naruto! Go kick that Hyuga's ass and fight like there's no tomorrow!"

Tifa hugged him when Yuffie let him go.

"Do your best, ok?"

Barret ruffled his hair.

"Good luck, kiddo"

Cid patted him on the shoulder.

"We're rooting for you"

Vincent nodded.

"Fight hard"

Yugito hugged him.

"You'll just win, I know it"

Bakuto gave him a nod.

"Show your sister that you're a better fighter than her"

Naruto looked at Cloud.

The blond patted the boy on the shoulder.

"Just do your best. Even if you don't win, we'll still be proud of you"

Naruto beamed before latching himself to him.

"Ni-san!"

Cloud was taken aback by the gesture, but returned it none the less.

It was strange on his part, but hey, he grew attached to the kid.

They all left Naruto to go find their seats. They were almost near the front rows so they would have a good view. They all sat down and watched Naruto join with the others competing in the finals.

Yugito bounced in her seat.

"This is so exciting! I can't wait to see Naruto fight!"

Mikomi gave her friend a weak smile. She was glad that her brother was competing but she was nervous as well.

Barret ruffled her hair.

"Don't worry, Mikomi. If there's one thing that you and Naruto share in common, it's that you're too stubborn to give up"

"That's what I'm afraid of" she thought.

Myou came down to their seats.

"Hey, Myou"

Myou bowed to her captain.

"Hello, captain"

She fiddled with her fingers in a Hinata manner.

"Um…I was wondering if I could possibly sit with you guys. I don't want to sit with my uncle or the rest of my clan"

"Yeah, that's fine. You're part of the group anyway"

Myou looked relieved as she sat down.

She waved at the rest of the group nervously.

"H-hi everyone"

"Hey, Myou"

"Are you going to root for Naruto or Neji?"

"Naruto, hands down"

"Really? I thought you would support Neji, considering you're cousins and all"

Myou's face was grim.

"I can't forgive him for hurting Hinata in the preliminary rounds. She just finally got of hospital"

They all knew what happened between Neji and Hinata during the preliminaries. Mikomi went to the hospital a couple of times to check up on her even.

Down in the fighting area, Naruto kept looking at Garra. He was still eerie about him since his run in with him at the hospital.

He suddenly remembered something that made his blood run cold.

"I think I remember… Sasuke's opponent is…"

He gulped nervously.

Up on the sky deck; the Third Hokage and the Fourth Kazegake were seated.

Sarutobi looked at the crowd. All of the seats were packed.

"Well then…we ought to begin"

He rose from his seat and looked at the crowd.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, esteemed guests. Welcome and heartfelt thanks for gathering here in Konohagakure…for the Chunin selection examination! We will now begin the matches of the final round…between eight candidates who advanced in the preliminaries. Please sit back and enjoy!"

The crowd cheered as the finals began.

Genma, the Procter looked at the Genin finalists.

"Before we begin, I have a few announcements. Look here"

He held up a chart showing who was going to fight.

"There have been a few last minute changes. Look again and confirm who your opponent is going to be"

Shikamaru was confused.

"I was down for an extra match. Did that sound ninja guy withdraw?"

Little did he know that Garra killed him.

Naruto waved his hand around.

"Hey! Hey!"

"What?"

"Sasuke isn't here yet, so what's gonna happen?"

Truth be told, no knew where Sasuke was this past month. Apparently, Kakashi was training him, but they didn't know where he trained the Uchiha boy.

"If he doesn't arrive at the start of his own match…he'll lose by forfeit"

Naruto was puzzled.

"This is weird…I thought Sasuke would be here even if he had to crawl"

Garra's fingers twitched.

Genma cleared his throat.

"Listen up, all of you. This is the last exam. The landscape may be different, but just with the preliminaries, there are no set rules. You fight until one of you dies or admits defeat. Unless I determine that a clear winner has already been decided, in which case…I'll stop the match before anyone's killed. Understand?"

Everyone nodded.

"Alright then. Match one: Naruto Uzumaki vs. Neji Hyuga. You two stay here. The rest of you, proceed to the waiting room outside of the arena"

Naruto and Neji stayed put while everyone left.

Outside of the arena, people began talking.

"This'll be quite a show"

"But against Neji, Naruto doesn't stand a chance"

"I never imagined that scamp would last so long"

"Hmm. But all the ones who were hanging on through luck alone…have been eliminated by now"

"And this Naruto kid…he drew up a tough opponent"

"Against a member of the Hyuga clan, he's got absolutely no chance at all"

Mikomi bit the inside of her cheeks as she heard everyone talking about her brother.

The match didn't even start yet and they were already doubting him.

Yuffie turned around in her seat and started chewing them out.

"You guys got a lot of nerve talking about Naruto like that! What makes you think he's going to lose?"

"Are you kidding? That kid is a total failure, there's no way he can beat Neji"

Myou got in their faces as well.

"Neji doesn't stand a chance against Naruto. I'm a Hyuga and even I know that"

The two girls kept bickering with the people behind them until Cid broke it up.

Tifa patted Mikomi on the back.

"Don't pay any attention to them. They don't know Naruto like we do"

Mikomi smiled.

"At least your friends are supporting Naruto" Usagi said.

"I know he'll win" Aerith added.

Mikomi's good mood was cut short as Yuri came zooming in. She was nothing but a white blur as she zipped down to her seat. She got behind Mikomi and tried to hug her, but ended wrapping her arms around her neck and started choking her.

"Komi-chan! I've been looking for you everywhere! How could you leave me at the house like that? That was so mean of you!"

She rubbed her cheek against her goddaughter's now blue face.

Tifa began to panic.

"Yuri! You're choking her!"

Yuri saw this and immediately let go. Mikomi gasped for air as color returned to her face.

She took a few deep breaths before she glared at Yuri. The medic grinned sheepishly.

"Sorry"

Mikomi just shook her head before looking back at the arena.

Naruto and Neji had a stare off. Both wee glaring at one another. Neji held mocking tone to it. Naruto was more determined.

"You got something to say?" Neji asked snidely.

"I've said this once before…"

Naruto held up his fist.

"I vow to win!"

Neji activated his Byakugan.

"He's got absolute faith in himself…as if he hasn't got a single doubt"

"Now then…Match one…begin!"

Both got into a fighting stance.

Neji had a smug look on his face.

"It's more fun this way anyway. I can't wait to see the despair in your eyes…when the truth finally draws on you"

"Quit yapping. Let's fight!"

The battle of fate had just began.

Mikomi gulped as she looked at her brother get into a fighting stance.

"Please be ok, Naruto"

Naruto stared at Neji. The Hyuga had his Byakugan activated. As he stared into his eyes, he remembered the outcome of Hinata's match. This guy could see chakra points and hit them as if they were in plain view. A gifted talent from a gifted genius. Naruto pondered his ideas.

"If I get too close to him, he'll press my points and I won't be able to use any jutsu…so I've got to fight him from afar"

He had materia that Yuffie had given him, but he didn't want to use it unless he really needed to.

He conjured up shadow clones. Neji was surprised that he could pull off such an advanced technique. He suddenly realized what the blond was doing.

"I see…since his chakra is equally and evenly distributed among all of the clones…even my Byakugan won't enable me to determine which of the bodies is real"

He smirked.

"But… in the end, there is only one actual body"

Naruto's clones pulled out Kunai knives.

"Heh…don't be too confident"

"Then come at me…if you dare"

"Don't underestimate"

They all charged at him as full speed. Neji simply flipped over tem and started performing Gentle Fist at them. He spun in the air and kicked two in the faces. Two more charged at him when he landed. He grabbed them by the arms and elbowed them before pulling them forward and slamming his fists into their chests.

Everyone watched as Naruto's clones disappeared.

"Does this kid have eyes in the back of his head or something?" Yuffie asked.

"That's the Byakugan for you" Myou replied.

Mikomi didn't say anything as she watched her brother tried to stay calm.

It was taking everything in her to stay calm.

"Naruto"

Neji looked at the blond arrogantly.

"You want to be Hokage, huh? I don't think that's gonna happen"

He kicked at the last of his clones and made it disappeared.

"I can pretty much tell, with these eyes of mine…abilities and talent are determined at birth. In other words, your entire destiny is set from the moment you're born"

Naruto's anger flared.

"Why are you so stubborn? You're always so sure that the future is full of doom and gloom. Why?"

"Well…are you saying that anyone can become Hogake…if they just try hard enough?" Neji asked.

"Only a select few shinobi are even considered for Hokage. Wake up and face reality! Those who will become Hokage are born with that fate. You can't get there by trying…you have to be pre-selected. Each person's life consists only of being swept along the inescapable current of his destiny. All of us…have only one thing in common…one shared fate….death"

Naruto went to make more clones.

"Well, so what? I guess I'm just a sore loser"

Thousands of clones surrounded him this time.

Neji wasn't fazed.

"I'm not an idiot, you know. I've seen through your pattern of attack already"

"I told you…you shouldn't make assumptions about the future!"

They all charged at him.

He tried landing a few punches, but Neji kept dodging them,

"Darn! I'm not hitting him!"

Neji zoomed through the clones.

"I told you I'm not an idiot" he thought.

"I already know…which is the real you!"

He went all the way into the back and slammed his fingers into the Naruto that was in the back. All of the clones disappeared as he hit the left side of Naruto's chest.

"The one who hangs back, afraid to get to get close…fearing any strikes on his chakra points. The more the others attack, the more that one stands. You're the real one!"

Mikomi rose from her seat when she saw blood coming out of Naruto's mouth.

"Naruto!"

Naruto hunched over in pain.

Neji just watched as blood dripped from the blond's mouth.

"I told you it was useless"

Naruto's body started shaking.

Laughter erupted from his throat.

"And…I told you…not to make so many assumptions!"

He disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

"What?!"

Neji looked behind him to see two Naruto's closing in on him.

Yuffie was jumping from her seat.

"All right! Go Naruto!"

Mikomi sighed in relief.

He was going to be the death of her, she just knew it.

Neji was caught off guard as he saw the two Naruto's.

"He anticipated my thoughts and…he deliberately steered me…toward one of his clones?!"

Naruto and his clone pulled back their fists as they got closer to Neji.

"From the start…I came into this match fully prepared to lose!!"

Everyone watched as his fist connected with Neji's face.

"He got him!" Cid cried.

Yuri narrowed her gaze as she looked closer.

"Wait a sec…"

Naruto beamed at his task.

He finally managed to get a hit.

That grin suddenly turned into a frown when chakra emanated from Neji's body.

He was thrown back when Neji spun really fast.

He went skidding while his clone vanished.

A huge crater surrounded Neji when he finished spinning.

"You thought you had me beat?"

Naruto was taken off guard.

Up in the stands, everyone began talking. That move Neji just pull was totally unexpected.

Myou was awestruck with her cousin.

"Impossible" she breathed.

"What's going on?" Yugito asked. "I know Naruto landed that punch"

"What the hell was that just now?" Barret retorted.

"That was rotation" Myou said weakly.

"The rotation is the Hyuga clan's ultimate defense. The visual range of the Byakugan is almost a full 360 degrees. In other words, the Hyuga clan can pretty much see a full circle around themselves. And with that same all seeing eye, they can anticipate all their opponents' attacks"

Yuri leaned back in her seat.

"Judging from his stance, I'd say he's protected with the Eight Trigrams Palm Rotation"

Mikomi's skin paled.

"What exactly is the Eight Trigrams Palm Rotation?" Vincent asked.

Myou cleared her throat.

"Basically, the instant before an attack reaches Neji, he emits a large amount of chakra from chakra points all over his body; halting the enemy's attack with a cocoon of chakra. Then he moves his body in a circle like a spinning top…repelling and reflecting the attack. Normally, chakra that is emanated from chakra points is difficult to control. Even Jonin can usually only utilize such chakra from a single body part at a time, like the hands or feet. You could consider this as an absolute defense"

Nobody said anything. They realized that things were going to turn ugly really fast.

Mikomi's hands curled into tight fists.

"Naruto"

Naruto staggered to his feet.

That rotation really messed him up.

Neji closed his eyes in concentration.

"You're finished. You are within the boundaries of my eight trigrams"

He quickly went into a stance.

"Gentle fist…Eight Trigrams, Sixty-four palms"

He quickly went in for the attack and started hitting Naruto's chakra points.

"Eight Trigrams! Two palms! Four palms!, Eight palms!, Sixteen Palms!, Thirty-two palms! , Sixty-four palms!"

Naruto went landing in a huge heap.

Bruises formed from where his chakra points were hit.

"Naruto!" Yuri cried as she rose from her seat.

Tifa covered her mouth while Yugito gasped.

Bakuto had a grim look on his face as well as the rest if the guys.

Yuffie covered her eyes.

Red Xlll hung his head.

"Good gracious!" Cat Sith cried.

"Naruto!" Denzel and Marlene cried. (A/N: Yuri brought them with, I forgot to mention)

Myou gasped horrified and held onto her captain's hand.

Mikomi closed her eyes tightly. She just couldn't see her brother, she was that scared. She kept pleading in her head that he would get up.

"Get up, Naruto! Please get up!"

"Don't worry. You're brother isn't that easy to give up" Aerith assured her.

"If there's one thing you and Naruto have in common, it's the fact that you're too stubborn to quit" Usagi added.

Naruto tried to move his body. Pain flared throughout his entire body. He managed to get to his knees before it became too much for him.

Neji just watched Naruto struggle. It was almost funny to see him still struggle.

"I've pressed 64 of the points around your body. You can no longer even stand"

Naruto continued to struggle. His body felt like it was made out of lead.

"Heh….it must be frustrating" Neji said.

"Here, on your knees before my immutable strength… you must finally comprehend you own powerlessness"

He deactivated his Byakugan.

"Believing that your dreams will come true of you just try hard enough…it's simply a fantasy"

Naruto glared at him.

"Damn it!"

He thought back to Hinata; how she tried so hard to fight her cousin, only to be shot down.

"Damn it!"

Everyone was taken by surprise when he managed to get to his feet.

Mikomi cracked her eyes open in time to see this happen.

"Naruto"

"Stubborn until the very end" Barret grinned.

Yuffie was cheering him on.

Everyone else seemed glad that he was able to stand.

Mikomi didn't know if she was suppose to be happy or worried; he could only go so far.

Neji was completely caught off guard. There was no way that he could still stand after that attack.

Naruto held his chest painfully. He breathed heavily as he swayed on his feet.

Neji knew his attempts were pointless.

"Listen; just give up, all right? If you keep going, it'll only be more of the same. And I don't really have any grudge against you, so-"

"Sh-shut up! I…I do, all right?"

Neji blinked at him.

"What are you talking about?"

Naruto breathed harder.

"I…I mean…you're so strong, and you…you act like you know everything…and when you were up against Hinata, who was fighting so hard, you played those horrible mind-games with her!"

Neji glared at him.

"That's none of your business"

Naruto just ignored him.

"…You mocked Hinata…calling her a failure and claiming you could see her fate!...I could never forgive…a jerk who goes around calling people failures!"

Neji looked away for a moment before he looked at him again.

"Fine…since you insist, I'll tell you…about the hateful legacy of a marked child"

Mikomi watched her brother wearily. He wasn't fighting Neji right now, so that was a plus. But the Hyuga was talking to him about something that she couldn't hear.

Cat Sith plopped into her lap.

"Why the long face, Mikomi?" He asked.

"Naruto's alright. You should be happy"

She just gave the robot a weak smile.

"'I just don't like seeing him get hurt"

Yuri leaned over her seat and rubbed her shoulder.

"He's a big boy, sweetie. He can take care of himself"

Mikomi sighed.

"I know. It's just…I don't know…it's just that I don't want to see him end up like…."

"He won't end up like your dad, honey" Yuri said plainly.

"I'll admit that your brother is stubborn when it comes to giving up on something. And he might not be the sharpest crayon in the box. But at least he knows how to stay alive"

Mikomi just hung her head and let her bangs cover her face.

Yuffie looked at Naruto and Neji.

They Hyuga pulled his headband off and revealed a strange marking on his forehead.

"Hey! What's that weird looking mark on Neji's forehead?"

Myou had a grim look on her face.

"It's a curse mark jutsu" she said weakly.

"The Hyuga clan is split into two parts. The Main branch and the Cadet branch. Those who are from the Cadet branch must have that mark placed on their foreheads so they can protect the Hyuga Clan's secrets and the Byakugan. Neji is from the Cadet branch while Hinata and I are from the main branch"

Myou hung her head in shame.

"I always hated my clan for doing such barbaric things. When the curse mark is activated, it destroys the brain cells and turns a person's brain into mush. I always thought it was unfair of my clan."

She had a sad look upon her face.

"I can understand why Neji hates the Main branch so much. Especially my uncle, Lord Hiashi"

Mikomi looked up at her lieutenant.

"You never did tell me why Neji had such a huge chip on his shoulder"

Myou sighed.

"I'm sure you know by now that Neji's father and Hinata's father were twin brothers?"

She nodded.

"Well, since Lord Hiashi was born first, he was put into the main branch while Neji's father was put into the Cadet branch. That meant the Neji was placed into the Cadet branch when he was born."

"Ok? So he's mad at your uncle because he was born into the Cadet branch?"

Myou shook her head.

"It all started when Cloud and Konoha were celebrating their allegiance with each other. The Hyuga clan didn't go to the celebration because it was Hinata's third birthday"

"I remember that" Yugito said.

"We sent one of our lesser leaders to make negotiations"

"That fool was so full of himself. He was always thirsty for power. The village was stupid to have sent him to make peace"

Myou nodded.

"Well. During the alliance treaty, someone tried to kidnap Hinata. Lord Hiashi killed the bandit, but it turned out that the leader they sent from Cloud was the bandit"

"So that's what happened to him" Yugito said.

"The bastard deserved it" Baktuo plainly said.

Myou looked at the ground.

"Well, Kumo didn't take it really well, they said it was a threat to their treaty with Konoha. So instead of wanting war to break out again, they decided to strike a deal with the Hyuga clan"

"And what was the deal?" Mikomi asked.

"…Konoha had to give the head of Hiashi Hyuga to the Land of Clouds"

"Bastards" Yugtio muttered.

Myou wasn't finished.

"That's not the worse part. Since the Main branch didn't want their leader to be killed and have the Byakugan's secrets exposed….they killed Neji's father instead"

Mikomi's eyes went huge.

"What?"

"Since they were twins, they could pass if off and make it seem like they were killing Lord Hiashi. They sacrificed a member of the Cadet branch just so they could protect the Main branch"

Cid lit a cigarette.

"Talk about a messed up family"

Myou had tears in her eyes.

"I'm so disgusted with my clan. How could they do that to Neji. I know they were only trying to protect the clan's secrets, but to kill your own family member? How low can one get?"

She wiped her eyes.

"I can understand why Neji hates the Main branch so much, but he should know that not everyone from that branch is so bad. Hinata and I aren't"

Yugito patted her back.

"That's true. And we're so sorry that our village did this to your family. That was an all time low on our part"

Myou gave her a weak smile.

"Thank you. And I know it's not your fault. It was during the war and everyone was trying to find ways of winning"

She looked at her cousin.

"But…I just wished Neji would let go of his hatred. He thinks that everything is predetermined and that nothing can change our fates"

"Maybe Naruto can fix that" Yuri said.

"He's defined his fate as a Jinchuriki and he's doing everything to become Hokage. Neji just needs someone to give him that little push toward his dreams"

Myou bit her lip.

"Do you think Naruto has what it takes?"

"I know so. I'm their godmother after all, I know everything about my Naru-kun"

She leaned over and wrapped her arms around Mikomi.

"And of course I know everything about my Komi-womi-chan!"

A tick mark appeared on Mikomi's forehead.

"Yuri, you've got five seconds to let me go before I lock up the liquor cabinet at home"

Yuri quickly let go and went back in her seat.

"I'll be good" She whimpered.

Mikomi just sighed as she looked at Myou.

"Sometimes, I wonder how I lived so long with her" she whispered.

Myou giggled.

"Well, you do tend to survive through the craziest things"

Mikomi touched the Hansou Materia in her pocket.

"Yes I do"

She looked back at the match to see the fight about to pick up again.

Back in the arena; Neji had just finished telling his tale to Naruto. They Hyuga clan's legacy ran chills down his spine.

"Your fate is to lose to me. That's a fact"

Naruto struggled to keep standing. His body throbbed in pain from that last attack.

"You can't know that for sure until we try!" he cried.

They Hyuga genius simply readjusted his headband.

The blond continued his rant.

"I can't even imagine how much pain you felt when your father was killed, but… I think you're wrong to conclude that everyone's destinies are predetermined!"

Neji jus looked at him.

"You're hopeless" he simply said.

He launched another gentle fist attack at him.

Naruto skidded across the arena before landing in a heap.

Neji looked at Genma.

"Procter…we're finished here"

He looked at Naruto once more before walking away.

"What a failure"

Naruto managed to get back on his feet.

"D-don't turn your back…" he choked out.

His legs shook as he stood up.

"I won't run away…I never…go back in my word..."

Neji sneered.

"Heh… I think I've heard that line before"

Naruto panted hard.

"I refuse to be defeated by a coward like you…I won't lose to someone who believes in resigning himself to fate!"

Neji scoffed.

"What a joke…stop trying to lecture all of us, as if you know anything!"

His blood boiled as he thought of his fate as a member of the Cadet branch.

"How could you understand anything about my fate…about bearing an indelible, inescapable curse?!"

Naruto didn't need to think too hard on that. He and his sister had to live fear because they harbored monsters within them. Instead of seeing his shadow, he would see the fox's instead.

Blood dripped from his lips as he grinned.

"Actually…I understand it pretty well…"

He laughed bitterly.

"And…so what?"

Neji's Byakugan flared with hatred.

"You're the one who needs to quit lecturing" Naruto ranted.

"You're not the only one whose special you know!"

He glared hatefully at his opponent.

"Even though she's in the Main branch, HInata has been suffering just as much as you! She's trying so hard to change herself…to earn respect…that's why she hung in there during that fight with you, even though she was coughing up blood! And you! ...the Cadet branch is supposed to protect the Main branch, but you used the exam as an excuse to beat up Hinata…it sure seems like you were trying to defy your fate too!"

Neji's eyes harden as he realized Naruto saw through his true motives.

The blond coughed up a bit of blood.

Neji couldn't help but grin.

"Heh… I've blocked 64 of your chakra points…how are you planning to fight? You can't even use any chakra. When we're through, you'll end up just like Hinata"

"Shut-up! Stop acting all high and mighty with your all seeing Byakugan!"

"Well? Are you all talk, or are you going to try and prove your point?"

"Sure! I'll prove it to you! By kicking your ass!"

Naruto mentally swore in his head.

"Crap! I'm talking a big game, but I can't feel my chakra at all…it's just like the times I used all of my chakra during training"

He suddenly remembered when Jiraiya told him he had two different types of chakra.

"That's right…the fox chakra"

He closed his eyes and concentrated.

"Hey, Fox…lend me your strength!"

HE quickly performed a hand sign.

"Right now… I can't bear to lose!"

Neji watched as he attempted to summon up his chakra.

"It's useless" he said. "I've presses your chakra points"

Naruto didn't pay any attention to him. He just focused on getting as much chakra as he could.

Neji was simply amused by Naruto's attempts/

"Can I ask you something? Why do you keep trying so hard to defy your destiny?"

Naruto glared at him.

"Because somebody told me…I was a failure!"

Chakra oozed out of his body and began surrounding him. His pressed chakra points faded away as his chakra wrapped around him like a blanket.

Neji was totally taken aback. He could see the chakra flowing within Naruto's body.

"Impossible! His chakra is oozing out…what's going on?"

As he looked inside his body, he saw it taking the shape of a fox. Its eyes glowed as it poured out of his body.

Neji was beyond scared.

"What is he?"

Out of the arena, people began chatting.

Those who were from the village know whose chakra this was. Some were surprised while others were scared.

The hairs on Mikomi's neck stood on end. She forgot how sinister the nine tailed fox's chakra was.

Yuffie was trembling in her seat.

"I don't like the feeling of this chakra. It's creeping me out"

Yuri's face was grim.

"You're lucky you weren't here when it attacked our village"

Out of nowhere, Mikomi felt a sharp pain within her head.

Clutching her face, she bent forward in pain.

Usagi's chakra stirred within violently within her. Her body felt hot as the fox tried to take control of her in a defensive matter.

"Usagi! Please don't!"

"Must. Kill!"

Myou looked at her captain and saw her eyes turning red.

"Captain?"

Fangs started to sprout out of her mouth and turned into a set of canine teeth.

Myou began to panic and started reaching for Yuri in her seat.

"Lady Yuri!"

The medic turned to her and saw claws coming out of her goddaughters hands.

"Crap!"

This caught everyone's attention and they saw Mikomi in her Jinchuriki state.

"Uh oh" Yugito muttered.

"This isn't good" Bakuto said.

"What the hell is wrong with her?" Cid asked.

Yuri just jumped into the vacant seat that was next into Mikomi and grabbed her face.

"You go back into your cell right now, Usagi!"

The now possessed Mikomi just growled at her and had her eyes glued on Naruto.

The blonds' chakra started taking the shaped of nine tails.

"Kill" Usagi growled.

She sunk low into her seat.

"Uh oh"

She sprung from her seat and went over Yuri's head.

The medic was fast and grabbed her by the waist and slammed her back in her seat.

"Someone hold her down!"

Myou grabbed her wrists while Vincent got her from behind and held her down by her shoulders.

Yuri made rapid handsigns and slammed her fist into where Mikomi's seal was.

"Forced retreat!"

Usagi thrashed a bit before she was forced back into her cell and left Mikomi out cold.

The kunochi slumped into Yuri and was out like a light.

Yuri sighed with relief.

"Man that was close"

She propped her goddaughter back into her seat.

"What just happened, Yuri?" Tifa asked uneasily.

Yuri ran her hand through her white a hair.

"A chain reaction" she said.

"Naruto and Mikomi have the same seal on them. Since they're both breaking at the same time that means their demons can get out at the same time. When Naruto released the nine tailed fox's chakra just now that triggered a reaction from Usagi and made her go into defensive mode. The same happens the other way around"

She looked at Bakuto and Yugito.

'I'm sure the same has happened to you two as well?"

Yugito nodded.

"We've had our fair shares of losing control like that"

"But we've learned how to control our beasts better" Bakuto said.

"I take it that the stupid fox doesn't know how to control her demon?"

"She doesn't like to use Usagi's powers" Yuri said.

"Then she's in for a lot of trouble then"

Myou tugged on Yuri's coat.

"Um…Lady Yuri…you might want to wake up captain Mikomi. Naruto is about to fight and I'm sure she wants to see that"

"Oh, right"

Yuri coated her hand in chakra and looked at Vincent.

"Keep your gun on her just in case. Usagi is really strong so she could come out"

Vincent pulled Cerberus out and pointed at her.

Yuri grabbed Mikomi by the shirt and had her face her.

"Sorry, Mikomi. But this is going to hurt"

She slapped her across the face real hard.

Mikomi's eyes shot open and she grabbed her face.

"What the hell?! Why does it feel like I was hit by a truck?"

Yuri went back into her seat.

"Sorry, honey. But I wanted to wake you up and make sure you were with us"

Mikomi slumped into her seat.

"I can't believe I lost control like that"

Myou patted her shoulder.

"Don't worry, captain. No one saw and you didn't hurt anyone. Let's just watch Naruto. He's about to fight"

Mikomi just sighed and watched the two opponents below.

She hoped her brother knew how to use Jinchuriki chakra.

Otherwise, he was in a heap of trouble.

Naruto could feel the fox's chakra powering him up. His aching limbs were gone while his bruises disappeared like magic.

His entire body glowed with orange chakra. He was overwhelmed with this power.

"This power…it's incredible! It's so much stronger than when I was training"

He looked at Neji with a new determined look.

"I like it"

He disappeared from where he was standing before.

Neji looked behind him in time to see Naruto throw a dozen shurikens at him.

He countered it with his rotation and caught that discarded weapons.

Naruto stood on all fours on the wall of the battle arena. Like an animal, he was stalking his prey, ready for its next move.

Neji threw the shurikens at him.

Naruto zipped past them and were all imbedded in the wall.

Neji grimaced at this.

"He's quicker than before! What in the world is going on?!"

Both charged at each other with Kunai's in hand.

They both clashed with each other.

Skidding off in the opposite direction, they discarded their blades.

Naruto turned around to face his opponent.

"You like close combat, right?"

He charged at him like a bull.

The ground broke up as he ran at Neji.

He kept thinking about what Neji said earlier about fate, about how destiny was unchangeable.

He almost believed in him, but he remembered his sister telling him something about fate when he was little.

"Even a caged bird, when it smartens up…will try to open the cage door with its beak. Never giving up its dream …to fly free. If you never give up on your dreams, you can accomplish anything. Fate may be predetermined for us…but there are those who are stubborn enough to make it change"

"Nee-chan" he thought.

"If fate is predetermined…then I'm going to do as you say and be stubborn enough to change it!"

As he closed in on Neji, his face hardened.

"Look, I may not understand the tragic destiny of the Hyuga clan of whatever, but…if you think it's inescapable, fine! Then stop fighting it already!"

He threw his fist at him while Neji tried performing rotation.

"When I become Hokage…I'll change the Hyuga clan!"

The arena erupted with an explosion as they clashed. The ground trembled from the sheer force of impact.

Everything was covered in smoke. The two Genin were thrown in opposite directions and were impaled into the earth.

"God damn!" Cid cried.

"Leave it to Naruto to make such a ruckus" Yuri said.

Mikomi tried to look through the smoke for her brother.

Everyone watched as hands came out of one of the craters.

Neji coughed as he got out.

Mikomi's spirits dampened as she saw him walk over to her brother's body,

He was down for the count and looked like he wasn't going to get up anytime soon.

"Sorry, failure. It's too bad, but…this is reality"

The ground suddenly broke underneath Neji.

Naruto shot out of nowhere and connected his fist with his jaw.

He went flying before he fell to the ground with a 'thud'.

The body that was in the crater disappeared with a 'poof'.

Everyone was speechless at what they saw. They never thought Naruto was smart enough to pull a stunt like that.

Naruto watched as Neji tried to move.

After a couple of attempts, he gave up.

The Hyuga groaned in pain.

"Ugh…in the middle of all that, you managed to create a shadow clone?"

He chuckled weakly.

"Your signature ninjustu…that was careless of me"

Naruto looked at the ground for a moment.

"I…I failed the academy graduation exam three times" he said.

Neji didn't know where this was going, but let the blond continue.

"…because, unlucky for me, the exam always tested the same ninjustu…my absolute weakest ninjustu"

He looked at Neji.

"And my weakest ninjustu…was the shadow clone"

Neji was surprised.

"So shut up about 'destiny' and 'inescapable fate'…you shouldn't whine about such trivial stuff…'cause…unlike me…you're not a 'failure'"

Genma grinned at Naruto's wise words.

"The winner is….Naruto Uzumaki!"

A/N: (wipes forehead) 'phew!' This has got to be the longest chapter that I have ever written for this story so far!

I hoped you liked it, I know that I did.

Naruto won his match, but that doesn't mean he's out of the woods yet. There's still danger ahead for our heroes, and they won't know what hit them.

Please send in your reviews!

We're almost at the 100 mark! Keep it up!