Chapter forty eight- Enemies
Disclaimer : We all know the obvious. No, I don't own Naruto because I am not Kishimoto-sensei.
"Sasuke, are you sure you want to go through with this?" Naruto asked as they stood in the unoccupied room. Naruto was standing next to Sakura who was trying her best to avoid Lee's love stricken gaze and kisses that were sent her way.
"Are you doubting me, dobe?" Sasuke asked as he rolled his shoulders. Naruto sighed and turned to Tenten who walked over to his side.
"The brat doesn't even know he's already lost" Tenten smirked as she looked at one cocky Uchiha Sasuke. Naruto shook his head at Tenten.
"You're not supposed to be enjoying this so much, you know" Naruto told her and she just folded her arms.
"That kid needs to be taught a lesson and who better than Lee to teach him?" Tenten asked and that was when Sakura finally joined in the conversation.
"Naruto, do you really think Sasuke-kun is going to lose?" she asked a little worried for her crush.
"I don't think so Sakura. I know so" Naruto said, and Sakura shivered at his words.
Sasuke stood in front of Lee who was bouncing on his heels. He hated the confidence that came from that green clad boy, almost like he knew that Sasuke didn't have a chance. That in itself was enough to make Sasuke angry. Didn't this freak know who he was? He was Uchiha F*king Sasuke. Rookie of the Year. Official Badass. He smirked to himself and got into his stance. "You're going to regret this" Sasuke proudly said while Lee just smiled at him.
"I should be the one saying that, Sasuke-kun" Lee said. Unable to restrain his emotions, Sasuke charged towards the other boy, ready to punch him when Lee disappeared. Sasuke veered to a stop, his eyes desperately searching for him. "Konoha Senpu" Lee annotated as he appeared above Sasuke, a high kick aimed towards him. Sasuke's eyes widened before he dodged, though another kick was sent his way, this time it was low.
"Shit" Sasuke thought and couldn't avoid the hit. He crashed backwards into the wall, his face throbbing with pain.
"Sasuke-kun" Sakura whispered, fear and awe in her eyes. She hadn't even seen when the other boy had moved. Lee fell to the ground in a crouch, his hands goading Sasuke.
"Is that the best you can do, Uchiha-san?" Lee asked and Sasuke gritted his teeth as he stood up. The other boy had managed to slip under his guard.
"I guess I'll have to bring THAT out" Sasuke said, wiping the corner of his face, his Sharingan already activated.
"Just like Kaka-sensei's" Sakura muttered and Sasuke grinned. While Sakura's faith was restored, Tenten just chuckled.
"Raw speed vs the copying doujutsu, which will win?" she commented and Naruto sighed at her.
"You will not win, Uchiha-san" Lee said and Sasuke just snorted as he rushed towards him once more.
"Go Sasuke-kun!" Sakura chanted and Naruto couldn't help but feel sorry for the girl. It was just as Lee said, the boy would not win.
"Stay down, Uchiha-san" Lee muttered and with a front kick, Sasuke was propelled across the room AGAIN.
"Sasuke-kun" Sakura whispered, the hope she had long gone. Sasuke sat up, his Sharingan narrowed.
"Even when I could see him, I couldn't avoid his attack" Sasuke thought through clenched teeth.
"You can't keep up with his speed. Even if you can see him, it won't make a difference" Tenten said and Naruto couldn't believe how much the girl was enjoying it all.
"I won't be beaten!" Sasuke shouted and with blind rage, he lunged towards Lee. The other genin calmly evaded the punch and kick, before he followed up with a right hook of his own. Sasuke felt when his ribs nearly broke with the impact as he was pushed backwards. "You…." he wheezed out, and Lee straightened up, his face blank.
"Today, I'll show you that a genius of hard work like myself has the means to defeat people like you, prodigies or those born with natural talent" Lee said and that was when Sasuke noticed that the boy had all but disappeared again only to reappear behind him. Sasuke couldn't even stop the kick. He could only feel as his body was shot upwards and into the air. "Kage…Bu…" Lee whispered, the bandages on his arms unwrapping themselves.
"No, not that technique" Tenten whispered and Naruto turned to her. "Lee, Gai-sensei will….!" She was shouting at her fellow team mate, when the end of a pinwheel toy caught the end of the bandage and jammed it to the wall. "Shit" she mumbled and Naruto arched an eyebrow as a giant turtle stepped forward.
"That's enough, Lee" the turtle spoke and while Team seven were miffed about the talking turtle, Tenten wasn't. Lee, though he wanted to finish off his fight, complied with the command and leapt away from Sasuke. Sakura was the only one who ran towards Sasuke as he fell to the ground on all fours, clutching his ribs.
"Baka, that technique is forbidden, didn't I tell you that?" the turtle scolded and Lee bowed his head as he knelt in front of him.
"Yes, you did" Lee said and Naruto's eyes widened. "I fully accept all consequences" he added.
"Very well. Gai-sensei, you will take care of the rest" the turtle said and with a puff, the eccentric man emerged.
"Gai-sensei!?"Naruto shouted and the man laughed as he stood majestically on the turtle. "Where…How….What?!" he added.
"It's good to see you again, Naruto-kun!" the man said as he flipped off the turtle and landed in front of Naruto. "You've grown my boy" he added and shot him a thumbs up. Naruto nervously laughed while Sakura and Sasuke had yet to adjust to the man's…oddities. "Now, Lee!" he shouted and turned towards one of his pupils. Lee immediately approached him only to receive a punch. Even the blonde's mouth dropped open while Tenten's eye twitched. She watched as her sensei knelt in front of Lee who had gotten up from the blow.
"Sensei" Lee whispered, his eyes watery as both sensei and student stared at each other. Tenten who was already accustomed to such a sight, knew exactly what that meant. Tenten placed her hand over her eyes and told Naruto to do the same.
"Look away right now!" Tenten hissed as the sunset already descended in the background, behind Lee and Gai-sensei.
"It's okay, Lee. You don't have to say anything more" Gai said and Lee raced into his sensei's arms.
Naruto shivered as shouts of "Lee!" "Gai-sensei!" echoed across the room, while his team mates shrieked like they were burnt. When it was deemed safe, Tenten and Naruto finally looked, only to find his team mates, twitching on the ground and foaming from the mouth. "It really warms my heart, this youth" Gai said as he wiped his eyes. "Now, as a result of breaking your promise, Lee, you will run five hundred laps!" he shouted and Lee saluted his teacher.
"Yes sir~!" he replied and started to jog in place. "Tenten, let's go meet up with Neji!" he called after his team mate who was speaking to her teacher.
"See ya later, Naruto" Tenten said and with a quick smirk to Sasuke who bristled, she left with her team mate.
"I think you three should get going as well" Gai said and they froze as the man stood behind them. They turned and Gai smirked. "It was nice meeting you three. Kakashi must be proud of having such a strong team" he commented and Sakura as well as Sasuke's eyes widened.
"You know Kaka-sensei?" Sakura asked and Gai's smile widened. "What?" she asked and the man just chuckled.
"You could say that Kakashi and I are eternal rivals!" he declared and Naruto resisted the urge to sigh. The man hadn't changed.
"Eternal….rivals?" the concept lost to one Uchiha Sasuke. Gai nodded and patted their heads.
"Indeed. When you see the man, tell him I said hello" he said and with a wink their way, he disappeared just as he came. In a blur.
"You heard that weirdo, let's go" Sasuke said and Sakura turned to Naruto who shrugged. They were positive that the boy would go all 'Sasuke' on them, seeing as he lost the battle. However, apparently, it only spiked his interest and reeved him up. "This exams seem like fun" he added and Sakura shared a smirk with Naruto. It seemed like their team mate had indeed changed, seeing as he was satisfied with the outcome of his previous fight, even though he lost.
"Yosh, let's go!" Naruto shouted and they marched forward together as a team.
Having arrived at the correct room, they were met with the eye smile of one Hatake Kakashi. "Sensei, what are you doing here?" Sakura was the first to ask.
"Well, Sakura, I decided that I would wish you three good luck before the exam started" he said, ruffling their heads.
"We don't need luck, Kakashi" Sasuke said with a snort and Kakashi rolled his eye at him.
"If you say so my trusty student" Kakashi said and placed his Icha Icha away. "I know I've said this before, but I want you all to be careful out there, do you hear me?" he asked and they nodded. "Well, that's it! Go on and do your sensei proud!" he chirped.
After having spoken with Kakashi-sensei, Sakura lagged behind her team mates who already entered the room. "Sakura, a moment" the jounin said and she turned to him. "I'm glad that you chose to enter the exams with your team mates" he added with an eye smile.
"Sensei" Sakura said, staring at her hands. "What would have happened if I didn't enter with Sasuke-kun and Naruto?" she asked.
"Then they wouldn't have been able to partake in the chunin exams because only a team of three can enter" Kakashi said, watching the shock that passed across her face. "That's why I said I'm proud of you, Sakura. You stood up to your own fears and faced them head on" he said, placing a gloved hand on her head. "You're stronger than you think, Sakura, otherwise those boys wouldn't have recognized you as their team mate" he added, as he stepped back. Sakura looked up at him, but before she could say anything, Naruto and Sasuke walked back out.
"Sakura, you coming?" Naruto asked.
"Yes!" she said and jogged over to the door but paused. "Thanks, Kaka-sensei" she smiled at him before disappearing inside with her team mates.
"They'll need you more than ever, Sakura. Look after them" Kakashi whispered and with a swirl of leaves, left.
"Sasuke-kun~" was the first thing Sakura heard as she entered, only to witness as Ino attached herself to her crush's back like the leech she was.
"Troublesome, so you all were nominated as well" Shikamaru said but didn't look at Naruto. The blonde was leaning against the wall, with the hood of his coat up.
"Of course we were nominated" Sakura said, her confidence finally back in its place. "Ino-pig, get off of Sasuke-kun" she shouted and her rival slunk off the Uchiha's back so she could take in her new appearance.
"Well, well, well. It looks like you got an upgrade, forehead" Ino said and Sakura rolled her eyes.
"It's true then, we're all here. With this, the rookie nine are back baby" Kiba said, as he approached with a prideful gait. "Whoa, is that you Sasuke? Sakura?" he asked.
"Troublesome" Shikamaru muttered while Chouji ate his chips. He watched as the Hyuga girl approached Naruto, the only who refused to join their little group.
"N-Naruto-kun" Hinata said and for the first time, Naruto took off his hood. "H-how are you?" she asked, and at his raised eyebrows, she blushed.
"I'm good" he said a smile on his face that only served to make the girl even redder. "What about you?" he asked.
"G-great!" she shouted and he ruffled her hair. At the gesture, she dug her face deeper into her jacket in an attempt to hide herself.
"Good" he said, watching as a contented smile plastered its way on her face. However, as they were having their own conversation, he noticed that a grey haired boy with round glasses had joined Rookie nine, showing them some sort of cards.
"Gaara of the Sand" the boy, Kabuto as he found out the boy's name was a veteran shinobi who had taken the genin exams a few times before. "He's done eight C ranks and has a B-ranked mission under his belt even though he's just a genin" he read from the card. "Because this is his first time entering the exam, I don't even a lot of information on him. However, I can say this though. All of his missions were completed without a single scratch on his body. He always returned to Suna unharmed" he said. The remaining genin stared at the boy with a mixture of shock and awe. Some were even losing their confidence.
"Is that supposed to scare us?" Naruto asked, loudly enough so that the other genin were listening. "I could care less about those sorts of things" he added.
"What the hell are you doing?" Kabuto hissed at him, but blinked in confusion when Sasuke and Sakura stood behind their team mate. "Are you trying to get yourselves killed?" he asked, but they completely and utterly ignored him.
"I'm Uzumaki Naruto" the blonde said, stepping forward so the entire room could get a good look at him. Even Gaara seemed interested in the sadistic smile on the blonde's face.
"I'm Uchiha Sasuke" the pale boy said, joining his team mate, smirking as some of the occupants recognized who he was.
"I'm Haruno Sakura" the rosette said, rising to the challenge. She couldn't have the boys hogging all the spot light as Inner Sakura insisted.
"And we're here to kick all your asses" Naruto said, reveling in the spike of killing intent. Sasuke grinned and Sakura despite her nerves, shot them a peace sign. Shikamaru, who was standing off on the side, just as flabbergasted as the rest of Rookie nine, could only gape at Team seven. Kabuto smirked and pushed his glasses further up his nose.
"I see" he said, and the attention was back on him once more. "There are more talented genin in this exam than I thought" he said with a smile on his face, yet the gesture didn't quite make it to either Sasuke or Naruto. "I wouldn't expect anything less from the Great Konoha, one of the Big Five" he added. "However" he said, pausing to look at the team with headbands marked with a music symbol. "There are a lot of genin who come from smaller villages, like the Hidden Village of Sound. They're a village from a small country that was recently formed, so I don't have much information or confidence in them" he snidely spoke, his glasses glinting with evil content. Sasuke, having caught a rust of motion approaching them at high speed, forced chakra to his eyes, effectively activating the Sharingan. He could see the Oto Nin. He sent a subtle nod to Naruto who took the hint. The blonde grabbed the bespectacled boy by the collar and threw him towards Sakura. Without even knowing, the pink haired girl had already picked up on her team mates' plan as well. She took out her kunai and stepped in front of Kabuto while Naruto already had his blade under Dosu's neck, another targeted at Dosu's stomach, stopping the Oto nin before he could attack. (Yeah his sound waves move was avoided)
"Don't even think about it" Sasuke spoke, the shuriken that was sent towards Kabuto, was scattered in front of him (he had deflected them without the others even seeing).
"Shit" Shikamaru whispered and his fellow Leaf Nin turned towards his direction but he was too focused on that one team which seemed to outshine all the rest of occupants in the room. "How the hell are we supposed to compete with THAT?" he asked.
"Now that's my students" Kakashi chuckled and the other jounin sensei could only stare wide mouthed. "It seems like the chunin exams this year will be more exciting than I originally thought" he hummed just as Ibiki and the rest of examiners puffed into the room.
A/N: Oh snap. Team seven is in the chunin exams to kick some ass, people. ^.^ I was excited when writing this chapter because I felt like Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura have grown not only by themselves but as a team. Aw shucks...my kids are all grown up and threatening people...I can only imagine how Kaka-sensei feels.
To Nycooldog: Oh, white is an excellent idea. Thank you...If I'm changing his hair color, that would be on top of the list.
To LordGhostStriker: You're right. It's a sad but true reality.
To troutman 30: Thanks my good sir.
