To recap the matches so far...
Satsuki Uchiha def. Yoroi Akado
Shino Aburame def. Zaku Abumi
Karasu no Kankuro def. Ino Yamanaka
Sabaku no Gaara def. Misumi Tsurugi
Neji Hyuuga def. Hinata Hyuuga
Suigetsu Hozuki def. Tenten
After the intermission was over, the computer fired up its' randomizer again, and everyone watched with bated breath as the next matchup was generated. "Haku Yuki, Kaengiri no Atsui, please come to the ring."
The blonde Kumo boy fist-pumped. "Now this is red-hot!" Omoi and Karui clapped him on the back as he departed for the ring. "Good luck, Atsui!"
Haku got to her feet, still sighing internally about her teammate's match with Tenten before the intermission. "Good luck, kid" Zabuza called to his protege, who smiled faintly as she walked to the ring.
Once both competitors were in the ring, the Kumo blonde called out to his opponent. "Let's have a red-hot match, why don't we?"
Haku chuckled slightly. "When it comes to 'red-hot', I might not be the best person to ask" the Kiri kunoichi responded bemusedly.
"On your cough mark...begin!" Hayate called, signalling the match's start.
Sakura stared at the ring for a moment. "I know that Atsui specializes in Katon techniques and kenjutsu...but what about the Kiri girl?"
Ino sighed and shook her head. "He doesn't stand a chance. That girl is probably damn near Jonin-level, and her abilities counter his."
Karui turned her head to stare at Ino. "What do you mean?"
The arena rumbled as a pillar of ice formed in the center of the arena. Trapped in its' center. shivering like his life depended on it, was the blonde Kumo swordsman. "That's what I mean" Ino said, as Hayate called the match.
"I remember from when we fought her and Zabuza in the Land of Waves that she is the last wielder of the Hyoton bloodline of Kirigakure. It's a Kekkei Genkai that combines Fuuton and Suiton to create ice" Shikamaru said, a bored undertone creeping into his voice.
Once again, the computer whirled through its' options. "C'mon c'mon c'mon..." Naruto whispered, hoping that it would finally be his turn to kick some booty. Finally, after what felt like an eternity to the blonde powerhouse, the computer's program came to a stop. "Naruto Uzumaki, Dosu Kinuta, please come to the ring" Hayate called out.
"YYYYYESSS!" Naruto shouted at the top of his lungs, while the Sound shinobi in question nearby plugged his ears at the sound.
Before Naruto could run down to the ring, Sakura pulled him aside. "Naruto...that guy and his team were working for Orochimaru" she said, and the boy's eyes widened.
"Well...shit" Naruto muttered, before his expression brightened again. "Don't worry, Sakura-chan! I'll beat his ass up and down the ring!"
Sakura just sighed. "Be safe, Naruto. Those guys are easily Chuunin-level."
The blonde boy made it to the ring and faced off against his heavily bandaged opponent. Dosu affixed the boy with his one visible eye, before starting in a cordial tone. "Well met, Uzumaki-san. I trust your teammates have informed you of my affiliations?" the bandaged boy asked politely.
Naruto's eyes narrowed. "You...you work for Hebi-teme, right?"
Dosu nodded slowly, before looking towards the one conspicuous absence among the Jonin-sensei sitting in the stands: his own team's sensei. "Then you should understand how important it is to me that I prove to him that myself and my teammates are no mere pawns for him. He has a vested interest in seeing you advance to the next round, so I intend to thwart his plans by defeating you here" he said solemnly, a hint of bitterness at being discarded by his leader creeping into his voice.
"Begin!" Hayate coughed, and Naruto immediately leapt forwards toward Dosu, hands already crossed in a familiar seal.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" The Five Elements Binding Seal on his stomach burned at this, but Naruto ignored it in order to attack. Three clones leapt forward, with Dosu dodging each one. "I'll beat you up and send you packing back to Hebi-teme, dattebayo!"
Dosu's eyes narrowed at this declaration. "I refuse. I have no intentions of being just another one of his many experiments; another sacrificial pawn in whatever game he is playing. I will prove my worth!" he growled, catching one of Naruto's clones in the chest with his right palm and forcing it to dispel with a quick burst of sound.
"What do you mean, sacrificial pawn?" Naruto asked, now curious.
Dosu sighed as he dispelled another clone with a double hammer fist to the neck. "Every one of us in Orochimaru's service works for him because we owe him our lives. Take me for instance; he saved my life after a gang of bandits killed my family and attempted to kill me by dunking me in acid. I was horribly disfigured by the attack, and would have died if not for him" the bandaged boy informed the blonde.
"But despite that...he doesn't care about any of us, it seems. He ordered us to attack your team and kill the Uchiha, but we were sent just to test her strength. He saved me from a vat of acid, Kin from a life of unspeakable acts with older men, and Zaku from starving on the streets of Kusa...and for what? To be sacrificed to test you and the Uchiha! I must prove my worth to him!" Dosu finished, swinging his Melody Gauntlet in a wide arc around him, dispelling several more clones.
"Then stop following him, dammit!" Naruto growled out, leaping over one of Dosu's strikes and kicking him in the back. "A real leader doesn't see their followers as tools to be used and discarded! Human lives aren't disposable, and anyone who believes that should never be allowed to gain any measure of power, dattebayo!" Dosu's visible eye widened in surprise at this declaration, just as Naruto formed the Shadow Clone seal, causing five more clones to form around the stunned Oto shinobi.
"U!" cried the first one, kicking Dosu in the back. "ZU!" the second called, delivering a kick to the stomach. "MA!" the third and fourth said, uppercutting the boy into the air. "KI!" shouted the first, second and fifth ones, as they launched Naruto into the air, before the fifth sacrificed itself to allow the original to maneuver into a position directly above Dosu, throwing him downwards towards the Oto boy's stomach.
"NARUTO COMBO!" the original shouted, delivering a two-footed drop kick directly into Dosu's abdomen, driving him into the floor with enough force to break the tiles on the arena's surface. Hayate walked over and checked on the barely-conscious boy.
"Dosu cannot continue. Naruto cough Uzumaki wins!" he declared.
As Dosu slowly slipped into unconsciousness, the last thing he heard was Naruto's words repeating in his head. "Stop following him? Maybe...maybe Orochimaru-sama, no, Orochimaru isn't worth following anymore..."
After Dosu was carted off to the infirmary to be treated for minor injuries and checked for any signs of concussion, the computer started up again, before landing on two more familiar names.
"Kamaitachi no Temari, Shikamaru Nara, please cough come to the ring" Hayate called, as the sandy blonde drew the war fan off her back and floated gracefully down to the ring on it, using a cushion of Fuuton-generated wind to ease her descent.
Shikamaru, meanwhile, was being badgered by his own team. "But I don't want to go" he muttered. "She looks like a troublesome woman to have to fight, and if I end up winning, that will be even more troublesome."
Choji opened his mouth in an attempt to convince Shikamaru that it was worth fighting Temari, but before he could say anything, Ino cut him off. "Listen, you lazy bastard, if you refuse to fight, I'll tell Yoshino-san all about it."
Shikamaru's eyes widened. "Well, fuck" the lazy genius thought internally, as he got to his feet and very, VERY slowly descending to the ring. When he got there, Temari looked outright murderous.
Before the sandy blonde could start spitting insults at Shikamaru, however, Hayate called for the match to begin. Temari raised her fan and channeled chakra. "Fuuton: Kamaitachi no Jutsu!" she shouted, as several wind blades shot forward towards the Nara, who narrowly dodged. Shikamaru lobbed a kunai with an explosive tag on it at Temari, who narrowly side-stepped it and unleashed more wind blades.
Forty-five goddamn minutes later...
The entire crowd audibly cheered as Temari finally surrendered when Shikamaru immobilized her and threatened her with a kunai. "Temari surrenders. Shikamaru Nara snore wins" Hayate called, internally glad that the match was FINALLY over. "Kin Tsuchi, Choji Akimichi, please snore come to the ring."
As a very angry Temari climbed the stairs towards the Genin's seating area, Kankuro snickered at her. "That was so boring that Gaara almost fell asleep!" he cackled, as Temari paled.
Their red-haired brother stared impassively with his emotionless teal eyes for a few moments. "Kankuro's summation is not inaccurate. Mother was very bored."
Author's Notes:
Only four more preliminary matches left; just one or two more chapters!