"Welcome to the Sunagakure Chunin Exam Preliminaries!" The exam proctor's voice echoed throughout the colossal chamber, her arms spreading wide in greeting. "Congratulations to all of you. You have officially passed the second stage of the chunin exams."
Organized rows of genin teams stood before the proctor's podium, each one of them grouped into their own teams. Around ten or twenty jonin positioned themselves at the sides of the massive stone hall, their intense stares giving the distinct impression of meticulously carved statues. Tucking a rose lock behind her ear, Sakura discreetly studied the dimensions of the room, silently counting the number of jonin lining the walls.
In a stroke of luck, Team Seven had managed to make their way back to the village with both scrolls in hand, finishing right before Ino, Shikamaru, and Choji. They had been the second-to-last team to complete the exam, which, to be honest, didn't quite bother any of them as much as they thought it would. After all, they were lucky to even finish the exams.
Once the sun had set and the timer counted down to its last second, the remaining teams had been led back into the village testing center in the darkness, their feet dragging in exhaustion and their stomachs rumbling from the lack of a sustainable meal. However, each and every one of them were shinobi, and they soon overcame their discomfort in the face of their next challenge.
Once inside the center, the teams were led to a hidden room at the back of the building and down an abnormally large set of stairs. As the genin were led further down the steps, a colossal auditorium opened up before them, somewhat similar to the one where Konoha housed its exams. Massive stone bricks supported the arching ceiling while risen pathways lined the sides of the building, serving as stands for spectators. There were a couple shadowed entryways at the ends of the room, which Sakura assumed lead to other hidden hallways, and a sizable wooden podium from which the proctor was currently speaking. The symbol for Sunagakure loomed over the genin from the southern wall, the lines painted with a pitch black ink.
"Only half of you will be able to advance onto the next stage of the exams," the proctor continued, ignoring the series of gasps which erupted around the room. "We have gone through each and everyone of your profiles very carefully and matched you up with an opponent based on your level of skill and abilities."
"Sakura!" Something nudged the pink-haired kunoichi from behind, and she could barely keep her eyes from rolling as she peeked behind her.
"What is it this time, Naruto?" she whispered back, careful to appear as if she was still listening to the proctor.
"Is it just me, or do you expect her face to melt off at any moment?" her blond teammate whispered back, and she didn't have to look back to know what expression he was wearing. "I mean, I can't get the image of that Orocho-mario guy or whatever peeling off the skin of her face. It's so...gross."
A sigh escaped Sakura's lips and she simply shook her head, already accustomed to her teammate's antics. Once again, her attention fell back to the proctor pacing around the podium, who, now that she took a closer look, did seem like her face was going to melt off at any moment. No, no, stop thinking about that, she scolded herself, trying to push the disturbing image out of her mind.
"Each one of you will battle against your opponent using any skills and techniques at your disposal. The battle will end when one of you surrenders or cannot continue. In some cases, I will intervene during the battle if there is foul play or if one of the participants' lives are in danger. If I intervene, all participants must cease battling at once. Any questions?"
The question was answered with silence, and the exam proctor nodded her head sharply. "Well then, we will begin immediately. If you have finished your match, you will not be permitted to leave the building until all matches have been complete. That being said, the first match of the preliminaries will be..." She took a brief pause, reaching her hand into her pocket and pulling out a neatly folded piece of paper.
"...Choji Akimichi vs. Kankuro. Everybody else will make their way to the spectator stands."
The genin did as they were told and made their way to the platforms, most of them sticking close to their teammates and as they dispersed. Out of the corner of her eye, Sakura spotted Kankuro stroll over to Choji, his painted lips spreading wide as he leaned in to whisper something in the other boy's ear. The way Choji's expression slackened and his lips pressed firmly together told Sakura all she needed to know about what the puppet master said, and her lips fell into a slight frown. This isn't going to end well, she predicted, observing the two genin for a moment. Compared to Kankuro, Choji seems much more exhausted. I wasn't able to heal him fully because of my dwindling chakra, so he still hasn't fully recovered from our encounter with the Kumogakure nin.
The kunoichi breathed a small sigh and sent a small prayer to the boy, hoping that he wouldn't become further injured during the battle.
"Poor Choji," Naruto remarked, his hands gripping the railing of the spectator stand as he peered down towards the main battle ground. "He got matched up with the worst person."
"I hope he'll be okay," Sakura murmured, her viridian gaze wandering over to the pair of siblings on the other side of the room. "I feel bad for whoever is going to have to face off against his siblings."
Sasuke leaned against the rail on the other side of her, silently following her gaze towards the Sand jinchuriki before nodding in agreement. "There's definitely something off about them," he agreed, his nonchalant expression making it hard for Sakura to read his thoughts. "Especially his brother."
"You mean the red-haired one?" Naruto asked, leaking forward and squinting his eyes.
Sakura nodded. "Gaara," she mumbled under her breath, studying the jinchuriki intently. Leaning against the wall with his gourd by his side, Gaara seemed to be unfazed about the fact that his brother was about to battle. Unlike any of the other genin, his skin remained absolutely flawless, free from any blooming bruises or stains of blood. His presence itself was unsettling, like a spot of white against a sea of black. His eyelids were closed in meditation, although the pinkette feared that under his fragile, calm demeanor brewed a ruthless storm within.
All of a sudden, two spears of icy green collided with her gaze, their penetrating stare sinking into her soul. Oh no! He caught me staring! Her eyes grew wide as his narrowed, before they shifted towards the pair of obsidian orbs beside her. Unlike her, Sasuke was well-versed in the art of silent battles, and remained unperturbed by Gaara's piercing stare, except for the slight frown on his lips.
There is something very different about their eyes, Sakura realized as she observed her teammate. Even though Sasuke could come off cold, his eyes always held some sort of fire within them- be it his determination, passion, or competitiveness. There was always some sort of life to them, versus the cold, dead look that harbored Gaara's gaze.
The proctor's voice snatched the genin's attention and directed it back to the battleground below them, where both Kankuro and Choji stood across from each other. "Do both shinobi agree on the rules for this battle?" Both genin nodded their heads slightly, although Kankuro never took his eyes off of his opponent.
They're about to start, Sakura noticed, tugging at Sasuke's sleeve to signal him to pay attention. This isn't only the start of their battle, but the start of the exam preliminaries. We made it through the second stage, but we aren't in the clear yet. Who knows what will happen?
"Alright then," the proctor nodded, glancing at the hour glass one of the jonin held in his hand. With a wave of her hand, the jonin flipped the contraption, miniscule bits of sand flowing in a steady stream into an empty glass compartment. "Begin."
Kankuro made the first move. As he wiggled his fingers, strings of chakra begin to materialize out of thin air, and a wooden puppet, slightly smaller than the one Sakura had destroyed, emerged from the wrappings that Kankuro encased it in. The puppet master's puny pupils narrowed in focus, his fingers pausing as he held his hands out beside him. Then, with the grace of an experienced puppeteer, Kankuro threw his arms in front of him, sending his puppet forward like a wooden bullet.
In response, Choji's body began to expand like a balloon being filled with water, his arms and legs tucking into the humongous round ball his stomach had become.
"Human Bullet Tank!" he shouted out before rolling towards the puppet with increasing speed. Kankuro tugged at the puppet's strings, yanking it backward and out of the range of the attack. However, before the puppet could fully escape, Choji's bloated hand reached out and grabbed the puppet's arm.
"Hell yeah, Choji!" Sakura heard Ino cheer from nearby, observing the fight beside Shikamaru. "That's my fat teammate, alright!"
"I'm not fat!" Choji growled almost automatically, hurtling the puppet across the arena with a renewed temper. "I'm just big-boned!"
Before it could smash into the stone wall, however, Kankuro jerked the chakra strings once again, making the puppet spin around the arena and back towards the fuming Akimichi.
"It doesn't look that way to me," Kankuro snickered, earning a furious glare from his opponent. The puppet's wooden detached to reveal a flurry of senbon flying towards Choji, which the genin hastily dodged without grace. Catching his breath, Choji dodged another attack of senbon, and then another of kunai. Before he knew it, Kankuro's puppet had covered the distance separating them and stretched his hand out, aiming from Choji's neck. In a desperate attempt to stop the puppet, Choji closed his fist around the puppet's midriff, gathering his chakra for one final attack.
That's when Sakura saw it. The faint look in the genin's eye, the way his body seemed to sway for a second before steadying itself once more. He's almost out of energy, the kunoichi realized, thinking back to the exhausted state she had found him in when Team Seven saved their team from the Kumogakure shinobi. I wasn't able to heal him fully because of my own chakra supply. And now he has to fight an opponent like Kankuro so soon? Sakura pursed her lips, her attention fully absorbed in the battle unfolding in front of her. I don't think Choji will be able to last much longer.
It turns out that Sakura's prediction came true. Right as Choji was about to crush the puppet, its wooden hand detached once more and sent multiple senbon into Choji's stomach, causing the genin to fold over in pain and release it. Wasting no time, Kankuro tugged at his chakra strings and wrapped Choji in a rope made out of wooden arms. Before he could destroy his constraints, the puppet master closed the distance between them and swiftly delivered a blow to his head, effectively knocking Choji out.
The Konoha genin collapsed to the floor as soon as he was released, the sound of his body falling to the floor signaling the end of the match.
"Oh no! Choji!" Naruto exclaimed, his blond brows scrunching together in concern. "Kankuro, that jerk! I knew he was going to pull something!"
"Well, at least Choji didn't get injured too much," the pinkette sighed, leaning her body against the rail as she watched the medical staff rush toward the passed out genin. He's only exhausted, she thought as she examined him with her trained eyes. Mostly minor injuries. Nothing that can't be cured with a couple days of rest.
"It looks like we have our winner," the exam proctor announced, making her way towards the podium once more. "Kankuro from Sunagakure has passed the preliminary round!"
A victorious smirk pulled at the puppet master's lips, and he strutted back to the spectator stands with a hint of arrogance in his step. A yawn tumbled out of the kunoichi's lips, and she rubbed her eye in an effort to focus back on the proctor. I'm so tired, she whined to herself, slumping over the railing like a sack of flour. I wish my turn would come soon.
Unfortunately, her wish wasn't granted until much later, as the next couple matches were mostly other Konoha rookies and genin from other nations. After Choji and Kankuro's battle, Tenten faced off against her opponent, a Sound shinobi who Sakura recognized as Kin, the kunoichi who had attacked her and her teammates during the second stage exams. Although she sported a few bruises from their last encounter, the Sound kunoichi was clearly prepared for battle and defeated Tenten using her wits and sound-based genjutsu. So they did end up passing the second stage of the exams, Sakura commented in her mind, her eyes wandering to the rest of the Sound ninja on the other side of the spectator stands. She could feel anger bubbling and boiling within her as her gaze settled on Zaku, the one who had nearly tried to kill her. I wonder how they pulled that off.
Despite Rock Lee's words of consolation and encouragement, disappointment remained within Tenten's expression as she exited the area of battle with hunched shoulders. A pang of pity echoed through the pinkette's heart as she watched her friend struggle with her loss and rejoin her teammates on the stands. However, the exam proctor's announcement of the next match up immediately caught her attention.
"Our next preliminary battle will be Naruto Uzumaki against Ikeya Yakusho. Will the participants please come down from the spectator stands and enter the arena?"
A brilliant grin split Naruto's cheeks, his aquatic eyes lighting up in the shining determination he always seemed to carry within him. "Hell yeah!" he cheered, pumping his fist into the air with excitement. "It's finally my turn!"
Sakura's gaze turned towards the blond boy beside her, a wide smile gracing her pink lips. "You're going to do great," she reassured, nudging her teammate's arm playfully.
"Thanks Sakura-chan!" Securing the Konoha headband atop his head, Naruto's uplifted expression fell to a more serious look, and the sparkle in his eyes hardened into a more resolute determination. "Just watch," he began, lifting a finger to point at both of his teammates. "I'll show you guys that I'm the strongest on this team. Believe it!"
Sasuke simply smirked, crossing his arms as he leaned casually against the rail. "Sure you will, dobe," he taunted, his words nearly submerged in sarcasm. His gaze, however, held a different story, and for a moment he regarded Naruto with the same intensity he had shown both Neji and Gaara before. He's challenging Naruto, Sakura realized, studying Sasuke's expression for a moment. He's testing whether or not Naruto is a worthy opponent.
Before she could observe further, Naruto sprinted down to the arena with renewed vigor, his obnoxious jumpsuit calling attention from all the other genin in the auditorium. His opponent, Ikeya, wasn't someone who Sakura was familiar with, although she vaguely remembered his face from passing. Engraved in his headband was the symbol for Kirigakure, giving the kunoichi an idea about what the genin's abilities would be.
"Sasuke," she whispered to her teammate, tapping his hand to capture his attention. The Uchiha peeked at her from the corner of his eye before leaning towards her, a silent signal that he was listening. "That boy is from Kirigakure," she continued, gesturing towards Naruto's opponent.
Sasuke nodded, his lips pursed in thought as he inspected the genin. "He'll probably use water style attacks," he deduced, mirroring her position as they both huddled together and examined their teammate's foe.
"I really hope he wins," she mumbled under her breath, sending a silent prayer for her close friend. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Sasuke silently tilt his head in agreement, and a small, secret smile bloomed on to Sakura's lips.
Nodding once again to the keeper of the hour glass, the proctor stepped off of the podium and moved over to a corner of the auditorium, allowing the genin some space for their match.
"Begin," she commanded.
Almost instantly, Naruto charged at the Kirigakure shinobi, a battle cry erupting from his lips as duplicates of himself fanned out like an army behind him. In response, the Kirigakure shinobi's fingers flew into a series of hand signs before cupping over his mouth in one fluid motion, as if he had practiced the technique a hundred times.
"Water Release: Wild Bubble Wave!"
Abruptly, a stream of milky-white water shot out of his mouth and onto the floor, flooding the concrete floor with a layer of foam and bubbles. All of a sudden, Naruto's stampede of clones devolved into a bunch of clones trying not to slip and fall on the bubbles, some of them even bursting into clouds of smoke after they fell.
Lifting his head, the blond jinchuriki scanned the walls and ceiling around him, and the pinkette could tell a plan had begun to form in his head. Then, one by one, the Naruto clones leaped from the floor to the walls, directing chakra to their feet so that they wouldn't fall. He's dividing his chakra amongst the clones so that they can stick to the walls, Sakura noticed with mild surprise, a little impressed by her teammate's quick thinking.
"You won't beat me that easily!" the jinchuriki declared, his clones swarming the walls like spiders as they escaped the slippery flooring. Naruto's clone army assembled once again on the ceiling of the auditorium, causing the spectating genin to stretch their necks in order to see him. Then, in perfect synchrony, the clones reached into their pouches and pulled out a kunai before throwing it at the Kirigakure shinobi, amounting a swarm of kunai descending upon the shinobi from above. Panic evident on the shinobi's face, his hands once again created a pattern of signs, his jaw clenched in concentration.
"Wild Water Wave!"
Similar to his prior attack, a stream of water shot from the shinobi's mouth, although this time the hue of the liquid was much darker. Most of the kunai were deflected from the defensive attack, the sharp weapons shooting off in random directions across the auditorium instead. Thankfully, the genin were all able to easily dodge the rogue kunai and refocus their attention to the fight, now fully captivated by the battle in front of them. For a moment, all went still in the auditorium as the Kirigakure shinobi released a steady stream of water toward the ceiling, Naruto's clones no longer in sight.
Was the attack too much for him to handle? Sakura nervously tapped her fingers against the rail, her jade eyes glued to the ceiling, desperately searching for a hint of orange amongst the sea of grey and blue.
"Come on, Naruto," she mumbled under her breath, her fingers gripping the steel rail so tight that she could feel the metal go soft beneath her palms.
As the stream of water began to decrease, the pinkette suddenly glimpsed a streak of orange fly across the air. Sakura's eyes widened in sudden realization, and she snapped her head towards Sasuke, checking to make sure that she had seen correctly. Beside her, Sasuke bore a similar expression, their eyes meeting as a silent understanding passed between them. Naruto, you clever little genin, she thought, the end of her lips lifting into a stunned smile. He used the shinobi's water attack as a shield, so that he couldn't see his position.
As soon as the Kirigakure shinobi released his technique, a cascade of Naruto leaped upon the the unsuspecting genin, unleashing a rain of punches and kicks. One clone back-kicked the Kirigakure nin while the other delivered a swift punch to the gut, effectively knocking the shinobi to the ground.
When he didn't get back up, Naruto pumped his fist in victory, cheering loudly from the center of the arena. "No one can beat Naruto Uzumaki, I tell ya! Believe it!"
Once the match was declared over, he rushed up the stairs without a hint of exhaustion, nearly crushing Sakura as he gave her one of his signature bear hugs.
"You did it, Naruto!" Sakura exclaimed with a bright grin, wrapping her arms around her best friend before stepping back beside Sasuke.
"Hn, so you actually did it, loser?" The Uchiha's lips pulled into a slight smirk, his hands resting in his pockets.
Before Naruto could respond, the proctor's words filled the chamber once more, her words echoing off the massive walls. "We will be taking a short break due to an unsuspected change in the pairings for the matches. You are forbidden from leaving the testing center grounds and will return immediately when I announce the next match."
"That's weird," Naruto commented, his lips falling into a slight frown as his nose wrinkled. "Why would they have a change in the pairings this late?"
Sakura shrugged, stretching her arms high above her head while relishing the sweet burn of her stiff muscles. "I don't know why, but I'm going to go take a walk," she hummed, giving her teammate's a little wave goodbye. Naruto waved back while Sasuke silently nodded. I need some time to myself, she thought, massaging her tense shoulders. I wonder how late it is right now? Midnight? One in the morning?
As she strolled through the stands, the kunoichi passed by many of the genin teams participating, most of them familiar while only one or two were not. When she passed by Team Eight, she gave a small smile and waved in greeting to Hinata, who perked up as soon as she noticed her. The Hyuga tucked a strand of her deep violet hair behind her ear and gave a shy wave in return, her cheeks painted in a shade of pastel pink. Along the way, Sakura also spotted another Kirigakure shinobi with Ikeya and Lee's team, who were huddled together discussing some strategy. On the other side of the room she spotted Temari and Kankuro keeping to themselves, but for some reason, their brother was nowhere in sight.
That's strange, Sakura thought briefly, but didn't dwell too long on the subject. Intent on stretching her legs fully, the kunoichi decided to take a slight detour and explore one of the shadowed hallways she had noted before, although she doubted there was anything significant there.
This is nice, she smiled as she strolled through the darkness, linking her fingers behind her back as she added a skip to her step. Just as she was about to hum her favorite tune, a resonating thump filled the hallway. The kunoichi froze in her step.
What was that?
Switching to her shinobi mode, Sakura slowed and softened her step, straining her eyes to search for any figures as they adjusted to the darkness. As she slipped deeper into the hallway, a series of whispers gradually poured into her ears, the tones growing increasingly harsh and violent. Another thump sounded through the darkness, followed by a heavy crash and the sound of sand churning.
Her sense of urgency growing, Sakura sprinted towards the end of the hallway, turning the corner to confront the source of the strange sounds.
The scene that greeted her nearly stilled every bone of her body, and she could only watch in shock as a pair of familiar, icy-green eyes slowly honed in on her.
"Why are you here?" Gaara questioned her, his raspy voice mirroring sandpaper against stone. His arms hung loosely by his sides while a significant amount of sand hovered beside him, the grains molding together to form sharp talons. In front of him, a shinobi Sakura didn't recognize collapsed onto the floor, pressing his body against the wall as if somehow he could become a part of it. Upon closer inspection, the kunoichi spotted the symbol for Kirigakure engraved on the metal plate of his headband, along with drops of blood running down his tanned cheeks and staining the tips of his fingers. As soon as Gaara shifted his gaze towards her, the bleeding boy scrambled to escape the jinchuriki, his feet skidding on the floor as he sprinted past Sakura towards the end of the corridor. The jinchuriki didn't seem to care, his eyes focused solely on the pink-haired kunoichi in front of him.
As the silence between them lengthened, a cold chill began to slither up the medic's spine, leaving a trail of goosebumps across her soft skin. Any trace of peacefulness vanished from her features, with her eyes hardening into jade and a deep frown carved onto her lips. There's no one else around, she thought, tensing her muscles while preparing her chakra. Her gaze sharpened as her feet subtly shifted into a defensive stance, her shinobi instincts advising her to prepare herself. I need to be careful about how I handle this. I can't afford to battle against him right now.
"What were you doing?" Sakura asked instead, her voice shaking ever so slightly. Despite this, the kunoichi forced herself to straighten her back and keep her head high, looking the unstable boy in the eye.
"That's none of your business," the jinchuriki replied smoothly, folding his arms across his chest as the hovering sand languidly drifted around him. The black paint lining the outside of his eyes only sharpened the intensity of his gaze, his eyes caging hers and holding them captive.
"Why were you attacking him?" she pressed on after a couple beats, whatever fear she felt from the boy outweighed by the natural sense of duty she carried as a medic. A heavy shadow settled itself within Gaara's eyes as they bore into her, his lips pressing into a hard line.
"You know," he began quietly, the sand around him freezing suddenly. "I could do the same to you."
For a moment, Sakura almost lost herself to the wave of panic that rose within her, the rapidly rising swells dragging and drowning her in their chaos. Before she could succumb to her terror, the kunoichi held onto the remains of her courage like a life raft, clawing her way out of the waters with her inner-strength. Stay strong, Sakura, she instructed herself. You're not the same weak girl you used to be, and Gaara isn't the worst enemy you have faced. Stay strong.
Without a word, the kunoichi slowly shook her head. "If we are to battle, we'll do it the proper way," she responded, fearlessly meeting his eyes. "As a spar."
The jinchuriki simply raised a brow, his silent stare fixed onto the kunoichi in front of him. Then, with just a twitch of his fingers, the bits of sand hovering around him returned to the gourd he carried on his back. The only sound in the empty corridor was the sound of his sandals sliding against the concrete floor as he walked past Sakura, pausing for a moment so they stood shoulder to shoulder.
"Fine then," he conceded, his gaze hidden by the shadows of the hallway. "A spar. Watch your back, Haruno."
"Sakura-chan! You're back!" As soon as Naruto spotted her from the stands, he bolted over to her and snatched her hand, dragging her back to where Sasuke waited patiently by the rail. "What took you so long?
Sakura shrugged, unsure whether or not to reveal the unsettling encounter she had with Gaara. Maybe not right now, she decided, absently nodding along while her teammate launched into one of his characteristic rants. I'll tell them later, when everything is settled down and we're alone.
"Anyway, you came back just in time, Sakura-chan," the blond jinchuriki informed her, pointing to where the proctor hurried towards the podium. "The melted-face lady just came back from wherever she disappeared to."
Settling herself against the rail beside her raven-haired teammate, Sakura willed herself to push the hallway incident to the back of her mind, focusing her attention on her upcoming battle.
Straightening her vest, the exam proctor stepped onto the wooden podium before clearing her throat. "We will resume the Sunagakure exam preliminaries as of this moment," she announced, her booming voice spreading throughout the entire chamber. "We will begin immediately. Our next match during these preliminaries will be Dosu Kinuta versus Sasuke Uchiha."
Dosu...he's one of the Sound shinobi who attacked us, right? Sakura glanced at the Uchiha beside her, his eyes burning with the competitive blaze she had seen him ignite so many times. This will certainly be an interesting battle.
"Good luck out there," she offered her teammate with a playful nudge to his shoulder. The corners of Sasuke's mouth twitched upwards as his eyes shifted in the light.
"Don't need it," he replied arrogantly, standing up fully from the rail. "Just watch."
Sakura observed his retreating form as he made his way down to the battleground, finally stopping directly in front of his opponent. From above, she surveyed the two genin as the proctor instructed them on the rules of the match, before stepping back to the corner of the room.
"Alright then." She nodded towards the jonin with the hourglass before turning her attention back to the two genin. "Begin."
Without wasting another second, Sasuke surged forward, three kunai held between his fingers on each hand. In one fluid motion, he threw the kunai towards his opponent. Dosu dodged the projectiles with ease, their steel tips embedding themselves into the floor, scattered around the Sound shinobi.
"That's it?" Dosu taunted, crouching on the floor a few feet away from Sasuke. "What a low-level attack. I expected more from an Uchiha."
Sasuke simply responded with a smirk, moving his hands backward as if pulling something. Wires, Sakura realized as she peered closer, catching the glint of the lights on the invisible strings. He attached wires to the kunai he threw!
With a quick series of hand signs, a sudden spew of fire erupted from Sasuke's mouth, the flames traveling down the wires until they surrounded Dosu. Before the Sound ninja could react, the Uchiha closed the distance between them, his feet moving through the fire in a way only an experienced fire-style shinobi could.
As soon as Sasuke came close, however, Dosu raised his right forearm, which was encased in the dented speaker which Sakura had damaged earlier. The speaker still seemed to work, though, as sound waves pulsed from the machine directed to Sasuke, who immediately covered his ears as his face warped with pain. Oh no!
"Sasuke," Sakura whispered under her breath, her heart clenching as she spotted drops of blood sneak through the gaps in his fingers. He needs to attack Dosu before his eardrums burst!
Somehow, it seemed that her thoughts mirrored Sasuke's, as his blood-stained palms relaxed and fell from his ears.
"F-Fire Style," he spat out, clenching his jaw to endure the pain. "F-Fireball Jutsu!"
As soon as Sasuke's fingers formed the last hand sign, a burst of fire exploded in front of him, capturing Dosu in the heat of the blaze. The Sound ninja hastily tried to escape the brunt of the flames, but the Uchiha wouldn't let him get too far. In an impressive display of speed, Sasuke caught up to the shinobi and delivered a swift kick to his back, before punching his jaw with enough force to knock him out. Dosu instantly dropped to the ground, his spiky fur coat covering his body like a wool blanket.
"The match has ended," the proctor announced, motioning to the medical staff to attend to the unconscious Sound shinobi. "Congratulations Sasuke Uchiha. You have advanced to the next stage of the exams."
After Sasuke's match, he was forced by the proctor to follow the medical staff back to the infirmary in order to get his ears checked, in case there was any serious damage that occured within his ear. Hopefully it wasn't that bad, Sakura thought, watching her teammate exit the auditorium. I already damaged Dosu's speaker device, so the sound waves must've been less powerful than if it was at peak performance.
The next few matches flew by pretty quickly in comparison to the earlier ones, with the participants being Neji versus Kiba and Lee versus Zaku, with Neji and Lee emerging as the victors. When Ino was called up to the battleground for her match, Sakura gave her a small smile and wished her good luck as she was passing. To her surprise, Ino gave her a small nod in return, no hint of sarcasm or taunting in her expression. Unfortunately, her rival lost the match and was unable to advance to the next stage, similar to her situation last time.
By the time Sakura was called, Sasuke had returned from the infirmary with two balls of cotton taped to his ears, which he promptly removed despite Sakura's protests.
"This next match," the proctor began, "will be between Sakura Haruno and Umera Shoken."
Umera, it turned out, was a shinobi from Kirigakure, and the teammate of the shinobi Naruto faced off against earlier. As they stood across from each other, the kunoichi studied her opponent with calculating eyes, trying to predict his fighting style from his looks alone. Since he's from Kirigakure, he'll probably use water-style, which I can easily counter with my own attacks, she planned, already pumping chakra into her fists.
As soon as the proctor uttered the word, Sakura jumped forward, hoping to strike a punch early and disable her opponent for the rest of the battle. She leaped into the air, aiming her fist at the boy below her. At the last moment, a burst of water attacked her from the side, pushing her away from her opponent and throwing her across the room. Without too much effort, the kunoichi gracefully landed on her feet, her movements almost feline as she assessed the situation before her.
The Kirigakure shinobi didn't give her much time, however, and swiftly placed his hands into a sequence of signs, taking a deep breath.
"Water Release: Gunshot!"
A flurry of blue bullets shot out of the shinobi's mouth, heading straight towards the pink-haired medic. Flipping backward, Sakura dodged the first two before creating a shield of water around her, rendering the next couple bullets useless. The kunoichi released her technique and began an all-out sprint towards her opponent, aiming to close the distance between them so that she could rely more on her taijutsu. Unfortunately, as soon as she stepped outside her aquatic barrier, the earth suddenly trembled and shook below her.
"What...?" She widened her stance to try and resist the sudden earthquake, struggling not to fall to her knees. He knows earth release as well!
Gathering a significant portion of her chakra at her feet, Sakura launched off of the ground before aiming an enhanced kick at her opponent, deciding to end the battle as quickly as possible. Even though the shinobi dodged, the aftershocks that her kick created caused him to stumble and fall, giving her the opening she needed. With the precision of an experienced medical ninja, she brutally struck the pressure point on the shinobi's spin, thus ending the battle without any major injuries.
Good, I'm glad that's over, she smiled, ignoring the sudden fatigue plaguing her muscles. I'm a little low on chakra, but other than that I don't have any serious wounds.
"Wow, that was awesome Sakura-chan!" Naruto praised her once she rejoined her team at the spectator stands, an enormous grin plastered onto his whiskered cheeks. "Your last kick was more powerful than the earthquake jutsu that other guy used!"
"Thanks Naruto." The kunoichi's mouth curved into a sweet smile, nodding gratefully at her good friend. She leaned against the rail once more beside her other teammate, not really expecting him to congratulate her in any form. To her surprise, however, she felt his fingers brush against her shoulder.
"Good job," Sasuke spoke softly, tilting his head slightly before shifting his gaze elsewhere. She simply shook her head at his antics, a secret smile creeping onto her lips.
"There are only a couple more matches left for the preliminaries," the proctor informed the genin. "The participants in the next match will be..."
The voice of the exam proctor suddenly tapered off as if it had been muffled, her words bleeding into each other like watercolors on a palette. Sakura leaned forward on the rail, confused whether or not she heard the proctor properly. Abruptly, the strength in her legs faltered, and she gripped the railing for dear life, trying to steady herself. What's...what's going on? The kunoichi could barely think against the pounding that emerged in her head, drowning out the sound of footsteps and metal clashing around her. Am I having some sort of attack? Is it poison?
Chakra-exhaustion.
The answer came to her just before another dizzy spell overcame her, and the kunoichi once again steadied herself with great difficulty. Of course, it's chakra exhaustion, she scolded herself, frustrated that she hadn't noticed the steady drain on her reserves. First the Sound ninja, then healing Ino, Shikamaru, and Choji, and then the preliminaries match. I haven't had any time to rest and get my reserves back to top shape. And now, I'm suffering the consequences.
Testing whether or not she could stand, Sakura slowly eased her grip on the railing, remaining close in case her knees decided to give out once more. Fortunately, the worst of her spell seemed to be over, but the pinkette knew that if she didn't address her exhaustion soon, she could end up in the infirmary, completely collapsed. I need to find some place to rest, she decided, eyeing the dark hallways branching off the auditorium. Just until my reserves are filled with a decent amount of chakra.
"I'm going to head to the bathroom," she whispered to Naruto and Sasuke, before making her way across the various other genin teams, not bothering to listen to their response. As she moved across the platform and to one of the hallway entrances, the distinct feeling of someone watching her crawled up her back. Sakura, however, didn't pay it any attention, her mind at the moment intent on warding off another headache creeping in. With the soft footsteps of an experienced jonin, she slipped into the dark hallway, savoring the cool darkness which enveloped her. Once her eyes adjusted to the dark, she searched for a shadowed corner to nestle in, one that was close enough to hear the proctor's announcements but far enough that no one would be able to spot her.
As soon as she found the perfect spot, she nearly dropped to the floor, leaning her head against the wall as she massaged her throbbing forehead. I'll just close my eyes for a little bit...
Sakura awoke to the soft padding of footsteps. In an instant, her eyes snapped wide open, her hand moving to grasp the hilt of her kunai. However, just as she was about to raise the kunai, a sliver of light from the chamber drifted across the face of the figure approaching her, and Sakura was able to glimpse a familiar profile that eased her apprehension.
"Sasuke?" she called out softly, gently lowering her kunai as her eyes adjusted once more to the darkness. The only response she received was a soft 'hn', which confirmed that the figure was actually her quiet teammate. A relieved sigh fell from the kunoichi's lips, and she moved to rub her eyes, trying to brush off any left-over sleep from her short nap. "Why are you here?" she asked, barely suppressing a yawn.
"You were gone for a while," he simply replied, not bothering to elaborate on his response. Without another word, he crouched down beside her, before sitting down fully on the cement floor and leaning against the wall. Sakura tried to hold back her surprise- she had honestly expected him to stay standing- but quickly got over it, reasoning that just about everything that Sasuke has done throughout the past few days has surprised her. No, that's wrong, she thought, mentally correcting herself. I'm surprised about my reactions towards what he does.
Leaning her head back, Sakura closed her eyes once more, although this time she was simply trying to sort out her thoughts. The cool smoothness of the stone helped unwind the tension in her shoulders and arms, and, for a moment, let herself forget about the preliminaries, the exams, or anything else that had become a constant burden over these past few weeks. Sometimes I wish I hadn't taken this mission, she reflected, memories of her previous life with Naruto, Sai, Ino, and Tsunade drifting through her thoughts. Then I wouldn't have to worry about what comes next. I would just have to deal with problems right now, instead of problems that might arise in a couple months or years.
She peeked over at Sasuke's form sitting next to her, the darkness cloaking everything but his pale skin and the whites of his eyes. He seemed to be fiddling with something in his fingers, and, when Sakura peered closer, she wasn't surprised to find his finger spinning a kunai. He's always doing that, she noticed, a small smile pulling at her lips at the odd habit.
On the other side of the hallway, Sakura could hear the faint sound of metal clashing, along with the occasional victorious or painful shout. Closing her eyes, the pinkette silently savored the company of the boy beside her, her mind drifting off like a sailboat on calm waters. Slowly, the cacophony of sounds around her began to dim, the once distinct noises blending together like an off-beat lullaby, the clangs and clashes of metal no longer so harsh against her ears. As if caught in a spell, her head shifted and swayed until it gently landed onto Sasuke's shoulder, the sweet drug of sleep drowning out her conscience.
Beneath her head, Sasuke's shoulder immediately tensed, which caused Sakura's eyes to snap wide open, the implications of her actions finally dawning on her. Why did I do that? she internally screamed at herself, a hot blush blooming across her cheeks. Sure, he was okay with me doing that when we were in the desert, but what if he was only being nice then? Stupid, stupid Sakura.
"Sorry," she hastily murmured, lifting her head from the Uchiha's shoulder, her face warm in embarrassment. The moment she lifted her gaze, however, her viridian orbs were consumed by deep pools of ebony, and every single rational thought vanished from her mind. The Uchiha's face was only centimeters away from hers, so close that the tips of their noses were barely touching, his warm breath fanning onto her lips. A new kind of feeling blossomed within her, a burning warmth spreading throughout her chest and leaving a tingling sensation all throughout her body, from her head to the tips of her toes. If she could describe it in one word, she would say she was entranced- spellbound by the intensity of the Uchiha's eyes, the elegant slope of his nose, his dark lashes, and his lips.
And when their gazes collided once more, Sakura delved once more into Sasuke's eyes, her heart swelling and pounding with indescribable emotions. Instead of their usual resemblance to a stone wall, the Uchiha's eyes had seemed to melt into a peaceful moonlit lake, their emotions shifting and changing like little ripples in the water. They mirrored her own, Sakura realized, and this thought sent another tingle of excitement throughout her whole body.
All of a sudden, she noticed that Sasuke's gaze laid on her lips, and, for the first time, she thought about closing the gap between hers and his. No, no, stop, she restrained herself, her conscience finally speaking up. Don't do anything stupid Sakura. Remember, this is Sasuke. Your teammate. The guy who has never shown an ounce of interest in anyone, least of all you.
However, Sakura sincerely doubted that thought when Sasuke met her gaze, the two of them held captive by each other. Another pang of exhaustion echoed throughout Sakura, and it seemed like the moment was lost, as they both broke their eye contact, looking at any other place in the corridor than each other. The kunoichi held back another yawn as the symptoms of chakra-deprivation burdened her once more, dragging her back to the pleasant realm of sleep.
Maybe he wouldn't really mind, she convinced herself, gathering her courage. Slowly, giving him enough time to reject her, she attempted to lay her head against Sasuke's shoulder once more, growing more comfortable when he didn't move or tense up this time. In fact, she could swear that she felt him lean-in towards her, but that could have been her silly mind making up silly fantasies. Still, a cozy warmth settled itself within her chest, and her delicate fingers reached out towards Sasuke's.
The last thing she remembered before drifting off was the feeling of Sasuke's fingers curling and intertwining with hers.
Stars sprinkled the midnight sky like flecks of white paint splattered against a deep blue canvas, the scattered clouds like grey brushstrokes across the sky. Jiraiya savored the rare silence of the Konoha night as he hoisted the massive scroll onto his back, turning around to take one last look at the dark silhouettes of the Village Hidden in the Leaves. This is the only way I can be sure, he repeated to himself once again, solidifying his resolve. If the Hokage will not protect Konoha, I will.
With a heavy sigh which rattled his aging bones, he began his journey west, thankful of his decision to leave immediately. After all, the trek to Sunagakure swallows up a significant amount of time. And that's the one thing he hasn't got much of.
Hey everyone! How did you like this chapter?
Sorry that the preliminaries fights weren't super long! They're not as important as the ones during the finals. In this chapter, the moments in between the fights are more important than the ones during them.
I hope you all enjoyed the cute Sasusaku moment at the end! They're getting closer and closer and finally seeing each other in a new light. How do you all think their relationship will progress?
Also, it turns out Jiraiya is heading over to Suna! What do you think he's going to do once he gets there?
Finally, Gaara and Sakura had a little interaction in this chapter. What are your thoughts?
Thank you so much for all the support :) I really appreciate your feedback because it encourages me to keep writing!
I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Have a fantastic weekend!