Orochimaru, disguised as a leader for his Otogakure team, chuckled sinisterly as his face lit up with utmost intrigue.

"Yessss, what good fortune. The perfect test to see if Sasuke is worthy of his clan name by going against such a dichotomic clan such as the Hyuuga..." The snake summoner leaned forward over the railings on the stand, devoting all of his attention to the scenes that lie ahead, "The poor boy is young, though. He seems to be struggling against the power of the Curse Mark. It would definitely be quite a feat if he could manage to come out victorious."

Kakashi Hatake looked at his student and leaned down to whisper in his ear, "As I told you earlier, do not, under any circumstances, use that Curse Mark. I won't lie, Sasuke, your opponent is strong. So I know it'll be tough fighting him and the Curse Mark, but using it will lead to your disqualification. Understand?"

Sasuke was clutching at his shoulder with grit teeth, but nodded nonetheless, "Yeah, I got it."

Naruto walked up to his teammate with a solemn stare, looking directly into his eyes, "Sasuke, don't you lose. I'm already upset Sakura won't be becoming Chuunin, and I won't let you live it down if I'm the only one that does."

Despite his moderate pain levels, the Uchiha gave out a scoffing chuckle, "Like that'll happen... loser."

Upon the other side of the stands, Neji had been eying down Sasuke even before their names were paired up for the upcoming match. His arms were crossed, and nothing else was currently set in his mind other than demonstrating how much more worthy the Hyuuga clan was of excellence than the Uchiha.

"Neji." His sensei interrupted him from his thoughts, "This will be your time to shine, kiddo. Show them why Team Nine is the best genin squad in Konoha!"

"Agreed!" The younger version of Guy exclaimed. He then leaned in a bit closer, "I have fought against Sasuke briefly before the exams started. He did not provide me much of a challenge, so I am sure you will come out victorious!"

The Hyuuga prodigy was disappointed to hear that. If Sasuke couldn't even provide a challenge for Lee, how could their clan be proclaimed as more talented than his own? Was the Uchiha clan really just a bunch of subpar shinobi with a well-known name and kekkei genkai? If so, then what he saw Sasuke do with those Sound-nin in the Forest of Death must have been some sort of fluke... but he knows that his Byakugan didn't lie. Sasuke's chakra at that time was unlike anything he'd ever seen.

"Ahem... can the next two fighters please step into the arena?" Called Hayate, now getting slightly annoyed and bored with being the proctor for these prelims. The young gifted clan members dropped down onto the floor of the room, locking eyes with each other.

"Oh-ho, Uchiha versus Hyuuga, eh?" The Third Hokage speculated from his position, "This might just be quite a legendary fight, with two prodigies from opposing distinguished clans."

Anko, who stood behind Hiruzen, watched on with this sense of anxiety that she didn't like. She managed to catch a quick glimpse of the Uchiha's Curse Mark, confirming what Orochimaru had told her during their tangle. She had a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach, but knew there wasn't much she could do if the Hokage was allowing things to progress.

The boy with the Byakugan crossed his arms, "You don't look like you're holding up very well, Uchiha."

Sasuke scoffed, "Don't you worry about me. You're going to want to concentrate on yourself in the next few minutes."

Neji rolled his eyes at the boy's arrogance. Clearly, he wasn't in good shape, and since Lee was able to take him on and win, there was absolutely no chance Sasuke would be able to put up much of a fight. Were all Uchiha this overconfident? Or just the first year brats that seem to have more ego than skill?

Hayate looked at the two boys and put his hand up, "Do either of you wish to back out and withdraw?"

"No." Both boys answered, refusing to break their glaring eye contact with the other. The proctor nodded and put his hand down in between them just as they shifted into a fighting position.

"Then begin the fight."

Neji immediately activated his Byakugan at the same time Sasuke activated his Sharingan.

Sasuke was still new to his ocular powers but figured he'd rather go all out sooner rather than later, given his debilitations and low amount of chakra. Drawing out this fight would be a grave mistake. He had speculated Sakura's fight with Hinata and got a better idea of how the Byakugan worked in action compared to the small amount of knowledge he picked up about it in the academy. He knew that his Byakugan bearing opponent could 'see' his entire chakra network thanks to those eyes, and could even see through jutsu such as bunshins. He figured the best way to counter that would be to enforce his offense as much as possible while using his Sharingan to predict his counters. He didn't have a lot of chakra to begin with, so as long as he could inflict damage and avoid getting hit by Neji's chakra-blocking taijutsu, he should have a shot.

Just as he waited for his opponent to make the first move, the Curse Mark ached and sent a surge of pain all throughout his now tense body. Neji noted Sasuke's body language and used this as an opportunity to land a solid blow to a few chakra points to his torso. Sasuke, thanks to his Sharingan abilities, managed to just barely dodge them in the nick of time.

Shifting into attack position, Sasuke used the inertia from his last movement to plant his hands firmly on the ground to deliver a high backspin kick aimed for Neji's chin. Neji dodged the attack and went for a low spin kick, which Sasuke managed to vault right over. Neji's attack combination continued as he repositioned and lunged forward to go for more strikes to Sasuke's torso. Sasuke managed to parry his attacks with his forearms and even succeeded in getting a hold of his extended arm. Neji grunted as Sasuke threw him by the arm in another direction, causing him to stumble forward before stabilizing his footing.

By the time Neji had turned around, Sasuke had finished his last hand seal to his favorite ninjutsu, "Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"

The young Hyuuga's eyes widened as he witnessed a large boulder-sized fireball coming straight for him. He quickly jumped into the air to avoid it, only missing him by a hair. He could feel the heat of the flames grazing his feet as it passed under him.

Just as he thought he was in the clear, Neji was unable to do much of anything once he saw Sasuke quickly appear in front of him, delivering a hard dual-fisted punch mid-air that almost turned his head in the other direction. Neji was sent spinning and crashing into the ground below in the other direction, just as Sasuke's fireball had crashed into the wall right below the balcony where Naruto and the others were standing. Despite having to struggle to keep his footing due to the magnitude of the destruction, Naruto gripped the handrail in front of him with one hand, shooting his fist in the air with the other.

"ALRIGHT, SASUKE!" Naruto cheered for his friend, pumped up to see that Sasuke obtained the first him. Lee and his squad on the adjacent balcony were shocked to see Neji crash into the ground. They had never seen Neji take a hit like that.

As Sasuke landed, he immediately fell to his knees due to the pain the Curse Mark was giving him, as if punishing him for fighting while not using it. It was a crippling pain, one that made it impossible for him to even think about executing any further follow-up attacks. The worst part about it was that each time the pain flared up like this, it was always worst than the last.

Neji growled as he struggled to lift his torso up from the ground. That was a pretty strong hit, one that Neji scolded himself for not predicting. However, as he wiped the blood trail from the corner of his mouth, he grinned. It's good to see that he was providing some form of challenge. Neji was just testing the waters, and he was surprised to find it hotter than he expected.

"Nice one, Uchiha." Remarked Neji, slowly getting up to his feet, trying to brush off whatever pain he felt, "It's rare for my opponents to have gotten the first hit like this."

Sasuke, unfortunately, was unable to engage in the repartee. The pain from his seal was making it hard to talk.

Hayate eyed the boy with reluctance, "Sasuke, are you unable to fight?"

"No!" Sasuke grunted, struggling to get back on his feet, "I'm... n-not done. Not until I win..."

Neji began walking over to his opponent casually, seeing as he could tell Sasuke was in too much pain to do much else other than struggle, "Hm. It is a shame that we were unable to start this fight in top shape to truly test who is the better of our clans. However, I know the truth. I know your fate. You will lose to me here and now, in front of everybody, because my fate is to defeat you and come out victorious, no matter what."

By the time Neji finished his small speech, he was standing directly in front of Sasuke and gave him a hard kick to the chest before he could fully stand up. Sasuke was now on his back, with Neji's foot pressed firmly onto his ribcage.

Naruto's earlier excitement was wisped away at the turn of events down below, "Hey, Kakashi-sensei, what gives?! Why is Sasuke in pain like that? He's been like that ever since we started the last part of the exams, and wouldn't tell me what's wrong."

"I'll tell you later." Kakashi told him, "Right now, all you need to know is that Sasuke isn't at a hundred percent."

Naruto huffed, at not being given the information he wanted, "Obviously."

Yugito overheard the conversation and was tempted to answer Naruto's question for him, since she did manage to witness what happened. However, she decided against it, seeing as she figured Naruto wasn't being told for a reason. She may be rebellious at times, but she was mindful about how getting involved in such matters can have a domino effect. Her main task at hand was simply becoming Chuunin.

Yugito was not the only one that had overheard the conversation, though, as Samui had leaned over to her, talking in a hushed voice.

"Karui told me about your time with them in The Forest of Death. I have some questions for you once this fight is over." Her leader informed her. Yugito simply nodded.

Unable to move due to the pain of the Curse Seal raging through his core, Neji put forth a hard stomp to Sasuke's chest, knocking the wind out of his lungs.

"Show me your true Uchiha power, Sasuke." Neji said to him, sneering at his pained expressions, "I saw what you could do in The Forest of Death. I know there's a power in you that would make you a worthy adversary. If you could waste such power on a pair of Sound weaklings, why not use them now?"

Neji had been stomping on Sasuke's chest in between each of his sentences. Sasuke could hear his ribcage shifting around each time it did, and it was becoming more and more convenient for him to surrender completely to the Curse Seal and put Neji in his place, regardless of his disqualification. It's not like he would win this match if things continued this way, anyway. And he definitely had no intention of surrendering... not after what happened in that forest.

"Sasuke... don't do it. Please." Thought Kakashi as he began feeling tense as he watched what was happening to his student. He heard Neji's words to Sasuke, and Kakashi took it as a sign that he should get ready to do something very soon. He looked across the room to see Guy blabbing on to Lee about what he could only assume was a long and dramatic speech about how much better Squad Nine was than Squad Seven or the sensei's oh so legendary rivalry. He could just shunshin over there and tell Guy to stop his student, but that would draw attention. Other participants and shinobi from other villages might suspect that something conspicuous is going on.

He then took note of his more immediate surroundings, spotting Kurenai and Asuma watching the fight a few feet away. He walked over to them, and they both noticed his presence as he approached. Kakashi got within whispering range.

"This fight is obviously not going well, but something bad can happen if Sasuke doesn't surrender soon. So be on your toes. I may need assistance." Kakashi warned them. Asuma and Kurenai were mildly surprised to hear this, but quickly nodded their heads.

Meanwhile, Samui watched as the small event unfolded. She, unfortunately, couldn't hear what The son of The White Fang said to those other Jounin and cursed at Kakashi's mask, which negated her ability to read his lips. Her intuition was telling her that there was something bigger at hand going on that these Konoha-nin are trying to keep under wraps... and she didn't like it.

On the other side of the stands, behind Kurenai, was Hinata. She looked at Naruto's stressed expression as he watched his second teammate slowly fall victim to defeat. She felt guilty that she aided in ruining Naruto's desire to get promoted with his team. Maybe she should have just taken the fall... defeating Sakura definitely didn't make Naruto like her any more than he did before. She felt this overwhelming power to say something to him, or perhaps apologize for what happened in the last fight. He was standing there alone now, being that his sensei came over to talk to her own sensei, and Hinata figured it was a better time to make her move now than ever.

Two women simultaneously made their move across the east wing of the room, Hinata to Naruto, and Samui to Kakashi. Samui kept her distance, leaning against the wall a few feet away. Hinata approached right beside Naruto, just as Naruto gripped the handrails out of frustration.

After delivering one last stomp to his chest, Neji sneered as he started to get angry.

"Sasuke," Hayate called out, "If you do not do or say something soon, I will have to declare this match over."

The raven-haired boy was at the end of his rope. He simply laid there as he gasped desperately for air. He had to make a decision. And had to do it fast.

The impatient Neji, on the other hand, grew tired of waiting. He clenched his fist, "Weakling! Your clan is a disgrace to our village! You're the only one of your clan left, and this is all you have to offer?! Pathetic!"

He then reared his foot back to give him one hard kick in the side of his ribcage.

As Neji's foot landed, Hinata opened her mouth to speak to Naruto, but was interrupted when she heard a strong attack land.

As Neji's foot landed, Guy frowned as his student took an unnecessary attack upon hearing the judge's decree. A referee's words need to be heeded and listened to, regardless of who he was addressing. Hayate's statement implied that no more action needed to be taken from either participant, aside from Sasuke's response.

As Neji's foot landed, Orochimaru's eyes widened with delight. He could sense the Curse Mark beginning to activate.

After Neji's foot landed, there was a brief moment of total silence. Then, four clouds of smoke appeared around the two genin. Once the smoke cleared, everyone in the room felt a sense of ominous chakra and look down to see three jounin now in the arena with them. Neji was now on the ground flat on his stomach, with one leg lifted by an Uchiha who was now kneeling, placing his opponent's leg in a twisted leglock. Kakashi was behind Sasuke, placing him in a sleeper's hold, while Asuma was to his side gripping his upper arm to prevent it from twisting Neji's leg any further. Kurenai was standing directly in front of Sasuke with a tiger seal made with her hands, looking right in Sasuke's eyes to be ready to cast a genjutsu, if need be. The speed at which this happened was almost instantaneous, and no one was more surprised than Neji, who was just now coming to terms with how quickly the tables had turned. It was also at this time that he realized he felt the joints in his left leg popping and cracking, as his foot was pointed in an unfamiliar direction. The pain hadn't even fully set in yet.

"Release him, Sasuke." Kakashi told him in his ear, tightening his grip around the boy's throat, "Or we'll have to force you to."

Sasuke, who was now fully covered in the Curse Mark's patterns, could only grit his teeth. Kurenai was about ten seconds away from performing a genjutsu, Asuma was preventing him from snapping Neji's leg in two pieces like he wanted, and Kakashi was about to put him to sleep any minute now. There wasn't much else the boy could do other than recede the chakra, causing him to pass out in the process.

Once the two men felt Sasuke's body release all tension, they released him. Kurenai approached Neji once Kakashi scooped up Sasuke in his arms and knelt down to see Neji's leg now facing in directions it shouldn't. The pain then finally set in full force for the young Hyuuga, forcing him to let out a boisterous cry of pain.

"This boy needs a medic." Kurenai declared.

"So does Sasuke." Kakashi added in, just as Sasuke coughed up a small stream of blood, which dribbled down to his chin, "His ribs are broken in a few places, at best."

Everyone in the room was in varying states of shock from watching these events transpire. The Sand Siblings and their sensei were mildly surprised, except for Gaara, who was beginning to fall to the seduction of his increasing bloodlust from watching such a violent fight. Team Ten was speechless, as was Shino, Hinata, Naruto, and Team Samui. The Hokage was the only one rubbing his chin with intrigue, as all of the surrounding Jounin slowly got a bit tense. Especially Anko.

"So... who won?!" Naruto was the first to shout.

The Hokage appeared behind Hayate, murmuring a few things in his ear before returning to his previous position.

Hayate closed his eyes and lifted his hand, "Due to peripheral circumstances linked to Sasuke's condition and the use of illegal techniques, Neji is declared the winner and will be moving on to the next part of the exams."

"WHAT?!" Naruto instantly responded before vaulting over the railing to land directly in front of Hayate. Hinata couldn't help but be flabbergasted by the unlucky timing.

Naruto stood directly in front of Hayate, pointing a finger at him, "That's bogus! Sasuke was winning, and all Neji did was take advantage of his handicap! And what illegal techniques-?!"

"Kid," Interrupted the unamused Jounin, "Go back upon those stands before I send you flying there."

Naruto was about to retort until Kakashi called his name, "Naruto. Go back to where you were. I'll explain to you once this is finished."

The blonde boy grit his teeth before huffing and turning around. As he began to pass Neji, who was scooped up in Kurenai's arms, he made a quick decision to speak his mind.

"Hey, Neji." Naruto called, earning a wincing Hyuuga's attention, "You didn't have to kick him like that. You deserve every part of your leg that's broken right now."

"Sh-Shut up..." He spat, "A-As if I need to listen to a low-class shinobi such as yourself."

Naruto sneered, clenching his fist. He had to calm himself before he did something he'll regret.

"If we're pitted against each other in the next part of these exams, I'm going to kick. Your. Ass. You can bet on it."

Naruto then walked off, which made Neji grunt and roll his eyes, even through the pain he was feeling.

Once the two boys were rushed off by the aid of the medical staff, everyone had returned to their previous positions with a slightly eerie silence. Orochimaru was finding it quite difficult to contain his excitement. His plans were coming together, even if Sasuke didn't move on to the next stage. Dosu, on the other hand, was almost quaking at the second sighting of Sasuke's Curse Mark abilities. Was he really nothing more than a guinea pig for Orochimaru's true interest?

"Alright. The sixth match is now complete. The seventh match will be starting now." Hayate declared.

As the screen began to flicker through the names of the remaining contestants, said shinobi were feeling an increase in anticipation, anxious to see who was going to follow up after that fight. Hinata made the wise decision to distance herself from Naruto, seeing as she could obviously tell he wasn't in his best mood. She felt conflicted in many areas of her thoughts at the moment, between Naruto, Sakura, Sasuke, her cousin, and even that blonde Kumo girl. It was all becoming way too complicated for her to figure out what to do, so she simply decided it was smarter to just hold off and do nothing.

Naruto, of course, had many thoughts going through his mind. He was now the remaining member of his team still in the running to become Chuunin. Not only that, but his name might be put on that screen next. Bringing himself back to the current moment, Naruto took a deep breath and mentally prepared himself for what lied ahead. These exams had not gone anywhere near how he'd expected, and he was coming to grips with it now. The only thing he could do was do his best; for himself, his team, and his village. Kakashi placed a hand on Naruto's shoulder as a nonverbal message to keep his head held high, which aided in putting him more at ease.

The screen then stopped flickering. The two names on the screen revealed the fighters for the seventh match:

Yugito

vs.

Gaara