Prelude to the Third Part
Summary: Everyone gets ready for the third part of the chunin exams.
Naruto sat still like a stone. He was finding it extremely difficult to come to terms with what he'd just accepted as a fact about himself.
I have nothing to live for... I'm just as good as dead.
But he still felt the need to go to the third round of the chunin exams. After all, with no purpose to his life, all that was left was to just go with the flow of his life.
It's oddly liberating... But there's still the sense of being crushed under the weight of this revelation... I- I think I kinda wanna die...
Naruto took a shaky breath as he ran his hands through his hair.
"Hey, Brat, mind letting me in on what you're thinking?".
"Stupid Fox... I just- I don't like my life at all...".
"Tch. You can't even meet your own mind with conviction... Pitiful brat.".
"What does that mean?".
"It means that I feel as if there's something more to your feelings than just hating your life. Come on, there's something stronger than that, I know it!...".
"Fine... I wanna die! Okay?! I don't know what I live for anymore, or what lives for me, a-and you've broken me! That's what you wanted to hear, right?! Happy now, you Stupid Fox?!".
"Hehehehehehe... Happier than you can imagine. I'll be sure to enjoy your suffering... Milk it for all its worth.".
The voice of the nine-tailed fox faded away, leaving Naruto completely alone to himself once again.
There was a grim amazement in the boy's mind. It had only been a few months since he became a genin and was placed into team 7 - only a few months since he had begun to live. But it felt like, just as soon as he had begun to live, he realized that he wanted to die.
He stood up, and decided that the wide stimulation of the village's life was preferable to being left to his own devices. After all, running away and crying wouldn't solve anything.
Naruto began walking aimlessly around the village, enveloping himself in his ever-shifting thoughts. Every thing that he saw during his walk brought a new thought to mind, whether it was of a nice-looking house, an oddly-shaped street, or even a squirrel. Such things would bring him new strings of thought, which would keep him somewhat distracted.
He enjoyed it.
There was no doubt about it, Naruto truly did want to die, but a part of him was saying that he had to go forward; after all, he wouldn't consider suicide, and he had the sense to acknowledge that he was alive. That had to be worth something.
Hidden Leaf Martyrs' Stone
Kakashi stood beside a young woman with long, deep-purple hair. Both of them were staring at the names of martyrs on the stone, bearing a pensive look that no other could match.
Flashback
As Naruto and Sasuke wallowed in the stone-like feeling of their filled stomachs, Kakashi looked back and noticed that someone was about to open the flaps to the stand.
The flap opened, and the face of none other than "Yugao Uzuki..." was seen. However, the ANBU agent promptly closed the flap and walked away.
Kakashi knew that she was grieving the loss of Hayate, whose genin team she was once on. In turn, he quickly scribbled an apology for his students, as he left the stand to approach Yugao.
Flashback over
Kakashi broke the silence when he said, "I heard about Hayate... It's hard, losing a team member.".
The woman remained unmoving as she replied, "Hayate was like a brother to me...".
Kakashi patted her on the shoulder and told her, "If you ever need to talk to someone about it, I'll be there for you.".
Yugao put her hand over his and responded, "Thanks, Kakashi.".
Next morning
Naruto hadn't slept, nor had he eaten since leaving Ichiraku's the night before.
He was walking around a forest when he realized that he needed to be at the Hidden Leaf's Village Stadium for the chunin exams' third part.
He scrambled to run back to his apartment.
Center of village
Sasuke stood in a town square, observing a stone, not unlike the one sculpted for martyrs of the Hidden Leaf.
This stone, however, was smaller, and dedicated solely to all the Uchiha who had perished in the clan's massacre five years prior.
Sasuke hadn't unlocked his Sharingan then, but the events of that night were still clearly etched into his mind.
Flashback
Seven-year-old Sasuke woke up in the middle of the night, thirsty for a glass of water.
He walked over into the living room, aiming to walk past it to reach the kitchen.
However, he instead came across his parents (father Fugaku and mother Mikoto), sitting on their knees, with his brother (Itachi, his elder by twelve years) standing behind them. They were all completely still.
Sasuke figured that they were praying, and decided to just walk past them to go into the kitchen; his family was kind, they wouldn't scold him harshly for being up so late.
As Sasuke got closer to his family, he noticed that his mother and father were quivering. This confused the boy. He asked, "Hey, why are you shaking like that?".A loud gasp was heard from his parents, who turned around to face him. Itachi turned, too, but he was stone-faced.
Mikoto cried, "Itachi, please don't hurt Sasuke! Do whatever you want, just please leave him alone!".
The dim moonlight was just enough to reveal Itachi's smirk as he responded, "That's the plan.".
In one swift move, the young man slit his mother's throat.
Fugaku fell forward, letting out a primal cry of despair and fear, before Itachi pulled him back by his hair, slitting his throat mid-scream, cutting him off, leaving him to gargle blood.
Itachi pushed the man's body onto the floor, and it landed with a sickening thud.
Sasuke was wide-eyed and speechless, almost unable to believe what had just occurred.
Itachi chuckled, and said to him, "I want you to imprint this image into your mind, Sasuke. Harden it, and make sure that it never leaves you.".
Flashback over
Sasuke stared at the names "FUGAKU UCHIHA" and "MIKOTO UCHIHA" pensively.
He then felt a hand on his shoulder.
He turned around in shock to see that it was just Kakashi.
The jonin asked his student, "Sasuke, are you O.K.?".
Sasuke told him, "No... I'm not.".
When Kakashi said nothing, the boy continued, "He just killed them like it was nothing... And then he left. And when I went outside, everyone else was dead, too.". Kakashi looked at the Uchiha with intense sympathy, while his mind was spinning.
How did Itachi kill all of them in one night? He was an excellent ninja, but no human is capable of doing what he did. Not without the power of a murderous summon, or a chakra demon. Neither of which Itachi had, since we would've known about it if he used them... He had help, but from whom?
Kakashi put a supportive hand on Sasuke's shoulder.
Hidden Leaf Village Stadium
Neji sat in a side viewing-box at the bottom of the stadium, on the edge of the arena. This box was for participants of the third part to have a good view of the matches, while also being able to enter and exit quickly.
At the moment, Neji, Gaara, Kankuro, Shino, Temari, and Shikamaru were sitting on the bench inside. They waited patiently for the 9 A.M. call-up, upon which the third part of the exams would finally begin.
Neji was reading a page of notes that he'd written for himself, smirking at it.
Kankuro and Temari sat on both sides of Gaara, hoping to keep him calm.
Shikamaru tried starting a conversation. He spoke, "So, where do you think the other three are? Naruto, Sasuke, and that Dosu dude?".
Everyone stayed silent, except for Temari. She was the one who answered, "What makes you think we know? They might've killed themselves training.".
Shikamaru, when no one else said anything, leaned forward to look at her and joked, "Well, that would make it easier for the rest of us.".
Temari hummed in affirmation, half-joking back, "I do get the feeling that it'd take a lot more than some training to kill them. Especially that little orange-clad blonde brat, Nagato or something?".
Shikamaru's brow raised. "Oh, Naruto? I don't think he needs to worry about training his body. All his strength seems to be physical, with very little respect for the analytical aspect of a fight.".
Temari hummed again. "What about that Uchiha kid?".
Shikamaru responded, "Sasuke... He's difficult to figure out. I think he's the kind of guy that focuses too much on the analytical part.".
Shino finally added himself into the conversation, commenting, "Reality is quite the contrary. Sasuke seems to be the type to not work very well with others... I assume his training is mostly done by himself, and his execution of his own plans to be subpar, or that they bear less-than-favorable results.".
Shikamaru questioned, "Isn't Naruto that way?".
Shino told him, "No, he is not. I've seen Naruto in battle against Choji and Kiba. He beat both of them with relative ease, and his ability to strategize in a tough situation left me with a better perspective of him than the one that I had before. He'll impress you, I'm sure of it.".
Temari scoffed, "Maybe he just got lucky.".
Shino was quick to reply, "I doubt that someone like him is lucky at all - he's a bit of a pariah in this village, you know.".
Temari leaned forward and narrowed her eyes. "How come?", she asked.
Shino admitted, "I do not know. He has a reputation for being a troublemaker, but he's really only been like that for the past year, and his infamy in the village extends to as far back as I can remember.". After letting those words air for a few seconds, he continued, "It seems to me that many of the adults in the village - those who know of him, at least - have always feared him, and that that fuels their hate for him.".
Temari blinked, perplexed.
Why would they fear a little kid? Unless he's like Gaara, there's no reason.
The girl's eyes widened.
No way... He can't be like Gaara, can he? No... I'm just paranoid...! Being around Gaara has that effect on people...
Shikamaru added, "A lotta parents warned their kids to stay away from Naruto, but I never really understood why they'd do that.". He shrugged, "And it's not like my parents told me to do so, either.".
Shino contributed, "Nor have mine.".
Shikamaru went on to say, "Ino's dad and Choji's dad have said something about being wary around him, but they never stopped them from interacting with him. Not that that was a common occurrence at all. I don't think most of us even knew his name until he started causing trouble. Before then, he was just 'the dangerous boy'.".
Temari tensed up.
Dangerous?! That's the same word that Father uses for Gaara!
She looked over to Gaara, and saw that Kankuro was just as tense as herself. The redhead was completely still, staring at the floor in front of him.
Naruto... That boy with the loud mouth.
Gaara calmly stated, "Naruto... I'm beginning to have a vested interest in him...".
The box went silent.
Naruto's apartment complex
Naruto ran up the stairs to reach his apartment, at the end of the highest floor of his complex.
He reached the door, and tried to open it.
Locked.
Naruto patted each of his pockets, looking for his keys.
I must've forgotten them inside! Oh no...
Desperate, he patted his pockets again, and when that bore no results, he took off his shirt and turned it inside-out (just in case).
He put his shirt back on, and collected himself.
Wait... I have a spare in the middle of the welcome mat!
The boy scrambled, grabbing his welcome mat, as he separated it in the middle to reveal the key hidden inside. He picked the key up, and quickly placed it in the keyhole. He tried to turn it, but had to pull it out because he'd put it in upside-down. He then placed it in the right way, and clicked open the lock.
Naruto opened the door slightly, before removing the key and putting it back in the welcome mat.
The boy sighed, and opened his door fully, walking in and closing it with another heavy sigh. He began coughing. He shuddered at the way his body felt like it was breaking.
It was a small apartment. The living room and bedroom were pretty much one and the same, and his kitchen was only a few feet away from his bed.
He took off his clothes and tossed them into the hamper adjacent to his bed, as he walked into the bathroom to take a shower; all that walking had worked him up a sweat.
Sakura's house
Sakura fixed her headband in such a way that it would push back her hair - the same way in which she had been doing it since she received the red bow from Ino. She straightened her hair, and fondled it, admiring that it had grown about an inch longer since she cut it.
I should keep letting it grow...
The girl posed for herself to make sure she was ready, before leaving her room to join her family downstairs.
Once in the foyer, she met her parents and brother, all ready to leave for the stadium.
She asked, "Dad, you have all the tickets, right?".
Kizashi bellowed, "Yes, I do!", flaunting four tickets for their seats to view the final part of the chunin exams.
Café near Hidden Leaf Village's Stadium
Kakashi walked into a quaint coffee shop, and approached the counter.
Once there, he saw Kurenai, Asuma, and Anko leaning on the counter.
He leaned in next to them, and greeted, "You guys here to place your bet, too?". He knew the answer already.
He was met with a resounding chorus of "Yep.", from his peers.
Kakashi smirked, and asked, "So, you gonna go for Neji, or Naruto?".
The only bets were on Naruto and Neji, as they were the only two from the Hidden Leaf who were fighting each other in the first round.
Kurenai admitted, "Naruto's impressed me, but Neji is on a whole other level.".
Asuma said, "Yeah, what she said.".
Anko added, "It's last year's top rookie, the bearer of the greatest ocular jutsu in this village, a master of the gentle fist, and a full-fledged prodigy, against this year's dead-last, who'd argue with a rock if he tripped on it.".
Kakashi hummed thoughtfully, and stated, "I'll bet on Naruto.". With that, he pulled out a wad of cash, and stated, "I'm betting all the cash I've got on me towards Naruto winning his match.". He then requested, "How about all of you bet against him, and we see who wins?".
The other jonin looked at each other, looked back at Kakashi, nodded, and replied, "Deal.".
They all took out their cash and gave it to the cashier, who was a friend of theirs, and promptly placed it in a safe.
Kakashi then remarked, "I gotta go take care of something - see ya later!". He fared his peers well as he left the café.
Kakashi walked into a secluded alleyway and poofed into non-existence - it had been a shadow clone the whole time.
Uchiha Stone Memorial
Sasuke and the real Kakashi were still standing in front of the stone.
Sasuke asked, "Sensei, is this why you're always late?".
Kakashi hummed as an inquiry.
Sasuke clarified, "You look at your teammates' names on the martyrs' stone, that's why you're always late.".
"Yes, Sasuke.".
Naruto's apartment
Naruto stepped out of his bathroom with a towel around his waist, having taken care of all his business, and taken a shower.
He walked over to his closet, and removed another set of the Summer outfit he'd been wearing for his last few weeks of training. He tossed it onto his bed, and fully dried himself off before putting it on.
He gathered everything he needed, and walked to the door of his apartment. He then put on his sandals. Recalling the incident with the locked door earlier, however, Naruto opted to pat himself down to make sure he had everything this time.
Keys, check. Kunai, check. Pouch, check. Compression glove, check. I think I've got everything I need.
The boy looked down.
Pants, I've got my pants on, too...
He checked in his sleeveless jacket, and under his shirt.
Armor, too... Good.
He was falling apart. He felt as if he could not trust his own mind anymore... So he did a once-over again, making absolutely sure that he had everything he needed. Once that was done, he left his apartment, ready for the final part of the exams.
He really didn't forget anything this time.
Outside Hyuga compound
Hiashi Hyuga, clan head of the Hyuga, walked with his youngest daughter, Hanabi. Hanabi was the pride of his life - she was his favorite child, who was always willing to train, and did not bring shame onto the Hyuga name. He smiled, and so did she, as they were making their way to the village stadium. Hanabi skipped all around, and approached a corner.
Just as she rounded the corner, she bumped into someone coming from the other side, and landed in a pratfall.
Hiashi dashed towards his daughter, who was on the verge of tears. He kneeled next to her, and looked over her. He then heard a frantic voice saying, "Oh crap, I'm so sorry, I didn't see you, y'know! I'm so sorry!".
Hiashi snapped to look at the offender, and saw that it was none other than Naruto Uzumaki. The man scowled, and scolded, "You should watch where you're going, you insolent fool! What is wrong with you?! Haven't you any respect for your fellow villagers?!".
Naruto's voice turned soft as he responded, "It was just an accident... Chill out, y'know. She'll be okay.".
Hiashi became angrier. "You ignoramus, don't make excuses for your bad behavior!". He noticed Hanabi's ripped sleeve and added, "You ruined this yukata, you absolute disgrace of a boy!".
Naruto's voice turned cold this time. He replied, "Y'know, I'm already having a pretty bad day, so...". He trailed off and sighed. "Just forget it.". He turned on his heel and began to leave.
Hiashi smirked and called out, "My boy - Neji, you're going to lose to him. Sorely.".
Naruto turned back with a smirk of his own. He proclaimed, "I'm gonna beat Neji - for you to be proven wrong, and for Himeka to be served justice!". He then walked off triumphantly.
Hiashi quizzically stared.
Who the Hell is Himeka?
Path towards stadium, a few minutes later
Hinata was walking towards the stadium - alone. She only looked down at the ground in front of her, and kept her eyes downcast, glad that her bangs slightly covered her vision.
She then heard Naruto's voice calling, "Hey, Himeka!".
Hinata became sad.
Naruto's... Calling out to a girl?
She discreetly looked towards where the voice was coming from, and saw that Naruto was approaching she herself!
She stopped, and became a nervous wreck.
Naruto caught up to her as he greeted and joked, "Hey, Himeka, I didn't expect you to be as late as me, y'know!".
Hinata turned even redder.
He thinks... My name is Himeka?...
Naruto continued, "Don't you worry, Himeka, I'm gonna beat some sense into your cousin - just trust me!".
Hinata (making no effort to tell him the her name isn't Himeka) stuttered, "Uh, yea-yeah, I trust you, N-Naruto...".
The two stayed silent. Naruto figured Hinata would say something more, but since she wasn't...
He began to resume his walk, before he was stopped by Hinata's beckon of "W-wait!".
The blonde turned around, inquiring, "What is it, Himeka?".
Each mention of the name "Himeka" was like a jab in Hinata's nearly-non-existent pride, and certainly a heavy blow to her self-esteem. Nonetheless, she mustered up the courage to tell Naruto, "You- you gave me strength when I fought against Neji with your cheering, and, and, I know that you have enough strength to beat Neji! Because- you believe in yourself, and your thoughts will always shift that way!".
Naruto was taken aback. He coughed a bit, and cleared his throat. He admitted, "Look, I know that I seem strong and confident, but really, I'm very frustrated. If anything, my mind's just gonna shift towards some trauma that I've gone through or something.".
Hinata responded, "Well... At least your trauma made you stronger, right?".
Naruto scowled, and shook his head. "No! What- no! If I'm strong at all, it's not because of my trauma, it's in spite of it!".
Hinata's eyes widened as she stammered, "O-oh! Okay, I d-idn't know that...". She slowly retreated within herself, looking to the ground as she twiddled her fingers.
Naruto noticed the change in the girl's posture, and became concerned for her. He gently placed a finger beneath her chin to lift her face up, as he softly told her, "Hey, Himeka, don't look so down! You're really strong, y'know.". He cocked his head to the side and have her a closed-eyed smile, which served only to make her more nervous.
She replied, "Y-y-yeah, s-sure, Naruto!". She didn't believe it.
I can't even gather the strength to tell him my real name...
Naruto was about to offer to walk her to the stadium, but Jiraiya had told him that he should walk home with a girl whom he likes in the same manner he likes Sakura, and Naruto figured that walking anywhere was akin to walking home, as a walk was a walk, so he merely said, "See ya later!", and began his own way to the stadium.
Hinata didn't know why she was just standing where she'd stopped, but she watched Naruto nearly fade from her view before she began going to the stadium again.
Participatants' box
The participants of the third part were all silent, leaving themselves to their own minds, so as to not have to deal with Gaara being so creepy.
Just then, light footsteps were heard stomping up the stairs that led to the box from inside the stadium, and they all looked at the source.
None other than Naruto Uzumaki had finally arrived. He greeted everyone with a "Hey, there, sorry I'm late, y'know.".
He was met with murmurs of "Hi" and "Hey" from the group, but Temari's voice was clearest of all, as she jested, "Hi, Nagato.", eliciting a chuckle from the rest of the group (except for the one addressed).
Naruto deadpanned as he asked, "Who's Nagato?".
Kankuro scoffed, "You wouldn't get it...".
Naruto shrugged, "Whatever...".
He looked across the bench for a place to sit, but only saw an empty space beside Neji. Begrudgingly, he took a seat beside his opponent, and leaned back, waiting for the call-up.
8:59 A.M.
Just before the call-up, another pair of feet were heard coming up the stairs.
Naruto stood and waited to be greeted by Sasuke. Instead, it was Dosu, wearing his bandages.
Naruto scowled as he quickly deflated, commenting, "Oh, it's... Who are you?".
Dosu answered calmly, "Doesn't matter.", as he sat down where Naruto had been.
Gaara adopted a look of shock, as Naruto requested, "Hey, 'Doesn't Matter', would you please scoot over? I was sitiing there before, y'know...".
Dosu looked up at Naruto with a bored eye, and shrugged. "Sure.". Everyone moved over slightly so as to make room for Naruto.
First Shikamaru, then Shino, then Temari, then Gaara, then Kankuro, then Neji, and finally Dosu shifted to their left to make space.
Naruto felt sheepish watching it happen. He awkwardly approached the bench and sat on it.
As soon as he sat on the bench, though, Genma approached the box from the outside and commanded, "Hey, you're all up. Come on out.".
'Sheepish' couldn't even begin to describe Naruto's feeling...
.
.
.
On the side of the stadium farthest from the participants' box, there was another box elevated above the audience. In it sat the hokage and his guards, along with the kazekage of the sand village and his guards. The kazekage wore a veil.
Hiruzen questioned, "Lord kazekage, where do you think the otokage is?".
It was strange, indeed. The leader of the Sound Village was not there to bear witness to a match including someone from his own village.
The kazekage, in his deep raspy voice, suggested, "Perhaps he's unable to make the long trip to here from the Sound Village. If so, he bears a problem that you do not have to subject yourself to.".
Hiruzen smirked. "If you mean to insinuate that I'm old, I'll have you know that this septagenarian body of mine is capable of feats accomplished by men twice less than half my age.".
The kazekage sighed. "Even your prose is poetry.".
The hokage replied, "You're much the same, lord kazekage.".
The kazekage responded, "I learned from the very best...".
After a short silence, the kazekage then asked, "So, Lord Hokage, why do you have your ANBU black ops forces dispatched throughout the arena?". He added, "One would think that the job of securing the exams is relegated to chunin, unless you expect some sort of incident.".
Hiruzen only lightly chuckled, remaining silent otherwise.
.
.
.
The genin all walked single-file out of the box, out into the arena itself. The transition from the indoor lighting to the outside was not jarring at all, as the sun was still shining on the side of the arena to which the genins' backs were facing, and sunlight only penetrated the farther half of the stadium. The scene outside was awe-inspiring. Naruto saw hundreds - no, thousands - of people in the arena, all shouting - no, cheering - loudly.
Naruto was used to getting glared at and yelled at, but it felt different this time. He knew that few people, if any people, were cheering for him personally, but it still felt refreshing. Just being a part of something so big and so great was something that Naruto had just always been longing for!
In the front row of the seats, Sakura and her family were sitting with Ino and her family. Sakura smiled fondly, eager to watch her teammates win their matches. The odds were stacked against them, sure, it she had full faith in both of them.
Sakura put a hand on Ino's shoulder and shook her, telling her, "Naruto and Sasuke have got this in the bag!". Ino grabbed Sakura's hand to put the harsh swaying to an immediate halt. She responded, giggling, "Calm down, Forehead, I don't doubt that Naruto and Sasuke are gonna make it through!".
Sakura replied, "You bet they are! A-and I'm sure Shikamaru's gonna pass, too! Believe it!".
Ino hummed in affirmation. "Yeah, he is!".
Just then, Ebisu and Jiraiya appeared next to the girls, taking their seats at the end of the aisle.
The participanting genin were led to the center of the arena, where they were lined up side-by-side in number order (of course, #4, Sasuke Uchiha, was missing, so Neji was rubbing shoulders with Gaara).
Genma held a microphone, which he tapped thrice, emitting a squeal throughout the open-roof stadium, silencing the audience almost immediately.
After the squealing ended, Genma cleared his throat and announced blankly, "This is the beginning of the third phase of the chunin exams. It is a seeded tournament, in which the winner of each one-on-one match will face the winner of the next one-on-one match. There will be no interferences, and when I say that a match is over, the decision cannot be reversed. Depending on the circumstances, this should be finished today.".
Naruto nervously eyed the line of participants, looking past Neji all the way to Shikamaru, looking for his comrade.
C'mon, Sasuke, where are you? Don't tell me you've inherited Kakashi-sensei's tardiness!...
In fact, Naruto had two worries. The first one was obvious - Sasuke's absence, but the second one was one that he had not considered thus far: he hadn't slept at all since 8 P.M. the night before, nor had he eaten since the outing with his team. So, unbeknownst to Naruto, he would be feeling drowsy in a few hours' time, and hunger would settle in like a jab in his stomach.
Genma continued, "Sasuke Uchiha has not yet arrived. If he is not here by the end of this round, he will be disqualified.".
The crowd groaned. They wanted to see Sasuke fight - he was the last of the Uchiha, one of the royal clans of the Hidden Leaf Village. Rumors had spread over the past year that Sasuke was the strongest of his generation, and it was well-known that he was rookie of the year in his class. They fully expected him to clear the exam.
Genma tapped the microphone to unleash the squealing again. Once the crowd was silenced, he announced, "Seeing as everyone else is here, there is no reason to halt the exam. With that being said, these are your participants.". He began naming the participants.
"Hidden Leaf Village - Naruto Uzumaki.". Half of the crowd jeered. Naruto pouted, and Genma gave him a pitiful look.
"Hidden Leaf Village - Neji Hyuga.". The crowd cheered. Neji smirked, and Naruto let out a heavy breath.
"Hidden Sand Village - Gaara.".
"Hidden Sand Village - Kankuro.".
"Hidden Leaf Village - Shino Aburame.". The crowd cheered.
"Hidden Sand Village - Temari.".
"Hidden Sound Village - Dosu Kinuta.".
"Hidden Leaf Village - Shikamaru Nara.". The crowd cheered once more.
Naruto felt an intense envy come over himself. The crowd was rowdy when it came to the Leaf ninja, and they had the decency to stay silent when genin from the other villages were introduced. Naruto was the only one who they booed.
In the audience, Sakura shared a concerned look with her family, Ino, Ebisu, and Jiraiya.
Naruto doesn't deserve to be treated like that...
Ino questioned, "I know Naruto's a bit of a troublemaker, but why do people hate him so... vehemently?".
The adults looked at each other, and Jiraiya answered with a lie, "I don't know.".
Sakura pouted, and smacked her fist into her palm, commenting, "Whatever it is, I believe in Naruto. He'll win them over, some way... He has a natural charm to him, y'know.".
The adults chuckled. Ebisu rhetorically responded, "Tell me about it...". He had his own experience with Naruto's charisma. It was the reason that the boy had won him over so strongly, in addition to his underlying wisdom. As did Jiraiya. And Sakura's parents.
One would be hard-pressed to find someone who had not been affected by Naruto after encountering him.
A hooded man leered at Naruto's supporters in the crowd.
.
.
.
All the participants, except for Naruto and Neji, returned to the box.
They sat in the box, more or less in the same positions that they were in when they'd left.
They sat in silence.
Gaara choked up, "You... Dosu. I killed you. How are you here?".
Dosu answered, "It seems that 'Mother', whoever that may be to you, is unable to tell the difference in taste between a human being, and an intangible clone.".
Gaara twitched in anger.
.
.
.
Naruto and Neji were ordered to take their proper positions, equidistant from the edge of the arena and each other.
As they crossed each other, Neji whispered, "You've got absolutely no chance of beating me.". Naruto turned around to get a look at him, but the older boy was just walking to his position. Naruto clenched his fist, and began going to his own.
Once at their positions, Neji stood still, while Naruto fidgeted around.
Genma announced into the microphone, "The first match of the first round will pit Naruto Uzumaki, a rookie genin who managed to complete an A-rank mission, against Neji Hyuga, last year's top rookie, and an astounding genin with unmatched talent, along with completion of seven B-rank missions.".
Neji's brow raised.
This fool completed an A-rank mission? No doubt, he was carried by his teammates.
Naruto was just glad that he was acknowledged for having finished the mission in the Land of Waves.
Genma jumped to his viewing position, and stated, "Let the match begin!".