23. As I begin to write this, on the 19th of May, having gotten back my last paper today, I wonder if I'm making a mistake… I hope to still make it for the June deadline, nag at me if I don't make it -~-


He extends a hand out, smiling as he always does.

Today is a good day, the red-head instinctively reaches out and the sand does not follow.

"Gaara, let's go out there and kick some ass!"

While the Kazekage over in the shade certainly doesn't radiate approval, it's a far cry from the hostility of Day 1.

The Sand Clone of Gaara's dad crosses his arms in front of them, "Rather than speak, Uzumaki-san, it would be better if you attacked."

Naruto scowls lightly, before his expression steels itself, he thought better of himself, you'd think hearing similar insults over a thirty-day period would help.

He cheers himself up, reminding both he and his partner that the Exams are that afternoon.

Like they worked on throughout the month, he spawns in a mass of clones, commanding them to dispel once within the Kazekage's arm length.

With a smokescreen, Gaara moves in, relying on the Sand Eye he has behind the clone smoke.

As usual, the Kage guards only the front, ultimately ignoring Gaara's eye.

Gaara never does things in halves, and upon locating his father's relative position, intones, "Sand Binding Coffin."

Naruto would sigh at his partner's murderous intent, hanging thick in the air.

But he knows full well that clone!Kazekage-sama will break open that shell with his gold sand.

He's already happy that they've hammered out that instant killing is a big no-no.

"Foolish," comes the disapproving tone by his ear, a kunai to his neck.

Naruto smirks, before popping.

Another one launches a kick at the Kage as Gaara recollects his sand for another opening.

"The sand is now around you, and some of your gold sand is being held hostage, Kazekage-sama. I daresay we're doing better."

He chances a look at the real Kage, in the shade of the tree, his eyes showing keen interest.

His partner swoops in with a sand shield, bashing backwards the kunai that comes at him.

Naruto jumps back a few steps as the sand rises in front of him, swallowing up the sand clone.

"Sand Binding Coffin. Sand Waterfall Funeral."

His partner's patience wears thin with such a cat-and-mouse game.

Gold sand leaks out of the cracks in the coffin, and while he smiles, he also sighs.


If anyone, like his father asked, "Why do you trust that Uzumaki boy so much?" then Gaara would reply, "He is not like you. He is like me."

Mother howling in his head of the hatred and agony and he yells at the monster to shut up, because the mother who held him in her dying arms was not the creature that he holds.

The same way that Uzumaki Naruto is able to smile, be strong, and not hear the proportionally larger demon in him… Gaara wants to be.

While the villagers may not be able to see, let alone accept any of such feelings, there's this particular fondness by which his partner looks upon the village.

From their perch on the Hokage stone wall, to just walking through the crowd which shies away from them – the devotion and care invested into the idea of this village.

Gaara wonders, from where did such a love come from?

The arm slung across his shoulder, the only arm that Mother does not lash out against, is warm and protective.

"I'll introduce you to my friends today, so tomorrow, before or after the exam, introduce me to your siblings?"

He hums assent lowly, nearly blinded by the smile that radiates happiness.

The arm slipping off, grabbing his hand, "Then let's go! We're gonna be late, then all the food Chouji and his Dad prepped will be cold!"

Vaguely he recalls a rotund boy with such a name, but in the companionship of someone almost like him, he couldn't care less.

Clearly, this was a set-up, a meet-up scheduled before hand, and him pulled in only at Naruto's behest, but he allows it.

He allows himself to be dragged alone, and he chances a smile.

When his partner sees his smile, his eyes light up, before they dim slightly, into a more real smile.

"Are we only going to eat?"

Naruto yells over the market crowd, that, "Of course not! We're going there to make friends!"

So while he has his own uncertainties, the thought hovering at the back of his mind, when the invasion commences, I must kill Uzumaki Naruto first.

He goes along with this.

Not to make friends who would stab him in the back like Yashamaru, but to put a name to the faces that he will crush with his sand.

Why do you even care? Just go there and paint the town red, Gaara.

He sneers, and Naruto gives him a curious side glance, before looking away, understanding.

Well, that is one reason why I should not kill them. Just to irritate you, Monster.


If in thirty days, a Mother became a Monster, then in a few years, and a careful re-sealing, maybe the Monster, could become a Partner, the same way Gaara became Naruto's.

Naruto has that kind of effect on people, but others are none the wiser.

Naruto knows his own skills the best, after all.

He won't claim to be innocent in these hidden implied messages when he makes people into better people.

He does it for the world, his world, his Konoha, his friends, his family.

To protect them and what is precious to him.

Therefore, in bringing Gaara to the Rookie 12 bash, he attempts to bond them back together, bond Gaara to them.

Maybe he just hopes that like this, Gaara would be less inclined to hurt his friends if it came to.

He won't count on such things, though.

"Sakura-chan?"

The girl pauses with a forkful of cake in her mouth, humming to show her attention.

"Could you, if it came down to, restrain me?"

Surely, if she can hold down a –

"You're not the Kyubi, Naruto-chan."

He rears back, not having expected her to reply that way, and he presses, "The Kyubi, then?"

She sets down the fork, patting him on the head.

"The person who holds back the Kyubi, when the village was decimated by its power, is seated in front of me. The someone you should be asking is not me, but yourself."

And silently, the message in their eyes – The Kazekage's child is an unstable host, Naruto.

I know, I know.

Don't force him open, even a cornered rat will bite, hmm?

Do you think I can, stop him if I have to?

She resumes eating her cake.

If you have to, then we all will have to try.

He slurps on his orange ice cream cone, turning from his teammate and calling out to his partner.

"Gaara!"

The red head gives him a cool look, poised even as he eats.

Akimichi-san smiling upon the boy, gently urging him back towards his partner.

A tug of war between varying parties for various reasons and among all the groups there, Naruto admits, grimly, he is the only one who will accept Gaara as he is.

For Akimichi-san, Gaara is a danger to the village, and a danger to Chouji.

But if for that small chance that his kindness could change the world, Akimichi-san doesn't discourage his son's attempt at friendship.

The same way he didn't discourage Chouji's friendship with Naruto in the Academy.

As a parting, the participants involved, Team 7, 9 and Gaara come together in a rough circle, making a hand stack.

Team 8 looking in on them, this unreadable but assumed envy floating around them like a shroud –

"Let's do our best!"

"Our best!"

"Yeah!"

"For a good fight!"

Cheers and happiness, Naruto wonders what goes on behind those cold eyes.

Are you wondering why we can be happy, Gaara?

Quietly he remarks, "Gaara, promise me that if we get any of these people, you won't kill them."

Like a clockwork doll, head jerking to a side, as they walk through the thinned streets.

"It cannot be helped if they are squashed. But if they can resist, then I will want to fight them for myself."

He smiles at him, considering this his victory, thinking, That momentary hesitation will be all I ask for.


They enter the Arena to a rousing crowd and suddenly, Naruto realises that the market had been more subdued than usual.

From a month ago, the sickly Proctor appears as ill as before, if not worse, but he addresses them steadily.

"Welcome to the Final Stage of the Chunin Exams, everyone. We are pleased to see that everyone is on time. In fifteen minutes time, the exams will commence, and we will do live matching for the audience to see. The first pair of pairs will enter the arena, the remaining pairs are invited to, with your instructors, go up to the viewing stalls reserved for you all. For consecutive matches, the pairs should come down by different stairs on either side, so that opponents will be at different ends of the arena. Good luck!"

Even Sensei is surprised when Gekko-san turns to a small wooden box.

He opens the box, revealing the pair names on each tag.

This time, of all times and exams, Konoha took great pains to show that it was absolutely random and without bias.

However, given the number of dignitaries and wealthy businessmen no doubt paying for entertainment, no one would put it past Gekko-san to pull party tricks, fully knowing the line-up.

Sensei smiles at all three of them, the look in his eye saying something along the lines of, "Good luck," and "You also know this anyway."

With a crackle of the mic, the Stadium quietens.

"Good evening distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen. We will now officially begin the Final segment of the Chunin Exams. I am Hayate Gekko, your host and match official. If we may have a moment of silence, I will draw the lots to determine the first match."

From their position, the audience has no sight of the Proctor's sleeves, nor his arm guards.

Naruto would be curious as to why he's fully armed, as if ready for war.

Sakura from beside him nudges him, and then again, no one is surprised to see a slip of wood under the buckle of his arm guard.

He's not bitter at all, that these are them being offered up for someone's entertainment – promotion isn't so important.

"We're ninja, Sakura-chan."

Sasuke across the group rolls his eyes.

Everyone knows, even poor Lee-san, that that wood slip is obviously Sasuke.

"I mean, who else?"

Sensei shakes his head in mild disappointment – ah, so faithful, Sensei, but, he should know better.

There are many things Sensei is supposed to know, and he knows most of these things and at the same time…

Meeting his one eye and smiling to show him that, "It's okay, Sensei, we understand."

For surely, they're all in kahoots, definitely, "Ne, Kaka-sensei, who do you think Sasuke will be matched up with?"

The rumbling sound of a laugh in Gai-sensei's throat and Lee-san's eyes look down momentarily, fists clenching.

"Who do you think, Naruto-kun?"

"Well, everyone wants to bet on more exciting matches… Gaara and I, nor Sasuke and Lee will be knocked out so soon. If that slip in Gekko-san's hand is Sasuke, he will pull another from the box, and if it's our tag, he'll pull from the box again, leaving that up to chance."


The first tag is drawn from the box, but Hayate doesn't look at it. He doesn't have to.

Asuma looks at his students, feeling sorry and angry at the same time.

He flicks his cigarette pack open, pulling out a stick, before Ino smacks it away.

"Sensei! If you do that, you'll die before us."

He smirks.

Smart girl, knowing she's lined up as a sacrifice for the crowds to get their 'cool' fight.

"Ah, just another stick won't hurt, Ino."

"The first pair, Sabaku no Kankuro, Yamanaka Ino!"

She smiles up at him, punching him lightly in the arm.

"If we win, sensei, you have to quit smoking ya hear? If not, Kurenai-sensei might never accept a date with you!"

Cheeky brat, and she flips her fringe back, gesturing politely at the Puppet Boy – they walk into the arena.

Hayate pauses momentarily, before sliding his hand into the box again.

From his position, he watches the wooden slip slide out from under the guard.

He snaps his fingers, generating a small flame between his fingertips, lighting his cancer stick.

Taking a long drag as Kakashi gives him a side eye.

"The second pair, Rock Lee, Uchiha Sasuke!"

Heady applause from the audience, and that pair walk onto the arena grounds with a cringe-worthy swagger.

Asuma feels his upper lip curl, before shaking his head at Kakashi.

Yeah, I know. I know you got the Last Uchiha and all, but that doesn't mean I have to like that fact that my team is a spring board for yours.

That insufferable man tucks his hands into his pocket, and Asuma almost feels sorry, It isn't his choice to make.

"The remaining participants, please go to your seats. Combatants, please get ready."

As a crowd, shuffling up the narrow steps, to seats marked with names and suddenly, Asuma doesn't feel sorry for Kakashi anymore.

Shikamaru and Chouji pin him with their looks, and he runs a hand through his hair.


The match begins, and the Uchiha falls back quickly, allowing his partner to rush their opponents with a flurry of kicks and punches.

The puppet master summons another puppet by the side from a scroll, and Ino enters it.

From his position in that intimidating hood, flicking out chakra threads to manoeuvre that spider puppet specifically, inching Ino closer and closer to Lee.

At that moment, Sasuke yells for Lee to jump, and he follows up with a sizeable, "Fire Style: Dragon Fire Technique!"

Despite the worry in his heart, Asuma frowns, commenting that, "A Great Fireball would have been more effective."

The Dragon Fire stream runs along the ground, and sure enough ends up splitting into separate, smaller streams.

The puppet with Ino in it dodges the stream of fire, giving off the impression that fire is its weakness.

But the Suna kid with Ino is not so dumb, wood is naturally weak to fire but Suna crafts are all made purposefully fireproof.

A stream like that wouldn't leave a mark – just the reflex giving the wrong impression to use against the opponent they aren't meant to win.

Lee launches back into the fray, landing a heavy hit on the puppet master, and to everyone's surprise, the arm snaps clean off.

Sasuke's kunai barely makes it in time to clash with launched senbon, no doubt laced with chakra.

The Taijutsu adept withdraws quickly to regroup, but the one-armed puppet grabs hold of his leg, yanking hard.

That arm gives rather than the leg composed of pure muscle, but Ino's puppet pins him in time, a hoarse voice from the puppet master tells his partner to, "Now!"

She slips out from the opening at the base of the spider and presses her hands to Lee's forehead, yelling, "Mind Body Capture Technique!"

Ino looks up at the stands, and Asuma swears, that girl smirks at him.

Kankuro-san tumbles out of his half-wrecked puppet, high fiving the blonde, and summons another puppet, hopping back into it.

"One more," there's a sense of audience shock, and the pair begin to press the Uchiha.

However, his eyes have turned red and his movements speed up.

Foolishly, choosing to grapple with a puppet body, he copied Lee's moves, launching himself and Ino's puppet into the air.

He lights multiple explosive tags, stuffing them into the gaps of the puppet body, leaving Ino only to drop out of her protective shell.

While she lands gracelessly, her partner rushing over to guard her, Sasuke jumps off and runs down the wall, displaying perfect mastery of the tree walking technique.

He hauls Lee's body out to the side of the arena, trying to wake him.

"It's no use, Lee's mind is up here," Ino taps the side of her head, and Kakashi spares him a curious look.

"Mind partitioning, that's what Ino has been doing the past month."

Sasuke crosses the gap between opponents scarily fast, breathing a stream of flame to split them both up.

It's clear who his target is.

Kakashi shrugs, "Well, if this is a conscious technique, a knockout will give Sasuke back his partner and put Ino out of the battle."

Shikamaru looks up at him.

"A spectating mind is as alert as an acting one."

He then looks to Asuma, "Ino can't win this one, can she?"

Chouji has paused in his eating.

Ino without a puppet and a half-twisted ankle retreats as quickly as she can, trying diversionary tactics from kunai to shuriken to blast tags, but the boy with his Sharingan can dodge all those.

Her back hits the wall, and he knocks her out.

At the same time, Kankuro is in hot pursuit, whacking the Uchiha heavily aside just moments after his partner is hit.

Sasuke smacks into the wall with a nowhere near satisfying thud, and he gets up shakily.

Finally, a green blur slams straight into the last standing puppet body and it cracks.

Lee regains his balance slowly, trying to clear his muddled head, no doubt hurting with a headache, but the puppet doesn't upright itself.

Given a moment of brief silence, and the match is settled.

"Opponents have 5 seconds to get up, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. First match is over, winners are Rock Lee and Uchiha Sasuke! Medics, please," Hayate signals for the medics to roll in, and collectors pick up the bits of puppets that are still recognisable.


"Next match, Haruno Sakura, Hyuga Neji, Akimichi Chouji and Nara Shikamaru."

The audience has near certainly sated its fill of action – Asuma is glad.

Having just had one student whacked out of commission, he isn't all for his other two being thrown out of fighting just like that.

Shikamaru is sneaky, Chouji is loyal.

Sakura and Shikamaru are close, but Asuma knows that she isn't the type to forfeit for such things.

The match is near lacklustre, with the Hyuga pulling a fast one on Shikamaru who was never too strong at hand-to-hand at any rate.

Even the coiling wires around his wrist cannot stop him before he seals off the tenketsu in Shikamaru's hands – that's no more jutsu and a pretty heavy blow to Shika, who is after all, their team's immobilising force.

Even not counting the pain, Asuma fully expects Shikamaru and Chouji to surrender.

Sakura is playing with Chouji, not using any of the Chakra Chains that he knows she has.

Kakashi doesn't speak much of it, but the Medics that Kurenai hangs out with are always hung up over them.

She clashes evenly with Chouji, disengaging from his heavier blows, favouring hitting faster and lighter.

That girl could almost twin with the Hyuga, in her matching, but grey yukata.

She shakes her sleeve, and Asuma hears himself yell out, "Be careful, Chouji!"

It's no use in the end, since she stabs him with a capsule full of -likely- sleeping drug.

Shikamaru is not taken off guard by Chouji's defeat, focussing on tightening the noose of his wire traps, each limb that comes near him is given another.

Because the Hyuga isn't looking for wire, he doesn't make anything of Shikamaru's constant 'misses'.

Finally, when his coil runs out, he ducks, allowing the Hyuga to overextend.

He pulls harshly, and the audience can hear cloth rip.

Shikamaru bends down to knot the wire mesh to a loop across his opponent's back.

Standing with the Neji boy behind him, he turns to face Sakura.

"Trade, nee-chan?"

Sakura nods in acceptance, and they make a large circle, before ending up next to their partners.

Shikamaru pats Chouji on the shoulder, before raising his hand.

"Examiner! We forfeit."

The pink haired girl cuts her partner loose and heals his cuts, supporting him as they move over to their opponents.

She kneels by Chouji's side, and likely accelerates his metabolism.

The chubby, loveable kid stirs awake, and Shikamaru hands him a bag of chips pulled from nowhere.

"The winners of the Second Match, Haruno Sakura, Hyuga Neji."

This set of opponents come to a peaceful reconciliation, Asuma smiles a "Thank you" at the girl when she walks past him.

And so, the last match comes down to this. Like this.


"Final match of the first round, Sabaku no Gaara, Uzumaki Naruto, Konoha no Tenten and Sabaku no Temari."

Naruto really doesn't leave time for them to size up each other, he and Gaara must have run over their strategy.

Sand swallowing him and rising to the top of the arena before it releases him.

He plummets towards the ground, yelling, "Mass Shadow Clone Technique!"

A swarm of clones descending, and the sand wraps around him, protecting him on his descent.

Maybe his mouth is open in awe at the sheer volume of clones, but Gai shakes his head.

The Suna ninja whips open her fan, showing a single purple circle.

Clearly, Naruto's partner recognises the symbol, immediately pulling the real Naruto back towards him.

"Ninja Art: Sickle Weasel Technique!"

The wind to them sounds like a low hum, but as a Wind user, Asuma recognises the tell-tale signs of a manmade vacuum.

All of those clones disperse without a fight, and the pair of females rush their enemy.

Gai's student whips out a scroll, unravelling it with a flourish. A storm of kunai and shuriken empty themselves out.

Her partner follows up, further opening her fan to reveal another circle, "Ninja Art: Shrieking Gale!"

And hidden by the howling wind, the whistle of the speeding weapons – Naruto looks unfazed, and his partner merely raises a hand, a huge sand wall raising itself to guard them.

Asuma, over the sound asks Gai, "Did your student train specifically for an ultimate defense ninja?"

His eyebrows are furrowed, those bushy caterpillars, but he nods slowly, "They trained specifically for a sand defence. But if he is able to do this then that boy must be Kazekage-sama's youngest child…"

"The Jinchuuriki of the Ichibi."

Kakashi cuts in smoothly, and Asuma grimaces before he can stop himself, "Irony."

Gai's hands are clasped.

Even he has heard horror stories of Suna's Sand Monster.

Weapons digging into the sand shield, but unable to penetrate, even more falling to the base of the shield.

The determined look on Tenten's face, and the seal she makes, timed with the fan user fully opening her fan to reveal a third purple circle, and a storage seal.

Small tags on all the weapons light up, and streams of explosive tags flow out of the store on that fan.

"Ninja Art: Gentle Breeze."

Calmly, intoned, and the tags are pressed against the surface of the sand.

The females timed it perfectly.

From the side, the Suna female gives her fan a final flourish, "Ninja Art: Great Sickle Weasel Technique!"

And as the first gust of wind kissed the sand wall, a clap of hands, "Explode!" – The sand shield was enveloped in a tornado of flames.

Like a pillar of light rising to the heavens.

The Suna female uses her fan to propel she and her partner as far from the flame as possible, at the same time urging the fire to rage further.

Tenten presses her hands to the ground in front of them, and a short earth wall rises to shield them from some heat.

She unseals another scroll, and water pours out of it.

As if the Exam were a matter of comfort, and the Kazekage's daughter whips up a gentle wind current to scatter the water into their vicinity.

When the flames finally die down, the dying light of the sun is scattered by a huge construct of glass, towering thirty metres high.

Naruto is supporting his partner who looks only slightly winded.

They are unscathed by the flames, and begin their approach towards their opponents.

Temari hands Tenten a kunai, and the opponents clash in earnest for once.

In contrast, both females have expended far more chakra and energy.

A kick floors Tenten and Naruto clones soon have her pinned down.

The last girl standing however, drops her fan to the side, as if in surrender, and throws her arms around her brother's neck.

The boy would have recoiled, but he looks simply confused.

Without any more sand to protect him, ah, so that was what they were going for…

Naruto must understand something the audience cannot, and the girl murmurs something even the microphones can't pick up.

She closes her eyes, and the red-headed 'Monster' catches his sister, before laying her down beside her partner.


"I'm sorry to disappoint you, Gaara."

"I'm not gonna get promoted, and Father won't be happy, but I wanted a chance to hug my little brother."

"Tenten-chan was kind enough to go along with my plan."

"I don't want to be afraid of you anymore, Gaara. Nee-chan loves you, hm?"

"Temari."

She smiles, almost expecting to die.

"Yes, otouto?"

"Rest well… Nee-chan."

She smiled, eyes wet and heart warm.

"See you soon, Gaara."


The Mind Body Capture is a random creation of mine, meant as above the Mind-Body Switch, but below the Mind Body Disturbance.

Basically, you use your own mind to capture someone else's, and imprison them with your will power. Original!Sakura if attacked by this technique would lose her outer, then Inner would take over her body. Ino cannot hurt someone using this technique, but she can put them out, to afterwards kill them as necessary.

I know, when you read the battles, it's obvious who will win, but I at least, wanted Ino to go out with a bang.

The Ino I have here is not too crazy over Sasuke anymore (cough) not that she ever really was, and hey, the Yamanaka clan's mind techniques are pretty cool.

Also, I don't want any of the characters to get curb stomped, I think it's unfair and too OP for anyone here to get curb stomped.

I know, I know I'm the ass who pits siblings (Sakura & Shikamaru, Temari & Gaara) against each other, and I said I didn't want to, but the random generator did it so I forced myself to write it.

While I am sure the second match could have been more exciting, I didn't want to drag it out too much, for fear that it would end up affecting their future friendship.

Sakura and Shikamaru are still very much bros.

But… I am quite pleased at how my Temari and Gaara one came out. I accelerated their reconciliation :)

In case anyone is confused, first half is Naruto POV, and the second is Asuma's. Even though Asuma's character is still rough and coarse at times, he is a devoted sensei, I hope his occasional commentary was able to carry his personality through.

I will try to be constant with the jutsu naming styles.

I gave Temari a couple of new techniques I can't find on the wiki, but I think are quite reasonable, I hope you all don't mind too much!

"Why did Tenten run out of weapons so early that Temari had to give her a kunai?"

(smile quietly)

They didn't want to die, you know?

That was their last and final stand, turning all of his sand into glass was their only plan.

That… is the summation of Gaara's murderous relations with people.

Lastly, writer apologises for being a little bit late this time round…

This is a fake holiday month that is pretty much a study month. I had to go to school every day for the first week of holidays, and couldn't write as much as I wanted.

However, I will stay constant to the once-a-month style update.

In between, I will reply to all reviews that appear as often as possible.

Guests, please look out for my reply and thanks in the next chapter!

At this kind of time, where I made myself a bit melancholy with the last bit, thank you all once again for reading, reviewing and being here with this writer who has commitment issues and writer block.

Looking forward to hear your feedback and thoughts!

How should I conduct the next round of battles?

Kayo.