Disclaimer: Don't own so don't sue me!
Author's blabbering: I've just realized how difficult it is to be in college. Really! I did say I'm going to answer your reviews in this chap, ne?
Asura of Love: Thanks as well! Glad you like the plot.
Lysapot: Your nickname is really interesting! Where did you get it? Anyway, thanks!
TheGurlWithNoName: Yes, Lee is a Jounin… Did you misunderstand it? Actually, I forgot to include that in Sasuke's argument with Kankuro. Sorry… Really? Er, I can't help it. I'm on the side of the kunoichis! Oh, and yes, I've seen the pic… The chap is around 238 I think… It's somewhere there… About Shika-kun's love life? Er, I think he likes Ino (you know, that comment he dropped when Sasuke suddenly arrived for his match with Gaara. "Wala na naman akong kwenta ngayong dumating na si Sasuke.") Well, he and Temari looks great too, but I doubt they're canon.
Kumii-chan: I've always imagined how Sasuke would look like if he's jealous… It's probably the I'm-going-to-kill-you-if-you-try-to-mess-with-me look! I'm not much good with NaruHina plots so I'm trying to make it sweet and innocent.
Brokenxrequiem: Yeah, more Nejiten fluff! I like that! Thanks!
Animefreak-shinobi: I had to eat a lot of marshmallows and drink gallons of Swiss Miss just to get the fluff done… No, really. They're like my food supplement whenever I run out of ideas.
Moonlightpath: Why can you wait for you? (-.-) I just don't get it…
Annie The Pipster: Thanks, and I'm really trying my hard! Still, glad you like it!
Naruhina lover: I'm trying my best not to make Naruto so stupid-looking but still not make him too OOC… Please don't get angry with me.
So that's it for now… I'm going to answer your reviews if I have time, okay? Like today, it's a weekend so I have plenty of time! (Actually, I'm supposed to be practicing my pistol marksmanship but who the heck cares, right?) Anyway, this is just a short chap, shorter than the usual since it's just a filler and I couldn't think of any idea right now. Still…
CHAPTER 6: DAY 4 — A SATISFYING CHALLENGE
Tenten stared at contraption in front of her. Neji and the others stared as well. All at the same time, their eyebrows twitched in annoyance, frustration and pent-up rage. Some feet away from them, the Sharingan was also experiencing the same kind of emotions inside them: annoyance, frustration and pent-up rage. Not a really good combination, especially when matched with the Sand and Leaf shinobis.
"What—What—What—" the weapons mistress spluttered, her face turning red. "WHAT THE HELL IS THIS STUPID MACHINE? AND WHO THE HELL THOUGHT OF THIS RIDICULOUS IDEA AGAIN?"
Just like before, the Jounins, all at the same time, pointed at the ever-innocent-looking Maito Gai. Tenten clenched her fists which were slowly creeping to her kunai holster to pull out several weapons from the bottomless pouch.
"It's too early to kill, sweetie," Temari said with a yawn. Again, they were woken up quite roughly and rudely (loudly for the Sharingan team since Gai was practically shouting himself hoarse over the megaphone, ranting something about youthful energy during the morning) and were dragged to the designated beach, still looking like zombies.
"Fine!" Tenten muttered, forcing herself to cool down and letting her homicidal aura go away.
Tsunade, who still stood on top of the platform, eyed the murderous-looking shinobis. She could even feel and hear their chakras simultaneously seeping out of their system like some aura, and crackling in the air like lightning. She unconsciously stepped backwards, bumping into Jiraiya.
"So, you do have a crush on me, Hokage-sama," the perverted hermit leered, earning a powerful and forceful punch that sent him flying into the large background behind them. "Okay, did someone get the plate number of the truck that just hit me?"
"How come you're still seven?"
Tsunade turned away from the swirly-eyed sannin and to the two kunoichis namely Tenten and Sakura. And the moment Neji and Sasuke heard the comment from the weapons mistress, they immediately turned around, surveyed the other group (Neji) and smirked at the other (Sasuke), before actually participating in a glaring match. The two girls looked at each other then at the two boys.
"I just asked a question," Tenten said, shrugging her shoulders. "I didn't know it will be this dangerous to ask one."
"Maybe you shouldn't have asked it too loudly," Sakura told her and they both nodded. Neji glared at her darkly as if she just said something wrong. "W-Well, it was Tsunade-sama's idea… I mean, she told us there'd be no elimination for us first because—"
"You're the Hokage's favorite student?" the Hyuuga prodigy said sarcastically and Sakura turned pink. "I should've known!"
"You know, Neji, I'm sure it isn't like that—"
"What? Can't believe we got through without losing a member, Hyuuga?" Sasuke smirked at the pale-eyed prodigy.
A cool smirk broke Neji's expression. "Ah, using your girlfriend's connection with the Hokage, are you, Uchiha?" Sakura turned even pinker at the remark. Tenten rolled her eyes. How much more immature can boys be?
Sasuke growled at this and pulled Sakura, who became the subject of the Hyuuga's piercing glare, behind his back. Tenten was also pulled behind Neji when the onyx-eyed prodigy decided to glare at her as well for no reason at all. The two kunoichis let out an exasperated sigh before extracting themselves from the vice-like grip of the two prodigies.
"All right, I think that's enough glaring for now," Tsunade cleared her throat; however the two boys didn't budge. They continued to glare at each other until…
"Sharingan!"
"Byakugan!"
"Uh-oh, I think this is getting out of hand…" Tenten commented, while walking back to Neji and tapping his shoulder apprehensively. "Hey, hey! Neji, c'mon… Just ignore him." She then tried to pull him but the Hyuuga just wouldn't move. "Any help, guys?"
On the other group, Sakura was doing the same, persuading the Uchiha avenger to just ignore Neji and all.
Tsunade whipped around at the Jounins around them, giving them a 'stop-them-now-or-I'll-make-sure-to-cut-your-salary-in-half look'. Almost immediately, the Jounins appeared beside their students, Kakashi and Kurenai holding back Sasuke while Gai had his hands on Neji's shoulders.
"Okay, enough testosterone, guys," Kakashi said lightly. "The air is actually reeking with them!"
The two boys slowly, unhurriedly settled down but were still glaring at each other. Tsunade looked at the both of them warily, wondering if the storm was already over. Nope, not even the Hokage would want to get involved in a fight between the geniuses of the two most powerful families in Konoha, both top-ranking shinobis with bloodline limits, cursed seals and weird eyes. Nope, not a good idea! Who knows what damage they could do to the entire world?
A few minutes of silence passed…
"O… kay…" Tsunade started again, clearing her throat while holding the megaphone to her mouth. "So… Let me just clear this thing up with Neji's group, all right? I just decided that if we started eliminating last night, then we won't be able to finish the 39-day period of the mission. We're trying to follow the system here and it says that we need 39 days to complete this mission—"
"So that just means that there would also be no elimination on the 6th day," Shikamaru said lazily, waving a hand to fan himself. "Because then we'd only be spending 37 days here, including the final night. Am I right?"
Tsunade smiled at the 200 IQ shinobi. "Yes, that's just about it, Shikamaru." Actually, she never thought that the elimination should only start on the ninth day. She never knew that starting on the sixth day would mean that they'd be 3 days short. She cleared her throat again, not wanting them to notice her awkwardness. AHokagenevermakesmistakesAHokagenevermakesmistakes. "So… the Kazekage would explain the mechanics for the next challenge."
A hand shot up in the air and Tsunade sighed at Naruto, fighting the urge to place a hand over her eyes. "What's the prize for this challenge?"
"Ah, well… Just the immunity," Tsunade replied.
Shikamaru let out another yawn. "You know, I think it's pointless to even fight for the immunity since there'd be no elimination anyway."
"I agree!" Temari raised a hand in the air.
The other shinobis nodded and agreement and decided to just go back to their respective beaches to spend another boring day. As they were about to mount their rafts (they stole it from the previous challenge) to go back to their beaches, Tsunade started another loud, ear-shattering rant on the megaphone.
"JUST WHERE THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE GOING, YOU SPOILED BRATS?" she shrieked, creating that teeth-smashing noise again. The shinobis froze; stuffing their fingers inside their ears to protect their sensitive eardrums. "YOU ARE NOT GOING ANYWHERE ON THIS ISLAND! YOU ARE STAYING AND YOU WILL FINISH THIS GODFORSAKEN CHALLENGE! DO YOU HEAR ME?"
"Loud and clear, Hokage-sama," the group muttered dully, walking back to their former places in front of the weird-looking contraption with their team color and emblem.
"Eew," Naruto sneered at his group's emblem, painted on one side of the red contraption. It was the three black dots (can someone tell me what they're called?) that could be seen in the Sharingan eyes. Sasuke glared at him. "Who chose this emblem? It sucks!"
"You have a problem, brat?" Jiraiya shouted over the megaphone he had just snatched from Tsunade.
On the other group, Tenten was trying to restrain a freaking, murderous-looking Hyuuga Neji as he activated his Byakugan and glared, and I mean GLARED, at their group emblem. It was the silhouette of a bird, probably an eagle, perched on something that resembles a swing. Just add the silhouette of a cage and you get a homicidal, genocidal, 'I'm-going-to-kill-every-living-thing-I-see-that-reminds-me-of-the-branch-family' Hyuuga Neji.
"Who the hell decided on this emblem?" Tenten shouted as she held Neji's arms behind his back. Which was really difficult since the young man was taller, stronger and more well-built than her. Not to mention he's a guy.
"Why, it is I, my dearest blooming flower of mine!" Gai exclaimed, his eyes sparkling with unshed tears of what Tenten guessed were of joy, "I just thought that the symbol was a very good representation of your team spirit, youth and energy—"
But he wasn't heard anymore by Tenten and the others, mainly because they were too busy stepping away from the flaring, evil-aura-emanating Hyuuga prodigy who just directed his piercing, Byakugan-able eyes at the still-ranting Jounin. Even the other Jounins, Tsunade, Jiraiya, Shizune and Gaara stepped away from the Green Beast of Konoha so as not to receive physical damage as well.
BAMTHUDCRASHWHACK!
"64 Hands of Hakke!"
"Neji, what has gotten into you, my very brilliant stud—AHHHH! Neji! No! HELP!"
CRACKCRASHBAMWHAMTHUD!
A large cloud of dust surrounded the two Jounins as Neji inflicted pain and torture on his sensei. When the dust had settled, Neji was standing in the middle of a large crater with another hole in its center. Gai laid there, his eyes resembling a child's swirly lollipop.
Neji emerged from the crater, unscathed of course. He brushed the dust that settled on his hair and shoulders before returning to his group, looking as passive and stoic as ever.
"Wow… You really gave him a beating this time…" Ino mumbled, peering down the crater.
"GAI-SENSEI!" Lee was screaming, crying waterfalls of tears as he jumped into the crater and cradled his idol. "DON'T DIE, SENSEI! PLEASE DON'T LEAVE ME ALONE! DON'T DIE! PLEASE! SENSEI! ANSWER ME!"
"I didn't know Lee liked to watch clichéd movies," Kiba said to Shino, who, in reply, just pushed his glasses up his nose.
Tenten rolled her eyes at the screaming, howling, bawling taijutsu master before turning to Neji, "You didn't have to kill him, you know."
"I didn't," he replied flatly, "I just sealed his tenketsu points. That idiot (Lee) is just howling for drama—"
"YOU!"
The two Jounins turned to the third member of their team. Actually, everyone turned to him since he did make a loud exclamation, pointing his finger accusingly at the pale-eyed prodigy.
"YOU KILLED GAI-SENSEI!" Lee howled, his chakra flaring around him. Sakura was about to calm him down when Sasuke pulled her back, obviously concerned for her safety. Neji rolled his eyes and turned his back at him. "YOU SHALL PAY, MY ETERNAL AND MOST WORTHY RIVAL, HYUUGA NEJI! YOU SHALL PAY!"
"How much?" Neji sneered at him, "Is it for the hospital bill because, from what I know, Jounins usually have—"
"YOU SHALL PAY!" Lee was screaming again, even louder than Tsunade with her megaphone. "I SHALL DEFEAT YOU AND HONOR MY SENSEI'S DEATH! I SHALL DO THAT! YES, I SHALL DEFEAT YOU, MY ONE AND ONLY ETERNAL RIVAL, HYUUGA NEJI!"
Naruto had placed his hands on Hinata's ears, ignoring (or probably he just didn't notice) the glare Neji was sending him from the other side of the beach. Sasuke was still holding Sakura back from the crazy taijutsu specialist. Temari and Ino were both crouching on the ground, eyes closed and fingers inside their ears. Kiba and Akamaru, whose hearing senses (he's a dog, remember? Dogs also have ultra-sharp hearing senses) were ultra-sharp and sensitive, were twitching on the ground as pain shot up their brains. Kankuro was using his doll to place another set of hands on his already clamped ears. Tenten was screaming something but since Lee was louder, she could not be heard. Only Chouji (who was busy eating), Shino, Neji and Gaara were unfazed by the ruckus the green-clad boy was making.
Suddenly…
"LEE!"
The taijutsu master stopped then turned around slowly, dramatically, to face his personal idol. Tears started to flash-flood down his cheeks, "GAI-SENSEI! YOU HAVE RETURNED TO THE WORLD OF THE LIVING! I AM SO—"
That was cut short, of course, when Gai punched the boy forcefully, sending him across the sea. Lee hit the side of the yacht and splashed loudly as he fell onto the water.
Tsunade slammed a fist on the older Jounin's head, "You idiot! What if that boy made a hole on the yacht?" she screamed at him. "It'd sink and we would have nowhere to stay!"
"Is that so?" Sasuke smirked at the Hokage and the Jounins. The other shinobis must've caught his VERY loud thoughts and they all nodded in agreement. "Here's the challenge, whichever team sunk that yacht over there wins!"
"What's the prize?" Shikamaru asked, raising a dark eyebrow at the avenger.
Sasuke shrugged, ignoring the spluttering Jounins and Sannins. "Just the satisfaction of seeing their precious luxury yacht sink and them living on this hellish island as well."
"Now that's what I like!" Both Kiba and Naruto said, looking as if their Christmas had just come.
"An eye for an eye, huh?" Kankuro said with a lazy grin, settling Karasu on the beach.
"All right!"
"What the hell are you brats thinking!" Tsunade was PMSing again.
Neji motioned his team to come around and Shikamaru started explaining them the plans on how to sink the yacht easily. Sasuke did the same and both groups were huddled around for a minute. After a while, the Leaf and Sand shinobis all cheered before running off into the forest with lightning speed.
"What the hell—" Jiraiya muttered as wind blew over them. "I left the draft of my novel on the yacht!"
"What?" Kakashi exclaimed loudly, FINALLY pulling his nose out of the book he was reading.
"Those brats!" Tsunade was now being restrained by Shizune, Kurenai and Gaara's sand. "They won't get away with this, I swear!"
Asuma, who was watching the whole scene unfold in front of him, lit another cigarette. "You know, Hokage-sama, you shouldn't have mentioned the part where we won't have somewhere to stay when the yacht sinks."
"Shut up, Asuma!"
Both teams returned after some minutes, carrying several large logs. The Byakugan Team started constructing something that looked like a large catapult while the Sharingan Team was busy constructing a large cannon. Tsunade was spluttering as she witnessed the deadly weapons of mass destruction the shinobis were creating.
"You brats—" She was just about to attack them when she found out she couldn't move. Actually, all of them couldn't move. Why? Because of… "Kazekage-sama, why are you doing this?"
"Temari asked me to," the red-haired Kage replied simply, gesturing at his bright older sister. The blonde Sand Nin had 'invited' the Kazekage to stay over at their 'two-storey house' in case the yacht capsized.
Tsunade growled and gritted her teeth. There was no way she could escape, for if she did, then it would be taken as an insult towards the Kazekage's strength, which was not really a good idea.
"All right, pull!"
Team Byakugan had finally finished their catapult and Tenten cheerfully provided her chakra strings in place of the rubber cord they should have been using. Shino and Kiba had retrieved several large boulders that were sticking out of the ground and sea. And with the supervision of their personal strategist, Shikamaru, They were now pulling the boulders as hard as they could, aiming it towards the distant yacht.
"Five degrees to your right!" Shikamaru ordered with a yawn, calculating the range and the angle of projection to hit the ship. The group obeyed. "Pull!"
The Sharingan Team had already finished building their gigantic makeshift cannon out of a hollow tree trunk. Kankuro and Naruto both got several large boulders and stuck them inside the cannon. Using the explosives they have (I know ninjas use explosive sometimes… No, not those explosive seals but small bombs to confuse the enemy… Well, that's what I saw in the film I watched…), Sakura and Hinata emptied the gunpowder inside the cannon. Sasuke performed his hand seals then glanced at Neji who nodded slightly.
"FIRE!"
Sasuke shouted "Goukakyuu no Jutsu!" and started spewing fire from his mouth like a flamethrower thus igniting the cannon and firing the boulder. The Byakugan team, on the other hand, released their own large projectile. Both projectiles soared through the air and hit the yacht at the same time with a loud crash.
The shinobis cheered when the vessel exploded into bits and pieces.
Tsunade was cursing under her breath, her hazel eyes fiery and her 'unleashed-chakra-that-could-match-the-Kyuubi-and-the-Sand-Demon-and-Cursed-Seal-chakra' was surrounding her like fire. Jiraiya and the Jounins were cowering behind Gaara and Shizune. Not only did Tsunade resemble a demon, she was the demon personified!
Then, much to the shinobis' surprise and amusement, the Hokage started cackling like a mad man. Even Gaara looked warily at her.
"Hah! Like you could destroy that!" she scoffed, sneered and everything in between, "In just a second, the ANBUs of Konoha will come to repair my destroyed yacht! You can destroy it all you want but my ANBUs will take care of it and repair it!"
As if on cue, the proud ANBUs of Konoha were soon skimming the blue waters towards the remains and ruins of the once grand yacht of the Godaime of Konoha. After a few minutes, one of them, probably their leader, skimmed towards the beach to Tsunade.
He threw a perplexed glance at the catapult and cannon of both groups then a more perplexed look at the weird long contraptions discarded by the shinobis before turning to Tsunade. He looked even more perplexed, if possible, at the Hokage who was held captive on the legs by the sands of the Kazekage. Of course, as a professional, he pretended not to have noticed anything.
"Hokage-sama, Kazekage-sama," the ANBU greeted both Kages with a reverential bow. "Your yacht has been destroyed."
"Wow, you're actually good at stating the obvious," Jiraiya shot back dryly and the ANBU looked embarrassed. "Tsunade, you must be proud!"
"Shut up, hentai!" Tsunade snapped at her white-haired teammate then raised an eyebrow at the ANBU. "Anyway, how long will it take you to repair that boat?"
"Well, judging from its remains, we could say two weeks," the ANBU responded stiffly. Tsunade growled at the grinning shinobis. "What happened to it? Were you ambushed?"
"No," Jiraiya interjected flatly. "Those guys did it!"
The assassin looked at the grinning, waving and cheering shinobis of Konoha and Suna. "Them? But they look…young?"
"You shouldn't be deceived by their looks, you know," Tsunade said matter-of-factly. "Those brats are like devils themselves! They're even worse than the Kyuubi!"
Another ANBU appeared, carrying a cataleptic Lee. "We found him floating with the ruins of the yacht, Hokage-sama ma'am." Tsunade waved him away to Gai who was now howling and crying ("WHAT HAVE I DONE TO YOU, MY BELOVED STUDENT OF MINE?").
"So… What about my yacht?" Tsunade asked through gritted teeth. She couldn't wait on this goddamned island for two weeks! She needed the bar and lounge of the yacht and its mahjong, pool and poker tables! She needed it all! She hadn't beaten Jiraiya at poker yet!
The ANBU looked harassed. "We'll try to repair it in just a week, ma'am!"
"Three days!"
"One week, ma'am."
"Four days!"
"One week, Hokage-sama." The ANBU let out a heavy sigh.
"Five days and that's final!"
Jiraiya waved a hand at Tsunade. "Give your ANBUs a break, Tsunade," he stated nonchalantly. "One week is better, compared to two weeks, you know."
"Tch, fine!" Tsunade muttered, clenching her fists. "But you better make me a house, like the one those brats have!"
"Oh, you mean a shed?" Kakashi stared at the Hokage mildly.
"That is not a shed, Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura screeched from a distance and the silver-haired ex-ANBU grinned at her lazily. The pink-haired kunoichi grumbled at him.
Tsunade threw an 'Are-you-kidding-me' look at the Jounin. "No, of course not!" she retorted. "I want a real house!"
"Well, Hokage-sama—"
"What now?" she snapped at the ANBU who winced automatically at her voice. Even ANBUs get terrified of Tsunade. "Don't you dare tell me you can't build a house in just a few hours because those brats built one days ago in just a few hours!"
"Y-Yes, Hokage-sama!" The ANBU bowed again before disappearing in a puff of smoke.
Tsunade was about to turn back to the younger shinobis, cackling and boasting about her yacht, when she found them chatting brightly as some of the boys pulled the raft ashore. They were already preparing to go back to their beaches.
"Hey! Hey!" Again, she was being ignored by the group. But no one ignores the Hokage and gets away with it though. "OI! YOU BRATS BETTER COME BACK HERE!" They all turned to her; eyebrows raised.
"What?" Shikamaru asked lazily. "We can go now, right? It's not like there'd be something important to say."
Tsunade looked murderous now. She couldn't believe her prized shinobis (minus Temari and Kankuro of course) were answering back at her now. Hadn't she raised them well?
No, apparently not. You were too busy gambling and drinking sake!
"We'll postpone the challenge for tomorrow," she told them and there was a collective groan from the group. "No complaining, no whining, no protesting, nagging, objecting or nitpicking! Am I understood?"
"Hai…"
"Fine! Go now!" she said, shooing them away with her hand. "Go and leave us here in peace!"
Naruto stuck out a tongue at her. "You were the one who bothered us first, Baa-chan!"
"Go now, you brat, before I kill you!"
Temari waved at her younger brother. "Gaara, are you coming?"
The red-haired Kazekage shook his head slightly, his face impassive, "No, Temari, I will stay here." The blonde Nin cocked her head to one side in inquiry and Gaara just nodded slightly. "I am the Kazekage."
"Okay, whatever you say!" She waved back brightly at him before joining her team on the raft. She grinned at them, whipping out her fan. "Ready?"
After the two teams had gone back to their beaches, Tsunade let out a sigh then started to walk down the platform… Only to realize that Gaara was still holding down their legs with his sand.
"Kazekage-sama, why aren't you letting us go yet?" she asked evenly.
Gaara stared at her like she had just asked the question with the most obvious answer. "Temari hasn't told me to let go of you yet," he replied dully before folding his arms across his chest. Tsunade groaned loudly at the young man's justification.
Kakashi grinned at all of them, his book still in front of his face. "Don't worry, I'm sure it's a nice experience to sleep while standing!"
There was another collective groan, this time, coming from the Jounins and sannins.
"Just shut up, Kakashi," Tsunade snapped, holding a hand to her temple. "You're not helping at all!"
"I'LL HELP LIGHTEN THE MOOD OF OUR GROUP! I SHALL SING FOR YOU ALL!" Gai volunteered and before anyone could protest, he started singing loudly in an off-key tune and voice. "99 KUNAIS ON A WALL… 99 KUNAIS ON THE WALL… TAKE ONE…"
"This is going to be a VERY long night!" Shizune remarked brightly.
"I second the motion!" Kurenai, Tsunade, Asuma and Jiraiya replied at the same time.
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