Naruto Fan Fiction!
Adventure! SI-OC!
(Title)
"A Song for Them"
A/N: Yahoo! Annnd we're back! Alright let's start off with a fight re-cap from Sasuke's POV, because he was one of the few people actually paying any attention to the Hinata/Neji and Tenten/Kankurō fights. Let's GOOO!
DISCLAIMER: I do not own 'Naruto' or any of the cannon characters! Therefore I cannot be responsible for their actions.
WARNING! RATED M! I've decided thanks to all you lovely people who addressed my concern in the last chapter, thank you for that. So here we have it! We will have blood, violence and foul language!
Exam Deux Arc,
Chapter Thirty-Eight: "Monsters Afoot"
"Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger, anger, leads to hate, hate leads to suffering." -Yoda
"Withdraw. This fight is already over." Neji announced. It was unnecessary in my opinion, any idiot with eyes could see it was obvious Hinata was fighting a losing battle. The difference in their skill levels was too far. I exhaled through my nose, leaning forward on the railing to rest my arms.
This was a waste of time.
From beside me, Naruto growled under his breath and walked off, causing me to look away from Hinata, who was struggling to stand again and see what he was up to along with a few others. He went to the back wall, crouched by an unconscious Sora and then began shaking her by her shoulders. "Wake up, Sora-chan!" he shouted in her ear.
Kakashi sighed, "Hey... you probably shouldn't-" Naruto then covered her mouth and held her nose. "H-Hold on!"
"Idiot!" I snapped, "What do you think you're-"
"Hinata and Sora-chan are good friends!" he shouted at us, still suffocating her, "And I know that Sora-chan would want to be awake for this more than she'd want to be asleep 'ttebayo!"
Before anyone else could pull the Idiot away, Sora's eyes snapped open and she gasped for air as Naruto quickly pulled his hands away. She blinked rapidly, chest heaving and probably trying to understand what was happening right now. Naruto forced her to look at him.
"Hinata's fighting Stick! Get up!"
Sora blinked once more before she nodded jerkily and hurried to push herself up, her hand slipped against the wall as she did and Naruto ducked down, wrapping her arm around his neck before pulling her up to her feet. They both moved towards the railing, Sora scowled at the scene before inhaling deeply and raising her fingers to her lips.
"PPPPPPPPWWWWHHHEEE!" she whistled loudly, drawing both the Hyuuga's attention along with everyone else in the room. I took a step away from them as Naruto began shouting as well.
"YOU CAN DO IT, HINATAAA!" the Idiot cheered. Kiba looked at them both in disbelief. I couldn't believe them myself. Hinata wasn't going to win this, it didn't matter how much they cheered her on. It was just embarrassing. He then cursed under his breath and turned back to the fight.
"HINATA! KICK HIS ASS!" he shouted. I shook my head in exasperation. If they wanted to act like fools then I wasn't going to stop them.
Hinata was smiling now as she faced her cousin again. "I... I don't go back on my word! That is... also my ninja way!"
Ah. That explains it.
They began trading blows again, Hinata noticeably slower than the first time. Neji deflected each of her strikes as if the were nothing he knocked her to the ground again and Hinata kept getting back to her feet, wheezing and spitting up blood. They exchanged a few quiet words, something Hinata said caused Neij to charge again but she coughed up blood once more, she began to fall backwards. He stopped in his tracks and she hit the ground.
"Winner, Hyuuga Neji!" the referee said hurriedly. Naruto and the other's leapt over the railing, Sora stumbling on the landing as they ran to Hinata's side. Team Eight's sensei was down there soon enough, too.
The Sharingan stopped spinning in my skull and my vision returned to normal, my eyes resting on Neji. He had cut off her chakra to stop her from using it. I'd seen the her pathways to her hands be blocked before these very eyes, how his chakra had entered her body and brushed against. The Byakugan is formidable. Kakashi had said that it can see something even the Sharingan couldn't, the body's tenketsu points. A single touch and it can damage their opponents internal organs.
At the beginning of the match Lee had admitted that he had lied the first day we met. That the 'strongest leaf genin' was actually that guy, Hyuuga Neji. Even I... I tightened my hold on the railing, feeling an electricity run up and down my spine. Kakashi had said it himself, you can't train your insides. I shifted my weight on my feet, even though my body still ached I felt restless all of a sudden. The corner of my mouth pulled up in a grin. I think... I was getting excited.
There sure were a lot of strong guys here.
I had only been listening with half-an- ear to what Neji was saying to my teammates -something about being losers?- but the next thing I know, the medics were attending to Hinata and Naruto was running towards Neji but Lee stepped in before he could get his ass kicked. Then Sora, who had not recovered yet, stood on shaky legs and began running towards the Hyuuga as well. I sighed, raising a hand to pinch the bridge of my nose.
Why is it that Lee is the smartest of the idiots here?
I narrowed my eyes at the Hyuuga as he subtly shifted his body into a aggressive position, ready to attack her. She got within a meter, her hand in a fist, before I felt Kakashi disappear from next to me and appear in the area. He easily threw Sora over his shoulder and walked back towards the stairs, ignoring how much she struggled. Lee said something quietly to Naruto below and he calmed down, unhappy, but he didn't make a scene like Sora as they trailed behind Neji on the stairs. Kiba however, practically needed to be restrained by his sensei before he could attack. That Hyuuga's better at pissing these guys off than Naruto is. He ended up making three enemies in one move.
"It's not happening." I heard Kakashi say, I glanced toward the back wall where he dropped Sora and saw her signing.
'Just one punch!' she said, whipping her head to glare at Neji. The Hyuuga was acting like he didn't see the dirty looks being shot his way. Kakashi sighed, folding his arms over his chest as he looked down at her.
"I could always take you to the hospital if you're really feeling so energetic...?" he trailed off, sounding a lot like a threat. Sora's mouth dropped open in a gape before she scowled up at Kakashi, crossing her arms over her chest and slumping against the wall. Sulking now.
"Now for the sixth match!" I looked up at the board as the names changed.
Kankurō vs. Tenten
The kunoichi from Lee and Neji's team leapt over the railing and the last guy from the Sand team walked down. Considering the general skill level of both their teammates, it'll be interesting to see how strong they are. "GOOD LUCK, TENTEEEEN!" I cringed away from the sudden shout right next to my ear. I glared at Lee who was completely oblivious.
The match was started and Tenten put distance between them, showing caution. Kankurō untied the bandages holding that thing on his back, setting it down and egging her to attack. She pulled out a wooden staff and spun it in her hands before she charged forward. He didn't dodge as she thrust the staff forward, smashing into... his face? There was the sound of wood snapping and I narrowed my eyes at the Sand nin, looking at his face closely. It was like it was made of wood.
"What the hell is that!?" the Idiot shouted, head whipping up to look at Kakashi. I was still watching the match closely as Kakashi explained that it was a puppet and that Suna was renown for it's 'Puppet Brigade' that was mostly active during the Second War. I'm pretty sure that the Idiot stopped listening halfway through. I noticed Shikamaru step away from the railing, towards Sora who hadn't moved from where she was sulking.
Lee's teammate, Tenten, was on the offensive now armed with a flail. After she unsealed it from a scroll using Fuinjutsu, she changed from attacking the puppet to attacking the wrapped item it had thrown down at the start. It turned out to be him, he ended up revealing himself when she threw out a barrage of kunai while keeping the puppet at arms length as it began to attack her in close-quarters. She kept after him, throwing weapons with her free hand to keep him off-balance and defending against the puppet when it got too close or in her way, disabling its... many hidden weapons when they came up. Projectile kunai from the mouth. Projectile senbon from the elbows. She had narrowly missed the concealed blades in the wrists but only got a cut across her arm before she jumped away, losing the flail to the puppet's mouth.
She wasted no time in unsealing another weapon, a kusarigama this time, shifting her focus from the puppeteer to the puppet. Swinging the weight on the end of the chain out and wrapping it around it's neck, she yanked it towards her and jumped over it's head. Behind it, she brought the sickle down on the joint of the left shoulder and pulled, dislodging it and causing it to fall to the ground. The next three or so minutes were spent like this, her slowly taking the puppet apart while throwing the occasional volley of shuriken or kunai that the puppet usually intercepts before it could get close.
Soon all six of it's arms were on the ground and Tenten looked exhausted, she turned back to Kankurō who lifted his hands. Then the puppet pieces around her feet raised into the air and each part started moving individually through the air. Tenten groaned and cursed under her breath as she swapped to a pair of tonfa and began dodging the flying limbs that revealed their hidden twelve-inch blades. I sighed, losing interest. Kankurō's reaction times were getting slower, I noticed, Tenten was doing better than him though. It seems the puppeteer is not suited to stamina battles, manipulating all these pieces at once must be a strain on his chakra as well.
"TENTEN! FEEL THE PASSION OF YOUR YOUTH!" Lee shouted suddenly, too close to my ear for comfort. "WE ARE HERE WITH YOU!"
"CHEER HARDER, LEE!" the older, creepier one shouted just as loudly.
"YES, GAI-SENSEI!"
Naruto groaned, covering his ears with his hands, "Damn, they're loud, 'ttebayo..."
From the looks of it, Kakashi and I agreed with him. Below, Tenten threw another volley of kunai. This time the Sand nin had barely stopped it in time from hitting him with the puppet's torso. Tenten smirked. One of the kunai lodged in the wood sparked, the explosive tag on it activating. Kankurō couldn't react in time and the puppet limb blew up, the force and proximity knocked him off his feet. The rest of the floating pieces fell to the ground in as he groaned on the floor and Tenten was quick to move in. She crossed the distance and planted a foot on the center of his chest, panting for breath but seemingly victorious.
"Surrender."
His fingers twitched, the puppet's head lifted off the ground and flew at Tenten's back, out of her sightline. Lee inhaled sharply, "TEN-"
She spun around, tonfa connecting with the head and batting it away, sending it crashing into the arena wall. Without giving Kankurō another chance, she brought the tonfa down on the side of his head -his temple specifically- and knocked him out cold. The referee called the match and they cleared the arena. The Sand jonin dismissed the medics, simply throwing Kankurō over his shoulder and depositing him near their team. I noticed with curiosity that of the Sound team, only that Loudmouth was left. His jonin was gone.
On our side of the room, Lee loudly congratulated his teammate and their sensei enthusiastically offered to take her to see about the injury on her arm but she just shrugged it off, saying it was nothing major. Naruto began chanting beside me about getting to fight next, causing Lee to do the exact same. I rolled my eyes at them both.
We watched the names change.
勝利 Victory
I… didn't know how to feel as I read those characters on the board. Surprise? Relief? Fear? So I didn't think about that, I focused on the facts. The facts were that it was the seventh match and there were only six people left, my eyes scanned to see who was still present. It Shikamaru had won his, as did Sasuke. I overheard Kiba griping about Shino losing which had surprised me, he can be tricky to fight. Hinata had... the back of my skull began to buzz again and I pushed it out of mind. Tenten had also beat Kankurō, leaving Naruto, Kiba, Chōji, Ino, Gaara, Zaku from Sound... and...
Akadō Yoroi vs. Rock Lee
I bit my lip and stood up, wobbling a bit on my jelly legs and using the wall as a support. The adrenaline from seeing Hinata... the adrenaline was gone now, leaving me feeling like passing out right here right now seemed like a very good idea at the moment. But, I still had matches to watch. Besides the low ache all over my body, passing out and the hardly able to stand part, I felt... good. Better than I have in days, in fact. It was a very good sign. Glancing down, I gave Shikamaru a grateful smile. I know how much he doesn't like going out of his way to do something he no doubt considered to be 'troublesome' but he still did try and... untangle things, with Ino and I. Cheering me up a bit while he was at it.
I took a tentative step away from the wall and nearly fell over. Nearly. Shikamaru, the dear boy, grabbed my wrist before I could topple over. With a sigh and an eye-roll he stood up and let me lean on him up to the railing. We joined the little crowding of what was left of our classmates -with Stick and Tenten off to the side, the jonin-sensei standing in-between- and I eagerly leaned on the railing, watching Lee bounce on the balls of his feet. Even without being able to actively feel his chakra, his obvious excitement was infectious. I couldn't help myself from grinning because of it.
All-in-all Lee's match was, by far, the fastest of them yet. It was actually a bit... underwhelming. I immediately felt horrible for thinking that, but... it was. His opponent -Kabuto's teammate- had some sort of chakra siphoning ability that failed in an embarrassing way when he tried to take Lee's chakra. Lee had been a bit startled to feel the drain at first but quickly followed up with less than a minute of the most fluid Taijustu I've ever seen, smacking the grown man down like a red-headed stepchild before proceeding to thank him for the fight as he was carried off in a stretcher.
"Winner, Rock Lee!" Hayate-san called. Lee's grin was blinding as him looked up at the balcony, at us. He exchanged a thumbs-up with a beaming Gai. Then his large eyes glanced at me, a hopeful look on his face that only grew even shinier when he caught my grin. I became flustered as well as confused, flattening out my grin as my cheeks warmed. He shouldn't be looking at me like that.
In an impressive bound, Lee flipped in the air an landed effortlessly on the second floor. I may or may not have squeezed a bit closer to Shikamaru when Lee walked by to bridge the gap in between Team Gai and what was left of the Rookie Nine, coincidentally standing right next to me. Also blocking my view of Neji though I'm sure that wasn't intentional on his part. I kept my rapidly warming face forward, elbowing Shikamaru when he smirked a little too wide for my liking, no doubt noticing my sudden awkward-induced stiffness and the constant bubbly smile on Lee's face.
This was so ridiculous.
Inuzuka Kiba vs. Yamanaka Ino
Kurenai-sensei shot Asuma-sensei a cocky look to which he didn't acknowledge outwardly. His chakra however was a bit miffed at her and a little-ugh. No. Mm-mm. Not going there. As natural and expected it is to have sexual tension between two adults, it is very not okay to feel it when it doesn't have anything to do with you. I'm not even kidding.
"Oi! Is he allowed to bring Akamaru down there?" the Hero asked.
Kakashi answered, "Yes, Naruto. Like insects and puppets, ninken are considered to be ninja tools, too."
His face scrunched up, "Eh? What's a 'ninken'?"
There was collective sigh.
"Shut up and watch the match, loser." Duckie griped. I tried to do the same, though I probably could've done better if I'm being honest. But it was already so hard to focus, my head felt foggy and paying much attention would be asking a little too much of me at the moment. Logically, I knew that Ino placed at the top of the class in the Academy and has probably improved her skills a lot since the last time I'd seen her fight, but... I'd already written this off as Kiba's win. Ino is good, yes. But Kiba is just better in terms of combat ability.
The sad truth is that Ino is good for a young kunoichi. This world encourages child soldiers and one of the most powerful people in the world is a woman that can literally move/obliterate mountains, both very true facts. But this was also the same world where father's still sold their daughters off to be married. The supremely rich had legal slaves, people who had willingly sold themselves into service in what I basically understood as a fixed-term lease. Rural farmers down in their luck gave a spare child away for a marriage endowment when the harvest wasn't good that year. Things that weren't suppose to be okay but were anyway because this was the world that depended on shinobi to protect them and kill for them. It doesn't actively happen in Konoha, not to my knowledge. Such acts were looked down upon as disgusting by the shinobi community as far as I can tell but... at the end of the day, we were killers for hire. What moral high-ground did we have?
My chest tightened.
"Tenten, are you feeling alright? You look pale..." I heard Gai say quietly, causing me to glance over along with Lee. I did a double take after seeing how Tenten's face was flushed and she was even sweatier than after her match finished.
She frowned, a dazed look in her eyes as she turned towards her teacher, "A-Actually, I-" she didn't get to finish as her eyes rolled into the back of her head and she collapsed. Lee shouted in alarm and Gai caught her before she could hit the ground, picking her up in his arms,
He looked at Scarecrow and spoke hurriedly, "I'm taking her to the medics." silently asking him something with his eyes and then he disappeared faster than my eyes could register. Beside me, Lee was set off in near-hysterics as he began to bombard Neji with questions of whether or not they should follow to see if she was going to be okay and my sensei stepped in, assuring him that it would do no good right now. Tenten was in good hands. I furrowed my brow in confusion. What even happened? She had been fine just a minute ago! I mean. the only difference that should've happened was who she fought-
Oh.
Suna… some Suna's greatest puppet masters were also known for their deadly poisons. I looked across the room, spotting a smug-looking Kankurō as he watched us, the side of his face swelling up with a bruise. He lifted his hand in a wave. In that moment it felt like he was mocking me more than anything. I felt my heart sink a little bit at the realization.
"ORAAAAA!" Ino's war cry rang out. There was still a fight going on, wasn't there? "Mind Body Switch Technique!" By the time I looked back down at the match, Kiba was backing away from a hostile-looking Akamaru now. Wait, what?
"Get the hell out of Akamaru!" Kiba snapped.
"Arr-rah! Araff!" Ino-?- responded, I think. Okay this is pretty weird, even for us. The next minute was spent with Kiba dancing around the arena, trying not to hurt his furred partner's body while Ino took full advantage of that fact and actually did some damage to Kiba. Things actually looked to be in her favor until he threw down a smoke bomb, obscuring her vision and he made a move for her real body.
He wrapped his hand around her ponytail and placed the blade-end of a kunai at the base of her skull. "Get out of Akamaru unless you want a new haircut!" Akamaru -Ino- stilled, she barked once and he cut a few strands at the nape of her neck as he pressed. "Try me. I don't think bald would be a very good look for you, but you never know... I just might take some off the sides-" he began to move the kunai up higher, creating a visible spot of missing hair and Ino yelped as she returned to her body.
"You asshole!" she snapped, the kunai now at her throat. She rolled her eyes before glaring daggers at Kiba's victorious smirk. "I forfeit!"
Kiba was declared the winner and they both climbed back up to the second floor. Shikamaru groaned, muttering something like Ino was going to be unbearable now. My eyes were firmly on the board, waiting anxiously. There were only two matches left. I held my breath as the characters changed once more.
Akimichi Chōji vs. Uzumaki Naruto
"YEAH!" the Hero shouted, fist pumping the air. "MY TURN!"
Relief was the most prominent emotion, without a doubt. I even let out a quiet breath, laying a hand over my racing heart as Naruto vaulted over the railing in his excitement. I blinked in surprise when I noticed the coarse fabric under my fingertips. Wait, what am I wearing? It was green with lots of pockets and looked a lot like-my eyes snapped over to my silver-haired sensei to only just now notice he was missing his jacket. When the hell did Kakashi give me his flak jacket!? I was torn between feeling incredible warm at the gesture and amazed at just how complete out of it I was and still am.
I settled on feeling happy and warm, that was a good plan. Almost as if he'd felt my eyes on him, said Scarecrow glanced over and I grinned at him, making a show of snuggling into the over-sized jacket he so graciously lent me. He rolled his eye at me and I idly wondered if this meant we were going steady now? Too bad he wouldn't get the reference, his face would be hilarious. I noticed with amusement how Sasuke slipped into the spot between Lee and I, leaving no space for Ino to stand beside him like she previously had been. He completely ignored the knowing look I shot him.
"Begin!" And all of my attention was back on my Hero, my nerves and excitement mixing together in an odd combination that had my fogged mind clearing just a little bit. This wasn't happening in the way that I knew, I didn't know what was about to happen.
Before, Kiba had been the one to face Naruto and lost but now it's Chōji, their fighting styles are completely different. Both are Taijutsu users, yes, but their personalities couldn't differ any more. Kiba revels in a good fight where Chōji usually can't stomach fighting someone he considers a friend. A thought occurred to me and I frowned, tapping Shikamaru's shoulder to get his attention.
'Will he actually fight?' I asked, thinking about how much Chōji never liked sparring practice back in the Academy. He never participated unless he absolutely had to and even then he would usually be skipping with the rest of us.
The Nara boy shrugged one shoulder as he leaned forward on the railing, "Not sure. Asuma-sensei promised to treat him at Yakiniku Q if he won, but whether or not he actually fights-"
"You better not hold back on me, fatso!" Naruto shouted. I saw an actual vein appear on Chōji's forehead as his usually kind expression twisted with rage.
"NARUTOOOO! I'LL KICK YOUR ASS FOR THAT!" the Akimichi boy roared, anger spiking in his chakra.
Oh, well that answers that.
Shikamaru smirked, placing his chin in his hand. "Naruto's really asking for it, huh?" I shrugged non chalantly, watching as Naruto's grin turned wild and Chōji's hands went into a seal.
"Expansion Jutsu!" In a burst of chakra, his body swelled up like a balloon. "Leaf-Style Taijutsu: Human Bullet Tank!" Chōji rolled, smacking right into Naruto who hadn't even bothered to try and move. His body went flying and he was sent to the other side of the room, skidding across the ground until rolling to a stop, face against the stone and unmoving.
"Too bad." Shikamaru announced, feeling only a bit of sympathy for our blonde and a lot more proud of Chōji. Duckie and I shared a look. A smirk pulling at his lips and a grin on mine. We were all friends here, yes, but now it was about the pride of Team Seven versus Team Ten... and we weren't about to lose.
Too bad was right. Bright and Breezy was starting to get revv'd up down there.
"A hit like that isn't going to be enough to get through that thick head of his." Sasuke declared, drawing odd looks from a number of people including our dear sensei. And sure enough, the dust settled and we watched as Naruto began to pick himself up off the ground, that hard-headed grin on his whiskered face.
"Was that all you got!?" he shouted, a line of red sliding down his brow. "You... you FAT-ASS!"
Chōji let out another yell of rage, his face going red as he seethed. He expanded again and his voice echoed off the walls as he spun at Naruto at full speed. "'I'M NOT FAT! I'M PLEASANTLY PLUMP!"
Naruto grinned and braced himself as Chōji slammed into him even harder than the first time, sending him into the wall below us with such strength that the floor trembled under my feet. We all cautiously leaned over the railing to see a cloud of dust where Naruto cratered into the wall. I winced in sympathy, feeling his chakra pulse and divide. When the dust settled Chōji's eyes widened as we all watched the Hero stumbled out of the rubble, wiping the blood leaking from his mouth with his sleeve.
He was still grinning.
"Don't underestimate me! I'm the man who'll become Hokage! Just watch!" Naruto shouted, unzipping the front of his jacket and reaching inside. His hand came back out and... ah... Naruto now had a bento in his hands, one of my bento's no less. He opened it and the scent of steamed pork dumplings wafted up.
Drool began to leak from the side of Chōji's mouth.
I blinked in surprise as Ino slapped a hand on her forehead with a groan. Oh, smack. I just realized that Team Ten missed breakfast, only barely making it in time for the deadline before noon. With only the wildlife and plants to eat over the last few days Chōji must be starving for a cooked meal right about now. We all watched as Naruto plucked one out of the buns out of the box, holding up for the room to see. Then he popped it in his mouth in the most teasing way possible.
"Mm-mmm!"
I slapped my hand over my mouth to hide my smile. That's low, Hero. A loud and sudden roar erupted from Chōji's direction and I couldn't tell if it was from his mouth or his stomach. Naruto's grin was foxlike in the best of ways.
He held the bento out further in front of him. "Want some?"
"...damn it." Shikamaru sighed beside me, my grin only grew. My Hero was so clever! I got the feeling that Terra rolled her eyes at my gushing.
Chōji charged forward wildly and Naruto threw the bento in the air, each of the buns flying in odd directions. Chōji moved faster than I've probably ever seen him as he dashed all around, catching the buns before they could hit the ground. He leapt up towards the last one in the air and-'poof!'-it exploded into a cloud of smoke and suddenly Naruto was there, swinging his leg down and planting his foot square in the middle of Chōji's head. The Akimichi boy shot down, releasing rest of the buns that also 'poof'd', revealing themselves to all be Naruto, too!
"The hell?! Did he just use shadow clone and transformation in combination?" Shikamaru squawked, eyes wide. I felt a small bit of satisfaction at his uncharacteristic shout of surprise. He looked at me with disbelief written on his face and my grin widened, "Since when can Naruto do something like that?"
Never underestimate my Hero.
"Now I'll end it with my new special technique!" the Hero shouted as he moved towards a dazed Chōji. Huh? Since when was he working on a new technique? On one side of me, Sasuke twitched, his annoyance rocketing as he watched. Beside him, a gaping Lee leaned over the railing so far I was worried he might fall over.
I had the feeling like I was missing something again.
The clones landed, running and running across the floor. "U-" Naruto brought a knee into Chōji's gut, hard, lifting his feet off the ground, "ZU-" the clones jumped up after him, "MA-" each kicking or punching, sending him up higher with every hit, "KI-" Chōji expanded in a last ditch effort. All the Narutos converged, twisting their bodies and swinging downwards. "-NARUTO BLITZ!"
Chōji bounced, very much like a rubber ball he rebounded off the ground from the force of Naruto's combined attacks, shooting straight up and slamming into the ceiling. We all looked up to look at the boy now stuck in the roof.
We all stared.
"Winner, -cough, cough- Uzumaki Naruto!"
I was the one -And the only one.- clapping the loudest before I leaned over the railing and whistled, a genuine giddiness in my chest that I haven't felt in a while. The Hero looked up at us, panting heavily and his hand in a thumbs up. After a bit of careful maneuvering and wall walking from Asuma-sensei and Hayate-san, they managed to get Chōji down safely. Good news is that his injuries were so minor that he didn't have to go with the medics either! Together the two boys and climbed back up the stairs with Asuma trailing behind them, Naruto with a bit more spring in his step as he received a few congratulations from the others.
"'Naruto Blitz?" Duckie drawled pointedly with an arched eyebrow, Naruto grin turned a bit predatory and Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the other boy. Sparks flew. Okay, so definitely missed something. Hazards of falling unconscious after an intense sealing session, I suppose.
Naruto turned his bright blue eyes to me and I grinned wide, 'You did incredible, Hero. You've gotten one step closer to the Hat.' A thousand-watt smile lit up his face and he barreled into my side, I ignored how I almost fell over way too easily and wrapped an arm around him and pulled him into a side hug.
"Naruto-kun! I must apologize for misjudging you!" Lee exclaimed suddenly as he bowed his head, causing Naruto to frown in confusion. "At our first meeting I had fallen under the assumption that you were not a very shrewd or prudent combatant and have since discarded that opinion! You are surprisingly crafty to come up with a strategy like you had!" he said very honestly. In the background Gai shed a Manly Tear and did a subtle fist pump, joyful pride practically washing off of him.
The Hero blinked a couple times before he grinned smugly, the first part of Lee's apology flying way over his fluffy head. "Yeah, well, you're pretty good yourself, Thick-Brows!"
…I just didn't have the heart to tell him Lee just said he thought Naruto was an idiot. I just pat his blonde locks. Lee's grin was wide as he turned to face Chōji next. "And you as well, Chōji-kun! It was an excellent fight from both sides!"
The Akimichi boy in question was sitting against the back wall with a little rain cloud over him, no doubt thinking about the pork buns that never were. Naruto tapped my arm and I took the hint, removing my arm and stepping back. I watched as my Hero walked up to the other boy and reached inside his orange jacket before pulling out... an extra lunch. A warm pride swelled in my chest as he held it out towards the Akimichi boy with a sheepish grin, his other hand rubbing the back of his neck.
"Sorry about what I said earlier. I just didn't want you to hold back, y'know?" he explained.
Chōji stared at the bento for a few heartbeats, almost uncomprehendingly. Then he began to tear up.
"N-Narutooooooo...!" he sobbed. Naruto just chuckled as Chōji eagerly took the lunch and opened it, relishing in the warm scent of omurice. I glanced around and saw smiles and surprised looks all around as they watched this... except for Stick. Because Stick was an asshole. The all too heartwarming moment was interrupted by a wave of unfocused Intent that spiked from the center of the arena and my eyes were drawn to a column of sand appearing below. My heartbeat picked up in speed as the air got a bit harder to breathe.
There was only one match left.
Abumi Zaku vs. Gaara
I didn't feel much of anything as I watched a very twitchy Zaku vault over the railing and face an agitated Gaara in the center of the arena. Only a bit cold, maybe. Funny. It was really hot earlier, wasn't it? I sensed more than saw Naruto slip into the place next to me, I was now flanked on both sides by my teammates. Their chakra did well to ward off Gaara's strengthening Intent, allowing me to breathe semi-freely.
"Ready?" Hayate-san asked. No responses, only glares. With a sigh, he lowered his hand. "Then begin!"
A blast of air ripped through the arena, hitting a wall of sand head-on. Zaku's twitchy eyes widened in surprise as the sand fell lethargically around Gaara's feet. Surprise filled the chakra around me, no one had really been expecting that to happen. Zaku did it again and again with the same luck as the first time, the sand keeping Gaara untouched. Then Zaku shouted suddenly and lurched backwards, without any apparent reason for doing so.
"Get the fuck away from me!" he lifted his hands with a panicked look on his face as pure fear began to wash through his chakra. His chakra spiked through his body and he let out another blast of air, stronger than that last time... that.. completely missed. He ended up shooting at the wall. Gaara hadn't even moved yet.
"Fucking think you can scare me, huh?! FUCKING DIE!" Zaku roared at Gaara, which, that was a really bad plan. He continued blasting shots of air around the arena, only sometimes get near enough to Gaara to hit an intercepting wall of sand. "GO TO HELL, MONSTER!"
I didn't understand what was happening.
Below us, Zaku continued to shout profanities, calling Gaara a monster among other things. I felt as Gaara's Hushed and Cool chakra steadily became hotter, wilder and brighter as it went on. The feeling of waiting to fall in... it was like standing on the edge now, like staring into a pit with no end. It made my head feel light and I had to lean on the railing to fight the dizzy spell that came over me. Anger began to rise in Gaara's chakra. Real anger. He lifted a hand and a wave of sand rose with it, shaping into a hand of it's own.
"Shut up." the red-haired boy said, his voice cold. The sand moved, reaching towards Zaku who scrambled and began to shoot off blasts of air in rapid succession. The attacks that actually did hit the sand dispersed it momentarily until it reformed and began to reach out again, most of the attacks landed nowhere near Gaara though.
"I don't get it! What's he shooting at? There's nothing there 'ttebayo!" Naruto asked as he squinted, trying to see what we all were missing. I was wondering the same thing myself. I also narrowed my eyes in an effort to see what Zaku was seeing, was it sand? Was that what I was missing? Could we just not see it from up here? If I thought it was his style, I'd almost think that Gaara had cast a Gen-
-my heart stuttered in my chest. A cold, cold feeling settling in my stomach. No... no, it couldn't be possible, right? It can't be what's happening right now. It just wasn't... possible. I heard Kurenai gasp in the background, confirming exactly what I feared.
"He's under a Genjutsu!"
My Genjutsu.
Show him true nightmares. A voice smooth, sweet, had whispered in her mind. She had been curious, and did as it instructed. Mixing her chakras and showing him her bleeding eyes.
A thrill shot up her spine as he collapsed on the forest floor..
I felt eyes on me but I couldn't look away from Zaku now. He was living in a nightmare I caused him, shooting at the monsters I dreamt about but weren't really there. I watched as he scrambled away from phantoms, trying to escape their grasp. He was completely oblivious to the very real monster inside the boy in front of him. Zaku spun around to attack an illusion only he could see, turning his back to Gaara and I felt a shout wedge in my throat, my mouth actually opened to scream at him to turn around as sand rose up around his legs and surrounded his body. The world seemed to slow as Zaku struggled uselessly in the sand as Gaara's-no, as Shukaku's chakra began to suffocate the very air.
Gaara closed his fist.
"Sand Coffin!" The sand compacted.
I felt more than watched as Zaku's chakra extinguish within Gaara's. Bloodied globs of sand exploded out, covering the floor. It happened so fast no one had stopped it by the time they realized Gaara wasn't going to be satisfied with simply immobilizing Zaku. There was a deathly silence that fell over the hall, as if no one even dared to breathe air so saturated in Killing Intent.
I felt nothing.
"Winner... Gaara." Hayate-san eventually announced.
I stared at the bloody smear on the ground that used to be Abumi Zaku of Sound. I felt the wrong inside my chest grow larger as it laughed at the nothing I felt inside my heart. I felt nothing. Nothing but relief that it hadn't been Naruto or Lee down there instead.
Gaara's teal eyes lifted to meet mine.
I felt cold.
Should Have Broken His Arms. She said.
I shuddered violently.
A warm hand intertwined with mine, the feeling of Bright and Breezy quieting the ringing in my ears and reminding me to breathe. My eyes lifted from the bloody smear on the ground to meet dazzling, worried blue orbs. I squeezed his hand back so tightly it probably hurt him. He didn't say anything, just held my hand.
"With this, the preliminary trials for the round three test has been completed!"
The events after that... kind of blurred together. I didn't hear it when we, the winners, were called down to assemble on the arena floor. I didn't even react as Naruto led me down the stairs, keeping himself in-between me and the bloody smear on the ground. I did notice how we had to tiptoe around the still-wet piles of sand spattered across the stone floor. As we lined up in front of the Sandaime, everyone kept a distance from Gaara, including Temari. Don't know why. He's calmed down now, his previously suffocating Intent was lifted after Zaku's body got smushed. He's fine now. I could hardly hear the words Hiruzen used to congratulate us over the ringing in my ears, just that he was more solemn then he should've been. I was completely out of it until l my hand was in a box, pulling out a small paper.
'2' was the number written on it.
"Now then, I'd like you to tell us the number on that paper in order, starting from the left." Ibiki-san said, holding up a clipboard.
"3!" Kiba.
"5!" Naruto.
I held up two fingers.
"10." Sasuke.
"...7." Shikamaru.
"8!" Lee.
"4." Neji.
"6." Temari.
"9." Gaara.
"That makes the last one, 1." Ibiki murmured, finished writing. Hiruzen announced that the next match-ups will be revealed and Ibiki-san turned the pad around and the brackets were shown. Each number was paired up with the next one, the exceptions being Lee and Kiba.
Match 1: Tenten vs. Sora.
Match 2: Neji vs. Naruto.
Match 3: Temari vs. Shikamaru.
Match 4: Gaara vs. Sasuke.
Lee was set to fight whoever won the Sasuke/Gaara match and Kiba would fight either me or Tenten before the second round of fights began. I... I was going to be fighting Tenten. Oh, well. I'm sure that's going to go over well. Then it's Naruto versus Neji. I felt satisfaction in that, a glance at Naruto's crazy wide and not too nice grin told me that he felt pretty much the same as I did. And Sasuke… jeez. Sasuke was just as excited as Naruto about the match-ups. Before Hiruzen dismissed us, Shikamaru asked for clarification about the tournament. If there was only one winner there then would there be only one person becoming a chuunin?
As the Sandime explained that we would be judged I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end, like someone's eyes were on me. I snapped out of my daze long enough to look around to find out if I was just imagining things. I wasn't. I was mildly unsettled to find it was Gaara's eyes that were on me. Why? Why was he looking at me? How long has he been doing that anyway? I tried not to get into another awkward stare off with the Ichibi Jinchuuriki and then we were all dismissed to train for the next month. Everyone went towards their respective jonin-sensei and the Hokage disappeared through a hall with Ibiki-san, Hayate-san, Scary proctor lady and a few other chuunin. I tried not to look at the bloody stain around us as a couple poor bastards came in to clean what was left of Zaku up.
Kakashi approached us and didn't even ask me if I could walk this time, he just turned around and crouched. I gave no resistance as I wrapped my arms around his shoulders and leaned my entire weight on his back, he easily lifted me up and all the Leaf genin left together as one group. Gai hadn't come back yet so the others assumed that he had to take Tenten to the hospital in the Village proper so Lee and Neji tagged along with us, Kurenai took Kiba to the medic station or wherever Hinata and Shino were and then it was just Asuma and Scarecrow in charge of us leaf genin.
It was mostly quiet on the way out of the Forest of Hell, everyone keeping their thoughts to themselves. Except for my Hero. He began pestering Kakashi the second we walked out the door, only to start bickering with Duckie when the Uchiha stopped Naruto from getting ensnared in a giant spider web. Then Lee tried to placate them, make them get along. Emphasis on tried. I pitied the poor boy, many have tried before him. I ended up passing out on the way back, trying to soak in the feeling of my family's chakra and not think about the very real monsters that were out there waiting for us.
Exam Deux Arc,
Chapter Thirty-Eight: "Monsters Afoot"
END
A/N: Tah-daaa! *Gasp!* Someone died! And there was no prior warning! I'm shocked. I take back everything I've ever said about Sasuke being a pain, fight scenes will be the death of me. *Gets on knees* Please, please, please don't make me do more! I promise to be good! …nah, I'm kidding. If the plot calls for a fight then I'll do it, lazy or not. Otherwise I'll just feel like something is missing. I'll despise every second of it but I'll do it, because you guys deserve only my best.
Okay, besides that-the matches! Did they live up to your expectations? Were they at least interesting? How about the finals? I changed up my original match-ups at the last second because I totally believe that they weren't randomly chosen, figuratively speaking, and that each match-up was planned for the best sell factor. Going by this I rearranged them logically. What would be the most entertaining to see? Why not two Fuinjutsu specialists? Originally I had Sora vs. Kiba and Shikamaru vs. Tenten. What do you guys think?
I'd like to say more but I'm gonna cut this A/N short because I need to get this posted! Thanks, as always, for reading and being such wonderful people! Can you guys believe that it's almost October already!? I've been writing this for almost an entire year now, it's really insane. I honestly never thought that I'd get past chapter 10 or so, and f it wasn't for you guys supporting me all this time I don't think that I could've ever gotten this far. Thank you.
Author Question!
"What mythical creature would improve the world most if it existed?"
Easy one. A Chocobo, because Chocobo are totally mythical creatures and should be treated as such. No specific reason as to why they would make the world better, they just would.
I wuv yew all! I'll see you next time!
-Nanami