Chapter Eleven
When Anakin got sent back to the Leaf, it is the day of the Finals. He still had some time before the matches started so the first place he went is to the hospital. He missed Sakura during his entire stay and wanted to check up on her. Passing through the halls, he makes it to her room and knocks on the door. "Come in," A voice tells him and he proceeds to do so. To Anakin's relief, Sakura is wide awake in bed talking to Ino in a chair next to her. He wasted no time in rushing to her and hugging her before anyone could say hello. Sakura quickly returned the hug.
"Oh Sweetness, it's good to see you alright. I missed you." He tells her.
Sakura rests her head on his shoulder, "I missed you too."
He pulls back enough to face her, "Sorry I wasn't here when you woke."
"It's alright. While I would have preferred you to have been here, Naruto and Hinata already filled me in. Besides, you being here now is enough for me." She tells him before planting a kiss on his lips, which he eagerly returns. The kiss quickly lasted from a second into moments and would have lasted minutes if there wasn't a third party present.
"Ahem," Ino fakes coughs and interrupts their moment. "I know you guys haven't seen each other in weeks, but perhaps don't go losing yourselves with me present. Not all of us are fortunate enough to be in a relationship." The two back away in a blush and Anakin just takes a seat on the bed beside Sakura.
"Sorry Ino," Anakin apologizes.
"Like I said, just don't lose yourselves in front of me and it's all good. Though now I at least have something to tease Forehead about," Ino grins mischievously.
Sakura throws a pillow at her blonde friend, "Oh pipe down Ino-pig. You're just jealous that I actually have a guy who is interested in me and not obsessed over his brother."
Ino catches the pillow and throws it back, "Don't forget you were obsessed over him as well."
Sakura lets the pillow fly over her head, "I remember, but it's no use looking back when the present is so much better." She snakes an arm around Anakin as he wraps one over her shoulder.
Ino shakes her head, "Love birds. Honestly, how did the two dead last in our class be the first to be in a relationship?"
"Because we found the right people," Anakin tells her then plants a kiss on his girlfriend's head.
"Hey stop being all lovey dovey!" Ino shouts pointing to them. "Don't you have a match to get to?"
Anakin looks at the clock on the wall, "Not for another hour."
Sakura's cheerfulness goes down a bit after remembering who he is facing, "You think you'll be alright against Sasuke?"
Anakin turns to her and takes her hand, "Of course. I haven't been gone for weeks just chilling at a beach."
"Well can you promise me you won't hold back against him like you did with Lee?"
He looks her into her eyes, "I promise I won't hold back. Clan head or not, what he did to my girl cannot be overlooked."
"Good he deserves a good ass kicking," a voice next to them says. They look over in surprise to hear Ino say that. She gives them a confused look, "What? Yes I know I have a thing for him, but what he did to my best friend is horrible. I'm not so stuck up his ass to notice that he isn't the knight I thought him to be. Honestly the thing I have for him has been dying down since that day. Hot guys come and go, but true friends are harder to find. So go out there and kick his ass and stand up for my friend."
Sakura gives Ino a grateful smile before shifting off the bed and giving her a hug. She then goes to pick up her sword laying with the rest of her belongings. During which Ino catches Anakin glancing down at Sakura's hospital gown and seeing the moon in full view. She sends a kick at his leg making his attention shift and seeing he has been caught. She smirks at his blush and they both look back to Sakura who turned around without knowing what happened. Sakura then walks back and hands Anakin the sword in the pink scabbard.
"Here," Sakura tells him. "Your sword broke during your fight with Lee and you haven't gotten it fixed yet right?"
Anakin nods, "Yeah. One thing led to another and I just forgot about it. But are you sure it's fine?"
"Of course! As you can see, I'm in no position to use it and you need it more than I." She assures him and places it into his lap.
Ino chuckles, "Who knew pink looked so good on you."
"Quiet you," Anakin tells her before getting up and clipping it to his belt. He then looks back to Sakura asking, "So how longer are they keeping you here?"
"Actually I am waiting on the doctor to come back with the release forms and Ino is here to walk me out. They kept me longer than they planned since an unknown power was surrounding me when I woke up and they weren't sure what to do." She explains.
A light bulb goes off in his head, "Ah, yeah I meant to talk to you about that. It appears that you are Force sensitive."
Her eyes go wide, "You mean…"
"Yes," He confirms. "You are able to use the Force. I didn't make the connection at first with us talking through our bond, but your fight with Sasuke and a talk with my grandfather made it pretty clear."
"Wait a minute, talking through your bond?" Ino interjects with a question.
"Force users are able to form Force bonds and strong ones are able to communicate with each other. Sort of like what your clan is able to do with your jutsu." Anakin explains.
She crosses her arms, "So not only are you able to repel our mind jutsu, but you then copy what it can do."
Anakin raises an eyebrow, "How do you know I can repel your jutsu?"
Ino's face goes red after being called out, "Well I overheard you and Daddy talking a while back when you visited him…"
"What all did you hear him say?" He asks with stern eyes.
She ducks a little after receiving the glare, "Nothing much I swear! Just that you can repel our jutsu and something about another person's memories."
Anakin relaxes his expression and sighs, "Well I don't detect a lie from you, so I'll ease off it. However, please respect my private talks with your father next time. There are things I go over with him that I don't want to get out. Though since you did hear about me speaking about another's memory, I guess I can reveal that to you since I'm not trying to hide it. I'm a reincarnation and this is my second life. Your clan also acts as therapists for the village, and I needed one about how to deal with having memories of someone else. I used to treat the two memories as different people, but your father helped me in seeing both as me."
Ino nods in understanding, "Oh okay. Sorry, I didn't realize that was why you visited. I knew my family was great for that, but I didn't expect that a kid my age during school was going through that kind of inner problem. I'll make sure not to eavesdrop next time."
Anakin gives her a smile, "Thanks Ino." He then looks at the time, "Oh I've got to go." Anakin gives Sakura a quick peck on the lips, "We'll finish the Force talk afterwards, alright Sweetness?"
She returns the kiss, "Of course, once the doctor comes back we'll make our way to the stadium to cheer you on. Good luck Ani." Anakin arches a brow at the nickname and shakes his head before leaving. He never would have thought that not only would he inherit his grandfather's name, but his nickname as well.
Anakin stands in a row along with the other finalists of the Chunin Exams. Genma Shiranui, the referee of the finals instead of Hayate for some reason, is going over the rules for both the finalists and the audience who are watching from the stadium. Anakin takes an eye look around while vaguely listening to the rules he already knows. Naruto and Hinata stand to the left of him with their fingers touching. There's no doubt in his mind that everyone notices it and a quick glance around confirms this. There are a number of people whispering to each other and pointing. To his relief, most are just shocked but more accepting of it. No doubt they are most likely guessing that she is the reason Naruto's pranks have become less frequent and toned down. After taking a walk around the village beforehand, it also seems like they are slowly seeing that Naruto is more than just what he jails inside him. It's great for him to see that his blonde friend is finally showing results of the respect Naruto should have had for years.
However it's the glance to the Hyuga section that tells Anakin that his female friend is getting viewed in the opposite direction. Her father looks down to Hinata with a scowl along with most of the others in the clan. It's only her younger sister Hanabi that looks at her with some sort of pride, though Anakin can tell she is trying to hide it from the others with her. Anakin didn't get a great chance to fully catch up with his friends, but he does hope both of them are ready for their respective fights. Hinata is fighting for her place in her clan and her identity while Naruto is fighting a dangerous killing machine with an impenetrable defense. He doesn't know who's situation he would rather be in.
Anakin moves on to look at the Kage box overlooking the battlefield. He sees both the Third Hokage and the Fourth Kazekage sitting in their respective seats along with people Anakin assumes to be trusted advisors/bodyguards. He notices Jiraiya seated close to the Hokage, but back enough away to not be in full view of the public along with a couple Anbu. Anakin doesn't recognize anyone on the Sand Village side other than the one wearing the Kazekage outfit. However what is strange to Anakin is how he feels a suppressed Force presence come from the Kazekage that is similar to Orochimaru. A quick look back to the Hokage tells him his suspicions are already known. The old man locks eyes with Anakin and he gives a small hand gesture to keep carrying on. The genin gives a barely noticeable nod and continues looking around. He now notices that the number of Leaf Ninja in the area are quite noticeable when one takes a good look and they seem to be ready for something other than escorting the occasional distributive drunk from the area.
Lastly he checks the empty spot that his opponent is supposed to be in. While it's no surprise Sasuke is late, seeing that Kakashi is personally training him, him not being here is a bit worrying. Not because Anakin is worried about his well-being, but because he would miss the chance to finally settle the grudge they have with each other. Anakin hasn't been blind to the jealousy Sasuke has for him and knows that all Sasuke wants is power to kill his brother. While Anakin isn't happy over the fact his family of this world was killed by him, Anakin has learned from studying former Sith Lords and Dark Jedi what the path of revenge will bring a person. Sasuke is following those very steps and Anakin wants to ensure the boy isn't lost on that path. There's a fine line between justice and revenge after all.
"Alright that's it for the rules," A voice breaks Anakin from his thoughts. Genma gives a quick look to the genin as if to tell him he knows Anakin wasn't paying attention. "We will begin our first match momentarily. Neji Hyuga and Hinata Hyuga please remain here as the rest of the challengers head to the challengers box." The finalists begin walking away until a swirl of leaves appears as Kakashi and Sasuke appear in a pose. Genma just gives them an annoyed look, "Figures you'd show up late, but at least you didn't miss your match or interrupt one. Just remove yourselves from the field and head up onto the stands."
Sasuke just gives an annoyed grunt as he walks away and Kakashi just scratches the back of his head, unable to give his usual excuse. He does however turn to Hinata to give her some words, "While I would have preferred to train you as well, I know that even without my help you got what it takes to win."
"Please you shouldn't lie to her. It's her fate to lose against me and you knew it so you didn't even bother to train her." Neji remarks.
Kakashi gives the boy a stern glare with his visible eye, "If there is one thing I'll never do it's to give my precious students false hope. Even if I wasn't with her this month, she has been trained by me ever since the academy. Your sensei proclaims me to be his eternal rival, so you best know there is a reason he believes it. So when I say I have hope for her you better prepare yourself for it." Neji pauses for a moment before dismissing the warning altogether. Kakashi gives his student a shoulder pat and a quick wink when Hinata gives him a grateful smile. He then heads to the stands where he sees an empty spot for him alongside the other jonin trainers near their genin students a row below.
"Yosh!" Guy yells out to Kakashi. "Your belief in your student is most youthful and proves you are my eternal rival!"
"Yeah yeah," Kakashi waves it off after taking the empty seat between him and Kurenai. He turns to the latter, "Rumor is that you helped train her right?"
She nods, "Yes. There wasn't much I could do to help Anakin against Sasuke, so the boy found an alternative teacher while letting me help Hinata instead."
"Really? So in all honesty, how are her chances against her older cousin?" He asks her. The other two jonin listen in along with the genin below.
She arches a mischievous brow, "What? You actually don't have faith in her?"
"It's nothing like that," He states. "It's just I have no way to properly gauge her now compared to last month. I still have full faith in her, but I would like to hear from the one training her how she would fare."
"Well if you must know, she definitely made improvements from last month and we have made a plan for her to use." She explains to him.
"That's welcoming to hear," he replies back. Kakashi then turns to Guy, "Say you want to make a bet? Let's see who has the better Hyuga."
Guy's interest has peaked, "You mean a way to challenge each other to see who is the better teacher? Sounds interesting. What's the bet?"
"The loser has to wear the same outfit as the winner for a week," Kakashi explains. "So if you win, I'll finally wear that ugly green jumpsuit. If I win, you have to ditch the green and wear a mask and cover one of your eyes."
"Ho, this screams youthful! You're on!" Guy agrees.
Kurenai then gets a line in, "Hey if you're betting Hyugas, then I think we should bet Uchihas."
"Sounds good to me. What do you want to bet?"
"Well since we do cross train once a week, how about the loser has to train both teams for a week while the winner gets the week off?" She suggests.
Kakashi thinks for a moment before agreeing, "That sounds good to me. Any other bets before the matches start?"
Asuma chimes in, "I say let's just make a pot of money all four of us bet on to see which student gets the furthest or wins. Let's say about 2,500 ryo from each of us?"
"So the winner takes 10,000 ryo?" Kakashi asks. "Well seeing as my whole team is still in it, it'd be stupid of me not to chance it. I'm in." The other two jonin agree as well.
Their attention then gets drawn towards the field as Genma speaks. "Alright both combatants are ready! Let the first match begin!" He announces as he jumps back from the two.
"Last warning," Neji tells Hinata as he shifts into the Gentle Fist stance. "Withdrawal and your place as the heiress within the clan is assured. Continue, and I can't promise that you'll survive long enough to see what punishment they have planned for you."
"I cannot do that Neji-nii-san. I found a path I wish to take and I can't back down because of a hurtle." She also takes the Gentle Fist stance.
"You can't fight fate. That path you think you found is already doomed to fail the moment you made the decision to fight me." They both turn their byakugan on and the fight begins. Quickly Neji takes the lead when he rushes Hinata and forces her to pay defense. Both are trained in the Gentle Fist style and they know what to look out for. Neji being faster and more experienced makes Hinata only able to react from the waves of strikes to shut off her chakra points. A strike to the shoulder gets pushed aside by her as she quickly goes to block another on her other side. With every couple strikes, she takes a step back as he takes a step forwards. He grows a knowing smile as he keeps the lead he has on her. "Don't you see? You don't have what it takes to win. You should accept that fate wants you to lose."
"Fuck fate!" She shouts as she sends an unexpecting kick up his legs. The men in the audience wince from the impact of it.
"T-that is not part of the Gentle Fist!" Neji yells with a voice crack and holding his balls. "How dare you butcher our clan's style! It is a traditional fighting style we hold proud of."
"You can take our clan's traditions and shove it up your ass if you have any room in there!" Hinata declares. "When the Uchihas died, our clan let their ego go to their head as the 'strongest' just because they think they are untouchable without a rival. If we are the strongest and best clan in the village, then why aren't there any Hyuga Hokages? Why don't any of the other clans actually respect us instead of saying we have sticks up our asses? It's because we aren't the strongest and we aren't willing to adapt to the changing times. The so-called 'traditions' only serve to hold us back. Hell half of our clan is inbred because we are only able to marry and have children within the clan. If you knew anything about genes, no diversity leads to the entire genepool of that population to die out from the same weaknesses. If we aren't able to change our ways, our clan will be the next to be wiped out!" Neji is stunned along with most others watching the fight.
"Interesting girl, you have in the village Lord Hokage," The Kazekage says in the kage box.
Hiruzen gives a smile, "That she is. She once started as a shy stuttering girl and grew into this. While I don't think her clan will approve of her words, I can say I am proud of the ninja she is becoming."
"She definitely is an idealist and what she says does ring true. The old must give way to the new." The Kazekage comments.
"Indeed they must. Whether it be ideas or generations." The third agrees. While it's great to just speak to you in a simple conversation, I know who is really under that disguise, Orochimaru.
Neji takes a couple of breaths before resuming his stance, "Your words only further prove you are not fit to be the heiress. We make this village function and they can't survive without us. Our ways have led us to the top of the village as fate has decreed. Your words only tarnish our ways."
"You may think so," Hinata tells him. "But what I speak is the truth. If nothing else comes from this fight, I'll make sure you finally see that fate has no control over us."
"Then you have already sealed your fate!" Neji yells as the fight continues. He attacks with more ferocity leaving him to look less graceful then he was moments before. Hinata keeps up blocking his attacks as they move across the battlefield.
"Fate means nothing, Nii-san." She tells him after ducking a strike to her head. Hinata then kicks his knee. "It's only an excuse to those who give up."
Neji tanks the kick and gets mad, "It's not giving up when there is no reason to fight it."
"There is always a reason to fight it!" Hinata says. She catches a palm to her chest then sends one towards him. "Fight to save the loves you love!" She sends an elbow next. "Fight for a happier life!"
He blocks the palm and the elbow and tosses them away. "Emotions mean nothing to fate. The Uchiha clan was filled with emotions and look how they turned out. There are only three left and none of them are worth anything." He continues this advancements leaving her to keep blocking. "One is a murderous psycho who killed everyone, his weak brother only wishes for his death, and the last ran away from the clan like a coward!"
Hinata narrows her eyes, "I will not have you talk down to Anakin like that." She sends another kick to his knee.
"Why not? All he does is hide behind the Hokage along with that bratty blonde you like," He mocks. She then catches another strike to her head, but this time she bites his hand hard enough to draw blood. Neji pulls back and holds this bloody left hand, "Argh! Will you do nothing but fight dishonorably as a Hyuga?"
"No, I will fight with everything I can to defend my friends and their honor. Fate cannot stop me from that. Just like your so-called fate couldn't save your father." She challenges him.
Neji yells as he attacks again with even more ferociously. Grace is all but gone at this point as he sends punch after swipe at her. Hinata tries her best to defend herself, but his animalistic attack proves to slowly be too much to block everything. A strike to her right forearm leaves it useless and a swipe to her face leaves four scratch marks from his fingernails across her left cheek. Neji also utilizes a couple kicks causing her to block a knee to the gut and to her leg, only to get punched across the face. Blood spews from her mouth as she spins around and faces him again. Foregoing the Gentle Fist by this point, Neji tackles her with a snarl and slams her up against the wall. Then send punches continuously to both her face and gut. She tries to block what she can, but the relentless attacks bypass her defenses and whittle her down. After a couple minutes of this, Neji backs up a step and Hinata drops her good arm to her knee to keep herself up. She pants hard, but still manages to produce a bloody smile from her bruised face.
"What is so good that has you still smiling?!" Neji demands with a clenched bloody fist.
She spits out blood, "Because even if I pass out and lose, I have won a greater battle."
"And what is that?!" He shouts as he goes in for another round of punches. Hinata ducks low and brings her elbow down hard on his knee. A crack is heard from the impact and Neji goes down holding his knee.
She straightens up and wipes her face with the sleeve of her torn up jacket. "That things are not what they seem. The Hyuga clan make themselves to be untouchable, but they are not. Their prized prodigy was said to be the best of our generation and unbeatable, but has been taken down by mere words to lose himself into an animalistic rage." Hinata stumbly walks over to him, "Fate isn't set in stone. It's in fact influenced by us in what we do."
Neji still holds his knee and grunts into a seated position, "And you plan to influence fate enough to win and retain your title as heiress to the Hyuga clan?"
Hinata gives him a faint smile, "While the past me would have liked to, that is a path I can no longer take. As you said earlier, that option was my last chance to remain as heiress and my decision to fight ruined it. Instead I have created a new option and I'm not turning back from it."
"And what is that? If not to remain as heiress then what will you do? There aren't many things left for you to do."
Hinata takes a glance at Naruto in the stands. He gives her a smile and a thumbs up already supporting her decisions. She takes a breath in to gather her strength and turns to Neji with an answer. "First I'll accept your defeat unless you can balance on one leg and still fight with your mind raddled."
Neji looks defiant, but after trying to get up he just drops back down still holding his knee. He gives a defeated look to Genma who understood perfectly. "Neji Hyuga is unable to continue to battle, Hinata Hyuga is th-" He gets interrupted by Hinata.
"Actually I would like to correct you there," She tells the referee. "I hereby renounce my Hyuga name and title of heiress!" A collective gasp floods the stadium. Hinata faces the crowd, "I will no longer be a part of a clan full of supremacists! For years I've watched Hyugas stroke their own egos, pronouncing themselves as the 'strongest in the Leaf', and looking down at any and all shinobi who are not a part of their clan. It got even worse after the Uchiha massacre when their greatest rival in the village was brought down to only three members. Sure to most they appear to respect other powerful shinobis, but behind closed doors they practically celebrated the clan's overnight culling. Not only that, but they also deal in subtle acts of slavery."
Hinata walks over to Neji and takes off his headband to reveal his curse mark on his head. "This is how they treat everyone not in the Main members of the clan. They slap a curse mark on them. With this, they can activate it and send pain to the bearer of it. This forces the Branch members to do and follow everything a Main member tells them like a whip. Not only that, this can also be used to stop the byakugan from not only being stolen, but can prevent the bearer from passing it down to their children if need be. This is what they would have thrown on my little sister if I remain as the heiress and I will not subjugate her to that.
"They go so far in their belief that they are superior that they will only marry within the clan. Now I know this isn't uncommon for some to marry within their clans, but the Hyuga clan takes it a step further and arranges cousins to marry. When my clan, my father, learned about this fight," She points to Neji, "They told me to forfeit and to marry my first cousin to start producing a proper 'heir' because they deemed me too weak." Hinata's expression goes fierce as she glares at her father and points to him. "What were my other options you gave me if I decided to fight?" He just sits there in a glare as Hanabi scoots away. "Can't remember? Don't worry I'll tell the lovely people in the crowd. You told me that when, not if, when I lose then I would only become a breeding whore for the clan before you take away my eyes and toss me out like a broken tool! Well let me tell you something Father, I've won against the odds so I decided to create my own option. I will be the one leading the revolution that brings the oppression that is the Hyuga supremacists plaguing this village! This is not a threat, there is nothing you can do to stop it."
Hinata after saying her piece bends down to Neji and replaces his headband before leaning over and whispering in his ear, "If you can do one thing for me Neji-nii-san, please at least consider what I had to say and remove the veil of lies the clan has placed over your eyes. Find what you actually want to be your place in this world and make that your fate." With that she turns to leave the field without another word as the stadium stays just as silent.
It is a clap from a blonde in orange to bring Genma to remember what he is supposed to do, "Ehem, Hinata… er… wins the match!" People reluctantly applaud the conclusion of the fight.
"Out of everything I could have imagined, that was not one of them." The Kazekage admits after the match.
The Hokage lights his pipe and takes a drag from it, "I thought I couldn't get any more surprised, but I guess dating the most infamous unpredictable prankster of the village would pick up some traits."
"Her love life aside," The fake Kazekage says despite keeping that information in mind, "The girl did prove to be very tactical fighting someone who is older and out skills her as a fighter. While she seems like an idealist, it seems she is capable of overcoming problems when stacked against her if what she said is to be taken as the truth."
Hiruzen nods, "Indeed she does. She has definitely grown from the shy girl she was just a year ago. Whether that qualifies her for the chunin rank remains to be seen. The exams might put her in a situation that holds her back." I just hope her words don't make the Hyugas do something rash.
"So about that bet…" Kakashi mentions quietly.
Guy shakes his head with a smile, "Do you have a spare mask?" Kakashi quickly removes the mask he is wearing revealing a second mask underneath. He then hands Guy the first mask. "Alright a bet is a bet." Guy ties the mask around his face then moves his hitate from his waist to his head and covers his eye with it. "I'll get rid of the jump suit later, but how do I look?" The jonin and genin around them all start laughing their asses off.
"Looking good Guy-senpai," Kurenai tells him through fits laughter. "Perhaps if you dye your hair white and stick your face in a porno then you can get away with being late as well."
"Oi," Kakashi speaks up. "Icha Icha isn't a porno. It's a work of art!"
"Pfft, and I'm not a genjutsu expert." She mouths off.
"Just like you aren't seen sneaking out of Asuma's house early in the morning?" Kurenai and Asuma's faces go red instantly.
"Um, so what was your plan for Hinata in her fight?" Guy asks, trying to steer the topic away from spiraling out of control.
The female jonin sighs in relief. "Well when I asked her for her reason to become a chunin, she told me that becoming one isn't her goal in the fight. All she wanted was the power to take control of her life and all I could do was give her that chance. Neji was confident in the Hyuga techniques and for good reason. So we devised a plan to break him away from what he is taught while keeping his attention on her fighting dirty instead of weakening his knee. The only concern was how long could Hinata hold on before he broke and gave an opening."
Kakashi's mask slightly tugs upward, "Impressive. If I wasn't proud of her before, I am now. I'm glad I wasn't late enough to miss this."
Kurenai smiles, "I take pride in her win, though I can't take all the credit since we asked Ino about breaking his psych since her clan are great with mental attacks. She agreed to help and told us, 'Madness is like gravity, all you need is a little push'."
"Is that so?" Kakashi asks. "Speaking of whom, I don't see her, Sakura, or Lee here. "
Kurenai's face sours a little, "Well Sakura was kept in the hospital during her entire time since her fight with Sasuke. I know Ino visits her and she was supposed to walk Sakura over here after she got released today. Before you apologize for your student, none of Team Eight hold you responsible for what he did. You still have two other students who have turned out great, so the actions of one shouldn't reflect your teachings. Hell the Hokage has one bad apple out of his three as well and no one blames him for how Orochimaru turned out. As for Lee, he is still at the hospital but is not planned for release yet."
"Lee is a strong willed student and his injuries will not keep him down. We both hold no grudge for Anakin and I believe having someone near his age and able to match him with the power of the Gates will only push him even harder." Guy comments on.
"That's good to hear," Kakashi tells them. He then stands up, "I best go down and check up on a student of my own and congratulate her."
Anakin turns to Naruto, "So it appears I missed something while I was away."
Naruto just waves his hand, "Ah it wasn't much. All she asked was if she broke away from that clan, would she be able to have a place with me. I obviously told her yes and you can easily guess the rest. All I did was provide support for her and she did the rest by her own hands."
"I feel like there is more to it than just that," Anakin mentions being a little suspicious.
"There is but present company included," Naruto jerks his head to the others, "This isn't the best time to say such things. Besides, Hinata-chan will no doubt tell you everything herself anyways."
"Should we go down and congratulate her at least?" Anakin then asks.
Naruto watches the stands as a white hair jonin makes his way down a pair of stairs, "I think she will be alright for now. We can congratulate her when she makes it back up."
Sasuke comes up on the free side of Naruto, "I must say, I misjudged her. I didn't think she had it in her to break from her shyness, but she definitely showed she has strength. No longer do I harbor any feelings that she is weak and holds our team back."
"Wait, Clan Head praised another person? Someone get a camera!" Anakin calls out.
"Tsk, I can't wait to wipe that smirk off your face." Sasuke tells him.
"What a surprise, I was thinking the same thing." Anakin says back.
"Girls, girls, you're both being so noisy." A feminine voice cuts in. The trio look over to see Temari from the Sand Village saying that.
Sasuke gets a scowl, "Why don't you get lost before I make you lost?"
She gets an amused smile, "Don't get ahead of yourself emo. If you want to fight me, you'll have to wait until the next round to do so. That is, if you actually win your fight."
"You don't think I can win against this coward?!" Sasuke angrily points towards Anakin.
"You want my honest opinion? No." Temari states flatly. "We all were there at this fight in the preliminaries. Even when he was holding back, his speed and skills in kenjutsu and taijutsu is actually impressive for a genin of this village. With that alone, he would easily make chunin in the Sand."
Sasuke dismisses it, "Yeah I saw his skills. Do you think I haven't trained in the last month to counter that?"
"Oh that's not the reason why I think he'd win." She brushes her dirty blonde hair out of her face. "Even if you are able to counter his skills, do you have a counter for his, what is it called again, Sage Mode? Yes I know you had some powerup as well, but is it strong enough to contend with his? I researched the Gates during this past month to figure out a strategy against him. I actually trained and studied to fight against everyone, not just one person in the exams by the way. I can tell you that the Gates are no joke, if you are too stupid enough to not know that. Even I would have struggled to fight against that Lee guy. Hell I think Gaara would have been the only other person that could have won against him. So if your powerup can't contend with the openings of the Gates, it probably can't contend with your clan mate there either. Senjutsu seems to be no joke as well. And that's only assuming he holds himself back again."
"Which I can say that I will not be," Anakin adds in crossing his arms. "I learned my lesson against Lee that it is a bad idea."
Temari gestures her arm to Anakin as he talks to Sasuke, "Well there you go emo. I already know who I am fighting next round, if I didn't already guess it beforehand."
"You know nothing. I will get the power I need by defeating strong opponents. You and him are just rocks in the road, bitc-" Sasuke gets cut off on the last part by a slap on the back of the head.
Anakin retracts his arm, "You know, that is why you haven't found a girl yet. You just dismiss them all and talk down to everyone. Aren't you supposed to be avenging and rebuilding our clan? It's kind of hard to do that last part without a girl to love."
"I don't need love. I only need strong women to rebuild my clan with. I don't pick the first weak pink bimbo that jumps for me." He jabs back.
Anakin takes a step forward, but Shino and Naruto appear in front of him before the second step. "Hey hey hey. You both need to chill and save it for your match. If you're going to fight, wait until you have an audience to see the results." Naruto tries defusing.
Anakin takes a breath in, "You're right Naruto. I waited a month to kick his ass, I can wait a few more minutes." Sasuke just grunts before finding an empty spot to brood in.
"That's supposed to be the famed prodigy of the dying clan, Sasuke Uchiha?" Kankuro says. He walks over to his older sister/teammate Temari. "Gotta say, I'm disappointed. Both him and the 'prodigy' from the Hyuga clan fail to impress. One is a weakling acting tough, the other got outplayed by someone far below his skills, and both have ego problems. I thought the Leaf was supposed to be the strongest?"
A voice rings out, "Will Shino Aburame and Kankuro of the Sand please come down for the next match."
"Well perhaps I will be the one to prove we are strong," Shino challenges.
Kankuro shakes his head, "Fighting you would only reveal my trump card I don't want to show. I forfeit!" Needless to say, the crowd wasn't all too happy to hear this. While they were confused about the ending of the last fight, it still got them hyped enough to see more fights. Shino gives Kankuro a disapproving… glare? It's hard to tell with the sunglasses.
"Well at least you're going to be in full strength next round." Naruto tries to cheer Shino up.
"That only leaves me with less of an opportunity to show if I'm chunin material," Shino states.
Temari gets up and walks to the edge of the challengers box, "Well you being too chicken to fight isn't going to stop me from having fun." She jumps down before her name is even called. Temari gets to her position and looks back to the box, "Nara! You better not get lazy and forfeit this match as well!"
Shikamaru yawns and places his hands behind his head, "I don't know. Forfeiting sounds like a good idea." The crowd starts booing at him for not coming out. Naruto sneaks up behind him and kicks him out of the box. Shikamaru falls forwards and lands on his ass. "These damn blondes…" He mutters before picking himself up and dusts himself off. "Fine, if it's a fight you want then I guess I can do something at least."
Temari gives a playful smile as she pulls out her big battle fan. Both combatants shift into their stance then Genma shouts, "Alright Match Three with Shikamaru Nara against Temari of the Sand will now commence. Begin!"
…
[The battle plays out similar to canon and I don't want to waste our time rehashing it.]
…
"Shikamaru Nara has forfeited the battle, so Temari of the Sand wins!" Genma announces. The crowd gives a sighed applause. Having the winners of two battles forfeited is now just accepted. While the battle of minds bored the kids, the adults in the audience can at least appreciate both of their wits. The two combatants leave the grounds back to the stands.
"Congrats on the win," Kankuro tells his sister when she makes it back.
"That was a pity win and I don't like it." She tells him.
He shrugs. "Hey, a win is still a win. Seeing as you'll be facing off against an Uchiha next round, you'll be happy you got this win."
"Fair enough. Anakin should give me a good fight." Temari relents, giving Anakin a look over. "And perhaps after we work up a little sweat from the fight, we can work up even more sweat behind closed doors."
"Sorry, I'm already spoken for hun." Anakin tells her with a light blush.
She gives him a mischievous smile, "Soccer has a goalie, but that doesn't mean I can't score."
Naruto busts out laughing and Shino's shoulders seem to shake a little as well. Anakin's face goes red as a tomato. "This better not reach Sakura's ears," He tells the two boys which seems to get them going even more.
"Well if you change your mind," Temari mentions while 'adjusting' her chest, "Give me a holler."
Anakin adverts his eyes back to the field, "Is it time for my match yet?"
Genma seems to pick up on the question, "Will Anakin Uchiha and Sasuke Uchiha please come down for the next fight?" The viewers in the stadium stop all conversation when they hear that and watch as both Uchihas take the field.
Sasuke wastes no time with the trash talk, "That's a cute sword you have. Did your girlfriend give it to you?"
Anakin grips the pink scabbard, "Actually yes she did. What did your girlfriend get you?"
"I don't have one idiot," He replies.
"Must suck to be so lonely," Anakin says back.
"Alright if you two are done," Genma tells the two. "How about we start the match then you two can compare dick sizes?" Both genin remain quiet which gives Genma a smile. "Good, now you two knows the rules and such so try to not deviate from it like almost killing your opponent graphically as you both have done in your last fights. Now the fight with Anakin Uchiha and Sasuke will now begin!"
They both waste no time activating their sharingans and advancing towards each other. Anakin draws his sword as Sasuke goes through the hand signs and releases a great fireball jutsu. Anakin outstretches his hand and the fire disperses in front of it. He then leaps forwards and slashes at Sasuke. Sasuke grabs a kunai and blocks the attack. They then begin a quick melee engagement. Anakin, having more reach, takes the offensive and forces Sasuke back. Sasuke then grabs another kunai with his other hand and attacks with two directions. Anakin sees this and takes a hand off the sword handle to grab the incoming kunai as he blocks the other with the sword. Sasuke then does something Anakin didn't expect and sends a headbutt onto Anakin's wide open chest knocking him backwards. Sasuke then takes the opportunity to disarm the stumbling jedi of his sword. Anakin steadies himself in time to see another fireball coming at him. He outstretches his hand again, but instead of dispersing it, he throws it back at Sasuke. Sasuke quickly moves out of the way and the fireball explodes right behind him. He then takes off at a speed similar to Lee's. Anakin clicks his tongue in annoyance and takes off at high speed himself. What seems like a blur to civilians, is a flurry of jabs and kicks being thrown within.
"That movement," Tenten gasps. "It's just like…"
"Lee's," Kakashi finishes after returning from seeing Hinata. With him, he has Sakura and Ino following him. "By the way, I found these two on my way back." They all take a seat with the group.
"Is copying the hard work of my student part of this training?" Guy asks him.
"Not really, but you can't blame him for doing so." Kakashi tells his rival. "Anakin really is a force to be reckoned with between the genin this year. No pun intended. Sasuke had got a decent idea of Anakin's fighting style with team seven and eight combined training sessions. Seeing that someone was capable of pushing Anakin back when most other genin have trouble with, he will definitely use that to his advantage. Even if I don't approve of him using the sharingan to copy an ally's moves instead of training himself, he is using everything that is within his power."
"It won't help him." Sakura declares. "Anakin has sage mode which is out of Sasuke's power to contend with."
"I thought both Kurenai and the Hokage banned him from using it?" Kakashi asks quizlike.
"Sasuke wasn't the only one away from the village training," Kurenai tells him.
Kakashi raises his visible eyebrow, "While I don't doubt it, might I ask why that matters?"
Kurenai chuckles, "It's not hard to figure it out. Anakin was out of the village because he was training with senjutsu with the Toads."
"You mean Jiraiya's Toads?" Kurenai nods. "That's interesting. Honestly I didn't expect him to learn it fast enough to be able to use it this soon. I remember Minato-sensei saying it was fairly difficult to learn."
"Oh that's right, I forgot the Fourth was your sensei." Kurenai mentions.
All the genin turns around, "He was?" They all ask.
Kakashi nods, "That's right, but I feel like this is a topic best discussed at a later time. It has nothing to do with the ongoing match, so ask me again sometime."
Anakin manages to grab a hold on Sasuke's leg and flings him away. Sasuke falls to the ground and rolls around the ground. He then picks himself up and wipes his mouth. "I knew you would be a problem, but I didn't expect me to have to use this so early." Sasuke then grabs his left arm and focuses chakra into his hand. Within several seconds, lightning appears on his hand and makes the sounds of birds chirping. He then starts rushing forwards with a maddening look in his eyes as the arm drags across the ground and leaves bits of broken ground. Ankain's eyes opens wide in shock and he sends a glance to Kakashi. He has seen this exact technique from the masked jonin in their fight against Zabuza. Knowing this is not a jutsu to play around with, he quickly bites his thumb and throws his hand to the ground. Five kryknas appears all around him when the summoning clouds disappears. Each are six-legged white arachnoids with their abdomen above their heads. Without even being told what to do, they all immediately focus on the incoming Uchiha and screech at the genin. They rush towards Sasuke as his sights on Anakin are broken by a white body. He is taken aback from having another entity to fight, but he redirects his attack at his obstacle causing the krykna to be sent back. Sasuke then tries to reassess his situation as he sees he is now facing four more of them. He throws a kunai at each of them, but they all fall to the ground with no effect. He then releases a Great Fire Jutsu at the group, but when the fire clears they are all still there.
"Sorry Clan Head but these spiders can take on blasts from a starship and survive. Your fire jutsu isn't going to phase them." Anakin explains. "Your lightning attack seems to be able to pierce their skin, but it seems to take a moment to charge and only last to take out one of them. By which the other three will still be there." Sasuke lets his anger rush through him and the krykna screeches their beaks at this. "Oh one more thing, they are very sensitive to negative emotions. Perfect against a raged filled avenger such as yourself right?" The spiders then charge at Sasuke again forcing him to back away. He tries to start another Chidori, but Anakin lifts pieces of the ground around him and hurls it at Sasuke and forces him to break the jutsu. "That move is too dangerous to allow you to use it. Plus just because I summoned the spiders doesn't mean I'm going to let them do all the work!"
Sasuke jumps off the ground from being hit by what Anakin threw and lands on the wall. He isn't able to rest there as the spiders take to climbing the wall after him. He then jumps forwards and over the spiders back to the ground. Relief isn't found there either as Anakin catches up to him and the two start a brawl. Sasuke notices Anakin fighting has backed down from before and he sees that his plan is to keep them both there until the kryknas come. Sasuke tries to break away, but Anakin leaves him no room to escape. He tries to headbutt Anakin in the chest again, but Anakin sees it coming this time and intercepts it with his knee. Sasuke is flown off his groove as he tries to refocus himself. Anakin takes the time to lift Sasuke with the Force and into the swarm of spiders massing behind him. They begin jabbing their legs to strike the downed Uchiha as he finds himself and tries to avoid the attacks. This becomes his undoing as one of them clamps onto his right arm with its beak. The fanged pedipalps of the spider digs into the arm and another spider does the same with his left leg. Sasuke bellows in pain trying to break free with his free hand and kicking the others with his free foot. They all continue to jab their legs down this time with success and leave numerous cuts and gashes throughout his body. Sasuke wants the pain to stop and practically begs for relief. To his surprise, he gets it as all the spiders disappear, leaving only Anakin standing beforehand.
Sasuke just looks at Anakin in shock, "Wha- why? You had me then let me go."
Anakin bends down to him, "Because you asked."
Sasuke blinks in confusion, "Because I asked?"
"Yes," Anakin reaffirms.
"But don't you want revenge after what I did to Sakura?"
Anakin closes his eyes before sitting in front of his clan mate and opening them. "I did want justice, yes, but I feel the spiders biting and clawing you did enough along with possibly giving you arachnophobia for the rest of your life."
"Justice? Isn't that just the same as revenge?"
"No, it is not. Revenge is a personal pursuit and tends to leave the person with no closure true afterwards. Justice is making sure the culprit receives a fitting punishment," Anakin corrects. "Make no mistake, you needed to pay for ripping Sakura's insides out, but killing you wouldn't resolve it and would be taking it to fair. Instead, placing you in a state of fear for your life would be equal to it." Anakin shakes his head. "Uncle Luke and the other Jedi masters wouldn't look kindly if they saw me doing this. I guess the rules of a shinobi world are starting to rub off a few of my old teachings." Sasuke gets a questionable look, but Anakin dismisses it, "Just rambling. Anyways I say you got a fitting punishment for your act. Although an apology to Sakura-chan is still warranted."
Sasuke struggles to lift himself from laying on the ground and Anakin helps him into a sitting position. "Thanks…" Sasuke grumbles.
"Of course. What kind of clan member would I be if I didn't help up the head of it?"
Sasuke stares at Anakin, "Now you want to be a faithful clan member?"
"While harsh, I've actually been trying ever since I got the council to let me rejoin. You were just too stubborn to see it." Anakin lightly knocks his hand on Sasuke's head for emphasis. Sasuke glares slightly and winces from the pain. "Geez, how hard did those spiders beat you?"
"Enough," Is all that Sasuke said. Anakin sighs as he places his hand on Sasuke's head. He sends energy through the Force and various open wounds begin to heal. Sasuke, not used to it, gasps suddenly before the feeling soothes him to a calm state. When Anakin removed his hand, only bruised bits were leftover. He checks himself and sees that he is in less pain and manages to stand. Anakin stands with him. "W-why?"
"Because you were looking worse for wear and I'd rather not have you end up dead from either head trauma or a fatal wound. I'm not too keen on becoming the only Uchiha survivor and having fangirls shift their attention to me instead. You can keep them," Anakin tells him.
Sasuke looks at him skeptically before cracking a smirk, "As if the girls in this village lose their obsession with me to someone like you." He then directs his attention to the only other person in the field, "I was brought to a state of defeat once and I have a feeling Anakin can do it again if we continue the fight. I will accept my loss here as is, since an Uchiha can only be beaten by another Uchiha."
Genma nods to Sasuke before addressing the crowd, "Sasuke Uchiha has accepted a loss leaving Anakin Uchiha as the winner!" The crowd cheers as the two Uchihas are finally able to see each other as allies instead of enemies sealed by a handshake.
Anakin pulls Sasuke close and whispers in his ear, "By the way I have discovered what could be key information about the massacre. From what it sounds like, there might actually be some sort of plot involved pertaining to both your brother and your father." Sasuke's eyes open wide at this as he looks at Anakin in disbelief. "Let no one know I told you this as I doubt anyone knows I know. We will speak more about this after the exams are over with." Sasuke gives Anakin a hard nod and the two exit the field.
"I must say one would have expected Sasuke to win this with how much he is brought up as a prodigy," The Kazekage mentions.
Hiruzen nods, "Yes one would suspect it if they haven't learned about Anakin or what he can do."
The other kage turns to him, "You say that like you have."
"I have indeed. I've known Anakin ever since the massacre, so I perhaps know him the longest." The Hokage takes another drag from his pipe. "His skill in combat has never been in question by me, nor his skill with a mind. While not quite on the level of a Nara, he is fairly close to it."
This catches Orochimaru's interest the most, "If I'm not mistaken, I'd say you see him as a future successor." Jiraiya's attention turns to Hiruzen as well.
The old man creates a smoke ring before answering, "He has a making of one. However that title is currently already being claimed by his closest friend and I'm not even certain Anakin would be interested in taking my hat. Finding my next successor is something both this village and I need. I have retired from the Hokage position once already and I grow older by the day. I'm not the young Professor people remember me by."
The fake Kage chuckles, "Yes age is an enemy we all must face. Though I'm sure you don't plan to give up your hat to a young teenager fighting in the chunin exams."
Hiruzen shakes his head, "Oh heavens no. While I do see potential in the new generation, they all are too inexperienced at the moment. Hell I feel as if I was too young at times when my sensei passed the hat to me."
"Well in any case, talking about the future leader of the Leaf during the chunin exams is a bit off topic." Jiraiya tells them. "Let's get back to the exams itself."
"WOO HOO! It's vacation time for me!" Kurenai yells with excitement.
"Alright you won, just calm down." Asuma tells her. "If you get any more energetic people might mistake you for Guy."
She turns to him, "Ah don't be a buzzkill just because you and him are out of the prize pool."
He facepalms a sigh, "Naras and their laziness…"
"Ha, I knew he could do it!" Sakura exclaims.
"Gotta say," Kiba says out loud, "If you told me back in school that a dead last would beat the Rookie of the Year, I would have laughed at you."
"I can't believe I agree with you on something, but you speak facts." Ino agrees.
"Heh, I knew he was actually quite stronger than us," Shikamaru informs them. He had joined the other genin after his match. "The teachers only graded on taijutsu, written test, and ninjutsu. He just wasn't good at the latter. However he had that Force power and the teachers couldn't really grade him on it since they can't really judge it. Honestly, only Anakin fully knows how strong it is."
"My talk with Anakin back at the Waves got me a bit of insight on it. It seems terrifying how versatile it is." Kakashi mentions.
Tenten then asks, "Like how terrifying?"
"Well I made a joke about them being able to create a space storm that can destroy planets. Instead of laughing at my joke, Anakin sheepishly looked away and sweat started beating down on him." He shutters. "I told him not to answer whether that is real or not and I'd rather never find out. Just seeing what he can do now is frightening enough."
The people listening in just remain silent for moments trying to process it, but finding that they would rather not find out either. A lightbulb then goes off in Kiba's mind. "Hey Sakura, what you did a month ago was that Force thingy right?"
All heads turn to Sakura who blushes with the attention now on her. She clears her throat, "That's what Anakin tells me. We didn't have much time to discuss it this morning before he had to be here."
"But you're dating him right? So must have at least some knowledge he has told you about."
"Yes he has given me a few insights about it, but as far as showing me how to do it hasn't happened." She explains.
Before anyone can say anything else, Sasuke shows up a bit battered with some bandages covering the leftover injuries. The mood then shifts into an uncomfortable one as he and Sakura stare at each other. Then Sasuke walks towards her, but Kurenai stands up and blocks him from getting closer. He sighs, "May I speak to Sakura Kurenai-sensei?"
Kurenai crosses her arms, "You can talk to her fine right there."
Sakura maneuvered around her sensei, "If he wishes to hurt me, he wouldn't do it within a few feet away from four jonins."
Kurenai lets her past but remains standing, "Fine, but I'm going to stay here."
Sakura nods in appreciation before turning to Sasuke, "What is it?"
Sasuke stumbles over his words before speaking, "This isn't something I'm used to doing so I might not be perfect. I'm-I'm sorry for almost killing you…" He mutters off.
Sakura closes her eyes before taking a breath. Then she opens them and a loud crack is heard in the stands. Everyone around turns to see a red hand print on Sasuke's cheek. The smack was so hard that a few drops of blood seeped through the skin and ran down the cheek. "There, now I'll accept your apology. Anakin already did most of the work and I wanted to seal the deal. If we don't have a repeat of what you did then perhaps it will be overlooked and we can forget about it."
Sasuke touches his cheek before wincing at the fresh sting of it. "That was a hell of a smack, but if that is what it takes then I'll take it."
"This doesn't mean we'll magically become friends though," She then informs him.
Sasuke nods, "Didn't plan on it. My clan still needs vengeance and I don't have time to make friends."
"Good," She says. "Now let's get seated and watch the rest of the matches without speaking another word about this."
The first thing Anakin sees when he makes it back to the challengers box is a guy in sunglasses. "Anakin, you have to tell me about that creature you summoned!" Shino demands.
Anakin just blinks before speaking, "Um, sure. They are called Krykna and are found on the planet Atollon. As I told Sasuke, they are highly sensitive to negative emotions and have skin strong enough to withstand fire and most forms of weaponry. Of course weapons or techniques made for piercing can break through the skin as was shown when one of the spiders intercepted the Chidori. I really didn't expect Kakashi to teach an assassination move to him, but it's done and over with now. However, what I did not mention for obvious reasons is that shrapnel explosions can hurt them, their eyes are their weak spots, and they can be repelled by radiation."
Shino at this point has taken out a notepad and pencil to jot everything down with a nod, "Alright, yes, yes, very interesting."
"Woo, woo, woo, wait a minute," Kankuro says. "Did you just say those spiders you summoned are from a different planet?"
Anakin looks towards him, "Yeah all of my summons are."
Temari gets curious, "You say that like you have multiple summons. I know for a fact that almost all summons make the user only use their own and will not share since I also have a summons of my own." Everyone looks at her in shock other than her brothers. "Yes I have one. No, I will not tell you what it is. It would ruin the element of surprise. Anyways, Anakin, could you answer my question?"
Anakin crosses his arms and leans on the wall, "Well I could, but that would ruin the element of surprise."
"Tsk, cheeky bastard. You're lucky you're cute or I'd be annoyed," She tells him with a playful smirk.
This time Anakin is prepared and is resistant to form a blush, "Well like I said, I'm already taken. Besides, why are you publicly after me when your mind has been on Shikamaru this whole time?"
Now Temari turns red, "How the hell? Wait, you ain't secretly a Yamanaka are you?"
Anakin laughs, "How the turns have tabled. I thought you did your research on all of us? Shouldn't you be able to answer that question? Actually I have a better idea, since the Nara clan is close to the Yamanaka clan, why don't I bring in Shikamaru to answer your questions?"
"You're such an ass!" She shouts with a tomato face. Kankuro struggles to stifle a laugh behind his hand. "What are you laughing about?!"
"I don't think I've ever seen you so embarrassed before and this is quickly becoming my favorite moment," Her brother tells her while holding his stomach.
A tick mark appears on her blushed face, "How about I make it even more memorable when I send you flying across the village?" She threatening asks him after drawing out her battle fan. This gets him to cut the laughter immediately.
"Don't take her too seriously man. I mean, she's trying to threaten you while thinking about the cloud gazing she's done this past month with Shikamaru." Anakin says while throwing water into the grease fire.
Her head whirls around incredibly fast and her face gets an even darker shade of red, "HOW IN THE HELL ARE YOU DOING THAT?! STOP IT! GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY HEAD!" The entire challenger box starts dying with such loud laughter that it caught the attention of some of the awaiting audience members and some of the exam staff clearing up the field. The only ones not partaking in it are Temari and Gaara, the latter of which is saying some weird freaky shit about his mother which the rest of the group is trying to ignore.
Temari turns to her laughing brother and starts wailing on him to get her frustrations out. "Ow, ow, ouch! Hey why are you only hitting me? He's the one saying that stuff and they are all laughing as well!"
"Because if I pick a fight with the remaining finalist then I will be disqualified. You just drew the short stick for staying up here after forfeiting!" She tells him.
"If you two don't knock it off then I'll make you," The not sociable Gaara finally says to anyone. The two siblings stop dead in their tracks and resume their positions.
"I don't like the presence that guy is radiating." Anakin tells his fellow Leaf ninjas.
"You too huh?" Naruto asks with Hinata next to him.
"Are you picking something up as well?" Anakin asks his closest friend. "Oh hey Hinata, congrats on your fight. Just know if you need anything, you only need to ask."
She gives him an appreciated smile, "Thanks and you too."
Naruto then answers Anakin in a whisper so only the three of them can hear, "Not me. My non-paying tenant is saying that guy is dangerous."
Anakin gives a concerned look, "Tails said that? I didn't know you were on speaking terms with him."
"I'm not, however since he is trapped in me he would rather not have me die since he is tied with my fate. So we'll only talk if it is a life and death type scenario or to bargain." Naruto informs him.
"Alright let's say we take his word, is there a reason he deems that guy a threat when you have encountered other stronger enemies?"
"Well, to me Gaara feels really similar."
Anakin raises his brow, "Similar? How so?"
"Well like he has something placed with him as well. It's almost too similar if you ask me."
"So are you saying he is a jinchuriki?"
Hinata answers this time, "Well when Naruto-kun finally told me about the Nine-tails, I did a little digging about it. Turns out there are nine tailed beasts in total. When I used my byakugan on Gaara, I noticed a second chakra source in the same place Naruto has his seal. And given his preferred choice to use sand, it wasn't hard to narrow down that he most likely has the One-tails in him."
Anakin gives them an impressed look, "I did not expect to hear that. Seems you guys really prepared for your fights."
Naruto shook his head, "Not really. We didn't get to see hardly anything in Gaara's fight so other than him controlling his sand, I'm fighting blind."
"Could I have everyone's attention," A voice shouts out from the field. They all look down to the field to where Genma is. "Since I have been informed that Dosu Kinuta will not be participating, the judges have decided to move the By fighter to take his place. So will Naruto Uzumaki and Gaara of the Sand please make your way to the battlefield!"
Gaara sand teleports to the field in an instant. He then looks up to Naruto, "Mother says you are dangerous and wants your blood. Get down here."
Hinata gives Naruto a quick kiss "For luck."
"Thanks," Naruto tells her. He then looks over to Anakin.
"I ain't kissing you." He tells the blonde. "However if you die, I'll make sure to burn the magazines under your bed."
Hinata gets a cold expression, "What magazines is he talking about N-A-R-U-T-O-K-U-N?"
Naruto gets horrified, "Nothing! I don't have any dirty magazines!"
"Oh yeah, I'll make sure to burn those too." Anakin adds-on. The temperature seems to drop as Hinata retains a smile with her eyes saying otherwise. It feels so cold that Shino had to do a quick check up to see if any of his bugs have died.
"Anakin, are you trying to get me killed?!" Naruto asks, terrified.
"Whatever do you mean? I'm only doing what any bro would do to another bro. Besides, doesn't the saying go 'whatever doesn't kill makes you stronger'? Now get down there and maybe you'll grow strong enough to barely survive your girlfriend." Anakin then proceeds to push Naruto out of the box.
"Damn that's just evil," Kankuro then steps behind Temari.
"Hey don't hide behind me! If anything I'll throw you at him to give myself a chance to escape." She tells her sibling.
Back to the field Naruto dusts off his outfit before making his way over to Gaara and Genma. "Alright same business, you know the rules and such. The Naruto Uzumaki vs Gaara of the Sand match will now commence. Begin!"
Gaara looks at Naruto with a dangerous look, "Mother wants your blood. I will give it to her."
"Well even though your mother sounds lovely, I'll have to decline! Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Dozens of Naruto flood the field.
"This is a request, but a demand." Sand falls out around Gaara from his gourd. The clones make a dash towards him, but the sand shoots out like spikes and impales most of them. "Is this the best you can do?" Sand then flies towards the original and forces Naruto to dodge. A few attempts to impale later, Naruto makes it far enough away that the sand can't reach him.
Just as I figured, fighting him will not be simple. Let's see my options here. I have the Toad summons, but I just got accepted by them not days ago. I'm not sure if they would be willing to help me out so soon. Besides I haven't figured out who to properly channel exactly enough chakra to get the toad I want, nor do I know any of the other Toads other than Boss and Gamakichi. What else do I have? Taijutsu is currently on the back burner until I find a way to break through his sand. Chakra Chains have been able to hold down the Kyuubi, so it should work on another Bijuu in theory; but his sand could swat down any chains I send. Naruto throws some kunai and shurikens but only to have a sand wall brought up to halt their attack. Ninja tools can't even pierce through it. Anything else? Damn it Kakashi-sensei, why haven't you taught us any jutsus and only showed us about tree walking and 'teamwork' exercises?!
"Achoo!" Kakashi sneezes.
"How are you getting sick? It's hot as hell out here," Kurenai asks him.
Kakashi shakes his head, "I don't feel sick. Could be that old myth about if you sneeze randomly then someone is talking or thinking about you."
Kurenai gives him a puzzled look before turning back to the match. She sees Naruto standing there thinking, then she turns back to Kakashi. A lightbulb goes off in her head, "You know what? I think we should renegotiate the bet to something else. I think leaving six students with you for a week of training is a bad idea."
It's a minute later that Naruto gets an idea. He creates more shadow clones that number in the hundreds as they surround Gaara. The redhead raises a brow, but prepares ready for a slaughter. They all then converge on the sand ninja at once. Each clone approaches the standing ninja from a different angle and a different plan of action. One just runs straight at Gaara, one tries using another clone as a body shield, one tries to jump over the sand. A group tries to create a ladder to get over Gaara's defense. A few try to disguise themselves as ninja tools or rocks to trick him. They all unfortunately get destroyed without a second thought. Gaara isn't taking any chances. Soon the field fills up with smoke from clones dying leaving everyone unable to see into it or in it. Sounds of grunts and pain are heard within the smoke leaving the crowd only to their imaginations. This lasts for five minutes until the smoke is finally parted and gives everyone visibility. As everyone looks on, a beaten up and bloody Naruto is shown standing clenching his arm as Gaara remains where he was from the beginning.
"I must say I am disappointed. Mother demands for your blood so much that I thought you would be different than everyone else." Gaara states.
Naruto pants, "Well perhaps it's that reason why you will lose."
"Lose?" Gaara asks him. "Does this seem like I'm losing to you? I haven't a scratch on me and you haven't even got past my sand defense."
"Well perhaps you should look more carefully," He says before Naruto reveals himself to be a clone and disappears.
Gaara's eyes widen as he carefully scans his surroundings trying to find Naruto. He then goes around and starts attacking every rock, stick, log, and ninja tools trying to find the blonde. "Where are you?!" Gaara demands.
The ground under his feet breaks and Naruto comes out from underneath, "Right here!" He puts his hands together and sticks this index and middle fingers out. "Let me give you a welcome to the Leaf by showing you Konohagakure's Most Secret and Sacred Technique: One Thousand Years of Death!" Gaara is next seen flying upwards holding his anus in the air.
"...Kakashi…" Kurenai says menacingly.
He remains facing forwards, "I wonder where he learned that…"
"I feel as if any respect I have for you as a teacher is now gone," Sakura comments.
"I have no idea what you guys are insinuating. Come on Sasuke, my adorable little student, you will back me up here right?" Kakashi pleads.
Sasuke clamps his hands around his chin, "Given the previous hostile atmosphere directed towards me earlier, I believe siding with you would not help my goal. Besides, other than the Chidori you taught me, you have only taught us tree walking and that technique during our team training. Everything else was teamwork exercises and taijutsu stuff. Along with teaching Anakin and I about our sharingans. Hell Naruto and his friends had to go out of their way and help him discover the Chakra Chains his clan can use. You can't act surprised he would use the only thing you ever showed us."
Guy and Asuma give Kakashi a stern look. It's Asuma that says, "So what your student is telling us is that you've been holding out on training your students? Taijutsu is important, but they need more than that. Naruto's fight right now proves that. Kurenai is right, leaving you alone to train six students is a bad idea. My team and I are now going to join your training sessions."
"Mine as well," Guy adds on. Kakashi facepalms hard. Before anything else is said, a loud crash and scream fills the stadium.
As Gaara was flying through the air, his sand was too far away at this point to catch up to him as Naruto followed close behind him. He sends a chakra chain as it wraps around the defenseless sand ninja. The chain then starts to bind the jinchuriki and weakens his chakra. The sand that covers Gaara starts to fall off and the pair has reached the height of their flight. Naruto grabs hold of the chain as he starts to swing the chain around midair and the rest of the sand flies off Gaara. Naruto positions himself above Gaara and pulls him towards himself as he places his feet in front of him and gives a powerful kick. Gaara gets the air knocked out of him as they both plummet back to the ground with Naruto landing right on top of Gaara with his feet still on his chest. A crater forms around the impact and Naruto can feel a notable crunch at his feet. Gaara yells out in pain after having his ribcage crushed on top of him. His sand finally reaches him and creates a ball of sand as Naruto jumps away. As he is jumping, a giant sand claw comes from the ball and narrowly rips the jacket off Naruto. The blonde lands and waits to see what his opponent will do next. However before he gets the chance, he sees what appears to be feathers appearing all around the stadium.
Author's Note: Hi I'm back and I brought the longest chapter I have ever wrote! I was thinking about splitting the finals up. But seeing on how when I usually split archs up, they tend to get done before the half way mark on their second chapter. So instead I'll just make a longer chapter for now on just so the story doesn't bounce around too much in a single chapter. As for the fights, well I'm fairly positive some will not approve on Hinata winning the Hyuga match. So I tried my best to show how she didn't win on skill or strength, but with tactics. Did it come off as such? I sure hope so. Also another reason why I didn't go into the Shikamaru vs Temari fight is because unlike Naruto, Hinata, and Sakura, neither Shikamaru or Temari have changed from their canon counterparts to result in a different outcome. For the Uchiha match, the winner would have stayed the same if the cursed mark and sage mode was used. Even with Anakin unable to use the Force in sage mode, his skill and experience with a blade and in hand to hand is enough to contend with Sasuke. As for the jinchuriki fight, well it went interrupted. Lastly I know I may have came in harsh on Kakashi and his training; but when the original team seven was with him, I didn't really see him teach them much before Shippuden. Though even with his flaws, he is still my favorite Naruto character.
DS2010: Glad to see you enjoying it!
Anyways that's all from me here! I'll talk at you all with the Konoha Crush. Thanks for reading!
