Welcome to the next chapter.
Morregen; Thanks, glad you enjoyed it! Yeah, I thought it would be good for both of their characters, showing Naruko still has ways to go, yet did amazing in her fight, and Haku also learning more about how to fight and adapt as she does so. Thanks very much!
Darth Simp; Yeah, he could meet Eri earlier than he did in canon. Eventually he'll be able to use it on people yeah. I'm sure that Katsuki would do that yeah. That's a cool backstory. That would be cool if Class 1A and B were together for such a thing.
danielsnow; Pakura's about to go through some stuff~ Glad you liked the fight. Yeah, lets see how Gaara and Naruko become friends. Pakura's gonna be in a few fights this arc yeah, but not ones she'd want to be in.
ShadowUzumaki55; Thanks, glad you liked it. Yeah, Naruko gave it her all, even learning to channel some of the foxes chakra because of it. Yeah, people are quite proud of Naruko right now, the same for Haku. Gaara is yeah, we'll see how that factors into a few things. Hayate and Yugao are yeah. Ameyuri's got some stuff to do.
Silver crow; Thanks. Yeah, Haku won, it will be good for both of them in the coming future. Yeah, they'll both have some cool moments. Ameyuri definitely is yeah. Yeah, it's gonna be a fun Quirk to explore. Naruko knew Haku was rather strong, and smart, so yeah Naruko felt a bit nervous. We'll be seeing if they are ready for it yeah. Kakashi is quite proud of him yeah. Gaara definitely doesn't hold back. Naruko was very close to doing it huh~ Glad you liked Haku's new Jutsu. Ameyuri's gonna be having some fun. Temari and Shikamaru's fight will still happen, as it's important for both of them, but we might see an unexpected outcome. The invasions gonna be happening in the next chapter or so. Temari could do, depends if she's paired with him or not. Ryouta might show skills like that yeah. Yeah, Ameyuri will see him in one way or another during the invasion. Maybe Ameyuri could be yeah. Haku is pretty strong yeah. Pakura very well might know yeah.
Guest 1; That sounds like an interesting turn to take it. Those guys doing that would be pretty funny, thanks for the suggestions.
Kdidier; Yeah, they'd be pretty cool huh.
Skull Flame; Glad you liked the Gaara moment. Ameyuri definitely is yeah.
Hinata fan; Naruko will grow from this experience, the same for Haku. Glad you liked the ice dragon. Maybe Orochimaru hired her. Glad you liked the Gaara moments.
Guest 2; That would have been cool, he'll at least have some connections with Mei. I've got some ideas for Katsuki yeah.
Shadow55; Thanks!
Guest 3; Haku did yeah, Naruko was quite close to using it. Ameyuri has come yeah. Thanks for the suggestions. No, it will continue soon.
Guest 4; Yeah, it has some cool contrasts to Tomura's power. I'm glad you liked the fight between Haku and Naruko. Hayate is yeah, at least he's still going. Lets hope Kabuto hasn't yeah. Yeah, they'll be showing their skills during the invasion. Thank you very much, I'm glad you're enjoying it!
War Sage; Thanks! Glad you liked the fight! Haku surely did. Glad you liked Temari's ideas. Yeah, Haku was doing that to make a point that it is an important rank. Haha, yeah it definitely could have been bad for Ryouta if Naruko ended up doing that. Naruko did yeah. Hayate and Yugao are definitely. Ameyuri's got her mission, that's all I can say right now. I could see Tobirama being like that yeah. He has had it from a young age so he's learned to adapt it to his fighting style. Danzo's plan, we'll be seeing that soon enough. Probably go straight to it. Thank you very much for all of the support! Thanks for the harem suggestions!
Andrew123456; Yeah.
With those reviews out of the way, it's time to start the chapter!
Shikamaru vs Temari!
As she watched Haku being taken off, Pakura's eyes looked around the different areas. She knew the invasion would be starting soon, so she would have to begin making moves.
But as her eyes captured the sight of the lone male Uchiha within the arena who was helping out Haku, someone that Pakura had grown close to, she felt her fingers clenching within her hands.
"So the fight has finished. It seems that your student Haku managed to win the fight Anko."
Kakashi began, as Pakura quietly listened.
"Yeah, seems like she did. Even then, that damn Naruko, being able to go so hard against Haku, it seems that she has grown and she's even had some tactics that have been going off as well. Like digging underground as the Shadow Clones smoke covered her entire body and leaving a trap behind for the unsuspecting Haku."
Kakashi nodded.
"I know what you mean, I didn't expect her to be able to do that so well. She did it flawlessly."
"Makes you wonder if she did enough to become a Chunin huh."
Anko mused, as Guy looked on with a strong expression.
"All of the youths here are going so hard right now! Fighting, and kicking butt! Now it makes me wish that I could capture even more of my youth! Say Kakashi, want to have a fight with me after this to prove which one is more youthful?"
Kakashi yawned, and glanced at Guy.
"Did you say something?"
Guy tightened his hand in a mixture of envy and strength.
"Damn Kakashi, you're making it look too cool!"
Kakashi tilted his head, as Pakura's eyes glanced back towards Ryouta, who had finished scaling the wall with Haku, and brought her to the others that were participating within the Chunin Exams. She didn't show it on her face, but she knew time was drawing closer and closer.
And she kept coming to the same conclusion over and over again.
She hated this.
But she knew for the good of her land, and for the good of someone else…
She'd have to do it.
Her eyes drifted to Karin, keeping a close watch on her.
If Karin blew their cover too quickly, then she knew it could be over.
It seemed so far, she hadn't done that.
Though Pakura knew it would only be a matter of time...
After the match with Naruko and Haku had ended, Ryouta sat Haku down within the viewing area. She did look a little tired, but nothing that would truly exhaust her.
"Thank you Ryou-kun, bringing me up here was kind."
"No, you don't have to worry about it. You did great Haku-chan, a real outstanding way to use your power."
Haku smiled up towards him.
"I did a you, you know?"
Ryouta blinked.
He wasn't sure what she meant by that.
Though the way she said it, she seemed proud, so he wondered what she was speaking about.
"You did a me? What do you mean?"
"During the fight, I improvised my ice, and caused it to help assist me in a fight. I call that doing a you, as that's what you do. You always do it in a fight, whenever you need to adjust, you improvise, and work it in to your plan. It's something that I've been trying to emulate."
Ryouta smiled.
He was quite honoured that she had said that, it did make him feel rather special that she chose to look up to him in such a way.
"That's very kind of you Haku-chan."
Haku nodded slowly, as she continued.
"I've been watching you, Ryou-kun. During all of the times we've fought. Passionate, powerful, kind, and ready to take action. Ever since we first met, you've been the same, and I understand the way you live your life. It is something that I truly do admire."
Ryouta felt his face turning a tinge of pink.
Her words truly were flattering to him.
"Haku-chan, thank you for such words. But I'm also very impressed by your resourcefulness in the fight, and how you came up with that ice Dragon. Being able to freeze things that are just near it, that's a dangerous skill."
Ryouta expressed.
Haku smiled at the praise she received, and then took his hand within her own.
Looking down at their connected hands, Haku brought his hand to her chest, causing his cheeks to turn even more red than ever before.
"Yes, it's okay to be structured in a fight. But I also wish to be more like you Ryou-kun, ready to do what it takes, and fight even if my plans don't work, I think that I did a good job, though I can't be fully sure..."
As she spoke, Ryouta lightly kissed her forehead.
Haku's face flew through several shades of red, as he bent down to her face level.
"You did fantastic Haku-chan, you have nothing that can be criticized at all. You won the fight, and showed off your mind, skills, and power. Everything about you screamed Chunin in that fight, so I wouldn't be shocked if you got the rank."
Haku couldn't contain her smile.
Whenever she was around him, she felt good inside.
Bright, warmth that she loved more than anything.
So in the end she ended up kissing him on the lips.
It was indeed a surprise, as Haku being forward was something she didn't really do.
But when she did, he did love it, and he kissed her back, Haku feeling the loving embrace as his arms found their way around her form.
They stayed lip locked for several moments, before they mutually pulled apart.
Ryouta and Haku peered into one another's eyes, with the former smiling and the latter blushing.
"Ryou-kun, will you go and check on Naruko-san? I want to know if she's okay, but I do feel still tired a little bit."
Ryouta didn't have a problem with it at all.
"Yeah of course, I'll go and find her, and see if she's okay."
"But hurry, the next match is going to be very soon."
Ryouta nodded, and stood tall, before going towards the stairs to go and find Naruko to see if she was okay.
A little time later, Ryouta went to go and find Naruko to check on her once seeing that Haku was fine, and on the suggestion of Haku as well, it did seem that Haku was worried for Naruko though Ryouta thought that she'd be alright.
He was relieved that she was, and now he needed to see Naruko, and hoped that he wasn't too dejected.
However, on his way to find Naruko, he was surprised to see someone else in the corridor.
Who he met was Hanabi of all people. The young girl looked towards Ryouta who waved back towards her.
"Hey Hanabi-san, what's going on?"
"Future Sensei, it seems that you've had quite the impact on Dad huh."
Ryouta cocked his head.
"I have?"
"Yes...he's speaking rather positively about you. Even before then, he said that you and big sister would be close for many years to come. I'm shocked. But I'm happy as well, big sister had been worried for a good long while now."
Ryouta showed a half smile.
"Yeah, that's good then isn't it?"
"Yup! Ooh, also. I just finished speaking to Brother Neji, and you did it Future Sensei, he seems more calmer now, as if he's had some weigh lifted from his shoulders. He even said that he'd even give me some lessons as well, if that's what I wanted. Whatever happened, I am glad that he is getting back to how he was before. Though, what happened in the arena, how Brother Neji was sad, I also felt sad."
Ryouta could understand why she felt like she did.
It was probably difficult seeing the Hyuga's curse mark for all those to see.
More than that, it also seemed Hanabi and Hinata weren't for such practices.
"Yeah, it is a sad thing..."
"Future Sensei, the mark on Brother Neji's head, can't it be removed? I mean...I don't know much about seals, and curse marks, and all that, but maybe you do?"
"Hinata-san said it can only come off at the moment of his death."
He revealed sadly, Hanabi's head hung low.
"That's so sad...I know if it was possible, then he'd want it off. But it might not happen now."
Ryouta could see how it tore her up.
She did want Neji to be free, and he understood why she'd feel the way that she did at that moment in time.
"Even if it can't be removed Hanabi-san, it doesn't mean that he can't be free."
Hanabi tilted her head.
"But how can he be?"
"Because you and Hinata-san can change things so it doesn't have to be like it is now, or how it was before. You two are the new heiresses, right? I'm sure that together, you both can change the Hyuga, and make it so an incident like that doesn't have to happen again."
"I'd like it...if the branch and main houses didn't have such a divide. It's like that in the Uchiha, right? You don't have curse seals for your Sharingan, right?"
"Not to my knowledge."
Hanabi nodded slowly.
She was glad that Ryouta was able to speak to her, and give her even more determination.
A path that she wished that she'd be able to do one day.
"Future Sensei, you'll definitely take me on, right? When you become a Jonin."
"Depends when I become a Jonin. You'll probably graduate next year, right?"
"Y-Yeah, that's right. So maybe become a Jonin by then! Then that means I'll learn even more from you! The guy that saved Brother Neji. I'd like to do it too, to save others and help them. Big sisters kindness, Dad called a weakness. But I don't think that's true at all, right?"
Ryouta nodded.
"You're right, it isn't a weakness at all."
"Then I wanna be like that too. Strong and kind, like big sister, and like you!"
At the end of her sentence, Ryouta noticed that her cheeks began to flush.
So he lightly petted her head.
That caused her face to flush even more, and she looked up to meet his gaze as well, something that made her smile.
"I'm sure that you will be Hanabi-san, do your best."
Hanabi nodded with her cheeks still flushing.
The idea of being able to be like both of those that she idolized, it was perfect for Hanabi, and she couldn't simply keep it back either.
A small time later, the young girl with blonde hair, Naruko herself ended up resting within a recovery room.
Though she hadn't fallen unconscious, she did feel her body being rather cold from what happened thanks to Haku's form of attack. Even with the Nine Tails power boosting her, it seemed that Haku's abilities caused more freezing than she had anticipated.
"I-It's freezing..."
She was surrounded by some flames in some heaters that were all pointed towards her.
Even wrapped in a blanket.
But even then she felt cold.
However, soon there was a knock at the door.
"C-Come in..."
Her teeth chattered away, as she spoke.
The door opened, and revealed Ryouta, who blew up his face when entering.
"Geez, it's rather hot in here..." Looking at the heaters, he looked back to Naruko. "So, Haku-chan did a number on you huh."
Naruko shivered, as Ryouta approached her.
Moving around the heaters, he managed to get towards Naruko, who immediately jumped him and hugged him tightly.
She did feel cold to touch, though he was sure she'd soon be fine.
Though he did notice that she ended up sitting on his lap, and rested comfortably there, as he petted the back of her head gently.
She was rather cute when she was being like this.
"So cold..."
Ryouta understood that, and wrapped his arms around her, while he himself was sweating with the heat around them both. Still, he didn't mind if Naruko needed him to do this for her, and she wouldn't let go, so he might as well be useful.
"I see. So Naruko-chan, how do you feel now that the fight is over? You aren't...you know, feeling sad about the outcome, right?"
Naruko furrowed her brows as she thought about it.
She did feel some sadness coming to her.
But she didn't feel as sad as she thought that she would do.
"...To be honest, she didn't do anything wrong in the fight. Even when I used the Nine Tails, she still fought me and managed to counter me Ryou. I also have to get stronger, it is fine! Even with the Nine Tails, I have to remember that it isn't always going to save me."
Ryouta nodded slowly.
He knew this would be good for Naruko.
That she'd be able to grow and learn from this.
"You know, it's alright to be disappointed."
Naruko laughed.
"I am...disappointed I didn't win, but I also know I did my best. If Haku won against me like that, then she deserved it."
"Yes, but Haku-chan was pushed a good bit, so you should be proud Naruko-chan. You never know, with your actions, you could have still made Chunin."
"D-Do you think that I could really do it?"
Ryouta nodded.
"I'm sure you could. I think that you do have the skills of a Chunin, and even your tactics, they were pretty good Naruko-chan, even Haku-chan was caught by surprise and she's a rather cautious girl."
Naruko rubbed under her nose with a grin growing more and more on her face.
"I did huh! You're right Ryou, I didn't think I'd be able to do so well against Haku! And she was right...I have to learn to become smarter in fights. I can't always just power through...and she did it perfectly. How she took me down..."
"Yes, with the Nine Tails powering you up, Haku-chan would have had a difficult time defeating that. But using her mind, she managed to take you down. Though it seems that you've learned from it, which is a great thing."
Naruko nodded strongly.
She was glad that she did learn from it, and she couldn't wait to become even stronger than ever before.
Both mentally and physically.
She then looked up towards Ryouta, who smiled back down towards.
"Ryou, your next match will be right after Satsuki's, wont it?"
"Yeah, that's right, it will be. It's going to be quite the match~"
Naruko pulled out her tongue.
"Even though I haven't been able to gain anymore chances to show how strong I am, will you do it Ryou? I wanna see how strong you are. Against whoever it is next that you end up fighting, okay?"
Ryouta nodded, and lightly petted her head.
As he did, she curled up against him, allowing her head to rest peacefully on his shoulder.
In that moment, she really did look like a little fox, and he thought that she did have a sweet expression on her face, one filled with happiness despite the situation of losing the fight that she was in.
As that was going on, Ameyuri looked on towards the groups that Kabuto had gathered. Kabuto was seemingly unaware of Ameyuri's presence, only showing how stealthy she really was.
"Now Baki, we have to hit points here, here, and there."
Kabuto said towards Baki.
"Right, then I'll have some of ours go towards the west hand side, and move when the time is right."
"Right, and I'll have ours cover the other two areas. We'll have to take immediate advantage of this right away. If we waste even a few moments, Konoha could do something that we wont be able to escape from. They are still resilient after all."
"I know, I know already."
Kabuto pushed his glasses up his face, as Ameyuri quietly listened.
"My, leaving that glasses guy there in charge. I wonder how strong he is? Well, it isn't like it will matter all that much anyway. He's still going to be useful, even if it is only a distraction. Though his disturbing gaze kinda makes me wanna stab him and shock the bastard out of existence. But, I'll keep that down for the moment."
As she thought about it, she saw some people come her way, so she stuck to the shadows. Hiding within the sea of trees, blending into nature so effortlessly, it was quite amazing her skills at being unable to be detected.
Seeing the sand and sound being together, she looked down at her blades, and then a small smirk appeared on her lips at the same time.
"So, this is what is going on huh. Damn, I wont see my adorable Uchiha-kun in battle...but I've been given my tasks and I'll be completing them. Hehe, and I'll be getting a hefty reward."
Ameyuri turned around and began walking away.
Knowing that she'd have to go in a different way for the moment, she did just that.
She took out the information that she had, and looked over it quickly.
"So, the entrance that I'll be taking should be..." Her eyes glanced towards the right hand side, and saw a sea of trees. "...over there. The tree should be over there, it's marked with a special kind of marking, like the one on this scroll. After that, go towards the destination and wait for shit to get real. Alright then, I can't wait for this to begin~"
Ameyuri sang within her mind as she quickly made her way towards the area she was supposed to be going in.
When she got to the tree, she followed instructions and managed to open the path that was near the tree. It was very well hidden, it took her a good five minutes to find it, despite knowing the general area she was supposed to look, only proving who had done this had planned it to the last detail.
Going underground, she used the lightning from her swords to light her way.
"The things I do for a pay check. Well, it isn't like it sucks haha."
Laughing mentally, she walked down the long dark tunnel that was seemingly never endless. She also could see that the tunnel looked rather old, so she did ponder how long it had been there, but she didn't put much thought into it.
Eventually, she got to the end, and moved through a clearly fake wall from her side, on the other side it looked like a legit wall, so when she opened it ever so slightly, she peaked through the gap in the wall, and looked left to right.
"Good, it's clear. Alright then, time for me to go and get to my desired location."
Opening it up, she stepped out.
Walking into the small area that was enclosed, safe for her to leave without being detected, she peaked around her and saw that it came out with a view of the Academy, even though she was a fair distance away from said Academy.
"So that's Konoha's Academy huh. Hey, that Uchiha boy also went there. Aah, I wonder if we'll run into each other? We could come together, and fight until one of us is ready to die in the others arms. What a romantic moment that would be~"
She joked to herself, as she looked around.
She couldn't see anyone around, so she quickly came out of her hiding area, and then shot behind a wall so she could get her information out.
"Right, now that I'm here, I should have a straight shot for where I have to go. And when I get there, take out the one in the bird mask in a stealthy way, wear her outfit then wait for the invasion to begin. Alright then, shouldn't be too difficult for me to do it."
Ameyuri ran through the village, sticking to the shadows. She had done this a few times in her life, so she was well prepared to stick to shadows, and avoid being caught by sight, or sensors. Though she was told she'd not have to worry about sensors thanks to the thing that she received.
When getting to the location that she was supposed to be going, she perched in between two houses. Perfect for her cover, she could see behind her easily, she had made sure that she wouldn't be trapped in the slightest and she could trap others if necessary.
When she saw her target, she made sure that they were alone.
Taking her blade elegantly out, she made a dash towards the young woman's back.
Moving around quietly, she finally got there.
Stepping out from the shadows, the Anbu realized only too late as she felt cold steel on her neck.
"Sorry darling, but you're gonna have to sleep."
"Mmmmm!"
The Ninja couldn't say anything as her mouth was covered while lightning shot through her body from her neck. Her cries couldn't be heard, as she felt the intense wave fill her entire being, and when it finally stopped, she was unconscious.
Ameyuri took her around the corner, and tied her up, so tight that she wouldn't be able to escape. And then she hid the woman so she wouldn't be found until after everything had gone down, she didn't need to kill her, which Ameyuri didn't care either way.
She then took out a scroll and produced the uniform that the woman had on, an exact replica.
"You wont be needing this."
Taking off the mask, Ameyuri slid it onto her own face, and covered her identity completely. Right down to hiding her long hair within the outfit that she had on, the main reason why this individual was targeted as they also wore an outfit that covered her hair as well.
Ameyuri exhaled, and looked down at herself, now clad in Konoha Anbu type uniform.
"Great, done my job for the time being. All I have to do now is wait for this damn invasion to begin. Then I can finally make my move haha~ This is going to be so much fun, invasions haven't been a thing I've seen in a while, wonder who's gonna come out on top? Aah, I don't care as long as I get paid for it. Though I would like to see my adorable Uchiha-kun again, and see how he's getting on. I'm sure that he's doing great, wonder if he likes being known as the guy that killed Kushimaru...aah Kushimaru, you poor bastard haha..."
Ameyuri sealed her swords away for the time being so she didn't get detected through them.
Then she continued keeping her head low, knowing that is what she'd have to do now.
As that was going on, getting back to the arena, both Ryouta and Naruko saw the next match was Temari vs Shikamaru. The arena itself had seen better days. It was broken in places, the hole that Naruko had made still was there. The ice from Haku's Jutsu melted away and now left big enough puddles that one could sink into them.
Battle damaged, and for better or worse, the arena the pair would be fighting on.
While Temari shot down to the arena quickly, it seemed that Shikamaru didn't really want to, Ryouta even heard him say "This is going to be a drag." while he looked towards the clouds.
"Shikamaru-kun, your match is up."
Ryouta called out, but Shikamaru's lazy eyes went towards him.
"Yeah, I know. I'm going now."
Shikamaru twitched his neck left to right, and then lazily hopped down from the area they were in, and went down towards the bottom. Landing on the ground, he stretched his arms up into the air, while Ino twitched her eyebrow.
"Geez, he isn't taking this seriously at all!"
"No, I think he is Ino."
Choji spoke up, catching Ino off guard.
"How?"
"Can't you see that he is looking relaxed, yet in his eyes, he's thinking."
"Thinking...of how to win?"
"Yeah...but, I think he might give up in the end."
Ino sweat dropped.
As they said that, Satsuki looked down at Shikamaru and Temari.
"He isn't going to win, is he?"
"He is inferior in terms of power, but that's never been what makes him dangerous."
Ryouta spoke up, catching Satsuki's attention.
"I know that he's smart, but he's only got one trick up his sleeve. Can he catch her? She isn't going to fall for it once she sees it at least once. She might already be aware of it, and take him down. She can attack from long range after all."
Ryouta nodded.
"Indeed, Shikamaru-kun does have his work cut out for him, Temari-sans dangerous at long range combat. But I wouldn't count him out yet, he might have some kind of plan. If he catches her, it could be all over. But the question is, who's going to falter first? Will Shikamaru-kun run out of chakra first? Or will Temari-san be caught before she can unleash her devastating techniques? Getting close to him wont be an option if she isn't fast enough to do it. Even if she flies on her fan, her fan would cast a shadow on the ground, one where he'd be able to take control over."
Satsuki thought that made sense.
Shino who was stood in the background also thought that made quite a bit of sense.
Gaara didn't seem to really be paying attention, as for Haku, she was now recovered a good bit and watched on from a distance, showing a curiosity to the fight, one where she was wondering who was going to come out on top after all.
Temari took out her fan, and pointed it towards Shikamaru who looked on with tired looking eyes.
"Great, I have to fight this lazy guy."
"I don't really wanna fight you either."
"That's because you're lazy!"
Temari yelled, with Shikamaru unable to deny such things.
But then the proctor spoke up.
"Now, with you both being ready. Let the next match, begin."
As soon as that was said, Temari whipped her fan around, causing the air around her to dance.
Shikamaru looked on, he didn't feel all that thrilled if he was honest with himself, and he didn't really want to fight either.
"I've already figured your Jutsu out, so don't even..."
Before she could finish, Shikamaru's shadow comes shooting out for her.
Seeing it shooting across the ground, she leaps back several times as she sees it thinning more and more. Moving like a long snake, Temari could see it nearing her own shadow more and more, so she takes her fan and whips it at Shikamaru, releasing a gust of wind to blast him away.
To her surprise, he didn't even try to dodge it, and took it head on. The wind dug into him, and the shadow kept coming for her body, causing her eyes to widen as she saw it reaching closer and closer.
Inch by inch, she saw it was gaining ground and she wasn't sure what she was supposed to do about it.
Even though she was travelling at the speed that she could go, she was getting closer to being caught..
Suddenly, it stops, and then retracts.
"Darn, he almost got her."
Naruko lets out a small breath, Ryouta lightly smiles.
"It hasn't finished yet Naruko-chan."
"Do you think he can win?"
"I think that even if he doesn't, he is going to push Temari-san. It seems that despite being a guy with nearly no motivation, he doesn't want to lose so easily either. Perhaps Ino-chan has lit that fire within him."
Satsuki lets out a small scoff.
"One can hope Ryou."
Ryouta nods.
"Of course, lets hope."
Haku tilts her head in wonder, and watches as Temari's body stops moving, seeing the shadow wasn't gaining anymore ground.
She stops as well, looks at Shikamaru to see if he was trying to bait her.
But it didn't feel like that, and she draws a line in the dirt below her with her fan.
"This is your range huh. Alright then."
Temari brings up her fan, and swings it down. Releasing a large wave of wind, Shikamaru felt his knees shaking, and knew he wouldn't be able to take it head on, so he begins running back away from the young woman's attack.
He leaps right, avoiding the most blunt force damage.
However, he felt his arm being caught up in the giant wind attack, and sliced across his right arm.
Wincing, he saw that Temari was swinging down her fan once more, releasing not just one giant wave of wind, but multiple smaller, but strong gusts of wind that were ripping up the ground, forcing Shikamaru to run away from them.
Dust sprouted up from the attack, covering Temari's form.
As it did, Ryouta used his Sharingan eyes to see through it, seeing her performing some kind of Jutsu.
"I didn't know she could do that..."
Ryouta mused within his mind as the dust settled, leaving only Temari stood there with the ground fractured all around her, some holes deep enough that only darkness could be seen.
Her eyes shot for Shikamaru who was able to avoid her attacks.
"Running away from my attacks! Shouldn't you try and fight me directly?"
Temari was getting annoyed by how he was dodging her attacks.
Ino looked on and tightened her hand.
"What is that idiot thinking? Fighting from long range isn't going to work."
Choji, while eating some of his favourite snacks, shakes his head.
"He knows that."
"Then why is he running away? His shadows only have a limited range."
As she said it, Karin leaned forward.
"If I'm right, then he's probably trying to find ways for her to lower her guard. Or he'd draw her closer and then capture her with his shadow. Otherwise there's no way that he is going to be able to fight against such a foe."
Ino remembered how strong Temari could be, and she knew if she did anything devastating then Shikamaru would be out of the tournament faster than anyone else within it.
Ryouta watched as Shikamaru leapt into some trees, hiding behind them as the winds battered against the bark, cutting through them. However, it gave him a few moments to collect his thoughts, and to someone like Shikamaru, that would be time well spent.
Asuna looked on, and could see his student was indeed trying hard, even if he found it a drag.
"Come on Shikamaru, I know you've got an amazingly high intelligence, if you think hard, you can achieve victory."
Asuma believed in his student that much, and hoped for him to succeed, his eyes never left the area Shikamaru was in.
"If he hides there, he could make the shadows increase in range."
Haku murmured, Satsuki shook her head.
"Temari would realize that though. So it doesn't make a difference if he does that or not. Even with the range boost, it is only going to make her retreat away. He'd have to catch her off guard."
"He'll have to get creative if he wishes to fight her." Ryouta began. "She is a strong combatant, stronger than he is. In a downright fight, she'd be able to obliterate him. However, the thing that makes Shikamaru-kun dangerous when he puts his mind to it, is just that, his mind."
"His mind huh..."
Naruko mused as she watched on with keen eyes.
"Yeah, he knows he's at a disadvantage, so I'm sure he's looking for ways to exploit the battlefield, and turn the tides of the battle in his favour. He might even wait for the sun to set a little more, so the shadows on the wall would extend, and give him an even larger reach."
"That would make sense."
Haku spoke up, as Naruko tilted her head.
"Eeh, it seems really complicated though. The battle could drag on then?"
Ryouta shrugged.
"I guess we'll have to wait and see what happens."
Naruko furrowed her brows, as she watched on curiously.
Temari on the other hand didn't look pleased in the slightest.
"Hiding from me huh? It wont save you, maybe you forgot that my Jutsu can literally cut through most things! Having a tree in the way isn't going to make a difference to me, I'll slice that down as well as you!"
Temari, seeing Shikamaru still hiding, winds her fan back, gathering the winds around it to release a large burst of wind to destroy the trees and then catch Shikamaru up in them, and take him down all together.
However suddenly, the shadow shoots across the ground once more.
"It's alright, he's just trying to scare tactic me. Maybe if I dodge now, he'll have set something up and lure me away. If I stay my ground, his shadow wont be able to reach me, then I can launch my attack, and finish him off in one burst."
Temari was confident that she'd be okay, as long as she'd stay behind the line that she had made.
But to her astonishment, the shadow crossed the line and kept going forward.
"Damn!"
Temari panicked, she didn't think that it actually would be able to get further than it already had been.
"Yeah, that's right! Get her!"
Ino cheered for Shikamaru as Temari leapt back, carefully moving, and making sure to go as fast as she could to completely avoid them.
Moving faster for her, she stabs her fan in to the ground and back flips off of that, dragging her fan out of the ground as she flipped so she would gain a burst of speed by the way she jumped.
When the shadow stops, Temari does as well, and draws another line.
"Up to there...alright, so you're using the trees to extend your shadows range. Clever, very clever indeed. But now that I know what you're doing, I'll finish you!"
Temari knew because of that, she'd have to go full throttle.
She couldn't let the battle drag on out, despite how Shikamaru was wanting that to be the thing that helped edge out a victory.
Shikamaru in the meantime got onto his knees, and placed his hands together in a pose that looked like a circle between his hands.
When seeing that, Asuma smirks and knows that Shikamaru was truly getting serious now, and he was pushing his brain to think of solutions for this fight.
Haku furrowed her brows.
"Realistically, I can only see a few different ways he can win this. And all of them will require him to try and draw her somewhere, or draw her to him. And both could lead to devastating injuries if he isn't careful."
"And if he takes too long, her long range Jutsu's will take him down."
Satsuki mused, as Temari winds her attack once more, and fires off several wind blades towards Shikamaru. Completely obliterating the trees, the blades went for Shikamaru who grits his teeth, and leaps to avoid them.
However, his left hand side gets caught up, and slices across his torso, causing him to wince at the feeling.
But he didn't give up, and with a kunai that had wire attached to it, and him, he threw it at Temari.
Fully expecting her to blast it away, she indeed did, but it gave him enough reach with the shadow it cast across the ground, forcing her to leap towards the right hand side, Ryouta's eyes catching the sight of what he was doing.
"I see, so that's what he's planning to do."
"Eh? What's he planning to do?"
Naruko asked, as Haku nodded.
"I can see it as well, quite smart to use the area like that. In the heat of battle, it would be difficult to keep track of the area around, but he's remaining calm and collected, something that is going to assist him."
"Haku, what's going on?"
Naruko asked once more, but when she went to reply, Satsuki let out a small laugh.
"Not bad, for someone that always seems to be running away, and is lazy as hell. Maybe I should give him more credit."
Naruko grabbed her head, and growled.
"Eeeeh! I don't get what's going on!"
Ryouta lightly patted Naruko's head.
"Watch where she goes Naruko-chan. The precise location that she is going."
Naruko blinked, and did as he said.
She looked where Temari's body was heading.
It was clearly heading for a certain area. One filled with puddles, and a hole.
With Temari dodging carefully, she prepares a follow up attack when she sees that Shikamaru has launched another kunai for her.
"Cheap tricks, I wont let it get anywhere close for your shadow!"
Releasing a wave of wind from her form, she slammed her attack against her attack, which blasted it back.
But then she saw on the end of it was a small sphere.
The sphere suddenly erupts and released a cloud of smoke, blinding Temari from view for a few moments.
"Smoke wont work!"
Temari simply blows the wind away from her.
As she did, she saw his shadow going across the ground.
But it wasn't entirely heading for her.
It curved off to the right hand side.
She looked, and saw there was a shadow cast on the ground.
"What's that?!"
Temari looked up, and saw that attached to a kunai floating in the air was a parachute made out of his shirt. Due to that, it gave him another shadow source to bounce off of, and caused his shadow from that source, to suddenly turn towards her, and fire at her like a lightning bolt.
"That was pretty damn smart. If there's no openings, make one."
Ryouta commented with joy, he always did like seeing when Shikamaru put in the effort to fight, and how he came up with ways to use his one ability in unique ways. Using his own shirt, Ryouta thought that was an excellent move, and blinding Temari just enough to launch such an attack.
Shikamaru's shadow kept going for Temari, who was being lead towards a different location.
Thanks to the new range, she had to pick up the pace or the game would have been over there and then.
Though thankfully for her, she managed to get away from that location and as the shadow neared her, like before, it suddenly stopped, and began retracting once more, the shadows range having been spent.
"Damn you. I thought that you'd be able to be defeated without much problem. I guess that I have underestimated you after all. If it is alright, I'll have to deal the final blow to you before you become too dangerous and the sun sets more than it has done!"
Temari, with determination within her, knew that launching a strong burst of her winds would be enough. If she covered a wide range, she would be able to blast him back to the point that she'd be able to concentrate her winds in one location and completely shut him down.
Raising her fan high, the winds concentrated more and more.
Even Haku had to be impressed with the way that Temari was using Wind Release right now.
"Her usage of Wind Release...it seems that even at such a young age, she has a great grasp of the power. And she is going to use it to completely destroy him. She knows letting him go even more now is too dangerous."
"But it's going to be too late. Thankfully, as it seems that Shikamaru-kun's running low on chakra."
Ryouta murmured, with Naruko tilting her head.
"Eh? How Ryou?"
"Look where she is, and look where he is Naruko-chan."
Naruko did just that.
She looked to the place Temari was, and the place Shikamaru was.
The only thing she could see was the holes…
Then it clicked.
"Aah, so that's how he's gonna do it!"
Naruko cheered, as Temari showed a wicked smile.
"Alright then, now be gone!"
Temari's winds went to fire…
When her arms stopped mid air.
She was completely frozen as if in time.
Her eyes tried to move down as much as possible.
"Impossible, I kept...an eye on the shadows...you couldn't have caught me..."
Shikamaru, who was now controlling Temari's actions, began walking forward, so she did as well.
"How you got caught, was because of my Shadow Possession Jutsu. See, I'll show you."
Shikamaru turned his head back.
Temari's head did the same unwillingly.
She noticed from the hole near her, there was indeed a shadow coming out of it, and attached to her own.
The shadow behind Shikamaru also extended to the other hole that Naruko had created beforehand.
She had fallen for his trap.
"N-No..."
"Using the tunnel that Naruko-san created in her fight with Haku-san, I was able to guide my shadows underground. All I had to do was lead you there, and place myself at the other all the while making sure you didn't end me in one blow. It was such a drag trying to do that, but I managed to do it in the end."
Temari breathed out harshly.
She couldn't believe it.
She was outwitted by Shikamaru.
"So this entire battle...you've been drawing me to that location."
"Not the entire battle, I had to think of it first. It really is a drag, but it had to be done."
Temari had to admit defeat.
She couldn't get out of the shadows that bound her.
There wasn't a way she could win at all.
Or, rather, that's what she would have thought, if it wasn't for her Sensei.
"You know...my Sensei told me to go into this battle with one last plan. I didn't think I'd need it...but now I do."
"Last plan? What do you mean?"
Shikamaru seemed perplexed, considering that she had been caught, she'd not be able to do anything.
Ryouta's eyes broadened as he recalled what she did before.
"Yes, that's right. I did underestimate you, I thought that you'd not be able to get the win out on me...but, if it wasn't for Pakura-sensei's wise words, you would have won this match. But not this time, because there's one last thing that I can do now, and you can't escape it."
As soon as she said it, what came flying out of the ground shocked everyone.
What came out was a white-furred weasel with a dark green eye-patch covering his left eye. He's carrying a large sickle that is almost as long as himself, and it came swinging down for Shikamaru.
"W-What? I didn't know you had that..."
Shikamaru couldn't avoid it, he felt his chakra having reached its limit, and watched as the sickle was held towards his upper body, ready to cut through him at a moments notice.
Shikamaru's shadow dropped from Temari, while Naruko's eyes widened.
"When did that come huh?!"
"During the early portion of the battle, when that dust was all around her, I saw her doing a summoning with my Sharingan, but it seemingly disappeared. It looks like she used her winds to tear up the ground, giving the weasel time to hide within said ground in case a scenario like this happened. As she said, it is a move saved in case all else fails, and I think she played it well. If Shikamaru-kun had known about the weasel, it could have gone differently. However, you never truly can know what an enemy has in their skillset, before now I didn't have a clue she had a summoning contract with this creature."
Satsuki folded her arms.
"Suna's full of surprises it seems."
Shikamaru looked towards Temari, and saw that she had a bitter expression.
"What's wrong?"
"I technically did lose to you, you outsmarted me. If Pakura-sensei didn't offer this advice to me, I'd have lost to you for certain."
Ryouta looked on, and smiled softly.
"Going up against Shikamaru-kun is difficult in of itself, and how she handled herself, measuring the distance between them, accounting for the sun moving in the sky and how the shadows cast, destroying the area to make it harder for him to execute his plan, while also being cautious of getting too close, I think you did exceptionally well Temari-san."
Shikamaru looks towards the weasel carrying the sickle, and then Temari herself.
He tried thinking of how to get out of it.
But, he knew he didn't have the chakra.
He had to admit that he was surprised in the end, by this move.
If he had more chakra, then perhaps he could think, but he exhausted it trying to capture her, so her and her weasel was going to be a challenge.
One he couldn't win against.
"I don't have the chakra to fight anymore, so I quit."
Ino's eyes widened, while Choji chuckled awkwardly.
Temari was happy she managed to win, but how close it came, she knew that this fight could have easily been given to Shikamaru if she hadn't listened to Pakura.
Pakura herself bowed her head at the sight before her.
"Temari, I know that you feel as if you only won due to my advice, but I think that this is going to be good experience for you. You won this fight, maybe it came close and you got caught, but you still pressured that young man with nothing but your own mind, I only gave you advice about the last move to have, everything else, how you avoided him and kept him pressured, came from you. And seeing how he uses a single Jutsu in such creative ways, it definitely isn't something to feel sad about, I could see many being defeated by his lazy attitude contrasting his sharp mind in battle. They both showed Chunin levels of thinking in this fight, I could see both being promoted. I couldn't be more proud of you right now Temari, take this victory, you earned it. And that boy, he definitely was quite outstanding as well."
As Pakura thought it, Naruko turns to Ryouta.
"So she's won, yet she doesn't look too happy."
"I think she probably thought she was stronger so the fight would win if she was able to stay away from the shadows, but Shikamaru-kun outsmarted her, I think that's why she's feeling a little down Naruko-chan."
Naruko tilts her head in wonder.
"I get it! Well, I think the fight was awesome, they both did really well!"
"Yes, they did Naruko-chan, they did fantastic. I could see them becoming Chunin with this fight alone."
As Ryouta said it, Haku shows a small smile.
"Well, now that fight is done, the last fight before the second round is you, Satsuki-san."
Satsuki glances at Haku.
Rather than look troubled, she glanced at Gaara.
However, Gaara seemed to be just keeping her head on Ryouta's shoulder, and didn't even seem that interested in the fight at all. Perhaps she was thinking about it, but Satsuki couldn't tell by the expression that she had on her face at all...
Meanwhile, Karin sat with her friends...watching the events unfurl. Hearing Ino's, and others comments, she kept smiling to herself, the idea of her two teammates being able to get through was amazing to her, and if they reached Chunin, then she knew it would be a good thing.
However, a sudden feeling came over her.
A dark one at that.
She could feel it run through her, so she focused in on it.
Fighting through the sea of people, she ran through their chakra signatures.
"This feeling, I haven't felt it in a while, but it couldn't be...why would she be here…? Is it a mistake? Or is it really her again…? The last time she was here, it was something dangerous...but, now it feels like something is..."
She had felt someone.
She had to confirm it before she did anything, and she knew that she'd have to look the least suspicious as she could do.
Then she confirmed it as she felt the chakra.
"There's no mistake, it's hard to detect, but it's there...Ameyuri..."
She relaxed herself.
Making herself look the least suspicious as possible.
She began standing up, when Hinata noticed her.
"Karin-san...a-are you okay?"
Karin nodded as nonchalantly as she could.
"Need the bathroom."
She couldn't be risked being overheard.
So she simply lied for the moment, and simply stood from her seat, and then walked up the stairs.
As she did, Pakura noticed Karin moving.
"Even though she's moving...the time for the invasion is near, she might have sensed the gathering forces. Or maybe she's sensed Kabuto or something. Her skills as a sensor are so good, too good right now. I'm sorry Karin-san."
Pakura showed a regretful face, as she bowed her head, flicking her hand twice.
Doing that, gave a signal to someone else as discreetly as humanly possible, who quickly gave another signal a good distance away.
Karin managed to work her way around, so now she was outside of the stands, and headed for the area her Sensei and the others were in since it was the fastest that she could get to them, and bypass those that could be potential enemies.
She also noticed the lack of people around, which she found to be very odd.
However, what she sensed next coming in fast, surprised her a good deal.
She felt Pakura…
No, she hadn't felt Pakura move from where she was with the other Sensei's.
This was a new Pakura.
She deduced it was that of a Shadow Clone due to its chakra feeling.
She tried to escape, but the clone was too fast.
When she saw the clone coming, she took out a few kunai and launched them at the clone, but clone Pakura avoided the attacks, and then threw several of her own out, which pierced before Karin, so she hopped back.
"You're a clone, aren't you?"
The clone tilted her head.
"You do have good sensing abilities, don't you?"
"You're only a clone, if I can disable you then I'll go and tell the others...you're working with Orochimaru, aren't you?"
The clone of Pakura didn't confirm or deny it.
Instead, she pulled out a kunai.
"I might be a clone, but I'm a clone of the real Pakura, and I have access to skills you currently don't have yet. So I suggest giving up right away and I wont have to hurt you."
Karin grit her teeth.
She didn't want to give up, but Pakura was stronger than her.
Even a clone that didn't have all of the power Pakura had, still had access to Scorch Release, and that was very dangerous.
"Earth Release-"
Before she could do it, Pakura crossed the distance, and swung out her foot, Karin moved to block and she did successfully block it. But the strength behind the kick did cause her to go shooting back across the ground.
As she skidded, Karin pulled out a few smoke bombs, and dropped them onto the ground, covering her entire body.
Pakura grit her teeth, and watched the smoke rise.
"Hiding are you?"
She also didn't want to cause any attention, so she had to use Wind Release as quietly as she did, blowing the smoke away, only to see that Karin was already out of the way, and running towards the others.
Pakura shot off, creating a glowing orb of Scorch Release, and shot it for Karin.
However, before it could touch her, it flew around her form and landed before her, creating a sizeable explosion that blasted Karin onto her back.
"Aaah!"
When Karin let out a pained cry...Pakura stopped.
For a brief moment, guilt took over her.
She didn't want to hurt Karin.
But she did have to stop her.
She kept telling herself that.
For the good of her village, and its future, she'd have to do this.
But within her heart, it felt wrong.
Karin wasn't a bad person, she was only trying to do the right thing.
Even then it broke her heart to even do things like this.
So as Karin was going to stand, floating orbs of chakra surrounded her.
From left, to right, to front, to back.
All of them were surrounding her and she felt worried about what could happen next.
"Scorch Release...if I touch these, the water in my body gets vaporized, doesn't it?"
"Something like that."
Karin stiffened.
She couldn't raise her hands to form hand signs.
She couldn't even move without coming close to touching them.
"Don't resist me Karin-san."
Karin breathed in through her nose, and felt her body shivering.
Despite the heat orbs, she knew if she moved a muscle then it could be game over.
"...What are you planning on doing to me?"
"Nothing, if you don't resist. Now we're going to go on a walk, and if you make a sound..."
She couldn't end her threat.
It felt so disingenuous to her, that even if she did make it, she couldn't follow through with it.
Instead, she simply caused her chakra orbs of Scorch Release to shine brightly.
Karin got the message, and stared Pakura in the eyes.
"Please...don't do this. Don't follow that man's orders...he's a monster. All he cares for, is himself. Whatever deal he's made with Suna...or you personally, whatever it is, he wont hold up that deal...just ask the Oto Genin, he turned on them when they outlived their usefulness. He'll do the same to you. So please...please let me go, we can stop this now, together."
Pakura faced away from Karin, she couldn't show her face to the young girl.
If she did, she'd give away instantly that this wasn't what she wished to do.
She hated it.
She felt pain erupting within her chest.
She felt as if she was going to simply collapse.
It felt that raw to the young woman.
She could see fear in Karin's eyes before she turned.
She could tell that Karin was scared.
She didn't want to make Karin feel like this.
So she steeled herself, and caused her voice to become much lower, gruff, and sounding as cold as she possibly could.
"I don't have a choice. Now follow me."
"Pakura-san please..."
Pakura's eyes went towards her, as the orbs flared their power.
That told Karin everything she needed to know at that moment and she had to do what Pakura wanted her to do.
There was no alternative.
In the end, Karin ended up following the young woman, and could only hope that there was a way out of this situation.
But what that was...she truly didn't know.
End chapter!
Firstly, thanks to everyone that voted on both polls, the new story is out now if you'd like to check that out!
So getting to this chapter had a few things going on, with the fight between Temari and Shikamaru which ended with Temari winning, as with Pakura giving Temari some advice to use her summon in case, she was able to pull off a victory, though she felt disheartened due to being captured and outwitted by Shikamaru when she did her best, both Pakura and Ryouta said it best that she did very well, and Shikamaru did exceptionally well during the fight, and both will take things away from the fight as a result.
Naruko and Ryouta had a small moment together, as did Hanabi and Ryouta, showing both girls wishing to do their best, Naruko being a little disheartened, but also is taking away a good deal from her fight with Haku.
With Ameyuri sneaking into the village, we'll be seeing what her true objective is pretty soon.
While at the end, it seems that Pakura's captured Karin, after she had sensed a certain someone. Though, Pakura's very torn about it, and seems to be eating away at her as she is forced to do these acts, making her more and more unsure of how she is supposed to really feel during all of this.
So the next chapter, is going to be the fight between Satsuki and Gaara, so we'll be seeing how that goes!
Finally, this has been a question/request I've been getting for a while, so I've decided to put it to a vote. Temari, should she be in the harem or stay with Shikamaru?
If she does end up with Ryouta, Shikamaru will also get a new love interest. I have some ideas, but suggestions for that are open as well.
So if you'd like to vote, please do!
Well until next time, thanks for reading!
Ryouta; Satsuki, Sakura, Naruko, Hinata, Gaara (fem), Ino, Haku (fem), Kurotsuchi, Karin, Konan, Mei, Anko, Samui, Hanabi, Mabui,