Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. It belongs to Masashi Kishimoto and I am making no profit from this story, it is only for entertainment.
Chapter Summary: In which the genin play dodgeball and the shadows start moving into position
Also, a comment prompted me to present you the following summary of Naruto's brain:
Kazuya: Do you have a crush on anyone?
*Naruto looking up from where he's being buried in paperwork and seals*
Naruto: The only crush I have is the crushing weight of responsibilities.
Please enjoy!
Chapter 34: Dodgeball: Exam Edition
Naruto raised his arms above his head, feeling the pleasant stretch all the way down his back. Bending down, he placed his hands flat against the ground. He shifted his centre of gravity so it was resting between his hands and he gently lifted his legs, slowly lifting them straight above his head. Once he felt he was comfortable with that, he opened his legs into a straight split. He only maintained it long enough to test the lack of pain before he stepped back onto his feet, straightening up. He hadn't been able to do that last week. He hadn't lost much of his flexibility during his time in the hospital bed; a few physiotherapy sessions and he was better than ever.
"Show-off."
Kazuya watched unimpressed from his own bed. The pain in his throat had finally died down so he was able to speak again, if a bit hoarse and croaky. Naruto had been over the moon when his brother had woken up and even happier when Kazuya acted like his usual self, if a bit grumpier and more stationary. No one would understand better than Kazuya about the treatments and therapy he was receiving; that might've made it easier for the medic nin to accept his reality. Naruto did not share this similarity. He was ready to leave the minute he woke up.
"I'll tell you all about the fights tonight," Naruto promised. "I'll even bring the kids for a dramatic re-enactment."
"You'd better," Kazuya leaned his head back into the mountain of pillows. "Can't believe I'm missing it."
Naruto could sympathise. He would have rioted if he was deemed too injured to watch Rio and Sasuke compete in the exam. He'd had at least three plans that involved a wheelchair if it came down to it. He'd been in a better condition than Kazuya though on the whole which is something he never thought he'd be able to say. He chuckled to himself; like that was going to last long. He'd probably be hunched over a toilet or coughing his guts up within the month.
That was the thing with chronic conditions that was hard to explain to healthy people. No matter how bad it was, he got used to it. It was a part of his life. Some days were worse than others but there was nothing that could fix it, no magic cure, no waking up one day with it gone. It was a burden that he would carry until the day he died and he was at peace with that. When something happened to a person every day, they adjusted to it and their perspective changed. Naruto was sure what he would class as a 'good' day would still horrify people without chronic conditions. It didn't mean it didn't suck or that it didn't bring him down sometimes, but he'd learned to manage it. That was the best he could hope for.
"Try not to cause trouble," he called behind him as he left the room, laughing at the 'I've got nothing else to do' that was thrown at him just before he closed the door.
Setting off down the corridor, he could feel a familiar signature approach.
"Hey, Kabuto," he smiled. "Heading to watch the Chunin Exams?"
"Yes, Naruto-san," the teen nodded. "Do you mind if I walk with you?"
"Nah, feel free," Naruto waved a hand dismissively.
Kabuto fell into step beside him. He'd known Kabuto for years at this point even if it was mainly in passing. The older boy had been in the graduation class the year before Naruto's and he'd seen him shadowing his father around the hospital. From what Yakushi-sensei said, Kabuto was flourishing into quite the medic nin. He usually saw him around when he was delivering paperwork or picking up Kazuya and he didn't really speak to him much; he wasn't a part of Naruto's care so he had no real reason to talk to the guy.
"It sucks that you didn't make chunin this year," Naruto said off-handedly. "I know your father was rooting for you."
"Maybe next year," Kabuto replied, his tone flat.
Naruto shot a glance at him but left it. It was probably a sensitive subject. They walked along in silence for a long moment before Naruto felt a short, sharp pain in his arm. He flinched, gripping the limb as he stared at Kabuto. The round glasses had turned white under reflection of the lights and he tightened his low ponytail, securing his pale, almost white hair at the nape of his neck. Looking around, he firmly guided Naruto into one of the empty rooms. Naruto tried to shrug him off but the strength was rapidly leaving his limbs.
"My master wants you out of the way," Kabuto said, shoving Naruto to the floor. Naruto glared up at him, unable to get back up as he sank into the cold tile beneath him. "You're one of the hardest obstacles to invading Konoha so have a nice rest, okay? We'll take care of the village in your absence."
"You're a fucking traitor," Naruto pushed through his gritted teeth.
"You can't betray something you never believed in."
Kabuto's cold words were left to linger as he left the room, locking the door behind him. Fury raged inside Naruto but he could feel the drugs lulling him into sleep. He never saw it coming; Kabuto was a Konoha nin. His dad had been helping Naruto for years. How could he do this? How could the same guy who volunteered all his weekends to help in the hospital turn around and betray them like this? He hadn't even been able to sense it coming. There had been nothing off; Kabuto hadn't registered as an enemy, and why would he? He was supposed to be one of them. Konoha was supposed to be safe.
His eyes slid shut and the rage faded as he slipped into unconsciousness.
Hiruzen surveyed the three lines of genin standing in the middle of the stadium grounds. He was beyond proud to see that all but three were from Konoha. He knew that this was mainly due to Orochimaru's interference and the arrest of the Oto team but he was still pleased. It was unfortunate that only a few of them would make it to the tournament round. He stood, applying a minor amplifier jutsu to his throat; they had waited around long enough for the Kazekage. He was sure Rasa-dono would be along shortly.
"Welcome to the third stage of the Konoha Chunin Exams," he began, his voice echoing over the filled stadium. "Before the tournament, we will have a short preliminary round to both give the genin a chance to display their skills and to find our finalists."
The sound of discontentment at his words was quiet but still very much present. Hiruzen knew this was not the proper way of doing things; ordinarily they would have reduced the number of genin before the third round but circumstances had prevented this. The official statement was that they want to give the genin a chance to rest before throwing them into another fight. Unofficially, they had been so occupied by the Orochimaru and Otogakure situation they'd been unable to organize a preliminary round immediately after the second stage. Naruto arriving back in Konoha had only added to the chaos.
He allowed his gaze to linger on Rio for only a brief moment before he swept his gaze over the stadium. Rio had been furious to find out that Kazuya had arrived in the hospital and no one had told him; he'd been apoplectic about Naruto's kidnapping. Hiruzen stood by his decision, no matter the current fallout. The risk of other villages finding Naruto before they did outweighed Rio's feelings. It was the right choice although Hiruzen regretted that they hadn't actually found Naruto; the boy had to break himself out. Shikaku had also been noticeably colder towards him but he hadn't been insubordinate so Hiruzen was forced to let it fester.
He really was too old for this.
"They are confined to the stadium grounds and have each been issued a number of paint bombs," he began to explain. "The final eight to remain untagged will progress to the next round. Anything goes and the round will end when there are eight genin left."
He hoped that no one would be killed but it was a part of the risk of the Chunin Exams. This format was brutal, even for the exams, but it was the quickest and easiest way to narrow down the pool of genin to a number acceptable for the tournament round. He knew there might be some who would argue this was in favour of Konoha but there was only room for two full teams and a partial team; there were more Konoha genin than that.
He sat back in his seat, nodding towards the proctor standing in front of the genin. This would be interesting at the very least.
Sasuke's eyes scanned his opponents; his place in the back row gave him the best vantage point to assess his fellow genin. He had a vague idea about Team Eight and Ten's capabilities. They wouldn't have changed much in the past month. The team with the spandex green bodysuit was a much bigger threat along with the team from Suna. There were a couple older Konoha genin that Sasuke hadn't seen much of but if he took them down quickly it shouldn't be much of a problem.
Kakashi-sensei had pushed him hard these past four weeks. The only breaks he'd had were for sleep, meals and his short, daily visits to Naruto in the hospital. He knew his Sharingan had come along in leaps and bounds and with the addition of two more Raiton jutsu to his repertoire, he knew he could take down everyone here. He had to at least be able to do that; Itachi wasn't getting any weaker. If he wanted to beat the truth out of his brother one day, he couldn't let anyone stop him here.
Naruto had revealed to him what he'd found on the Massacre after the Uzumaki had blown a hole in their apartment wall. To think that even Shisui-nii had been involved. It was one thing to process the abrupt loss of his clan, it was another to realize it had been months in the making. Sasuke remembered the weeks that led up to the Massacre. His father had been absent, more than usual, and there had been an air of tension around his aunts and uncles. It was only now that he could contextualize it.
The anger that festered towards Konoha had very nearly consumed him but Naruto had managed to talk him down. While the village itself had lost his trust, Naruto hadn't. Naruto had managed to get himself into a position so something like the Massacre could never happen again. He wasn't willing to let things rest for the benefit of the village.
Sasuke had asked him about that; why was he willing to potentially uproot Konoha for a dead, apparently mutinous clan? Naruto had simply replied that the Uchiha Clan had been part of Konoha too; they should get the same respect as any living resident. Sasuke had said nothing in reply but he didn't think he would be able to tell Naruto how much he owed him. He was sure that Orochimaru's intentions for Sasuke to leave the village with him would have been much more successful if Naruto hadn't been in his life.
He would beat everyone in his path, hunt his brother down and force the truth out of him. He would make Itachi tell him everything: why he did it, who the other Uchiha was, why did it have to end that way, why leave him alive?
The proctor coughed weakly, drawing his attention to the jounin. He thought his name was Hayate but he also hadn't really been listening. He was dressed almost exactly like Genma-san, down to the chunin vest and navy bandana covering his straight, brown hair. He didn't have a senbon in his mouth, but instead had large bags under his slightly bloodshot eyes. He looked like he hadn't slept in a month.
"You may not leave the boundaries of the stadium grounds and keep it away from the crowds," he drawled, covering another cough. "Anything goes but I will intervene if you go for a death blow. Spread out to the perimeter."
Sasuke moved to follow the instructions when he felt a nudge on his shoulder. He turned to see bright, violet eyes staring at him. Rio had ditched his leaf-patterned jumper for a more form fitting forest green t-shirt. His loose, black trousers were bandaged just above the start of his sandals. He'd added bracers and a light, protective grey vest, leaving most of his upper arms bare.
Sasuke had to change his own outfit for the exams. His blue shirt and white shorts hadn't survived Kakashi-sensei's training so he'd donned a black romper with a collar reaching his chin. It was sturdier and had light armor built into it. It also had the Uchiha Clan crest proudly displayed on the back.
"Let's do this."
Sasuke rolled his eyes but returned his teammate's fist bump. He left to stand near a wall, a plan already forming as he took in his neighbors; the redhead, Gaara, and one of the unknown Konoha genin. The Konoha man was older and much taller. A black bandana covered his head, small sunglasses hid his eyes and a free-hanging black cloth covering the lower half of his face. It didn't give Sasuke much to work with in terms of his abilities but if his plan worked, that wouldn't matter.
"Start!"
Sasuke was already halfway through his seals as Hayate's voice faded from where it echoed over the crowd.
"Raiton: Jibashi!"
His Sharingan captured the attack in perfect clarity as the thin arcs of lightning bounced across the ground towards his opponent. The other genin had also started his own hand seal sequence but he wasn't as quick as Sasuke. He jerked and seized as the technique hit him and as the lightning began to dissipate, Sasuke immediately launched a paint bomb. It landed with a large splat on his neck.
"Akadō Yoroi is out!"
Sasuke couldn't take the time to revel in his victory as he ducked a avoided the paint bomb that almost grazed his shoulder. All that speed training Kakashi-sensei made him do was really paying off. His jounin-sensei had said it was so his body could keep up with his Sharingan, but Sasuke had a feeling it was going to come in handy for more than his dōjutsu.
A choked scream reached him and looked over to see the other unknown Konoha genin wrapped around Chouji's neck like a snake. The boy smashed a paint bomb into Chouji's face with far more force than necessary. The Akimichi's nose was almost definitely broken. The unknown genin's expression was hidden by the same loose black mask Yoroi had worn, but his cold eyes were perfectly visible through his clear glasses.
"Akimichi Chouji is out!"
The genin retracted himself from Chouji and bent over at an odd angle to avoid another couple of bombs. Sasuke looked over his shoulder to see a ball of sand; was Gaara in there? It looked like the Suna genin was just going to wait this out. Tenten's weapons weren't doing anything to penetrate that barrier.
"WHAT THE FUCK?"
The voice attracted the attention of the rest of the genin and Sasuke looked back to see the unknown genin slowly being encompassed by a blanket of tiny bugs. They moved over the boy, creating a wave effect and Sasuke roiled slightly as the boy's nose and mouth were covered. He slumped to the ground as Shino walked up to him, dropping a green paint bomb onto his back.
"Tsurugi Misumi is out!"
Sasuke shook himself out of his surprise as he launched a paint bomb towards Temari, the kunoichi slapping it away with her fan. He made a mental note to avoid Shino as long as possible; those bugs were no joke.
He swore as he dodged a green-covered leg, the orange leg warmers offending his senses. He needed this round to end sooner rather than later.
Sakura dodged Ino's fist and launched her own into the other girl's stomach. Ino danced out of the way, swinging a leg towards her face. Sakura blocked with her forearms before grabbing her leg, throwing her off balance. She didn't even have time to consider grabbing a paint bomb before Ino recovered and launched another attack.
Her friendship with Ino was complicated. They had been best friends when they started the academy, the blonde helping and protecting her when Sakura was still dealing with bullies. Then Sasuke had entered the picture and things kind of just…fell apart. Looking back on it now, it was so dumb; Sasuke hadn't cared in the slightest about either of them. While being the prettiest had once held the most prestige in her mind, life after graduation had quickly changed that.
The perfume she had cherished would give away her position in the field. Her long hair would be used against her in a taijutsu spar. Her diet would leave her weakened and unable to build muscle. Her delicate dresses offered no protection against ninjutsu. Going on a date with Sasuke would take away from her training time.
Everything she had done at the academy with the delusion that it would make Sasuke love her made it harder to be a good kunoichi. Wave had been a wake-up call and with the guidance of Kazuya-sensei, she felt like she was finally making progress. Sasuke even spoke to her willingly now. Since she'd started treating him more as a teammate and less like a trophy, she could honestly say she and the Uchiha were becoming friends. Rio too despite how much they had clashed in the academy. It helped that she now lived with them; it was hard to put Sasuke on a pedestal when she'd seen the boy stuff twenty-seven mini tomatoes in his mouth after a dare from Rio.
Sakura had to admit she'd been horrible but also looking back, her environment hadn't helped. Getting away from the other girls and civilians had made it easier to change her mindset and attitude. She was still so far behind the others, she was nowhere near as close as the boys were and nowhere near beating them in a fight, but she was miles from where she started. She would catch up one day; she would make sure of it.
Hana-sensei had been an amazing if brutal and relentless taskmaster. Sakura was sure her limbs were going to drop off with every day of training. She didn't know she could be so sick of punching a wooden post; she had plans to burn that thing the minute these exams ended. She had gotten stronger though. She could run further, lift more, train for longer than she could at the beginning of the month. Hana-sensei herself was pure muscle and while before the idea of Sakura being as thick and muscled as that gave her nightmares, now she could appreciate it. The Inuzuka was strong in a different way than Kazuya-sensei and Sakura had the thought that if she could become a mix of the two, that would be her ultimate goal.
Hana-sensei hadn't made her change much about her outfit. She kept the short, dulled pink sleeveless dress but instead of separate elbow pads and gloves, she had reinforced black gloves that reached her lower biceps. She wore the same black biker shorts that Hana-sensei favoured, and the dress reached beyond them to her knees. It had slits up both sides to allow her to keep her maneuverability and a thin black belt held it in place at her waist. Black shinobi boots reached to just below her knees. Her red hitai-ate acted as a headband, keeping her short pink hair out of her face.
Things had changed with Ino too. The Yamanaka had noticed that Sakura was changing; she had even tracked Sakura down not long after Wave to demand if Sakura had given up on Sasuke. When Sakura had answered in the affirmative, Ino's pale blue eyes had widened and she'd taken a step back. She didn't know what they shared without Sasuke in the mix. Sakura wanted her friend back but she wasn't sure how they were supposed to do that after everything.
It had been Sakura's turn to track Ino down only two weeks later when she learned the Yamanaka was purposely avoiding her. A punch, some tears and a screaming match had resolved most of the awkwardness and they'd settled into the bickering and gibes from before. It was different this time though; there was an undertone of warmth and humour that had been absent during the academy. It came from a different place and it wasn't centered on Sasuke. It was just them.
They were slowly getting to a comfortable place and Sakura didn't have a single doubt that her and Ino would be even closer than they were before. Ino made her better; she was someone she could compete with, test herself against to see if she was really making progress. She didn't have that with Sasuke and Rio.
"Ready to give up yet, Forehead?" Ino snarked, violently shoving some escaped strands of hair out of her face.
"Getting tired already, Ino-pig?" Sakura snapped back even as her heart was light.
She caught the quick smile that crossed the Yamanka's face before she raised her block again, Ino's leg slamming into her.
"Hagane Tenten is out!"
Sakura could barely glance to see the older girl draped across the Suna kunoichi's fan nearby when she had to duck another fist from Ino. She lashed out with a hit of her own, managing to clip her jaw. She had no idea how many people were out, how many were left. All that mattered was that she beat Ino. She was grateful that no one had decided to interrupt them; whoever it was wouldn't have lasted long anyway. They would have been taken down quickly. This was between her and Ino.
She narrowed her eyes as Ino palmed a paint bomb and she quickly brought out one of her own. They were going to finish this. She panted heavily, her limbs heavy. She could feel the sweat running down the back of her neck. They can't have been fighting for very long but it felt like an eternity.
She snapped her arm forward, the ball aimed for the centre of Ino's face. It was only at the last second that she realized that Ino had done exactly the same thing. She felt Ino's fist on her cheek and the bomb exploded; she felt something sticky and wet latch itself to her skin. The impact forced her back and she slammed down to the ground, dazedly gazing up at the blue sky.
"Haruno Sakura and Yamanaka Ino are out!"
The words made their way through the haze. Wait, both of them? She hauled herself into a sitting position, looking across to her rival. Ino looked just as surprised as Sakura felt beneath the blue paint that covered her features and dress. Laughter bubbled up in her throat and she couldn't help but laugh; whether it was from the image of Ino covered in paint, the fact they'd eliminated each other or that her chances of making chunin had just vanished was anyone's guess.
"That was kind of dumb."
She looked over to Shikamaru as he crouched next to them, still pristine.
"Why aren't you out yet?" Ino huffed, trying in vain to scrape some of the paint out of her hair.
"It's too troublesome to fight," the Nara drawled and Ino rolled her eyes.
"It was pretty dumb," Sakura smiled. "But I don't think I would have wanted to be beaten by anyone else."
Ino's wide eyes darted to her before she also grinned.
"Same here."
Shikamaru looked between the two dubiously before he shook his head, muttering 'troublesome women' beneath his breath.
The minute the proctor uttered the word 'start', Rio was moving. He wasn't sure where he was moving to yet but he figured it would decrease his chances of getting hit. He watched Sasuke take down the guy with sunglasses before a noise reached his ears. He back-flipped out of the way, the paint bomb soaring past harmlessly. He looked up to see Kiba armed with another one, Akamaru growling behind him.
"Really, Kiba?" Rio raised an eyebrow.
"No hard feelings, huh?" Kiba's canines peeked through his grin.
Rio stared at him for a moment before he nodded. His best friend seemed dead set on taking him down and he couldn't disrespect that.
Kiba had been his first friend his own age. He was raised with him; they had learned so much together. If something happened when they were younger, Kiba was the first one he told after Nii-san and Kazu-nee. He knew Kiba better than he knew himself sometimes.
There had been some friction in the academy. Inuzuka were territorial by nature and that extended to Kiba. He wasn't happy that Rio had started branching out; it had been just them for so long and then Tenten, then Shikamaru and Chouji joined them, then Sasuke and Hinata and Shino and everyone they had met since leaving the academy. Rio knew that Kiba would always be his first friend but sometimes the Inuzuka forgot that. It had led to more than one argument between them.
Nii-san said it was natural to make new friends and drift apart as they grew up; that they would never truly lose each other. Not after being raised together the way they had. Rio just wished that Kiba could understand that. It wasn't like the Inuzuka wasn't coming round to his place every week or training their tracking skills together in their spare time; plus Kiba had his own team to worry about now. He hadn't seen Kiba as much after graduating and he did feel a little guilty about that, but he didn't feel like he had abandoned his best friend. If Kiba turned up at his door wanting to hang out, Rio would go without a second thought. It's just that they were busier nowadays.
"I would have thought you'd go for Sasuke first," he said casually, distracting Kiba from noticing the hand he dipped into his pocket.
"I'll deal with the pretty boy after I take you out." Kiba tensed slightly. "I'm gonna beat you and win this whole thing!"
"Good luck with that."
Rio took a deep breath before he slammed the object he snuck out of his pocket on the ground. The stink bomb clouded their surroundings and Rio tore three paint bombs from his pouch and launched them in Kiba's direction. There was a tense moment of silence before Hayate's voice rang out.
"Inuzuka Kiba is out!"
The cloud began to lift and Rio saw an angry Kiba glaring at him. Pink paint had splattered across the front of his jacket.
"Haruno Sakura and Yamanaka Ino are out!"
Rio looked over to see his teammate on the ground, yellow paint covering almost her whole head. A blue-covered Ino sat across from her with a clean Shikamaru crouching beside them. Had Shikamaru taken them both out? That seemed unlikely; too much effort for the Nara.
"Hyūga Hinata is out!"
His head snapped around to see a bloody Hinata slumped to the ground, orange paint covering an entire arm. Alarm shot through him as he saw the state she was in; what happened? That was excessive, especially for this round. He looked over to the boy standing over her and his eyes narrowed. The male Hyūga's cold and disgusted expression as he stared down at his unconscious clan member led to no misunderstandings. He had done it on purpose. He had hurt Hinata on purpose. Rio began to stomp his way towards the older boy, determined to take him down for Hinata's sake when the proctor's voice rang out once again through the stadium.
"Kankuro of the Sunagakure no Sankyōdai is out!" The man called, coughing into a closed fist. "That concludes the preliminary round. Could all genin please exit the stadium grounds and return to your jounin-sensei in the stands until the tournament round begins?"
Rio shot one last glare at the Hyūga before he began to follow the rest of them from the stadium. He looked back at Kiba but he wasn't looking at him. Distress lined every edge of his frame and a void appeared in Rio's gut; he couldn't have been the one to put that look on Kiba's face, could he?
Just before they reached the stairs to the stands, Rio grabbed Kiba's arm and dragged him into one of the corridors that branched off from the main tunnel. The Inuzuka resisted him but Rio was determined. He let go once they were out of reasonable earshot of the rest of the group and he folded his arms.
"Kiba, what's wrong?"
"Nothing," scoffed Kiba, although he would still not meet Rio's gaze.
"Kiba, it's not nothing!" Rio exclaimed annoyed, throwing his hands up in frustration. "I know you like the back of my hand! Something has been up with you since we graduated! You still come round and speak to me and stuff but I can tell there's something there that's not supposed to be! What did I do?"
"Just fucking leave it!" Kiba snapped, furious brown eyes finally meeting Rio's.
"I've left it long enough!" Rio glared back at him. "I'm allowed to have other friends, Kiba! You're always going to be my best friend but just because I'm closer to Sasuke now and-"
At the mention of the Uchiha's name, Kiba visibly recoiled and Rio sighed in annoyance.
"Are you still on this jealousy thing?"
"You don't get it."
"-because Kiba I don't give a shit if you Inuzuka are territorial or whatever-"
"YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND!"
"THEN EXPLAIN IT TO ME!"
"YOU'RE LEAVING ME BEHIND!"
Rio scoffed.
"I just said that we're still going to be friends even if we find other friends-"
"That's not what I mean!" Kiba gripped his hair, his knuckles turning white. "You're getting way stronger than me and I can't catch up! You would rather hang out with Sasuke because he's closer to your level!"
"Kiba…" Rio said quietly, shock coursing through his system.
"Look at today!" Kiba flung a hand out desperately. "You beat me in seconds! I'm supposed to give you a fight, maybe even beat you sometimes! You were always better than me at the academy! You had Naruto-nii and Kazuya-nii there to train you! Then you got Sasuke, the best in our whole year! How am I supposed to compete?"
Kiba panted harshly and Rio could only stare at him. This is what had been bothering his friend? It wasn't that he was making new friends, it was that they were…better than him? Rio was better than him? He felt like he couldn't keep up?
He hadn't even realized he'd swung his fist until he was looking down at Kiba, his fist throbbing slightly.
"You are the biggest moron I have ever met."
Kiba's face dropped before Rio continued.
"Whatever made you think that we can only be friends if we're both strong?" Rio asked, his voice rising with every question. "When have we ever based our friendship on who is better? You're my best friend, Kiba, not because you can kick my ass but because of who you are! It doesn't matter how many matches we win, how many jutsu we learn, what rank we are; we are supposed to be FRIENDS!"
He continued ranting, not even looking at his friend now.
"Sure we can be competitive but since when is that the measure of how we're supposed to be friends? I could lose my limbs and become a civilian; does that mean we're not friends? You could make jounin before me; does that mean we're not friends? You need to stop measuring our friendship by dumb shit! Isn't it enough that I like hanging out with you, laughing with you, training with you?"
He pointed a finger right in Kiba's face.
"By your logic, we can't be friends 'cause you are way better at tracking than me and are friends with Shino, who is also amazing at tracking. Don't you hear how dumb that is?"
The normally loud and boisterous Inuzuka was silent, his mouth opening and closing without a sound. Akamaru nudged his elbow and Kiba looked down to the puppy, rubbing his head gently as he relaxed. He reached out and grabbed the hand that Rio had kept held out for him.
"When you put it like that…" he said sheepishly.
"We are not done talking about this," Rio hissed even as he pulled his friend into a tight hug.
Kiba froze for a long moment before he slumped, wrapping his own arms around Rio.
"You're stuck with me, understood?" Rio said quietly into his ear. "I'll drag you with me if I have to. We're going to be friends until we one day get taken out in a blaze of glory when we're so old we can't shit by ourselves. Got it?"
Kiba huffed a laugh into his shoulder, nodding.
"Got it."
The round had not lasted long and Hiruzen was pleased by the result. While not all, the majority of the finalists were from Konoha and they had earned their places in the tournament. They would quickly clean up the field of paint and give the genin a chance to catch their breath. The board with the match-ups was already set up and he knew that the finalists' names were being added to the system at this very moment. There was a good mix of teams too; no one team had all their members make it through.
There was movement to his left and the Kazekage entered the viewing pavilion. Rasa was dressed in the customary green and white robes associated with the office. His tan features were shadowed beneath the brim of the Kazekage's hat and his dark red hair only peeked out slightly. Dark eyes scanned the field as he took his seat beside Hiruzen.
"Rasa-dono, welcome," Hiruzen nodded his head towards the other village leader.
"Hiruzen-dono," the man greeted back, settling himself down.
"You missed the preliminary round," Hiruzen commented lightly although there was an undertone of question.
"Something came up at the last moment that delayed my arrival," Rasa answered casually. "It was dealt with swiftly and I was able to make my way here."
Hiruzen raised an eyebrow but he did not ask on the topic further, sensing the man was not finished.
"However, I do not find it a great loss," he continued. "I had no desire to watch the weak being weeded out. I want to watch my son crush the strong genin of your village."
Hiruzen sighed.
"I think you may find yourself surprised, Rasa-dono," he said, keeping his voice neutral. "We may have a few surprises for you this year."
He stood before the man could reply and approached the edge of the balcony, applying the same amplifying jutsu as earlier.
"This concludes the preliminary round." His voice echoed over the stands. "We will now proceed with the tournament round. The names of the genin have been randomised and the first four matches will be shown on the board. I wish the competitors the best of luck!"
He settled back into his seat to watch the first match, missing the glint of yellow that appeared in the eyes of the Kazekage for only a brief moment.
Kakashi stood proudly in the stands, waiting for his team to make their way back to him. It was a pity about Sakura but he could see how much she'd improved under Hana. She was miles away from where was in the bell test and he felt the pride singing in his chest. He was glad he had his mask or the other sensei might comment on the beaming smile he was sure was plastered across his face. He turned a smug gaze towards his fellow jounin and he was sure they could see it in his eye.
"Shut the fuck up, Kakashi," grumbled Asuma, blowing a cloud of smoke into his face.
"Mah, Asuma, I don't recall saying anything," Kakashi sniped back.
They were interrupted by an exuberant Gai bouncing his way into their group.
"Such a beautiful display of Youth!" he sobbed. "Our genin are a shining example to us all about how we must push past our limits and embrace the Springtime of our Youth! Your genin was exemplary to avoid Lee's onslaught for so long!"
Kakashi looked away the moment glistening dark eyes turned to him.
"Did you say something, Gai?"
"So hip, Kakashi!" The tears only fell harder.
"Gai-sensei!"
"Lee!"
The matching pair ran into each other's arms, the sobbing intensifying. A Hyūga stood nearby supporting a girl, his face resigned.
"Kaka-sensei!"
A paint covered Sakura walked over to him and he patted her head gently.
"You did good," he said gently. "You're a lot stronger now."
Sakura nodded even as she wiped away some errant tears. Sasuke stood beside her and Kakashi didn't hesitate to firmly ruffle the Uchiha's clean hair.
"Well done, Sasuke. You used all your training to its full potential."
Sasuke batted away his hand, trying to pat his hair back into the mess it was before. He didn't say anything but Kakashi knew him well enough by now; the kid was pleased. He looked behind him but there was no sign of the third.
"Where's Rio?"
"He and Kiba went somewhere after the match," Sakura shrugged.
Kakashi was about to ask her to elaborate when his final student turned up.
"Kashi-sensei!"
Rio's blond hair was easy to spot as it bounced towards them. Like Sasuke, he was paint free and would be moving onto the tournament. He had two genin moving on; one more than the other two rookie genin teams. He knew he couldn't take all the credit. Hana and Genma had done an amazing job training Sakura and Rio during the month break, and he knew Naruto and Kazuya had a large hand in all of their lives.
He compared his team to what they had been six months ago and he was so grateful to Naruto for giving him the kick up the ass to really start training them properly. He didn't know why he'd been so nervous. They had taken to the harder training like ducks to water and even Sakura had been putting in extra hours. He couldn't wait to see what they would become. He hadn't given them enough credit.
Rio greeted his teammates with a high-five, coercing one out of Kakashi after he broke out the puppy dog eyes. His bright violet eyes darted around, his shoulders sagging as he failed to find what he'd been looking for.
"Where's Nii-san?"
Kakashi hadn't seen the redhead but he hadn't thought much of it.
"He might have been late to leave Kazuya since he's still stuck to his bed," Kakashi offered. "He also wouldn't be in this area; it's for competing genin and their sensei. He's probably further up in the stands or behind the scenes somewhere. He wouldn't miss this for the world."
"Yeah…you're probably right," Rio nodded although he still looked unsure.
That was normal. Naruto had been kidnapped; it had only been a month ago so it was sure to still be fresh. Naruto wasn't in the middle of Fire Country this time though. He was in Konoha.
Konoha was supposed to be safe.
Raiton: Jibashi – Lightning Release: Electromagnetic Murder
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