SPeCTeR-ll7: I concede that point. And please explain to me what advantages Sasuke has over Naruto? Naruto would beat Sasuke at this point in time, in an all-out-to-the-death fight. In a spar, Sasuke would win.
August Smith (Guest): ...errrr...I don't know how to respond. I'm not at that age though.
Blonde Neko-chan: ...Not...to...kill...off...Asuma? I'm sorry, I cannot compute. Kill, murder, exterminate, EXTERMINATE! And they have a baby...as for the Kyuubi thing, well that was already gonna happen. Although he's still gonna meet his dad.
midnightscar17: YOU ARE BULLSHITTING ME! You've asked me this question, at LEAST 3, THREE, times! And I've answered it all the time. It's not NaruSaku. I KNOW you read chapter 20.
Afi (Guest): Thank you for the complement.
Kaisha Agariba Hiniku: Actually it does. Suna no Gaara is Gaara of the Sand. Sabaku no Gaara is Gaara of the Sand Waterfall, which isn't really his name, but I'm just using as such.
UltraMickey/ Itachi Hyuuga: I sincerely apologize, yet I don't own her, so I will not be changing her name.
Guest: I said that?
Scarease: Always looking for some, just make sure you scrolled to the specific OC area. People tend to miss that one.
ThomasNealy: Like I said in some chapter (I don't remember exactly), this is my story now, meaning that Jinchuriki are made at birth, and because Naruto doesn't really give us a timelime for this, I can get away with it.
serialkiller: Read...the...story.
RandomWriter21: If you don't stop freaking reading my mind right now!
Come Out Swingin'
It had been three days since Team 7 had finished the secondary round of the Chunin Exams. In that short period of time Kakashi, with Naruto's aid, looked at Sasuke's seal as sealed it, notifying him that the seal would only work as long as the boy did not want to use its power. The team had rested, and regained their chakra, and were fully prepared for the next challenge that awaited them.
Team 7, bar Kakashi, were surprised when they walked into an arena. "This is not what I was expecting…" Sakura mumbled, her eyes wide. As they fell into line with several other teams they looked around, trying to see who was here.
Not including themselves there were six other teams there. They frowned. "A lot of people passed this test," Sasuke pointed out, whispering. Sakura nodded. "Yeah. Ino's team, and Hinata's team passed with us though, so I'm okay with it." Naruto nodded.
"I agree Sakura."
The blonde glanced over at Hinata, a small smile forming on his face. 'I'm glad she passed. But if my guess about this arena is right we'll have to fight. Hinata can't beat a lot of the people here…crap.'
Sasuke looked to the right of him, his eyes wide. "Guys, we have a problem."
"What do you mean?" Sakura and Naruto asked simultaneously.
"That Oto team, along with Gaara's team is here."
Naruto glanced towards his right, his eyes wide as he remembered Gaara. "Guys, if we have to fight, forfeit the match if you get Gaara. You can't win. I can't win either."
Sasuke shook his head. "I wouldn't be as worried about Gaara. There are Jonin and Chunin here, along with the Hokage. I doubt they'd let people die, at least, not to an insane Jinchuriki. No, worry about that Oto team. Their sound is deadly."
"Hmph, just like the weak, to worry about the strong."
Sasuke and Naruto glared at the speaker, who had a smug look on his face. "Do you have a problem with the truth, Uchiha, Uzumaki?"
"Shut up Neji," Naruto hissed, growling. Neji rolled his eyes. "I need not listen to a failure."
"A failure who nearly kicked your ass?" Neji snarled, his eyes beginning to become more defined until a hand was placed on his shoulder. "Calm down Neji. We can't fight here," Tenten said, a frown on her face. Neji's eyes returned to their natural color, although he spared a passing glare at Naruto.
Naruto just ignored him, although he couldn't help the one person he knew was more suspicious than anyone.
"Guys, Kabuto passed."
Everyone on Team 7 tensed.
XxX
"Your team passed Kakashi," Guy said, a smile on his face. Kakashi nodded. "Of course they did. Were you expecting them to fail?" Guy simply smiled. Kakashi glared at him. "Guy…" he said, a dangerous tone taking over his voice. Guy nodded. "They're newbies Kakashi." Kakashi was silent. Guy looked at him. "Kakashi?"
Nothing.
"Kakashi?"
Nothing.
"Kakashi!?"
"Huh, did you say something?"
Guy turned away, tears falling down his face. 'All right Kakashi you win this round. Boy that gets me so mad when you act so cool.'
Kakashi eye-smiled.
XxX
"I'm so hungry," Choji moaned, rubbing his stomach. Shikamaru rolled his eyes. "This is such a drag. Why are there so many left?" Ino, following the suit of ignoring what the other people on her team had said, spoke up, "Sasuke and his team have passed too," she said in a girlish squeal. Shikamaru groaned. "Such a drag. Ino, Sasuke's the Rookie of the Year, with his teammate being the runner-up and the Kunoichi of the Year. Of course they passed."
Kiba overheard this, and was about to comment, however Akarmaru whined. "Akamaru," he mumbled, glaring at Gaara. 'Those sand village ninja.'
Hinata smiled, looking at Naruto's back. 'Naruto passed too.'
Hiruzen smiled at all of them. 'It's hard to believe there are so many left after the second test. This crop of Genin are something special indeed.'
"Alright now pay attention, Lord Hokage's going to explain to third exam to you maggots," Anko called out. "Lord Hokage, they're all yours," Anko said, bowing. Hiruzen nodded, walking forwards.
"First before I tell you what the Third Exam entails I want to tell you what this test is all about. Listen closely now, it's something all of you should understand. I'm going to tell you the true purpose of these exams.
'True purpose,' Sakura thought, a confused look on her face.
"Why do you think our countries hold these exams, in conjunction with the others? It's to raise the ability levels of shinobi, and increase friendships between allied nations to be sure, but do you surely understand its true purpose? The exams are, so to speak,"
"So to speak?" Tenten mumbled, so that no one would hear her.
Hirzuen sighed. "They are representation of the battle between allied nations." The Genin seemed to be shocked at this, several of them sharing confused looks. "And what's that supposed to mean?" Tenten asked. "Now, if we look at our history, all the countries that we are currently allied with, were once neighboring nations that continuously fought with each other for power. In order to ensure the survival of more shinobi, those nations picked champions to do battle on the behalf of their countries, in a mutually selected location. That was how the Chunin Selection Exams, originally began."
Naruto nodded. "Well, that's all great and all, but why do we have to go through these exams then? I mean, it's not like we're doing this to pick Chunin to go fight."
"Well actually, there is no question that part of the point of these exams is to select shinobi worthy of becoming Chunin, that's just not the whole picture. These exams also allow for a case where shinobi can carry the pride of their nations on their very backs, and fight against other ninja for their very lives."
"The pride of their nation," Sakura mumbled, awe in her voice. "Many leaders, and prominent figures from various countries are invited to attend this exam as guests, and also possibly to seek shinobi to work for them. This exam will determine the course of your ninja work from here on out. And, most importantly, those rulers will watch your battles, and take note of the strengths that each ninja, in each nation, is developing. If there is a gap in power between the countries, the strong nations are inundated with request for their ninja, and conversely the request to countries that are deemed weak, decline in missions. Therefore, the stronger our nation is, the better our nation when it comes to negotiating with neighboring countries. So it's important to show how much military strength our village has."
"Okay but even so, why is it necessary for us to risk out lives," Kankuro called out.
"The countries strength is the village's strength, the village's strength is the shinobi's strength, and the true strength of the shinobi is only achieved when it is pushed to its limits, such as a life-or-death situation. This exam is a chance for each nation to display the strength of its shonbi and hence, the strength of the nation itself."
"Still think they'll save us if we fight Gaara, Sasuke," Naruto mumbled. Sasuke lightly punched him in the back.
"It's because this is an exam where your life is on the line, that it has meaning. And it's this meaning that for the strength of the nation that your forerunners fought in this exam. It's truly a dream worth striving for."
"But then why did you use the expression friendship before?" Tenten asked.
"But you've only remembered half of what I said. You also mustn't have the wrong idea of the exams meaning. This is a custom in which balance is preserved by fighting and dying, in the world of the shinobi that is friendship."
Several of the Genin frowned, just now coming to terms with the dark life they chose for themselves.
"The third exam is a fight for life with the pride of your village and your dreams at stake."
Hiruzen let that sink in.
"Hmph. Well he sure convinced me," Naruto said.
"Any test is fine, just tell me what the details of the exam are already. I can handle anything you throw at me," Gaara said in an aggravated tone. Hiruzen nodded. "Very well then. Now, listen closely, I'm going to tell you exactly what you'll all be doing on the third exam."
Hiruzen took a breath, however a shinobi appeared in front of him, his head bowed.
"Lord Hokage, before you do, please allow me, Hayate Gekko, appointed as proctor for the third exam to speak first," the shinobi, apparently named Hayate Gekko, spoke.
"So be it."
The shinobi stood, turning around. "It's nice to meet you all," he said, before coughing. Sakura frowned. "I wonder if I could heal that cough of his," she mumbled.
"There's something…I would like all of you, to do before the third exam," he said, before breaking out into a fit of coughs.
"Uh, we have to have a preliminary exam before we can move onto the real one."
"Huh?" Naruto mumbled.
"A what?" Sakura asked.
"Preliminary," Shikamaru shouted out. "Just what do you mean by that!?"
"I'm sorry, sensei, excuse me, but I really don't see the point. What's this preliminary all about? Why can't we just all move onto the third exam?" Sakura asked.
"Uh," Hayate began, making Sakura think he didn't actually know the answer. "Well you see, the first and second exams might have been too easy. The fact is we never expected so many of you to still be here. According to the rules of the Chunin Exams, a preliminary exam can be held at any stage, in order to reduce the number of competitors remaining."
"B-but," Hinata spoke up, surprising many. "Is that fair?"
"It's just that at this stage we have to speed things up a bit. As Lord Hokage said, a lot of important guests will be watching. We can't afford to waste their time. They've come from to see only the best, so if there are any of you who feel like your not in top physical condition, now is the time to back out," he said, before breaking out into another fit of coughs.
'Hypocrite,' went through Ino's mind.
"The preliminary's start immediately, so make a smart decision."
Kiba piped up. "Come on, you mean right now?"
"We barely finished surviving the last exam, don't we get a break?"
"No, we don't," Shikamaru said, although he sighed. Everyone was looking at him now. "Look, it's a drag, but the fact remains that we had time to get here, and if you failed to do so you don't deserve the chance to rest. Look around, some teams look rested because they got here early enough, for example the Suna team or Naruto's. The fact remains, if you didn't get here early enough you can't reap the rewards, although it's a drag."
Hiruzen smiled at the boy, nodding. 'He might grow up to be brighter than his own father.'
"Oh yeah, huh, the winners will be determined by one-on-one combat, sudden-death. So like I said if there's anyone who wants to bow out now is your chance," Hayate repeated.
'Do they really think anyone is going to quit? We all worked to hard to get here and to quit,' Sasuke thought.
The Oto Jonin gave a smile, which creeped several Genin out, however he did nothing more. No one noticed Kabuto give a slight inclination of his head. Kabuto then raised his hand.
"What?" Kiba called out.
"K-Kabuto-san?" Hinata stuttered.
Kabuto gave an apologetic smile. "Okay, you got me, I'm out."
"But…Kabuto…" Ino mumbled.
Hayate nodded. "Kabuto Yakushi of the Leaf Village right? Okay, you can go on and step back." Kabuto nodded. "Gotcha."
Kiba ran out of line. "Kabuto, what are you talking about? You can't quit! Remember how hard you worked to get here!"
Choji nodded. "He's right. How can you give up all the hard work you can your teammates put in?"
'Pathetic,' Gaara thought, looking at Kiba, Choji, and Kabuto. Kabuto however paid no attention to this, turning to the two that called him out. "I appreciate you guys wanting me to stay, but…I can't. I'm sorry, but my body is just to beat up. I can't hack it. The fact is, ever since orientation and that dust up with the sound village team, I've lost all hearing in my left ear. And now to put my life on the line, to fight again, without a break? I can't do it."
There was a reigning silence over the arena, so silent you could hear a mouse walking on cotton. Everyone was looking at Kabuto, yet no one looked more disappointed then Sakura, Kiba, and Choji, albeit different reasons for each of them.
"Seems to me I've seen that one before. If memory serves, this isn't the first time he's dropped out before a battle. What kind of game is he playing," Hiruzen asked aloud, not even bothering to lower his voice.
"Anko," Ibiki drawled, looking at her with barely hidden annoyance. Anko's eyes widened briefly before she nodded. "Right." She quickly flipped through some papers before she found the file she was looking for. "Kabuto Yakushi. Says here he's, failed six times in a row."
"What do you have on his background?"
"His time at the Academy is not what you'd call impressive. Average grades, took him a full three times before he passed the graduation exam. As far as his mission he's carried out since then, it's been two C-ranks, and 14 D-ranks. It's not exactly a battle record to write home about. However," Anko paused, making everyone look at him.
"Go on."
"There's something before his time in the Academy?"
"Huh?"
"Do you remember the child? The one who was found after the Battle of Kikyo Pass. The only survivor."
"I remember the story. It was said a small boy was found among the enemy dead among the battlefield. He was found barely alive and brought back from a Jonin among the medical unit. You're saying this is that boy?"
One of Kabuto's teammates turned to him, clasping him on the shoulder. "Kabuto, what do you think you're doing anyway? Have you forgotten Orochimaru's orders?" he whispered silently. Kabuto simply turned to him, a smile on his face. "I'm leaving all that to you. What's the problem? For someone with your abilities, it should be no trouble. This is your chance to prove yourself Yoroi. After all, you've always wanted to take my place."
Yoroi snorted. "You may be Orochimaru's favorite, but be careful you don't push it too far."
"Thanks for the advice, I'll keep it in mind."
With that Kabuto gave a small wave to Kiba, Sasuke, Naruto, Sakura, and Choji before walking out the building.
Hayate coughed. "Now then, does anybody else want to quit?" A period of silence reigned, with tension so thick it was palpable. Hiruzen, never being one to care for such trivial things, sighed loudly. "I'm still concerned about what Orochimaru said," Hiruzen whispered. Anko nodded. "I'm also concerned about that mark, but we'll just have to trust Kakashi on this. We'll keep Sasuke in play."
Anko seemed to not be pleased by the decision, having been informed about Sasuke's mark by Kakashi, however she couldn't change it, simply muttering, "I don't give a damn if the Yondaime did the seal, that boy will not survive it."
"Alright then, we'll now begin the preliminary round," Hayate began. "This round, will consist of one-on-one individual combat, to full battle intensity. This is not an exercise. There are twenty of you remaining, meaning that there will be ten matches. The surviving candidates from these ten matches, will advance to the third exam. As for the rules, there are none. You will fight until one dies or concedes defeat, or is considered physically incapable of continuing the contest."
'Isn't that hypocritical,' the entirety of the Genin, bar Gaara as he didn't care, though.
"Naturally, those who are losing are encouraged to forfeit to avoid a fatal outcome. Furthermore, as proctor I'm given a certain amount of leeway in judging the matches," Hayate coughed, "I might occasionally intervene if a match seems hopeless, to save as many lives as possible. Now it's time to reveal what fate has been chosen for you."
'I hope I get Neji,' Naruto thought.
'Lee…I have a remamtch with you soon,' Sasuke thought.
'The Uchiha, and Uzumaki. Mother will enjoy their blood.'
'I'll get you back you blonde-haired brat!' Kankuro roared in his mind.
Hayate turned towards a particularly high place on the wall, looking at it. "Open the panel," Anko called. Part of the wall began to shift, going upwards. It revealed a T.V. screen. "The names of each pair of opponents is chosen completely at random. Before each match, these names will appear on the display behind me. Guess there's nothing more to say. Let's begin."
The screen flashed on, before it sped through names. Soon enough it paused, revealing Yoroi Akado versus Sasuke Uchiha. 'Looks like you'll have to wait Lee,' Sasuke thought. Naruto's eyes widened.
"I couldn't ask for anything more," Yoroi mumbled.
"Alright now, those whose names have been drawn, come forwards."
Sasuke and Yoroi walked forwards towards Hayate, before turning and facing each other. The bottom half of Yoroi's face was greatly concealed by the mask that hung from his nose to below his neck. He wore sunglasses and his forehead protector was worn much like a bandanna. He wore a high-collared, sleeveless, navy-blue shirt with a short-sleeved, white one underneath, a simple obi around his waist, pants, sandals, and fingerless gloves.
"The first match. Yoroi Akado, and Sasuke Uchiha. Are there any objections? No, good, because you don't have a choice unless these two want to forfeit."
"None here," Sasuke called.
"No," Yoroi mumbled out.
"Alright then. Let's begin the first match. Everyone go up to the stands you see positioned around the place." They nodded, everyone splitting and going up to stands, even the Jonin. Kakashi patted Sasuke on the shoulder, but said nothing else, vanishing and reappearing next to Naruto and Sakura. Naruto and Sakura gave each other a nod.
"Kick his ass till he's black and blue Sasuke!" they roared.
"Whatever. Let's get on with this," Sasuke said, although he gave a light smile.
'Watch yourself Sasuke. That mark is deadly,' thought the Oto Jonin.
"When you're ready," Hayate said.
Yoroi shot forwards, a kunai in hand. Sasuke simply raised an eyebrow, easily dodging the slice before laucnhing a punch that slammed into Yoroi's stomach. Yoroi coughed up spit before he flew backwards, skidding against the ground.
"Is that the fastest you can go? Hell, Sakura's faster than you, and compared to Naruto, with his seals on, you're a sloth."
Yoroi snarled, his hands being coated in blue chakra. He shot forwards, his legs pumping as fast they could carry his weight. Sasuke simply frowned, easily avoiding the hand, before he glared at Yoroi. "You should just give up," he stated, before flipping over Yoroi, avoiding another thrust. Yoroi howled, his body shooting forwards. Sasuke continued his dodging.
XxX
The Oto Jonin smirked. 'He's excellent! Even without the full Curse Mark on him he's still able to function so easily. He's brilliant! Yet, he's not perfect…thanks to that damn Jinchuriki. When both of them serve me the Uzumaki will regret his transgressions.'
XxX
Lee gave Naruto a look. "Naruto, does Sasuke plan on dodging the entire time?" Naruto shook his head. "No. He's likely just taking his time. Sasuke was right, he's used to people who move way faster than Yoroi, sorry to brag."
Shikamaru frowned. "Naruto…so what you're saying is that Sasuke could end this fight whenever he wanted?" Naruto nodded. "That's exactly what I'm saying."
Ino squealed. "I'd expect nothing less from my dear Sasuke-kun!" Naruto glanced at Sakura as she said, only to find a look of calm fury on her face. Naruto paled, quickly moving away from Sakura. Kakashi raised an eyebrow but nodded.
'That was smart.'
Kakashi walked to the other end of the platform.
XxX
Sasuke's eyes narrowed before he jumped high into the air, reaching into his kunai pouch. He launched three shuriken that were easily dodged by Yoroi. "Don't mock me Uchiha! I'm not gonna play with you any longer!"
Sasuke snorted, landing. "If you're in such a hurry to lose." Yoroi charged forwards, both of his arms cocked back, his hands covered in that blue chakra. Sasuke simply smirked, sliding his right leg backwards as he dropped into his clan's taijutsu stance. Yoroi nodded. "Right, stay right there and fight me!"
Sasuke ducked under the wild swing from Yoroi, landing an uppercut that sent Yoroi stumbling backwards. Sasuke's eyes widened with a fierce glare as he shot forwards, grabbing the blade strapped to his back. He jumped, grabbing Yoroi and slamming him the ground. He then placed Yoroi's neck at the half circle in the Kubikiribocho, a smirk on his face.
"Give up or die."
Yoroi growled, trying to raise his hands, however he noticed Sasuke slowly but surely begin to move his arm.
"Wait! I surrender alright! I surrender!"
Sasuke smirked. "Of course you do."
Hayate nodded, before he broke into a fit of coughs. "Winner: Sasuke Uchiha."
Sasuke stood, placing his blade at his back before jumping towards Naruto, who was rejoining Sakura, along with Kakashi. He landed, a smirk on his face. "I told you I would win."
Naruto rolled his eyes. "I knew you would, I just never knew it would be so easy for you. I hope my opponent isn't a pushover like yours."
Sasuke nodded. "Yeah. I hope so too, that way I can get amusement from seeing you and Lee fight." Naruto raised an eyebrow. "You're assuming that Lee and I will fight." Sasuke shrugged. "You got to admit, it would be an interesting fight."
"NARUTO!"
Naruto paled, turning to a furious long-time friend of his. "Hey, Tenten-chan," he said nervously. She frowned, pointing at Sasuke's blade. "Why does he have the Kubikiribocho!? More importantly, why didn't you tell me about it?!"
Naruto shook his head. "It's not what you think. I just-"
"Don't give me bullshit!"
Naruto frowned, his rubbing the bump on his head. "Tenten-chan is so mean…" he droned, fake tears falling from his eyes. Tenten blanched. 'How the hell is he doing that?'
Kakashi shook his head. He glanced up at the screen which had finally stopped moving.
"Shino vs that sound guy huh," Sasuke mumbled, looking down on the field. Tenten glanced at him. "You think Shino will struggle?" Sasuke frowned. "I don't know. That sound guy can control air waves, yet he wasn't much of a challenge for me. I don't know how Shino and I would match up…I'm not positive who would win."
Tenten frowned, her eyes trailing Shino as he walked towards the arena. "Shino-san will win!" Hinata said confidently, looking at him. Kiba put a hand on her shoulder, a smirk on his face. "I have to agree with Hinata on this one. Shino, although it hurts to say, is the strongest one on our team. He's been training nonstop. He'll win."
Naruto smiled at them. "I hope you're right."
XxX
Zaku laughed. "Huh! What sucker is that?" Shino simply stopped in front of him. "Step forwards please," Hayate said calmly. The Genin complied. "Very good. Now if you're both ready then we'll begin."
Shino adjusted his glasses with a finger. "If you fight here, you won't be able to recover. Forfeit the match."
Zaku smirked. "Let's see you back that up." Zaku shot forwards, his arms swinging at his sides. He swung on of them at Shino, who easily blocked the strike. "Pathetic." Zaku simply smirked. "You lose. Zankūha (Decapitating Airwaves)!"
Zaku released the supersonic blast of air, sending Shino flying. The future clan head skidded along the ground before coming to a stop, smoke coming off of his body. As the smoke slowly began to clear Zaku smirked. "Alright fool. You had enough!?" Shino however began to stand, like a zombie would in a film.
"He's? There's no way! Hey. What?"
A noise split into the area, causing many to look around. However, they all seemed disgusted when they found the source of the noise. It was bugs, and they were coming from Shino.
'What the? He's got bugs coming out of him…like a human hive. This guys a freakshow!' Zaku thought. "Great. Now that you've creeped us all out what happens next?" Zaku however heard the sound again, and from the muffled gasps in the crowd he wouldn't like what he saw. He turned, to see an army of those bugs standing behind him, and they were getting closer.
"They're a rare breed of parasitic beetle that attack their pray in a swarm, feeding on its chakra. An army of this size, will suck you dry in less than a minute. They're called Kidaichu." Shino said, a cool and calculating tone in his voice. Zaku smirked. "I don't think you understand. I have two arms. This won't work on me."
Shino's expression, if someone could even see it through all the clothing he was wearing to cover his face, never changed. "Zankūha (Decapitating Airwaves)!" However, instead of the supersonic blast of air, what happened was something much more gruesome. Waves of chakra burst from Zaku's elbows, leaving him to stunned to cry out in pain. He alternated between looking at them, a look of horror on his face.
"Always have an ace in the hole."
XxX
"What the?" Dosu cried out. Next to him, Kin gasped in shock, her eyes wide. "What type of technique is that?"
"No way…" Kiba muttered. "Shino…"
Hinata nodded. "Shino will win," she said, more confidence in her voice. Sasuke smirked. "He's pretty impressive. I might struggle against him." Ino frowned. 'No way! My Sasuke-kun can beat anyone!'
Shikamaru nodded in agreement. "Yeah, he's pretty powerful. I doubt many people here would be able to beat him. He'd be a challenge all right, I'm lucky I don't have to fight him. It'd be a drag if I did."
XxX
Zaku cried out in pain. "My arms! What's wrong with them!?" Zaku glared down at his arms, before he noticed the small black beetles moving on them. "What!?"
Shino smiled. "A ninja never reveals his ace in the whole. Sorry." Zaku howled in rage, shooting forwards at Shino with his body prepared to punch him. Shino simply ducked under it and took his fist out of his pocket. He easily smashed it into Zaku's body, sending him flying. Zaku skidded along the ground, groaning in pain.
Hayate walked over, checking on Zaku, not even fazed by the bugs that were extremely close to him. He glanced at his arms, his eyes slightly widening. There were slight holes in them, were chakra could easily escape. "I'd say this one has had it. The winner is Shino Aburame."
Shino nodded, and began to walk towards the platform.
XxX
"Wait, how did he do that? Who is he? Find out," Lee whispered to Neji, although every on the platforms heard it. Neji nodded, before he closed his eyes. He then suddenly opened them.
"Byakugan," Neji muttered. The veins around his eyes buldged, and his eyes became more defined. Neji turned his eyes onto Shino, before he recoiled, a look of confusion on his face.
"I had no idea. I thought he was using a summoning jutsu, but it's not. They're actually living inside of him."
"Living, inside of him!?" Lee and Naruto called, their eyes wide. Sasuke nodded, his eyes alight with crimson. "Neji's right. Even if I can't exactly see them, the thousands of chakra signatures that are crawling around his own suggest such."
"There's a legend in Konoha of a clan of insect tamers," Guy said. Neji nodded. "I've heard of it as well. They saw that when a bug master is born, he enters into a sacred pact with the insects. He allows them to nest in his body, in return they obey their hosts will. They serve him, answering his call, fighting his battles and destroying his enemies. I also heard they allow the insects to feed on his chakra as part of the bargain."
"His or her." Sakura stated, causing Neji to sigh. "Yes. Him or her, Sakura."
"So this guy is one of them, one of these bug tamers," Lee called, all eyes trailing Shino.
XxX
"Well, that was unfortunate," Dosu mumbled. "What just happened, how come his arms broke down like that?" Kin asked. Dosu frowned. "At some point in the match this Shino character likely got some of his beetles into Zaku's wind cannons and plugged the opening. As soon as Zaku attempted to use his jutsu he was doomed. With the usual outlet sealed off, the energy created was sealed in his arm, expanding, searching for an exit."
Kin looked horrified.
"Sooner or later, something had to give. In this case it was Zaku."
Kin looked at the Zaku, who was being carried off by the medics, who had previously taken Yoroi off the stage, her eyes wide. "I can't say we had anything in common," Dosu began, "except this team and our mission. Still, I'll even the score for you Zaku." Dosu chuckled.
XxX
"Woah, I always thought Shino was weird but now he's even weirder…that came out wrong," Sakura said. Shino simply shrugged. "Congratulations Shino," Hinata and Naruto called. "Yeah, way to go," Kiba said. Shino nodded to the three. "See that you three do the same."
Kiba looked furious. 'Yeah! Who died and made you team leader huh?'
Akarmaru barked at him.
XxX
"Alright everyone. Moving right on to the third match," Hayate called. He glanced at the screen, which landed on two names. "Would Kankuro and Tenten please come down?"
Kankuro smirked, while Tenten's eyes went wide.
XxX
'Hmph. My turn already huh?' Kankuro thought. His sensei shook his head. 'Careful Kankuro. You'll underestimate your opponent to many times.' Gaara snorted. 'Huh. Idiot.' The two walked onto the arena, all eyes on them.
"Kick his ass Tenten!" Naruto called. "Show him you'll be moving on to the third exam!"
Tenten gave Naruto a thumbs up before glaring at Kankuro, who smirked.
XxX
"Naruto…you seem to know Tenten from a long-time ago. Where did you two meet?" Sakura asked. Naruto shrugged. "Her dad owns the store I use to get my ninja equipment and clothes. We met there."
"Tenten will win," Lee said. Naruto nodded. "I couldn't agree with you more on that one Lee."
XxX
"A word of advice. Once I go into my jutsu, give up. Although, I can't promise it will be quick and painless."
Tenten rolled her eyes. "And I've got some advice for you too. Learn how to dodge."
Kankuro raised an eyebrow but smirked. "Alright people. Now if you're ready…let the third match begin."
I don't really wanna write an Author's note right now so I'll keep this short. Yeah, Sasuke kicked ass, yes, Shino's fight was essentially the same, and yes Tenten and Kankuro will fight. I have a reason for them fighting, namely, making sure Tenten stays relevant to my story. Also, vote on my poll.