Kakashi thinks it is cute how Sasuke is hanging on to Shino. Fugaku doesn't seem to think it's cute, judging by the annoyed looks he keeps shooting in Shino's direction. Ah well, they'll figure it out. Besides, Kakashi is fairly sure Sasuke has a thing for Shisui. Not Shino. Or maybe Naruto. Or Madoka. Kakashi is officially confused. Who does Sasuke like?
"Now for the fourth match!" announces Hayate.
Kakashi looks over to the screen. "You better get down there, Madoka," he says, tapping Madoka on the shoulder.
Sasuke loosens her grip on Shino and looks over at Madoka, causing new waves of confusion in Kakashi's mind. Naruto also looks at Madoka and slaps his teammate on the shoulder encouragingly.
Madoka heads down to face his opponent - Ino Yamanaka.
"Hey Madoka," says Ino grinning. "It's bad luck you're up against me. I've always been stronger than you - and I got a lot stronger since graduation."
"I have gotten stronger too," says Madoka. "In fact, I took out an entire team by myself in the forest. We gave their scroll to Kabuto because he asked if we had a spare."
"You're lying!" yells Ino, pointing an accusing finger at Madoka. "There's no way YOU are that strong! You're a nerd! Nerds aren't strong!"
"Begin!" says Hayate.
Ino runs forward and swings a punch at Madoka. Madoka blocks and sends his own punch straight into Ino's stomach. Kakashi feels a thrill of pride in his nerd. He taught his genins many things, but Madoka has obviously been practicing. He can already feel Madoka charging a genjutsu to knock Ino out of action. Kakashi wonders if Madoka used that genjutsu to knock out that entire team he mentioned.
Ino and Madoka exchange blows. For a bit, Madoka landing most of the blows.
"Stop trying to go easy on me," says Madoka. "I'm not a helpless little nerd anymore. I am a ninja nerd."
"You want me to go all out?" asks Ino. "I AM going all out!"
"Don't you have any, I don't know...ninjutsu?" Punch, punch, kick.
Ino pulls out a kunai and throws it at Madoka, who substitutes away, letting the kunai imbed itself in a random log. Where do those logs come from, anyway?
Kakashi wonders what genin Naruto will be pitted against, and whether or not he will hide his power.
Madoka finally casts his genjutsu and knocks out Ino.
"When a contestant is put under genjutsu they have ten seconds to get out of it before their opponent is declared the winner," says Hayate. "One! Two! Three! Four! Five…"
Kakashi zones out. When is the next Make Out Paradise coming out?
"...Nine! Ten!" finishes Hayate. "Madoka is the winner!"
Naruto yawns. "Can we get on with the next match now, dattebayo? That was so predictable. Why couldn't Madoka fight someone who knows about genjutsu?"
Kakashi couldn't agree more.
"Hey!" calls that redhead from Shisui's team - Karin or whatever her name is. "How come Madoka is so strong now? That makes no sense!"
"We learned how to climb trees and monologue," counters Naruto. "Now we are invincible."
"You are not!" Karin sticks her tongue out at Naruto.
"If you were Uzumaki-ing right, you would nod and say, 'I am invincible too'," says Fugaku, shaking his head. "What do they teach kids these days?"
"Wait…" Karin stares at Fugaku. "How do you know I'm an Uzumaki?"
"I filled in your paperwork when you moved here, kid," says Fugaku. "I am head of village security, after all."
Karin stares at Fugaku, her mouth opening and closing.
Madoka joins them. "You're up next, Karin," he says, jerking his thumb at the screen. Ino is passed out on Madoka's back. It appears Madoka decided to carry his old friend back to the balcony.
Kakashi looks over to the screen and reads, "Karin VS Kabuto Yakushi."
"Oh, it's my turn," Karin seems surprised, but she heads down to the arena anyway.
A boy with white hair and glasses joins her. "Hello," the boy says, smiling.
"Hey!" Karin says, pointing at the boy, whom Kakashi figures must be Kabuto. "You're the kid with Ninja Info Cards!"
"Oh you remember…" Kabuto pulls out a handful of blue cards and fans them out in front of his face. "My Ninja Info Cards."
"What have you got on me?" asks Karin.
"Begin when you're ready," sighs Hayate, and heads to the sidelines to cough a bit.
"Let's see…" Kabuto makes a show of sifting through his cards before selecting one and putting the rest away. "Here we are. Karin: age 13. Kunoichi of Team Five of the Village Hidden in the Leaves. Specialization: fuuinjutsu. Secondary skills: taijutsu and medical ninjutsu." Kabuto's grin widens. "That is interesting. I too am a medical ninja."
Karin grins. "Here's something to add to your Ninja Info Card: My clan is clan Uzumaki of the Hidden Whirlpool. And I am an Advanced student in fuuinjutsu according to the ancient tradition of the Whirlpool."
"Advanced?" Kabuto smiles. "I'll be impressed if you become a Master."
Karin draws a seal on her palm and aims her hand at Kabuto. "I'm working on it. Those shinigami don't like being bossed around, you know. Fuuin: Wrath of Joe!" A bolt of lightning shoots out of her hand, heading straight for Kabuto.
Kabuto dives out of the way and grins, charging both his hands with chakra, turning them into blades. "You are talented, I can see that," says Kabuto. "But I have far more experience than you. This will be an interesting fight." He leaps forward, faster than the human eye can follow, and stabs Karin in the shoulder.
Karin goes flying across the arena, leaving a tail of blood in her wake. Karin pulls herself to her feet, grinning and holding her bleeding shoulder. "You're good," Karin says, a crazy intense expression in her eyes. Then she starts laughing maniacally.
Fugaku leans over and says, "You are witnessing the awakening of suppressed Uzumaki craziness."
"What?" says Kakashi, staring at Fugaku in confusion.
"Uchihas must awaken their sharingan, some Hyuugas must awaken their byakugan," explains Fugaku. "And some Uzumakis must awaken their crazy."
"Okay…" Kakashi will have to take Fugaku's word for it.
Karin draws a seal in the air with her blood. How it stays in the air is beyond Kakashi. Then she shunshins to the left of Kabuto, draws another seal, shunshins behind Kabuto and draws a third seal, then shunshins to the right of Kabuto and draws a fourth seal. All this she does in barely a second. "Fuuin," says Karin, making handsigns faster than Kakashi can follow without his sharingan. "Wrath of the shinigami." Lightning shoots from one seal, fire from another, earth spikes from the third and a blizzard from the fourth.
Kabuto does not have time to get out of the way. He takes the full force of the attack, turning into a burned, bloody mess. The proctor is about to call the match when Kabuto starts hissing and steaming. His body heals completely in a matter of seconds. Then he stands and says, "That was quite a move, but I am a medic."
"How…?" Karin takes a step backwards.
Kabuto grins and advances towards Karin.
Karin is terrified, everyone can see that.
Kabuto launches himself forward again.
Karin screams in terror and closes her eyes, crossing her arms in front of her face. An instant before Kabuto would have made contact, a glowing chain made of chakra explodes out of Karin's back and wraps itself around Kabuto, halting him in his tracks.
Kakashi stares in surprise. He has seen this kekkei genkai before. Kushina had it.
"Hey!" says Naruto. "That's one of the Uzumaki clan kekkei genkai! The chakra chains! That so cool, 'tebayo! Pity only girls inherit Uzumaki kekkei genkai."
Karin peeks out from behind her arms and sees the glowing chain.
Kabuto strains against the chain and manages to push it away from himself. Then he leaps back, out of range of the small, rather weak chain.
Karin is shaking now, awakening a kekkei genkai shocks most people, but Karin is losing a lot of blood from the wound in her shoulder. The chain retracts into Karin's back.
Kabuto leaps forward and punches Karin squarely in the stomach, knocking her out.
Hayate checks Karin and motions for the medic to come and collect her. "The winner is Kabuto Yakushi!" he announces.
"Well that was lame," says Kiba.
"Oi, dog boy," says Fugaku. "That girl awakened one of the most powerful kekkei genkai in existence. That was not lame."
Kiba rolls his eyes, and mutters something about old people being easily impressed. Sasuke and Fugaku send matching glares at Kiba. Kakashi thinks it is adorable.