A/N: I must say I am pleasantly surprised at the amount of feedback I've gotten for the previous chapter. I will probablly post another chapter along that storyline at a later date. Most likely sooner rather than later.

This will probablly be my last update for the next month or so. I may try to sneak one more in though. Only time will tell...

Anyways, I've gotten some inquiries as to when the updates for the next chapters of some of my other fics are going to be. At this point, I'm unsure. However, as a consolation prize, I'll give you guys a sneak peak into the next coming chapter of Ultimate Experiment: Weapon-X.

And now... For a small bit of the story...

Round XX

Haku

vs

Sabaku no Temari

Hinata wouldn't admit it, but she was envious of the two kunoichi entering the fighting area.

Haku moved with so much fluid grace, her movements careful and well practiced and Temari moved with such deadly confidence, sure in her abilities to take on even the best and the brightest. They were what she strived to be, a true kunoichi.

Sasuke and Kiba may have deluded themselves into thinking they were true ninja of Konohagakure no Sato after the Wave Mission, but she had not. Her beliefs were confirmed when they fought Orochimaru in the Forest of Death- or rather- when Naruto and Sasuke fought Orochimaru. The sheer intensity and skill between Naruto and Sasuke were astronomical. They both fought equally hard, but both had been taken out fairly quickly and she hadn't managed to do anything about it.

Not that it would have mattered.

She was certain that if Orochimaru really wanted to mark her and Haku like he did Sasuke, even with the help of Kiba, Akamaru and Funaki, they wouldn't be able to stop him. After all, if the difference between Naruto and Sasuke was astronomical, the difference between them and Orochimaru was doubly so.

It was just a fact of life, survival of the fittest. The strong either subjugated or protected the weak. In the case of Orochimaru, it was the former, whether it was by manipulation or by force, it was all the same.

Hinata shuddered. To think she was almost subjected to the things Naruto had gone through. She felt sick and dirty and never before had she ever felt so helpless. Not even back then...

She glanced over at Naruto who was steadfastly watching the match that was about to begin in the staging area below.

"Sabaku no Temari vs Haku... Fight!" shouted Hayate as he leapt out of the way.

"I've seen you around..." commented Temari, with a smirk, "You're quite good, but you're going to lose."

"It would be unwise to underestimate your opponent," said Haku calmly. "They may catch you by surprise. Suddenly, Haku sank into the floor, when an ice mirror sprouted from the ground to Temari's right. Haku then flung a small barrage of senbon at Temari. The Suna kunoichi merely stood rooted in place, opening her fan to reveal a single moon.

Many were shocked to see Haku's senbon miss her completely.

'I barely saw her move...' thought Haku, 'Her skills don't quite match up to Sasuke's, but her superior experience shows...'

"Impressive trick... But it won't be enough," stated Temari. She then opened her fan wider, as Haku stepped into a mirror. Two more mirrors formed around Temari, forming a triangle.

Temari felt the wind shift behind her and turned to see Haku throwing more senbon that would clatter harmlessly to the floor. Haku then shot up into the air with another barrage of senbon. Temari jumped back to avoid them. When she looked up, she noticed a fourth mirror, but it was empty.

She could hear the projectile sailing through the air behind her. Closing her fan, the senbon all bounced off of its' metal casing.

Temari cursed herself. She had let her opponent gain the upper hand.

"To continue would be folly..." said Haku calmly. "Surrender and you shall come to no harm."

"Don't underestimate me!" Temari practically growled as she fully opened her fan and waved it at Haku.

The mirrors that Temari was facing were instantly destroyed and many of the spectators covered their eyes to try and block the oncoming wind attack as much as possible, however it was unnecessary as a wall of wind shielded them from Temari's blast.

They each looked up to see "Wolverine" with his arms spread in front of them, smirking. Many were surprised as it was quite rare for a Konoha Shinobi to even have a Wind affinity, let alone to be able to manipulate it like that. Baki was the most surprised as even many Suna-nin could not manage Wind Manipulation on that level, as the majority of them were like Temari, and required the aid of a Battle Fan.

'There is no way I can stand a direct hit...' thought Haku, 'She's more powerful than I anticipated...'

'Kuso...' thought Temari, 'She's too fast... But her speed seems to come from traveling from mirror to mirror...'

"You are very impressive," complimented Haku.

Temari smirked, "You're not too bad yourself. I hadn't expected this much of a challenge... Especially not from a Konoha kunoichi."

"You will find that not all of us are frivolous fangirls," said Haku, who glanced up at the balcony. Both Sakura and Ino had the decency to blush in shame, though they also glared down at the Konoha Kunoichi in the Battle Area.

"Shall we step this up a notch?" asked Temari with a smirk that was returned by her opponent.

"Let's..."

Haku suddenly flicked her wrists and six senbon appeared in her hands, between the fingers of her closed fists. She immediately charged at Temari.

Temari immediately opened her fan all the way, revealing the three moons and swung it with all of her might.

A mirror sprouted up from the ground. Haku was already in the mirror before Temari had completed her swing.

Another mirror appeared to Temari's left and Haku threw the Senbon in her left hand. Another mirror formed in her path and she immediately stepped into it. Temari swung her fan back in the direction that Haku had been, blocking the senbon and destroying the mirrors that had been in place.

Temari's eyes widened as she felt the wind shift behind her.

'Kuso!' she thought as she ducked, as small barrage of senbon sailing over her head. She glanced over her shoulder to find that Haku was already gone. She then immediately jump backwards AS Haku came down on the space she had been occupying just seconds before. Temari shut her fan and swung it at Haku in one fluid movement, attempting to bludgeon Haku with it.

Haku jumped back with just barely in time to avoid the heavy metallic object, However, using the fan's momentum, Temari brought it over her head and opened it as she swung it. A burst of wind hit Haku dead on and the ice kunoichi was sent hurtling towards the wall behind her.

A mirror sprouted up from the ground between Haku and the wall and Haku was saved from a world of pain.

'Useful trick...' Temari thought in frustration, gritting her teeth. Temari snapped her fan shut again as she felt the air being disturbed behind her once more. She swung her fan as she turned around.

Haku had been about to hit a vital with one of her senbon when she had to duck the incoming attack from Temari's fan. She then lashed out with the senbon, but Temari dodged that, knocking Haku's arm away before swinging it at Haku with a powerful one armed swing. Haku swung her body low, barely avoiding the heavy object that was her opponents weapon. Haku attempted to stick the senbon in Temari's neck in order to put her in a death-like state, but the Suna-nin was able to move her body enough that the senbon ended up in her left shoulder as she swung the Battle Fan at Haku, finally striking her opponent with a direct hit.

Haku went to her knees after that last hit. She was disoriented and dizzy.

'A concussion...' she thought as she could feel the throbbing in her head. 'I have to move!'

However, this thought came to late as Temari had pulled out the senbon, jumping back a few paces. With the last of her strength, Temari ignored the pain in her shoulder as she swung her now open fan at her disoriented opponent.

Haku took the blast head on, but it was weak enough that she was only knocked off her feet, bouncing a few times off the stone floor.

Temari was panting in exhaustion. She wasn't sure if she could continue the fight. The battle had taken much out of her. She couldn't even muster up the energy to attack Haku as the ice kunoichi attempted to get up.

Holding her head, Haku finally called out to Hayate. "Proctor, I can no longer continue this fight..."

The exam proctor nodded. "Winner... Sabaku no Temari!"

At the announcement, Temari fell to her knees barely conscious. However, she had a new found respect for Konoha, and their kunoichi especially, as she had been pushed to her limits and the fight could have gone either way. She felt her face breaking into a content and accomplished grin as she knew she had faced an opponent of equal or superior skills to her own and came out victorious.

Hinata's stomach felt like lead.

She didn't think she'd ever be able to compete on such a level. Taking a quick glance at Naruto, she bolstered her courage. If she wanted to help him, help anyone, most of all herself, she had to get stronger. She had to not only train herself to raise up to the level of combat prowess of Haku and Temari, but she had to surpass them. Not for the first time did she wonder if she'd be able to do it.

Both Sakura and Ino knew they couldn't fight anywhere near that level.

They both knew that had either of them had been in the arena fighting either Temari or Haku, they would have been decimated. However, the battle sparked a new resolve in both of them and each had a glint in her eyes that promised a new beginning for each of them.

Kurenai noticed this look and couldn't help but be proud of Sakura and Ino's new found determination.

'Those two...' thought Tenten. 'I've trained with Neji and Lee day in and day out... But I'm not sure if I could have beaten either of them... They're both at a level above mine... Was it all for nothing...?'

She suddenly felt a hand on he shoulder and saw that it belonged to her sensei.

"Fear not Tenten," Gai said evenly with a smile, "They were both very skilled, but so are you. You are one of the most skilled kunoichi I have seen in a long time. But you still have room to grow, we all do and that is part of what these exams are all about. Showcasing your abilities, showing that you can use them efficiently and learning from the mistakes of your peers and yourself. If nothing else, I am proud of what you have learned and accomplished thus far."

"Thanks, Gai-sensei," said Tenten appreciatively.

Gai flashed her his most winning smile. "I couldn't let the Flames of Youth wane in one of the finest students I've had the honor of teaching, could I?"

A/N: Now... that is one of the many unique battle scenes in UE: Weapon-X. There will be more to come, I assure you.

At the beginning of the chapter, when I put "Round XX", the 'XX' is just a random designation. I haven't actually decided what order the Preliminary fights will go in. Temari vs Haku will likely be one of the first.

So what do you guys think? Good? Bad? Ugly?