Author's note: This chapter will tell us the match between Hisoka and Jurou. I don't own any of the characters. They belong to Masashi Kishimoto. The original characters belong to me.
Chapter 46: Battle of Warriors
In an alley, the Village Hidden in the Leaves
Noburu Yakushi had just made a tough, yet wise decision in his life. He had chosen not to assassinate someone he really hated deeply: Naruto Uzumaki. As soon as the grey-haired boy had climbed down to ground level, he immediately ran for the nearest alleyway he could stay in, as he would not be exposed in the open.
Sitting against the wall, the four-eyed boy could only reflect on the choice he had just made up. As bitter as he was, he soon came to a realization that it was the right thing to do. True, he hated Naruto along with the other upper politicians of the Leaf Village, but that didn't mean they deserved death.
"As much as I hate to admit it, Naruto seems to have some truth in what he said to me back on the Train Mountains" Noburu noted lowly, his mind drifting back to the time they were interrogated in the ruined city of Shimbala. He still recalled when Naruto said that being victims of the world's injustice did not excuse committing selfish decisions, something that both the former Saanin Orochimaru and Noburu's father Kabuto were known for. Various thoughts began drifting inside the young boy's head. "But I would never hate my father…...never!" he added while gritting his teeth in frustration.
However, the young boy snapped, and suddenly reached for something in his pockets. It was the picture of his father and his adoptive grandmother he had found in the abandoned orphanage. The young boy looked at it, his eyes slowly washing away the anger inside. A smile eventually crept on his face, as Noburu was suddenly starting to see something.
"Father….Nono…..what would you have me do?" Noburu wondered, before putting the picture back into his pocket and rose up to his feet. He then looked up the blue sky, taking a deep breath in the process. "Whatever my plans may be, I better return home…to the Sound Village" he said to himself, forcing a smile, as he knew that the village was so far, the only place in the world he could call home. He then took small steps.
"What a disappointment you turned out to be, Noburu Yakushi" a familiar voice forced the young, four-eyed boy to stop in his tracks. Noburu gritted his teeth in anger and threw a kunai from behind. However, the one who had just spoken to him only grabbed the kunai with ease, before tossing it away. It was the white-haired man named Mikazuki Otsutsuki, who simply smiled smugly while facing the boy. "You had your opportunity! All you had to do was to pull the trigger and end that miserable Jinchuuriki's life! And yet, you wasted it!" he then went on expressing his dissatisfaction of Noburu.
The grey-haired boy clenched his fists together. "Shut up…." he said lowly. Noburu then turned around and fixed his angry eyes upon the man in white robe. "My personal business has nothing to do with you! So go to hell!" he angrily spat at the long-haired man.
Mikazuki only narrowed his azure-blue eyes when seeing this. "Mind your tongue, boy. It would be unwise for both you and your teammates to incur the wrath of the brotherhood" he sternly reminded Noburu.
"And you expect me to believe that you would've kept your end of the bargain?" Noburu suddenly asked, causing Mikazuki to glance at him. The four-eyed boy faced him with anger. "You and your heretic siblings framed us, betrayed our contract! Furthermore, you stole the Orb of Asura!" he went on.
The white-haired man only scoffed at Noburu's words. "I never really said that you would get to keep the orb to yourself, worm. The Orb of Asura rightfully belongs to the almighty Hirohito and him alone!" Mikazuki sternly reminded the boy and turned around to walk away, but not before leaving some departing words for the boy to hear. "If you wish to join the rest of the upcoming victims of our crusade, then do as you wish. However, know that even now, your precious Sound Village stands on the brink of being annihilated. Therefore, I would recommend that you return home as quickly as possible. Who knows, it might as well be destroyed as we speak" those were the departing words, before he vanished into thin air.
But Noburu could not help but to feel uneasy by hearing Mikazuki's harsh warning. Could he believe in that? He had framed him once, of course. But he still remembered what position his village was in and quickly rushed to the giant walls of the Leaf Village. It was apparent that he now had to return home.
However, both Tadeshi and Isamu had been eavesdropping on this secret conversation between Noburu and Mikazuki. Truth is, they had actually hidden themselves in the trash cans in the alleyway, long before Noburu had even arrived. By concealing their chakras, Mikazuki had failed to detect them.
"It's just as I thought" Isamu remarked grimly to his partner. "That white-haired man was without a doubt the one who stole the Orb of Asura. But where did he vanish to?" he wondered while concluding his analysis.
Tadeshi got out and adjusted his sunglasses. "I don't know. But you heard what he said: he and his buddies are planning on punishing the Sound Village for rejecting their offer. This means that their forces are probably marching in the Land of Sound as we speak" he remarked while thinking about the subject.
But Isamu didn't feel convinced somehow. "How can you be so sure?" the tall man asked his comrade and watched the spot where Mikazuki had just vanished from. "From what this Noburu Yakushi says, this man is somebody who cannot be fully trusted. I must say I agree with him, based upon the way he talks" the bald-headed man said.
"Why are you taking that little twerp's side? He's the son of Kabuto Yakushi, Orochimaru's number 1. buttslave" Tadeshi said, not getting his comrade's words. "Even though they were instrumental in ending the world war, they are still considered traitors of the Leaf Village, and they will always be as such" he went on badmouthing the two.
"For the record, I'm not taking his side, Tadeshi. And I am someone who cannot condone the actions both the boy and those two shinobis have done" Isamu insisted to him. "However, from what we have learned from this Brotherhood of the Blue Moon, they are also criminals. Like Orochimaru, Akatsuki and Madara Uchiha, it is not something we can expect to be telling the truth. Therefore, I believe that this man was only to lure the boy away" the bald-headed man went on explaining.
Tadeshi raised an eyebrow in return. "Lure him away, from what?" he asked, but soon snapped when he realized what he was getting at. "Hold on, are you suggesting that…wait" the man with sunglasses remarked, as he suddenly looked around to make sure they were alone in the alleyway. "That man wasn't just trying to lure him away…..he was also trying to lure us away!" he exclaimed in realization.
Isamu nodded his head in return. "Yes. For some reason, he chose not to rat us out from our hiding spots, as he could still detect us, even though we tried our best to conceal our chakras" the tall man remarked and suddenly came to a realization of his own. "Apparently, that white-haired man is also expecting us to report this to Naruto-sensei and the Hokage, thus assuring them that it won't be the Leaf Village, but the Sound Village that is their next target. But their declaration of war in the Sound Village said that they would start with the Leaf Village, probably due to the Chuunin Exams" he went on with his analysis.
Tadeshi adjusted his sunglasses. "My god….." he lowly uttered. "We gotta inform the Hokage about this, and fast!" he added in his low voice.
Isamu suddenly looked around, before jumping on a rooftop to see if they were still being watched or followed. Tadeshi joined him eventually. "So far, so good" Isamu remarked and faced his comrade. "Let's go! We best pretend that we saw nothing!" he said and Tadeshi nodded his head in return, before they both jumped from rooftop to rooftop.
Inside a giant stadium, the Village Hidden in the Leaves
After the relatively short fight between Inojin and Kotone, the next round between Hisoka Sado and Jurou Kaguya were almost beginning. With every spectator gearing up for another spectacular duel, both teachers of the combatants took their time to reflect on what was about to happen, as well as their abilities and tricks. Neither of them doubted that this match would define the strongest of these two talented fighters. But then again, both boys were only teenagers, not adults.
"So, it has come to this" Hideki noted as he stared down at the battleground, where Hisoka had made his entrance. The muscular man began closing his eyes for a brief moment before opening them up again. "Once again, Hisoka is ready for combat. But he currently faces an opponent that could eventually be the end of him. But I refuse to rush into such conclusions" he added to his thoughts, gazing down upon Hisoka specifically. "Do not disappoint me, Hisoka. Prove to me that you are still carrying potential within you, just like your brother Hotaka did" he then said, wishing that his student would take this into his head.
Kaito had briefly been able to see how Kotone were doing so far, but fortunately, she suffered no life-threatening injuries. Nevertheless, she would be placed in a room, where her mother would watch over her. But Kotone was expected to awake soon, at the exact same time as Aoi. But for now, Kaito concentrated his efforts on supporting Jurou, as well as presiding over his behavior in battle. He had still not forgotten his duties as a jounin.
Sitting amongst the rowdy and noisy lines, Kaito narrowed his teal eyes while gazing upon the battleground. He eventually eyed Jurou specifically. "This is it. Jurou is now fighting an opponent who could prove to be much challenging than Rock Guy. I have barley heard the stories about the Sado clan, but from what I can confirm, their abilities are impressive" the bandaged man noted, still eyeing his orange-haired student. "But then again, Jurou has a mixed heritage of two clans that are infamous for their violent tendencies, with one of them being the Kaguya clan. I have a feeling that this fight will get take it to the next level. And if Jurou manages to give in to his bloodlust that he has for years been trying to keep at bay, that will probably affect the entire Chuunin Exams" Kaito continued his assessment of the upcoming match.
"This will be a match that we'll never forget" Tsunade commented from her seat and then glanced over to face the Fifth Mizukage. "I assume you know what I mean, yes?" she asked Mei, who simply nodded her head as a yes.
"We both understand that, Tsunade. However, we better not rush into conclusions yet" the brown-haired lady said in return before glancing down onto the battleground, eyeing Jurou. "You have not only my support, Jurou Kaguya. You also have the support of the entire Hidden Mist Village. However, with that support comes a great cost, and you must prove to anyone that you are not as people say you are. Do not give into rage" the Mizukage noted in her head.
"Lady Tsunade" the blonde-haired woman glanced at her assistant, who faced her with a slight concern on her face. "I was just wondering about the recent reports that we have received recently from the ANBU Black Ops. According to one of those reports, Hotaka Sado was spotted near the border to the Land of Lightning. Can we believe such information are accurate?" she then asked the Hokage.
Being asked about this subject caused Tsunade to think about what she had learned from those reports. "I cannot say that I fully believe them. However, I have asked Hideki to address these problems" the blonde-haired woman told Shizune and faced the battleground with stern eyes. "I'll admit that I grow a little impatient about Hideki's repeated excuses for not addressing them. For some reason, I believe that he has in secret given up on Hotaka. Once this is over, I WILL have answers from him" she thought in her head.
"Lady Mei" the Mizukage was called by her other advisor, the swordsman named Chojuro. "I have faith in your judgement as a Mizukage, but I am still not convinced about whether Jurou Kaguya is a disaster or a benefactor for the Mist Village" the four-eyed man admitted while adjusting his glasses.
Mei then quickly focused her gaze on the battleground, causing Chojuro to wonder if he had said something wrong. "I understand you fears, Chojuro. But I must ask you to not refer to this boy as either a disaster or a benefactor" she kindly requested from her advisor, who was stunned in return. Mei fixed a smile while watching the battleground. "Yes, he carries the blood of a violent clan inside of him, a violent clan that was once feared and respected at the same time in the Land of Water. But young Jurou does not deserve to be put in the same category as his forefathers. I think of a him as a human being, not a tool or a weapon that will serve the interests of our village" the brunette went on explaining to her advisor, who felt somewhat embarrassed to be advised by his superior, when that was actually his job.
But not wanting to provoke his superior any further, Chouro bowed his head in shame before the Fifth Mizukage. "Right, I apologize for my judgement" he said with respect before her, causing Mei to chuckle in amusement.
Down at the battleground, Jurou and Hisoka were ready to face off, with each of them staring at each other with narrowed eyes. Surprisingly, Jurou was the first one to speak up.
"Listen, Hisoka Sado" the orange-haired boy began speaking. "Your teammate, despite being nothing but an oaf, did put up a valiant fight. I commend him for that" he spoke up while facing his opponent.
Hisoka simply scoffed at his words. "Are you saying this just to boost your own morale in combat?" he asked him with a raised eyebrow. "You're being senseless. Guy's defeat will not affect my match with you" he insisted and readied his fighting stance.
Jurou did not know what to say about this, but he also readied his fighting stance, his eyes solely fixed upon Hisoka. "A narcissist in denial, I see? How pathetic" he noted.
"You talk too much. Do I really look like a biographer to you?" Hisoka exclaimed in annoyance and looked to face Lee, who was standing near them. "Hey Rock Law…Lei…Ling…or whatever the hell your name is. Can we just start this match?" he simply, but rudely asked him.
Lee only cocked one of his thick eyebrows in a slightly irritated manner. "My name is Rock Lee. How many times must I say this? You're my son's teammate, for crying out loud!" he remarked at Hisoka's usual attitude. Much like his son, Lee had difficulties in understanding both Guy's teammate and teacher. However, he still respected them….to an extent at least.
But Hisoka didn't seem to care about what Lee had just said. "Like I give a rat's ass about what your name is. It sounds so random and unfitting, just saying" the boy with dreadlocks remarked while rubbing his collar. "Now hurry your ass up! I ain't got time screwing around with fools like you" he added with his usual rude voice.
Hearing those words caused Lee to slump in defeat. However, he soon sucked it up and sighed before smiling at the young boy. "That boy never changes, does he? But then again, Neji wasn't a gentleman either when it came to comradeship" he remarked in his head and decided to start the match, in hopes of getting Hisoka to focus more on fighting Jurou than on badmouthing him. "Alright. Begin!" Lee gave them the green light to fight and the match was on.
Surprisingly, it was Hisoka who made the first move, by using his fast speed to immediately land a powerful kick onto Jurou's stomach. The orange-haired boy was too slow to react and he was sent rolling onto the ground after being kicked. But Jurou got up quickly and stood on one knee, facing his opponent with wary eyes, only to see that he has vanished.
"What, when did he!?" Jurou snapped in shock by hearing somebody appear behind him and it was without a doubt Hisoka. This caused the orange-haired boy to react and he was determined to block the black-skinned boy's attack. "You won't fool me! Camellia Dance!" he said and he used the bones in his arm to create short bone-hilted sword and proceeded to swing it at Hisoka.
The boy with dreadlocks narrowly dodged it by jumping in the air backwards and performed some hand seals in the process. "Lightning Style: Thunderbolt!" he exclaimed and fired the bolts simultaneously.
Jurou, who had just made another short bone-hilted sword, jumped into the air as his opponent were shooting the bolts. The spikey orange-haired boy was aiming the swords like they were spears or kunai, and it was obvious that he was intending on throwing them at Hisoka. "Try dodging this!" Jurou exclaimed and threw the swords in a fast pace.
Hisoka gritted his teeth in frustration over seeing this, but he was not giving up now. He performed a few hand seals once again. "Lightning Style: Lightning Fang!" he exclaimed and sent bolts of lightning, seeking to electrocute the bones, but it was no use, as they withstood it.
"Hah! Such a fool!" Jurou remarked by seeing this.
The two swords pierced Hisoka, but as the boy with dreadlocks flew away from being stabbed, Jurou noticed that something was not right. In fact, the orange-haired boy could see his opponent being enveloped by lightning.
"What…a shadow clone composed of lightning!?" Jurou wondered in his head with distress.
"Smart head you got there, tough-guy!" the young boy snapped by hearing a voice emerging from above him. Right above Jurou, Hisoka, wearing the Cloak of Lightning and having activated his Kaminaraigan was heading down towards him and performed a powerful taijustu on Jurou. "Lariat!" Hisoka shouted and dragged Jurou along with him to the dirty ground.
This resulted in a large explosion of dirt and all the spectators were awed by seeing such an intense duel such as this. Even the three Kages had taken notice of it, and they were stunned by seeing Hisoka's abilities.
"That boy….." Mei murmured beneath her breath. "Such incredible speed and strength! He fights like he's actually a ninja from the Hidden Cloud Village" she added to her thoughts.
Gaara also took notes. "The Cloak of Lightning…" the red-haired man said, his blue eyes concentrated on the battleground. "I never thought that I would have to see it once again" he added to his surprise.
Tsunade mused by seeing their reactions. "I know. But I think this is merely one of the many talents that Hisoka possesses as a shinobi. We will just have to wait and see if that is true" the blonde-haired woman added.
"Now this is very unexpected. A little boy possessing the same abilities as those of the strongest shinbois from the Cloud Village" Yamato remarked and began facing Kakashi, with whom he was sitting next to. "What do you think?" he asked him in an easygoing manner.
So far, Kakashi had only been sitting there in silence, as he was not in the mood for talking. But he eventually decided to reply to Yamato's question, as in this case, he felt like his opinion was required.
"As a master in lightning-based techniques, I can agree with you that Hisoka Sado's skills in those techniques are indeed admirable. However, compared to his uncle, who is also his teacher, that is relatively low. You do know that Hideki is the strongest of those two" the white-haired man explained.
Yamato rested his hands behind his neck and mused by hearing this. "I see that you still haven't forgotten about your previous "links" to the Sado clan. I'll admit I'm curious" the brown-haired man remarked.
Kakashi took his time to close his eyes, remembering how he first came into contact with the Sados. "The Sado clan had distant blood relationship to the Third and Fourth Raikages. Each member possessed the Kekkei Genkai called the Kaminaraigan. But whether they share common ancestry with the Uchiha, Hyuuga and Senju clans remains a mystery. But during the Fourth Shinobi World War, it's members were instrumental in ending the catastrophic battle, and were among the greatest assets the Cloud Village had brought with them. But even before the war started, there had been conflicts between the clan and the Cloud Village itself. After the world war ended, the conflict between those two continued. It during that time I met two young boys who were members of the clan: the brothers Hideki and Hideyoshi Sado" Kakashi recalled back to the time when he first met Hideki and his brother. "These two boys were nephews of the clan head, who had after the world war challenged the Fourth Raikage: A for the leadership of the Cloud Village, only to lose in the duel. Because of what had transpired in the war, the Fourth Raikage decided not to punish the clan by death, instead choosing to exile them from the village instead. All I know is that Hideki and Hideyoshi settled in the Leaf Village, as they were apparently being targeted by assassins, due to their blood-relation to the clan head" he went on, knowing the reason why Hideki and his brother applied for asylum in the Leaf Village.
Yamato agreed with what he heard from his friend. "Yeah. But even though they were granted asylum in the Leaf, the Cloud Village's leadership never demanded their extradition, despite knowing that they were living here" the brown-haired man said. "The two brothers settled here peacefully. But both Hideyoshi and his eldest son Hotaka no longer lives here for a particular reason. I spoke Hotaka's teammates the other day. They miss him, but asked that I never mentioned his recent whereabouts to Hisoka" Yamato revealed.
Kakashi listened closely. He too had also been curious about the whereabouts of both Hideyoshi and Hotaka. Not even on his journeys had he encountered either of them. However, Kakashi had not been to the Land of Lightning for a long time, and it could be possible, based upon the report he had heard from the ANBU Black Ops that they may be somewhere near that country. But he would have to find out more, later.
The smoke from the explosion settled and Hisoka stood by a crater he had created, and in it, Jurou lied on the bottom with bruises. The young boy with dreadlocks simply looked into the crater, as he was trying to actually speak to his lying opponent.
"You expected me to be just as passive as Guy? You punkass fool! I'm nothing like him when it comes to battle" Hisoka explained sternly. "That attack I just pulled on you was the Lariat. I used my lightning clone to switch places so that I could surprise you from above. And here you are, kissing the dirt. It was nice fighting you while it lasted, see ya" the black-skinned boy said and began slowly walking away from the crater.
It was apparent that he felt like he had won the match, but before Lee could even head over to examine Jurou's condition, the orange-haired boy suddenly jumped up from the crater and landed a few feet before his opponent, his landing being perfectly done. Hisoka snapped in shock by what he was seeing. Jurou slowly got up to his feet, and raised his head to glare at his opponent with an angered glance. He even wiped off the blood that ran from his mouth.
"Damn! How the hell did you…" Hisoka was out of words.
Jurou made his preparations to move. "You are a fool! Did you think that I would've been knocked out by an attack such as that!?" he spoke up with open disdain for his opponent before attempting to punch Hisoka, who grabbed both hands to block them. But Jurou was not finished, as he suddenly bent over and he revealed Hisoka his whip made of bones, that was connected to a spine he had made. The whip managed to inflict damage, as it crawled over the black-skinned boy's body, landing him cuts at various spots. But it was hardly over. "You really surprised me there! But I wish to see if you are as advanced as your mouth claims you are! Drilling Shrapnel!" Jurou exclaimed and fired skeletal bullets from the fingertips of his right hand.
Hisoka knew that he had to avoid them, but as he tried, the last of the five skeletal bullets were nearing him. Gritting his teeth in distress, the young boy with dreadlocks enveloped lighting in his left hand and with all his might tried to catch the skeletal bullet and destroy it with his lighting. But the skeletal bullet's fast spinning made it impossible for him to destroy it, and the bullet drilled through his left hand, leaving a hole in his hand. Hisoka screamed in pain and agony.
"ARRRRRRGGGGGHHHHHHH! YOU FUCKING SCUMBAG!" Hisoka yelled, and held onto his bleeding hand.
However, Jurou showed no remorse for his actions and simply stood with his arms crossed. "I expected you to at least take notes from my fight with your teammate. Apparently, you don't seem to have done that. You have let your own ego and arrogance guide you" he explained sternly to his opponent.
Hisoka only felt her entire body boil with anger, although he did not resort to losing control, as he was already slightly paralyzed by the hole in his hand. Yet, despite this, he grabbed some bandages tied around his feet and biceps and bandaged his hand as fast as he could, while trying to withstand the pain.
"My God..." Kimiko uttered out the two words lowly. She faced Guy. "Did you see what just happened!?" she asked him while making sure she listened.
Guy faced her with a nod. "Yeah, I too received a hole in my hand, see?" he pointed while showing her his bandaged right hand. The brown-haired boy then focused his attention onto the battleground. "I really hope that Hisoka has more tricks up his sleeves and that he takes great caution to this duel. Considering that he watched my match with Jurou, he should've already come up with a plan on how to battle him" Guy commented.
"We both know that" Kimiko assured him. "There's no way that Hisoka will go down so easily. I mean, he is a master at both ninjutsu and taijutsu!" she added, trying to encourage both Guy and herself about their teammate's survival in this duel.
But something was happening to Hisoka, as he was activating his Cloak of Lightning once again. It grew more powerful and Hisoka's eyes were suddenly filled with anger. The young boy even began talking small steps towards his opponent, his bandaged arm being enveloped by lightning, but something was taking shape in his hand. It seemed similar to Kakashi's own Lightning Blade, but this one was different, as a small sword of lightning was formed in his hand.
Jurou started to find this interesting, as he had never seen this kind of lightning jutsu before. But the serious-looking boy made no attempt to stand idle and simply watch. "I grow tired of you, Hisoka Sado. But since you are unwilling to admit defeat, I will make you submit…...to your death!" he said coldly and suddenly, he put back the whip into his other spine, before making a heavy weapon made of bone. Because of its weight, Jurou did use a lot of his chakra when creating the weapons. "Clematis Dance: Flower!" Jurou exclaimed and immediately ran straight towards his opponent.
But the orange-haired boy was in for a surprise, as Hisoka quickly ran to him with his incredible speed, all thanks to his chakra cloak. Before Jurou could even mount a defense, his chest got immediately stabbed by Hisoka's sword and it pierced through his body. The black-skinned boy with dreadlocks clenched his right fist, as it was also filled with lightning.
"You wanted me to go full on you, fool!?" Hisoka asked before delivering a punch right at Jurou's face, sending him flying. Hisoka then proceeded to do hand seals quickly, his eyes focused on his opponent. "Lightning Style: Four-Pillar Trap!" he exclaimed and four pillars of rock rose up from the battleground.
In fact, one of those pillars rose right before Jurou, resulting in the orange-haired boy crashing against the rocky wall, coughing out blood after doing so. "What kind of strength is…that!?" he wondered in anger, but suddenly felt something. "No! My other spine was crushed! Damn him!" Jurou added while cursing, as his other bone-made spine had been crushed thanks to the crash.
The four pillars of rock began sending lightning to Hisoka, and it only empowered his chakra cloak. However, it was obvious that Hisoka had more than that on his mind. His gaze was focused on Jurou. "YOU WILL BE ONE TO SUBMIT!" Hisoka said loudly and was about to release something from his chakra cloak. "LIGHTNING DRAGON!" he roared and he flew, while he was actually inside a serpentine dragon made of lightning.
Jurou's eyes widened in shock, as the giant creature flew straight towards in a fast speed. He could only watch as he was struck by the lightning dragon, which even destroyed the pillar the and sent Jurou flying in the air. But Hisoka was not finished yet and the young boy with dreadlocks stood his ground.
"AND NOW FEEL MY RAGE OF LIGHTNING!" he exclaimed and opened his mouth to fire a stream of lightning right at his opponent.
Jurou snapped in fear while seeing the stream headed for him and he was still unable to move while in the air. "FUCK!" he cursed as he became enveloped by lightning. It really hurt him and the orange-haired boy was sent down to the ground, landing on his stomach. His entire body felt lifeless and he didn't even move his fingers.
Once again, people were awed by Hisoka's immense power, as well as his strong abilities. Even his teammates were stunned to see how strong he had gotten since the semifinals.
"Wow…when did Hisoka get so…strong?" Kimiko asked while not believing what she was seeing.
Guy was too amazed to even respond to her words. However, Ringo and Asuka were also surprised by what they were seeing, as well as Hanzo. "So, this must the results of the harsh training he went through with Hideki-sensei" he noted in his thoughts, before forming a slight smile with his mouth. "Heh, it looks like that I may have to ask for the same training he received" the brown-haired boy added to his thoughts. After the Chuunin Exams, Guy would have to go and train with his teacher, if he ever was to match up to Hisoka in terms of strength.
"Damn…Hisoka really showed him" Ringo remarked by what he was seeing.
"Tell me about it" Asuka said, agreeing with her teammate. She then faced Hanzo, as she had noticed that he had so far been quiet during the fight. "You've been awfully quiet, Hanzo. Is something the matter?" she asked him.
The long black-haired boy simply closed his bright eyes. "It's too early to be celebrating a victory. I fear that the match is hardly over" he suddenly spoke up, much to the confusion of his teammates and friends.
Kaito had been watching the match so far, and he was starting to gain a hint of discomfort within himself. "Jurou….." he noted while seeing his student lying on the ground. "Please, don't throw away your sanity. If not, you won't be considered a human being" he added to his worries.
As Hisoka was about to walk away, the young boy stopped as he could hear something happening behind him. Even now, he heard Jurou making growling sounds, almost as if he was a beast. Hisoka was stunned, as he turned around slowly to see his opponent slowly standing up on his feet. But there was something else that was happening with the orange-haired boy. His entire skin began transforming itself into a hardened white skin. Even his arms and legs changed. His formerly spikey orange hair had transformed itself into that of flowing chakra, and his eyes were pale white, as the moon itself.
"What the fuck!?" Hisoka cursed in outrage by what he was seeing.
He could even hear a slight laughter come from his transformed opponent. "Do you think…...that I was finished?" Jurou asked as he faced Hisoka with a grin of his own. "Think again…...YOU SPINELESS FOOL!" he added with venom in his voice. Something drastic had changed Jurou, and it was like he was a completely different person. "I admit something to you, Hisoka Sado. For someone who is on a different level than Rock Guy, you've been a great pain in my ass" he added and suddenly laughed out loud, probably in a way to mock his opponent.
The Mizukage was facing this with slight worry in her expression, as was Chojuro. "Oh no, that boy has given in to that accursed transformation. There is hardly a tint of sanity left inside of him!" the four-eyed boy noted warily while seeing what was taking place.
"The Sage Transformation" Mei remarked lowly while studying Jurou's new appearance. "This bodily reaction allows the user to shapeshift his body. It is a unique ability that originates from his father, Juugo" the Mizukage noted while seeing this.
Suigetsu had been slightly shocked by seeing Jurou in that state, and Sasuke could see that. "Damn. Now that Jurou has been driven to the point of relying on that form, that kid may not be able to survive" the white-haired man noted while seeing this with concern.
"That form of his looks similar to that of Juugo's only that he seems more humanoid in appearance" Sasuke commented while seeing what was taking place.
Suigetsu only scoffed. "Tch, Juugo can be a dangerous adversary, but his son is completely different. With both the Sage Transformation and the Shikotsumyaku, Jurou is the ultimate shinobi warrior" he remarked and took his glance at Hisoka. "I only wonder if that kid with the dreadlocks can keep up the moves he just showed us. If so, he may have a chance of beating Jurou" he added to his explanation.
"What the fuck's going on?" Hideki wondered as he had seen how his student had dealt quite the blows to Jurou, before this transformation happened, that is. "How the hell can that little squirt become something so nasty!?" he added to his thoughts. But the long-haired man focused his eyes on Hisoka, who only stood still and simply watched in shock. "Damn it, Hisoka! Suck it up and remember what I told you: never let the unpredictability triumph your conscience!" he added, wishing that the boy would've received those words telepathically.
All of a sudden, Jurou bended over, with jet-like appendages being formed on his back. His white eyes were solely fixed upon Hisoka, who only got cautious. "Here I come!" Jurou said and he suddenly blasted off towards Hisoka with the help of chakra. He then transformed his right hand into a piston, while flying so fast. "TASTE MY PISTON FIST!" he yelled, intending on actually hitting his opponent with it.
Hisoka was out of options, as he was suddenly taken by the destructive arm of Jurou. He was sprouting out blood, as the fist had hit his stomach. Hisoka cried in agony when he was finished rolling on the dirty ground. "MOTHERFUCKER!" he yelled while feeling the pain inside his stomach. He had been lucky to made sure that it hadn't been able to chit his chest. Hisoka quickly got up, although he was still holding his stomach with his left hand. "He sure got me for real!" the boy with dreadlocks noted in his head, with blood still steaming from his lips.
But Jurou was not yet finished, as he was flying in a loop and was once again headed straight towards Hisoka in a fast speed. And once again, the transformed boy was preparing a weapon for him, only this time, it was a giant axe attached to his left arm. Seeing this only made Hisoka filled with distress, as he saw this as very dangerous and difficult to avoid.
"HERE I COME, YOU PASSIVE PUSSY! NOW HAVE A TASTE OF MY AXE!" Jurou exclaimed loudly, not showing any signs of remorse for what he just said. He was also approaching his opponent like a rocket.
"Now this is some bullshit!" Hisoka cursed underneath his breath, but he knew he had to do something, as standing still would only lead to his death. But he suddenly knew what he had to do and decided to still stand still, even though he knew it was very risky. In fact, Hisoka even made a gesture towards Jurou, as if he wanted him to come right at him. "Come at me, sucker! I'm ready for your ass!" he taunted him.
Jurou only gritted his teeth in irritation over hearing this and he readied his axe to swing at Hisoka. "JUST SHUT UP AND DIE, YOU FILFTHY PIECE OF….." when he actually swung his axe, Hisoka narrowly dodged it by simply falling onto the ground. While he was on the ground, Jurou proceeded over him in fast speed. This only made him angrier. "YOU SCUMBAG! YOU TRICKED ME!" he exclaimed in anger, as he had to fly in a loop, considering that he was on the verge of hitting the tribunals.
Hisoka got up on his feet quickly and watched as his opponent was coming at him once again, this time with piston fists in each arm. The boy with dreadlocks knew that this would be difficult for him to avoid. He had to come up with something, which did not involve avoiding the attack. But the question was whether he had an idea or something. As Jurou fixed his white eyes on his opponent, something hit Hisoka in the head and once again, he activated his Cloak of Lightning.
Jurou saw and this only laughed maniacally, which was a rare thing for him to do. "ARE YOU STILL PLANNING ON STANDING AGAINST ME!? WHAT AN IMBECILE!" he exclaimed and proceeded to fly straight towards Hisoka, who surprisingly stood his ground.
Hisoka remained firm in facing his opponent, and even began slowly walking towards the transformed boy. "This may be my best shot. And I'll be doing this to not let Guy's fight go in vain. I can't help but to feel happy that he's still alive, even though he can be an uptight jackass at times" the boy with dreadlocks noted as electricity began enveloping all around him, and his lightning chakra became stronger by the minute. "This will cost a lot of chakra, but it's worth it. All for the sake of seeing that ugly motherfucker loose. I'll have to thank you later for dragging me into this hell of a training….uncle" Hisoka added to his thoughts while thinking about Hideki, whom he usually did not get along with. Jurou was nearing him with his piston fists, yet Hisoka remained tall and angrily charged against his opponent, intending on actually catching the transformed boy with his hands. "LIGHTNING STYLE: DEPTH CHARGE!" he roared and jumped right into his flying opponent.
This caused a huge explosion of lightning in the stadium, and it even managed to spread itself to the tribunals, as well as the roof. The spectators were left in shock, with many trying to flee and escape the stadium, although the doors and the exits were closed and locked.
As the lightning ceased to exist, smoke was left in wake of the battleground. The wind helped blew away the dust and the ground where the clashing had occurred was filled with black dirt. But what was even more stunning was seeing both Hisoka and Jurou lying on the ground, with Hisoka having his upper body completely exposed, while Jurou had reverted back to his normal form. But neither of them moved a muscle, as their bodies were covered in bruises and injuries.
Everything was silent, as no one, not even the spectators, made a noise. Only Lee could determine this match, as he slowly headed over to the two bodies lying on the ground. He observed them carefully, trying to make sure if either of them were knocked out, or still conscious. The fuzzy-eyed man realized that he would have to declare this a draw, since neither of them moved.
"BOTH CONTESTANTS ARE NOT…WHOA!." Lee snapped in fear when he felt someone touch his ankle. Looking down, he snapped in surprise, as none other than Jurou was holding him, breathing deeply in the process. Lee was out of words, as was probably most of the spectators that were sitting and watching the fight.
"Hold it" Jurou uttered out words lowly and raised his head up to look at Lee, and he no longer possessed his previously insane persona from his Sage Transformation. He had his normal eyes, as well as his spikey orange hair. "I am still…breathing" he said and slowly got up to his knees. The young boy fixed his eyes on Hisoka, who was still lying on the ground with his bruises. Watching as the wind blew the dreadlocks, Jurou closed his eyes. "When Hisoka Sado revealed to me his true talents, I was quite not prepared for coming to terms with it. As a result, I gave in to my hidden bloodlust that I had long battled to keep at bay. But even despite being pummeled, he stood tall and faced me in combat. Not only did he dare stand against me in my Sage Transformation, he also managed to break it. By doing so, he freed me from losing control to my rage. And for that…I thank him" he remarked in his head, and opened his eyes. The young boy then bowed his head slightly before Hisoka, even saying thank you lowly.
Lee was stunned to see how Jurou was still conscious, but he knew that the match was coming to an end. Therefore, it was only natural for him to conclude the winner of this match.
"HISOKA IS IN NO CONDITION TO CONTINUE THE FIGHT. SO WINNER BY KNOCKOUT: JUROU KAGUYA!" Lee declared the winner and the orange-haired boy looked up to the pale, blue skies. He was ignoring the noise all around him and simply closed his eyes to think about someone he knew.
"Mother…...thank you for letting me try something on my own" Jurou remarked with a smile. "I won a battle…...for our village…...for the legacy of the Kaguya clan" he added to his thoughts, thinking about some thoughts he had always had on his mind while being in the Leaf Village. "I also want to thank you, uncle. I want to thank you for giving me your strength" he added, this time thinking about his legendary uncle: Kimimaro Kaguya.
As medics were brought out to pick up both Jurou and Hisoka, Kaito was silently musing to himself over seeing his student win. The bandaged swordsman was also one of the few who knew that by standing up against Jurou's attack, Hisoka had actually freed him from his insanity.
"Heh, I cannot believe that I'm seeing this" he admitted while forcing a slight chuckle from his mouth. "To be honest, I always thought that both Aoi and Kotone were the ones who would win in their own matches, but I guess I was wrong. I had always thought that Jurou would either lose control and get killed off easily, but something else changed. The lightning destroyed Jurou's Sage Transformation, thus returning him to his calm and silent persona. That boy has achieved something great today. His mother will be proud" he noted while gazing up towards the sky.
"I don't believe it!" Chojuro noted while adjusting his glasses. "The Hidden Mist Village finally got a winner in the Chuunin Exams…..and it was him" the four-eyed man added while not believing what he was seeing.
Mei formed a slight smirk with her mouth. "Both fighters really gave everything they had during that fight" the Mizukage noted. "I was actually afraid of losing this boy in this match. But as young and gentle as he is, he managed to both survive and escape his bloodlust. It also appears that Hisoka Sado played a role in helping him freeing him from that state" she went on commenting. The azure-eyed woman then took a glance at where Kaito was seated. "I am very proud to for the efforts your students have showed us today, Kaito Mizushima. Your team is among many things that defines the pride of the Mist Village" she thought while facing him.
There were different reactions to Hisoka's loss from his friends, with Ringo, Kimiko and Asuka feeling downed about seeing it. But both Guy and Hanzo did not see it that way.
"Hey Guy, aren't you at least surprised or disappointed by seeing this?" Kimiko asked, the blonde-haired girl wanting to know from him.
The fuzzy-eyed boy faced her teammate with a smile. "Well, I am saddened about his loss of the Exams. But I am actually happy to not see him being torn to shreds" he admitted and faced the battleground. "And besides, I now know which opponent I would really like to have a rematch with. Not only will it be Hisoka. It will also be Jurou" he explained to her, who was only dumbfounded by that statement.
But Hanzo understood that and faced Guy and Kimiko with a smile. "Well said" he commended Guy's words and faced the battleground. "Neither of you have to worry about Hisoka. He's still alive and breathing. His heart is still pounding" the black-haired boy added, his face still smiling over seeing what was happening.
Hideki had so far only been silent after witnessing the match's results. In fact, he was now on his way to the room where Hisoka would be kept in for medical treatment. As much as he had wanted his nephew to win, Hideki now realized that during this fight, there had been many times, Hisoka had put his life on the line in order to win. In fact, the muscular man was now drifting back to the past, at the time when he was a little boy in a tough time of the world.
"Hideyoshi….brother….I'm sorry…but I have taken my responsibility as uncle very seriously" he noted in his thoughts while moving, recalling his younger brother. "It's time that I start appreciating the many times your youngest son has impressed me….even today" he admitted, as Hideki knew that his nephew had actually done a terrific job in the stadium. "He deserves respect" was the final thoughts in the muscular man's mind before keeping up the pace.
To be continued…
Author's note: That was the match between Hisoka and Jurou. While I had thought of making the match a draw, I kind of wanted at least one shinobi from the Mist Village to win, and that was Jurou. Also in contrast to his teammates, Jurou is a very conflicted person. The next match will be the one some of you have waited for: the match between Inojin and Shunsuke. Similar to the matches between Nashiko & Minami and Shikaien & Aoi, there will be flashbacks on both twin brothers. We may also get to see some dramatic changes that happens in the Chuunin Exams.