Eventually the week is over and everyone is accounted for, in one way or another. In a way, it's a pity they hadn't stayed in the forest longer, to figure out the various strengths and weaknesses of their competitors. But then all the competitors would be dead and the purpose useless. Gaara seems happy - as far as he can be happy - that the orange boy made it through. It's creepy. Kankuro can't remember a time when Gaara actually been interested in someone for more than an hour (by the end of that hour, they're usually dead). Well, except with Yashamaru but then he ended up dead as well. As the orange kid will, soon.

They're going to be fighting individually in this third and final stage. The preliminaries are first, to eliminate the weak ones further, who might have hidden behind their teams before.

2. KANKURO VS HYUUGA HINATA.

4. TEMARI VS TENTEN.

7. GAARA VS ROCK LEE.

The other matches Temari notes are;

3. UZUMAKI NARUTO VS INUZUKA KIBA.

6. UCHIHA SASUKE VS HYUUGA NEJI.

Gaara is disappointed of course, not to get Naruto straight away. Temari thinks it's good. The prelims will eliminate the chaff and if the orange boy is useless, he'll be safer out of Gaara's way.

"I have to fight a girl!" Kankuro complains. Temari folds her arms, almost imitating Gaara;

"Last time I checked, I was a girl and I still beat you." Temari says, amused.

"You don't count!"

Oh, this was an interesting little weakness of Kankuro's, Temari thought.

"How so?"

"Well, look at her! She's about as threatening as a mouse,"

"I'm sure you'll manage."

"It's not that. I want a proper fight."

"It's only the prelims. Besides, at least you didn't get Gaara and have to withdraw altogether."

Small mercies.

Both Gaara's and Temari's opponents are on the same team, so Temari decided to do some research. Although Gaara hardly needed it.

She found out that Rock Lee was dead-last, hopeless at ninjutsu and an expert at taijutsu, And that he was strange - they seem to encourage weirdness in Konoha - with an irritatingly upbeat manner and dressed in green spandex. Temari wondered if the orange boy and Rock Lee belonged to the same club. She doubted Gaara would have any trouble with him. The girl, Tenten, was a bit more interesting. She practiced with multiple weapons and seemed proficient in all of them. Quality over quantity though, Temari thought a little smugly.

Because she was bored, she also researched the little Hyuuga girl. Kankuro was right of course. Wouldn't hurt a fly. Couldn't hurt a fly, on that matter. Her only strength was the hereditary Byakugan she had.

Uchiha had the Sharingan. Hyuuga Neji the Byakugan again, though he was a lot better at it than the Hyuuga girl. Inuzuka and the Hyuuga girl were actually the team that Kankuro stopped Gaara from killing in the forest; Temari recognized the dog that followed the Inuzuka everywhere. Interesting. She passed that tit-bit onto Kankuro, who laughed.

"Maybe I can ask her to honour the debt and give up at the beginning."

But they are shinobi and everyone knows shinobi don't even recognize the word honour.

"You did it for her? How sweet." Temari taunts.

"Pity I'm not going against you." Kankuro says.

As predicated, Hyuuga Hinata was not winning. There's a difference between Konoha and Suna nins already but Hinata is on the far end of the "mercy" scale. She can't even bring herself to hurt her own sister - Kankuro doesn't know this little fact but he would be flummoxed if he did; aren't your siblings the ones you actually want to hurt the most?

Anyway, now the Hyuuga girl is lying in the dirt of the arena, looking almost like she's going to cry. Kankuro's disappointed but he expected this. Just thought the power of the legendery Byakugan would get her going a little longer.

"No, Hinata, get up!" The yell is from the stands. Kankuro doesn't even bother to turn and see who it was. He already knows. Idiot orange kid number one.

Kankuro found he was looking forwards to seeing Gaara destroy him. Didn't he ever shut up? Bloody hell, it wasn't even his match!

"You can't give up, Hinata!" Naruto shouts. Kankuro watches, annoyed, at the Hyuuga slowly pulls herself up again. She's a wreck. She can't fight anymore. Kankuro turns and stares at the proctor, waiting for the judgement, but he doesn't say anything.

Do I have to kill her, Kankuro wonders. He doesn't want to, particularly. It wasn't even a good fight and it's only in good fights that killing an enemy is satisfying. This would be like killing a child. Sure, he doesn't like children much, but there are limits. He watches her, wondering what to do. She can't even activate the Byakugan any more and the Jyuuken strikes she got, while well done, weren't enough. One of Kankuro's arms is dead, but he's still got his other arm and his puppet. While Hinata has- what? The strength of her convictions? A near suicidal trust in the orange boy? Kankuro's broken an arm and some fingers, specifically so she can't do Jyuuken any more. Kakazu's thrown her across the arena a couple of times as well, and that's got to hurt.

Maybe I'll have to break a leg, Kankuro thinks. She shouldn't really be a chuunin or a genin for that matter, anyway. She's too weak. Not a touch of killing intent or ruthlessness. Kankuro very much doubts she's ever killed anyone. She's lucky she's not facing Gaara. He would have just killed her out of disgust.

He supposes he can just knock her out. That'll silence any protests from her or the orange boy.

So he does just that. Walks up to her slowly, in case she's got any tricks up her sleeve. Then surges suddenly and punches her on the side of her head.

Out like a light.

"No, Hinata, get up!" the orange boy shouts. Kankuro's estimation of his stupidity goes up even further. Then the proctor, realizing she really isn't going to get up this time, announces Kankuro the winner.

It's a sour sort of victory.

The Hyuuga girl gets taken off by the medics, and when Kankuro gets up to the stands, the orange boy literally tries to attack him. Kankuro actually surprised. 85% stupid then. The other Konoha genins hold him back while he shouts uninspired insults and other garbled words at Kankuro's back. Utterly boring. Kankuro is used to Gaara's threats and the orange boy has nothing on Gaara. He goes and stands next to Temari, who's talking to a blonde Konoha kunoichi.

"She should have just given up." The girl says to Kankuro.

Maybe there's some hope of sanity in this weird village, Temari thinks.

"What an idiot." Kankuro says.

"Don't worry, I hate him too." The girl smiles.

"This is Yamanaka Ino." Temari says.

Kankuro nods at her.

"And he's next. Any chance we get to see the shit beaten out of him?"

Ino shrugs.

"Don't get your hopes up."

Ino's right in the end. The orange boy somehow manages to win his match. At one point though, he pulls on his spirit's chakra, like Gaara does with Shukaku. Gaara stands up, clenches the bar at the edge of the stand. Kankuro and Temari watch him, very carefully. But then the chakra disappears again and Gaara sits back down. They sigh a breath of relief.

Kankuro asks Ino about Uzumaki's impressive healing ability. He knows it might have to do with the spirit but they've never had that problem with Gaara so he doesn't know. And it would be good to know if anyone realises the asset under their noses. Knowing Konoha, probably not.

"It's because he's a pest." Ino says. "We can never get rid of him."

"No really, it's pretty strong."

"No idea. He's always like that, I suppose. Ask Sakura; I don't really know him."

Sakura is apparently the name of the pink girl. How predictably apt. Did her parents have no imagination at all

"Hey, so you're the idiot's team-mate!" Kankuro says to her. They seem to speak the same language because she nods.

"What's that like? How many times do you want to kill him in a day?"

"Too many." Sakura says sourly. Then gazes at the dark-haired boy, which seems to cheer her up again. Her eyes start to glaze over.

"Isn't it weird though, how he heals so quickly?"

"That's Naruto, always finding a way to be annoying."

"Does he think the Hyuuga girl's like him then?" Kankuro asks but the pink girl is frowning now. "You know, the 'don't give up' thing, cuz it would only work for people who can heal quickly."

"Hinata's a friend."

"Sure, sure, sorry. Just interested, first time in Konohagakure and all that."

"And well no, she's not like him. He's an idiot."

Kankuro laughs. "Definitely agreeing with that." He's annoyed though. He's not getting anywhere with this thread of inquiry. Either she doesn't know about the spirit - which is possible, given her obvious obsession with the dark-haired boy - or she knows but is not allowed to tell. He's obviously not a weapon in the same way as Gaara is. Everyone inside and out of Suna know Gaara is the container for Shukaku. It's good for scaring off possible enemies. Good for business, because they can use Gaara's infamy to negotiate higher prices for their team on missions. But not so with the orange boy.

"I don't think the kids know," Kankuro says to Temari later.

"Obsessed much? Go and join the club." Temari says, pointing to Gaara's room.

Kankuro scoffs.

"It's important." He says; for the invasion. "We need to win, and I don't like wild cards."

"He hasn't managed to impress me."

"What's got your knickers in a twist?"

"Oh, fuck off."

"Really?"

"It's just- It." Temari eventually manages to say. "Do you actually think we'll succeed?"

"Not my plan, is it," Kankuro shrugs.

"Grow up, this is going to affect all of us."

Kankuro waits.

"It's such a waste, for what was working fine anyway." She says. Why destroy a stable alliance, for so little gains?

"Come on, Temari, you can't talk like that."

"I know! I just- I hope we lose."

Kankuro doesn't know what to say to that. But he's thinking about it now, and he can see what Temari means. How exactly is the Kazekage going to control two villages - and with the added danger from Amegakure turning on them? And why? Sure, more money but also a lot more trouble. Shinobi aren't the most obedient of people and Konoha's weirder than most.

He doesn't really want to invade, like he didn't want to kill the Hyuuga girl, despite the chance to beat up the annoying orange boy. But in this matter he doesn't have a choice; he has to follow orders.