Lionheart: Hey everyone, I know I'm late, but I'd like to wish each and everyone of you a happy new year, and for those on holiday break/vacation, I hope you enjoy the rest of it. I know I'm having a blast.

Not much else to say here except enjoy. I realized the alerts were down at some point, so I typed this one up right away. Just for the record: I'm still typing this story up. It just gets harder with each new chapter…and the harder it gets, the longer it takes.

Summary: With Naruto and Lee out cold and Sasuke recovering, Sakura, Ino, Chouji, and Shikamaru are left to fight the sound Genin, who have shown terrifying powers. Meanwhile, six other shinobi close in on the battle, each with their own goal.

Saved! Sound's Defeat

Dosu struggled and tried to will his body to move. "I can't move…why is that?" Shikamaru smiled, "why don't you take a look at your shadow." Dosu's eyes widened as he looked down, 'It's his shadow. It's right on top of mine.'

Meanwhile, Zaku dodged another attempt by Chouji to flatten him. "What kind of art is that? Hn, it's probably not even an art…just a fat guy rolling around. He watched as the leaf Genin tried to stop and turn and grinned, 'Now's my chance.' Aiming his hands, Zaku shouted, "Zankuha." From the holes in his palms, air rushed out swiftly towards Chouji, who had now turned. Unfortunately to Zaku's surprise, his attack didn't do as much as scratch him.

Zaku cursed inwardly, 'With that kind of rotation…my air pressure is practically useless. Maybe ultra sonic waves...' Before he could think further, Chouji suddenly leapt into the air. Stunned by surprise, Zaku stared at the figure above him. "FLYING?! How?" It was then realization that he was underneath Chouji dawned upon him. Zaku leapt out of the way, though he was too late to entirely dodge the impact of Chouji's fall. The sound Genin flew backwards and crashed into a rock.

"Dosu, w-what are you doing," shouted Kin, as Dosu was forced into a weird pose by Shikamaru. "It's my Kagemane no Jutsu…shadow possession technique. I force my shadow to attach to your friend's over there...forcing him to imitate every move I make. Naturally I must be able to extend my own shadow as I please," he explained.

Shikamaru grinned as Chouji suddenly reverted back to his normal size. The 'plump' ninja slowly stood, shaking, 'Man, that makes my head spin.' "Ino," shouted Shikamaru, as he did another random pose, making Dosu imitate him, "the girl is the only one left."

Ino glanced at Kin, who as of yet, hadn't made a move to help her teammates. "You got it…Shikamaru! Take care of my body while I'm gone," replied Ino, forming a hand sign. Kin got into a battle position, unsure what her opponent would do. "Gotcha," replied Shikamaru, though it was drowned out by Ino's, "Shintenshin no Jutsu…mind transfer technique." Kin's eyes widened, though she couldn't react for suddenly she felt herself getting pushed out of her own body. Kin, under control by Ino suddenly drew a kunai knife. "Kin, what are you doing," demanded Zaku, who was slowly standing up.

"You're finished," replied Ino, "right now…I have control of Kin's body. Whatever I will I can make her do. So," said Ino raising the knife to Kin's body, "if either of you make a move, your teammate is as good as dead. Now, when I say so, Shikamaru will release you. Then you will leave your scrolls here and leave this area. When I can no longer sense your chakras, I'll release Kin."

Dosu exchanged a glance with Zaku, and both sound ninjas grinned. Startled, Ino stepped back, 'What do they think is so funny?' "Do it, Zaku," said Dosu, with malice in his voice. Zaku raised an arm, pointing his palm at Ino, in Kin's body. Sakura gulped, "INO! Watch out, he's gonna…" Her words were drowned out as Zaku shouted, "Zankuha! Slicing the air!" "Ino," shouted Sakura, who remained on the ground, "watch out!"

Ino, shocked that Zaku was actually attacking froze. When she regained her senses, it was too late and the blast hit her dead on. Kin's body flew through the air, getting tossed by the wind like a rag doll. When Ino landed, she coughed up blood and lay unmoving. To Dosu's surprise and entertainment he noticed a similar trail of blood on Ino's real body as her body shook.

Ino, as Kin suddenly raised her head, "What un-unbelievable lowlifes…to wound your own comrade," before falling into Shikamaru's arms unconscious. Zaku chuckled, "you underestimated us…bad mistake. Our objective is not some stupid scroll. Nor do we have any interest in your infantile exams." The leaf Genin all blinked surprisingly, waiting for clarification. "We're after Sasuke…" finished Dosu, when Zaku remained silent."

Shocked, the four leaf Genin glanced over at Sasuke, who lay near Naruto and Lee. Dosu suddenly smiled, as he forcefully moved his arm. Spotting this, Shikamaru involuntarily flinched, 'Oh no.' Still smiling, Dosu now moved his leg. 'Blast,' thought Shikamaru, 'I'm almost at my time limit.' "So," said Dosu, "your little trick only lasts for five minutes at a time before your chakra runs out," asked Dosu, as Shikamaru's shadow suddenly retracted.

Dosu glanced at Ino, "And by the looks of it, if we damage Kin, while that girl's jutsu is active, the real body takes damage as well…and that means…" Shikamaru gulped, realizing what Dosu was trying to imply. "We can just kill Kin ourselves…heh heh," finished Dosu maliciously, pulling his sleeve up from his right arm. 'Damn,' thought Shikamaru, 'this doesn't look too good. Naruto, Sasuke, Lee, and Ino are out of it, and Sakura doesn't look like she has much left. And Chouji and I are practically drained of chakra, so he'll waste us next. Oh man…this is troublesome."

As Dosu turned towards Kin, a voice cut through the silence. "You're despicable…you know that." Dosu stopped and looked upwards at the new voice. On a high tree top, stood Neji and Tenten, both of whom looked angry. Neji pointed with his finger at Dosu, "You bucolic entities think you're all that just because of your sonic powers were strong enough to take down these novices."

Dosu snarled in response, "What'd you say?" Zaku walked over to Dosu, joining in the conversation, "Hn, again you vermin just keep crawling out of the woodwork," he said, annoyed and apparently unfazed by Neji's touch act. Neji shrugged as he ignored the comment, preoccupied with Lee, who had woken. "N-neji-kun," stuttered the Taijutsu user. Neji sighed, "Lee…looks like you blew it." "Lee…what happened," whispered Tenten, concerned.

Sakura, realizing the connection between Neji and Lee, suddenly smiled, 'Those are his teammates. Wow…thank god they're here.' Neji, after confirming Lee's condition suddenly pointed to Dosu, "Hey, that kid down there with the bowl haircut belongs to us. You hurt him…" said Neji, closing his eyes, "NOW YOU ANSWER TO US!" Upon saying this, the Hyuuga prodigy reopened his eyes with the Byakugan activated.

Dosu's eyes narrowed, "His eyes…they seem to penetrate everything." Sakura gaped at the eyes, comparing them to the Sharingan and Naruto's doujutsu. Lee weakly sat up, "No one can defeat Neji…he is the number one Genin of the leaf village. He is even stronger than I, so we don't have much to worry about."

Zaku laughed hearing the remark, "that pipsqueak up there? No way… Dosu, let's waste him quickly." Neji remained high on the tree branch, "I'm giving you one warning you despicable fools…surrender now…or I'll give you everything I've got." Dosu smirked, "You talk a lot leaf ninja, why don't you stop posturing and come down here." Neji smirked in response, "Fine…I…" Neji suddenly stopped, and looked down. He smiled, seeing the sight, "Heh, looks like I don't have to. Someone's going to do it for me," said Neji pointing behind them.

Dosu and Zaku whirled around, to spot Zen standing behind them. "Will it never end," said Zaku, almost angrily, "it's another leaf ninja. They're so cowardly; they think in numbers they'll defeat us." Dosu glanced at Neji, and then at Zen, 'This is a problem. I didn't expect so much resistance. Kin is out of the picture, so it's us against three of them. And the more we waste time, the more time they have to recover and send more guys in."

Neji suddenly leapt down from his branch, landing near Zen. "I didn't get a chance to see your techniques earlier…and your water clone almost threw me off." Zen chuckled, "Ah, I guess it's true what they say about the Byakugan…it 'can' see through everything." Neji grinned, "I think two against one is a little against my liking. Now, what do you say we eliminate these losers in front of us?"

"Hehe, just what I was thinking," said Zen. Zaku snarled at them, "Why don't you stop talking…it's starting to become irritating. Let's fight!" Zen and Neji remained where they stood, while Dosu suddenly leapt up. "It's about time…let's see how good you two really are."

Meanwhile, Kin's body shook as Ino's spirit left it. When she returned to her body, Ino shook her head, "Despicable bastards…" Shikamaru sighed, "These exams are becoming too troublesome," he said, watching the battle between Neji and Zen and Dosu and Zaku. "We should've waited a year before entering."

Ino suddenly got angry, "WHAT?! And let Sakura become Chuunin first? Or get to be with Sasuke all by herself? NO WAY!" Sakura smiled weakly from behind them, while Ino grinned at her. "Sakura-chan…," interrupted Lee weakly, as Tenten picked up his body, "I'm sorry," he said depressed. Sakura smiled at the depressed Genin, "Hey…Lee, thanks for what you did. You're a real lifesaver. I-I'm sorry about what I said earlier about you. You're a great guy." This seemed to cheer Lee up, for he almost leapt up from Tenten's shoulder, as he cried, "WAHOOO!," before groaning and falling unconscious.

Meanwhile, back in the fight, Dosu chased Neji around, while Zaku impatiently tried to blast Zen with his Zankuha. "Damnit, stop moving, so I can hit you," shouted Zaku, sending blast after blast from both hands. "Oh," said Zen mockingly, "that's what you were trying to do. Sorry…fine I'll stay still." To Zaku's surprise, Zen stood ten feet in front of him, tauntingly beckoning to try and attack.

In anger, Zaku aimed both hands, "ZANKUHA!" The blasts of air came from both hands this time straight for Zen, who stood in its path unflinchingly. The blast hit Zen full on, and when the dust cleared the brown haired Genin was nowhere in sight. Zaku smirked, "Hn, blasted that kid away." "Oh…really," said a voice from behind him, that sent shivers up Zaku's spine, "not quite sure how you managed that if I'm right here."

Zaku whirled around, as Zen jumped back. The brown haired Genin yawned, "Want to try again?" Zaku growled in response and took aim again. "TAKE THIS…" "Zaku…Stop!" Zaku froze, as Dosu grabbed his arm. "D-Dosu…what are you doing?" "Don't you get it," replied Dosu, as he roughly removed his hand, "he's toying with you. And you're showing him all your moves…while tiring yourself out."

Zaku grunted in response, "Just give me another shot; I'll hit him next time." Dosu forcefully shoved Zaku, "Zaku! Calm down," he shouted, "or haven't you noticed that you're attacking a bunshin?" The realization shocked Zaku, as his arms dropped. Meanwhile, Zen grinned, "so, 'you' figured it out, huh," he asked Dosu as Neji landed. The Hyuuga was looking slightly frustrated, "Hey... I think I'm going to retreat from this fight." Zen glanced at him, "I see…then maybe I should as well. Doh…and I didn't even get to use my favorite techniques. I was going to try them on that baka over there."

Zaku grew red as he tried to step forward, "Oh yeah, I'm right here, you punk…why don't you give me your best shot…or you too afraid?" While, Neji vanished from view, Zen shrugged, "I don't need to…because that guy over there is starting to come around. And boy…he doesn't look to happy. I think he's mad at you guys…so I'll just be on my way to rejoin my team. See you around," said Zen with a sweat drop, before hastening away. As he left the clearing he felt the sudden explosion of chakra, 'Well…that does it, I'm not hanging around other people's battles anymore.'

Meanwhile, Dosu and Zaku stared around them, confused. "I don't see anything Dosu…what was that guy talking about." Dosu carefully used his senses on the area around him. By the time he found out exactly what was headed in his direction, it was too late to move. 'Oh crap…'

While the two sound Genin had been preoccupied with Neji and Zen, Naruto had slowly woken from his unconsciousness. "Ohhh," moaned the Kyuubi vessel, "where the hell am I?" "Naruto!" Naruto shook his head, as his head cleared and his sight slowly returned. When he could fully see again, he turned towards the voice, and saw Sakura. The first thing he noted was that the kunoichi was in pretty bad shape and that her hair was considerably shorter.

"S-Sakura…you're hurt." Sakura scratched her head as she tried to find the right words to explain to Naruto what happened. Before she could reply, Chouji, Ino, and Shikamaru arrived on the scene. "Naruto," stated Shikamaru, surprised, "you're awake." Naruto noticed the injuries on his teammates, the unconscious Lee, and Neji looking grim on a branch high above. Immediately he felt a sudden surge of anger. He ignored a mysterious pain on his neck and turned towards team ten. "Shikamaru…who did this to you guys? Who hurt you?"

Sakura's eyes narrowed at Naruto's tone. She didn't particularly like the tone he was using. "N-Naruto," asked Sakura, cautiously, "a-are you o-okay?" Naruto evaded the question entirely, and seemed to get angrier, "Sakura…who did this to you? Tell me! Because they're going to pay…" Sakura started when she noticed the purplish glow in Naruto's eye and the malice in Naruto's voice.

Behind him, team ten stared, gaping at Naruto. 'T-this is…Naruto,' thought Shikamaru, astounded, 'there's something different about him though. What's going on?' Sakura gulped as she asked her question again, "N-Naruto…what's wrong?" Naruto growled, "I want to know who did this to you…"

Ino suddenly grabbed Naruto, "Hey! Don't talk to Sakura like that!" Naruto seemingly burned Ino's hand, for the girl removed it, after crying, "Ouch." "Tell me…who…hurt you?" Slowly, Ino pointed towards the three sound Genin, that were now talking to Neji and Zen.

Naruto whirled around, and upon seeing the sound headbands, he immediately growled. "Wait here," he said, evilly, "I'm going to rip them apart…kill…" Stunned, the four leaf Genin could only watch as, a dark purple/orange aura covered Naruto. It was at this point, Neji suddenly felt the chakra presence, and upon seeing Naruto glaring daggers in their direction thought best to retreat to his team, who awaited him on a high branch.

As Zen was just leaving, Gaara followed him. 'I better get out of here,' thought the sand Genin. Back in the clearing, Naruto suddenly held one palm towards the sky. Immediately, a bright flash of light appeared on his hand, before bursting into black flames. Naruto lowered his hand, and took aim at Zaku and Dosu who whirled around in confusion. Before firing a blast of fire from his hand, the leaf Genin nearby heard an eerie and sadistic laugh that made their hearts skip a beat.

Dream World

"Yo…we have a problem," said Kyuubi suddenly. Sasuke looked up from his thoughts, "What? Is it those sound Genin? Did they hurt Sakura?" "Uh," started Kyuubi, twitching, "well, actually they've been there awhile." Sasuke leapt onto his feet, "WHAT?! What about Sakura? I swear…" "No brat," shouted Kyuubi, impatiently, "stop yelling. Your little girlfriend is doing just fine."

Sasuke sat back down immediately, "good…who saved her?" Kyuubi chuckled, "what makes you think anyone saved her?" Sasuke evaded the question, "who saved her," he asked again, though this time, he sounded almost as if he demanded an answer. Kyuubi sighed, "To cut the story short, a lot of people came…then Naruto woke…" "WHAT," interrupted Sasuke, "Naruto's awake?"

"Yes," said Kyuubi irritably, "if you kept your mouth shut, maybe I can finish." Sasuke shrugged, though he motioned for Kyuubi to continue. "Naruto's a little mad right now," said Kyuubi, "and I think we discussed what happens now…if Naruto gets mad."

Sasuke's face darkened, "Get me out of here…wake me up…now!" Kyuubi took a glance at Sasuke, "and what will you do? I can't just place you in his path…not without a plan. Right now, my stupid container can barely tell between friend and foe…if you try to stop him…" He didn't get to finish as Sasuke yelled, "RIGHT! Barely…but barely is something. I can get through to him…but you have to let me out of here."

"And if you can't get through to him," asked Kyuubi coldly, "then what will you do? Then, I'll have to temporarily seal his chakra." Kyuubi stared at Sasuke confused, though the Uchiha waved his hand, "no I'm not going to explain. If I do that…then it'll be too late to try and talk Naruto out of it…HURRY UP!"

Kyuubi growled in response, "We'll talk about your attitude later…you must remember who you're speaking to." Kyuubi suddenly raised his head, "KAI!" (Release). Sasuke suddenly fell over and felt as if he were dropping through an endless hole. He continued to fall, though finally noticed a faint light. Willing himself to go towards it, Sasuke noticed the light grow bright and larger, until it finally engulfed him. At this moment, his eyes shot open and he sat up. The first thing he noticed was Naruto, now so engulfed in chakra he was blocked from view. Sasuke stood, just as Sakura turned around. "SASUKE! Oh, Sasuke, it's Naruto, what do we do?"

Sasuke gently patted Sakura back, "Hey, relax; I'm going to fix this right now. Where are the sound ninjas?" Sakura winced at the name, "They're hiding somewhere right now. They just took a beating from Naruto's fire attack…I didn't even know he had a fire attack." Sasuke's face darkened again, "Alright then, wait here for me. And don't let anybody near Naruto."

Sasuke took off before Sakura could reply, forming a hand sign as he ran. He began to hiss and apparently it was the words to activate a jutsu, for he began to glow green. Neji looked down upon the scene, using his Byakugan. "That chakra…both Uchiha's and that boy's are immense. Where is their power coming from?"

Tenten frowned at the sight below them. Torn down trees, craters, flashes of black fire; all were caused by Naruto, who was destroying everything with just his aura. "What is he doing," she asked suddenly, pointing at Sasuke, who was making a leap for the Naruto. Neji frowned, unable to answer. "Naruto-kun," whispered Lee, "I did not know you were so strong…"

Hiding behind Sakura, Chouji, Shikamaru, and Ino watched horrified. "H-hey, Shikamaru, is that really Naruto out there? Tell me we're all dreaming and that we'll wake up soon." Without turning his head from Naruto, Shikamaru pinched Ino, "nope I think we're in a troublesome situation." Chouji nodded his head, while rapidly shoveling down potato chips, 'This is so…exciting,' he thought.

On the other side of the clearing, Dosu tended to Zaku's injuries as they did their best to keep moving. "Ugh," moaned Zaku, "what happened?" Dosu frowned, "I don't know…you were hit by some kind of black flame. It came from that thing over there that seems to be hunting us. Zaku stared in horror as the now black aura surrounding Naruto approached. "Ugh, that bastard, I'll give him my super Zankuha."

Dosu's eyes widened, "YOU FOOL! No!" Before Dosu could stop him, Zaku unleashed the Zankuha in Naruto's direction. Dosu sweat dropped, and then quickly leapt away just as fire engulfed Zaku. As Dosu looked on helplessly at Zaku, who was screaming in agony, Naruto's aura died away and the orange clad ninja appeared over Zaku. Dosu immediately noticed black marks on Naruto's face and arms.

For the first time the sound Genin was lost for words, and truly confused. 'Th-those marks. There's no doubt about…only Orochimaru gives those…what is he playing at? We were supposed to ambush Sasuke, but you got there first Orochimaru, and planted your cursed seal on one of them.'

Meanwhile, as Zaku lay on the ground smoking, Naruto stood over him, while the observers watched. Sakura who had remained frozen throughout Naruto's rampage suddenly shouted, "NARUTO STOP!" For a moment, Naruto's eyes returned to their original color and for a moment he paused, looking around. Zaku took the opportunity to throw three kunai at his face. Naruto turned slightly as the three kunai flew at him. Before they got any closer, Naruto snapped his fingers, and the kunai burst into flames and melted.

Zaku gulped, "Wh-what are you? Y-you…" Naruto raised an arm, "You…hurt Sakura…I KILL YOU!" Zaku raised his arms in defense as sharp nails grew from Naruto's fingers, while Dosu closed his eyes in prayer.

Naruto's blow never came however, as he suddenly felt a sharp poke at his neck, and was engulfed in green chakra. Naruto groaned as his curse marks faded away, and then fell back into unconsciousness. As Naruto fell over, Zaku watched as Sasuke stared at him pitilessly. "You're a pretty lucky guy," stated Sasuke to Zaku, who had been holding his breath, "you should be dead, yet you get away with only a few broken ribs, some badly burned arms…and a burned face, and two badly crushed and chewed legs." Sasuke smirked amused, "Lucky," he repeated.

Dosu suddenly appeared in front of Zaku. Sasuke smirked, "Oh yeah, there was one more. Maybe I should wake my friend here," challenged Sasuke. Dosu's eyes widened in fear, as he stared down at Naruto's unconscious body. 'Looks pretty knocked out,' thought Dosu, 'still…I'm not going to take any more chances. Maybe…just maybe we've been saved.' Dosu turned back to regard Sasuke. "Your team is pretty tough," said Dosu cautiously, not wanting to anger Sasuke. "Obviously, you guys are pretty tough, especially you Sasuke." "Cut to the point," said Sasuke menacingly.

Dosu gulped and drew out his scroll, "here, take this…as a token of my admiration…and as some reparation for your troubles. Also, please allow us to leave in peace. After what we tried to do, I know it may seem like a lot to ask, but something big is afoot that merits further investigation and confirmation." Sasuke didn't move, as Dosu picked up Zaku, who groaned. "I give you my word on behalf of us all, that if you let us go now…then the next time we face you, we will stay until the battle's end…no matter how poorly we fare…nor the consequences of the battle."

Meanwhile, the remainder of the leaf Genin had come over to hear Dosu's words for themselves. Sasuke regarded Dosu with cold eyes, before turning to Sakura, "I think Sakura should decide. Considering all you've done to her." Sakura gulped as Sasuke mentioned her name, "I-I…" the kunoichi dropped her head, and after a pause she said, "Let them go."

Sasuke grunted, "You heard her…now get out of my sight." Dosu nodded, "right away." The bandaged ninja picked up Kin's body and slowly stumbled towards the tree line. As he reached it Sakura suddenly shouted, "HEY WAIT!" Dosu turned back to regard Sakura. "I want to know who Orochimaru is…and what he did to Naruto…and why." Dosu paused before answering, "he inserted a curse mark on your friend's neck, that will give him a dark evil chakra. As for who and why, I don't know…we were just following orders," he replied, before disappearing from view.

Sakura sat back, deep in thought before turning to Naruto. Sasuke was examining the unconscious body, and murmuring words. "Is he going to be alright," asked Sakura. "This is troublesome…are you sure he's not going to wake up crazy again," asked Shikamaru peeking at Naruto from over Chouji's shoulder. Sasuke sighed, "We'll have to wait until he wakes up. As long as nobody angers him, we should be fine. That seal on his neck and K…" said Sasuke before stopping. He had just about talked about the Kyuubi seal.

"And what," prompted Ino. "Ah, never mind," said Sasuke, shaking his head, "but that seal is connected to Naruto's emotions. If he feels angry, then those curse seal marks come up and we have a crazy Naruto on the loose. But that's until I can see if I can't remove that seal…you're right Shikamaru," said Sasuke as he sighed deeply, "this is troublesome." Meanwhile, Neji remained high on his branch. 'Uchiha Sasuke,' he thought, 'I don't know how…but somehow you managed to defeat that unnatural chakra that came from that boy. I had no idea the Uchiha clan was this strong…hmmm.'

"Hey Sakura!" Sakura turned to see Ino walking towards her, with a pair of scissors. "I'll cut your hair to even up the ends if you'd like." Sakura forced a smile, "Isn't that sweet?" As Ino cut Sakura's hair, both girls stood in an awkward silence. Sakura finally couldn't take it anymore, so she said, "Hmph, so I guess we'll be splitting up then, huh, Ino-pig?" Ino stifled a chuckle, "Hn, we'll probably have to come save your sorry butt again, billboard brow." As both girls chuckled, Neji, Tenten, and Lee, passed by on their way out, with the former two helping the latter.

Sakura noticed them pass, and Sakura called out to Lee, "Hey, Lee." Lee turned around, and stared at Sakura, gawking. "Lee," started Sakura, before lowering her eyes, trying to find the right words. After gulping a few times, she looked up again, smiling, "thank you Le…again." Lee was dumbfounded, "huh?" Sakura smiled, "thanks to your help, I was able to make some kind of breakthrough. My skills have been taken to a whole new level."

Lee began to get teary eyed, as Tenten shook her head. "S-Sakura-chan," murmured Lee, between 'sniffs,' "I am not worthy. It was Sasuke and Neji-kun." Lee dropped his head, while the others stared at him curiously, "It seems so natural…Neji and Sasuke-kun, both prodigies from a renowned clan…that both would have terrifying techniques and unmatched power. That they could defeat the same three sound ninja that beat me senseless."

"No, Lee," interrupted Sakura, "the only reason you were defeated was because you were trying to protect me. You did great." Lee looked up surprise, and a small grin tugged at his lips. Tenten smiled, 'Lee…you big idiot.' "Sakura-chan," said Lee, finally, standing up and looking up, "the fighting lotus of Konoha will bloom once again. When we meet again, Sakura…I'll be a stronger man…I promise."

Sakura giggled in response, "Yeah!," while Tenten and Ino exchanged an awkward glance. Meanwhile, Neji stood by the trees, "Let's go," he said. Lee stood with Tenten's help, and the two made their way to Neji. Neji nodded and turned, heading into the darkness of the woods, his mind racing with the upcoming challenges he would undoubtedly face.

Moments later, Chouji, Ino, and Shikamaru stood at another end of clearing and said their goodbyes to Sakura and Sasuke, who carried Naruto on his shoulder. "Hmph, you guys are troublesome," said Shikamaru, as he turned into the forest. Chouji followed, munching on chips, not bothering to waste time speaking. Last Ino followed, after shaking hands with Sakura and giving Sasuke a hug (which startled the Uchiha).

"Bye then, billboard brow…Sasuke," said Ino, smiling at the latter, before disappearing off with her teammates. Sasuke sighed, "C'mon, Sakura, we need to get moving. We've wasted two days already, and I know for a fact that a couple of teams are done already."

Sakura nodded, determined to be a little more helpful than she had been, "right!" Grinning at her sudden look, "Sasuke turned and began walking towards the trees where Neji had disappeared. He wasn't too concerned about finding one more scroll, much less getting one.

Lionheart: And that's it for this chapter. Next chapter will FINALLY finish up the second exams… (Thank god) and we can move on more interesting things. Sad enough to say, Naruto will not lose the curse seal any chapter soon, and he will turn a little crazier after this chapter…but that's not here and now.

And last…once again…Happy New Year