After their incredible performance, and their bow, Neji and Naruto exited the arena.

This time, Neji didn't need to go to the medics. Instead, Hiashi intercepted him in a hallway, and explained the past to him much quicker. This resulted in Neji rejoining the other rookies up in the audience.

The other fights went the same. Kankurou quit, Shikamaru gave up, and Gaara went psycho. The invasion started, and Sasuke gave chase to Gaara. But this time, something different happened.

Instead of just Shikamaru, Sakura, and Naruto running off, Neji went with them. Shikamaru again stayed behind to lay an ambush. Shino again appeared to fight off Kankurou. But then Naruto began to prepare for the fight, the performance he knew was coming.

And this time, he was going to do it a little differently.

After all, Gaara didn't seem the type to be susceptible to his usual tunes. He didn't seem the type to understand the true talent of the historical King of Pop. Ever since the hospital incident, Naruto realized he would have to utilize a different method to reach and defeat Gaara. So, he prepared a different song, and, like all his music, carried a copy of the lyrics on him. Naruto looked over at Neji, and spoke.

"Neji, how good are you at memorization?"

"Uzumaki, I'm good at everything. Are you saying you have a plan to deal with Gaara?"

"Just learn this as we run...I think you'll appreciate it, too."

Because truly, this song was perfect for the two of them.

And so Sakura, Naruto, and Neji came upon Gaara kicking the crap out of Sasuke, with Temari looking on.

Gaara noticed their arrival. He noticed Naruto gathering chakra. He became weary of the 30 odd clones that Naruto formed. And he was confused when the light in the wooded area darkened, and soft piano music started.

Then a harder beat sounded, and Naruto and Neji strode out, side by side, into the clearing.

This time, Naruto wasn't alone as he sang. This time, Neji sang with him.

"I guess
That this is where we've come to
If you don't want to
Then you don't have to believe me
But I won't be there when you go down
Just so you know now
You're on your own now believe me"

Gaara was taken aback...he knew he'd seen this Uzumaki boy fight with song instead of fists, but he really hadn't expected the guy to try it on him. After all, he was far too dangerous of an opponent to just sing at and hope he didn't attack.

And so Gaara gathered his sand around him, and was preparing to launch an attack. But then Naruto stepped forward, and began speaking again. This time, it wasn't singing...he had never really heard music like this before. To be fair, no one had, as rap had died out centuries before. But there was something...catchy, about the way Naruto was talking.

"I don't want to be the one to blame
You like fun and games
Keep playing em
I'm just saying
Think back then
We was like one and the same
On the right track
But I was on the wrong train
Just like that
Now you've got a face to pain
And the devil's got a fresh new place to play
In your brain like a maze you can never escape the rain
Every damn day is the same shade of grey"

Gaara was able to ignore the music, but he wasn't able to ignore the words. He thought back to when Naruto and he had met in the Hospital, when he had sought to kill the eyebrow guy. He had heard Naruto say "You're...just like me," but he hadn't believed it. But the sheer emotion of what Naruto was saying and how he was saying it...Gaara's sand, while not quite falling, stopped reaching out towards the Leaf-nin.

And then, to Gaara's surprise, Naruto turned around, and switched places with Neji. Neji had proven that he was able to sing, and he was a quick learner. He picked up rapping as quickly as he picked anything else up, and was able to follow Naruto's lead. In this case, Neji felt even more comfortable with the lyrics than he had with the first song he and Naruto had sung. Before, it was just about generally telling problems to fuck off...This time, he was able to convey his own personal emotions even more.

"Hey
I used have a little bit of a plan
Used to
Have a concept of where I stand
But that concept slipped right out of my hands
Now I don't really even know who I am
Yo, what do I have to say
Maybe I should do what I have to do to break free
What ever happens to you, we'll see
But it's not gonna happen with me"

Gaara had heard what Neji had said during the Prelims. While it wasn't as harsh as he might have, it wasn't exactly nice. After all, it comes as no shock that since Naruto grew up...differently, that the girl who used him as inspiration would grow to be different, too. But Gaara had still understood that Neji's life was pretty crappy, and that he had some sort of enslavement seal on him. Gaara could relate. And that was the moment Gaara had lost.

One of the best standards for judging good music is how well the audience can relate to the emotions of the song. Whole genre's of music capitalized on this, and generally, the songs that one could relate to are the songs that one likes the best. In this case, Gaara had begun to relate too much to the song.

And Naruto and Neji began the chorus.

"I guess
That this is where we've come to
If you don't want to
Then you don't have to believe me
But I won't be there when you go down
Just so you know now
You're on your own now believe me"

While singing the Chorus, Neji walked over to Sasuke and pulled him up from where he had been laying, watching, and brought him over to where Sakura was standing. Naruto walked over to where Temari was, and reached out to her.

Temari, enthralled once more by the blonde boy's music, took his hand. Naruto pulled her into a one armed hug, and walked her over to where Sakura and Sasuke where, and left her there. When the chorus ended, Neji and Naruto were once more in front of Gaara.

Naruto again stepped to the front.

"Back then, I thought you were just like me
Somebody who could see all the pain I see
But you proved to me unintentionally
That you would self-destruct eventually
Now I'm thinking like the mistake I made doesn't hurt
But it's not gonna work
Cause it's really much worse than I thought
I wished you were something that you were not
And now this guilt is really all that I got"

If Gaara could relate before, these lines completely defeated him. He began reflecting a little on his life, and wondering why exactly he was who he was. He still had supreme self confidence in his ability to kill anyone, but perhaps there was more to fighting, and more to living, then just crushing people in sand.

Temari noted the differences in this performance from the last. The last one, Naruto had focused a lot of time on dancing, and had actually turned the match into a challenge, a fight.

This time around, there was no fight. It was more like a speech, an inspirational, motivational speech. There was little dancing, but a lot of hand gestures to emphasize his points. There was even some physical interaction between Neji and Naruto, limited to a couple high 5's and back slaps. But that was all.

Where as before, the song had been focused more on dancing and the competition, this one focused on the message, the point of the song.

And Neji stepped forward as Naruto stepped back.

"You turned your back
And walked away in shame
All you got is a memory of pain
Nothing makes sense so you stare at the ground
I hear your voice in my head when no one else is around
What do I have to say
Maybe I should do what I have to do to break free
What ever happens to you, we'll see
But it's not gonna happen with me"

And Gaara remembered why he became an avatar of death; because of his own past pain, and because of the voice of the Shukaku in his head. He remembers thinking as a child, 'why am I treated so differently? Why does no one like me'? About how little sense his life had always made.

But could he break free? Neji's words were making clear to him that it didn't have to be that way. If this Hyuuga boy could grow past the point of needing revenge for the caged bird seal, perhaps Gaara could move past his.

And the chorus was sung once more.

"I guess
That this is where we've come to
If you don't want to
Then you don't have to believe me
But I won't be there when you go down
Just so you know now
You're on your own now believe me"

Gaara had begun to believe. He had become too caught up in the song, and was nodding a long with the music. The Shukaku transformation had fallen apart, and Gaara was standing amidst a pile of sand.

Could these others really understand his pain?

Gaara thought this during a brief instrumental solo, and then the thoughts were reinforced with a final repetition of the chorus.

"I guess
That this is where we've come to
If you don't want to
Then you don't have to believe me
But I won't be there when you go down
Just so you know now
You're on your own now believe me"

Neji and Naruto began to walk towards Gaara.

The last chorus had not been sung by them. This time, Naruto's Kage Chorus had come out from the trees, standing in a half circle behind the 3 spectators to the event.

During the chorus, as they had walked closer, Naruto and Neji interspersed their own lyrics in the chorus.

"Do what I have to do
You're on your own now believe me

What ever happens to you
You're on your own now believe me

What do I have to say
You're on your own now believe me

It's not gonna happen with me
You're on your own now believe me"

And then the music died off, and stopped.

"Gaara...you aren't the only one with a horrible burden around here. You aren't alone."

As Naruto said this, he flashed some demonic chakra. Neji turned towards him, giving him a weird look, but he was the only one who even noticed what had happened, aside from Gaara.

Until now, Gaara had thought that Neji was the one who understood him. But he could feel the chakra that the Uzumaki boy let off. He recognized it, so similar to his own.

And the song made even more sense, now.

The sand had completely receded into his gourd.

Gaara looked over at Temari, and a newly arrived Kankurou.

"Come...we leave."

And without turning around, Gaara walked away.

Kankurou was confused...he had just got here, what on earth had he missed? It was clear no fight had occurred amongst those standing, but why on earth would Gaara voluntarily surrender like this?

Temari was disappointed. As she walked away, she turned back around, winked at Naruto, and blew him a kiss.

Then the three Sand ninjas took the trees, going in the opposite direction of Konoha.

Sakura was once again in awe. The finals fight between these two had been so intense, and now they worked together with such ease? And made such, well, maybe not beautiful, but heartfelt music? THIS was her 'dead last' teammate? Maybe she shouldn't have turned him down so many times when they were younger...

Sasuke was fuming. He had been defeated with ease by Gaara, than Naruto comes along and just sings him away? Where the heck did Naruto get so good at singing, anyway?? None of this made any sense, and he refused to let the lyrics get to him, no matter how much he felt he could relate. He wasn't some pansy like Gaara, to be defeated with mere music.

And Naruto and Neji turned and looked at each other.

"Do you truly understand now, Neji?"

"...That worked far better than I could ever have imagined. I went along with it at first, because I felt I owed you for our fight...but when I read the lyrics...it seems so obvious."

The invasion was over, the tide was turned. Old Man Sarutobi had died, Orochimaru's arms had lost their soul, and Konoha had repelled the invasion.

But probably one of the most important events in history went almost unnoticed, out in Konoha's woods.

Author's Notes: Last song- "Black or White" by Michael Jackson

This song- "Believe Me", by Fort Minor.

Dedicated to Fosfor, and done at his request.

If ya haven't ever heard of the song, look it up on youtube. Just read the lyrics..it makes so much sense for Neji and Naruto.

Anyway, Naruto was trained as a singer and dancer by his sensei, and thus fell behind (and to dead last) in the academy because he just didn't care. He got his acknowledgement elsewhere.

Though when he did end up graduating (the same way he did in canon), he realized that he was a ninja for good, and needed someway to survive and compete.