AN: -removed a majority of discouraged shpeel/angst from these author comments, so fall down and thank me-
To make a long story short, I'm continuing this fanfiction not because Ryuuichi and Kazeki's respective 'owners' are good patrons of characters or decent friends; but because they can't take this joy from me. They will not win, even on the smallest of planes, because my triumph will be on the ultimate one. I keep promising them that, and I've no intention of rescinding; time shall tell, shan't it?
Minami, striking Iruka on the head with a paper fan, festival lanterns gleaming in her eyes.
Minami, lying in the grass with a kitten on her stomach; Minami with her ANBU armguards, her tattoo still bleeding. The curve of her back that disappeared as she dressed, her hair flying, and the saucy smile she had when she knew she'd been wrong. Minami, red-headed and simply her, trapped in these still images in his mind.
"Gai. Gai. Come on, they made it back."
Kakashi's face was as blank as a slab of unmarked canvas. He just blinked his one, gray eye slowly, to acknowledge that he knew what it was like to be so lost in remembering someone.
----
They weren't sure whether the contestants were highly superior, or highly inferior that year; it was so uncommon for such a number of Genin to make it through until what would have been the final round. Sarutobi had a great many duties he did not exactly like being the instigator of, and informing these kids that not enough of them had died was one of them. But then he remembered the tribulations they would face as Chunin, and suddenly the whole exchange seemed about equal.
He explained it to them, "This is the truest test of your strengths yet. All of these countries will be watching, appraising your strength and Konoha's." But he knew they were down there rejoicing, and it pricked him again as he let Gekkou take over.
But this was just the way the world went, and they were training them to survive in it.
We've already said that these exams were meant to make something of you. For the characters you don't know, yet untried by fire, please acknowledge that their struggle is just as noble as the true characters'; in that their bond is to their Shinobi path, not to besting Konoha's most hopeful generation since anyone could last recall.
----
"This is where we exit."
Hirako turned, stunned, while Kayoko and Shuchun pretended to be absorbed in the Hokage's speech.
"Don't make a sound," Kabuto added almost immediately. "Your duty is to stay hidden. Remember, Amegakure and Kusagakure exist herein only to draw certain eyes away. See that your friends know this. And don't you dare use your bones, anywhere- if you want to see your brother alive."
A chill shot up Hirako's back as the gloved medic-nin slithered away, but he didn't give it the satisfaction of showing.
----
Sasuke's performance made a few Genin feel like their spinal columns had turned into jelly; but the state in which he left the preliminaries had those same ones sighing in relief, especially Shuchun of Amegakure Squad 19. He watched the boy limp away, as though he could see through the Amegakure headband knotted over his eyes.
"Yeah." Kayoko answered his silent question, stuffing a piece of candy into her mouth. She promptly spit this out when the scoreboard flashed the next pairing of battle: Izanagi Kayoko versus Yamanaka Ino. Actually, she spit out the candy because the sheer shock of seeing Ino's outfit.
"… That is so cute! Where did you get that!?" she cried, flying down from the stands and racing directly to her opponent. Kayoko began inspecting her top, which brought the blonde kunoichi a mixture of reticence and pride. Gekkou just blinked at the exchange, before declaring the battle 'on'.
Honestly, it was a good match- Kayoko was nothing spectacular, even if she could summon a big-ass mace from the single scroll at her waist. Her lack of versatility made for a heartrenderingly pathetic clash, in which Ino was flung headlong by a direct blow by the spiked sphere at the weapon's tip, and Kayoko so mishandled the chain as to repeat the injury upon herself. No winner was declared; and most of the audience simply stood, wondering how such a blunder-ass could have made it through the Chunin exams.
"Congratulations, Naruto- someone almost a pathetic as you."
"Sakura, that's not kind," Kakashi hinted without much concern at all.
"Impressive," Kankurou noted with saccharine sarcasm. Temari continued to glare at the world in general, Gaara hovering behind her; he had barely spoken a word since they'd exited the Forest, and he really didn't need to. Every one knew what was on his mind, and that he was slowly losing it.
But the look he was giving the pigtailed kunoichi, as the medics lifted her carefully away, had Temari even more weirded out than Gaara's normal 'people-friendly personality'.
"I want that." he suddenly said, thin tongue protruding from his lips.
"What?" Temari asked, to which his reply was instantaneous and devoid of any feeling: "I want to kill some girls. I want to play with her." And then he smiled, in that Gaara kind of way that makes dub newbies soil themselves; he seemed to be happy. The only Konoha genin who could stand near Gaara without expression of fear, Suzuki (who Gaara most likely had mistaken for a male), would recall hearing this exchange and thinking: damn, that kid needs a hobby.
Gaara would get the chance to play with new 'toys' soon enough, but first there were eliminations to be had. Shino, with great suaveness, reduced Abumi Zaku to an armless torso; those who survived the exams would find that any money in their pockets had disappeared, which is what Shino applied his insects to doing as the tests carried on. Kazeki found himself in awe of the competitors from the various villages; it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that they were four times as tough and twice as ready to kill as the average Konoha genin. Fortunately, he and his teammate were not the average genin. Akadou Yoroi, slurping the chakra through Sasuke's forehead, especially gave him the creeps.
Temari mopped the floor with Tenten's face (just before she was called to the fight, however, a whisper had tickled the base of Tenten's neck: "Be careful of flying things, won't you?" Tenten had grinned, and coyly spun to face the cravated young man of her growing infatuation. "Don't you think I can look out for myself?," she asked with a pert tone that invited no truly harsh answers. A rare smile lifted the boy's black-scarred cheek; almost as soon as she had seen it, though, it disappeared beneath the brim of his straw hat once more, and the figure began striding back to his loose-looking team. And that was when she'd known.)
The traditional order mussed by the proliference of competitors, it was Kazeki who rose next, against the likes of Dongmei Shuchun. Taking stance, the silver-haired genin pulled out his 'big guns': yanking the panels from his jacket's sides, two folding blades as long as his arms were soon settled atop his shoulders, their downturned handles in each of his sweaty fists. His muscles working, chakra eventually began to glow up the blades. A Heian technique- Asuma was impressed, but Kazeki's control was patchy. Shuchun didn't fear those blades, apparently, because it was the blindfolded boy who made the first move. From a grounded stance, Shuchun barreled towards Kazeki; but with the slow grace of a meditative Shaolin, he dodged the oncoming blade and spun directly into striking zone; with the heel of his hand, he struck Kazeki's chin sharply enough to send him clattering back a few feet.
Huffing, the green-eyed boy scuffled to his feet. His charkra control not being so hot, he summoned the energy for Fuuton Kazekotae, Four Directions Answer; two pairs of swelling wind orbs loomed for a hesitant second, and then screamed towards the unflinching Shuchun. At the very last second, amidst gasps, the handicapped Shinobi correctly anticipated and deflected the elemental attacks by summoning chakra to his hands. Kazeki flew after him, only to find even his chakra-lengthened blades countered by the padding beneath the boy's thick coat; he had to dodge another blow by the boy's aged-looking and yet graceful hands, but was caught by the double kick hidden behind the intention of a foreward strike.
Damn it! How could you counter attacks you couldn't see?, he wondered as blow after blow met disheartening solidity. Locked in the midst of the tussle, Kazeki searched for some weakness; and after a few seconds, a way out became clear.
Leaping backwards, Kazeki drew from his waist twin scrolls, the replacements for his arm blades. Swooping an attack from the left, he flung both of them out around each side of Shuchun, who leapt up to escape- and then gathered a mass of wind to strike him down when he dodged the flying knives. The Ame Genin clattered back to the ground, striking the far wall as he fell.
From where the defecting competitors stood, Hirako glanced nervously at Kabuto, who grinned.
"Smart kid. He figured out your teammate's stupid technique; despite being invulnerable to genjutsu, Shuchun set himself up for failure with that blindfolding exercise. He can only defend himself from what he can hear- and you can't hear a good counterattack."
Sorry to see his companion bested, Hirako watched the rest of the fights nervously; his team had already been eliminated.
"Of course," Kabuto teased, "You're much stronger than your comrades. I'm sure you wouldn't shame yourself as they did…We'll just have to wait and see."
----
Shikamaru deviled Tsuchi Kin next, and thence came the great, maverick battle of Naruto and Kiba. Ended by a fart. No one was sure whether to praise Naruto, or the gods of dumb luck. But then, it happened.
"NO." Kazeki insisted, gripping Suzuki's thin wrist; the look she gave him could have burned holes through his flesh, but still he did not let go. "Suzuki, you have to be kind- we've got our sensei's reputation riding here. The Jonin already think we're wolf-children. Just don't do anything-"
"Stop wasting oxygen," the short girl declared, whipping free of his instable concern. But Kazeki bit his lips with anxiety, hoping that Suzuki's lack of aquaintance with Sakura would keep her from mauling the girl.
He cast her scathing looks from the platform, the moral compass; but when the fight began, he was stunned to see that Suzuki did not attack directly. Rather, she spoke softly, albeit proudly, to her opponent.
"You're the girl from the Forest," Suzuki began. "The one with the frog prince."
"Haah?" Sakura replied, before casting her eyes up towards her own personal cheering section: Naruto was teetering off the railing, while Rock Lee threw her his most approving big-brows scowl.
"Well, don't remember me as that, because I can take care of myself now." Sakura assured her, smirking; with the hitate-ate about her bulbous forehead, Sakura really did look contendable, even fearsome. Giving no chance for reply, the pretty little catch-up thrust three bunshin clones into existence.
Suzuki's speed was simply unlike anything Sakura had dealt with before; indeed, Gai was even a little shocked to see someone anywhere near Lee's degree (we stress near, as nobody is as awesome as Lee).
But despite all her intent, Sakura needed mettle to back up those brave words. Suzuki flew to the side wall, flinging one of her wire snares around Sakura and one of her clones; the plastic end whipped around her with a dastardly sound, wrapping the girl in tight and painful rows of thin string. Suzuki leapt upwards, appearing at the railing just beneath Naruto's face; before he could finish crying out in shock, the end of the snare Suzuki had was looped over, and Suzuki was bouncing against the ground, the end in her hand. Sakura was solidly trapped, reaching desperately for the kunai pouch at her side. Just as her hand touched the handle, though, electric energy sprung through the length of the wire; Suzuki stood completely still, feeding her chakra through the weapon. Miniscule trails of blood flew, as the weapon was then retracted into her hand.
Her bonds slipping off, Sakura was revealed to be covered in thin cuts- everywhere the wires had touched, even her clothes, bore some harmful mark. They were mere paper cuts, stinging the top layers of flesh, but those were pertinent weapons enough. Flesh stinging, Sakura reeled backwards to gain her composture.
"I wanna know why he likes you so much." Suzuki said calmly, continuing their conversation. What her latent conversational skills did not reveal was this: "I want to know what you're doing right."
With a shout, though, Sakura was back in the game; flipping backwards, she landed out of range of the throwing weapons and began raining her own arsenal of shruiken. Kunai knives rattled on empty air; Suzuki feinted side to side, calling her attention, until she could appear behind Sakura and crisscross two snares flush across the girl's chest and legs, flipping her legs out from under her and dropping Sakura on her back.
Heaving, the fair-haired girl wrangled up again over the cries of both Naruto and Lee. Suzuki, at this point, had glanced back up into the distraught face of Sakura's admirers. She wouldn't be swayed by their displays of worry, but she still noted them with a new concern.
"They really care for you." she said absently. "Why?" It was an honest question, not rhetorical or sarcastic. Suzuki stared at her, waiting for a reply.
"I don't need anyone, and I'll prove it!"
Completely contrasting her soft words, Suzuki then kicked Sakura squarely in the face. She dropped to the ground like a dead dog, mouth open and eyes sweetly shut.
And Kazeki just watched it all, wondering if this was as close to an apology as Suzuki would ever make.
----
As Neji proceeded to take out his life's angst upon his wimpy younger cousin, Suzuki and Kazeki took their places at the rail. The remaining Genin who hadn't been shipped down to the medical ward had clustered together, talking in low tones like old men at a Nascar race. But Kabuto and Hirako stood to the side, the latter shaking as he covered his face.
Shuchun was dead. Kabuto had closed the boy's eyes, nothing more; the injury to his head was so great that he had bled out within minutes of being taken away. Knowing death and knowing it well, the immediate effect on Hirako was tremendous; he was nearly on his knees. Watching this exchange with interest, Naruto picked his nose and glanced back occasionally at Hinata.
Kazeki and Shikamaru had struck up a mildly pleasant conversation over some beef jerky that was rumored to have fallen from Kiba's jacket. (Video reference- ten points to whoever can name the source!)
They jawed like retirees and complained; Sakura had been carried, for lack of a better place, back up to her sensei and team. She was waking up slowly, her expressions childish and eyes foggy.
Suzuki had been standing near Gaara, her head lolling; she very nearly fell asleep standing up, until a blow to her side sent her up and reeling. She found herself face-to-face with Rock Lee, who's usual expression had softened into an almost paternal wariness.
"Are you gonna yell at me 'cause I messed up your girlfriend?"
"No," Lee said dreamily, gazing over at the object of his affections, who sat against the wall. "Defeat will only make her stronger. This I know… Anyway, my name is Rock Lee! Who art thou?"
"Ah, Suzuki." she replied, as they lapsed into awkward silence.
"My sensei says I have to marry you."
"WHAT?"
"Our fighting styles are quite similar- Gai-sensei, my magnificent mentor, noted this whilst you were in the arena. He suggested that I go inquire as to the development of your technique, in the hopes that I could help you to improve."
"…Who's your sensei? That dreamy Jounin reading over there, right next to the guy who's way too old to be wearing spandex?"
"No, he is the one wearing spandex- that is my beloved mentor! He was just kidding about the marriage part. Gai-sensei is so funny!"
"And how could we be similar?" Suzuki asked arrogantly, eyebrows lowered; she was not in the habit of looking people in the eye, and had not met Lee's gaze yet. Luckily, Lee was about as socially perceptive as she was; he smiled at her rude tone. "You employ the use of chakra to reach that kind of speed, do you not?"
"Maybe."
"You see, I am unable to use ninjutsu or genjutsu, and I have achieved a far superior degree of speed via hard work alone. I am interested, as Konoha comrades, if I may battle you in detail once these exams have passed, that I may determine the exact nature of your mimicry for my own benefit!"
"… Wait, what do you mean 'hard work'? How the hell can you be a ninja if you can't-"
"Ack!" Lee resounded, glancing towards the arena. "My teammate has triumphed; I must return to await my turn. Thank you very much for your time!" With a short bow, the apparition in legwarmers strode back to the remainder of his group; Gai was practically hauling Neji up the stairs, but smiled ridiculously once he spotted Lee. There was much rejoicing when they met each other; so much rejoicing that Suzuki actually stood, head tilted, observing them for the longest time. She kept meeting these odd, odd people who were so different from her in many aspects: they were fascinating, open, and worth speaking to.
When Lee's name sparkled across the board, something in Suzuki broke. From there, she couldn't take her eyes off of Rock Lee, not even when his pain was too much for any viewer to bear. She watched him crumble; she watched Gaara chase him, a fatigued mouse caught in a cat's domain, saw his muscles snap, his veins bulge, and his dreams shatter, and it affected her as nothing ever had before. Something in her had burst through a long-frozen wall, like a stream that began to flow beneath a thick covering of ice.
----
"This final contestant has no opponent."
"Yeah, I got news: the daimyo of Kusagakure says that if one of their Genin doesn't make it to the final exams, there's going to be a feudal temper tantrum. Hokage-sama says to let him through."
Kotetsu nodded, and went to inform the boy of his placement; his task done, Ryuuichi called off the Henge technique and reverted to his teenaged form. His head was sweating, and as he strode along the back hall to the infirmary, he let it slip from his spiky hair.
That was much better, he thought, pushing open the corridor door- and almost colliding with his former teammate Kazeki.