Boy, it's been awhile since I've updated. I'll try to fit most of the fights into this chapter. Well, I'll spare you guys the incessant talking and just get to work.

After a few more days of rest, every passing Genin assembled in the main room of the tower. 'So, all the rookies made it….' Naruto thought to himself. 'Damn, I was hoping Gaara's team would somehow get defeated in the forest… at least we didn't run into them after fighting Orochimaru.'

"Sasuke, Sakura." Naruto got his teammates' attention. "No one here is a pushover. Some people, like Samui-chan and Gaara; we have to go all-out against. Just hope you don't fight them,"

"That's what you hope, dead-last!" Kiba's taunting voice snarked.

Naruto turned to him, glaring daggers. "Have you not noticed? The people I named didn't get injured in the forest. Even Sasuke got injured; the so-called Rookie of the Year and prodigy of the Uchiha clan; Itachi's second coming. I don't know if you care about being promoted, but I do."

Sasuke didn't even bat an eye at being called Itachi's second coming; he'd learned to keep his anger in check when in the field, and release it during training. But at the same time, to hear Naruto speak like this; it was almost as if he was… afraid.

Sasuke shook his head- there's no way someone like Naruto would fear anyone. Look at what happened in Nami no Kuni, or in the forest for that matter! He fought Orochimaru head-on, and won- albeit with a little help. So Naruto couldn't fear these people. It was a ridiculous notion.

Sasuke watched Kiba and Naruto throw insults at each other. "Uzumaki Naruto… you're a mystery to me."

"Congratulations to everyone who passed the second exam," Hiruzen said from the front of the room. "We have been holding these chuunin exams yearly since the time of the Nidaime Hokage. We gather every six months to broadcast our strength to other nations, and to avoid any breaks in the current peace; which many shinobi lost their lives to establish in the first place."

A jounin coughed and stepped forward. "If you don't mind, Hokage-sama, I'll take it from here," he said. Hiruzen nodded and backed up.

"My name is Gekkou Hayate. I'll be *cough* the proctor for the next exams. Unfortunately, the number of participants is still too high, *cough* so we'll need to hold preliminary matches beforehand." Outrage was heard from the Genin, as expected. Hayate held up a hand. "There are high-ranking officials coming to view the Chuunin exams, and they don't want the exams to drag on. Therefore, we need to narrow the numbers down further to show off the least number of very effective genin. Now, if anyone would like to drop out because they are too tired, feel free to do so now."

Kabuto raised his hand. "Yeah, I'm beat. I'm done; sorry guys."

Hayate nodded. "You may return to your room, then. Now, there will be one-on-one fights from this point on. The board in front will randomly select fighters." Kabuto walked out as the board called out the first two fighters:

Uchiha Sasuke vs. Akado Yoroi

Yoroi smirked. "Looks like I get the Uchiha! Perfect."

Sasuke frowned at the opponent he was facing. "Can't I get someone stronger, like Naruto or Sakura? Oh well; I guess I'll just fight and move on."

Yoroi scowled, but before he could retort, Hayate said, "All non-combatants, please move to the stands above." After that happened, Hayate initiated the fight.

Sasuke activated his Sharingan. "I guess I should defeat you quickly, then… Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu!" A large fireball sped towards Yoroi, who jumped over it, locking eyes with Sasuke. Sasuke suddenly disappeared.

Yoroi's eyes widened as he landed, looking around. "Where'd he go!" he shouted frantically.

In the stands, everyone was confused. "But Sasuke hasn't moved," Kiba said.

Naruto grinned. "He does that to me all the time. It was a subtle Genjutsu."

Everyone looked at Naruto, "How'd he cast a Genjutsu with no handseals?' Kiba asked, not believing it for a second.

"Trade secret, Kiba; trade secret."

Back in the fight, Sasuke walked calmly towards an enemy who didn't even know he was there, twirling a kunai. 'This was way too easy…' He pointed the kunai at Yoroi's throat and cancelled the Genjutsu. "Yield," he said coldly.

The blade lightly cut Yoroi's throat. "I-I yield."

"Winner of the first match: Uchiha Sasuke!" Sasuke's teammates cheered, and Yoroi sullenly joined his teammate. The next fight was called:

Samui vs Kinuta Dosu

Samui narrowed her eyes at her opponent who she hadn't seen in the forest; nor did he have a scratch on him. She hopped down to the ground, followed by him. 'Well, if Naruto could take him as easily as he did in the first exam, this shouldn't be a problem. Still, that's no reason to let my guard down. He's from Otogakure, and there's a reason that the village is called that.'

"Begin!" Hayate called. Dosu suddenly charged forward, and Samui raiton: shunshin'd to the left, before drawing her tanto. She channeled lightning chakra into the blade, elongating it, and slashed at Dosu, who ducked under her swing and attempted an uppercut. She barely dodged, but her eyes widened as she suddenly felt sick. She narrowly avoided another punch, but that made her feel even worse.

Dosu was coming in for a third when she figured it out: 'Those vambraces!' She suddenly slashed into his arm, sending blood and scrap everywhere. She twirled and did the same to his other arm.

Dosu jumped back with a growl. "So, you're more talented than other genin. You managed to not only power through my sound jutsu, but destroy the source as well." He got into a loose taijutsu stance, "It looks like I'll have to beat you another way." They charged again.

Dosu attempted to block Samui's first strike with a kunai, but her lightning-covered blade easily sank through the softer metal. Dosu's eyes widened as he jumped back to avoid the surely fatal blow to his head; but he wasn't quick enough, and the small sword took out his right and only eye. He jumped backwards and fell to a knee in pain. "Do you give?" Hayate asked.

Dosu growled, "I give."

"Winner: Samui! Medics!" Hayate called out. A team rushed out carrying a gurney. They transported Dosu further into the tower. Samui finally threw up the contents of her stomach that she had been holding in. Omoi and Karui helped her back up to the stands. After a quick clean-up, the next fight was announced:

Haruno Sakura vs Yamanaka Ino

Sakura smirked. "Looks like I get to put you in your place, Forehead," Ino taunted.

Sakura looked at her sweetly. "I'm going to mop the floor with you, Ino-chan." All the males present shivered at her sickly-sweet tone.

Once down in the arena, Hayate called the match. Sakura lazily took out two kunai and reverse-gripped them. Ino got into a pitiful taijutsu stance; the one that they teach you in the academy. Suddenly, Sakura flung the first kunai she was holding past Ino's head. Ino shook for a second at how close it came to her eye; she had a shallow cut on her forehead. Then she laughed, "Ha! You can't even hit a still target, Billboard-brow?"

Sakura shunshined in a circle around Ino. There was a smirk on her face. She threw her other kunai at the opposite wall, and suddenly, Ino was trapped by something invisible. As she struggled, her arms and sides began to leak blood. Sakura laughed, "How did you fall for simple ninja wire? Pitiful. Proctor, call the match."

"Winner: Haruno Sakura!" Sakura cut the wires and collected her kunai.

Ino returned to the stands, ashamed at her easy defeat. "It's okay, Ino-chan. We'll just have to work a little harder," Asuma encouraged. Ino only nodded.

Tenten vs Sabaku no Temari

This fight was the most entertaining by far. The two kunoichi engaged in a battle befitting of Jounin; however, Tenten's weapons tactic was useless against Temari's master use of Fuuton. Naruto was awed by the use of Fuuton chakra, and vowed that that would be the next element he would learn.

Aburame Shino vs Zaku

In a manner befitting of a shinobi, Shino tricked Zaku into defeating himself. It was highly embarrassing.

Nara Shikamaru vs Kin

Shikamaru used his Kagemane no Jutsu to defeat Kin.

Uzumaki Naruto vs Inuzuka Kiba

"Hahaha! We get the dead-last!" Kiba yelled mockingly. "This'll be a piece of cake! We sure did luck out, huh, Akamaru?" Akamaru only whimpered in response.

Naruto narrowed his eyes. "Listen to the puppy, Kiba. I'm not the dead-last anymore. I'll prove it." Naruto Raiton: Shunshined onto the battlefield. Kiba follwed suit.

As soon as Hayate called the match, Naruto held out his hand. "Banshou Ten'in!" Kiba, to his own dismay, careened forward, only to be caught by the neck, courtesy of Naruto. Naruto held out his other hand, parallel to Kiba's stomach, with a smirk. "Fuuton: Reppushou!" Naruto didn't place cutting fuuton chakra into the attack, as he didn't want to bisect a Konoha shinobi. Instead, he used grinding chakra, which sent Kiba across the room.

Kiba got up with a growl. "You'll pay for that, dobe! Juujin Bunshin no Jutsu!" In a puff of smoke, Akamaru was transformed into a copy of Kiba. "Gatsuuga!" Both Kibas began spinning violently in the air, similar to a drill, then came down on Naruto.

Naruto folded his arms across his chest.

"What the Hell is that idiot doing? If that attack hits him, he'll die for sure!" Temari said.

Sakura smirked. "Naruto-kun, dying by the hand of Kiba? That's laughable. He'd sooner die by my hand."

Back in the arena, Naruto had yet to move. Just as Kiba was upon him, he yelled, "Shinra Tensei!" Naruto, wanted to end the fight quickly, poured more chakra into the jutsu than usual. This had three effects: one, it cracked the floor around Naruto in a spherical fashion. Two, the jutsu would take a few seconds extra to recharge. Three: When Kiba and Akamaru came into contact with the field, it caused a gigantic "BOOM", and The Inuzuka duo were thrown into adjacent walls.

They didn't move again.

"Winner: Uzumaki Naruto!"

Naruto's cold gaze lingered over his fallen opponents. "Those weaklings never stood a chance." Then he shunshined back into the stands.

Sasuke smirked at him. "You finally beat Kiba in a fight, huh? It took you long enough. Too bad you can't beat me."

Naruto smirked back. "We'll see in the finals, bastard. Sakura-chan, you were amazing! You really showed Ino who's boss. Team 7 made it to the finals!"

"Naruto-kun, I hope you don't mind, but I'll be training Sasuke-kun and Sakura-chan without you. Hokage-sama told me that someone has requested to specially train you. I think you'll be happy to learn what they have to offer," Kakashi said.

Narto, while a little sad that he wouldn't get to train with his team, was ecstatic about learning a new jutsu. "Okay, sensei! Oi, bastard, why weren't you copying any jutsu in the forest? That certainly would've helped."

Sasuke scowled. "You never used any handseals, idiot. Oro- that Kusa-nin didn't, either. How am I supposed to copy a jutsu without handseals?"

Naruto sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. "Of course, heh heh…"

Sakura sighed. "Sometimes, it seems like you're getting smarter, Naruto-kun. Then you say something stupid, and you're back to square one."

Naruto sighed dejectedly. "Sakura-chan thinks I'm stupid…"

Hayate coughed, getting everyone's attention. "The next match is, Akimichi Chouji versus Karui of Kumo."

Karui grinned and hopped down into the arena. Chouji looked hesitant to compete. "C'mon, Chouji; if you fight, I'll treat you to barbecue later," Asuma encouraged.

Chouji had a fire in his eyes like never before. "Yosh! For barbecue!" He jumped down into the arena.

Karui unsheathed her long blade. "I'll show you Konoha-nin who the real strongest of the five is: Kumo!"

Hayate called the match.

Immediately afterwards, Chouji shouted, "Baika no Jutsu!" His fist was enlarged several times, and he brought it down upon Karui. Karui disappeared in a shunshin and reappeared in front of Chouji directly after his fist came down, a clone next to her. Together, they double uppercutted Chouji, sending him into the air and cancelling his expansion. One of the Karuies threw the other into Chouji, and the thrown one dispelled, sending discharges of lightning into Chouji's airborne form. He came down to the ground with a thud, the only movement being an odd twitch.

"Winner: Karui! Medics!"

"Eeh? She won in two moves! And she only used a single jutsu!" Naruto exclaimed.

"What was with that clone? It turned into lightning." Kurenai asked.

Naruto grinned. "That was a Raiton: Kage Bunshin. It's basically a normal shadow clone, but it's infused with lightning, so when it's dispelled, it reverts into lightning, electrocuting anything it touches."

Everyone looked at Naruto. "How do you know that, Naruto?" Kurenai asked, impressed.

"Because I know that jutsu. I just don't use it often," Naruto said.

"You can- you know jutsu of two different elements?" Asuma asked, shocked.

Naruto smirked. "A little more than that, actually. But enough of that; the next match is about to start."

Hyuuga Hinata vs. Hyuuga Neji

Hinata's face went pale. Neji smirked and hopped down into the arena. "Oi, oi, Hinata-chan. Why are you looking like that? You were one of the best Kunoichi of our class! Kick his ass already!" Naruto encouraged.

Hinata timidly smiled at him. "Naruto-kun…" Hinata's eyes hardened, and she walked into the arena.

Neji gave Hinata a condescending stare. "Hinata-sama, you should stand down; Fate has already decreed the victor of this match."

Hinata glared at Neji. "I'll never bow to you, Neji-nii-san. I won't go down without a fight."

Hayate threw his arm down, "Let the match begin!"

Instantly, the Hyuugas began throwing palms laced with chakra at one another. This continued for almost two minutes.

In the stands, the Rookies were awed. "So, Hinata-chan has been holding back a lot more than I thought…" Naruto said.

Sasuke and Sakura looked at him. Sakura spoke: "You knew she was this strong, Naruto-kun?"

Naruto shook his head, "I knew she was capable, because I remember that in the Academy, she would pull her punches. I guess she just needed encouragement to use her powers effectively."

"Huh," Sasuke said, "And here I thought she was just weak and timid."

Sakura snorted, "You couldn't have really expected a clan heiress to act like that. No one in her clan of all clans would stand for it."

The fight began heating up, although the only one sustaining any injuries would be Hinata. Blood leaked out of her mouth, and to the trained eye, it was obvious that she was losing speed and power. Finally, Neji's palm connected with Hinata's chest, sending her sliding back onto the floor, a chunk of blood squirting from her lips.

For a few seconds, no one moved. Then, Hinata crawled back to her feet. "I'm… I'm not done. Not yet."

Neji scoffed. "Proctor, call the match, or I'll end it right here." He re-entered his stance.

"No…! I can still fight!" Hinata said, also preparing for another bout. Neji growled and charged forward, intent on killing Hinata.

In a puff of smoke, Hinata was no longer in the same spot. Looking around, everyone saw that Hinata was being cradled by Naruto, who sported a terrifying glare. His Rinnegan was obviously covered by Genjutsu, but that didn't hinder the glare's intent. "You bastard…" Naruto growled.

"Naruto-kun…" Hinata mumbled in shock.

"Is this the treatment that the Main Branch gets over the Branch House?!" Neji screamed in rage.

"You bastard! Urusai! She's done nothing to you!" Naruto screamed louder.

"And what do you know of clan affairs, Uzumaki Naruto? You should stay out of it!"

"Winner by disqualification: Hyuuga Neji. Medics!" Hayate called. As the medics took Hinata away, Naruto growled low in his throat.

"Neji… if I face you in the finals, I'll show you who defines fate." Naruto said, with righteous fury in his voice.

Neji narrowed his eyes. "I don't even consider you a rival, dead-last. I'll defeat you even more quickly than I did Hinata-sama."

Now there was a grin on Naruto's face; as if he was saying, "Can you believe this guy? He thinks he can beat me!"

"We'll see." Naruto hopped back to the stands, followed by Neji.

Rock Lee vs. Sabaku no Gaara

"YOSH! It is finally my turn! Gai-sensei, I won't let you down!" Lee said, jumping down into the arena. Naruto turned to look at Gaara, and was unnerved because Gaara was staring at him. It seemed as if he'd been doing it for a while.

Gaara then decided to shunshin into the arena, arms folded. Neither combatant did anything more than stare. Then: "Let the match begin!"

Instantly, Lee came at Gaara with a spinning kick, "Konoha Senpuu!" Without moving, Gaara's sand blocked the attack. Lee used the sand to catapult into the air, then came back down with a heel-drop that was, once again, blocked by the sand. This pattern of Lee attacking and the sand blocking continued for an entertaining three minutes. Finally, Lee slid backwards, huffing, looking for an angle.

"Lee! Take them off!" Gai called, confusing most everyone present.

"Hai, Gai-sensei!" Lee said, reaching into his socks and pulling out weights.

"Now, what are a couple of pounds off going to-" Temari started, but trailed off as the weights hit the ground, leaving large craters.

Naruto grinned. "Now I'd like to spar with him; no ninjutsu, only taijutsu."

Gai spoke to Naruto, "Lee is actually only capable of taijutsu, so I'm sure he'd appreciate a sparring partner for his specialty.

Lee blasted forward with godspeed, striking Gaara's face and sending him backwards slightly. That was the only hit he got in, however, as after that, the sand began to keep up with him. "Lee, remember when I said that what I taught you is only to be used to protect your comrades?" Gai said.

"Hai, Gai-sensei! I remember!" Lee said, still attacking.

"Well, you can't protect your comrades if you're only a Genin, can you?!" Gai said with a pearly white smile.

Lee stopped his attacks, backed up, and smiled. "Kaimon: Kai!" Lee blasted forward and landed a punch on Gaara's face, followed extremely quickly by an elbow to the back of his head. Lee moved backwards before the sand could grab him, then charged forward again, "Kyuumon: Kai!" Lee's speed seemed to increase further, and now no one could actually see him, save for a few. Two dozen punches and kicks decimated Gaara's form, causing the sand to become immobile for a few seconds with each attack.

"Okay, now I'm not really sure if I want to spar with him… I didn't know he could use the eight gates," Naruto spoke.

"That guy's even more of a monster than you, Naruto-kun," Sakura said in awe.

Sasuke only continued to watch.

By this time, Lee had opened another gate, and his skin was an angry red. Punch after punch connected with Gaara's form, and the pain was evident in his face. Lee launched Gaara into the air, unwrapped his arm bandages, wrapped them around Gaara, and shouted, "Ura Renge!"

As they hit the ground, a fissure opened.

"Lee could've killed him…" Naruto noted.

"I honestly didn't think he'd be this strong after what the weirdo did before the first exam," Sasuke said.

When the dust settled, Lee backed away from the downed Gaara, thinking it was over. This was a mistake.

The sand lying around the arena converged on Lee, who had just then deactivated his gates. Due to this, and the strain that the gates put on his body, he was too sluggish to dodge. One chunk of sand grabbed onto Lee's forearm, and the other his leg. In a sickening crunch, followed by a shrill shriek of pain, the sand imploded, crushing Lee's appendages.

Gaara stood up, sand peeling away from his face. "He- he's not even injured from that? What a monster!" Naruto shouted. Gaara's sand began crawling up Lee's body, presumably to crush the rest of it, when Hayate's arm grabbed Gaara's.

"The match is over. If you kill him now, you'll be disqualified." Hayate said with a cough. Gaara stared for a moment, then retracted his sand into his gourd. "Winner by debilitation: Sabaku no Gaara!"

As the medics and Gai took the crippled Lee away, Gaara stared at Naruto. "You're next, Uzumaki Naruto." Then he returned to the stands.

"Naruto, what did you do to piss him off like that?" Kurenai asked.

"From what I can tell, he just likes to fight strong opponents. If that's the case, I'll show him just who he's messing with, dattebayo!" Naruto said with conviction.

Omoi vs. Sabaku no Kankurou

"This will be the last match, as there are no competitors left to fight after this one. Misumi gets a pass into the finals." Hayate said.

"Oh, man… what'll happen if I lose? Will I be kicked out of the Kumo ranks? Disgraced? Will I become a missing-nin? Will-" Karui cut Omoi off by smacking his head.

"Get into the arena, you dolt!" she hissed, causing Omoi to cry and jump down.

"Kankurou, you better not lose!" Temari said. Kankurou clicked his tongue and jumped into the arena.

"Whatever. I got this."

Hayate called the match.

Omoi unsheathed his kodachi and charged it with lightning. "You know, I didn't think I'd get to fight you again."

Kankurou smirked. "Heh. I'll show you what Suna's capable of this time. Come at me!" Omoi charged.

"Hoh…? So those two teams crossed paths in the forest. Samui-chan didn't say anything; I wonder why?" Naruto pondered.

"I'm supposed to tell you everything now; is that right?" Samui asked, appearing next to the group.

"Well, not everything, but that would've been relevant information, dattebayo!" Naruto said.

"To be honest, they weren't anything we couldn't handle. I fought Gaara for a while, but it was a stalemate. Fighting him is not cool. Karui fought the cool blonde one, and Omoi obviously fought the makeup-wearing one. Karui won easily, even though wind is powerful against lightning, while Omoi had a little more trouble with his opponent. It's pretty much guaranteed that Omoi won't fall for his uncool little trick again." Samui said, watching the fight the entire time.

Naruto gave Samui a grin. "I can't wait until I get to fight you, Mui-chan."

Samui rose an eyebrow at the nickname. "Getting a little informal, are we? You're interesting, Naruto-san. Or, would you prefer 'Ruto-kun?'" The unfaltering smile on Naruto's face was the only answer she needed. "I can't wait until we clash, either. Hopefully, it's soon."

Sasuke noticed Sakura glaring slightly at Samui. "So, you really do like him, huh?" he whispered into Sakura's ear.

Sakura blushed and scowled at him. "Of course I don't like that idiot! Isn't it obvious who I like?"

Sasuke nodded, "Yes, it's plainly obvious."

Sakura said nothing else. Naruto and Samui continued to idly chat as they watched the match.

Omoi went for a stab at Kankurou's chest, but it was blocked. Unexpectedly, Omoi dropped his kodachi, jumped up, kicked the wrapped bundle on Kankurou's back, and caught his kodachi, all in one fluid move. The bundle separated from Kankurou, and Omoi stabbed through Kankurou's heart. Then he sliced upwards, sending springs, wood, and metal everywhere.

The bundle unwrapped itself, revealing itself to be the real Kankurou. "Tch. I knew it wouldn't fool you again, but I didn't think I'd be fighting you, so I didn't have time to come up with a new tactic, or even switch my puppet back to its proper place. Now it's gone. Whatever. I won't give up that easily." Kankurou said.

"Actually, it's game over." Another Omoi stood behind Kankurou, his blade poised at Kankurou's back. "One wrong move and this goes through your liver. I'd resign if I were you."

Kankurou scowled. "So I lost the match and Crow? What a load of shit. Proctor, I yield."

"Winner: Omoi!"

"Well, Mui-chan, it looks like Kumo hasn't been getting lax. Your entire team made it to the finals, and technically you've chosen the worst place to take your exams as our villages aren't exactly on friendly terms. Honestly, I'm impressed." Naruto said to Samui.

Samui gave him an appreciative nod. "That's cool of you to say, Ruto-kun. You're team isn't shabby, either; I see real potential in the Uchiha. And don't think I don't know about your kekkei genkai." This made Team 7, Kakashi included, stiffen.

"What exactly do you know about it?" Naruto asked.

"My sensei encountered someone with your abilities a long time ago. Your exact abilities. He had peculiar eyes. Do you have those, as well?" Samui offered.

When Naruto stayed silent for a moment, Samui spoke again. "This would just be between you and I, Ruto-kun. Do you have the Rinnegan?"

Kakashi sighed and clasped Naruto's shoulder. "No point in hiding it now, I suppose. It's up to you whether you want to keep up the appearance of the Genjutsu."

Naruto sighed as well and released it. "Yes, Mui-chan. I have the Sage's eyes. But don't think that that's the only thing that makes me strong! I have other abilities, as well!"

Samui offered him a smile. "I don't judge people based on their bloodlines; I judge them based on their work ethic. From what I've seen of you so far, you put effort into being a shinobi. That's why I find you so interesting. You were apparently the dead-last of your graduating class, but look at how far you've come in a mere two months. No eyes, no matter how fancy, could accomplish something like that; you did. You're really cool, Ruto-kun." Samui rejoined her team.

Kakashi gave Naruto an eye-smile. "Looks like you've got a girlfriend, Naruto-kun. And a Kumo-nin at that. How does that make you feel?"

Naruto blushed and suddenly found his feet to be very interesting. "She's not my girlfriend, dattebayo…"

"Could all of the finalists return to the floor, so we may assign the finals fights?" Hayate requested. As soon as everyone was in the arena, the results were posted:

Round One, Match One: Uzumaki Naruto vs. Hyuuga Neji

Round One, Match Two: Uchiha Sasuke vs. Sabaku no Gaara

Round One, Match Three: Samui vs Haruno Sakura

Round One, Match Four: Nara Shikamaru vs. Sabaku no Temari

Round One, Match Five: Omoi vs. Aburame Shino

Round One, Match Six: Karui vs. Tsurugi Misumi

"You have one month to prepare for these fights. Most of you have already analyzed your opponents. Train to overcome their strengths. I bid you adieu." Hayate said, before disappearing in a shunshin.

"Naruto-kun, you'll probably find your instructor at the male hotsprings, peeping at the women. Try to have patience with him, because he's one of the strongest in the village, and can offer you things." Kakashi said. "Sasuke-kun, Sakura-chan; with me. Ja ne, Naruto!"

"Bye, Naruto-kun!"

"Later, loser."

"See ya, Kaka-sensei, Sakura-chan, Bastard. Get stronger. I'll be defeating everyone in the finals."

Officially my longest chapter ever. I didn't want to end it without getting through all of the fights, because the next segment I have planned is pretty much filler. Also, within the next few chapters, you'll see exactly why Naruto has the Rinnegan. No, I didn't start this thinking that Nagato's Rinnegan was natural. I had this angle planned out before hand. I'm really excited for the future of this story. Until next time, which will be soon!