Author's notes: Well, this time I'm blaming Mat for the reason the previous chapter took so long.

Previous disclaimers still apply.

And for those of you that haven't figured it out yet... THIS IS A COMEDY FIC! Eesh, if you're looking for wankin material, look else where.

Hrm... bleh, this feels like a filler chapter, not as much fun to write and I couldn't come up with much funny for it.

-Fic, BEGIN!-

-Neji Hyuga vs. Shino Aburame-

"Ah, fate has smiled on Neji." Neji nodded quickly to himself breathing a sigh of relief. "Neji does not have to face Naruto-sama, or Hinata-sama, or..."

"We get it already!" Ino snapped at the Hyuga, before stomping over to the suddenly silent boy, glaring up at him with her hands on her hips before thrusting her finger down towards the floor. "You're a fate whooped little pretty boy. Get your ass down there and lose already."

"Yes ma`am." The boy responded quickly, nodding his head out of reflex before he jumped down to the arena. Once he landed, he paused a moment before glaring slightly up at her. "Oooh, Neji hates you!"

"Does Neji need another lesson, HMMM?" Hinata asked audibly as she glared down at her cousin.

The boy immediately gulped, audibly as he violently shook his head, "No! Neji is a good boy! A good boy!"

"Right." Naruto drawled slowly before he quirked a brow over at Shino. "Think you can come up with something appropriate?"

Shino shrugged slightly beneath his coat, his glasses glinting for a moment as he glanced towards Neji. "Possibly."

"Hmmm..." The blonde boy eyed the stoic nin, his chin cupped in his hand as he would purse his lips slightly. "Really, my dear Shin, must you be so... Obscuring?"

"Yes." The boy responded before he would quietly jump down into the arena, hands still pocketed deeply in his jacket.

"Neji shall show you, that fate has already declared him the winner!" Pale eyes burned slightly as he glared at the stoic unreadable boy in front of him. "Neji's eyes have shown him! Neji is a good boy! Neji can see!"

"Neji," Shino spoke up with a slightly amused drawl, "Needs some new lines."

Neji twitched slightly before he shifted himself into a gentle fist stance, the veins on his face suddenly bulging into reality. "Neji will show you! Neji will show you all!"

"Yes... he will." Shino's words hovered into the air cryptically as he smiled slightly beneath the collar of his jacket.

"Ready?" The proctor coughed slightly once more as he looked between the fighters. "Begin!"

Neji immediately launched himself at Shino, his palm thrusting out as he attempted to drive it towards his opponents' chest. It worked, partially at least. The palm passed into the coat, and kept going, a sudden swarm of bugs pouring out of the hole, before Shino dissolved into a cloud of bugs that quickly buzzed onto Neji's waiting body. His eyes widen, Neji attempted to shake off the crawling, stinging insects.

"Get them off, get them off!" the boy was practically squealing as he ran around, trying to shake the insets free as they followed him about.

From the shadows of the stairs, Shino appeared again, holding up a scroll as he held it in the crook between finger and thumb on his clasped hands. "Now... Summon!"

The scroll suddenly unfurled itself, spiraling around the boy before a sudden thick cloud of moths spewed out, almost filling the arena floor and quickly surrounding Neji. Beginning to quickly move thorugh a series of hand signals, Shino spoke up again. "Usually, this technique is for a more populated battle ground. To confuse and misdirect enemy nin. However, it does have another use."

Neji however, didn't seem to be paying attention as he struggled to swat the bugs off his body, even as they drained away his chakra, while batting wildly at the moths fluttering all around him. Still, he could still feel a chill run down his spine, when he could hear Shino's voice speak loudly and clearly into the air. "Consume!"

Again, Neji's voice slipped up an octave or two, a girlish little shriek that had the Hokage palming his face and sighing. "I really do need to talk to Naruto about ruining our previous rookie of the year."

"Just so you know, Hokage-sama," Kurenai cut in. "He did deserve it. And his punishment was approved by Hiashi."

"I know." The old man sighed softly before shaking his head. "Still... It is somewhat distressing. At least one thought gives me comfort."

"He's at least on our side?" Anko offered up with a grin on her lips.

"Indeed."

The cloud of moths finally dispersed below them, to reveal the quivering, and now thoroughly naked body of Neji, quivering and unconsciously as Shino's bugs withdrew back towards their Master. Moving carefully to the boy, the proctor coughed once before nudging him with his foot. When he got no more response than a slight, little whimper, he shrugged and called the match, "Winner Shino Aburame."

"Well, I'm not sure if I'm disappointed or not." Naruto's voice was honest as he slowly shook his head, a bemused little smile on his lips. "Hopefully he's finally learned his lesson."

"We'll see." Hinata didn't exactly look like she believed it, but she did give him a slight nod of her head as she did her best to look away from her naked cousin as he was quickly removed from the arena on a stretcher. "But, I will say this, I did NOT need to see that."

Silenly, Shino ascended back to the rest of his compatriots, offering them a slight nod of his head before he settled back against the wall. There was a brief moment of silence, before everyone's attention turned back to the wall as the next match was displayed.

-Shikamaru Nara Vs. Tenten-

"Tsk, a girl?" The Nara boy was grumbling as he glared at the board, his shoulders slumped dejectedly as he sighed softly. "Hey proctor! Can I just forfeit?"

"Well, you could..." Naruto spoke up, smiling casually at his friend. "Then you'd be free to be Ino's training partner until the actual third stage."

"In fact, if you lose, you'll be free to help me train every day!" Ino spoke up enthusiastically, her eyes shining. "Up every morning at down, training hard during all hours... Not a minute wasted!"

"Yes, in fact, I bet if you ask, you could even get Lee to give you some tips about work out routines!" Naruto added, grinning widely as he looked back over at Shikamaru.

To his credit, Shikamaru merely blinked back at the two nins grinning maniacally back at him, before he turned, stood up, and faster than anyone had ever seen him move before, jumped into the arena. Glancing nervously up at the still grinning blondes, he muttered slightly under his breath. "Troublesome blondes."

"Oh, don't worry Shika!" Hinata called out, grinning merrily at him. "I know how much you're looking forward to a good match to test your skills, so..." The girl trailed off, before turning towards where Tenten was lazily making her way to the tower floor. "Tenten! If you win, you get a copy of the pictures of Spanky having his way with Neji!"

"Don't I get a say in who gets to see those?" Sasuke spoke up, blushing slightly in the process. "Since, you know, they are OF me."

"Only if I'm making a profit!" Hinata grinned back as she watched Tenten's eyes light up before she practically raced into the arena, bouncing on the balls of her feet in anticipation.

"Your students seem quite talented at motivating people," Asuma noted as he glanced over at Anko and Kurenai. "I've never seen Shikamaru move that fast."

"Tenten seems more motivated than I have ever seen her," Lee noted eagerly before frowning slightly, "Though, I'm not sure what it is that motivates her so."

Temari looked at himfor a moment, then palmed her face with a sigh. "The things I do for righteous vengeance."

"Look at the bright side." Naruto spoke up, his lips curling back with a slight smirk.

"Bright side?" The Suna blonde glared back at Naruto. "Where's there a bright side with him besides the colors he likes to wear?"

"He's a blank slate?" Naruto offered with a grin. "Impressionable and untouched, waiting for you to mold him into the kind of boy you want." He paused a moment before winking at her. "Plus, we already know he's got stamina."

Temari blushed brightly as she looked away, glancing at a confused looking Lee for a moment, before slowly nodding. "You've got a point."

Grinning softly, Naruto turned his attention back towards the tower floor and studied how Shikamaru glared at a bouncing Tenten.

"Sorry about this." Tenten practically giggled as she fiddled with the ring of a kunai, lightly twirling it around her finger. "But, mama wants those pictures!"

"Meh." Shikamaru lazily stuck his hands in his pockets before shrugging a bit at the girl. "And I want nothing to do with helping Ino train. So, either way, this is going to be troublesome for one of us."

"Yeah, you!" Tenten's eyes hardened like steel as she suddenly ceased her bouncing, her fingers slipping back behind her.

"Ready?" The proctor spoke up, his eyes half shut as he glanced from boy to girl.

"No, but, for some reason I don't think I can get a couple of weeks to wait." The lazy boy flicked his gaze towards the proctor before glancing back at Tenten. "Let's get on with it already."

At Tenten's nod, the proctor leaned back, then called out, "Begin!"

Instantly the kunai began to fly through the air, as Tenten launched one after another towards the frantically dodging Shikamaru. After jumping the third kunai sent rather quickly between his legs, the boy glared back at the girl. "You have some really troublesome issues."

Tenten giggled, her eyes sparkling as she danced about, keeping the kunai coming before beginning to switch to a variety of different weapons. "Well, I'm not used to having such a large target!"

The various boys on the level above the floor, all twitched slightly before all of them, save Gaara, Naruto, and a confused looking Lee all turned towards Hinata.

Blinking slightly, the pale eyed girl looked back at them, before crossing her arms about her chest. "No way in hell I'm looking." She paused a moment before looking over at an overly amused Ino. "But, Ino-chan grew up with him."

"Wha...? Hey, leave me out of this!" Ino whined softly as she felt all those eyes shift onto her. "The last time anything like that happened..."

"Ino-chan, how could you?" Naruto cut her off, a look of melodramatic horror across his face. "After everything we've been through... All the trials and tribulations, all the missions and madness... You've thrown me over for him?!"

"There there, Naruto-kun," Hinata said consolingly as she lightly patted his back. "It looks like Ino-chan really just wanted a guy she could abuse and abuse and he'd just keep taking it."

Ino stared slack jawed at the two as Naruto nodded sadly. "All that teamwork, all that time together... and she just dumps us like we're nothing."

"Don't worry, Naruto-kun." The pale eyed Hyuuga girl said gently, before leaning a bit closer to him. "I'll make it up to you, once this is over, we'll..." The remainder of what she said, devolved into a a series of soft whispers that had Naruto's eyes perking up immediately.

"Really? You want the chocolate AND the peanut butter?" Naruto said, his eyes growing wide as he stared back at Hinata.

"HEY! That's MY..! Erk...!" Ino began, before her jaw snapped shut with an audible click as her face flushed crimson. "Bad Hinata-chan and Naruto-kun."

"Heh, I think the match is just about over." Naruto responded as he reached over and pulled Ino into a light hug with Hinata as they looked down onto the ground floor.

Shikamaru's shadow had bounced around from a variety of shadows cast by the numerous weapons littering the arena floor, until it connected directly into Tenten's. The girl herself's eyes were frantic and wide as she was struggling desperately to pull her hand away from where it had placed an exploding tag on her scroll, and held on. Shikamaru himself, was holding her in place, his eyes glaring mildly at the girl as his voice reached out into the tower.

"Forfeit... Or I'll be forced to... well..." Shikamaru looked over the girl slightly. "It would be troublesome to have to pick up the pieces... you look better as you are."

"But... but..." Tenten was trembling, her eyes tearing up as she whimpered softly. "My pretties!"

"5... 4...." Shikamaru was counting down, his eyes firm as he locked his gaze with the girl's.

"All right! All right!" The girl whimpered slightly and hung her head in defeat. "Proctor... I forfeit."

Nodding, the sickly man announced to the room. "Winner, Shikamaru Nara."

Relaxing slightly, the Nara boy fall back as he released his jutsu, before yelping slightly as he landed on the ring end of a kunai, "Tsk... Damned troublesome."

"Haha! Way to go Shikamaru!" Naruto crowed with a grin as he laughed lightly. "Good job!"

"Meh... I'm just lucky she valued her weapons scroll that much." The spikey haired boy grumbled as he rumbed his sore ass. "There was no way I could activate that tag with her chakra."

"That wasn't my weapons scroll you jerk!" Tenten growled as she came up behind him, smacking him on the head. "That was my yaoi stash scroll!"

Shikamaru paused a moment, staring incredulously at the girl for a moment before slumping his shoulders and starting to walk towards the stairs. "I don't even want to know why you had it with you."

"Like I'd trust my preciouses out of my sight!" Tenten responded with a slight snort as she gingerly cradled the scroll in hand. "Isn't that right, my precious? Yes, mommy would never let you get hurt..."

As the rest of the group slowly inched away from girl, Shikamaru sighed tiredly before flopping down next to Chouji and grumbling slightly. "Tsk, troublesome..."

A moment later, Tenten, still stroking her scroll strolled over, and proceeded to drop down directly onto the lazy Nara's lap. Wiggling herself for a moment, she smiled slightly to herself before she unravelled her scroll and released a little book, radically different from the ones the other group was giggling over. Letting off a soft, perverse giggle, she ignored the annoyed glare Shikamaru was giving her.

Finally, fed up, the boy grunted softly. "What the hell are you doing, girl?"

"Staking my claim," giggling girl shot back, before she gestured around them. "All the other decent guys our age are either taken, screwed up, gay, or have really disturbing attacks. No offense, Shino was it?"

"Understandable." Shino nodded back, a slight tinge of disquiet in his voice as he slouched slightly forward in response.

"Tsk... This is more than troublesome." The boy grumbled slightly, but apparently thought better of trying to dislodge the girl from her seat as he glared over at where Chouji was starting to laugh at him.

It was then that the next match was displayed.

-Sasuke Uchiha Vs. Chouji Akimichi-

Shikamaru winced visibily, before he smirked back at his friend. "It would seem karma is being troublesome for you today, Chouji."

Paling visibly, Chouji turned his head, and stared over at Sasuke. The Uchiha met his gaze, before shrugging slightly, a faint smile offered up. "I'm not going to kill you Chouji."

When his apprehension failed to abate, Kiba snickered softly and spoke up. "I don't think killing him is what he's worried about you doing to him."

"I'm happily in a relationship." Sasuke shot back, glaring lightly at Kiba as he clenched his teeth just a bit. "Fortunately for you..." He paused a moment, before his gritted teeth turned into an evil smirk. "Well, not so fortunate really... I know Hinata's looking forward to taking care of you. Now I'm just going to enjoy watching it all the more."

With that, the Uchiha stood up, stretching slowly, as he hissed slightly in pain, rubbing against his shoulder with a slow, firm motion. Seeing his discomfort, Naruto walked over and put his hand on his friend's shoulder once more. "You going to be ok?"

"Meh," Sasuke hissed slightly, "Kakashi said he's gonna try to partially seal it, but he can't do that until after the fight. So, gotta do this, no chakra."

"That... might be difficult." Naruto allowed as he looked over at where a nervous Chouji was making his way to the tower floor. "He is an Akimichi."

"And not for the first time, I'm starting to wish I knew more about our own clans." Sasuke groaned softly before he would nod back at Naruto. "I'll be fine, Haku will kill me if I do something too stupid."

Naruto arched a brow, before smirking slightly at his friend. "Just be careful. Like most of us, Chouji's a bit more than he appears."

"As you said… aren't we all?" Sasuke laughed slightly, a smirk on his lips before he leapt to the Arena floor, his black eyes glittering slightly as he nodded to the proctor and his opponent.

"Ready?" The proctor looked from Uchiha to Akimichi before stepping back as his hand dropped. "Begin!"

"You know, I'm not going to do anything like you're worried about, right, Chouji?" Sasuke chuckled a bit as he warily watched his opponent.

"I'm not exactly in a rush to find out, Sasuke." Chouji countered as he carefully eyed the black haired boy while shifted himself into position.

"Ugh, you punish one guy and you're labeled for life." Sasuke gave off a melodramatic sigh before grinning back at the boy across from him. "Besides, you really think I'd risk what Haku would do to me if I cheated on him?" He paused, shuddering visibly. "He's a sweet boy, but with his knowledge of sebon and his bloodline? No thank you."

"That and you like some of the things he does with that bloodline, eh, Spanky?" Naruto called out teasingly from above with, a brilliant grin on his face.

Blushing slightly at the chuckles that echoed around him, Sasuke none the less nodded his head and grinned slightly. "And I do like some of those things."

"Gah, hurry up and do something already, Fat Boy!" Kiba yelled out from above them. "I don't want to sit here listening about Sasuke's sex life!"

"Oh boy, now he's done it." Ino muttered slightly as Shikamaru shook his head slightly in disgust.

"Tsk, now you just had to go and make everything even more troublesome, didn't you, Kiba?" The boy grumbled underneath a slightly amused looking Tenten, who gave a brief little wiggle against his lap.

"I. AM. NOT! FAT!" Chouji roared as his eyes suddenly burned, glaring up at Kiba as he clenched his fists in anger. "I'M BIG BONED!"

"It ain't your bones that are big, from what I've seen!" Kiba countered as Akamaru whined lightly and ducked his head into the boy's coat, whimpering lightly.

"Are you that determined to get EVERYONE pissed at you, Kiba?" Naruto asked with an arched brow, before sliding slightly to the side to reveal and angry Chouji bouncing up from the Arena floor, flinging a series of kunai directly towards Kiba. "Because if you are, I think its working."

"HEY! Aren't you- Watch where you're throwing those things!" Kiba yelped as a kunai passed dangerously close between his legs.

"I think he is," Ino noted dryly. "Though, he does have a small target."

Suddenly Kakashi, Asuma and Gai appeared and quickly restrained the almost berserk Akimichi as he glared angrily towards Kiba.

"Asuma-san, your student is more… spirited!" Gai noted as his muscled tensed with slight exertion at the boy struggled against his hold.

"Easy there Chouji… Easy…" Asuma responded, his lit cigarette still dangling from his lips as he patted the boy on the back. "Ya know, Kakashi… that student of yours is a real idiot."

"… Yeah, I've noticed." Kakashi was sending a one eyed glare at the Inuzuka. "And I'm going to have to make certain this situation is dealt with in the most efficient manner."

"Surely, Kakashi, not even you are that cruel!" Gai gasped, horror written in his eyes.

"I don't think I'm out of bounds, all things considered." Kakashi shot back as the rest of the genin shifted curiously.

"Um, what exactly are you talking about doing to him?" Naruto asked, curiosity glittering in his eyes.

"Why, telling his mother of course." Kakashi responded with a happy little smile of his eye.

"What?! NOOOOOOOO!" Kiba's eyes widened into saucers as Akamaru barked in approval.

"Cruel, Kakashi," Asuma noted with a slight smirk on his lips. "Tsume's gonna tear him a new one."

"Only AFTER I'm through with him!" Hinata spoke up with an almost imperious glare at the men. "Am I clear?"

"Yes ma'am!" Kakashi saluted the girl with a smile, almost letting loose the still angry Akimichi in the process.

"LEMME GO!" Chouji roared as an annoyed looking Ino, walked up to the plump boy then proceeded to smack him atop his head.

"Stop being an idiot Chouji!" Ino snapped, glaring down at her suddenly startled childhood friend. "You've already lost your match, leave it at that."

"Huh, wha…?" Chouji blinked, snapping out of his rage with a blink as he relaxed in the jounins' arms. "I did?"

"Yes, you big dummy, you did." Ino rapped the top of his head with her knuckles.

"Errr.. Sorry?" The boy immediately blushed brightly as he sagged in the arms of the jounin.

"Might want to work on your student's temper." Kakashi noted with a smile to Asuma before releasing Chouji before vanishing and reappearing next to Sasuke. "Now, I need to take care of mine." And with that, both figures vanished in a swirl of leaves.

"Winner, Sasuke Uchiha." The proctor repeated for the crowd on the railing.

"Mmm just six of us left," Naruto noted with a slight smirk on his lips. " And amazingly enough, one entire team."

"Mmhmm." Hinata agreed as she lightly examined her nails. "Ino-chan, Naruto-kun, if you get Kiba, you'll save enough of him for me, won't you?"

"Of course, Hinata-chan" Naruto agreed with an easy smile. "Why, I'll even gift wrap him for you."

Ino chuckled softly as she watched Naruto wrap his arms around their teammate before her eyes widened as she saw her own name pop up on the board in front of them.

Sakura Haruno Vs. Ino Yamanaka

"My turn at last it seems." Ino grinned brightly before sauntering over to her teammates. "A kiss for luck?"

Grinning back at her, her teammates each placed a kiss on one of her cheeks. Pouting back at them she crossed her arms about her chest. "That's not what I meant."

"The Good stuff's for when you win." Hinata shot back, before playfully swatting the girl's ass. "Now get in there Ino-chan!"

"Oooh, promises, promises Hinata-chan!" Ino giggled before gracefully flipping over the railing and landing in an elegant crouch on the ground.

"Show off." Sakura grumbled as she gave Gaara a kiss on the cheek before jumping up to the railing then launching herself out, landing a good distance in front of her blonde haired friend.

"Hey, if you've got it, flaunt it!" Ino grinned wickedly back at her friend, "And baby, oh do I got it!"

"She gets it from you, you know." Hinata said firmly to Naruto while they could see Inoichi hanging his head and sighing slightly, even as he struggled to keep the smile from his face at his daughter antics.

"I know." Naruto said with a broad grin, sniffling slightly as he made as if to wipe a tear from his eye. "Beautiful, isn't it?"

Hinata giggled softly as she turned her attention back to her teammate, watching as the girl practically bounced in anticipation as she watched her pink haired opponent. "If you say so, Naruto-kun."

"So, Forehead," Ino started casually as she would look over her friend, a quirky, predatory grin on her lips. "Would you prefer to be presented to Gaara with or without cloths?" She paused a moment, lightly tapping her cheek in thought. "Hmm… well, I always did wonder how natural your hair color is…"

"Don't you dare!" Sakura practically squeaked in outrage at her friend as she shifted in her stand, bringing up a kunai with an angry scowl on her face.

"What, I'm sure he's very curious about the answer to that question himself!" Ino practically giggled back at her fellow kunoichi while the rest of the genin their attention to Gaara for a moment.

"She's not… wrong." Was the only admission the stoic boy would give, though the faintest tinge of a blush decorated his cheeks.

"Proctor!" Sakura snapped angrily, as she glared over at the man. "Are you going to start this match already or not?!"

"Oooh, Cat fight!" Kankuro noted groggily as he struggled to sit up. "This I gotta see."

"You never learn, do you, little brother?" Temari glared at him with a slight sigh of annoyance as he shifted forward in his seat.

"I learn…" Kankuro protested slightly as his eyes were glued down onto the arena. "Just somethings are worth it!"

"Ready?" The proctor coughed slightly as he looked from one girl to the other. "Begin!"

Immediately both kunoichi launched their Kunai at one another as they started to race around the arena, trading shots back and forth as they probed each other's defenses. Quickly, the difference in styles grew apparent, as the Sakura's quick movements focused on discipline and efficiency, the minimum amount of effort given to each motion she made. Ino on the opposite side of things, moved with a flowing grace, making her motions almost a dance as she twisted and flowed across the arena floor.

"They look pretty evenly matched." Tenten noted lightly, before frowning just a bit. "I was honestly… expecting more."

"They aren't." Shikamaru responded with a slight grunt. "Ino's just being troublesome."

"She doesn't want to make Sakura look TOO bad." Naruto corrected as he watched his teammate lift one of the kunai from the dirt and in a fluid motion fling it towards Sakura. "Besides, she needs to burn off some energy."

"Sakura… is rather direct, isn't she." Gaara noted as he watched his girlfriend dodge the kunai and return with one of her own.

"She can be." Naruto agreed with a grin. "Actually, has anyone seen her try to be subtle?"

"When she was chasing after Sasuke." Hinata agreed with a slight grin on her lips.

"That was subtle?!" Kiba spoke up incredulously.

"I believe she refers to Sakura's definition of the word." Shino noted casually as his sun glasses glinted lightly.

"Indeed," Naruto agreed, nodding sagely as he pursed his lips lightly, before shrugging just a bit. "Ah well."

"Ah, looks like Ino's getting bored." Hinata noted, as she watched the blonde girl, pull out a rope, while grinning at Sakura.

"Mmm, well, Sakura." Ino noted casually as she grinned at her pink haired fellow kunoichi. "It's been fun, but I think Gaara's been without his lap warmer long enough."

"She's not wrong." Gaara admitted to those nearby once more.

"Great, my whole family is a bunch of perverts." Temari sighed slightly before burying her face in her hands.

"If we include you in that statement?" Hinata spoke up, lips twitching slightly. "Why yes, you are."

"I'm cool with that." Kankuro noted with a slight shrug of his shoulders, ignoring the way his sister glared at him. "Would be SOMETHING we had in common finally."

"What do you think you're going to do with that?" Sakura said with a wariness in her eyes as she watched Ino lightly crack the rope like a whip.

"Oh this?" Ino grinned as she held up the rope, before smiling innocently. "This was just to keep you distracted from that!" The blonde finished with a flourish as she gestured behind the pink haired kunoichi.

Whirling as she leaped away from where Ino gestured, Sakura brought her kunai up to guard against the threat of…. Nothing?

"Sucker!" Ino's voice called out as suddenly Sakura could feel the blonde's rope snaking out and wrapping about her body with a mind of its own. "Gotcha!"

"HEY!" Sakura immediately struggled to bring her kunai up to the rope, to cut herself free from the entanglements, even as she felt her wrists pulled tightly together, followed immediately by the rope lashing over her hands, binding them together and preventing her from being able to saw down into the bindings. "Dammit!"

As the pink haired kunoichi struggled to free her arms and hands as they were pulled back against her chest, Ino produced a second rope that she lashed out at the girl's legs, quickly binding them together as they snaked up and took a most… interesting shape on Sakura's body. "While I'm no Naruto-kun, I've got enough chakra and control to pull off this move!"

Sakura glared at the girl who walked steadily closer to her, feeding the ropes that wrapped her up, slowly almost mummifying the girl. "I'll get you for this Ino!"

"Eh, I'm sure when you look back on things later on, you'll thank me." Ino shot back before she crouched down and pressed a kunai to her opponent's neck, before glancing up at the proctor. "Well?"

"Winner, Ino Yamanaka," the man quickly agreed with a cough and a nod as he grinned slightly in amusement as Inoichi did a little victory dance when he thought no one was paying attention.

"All right, now lemme out of this thing, Ino!" Sakura grumbled. "You won already."

"Mmm… nope!" Ino grinned back at the girl as she reached down, and with a grunt, lifted her up and tossed her over her shoulder. "Ugh, what're you eating these days, Sakura? You weigh a ton!"

"Ino! Lemme down!" Sakura fought back with all the fury and protest she could muster, and squirmed something fierce!

"Gimme a sec." Ino shot back as she walked up the stairs, carrying the still struggling Sakura, before she walked over to Gaara and dropped the helpless girl into his lap. "There you go, one trussed up lap warmer, ready to go!"

"Thank you." Gaara responded simply. "Was this supposed to be an exchange of goods, or should I simply have some money deposited in your account?"

"Hmmm…" Ino tapped her lower lip thoughtfully before grinning back at the boy. "I'll let you know later."

"Very well." Gaara nodded contentedly as he pulled Sakura back against his chest and grinned slightly.

"I'm not a teddy bear you know." Sakura grumbled slightly even as she allowed herself to be held against the boy's chest.

"No." He agreed with a firm nod. "Much nicer."

"So, that leaves you, me, Temari and horn dog." Naruto noted to Hinata as he watched the board, giving her a light squeeze as he pursed his lips.

"Think we could switch to a marital battle instead of a martial if it comes down to us?" Hinata asked playfully, her brows waggling suggestively.

"Only if I'm allowed time to get the popcorn." Ino interrupted, before pausing lightly. "Oh, and plucking out Kiba's eyeballs."

"That would be preferable," Hinata agreed, glaring at Kiba before the board flashed and a grin blossomed on her face. "But apparently unnecessary."

Hinata Hyuga Vs. Kiba Inuzuka

"Well, at least he'll be properly tenderized for Tsume,"Anko noted with a wry chuckle as she lightly shook her head, leaning against Kurenai. "How much you think she'll leave of him, eh, Nai-chan?"

"Hmm..." Kurenai shrugged slightly before she looked back at her compatriot. "Well, she might make it difficult to give Tsume grand babies..."

"Eh, that's what she's got Hana for." Anko shot back with a dismissive wave of her hand, before grinning in a predatory manner at the red eyed woman. "Plus... I think Hinata wants to humiliate him more than anything."

"That does seem to be her general idea." Kurenai admitted, before shrugging slightly. "Well, lets sit back and watch the show."

"Might as well."

While Kiba eagerly jumped down onto the Tower flower, Hinata gracefully leaned in, and gave Ino and Naruto each a soft kiss on their lips, before carefully removing her coat, revealing the lavender and black top she wore underneath. Handing it to Naruto, she offered him a quick smile before slowly walking her way down the stairs. The instant her eyes had left her teammates, they had locked onto Kiba in a cold, piercing menace that followed the wild haired boy where ever he went.

When she reached her position, opposite Hinata, he grinned down at the puppy residing in his coat. "Ready to show them what we're capable of, Akamaru?"

In response, the dog barked loudly, shaking its head with an almost frantic force as he scrambled out of his resting place and then darted over to Hinata, whining softly as he executed the most devastating weapon in his arsenal. The authentic puppy dog eyes pleading. Blinking in shock for a moment, Kiba suddenly growled angrily. "HEY! Get back here you traitor!"

Akamaru in response, barked once at his usual partner, before lifting up his rear end, lifting hist tail as he firmly, and meaningfully displayed his hind quarters to the boy before barking back at the boy. The message was quite clear, especially when the dog sniffed in the air, then kicked up a bit of dust in the boy's direction. Turning his head back to Hinata again, he gave a pleading whine to the girl.

"No fair! She's stealing my nin dog!" Kiba growled as he pointed an accusatory finger at Hinata, and looked pleadingly over at the proctor.

Said proctor merely coughed and shrugged back at the boy. "Not my fault your dog's smarter than you are, kid."

"Awww, don't worry Akamaru." Hinata cooed down at the canine before picking him up and cuddling him lightly against her chest for a moment as she lightly stroked his fur. "I never blamed you when Kiba's being a stupid, perverted jerk."

"Is it wrong to be jealous of a dog right now?" Ino noted with a slight pout on her lips as she watched Akamaru happily licking the giggling Hinata's face in thanks.

"You want to be licking Hinata-chan's face right now?" Naruto asked with a quirking amusement on his lips.

"I was referring to the being held to her nice, warm chest." Ino countered dryly before lightly tapping her lower lip. "Though, she certainly is tasty."

"You'll get no argument from me on that, Ino-chan." Naruto chuckled just a bit, his eyes lightly sparkling with amusement.

As Hinata was scratching the ears of Kiba's most powerful ninja weapon, the proctor offered up a soft cough. "Might I suggest saving the conversion of the nin dog for another time? I'm going to guess you're abstaining from the match, Akamaru was it?"

The dog immediately barked and shook its head as it gave Hinata one last lick before dropping down onto the floor, growling in the direction of his partner. Staring back at the puppy with wide, disbelieving eyes, Kiba's mouth dropped open in disbelief. "Akamaru?! Come on, buddy! Pal! Don't do this to me! I'll... I'll... I'll give you a month's worth of steaks!"

Pausing, Akamaru sat on his haunches in brief contemplation, before looking up at Hinata speculatively. Giggling softly, she casually tapped her chin in thought before countering. "I'll brush your fur." She paused before giving a clarifier. "No bows, no ribbons, just a nice, firm, brushing."

Akamaru immediately gave a dismissive sniff in Kiba's direction before barking in agreement with Hinata. Kiba's eyes bugged out in response as he couldn't help but stutter out a response. "B-b-buddy! You- You're giving up a month of steaks for... for... GROOMING?!"

For a moment, the dog paused, before turning his attention, at Kiba for a moment, before glancing back at Hinata, before giving him a look that most assembled people interpreted as "Dude, have you seen her? What the hell do you think?!" Still, the few others took it mainly to mean that a month worth of steaks didn't make up for the his being an idiot, and Hinata offering him brushed fur and attention.

"Akamaru! We're supposed to be partners!" Kiba whined slightly as he crossed his arms about his chest, sulking loudly.

In response, Akamaru placed a paw over his face and shook his head, before pointing at the the boy for a moment as he shook his head. It was almost more than he could bare to take. Giggling in response, Hinata reached down and scritched lightly behind his ears. "Don't worry, why don't you go up and say hi to Ino-chan? I'm sure she'll be happy to pet you."

Barking in agreement the dog cast Kiba a long, pitying glance before sniffing slightly and almost regally trotting up the stairs.

Watching the display, Baki shook his head in wonder and amusement. "Well, I'll say this, the leaf has some of the most interesting nin I've ever come across."

"What? Kiba and Akamaru?" Anko glanced over at the Sand nin. "Eh, Akamaru's the brains of the team. I'm sure you've heard about Konoha's nin dogs before."

"Well, yes..." Baki admitted before watching as the dog rose up the steps with its head held high before almost parading over to the blonde couple watching things. "I just wasn't aware they were so... easily swayed."

"Ha!" Anko laughed softly. "Usually they're the most loyal partners you can get. Akamaru's just smart enough to know when his partner brought something on himself, and he wanted to make sure Hinata knew he had nothing to do with it."

"That little girl is that powerful?" Baki responded as he arched a brow. "I've heard about the prowess of the Hyuuga in battle, but... "

"That 'little girl' as you call her, about made me piss myself the first time I met her." Anko corrected with a grin. "She's damned scary when she wants to be."

"Well, she also knew how to threaten you." Kurenai noted dryly with a soft chuckle.

"True, but still... scary girl." Anko shivered slightly as she leaned back against Kurenai.

"Anymore negotiations to get out of the way?" The proctor chuckled softly as he looked from the still flummoxed Kiba to Hinata.

"I'm good." Hinata declared sweetly as she slowly stretched out then shifted into a variant of the jyuken stance. "Ready whenever you are, Proctor."

"Then, Begin!" The man shot out before jumping back with a grin as Hinata immediately surged forward.

"What huh?! Hey I wasn't ready!" Kiba immediately protested as he frantically started dodge out of the way of Hinata's focused onslaught.

"I suppose I really should send Tsume some flowers or something." Hiashi noted as he watched how the woman in question's son frantically tried to dodge the cold rage of Hinata's assault.

"... You sure you want to do that, Hiashi?" Inoichi noted, a touch of concern in his eyes.

"Go for it!" Anko called out, practically leering at Hiashi. "I could use the entertainment!"

"Why would that..." Hiashi started to ask, his brow scrunching up slightly in confusion.

"Hiashi-sama, I know you spend most of your time in the Hyuuga Compound..." Kurenai began delicately.

"Or at the club." Inoichi added, grinning slightly with a wink at his friend.

"Do you want me to tell your daughters about that place?" Kurenai asked with a tight lip glare directed at the two men.

Said men shared a look, before bursting out in laughter together, before Hiashi spoke up, tears almost glistening in his eyes. "Well, Kurenai-san, you've been spending more time with our daughters lately than we do.. you tell us, how do YOU think they'd react to learning about the club?"

Kurenai opened her mouth to respond, before Anko cut her off with a smirk. "We'd never get any training done, they'd be dragging Naruto-kun there every day."

"If you're lucky enough to see them once a week." Inoichi added before shrugging slightly and chuckling. "So, you were explaining to my friend, Hiashi, why its such a bad idea for him to send Tsume flowers in apology?"

"Considering the last one was Kiba and Hana's father, and he hadn't shown any interest in her previously?" Kurenai spoke up, smirking slightly. "I think she might get the wrong impression."

"Hmmm... She's a very strong, assertive woman, isn't she?" Hiashi noted, a touch of drool almost forming in the corner of his mouth.

"Hinata would never forgive you if Kiba ended up as her brother." Inoichi pointed out, shattering Hiashi's little day dream.

"Well, of course." Hiashi quickly regained his composure, nodding with a stern look up on his face. "However, there is nothing wrong... with fostering positive relationships between Konoha's clans."

"... Just please for the love of kami, remember the silencing seals." Inoichi groaned softly as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "I can still remember still remember the nights before Tsume chased off Kiba's father."

"Who do you think you're talking to?" Hiashi sniffed slightly before he turned his attention back to were a Hinata had cornered a now limping Kiba, the boy's eyes wide and fearful as he stared up at the girl.

"Mr. Snuggly-Pants." Inoichi responded with an absolutely straight face as he continued to watch the scene unfolding below them.

Hiashi made a momentary strangling sound as his face actually flushed slightly in response, though he did bow his head in acknowledgement as he watched Kiba now attempting to crawl away, both his legs completely disabled. "It would seem Hinata is taking her time..."

"So it would seem, Hiashi." Inoichi agreed with a slight grin on his lips.

"Now, Kiba." Hinata said sweetly as she casually stalked behind him, watching as he struggled to speak with his paralzyed throat, frantically, desperately gesturing towards the Proctor... who seemed preoccupied reading a book. " You've really been a very, very bad little boy."

The boy frantically started clawing at the dirt trying to drag himself further and further away from the girl as she sweetly continued to talk to him. "I considered just what I was going to do to you... Was I going to destroy your sense of smell, and completely ruin you as an Inuzuka?"

She paused a moment as she let her words sink in her head canted to the side as she looked up thoughtfully while lightly tapping her cheek with her finger. "Of course, the most obvious thing was to completely destroy the usefulness of your little friend..."

As a frightened whine came from above her, Hinata shot the pup a reassuring look. "Not you Akamaru, his other... much, much smaller, little friend."

Sighing in relief, Akamaru relaxed back against Ino's scritching fingers, once more watching quietly as Kiba struggled like mad to escape the girl while she continued. "But, finally, here we are... amongst our peers, in front of our teachers, in front of the Hokage himself... and you're the one, crawling, whimpering and helpless..." She pursed her lips, before pulling back, smiling sweetly at the proctor. "Mr. Proctor? I think he's ready to forfeit now."

Seeing Kiba's frantic nods, the proctor shrugged slightly. "Winner, Hinata Hyuuga."

As the medic nins quickly gathered up Kiba to convey him to the medical wing, Hinata sauntered back up the stairs as Naruto turned his eyes to Temari. "Well, it's down to just you and me, my dear."

"So it would seem." Temari arched a brow as she watched the girls both snuggle against the blonde boy as she quickly repressed an angry surge of jealousy pulsing through her. "Shall we then?"

As he gave a soft kiss to each of his teammates, neither opponents needed to look at the board to know what it now read.

-Temari of the Desert Vs. Naruto Uzumaki-

Jumping up to the railing, Naruto turned around and offered up a salute to the rest of the group before smiling as he let himself fall backwards. He carefully twisted during his descent, his black coat flapped out, and billowing softly around him as he landed in a crouch. Moving to his feet, he watched as Temari knelt on her fan and glided across the room on it in a slow, graceful descent until she flipped gracefully to the ground and settled the heavy iron fan next to her with a smirk.

"Ready to lose short stuff?" Temari shot out as she shifted lightly, almost lazily leaning up against her fan, before twitching slightly as she saw what he was doing.

Quickly scribbling away in a notebook, the boy was grinning madly to himself, muttering audibly for the rest of the room to hear. "Oooh, that's a good idea… yes yes… That will work niiiiiiicely!"

"Hey!" Temari growled slightly, pouting as she glared over at the boy. "Quit ignoring me! Proctor?!"

The proctor himself had inched over to Naruto, and was looking over his shoulder as he coughed politely for a change. "New inspiration?"

"Mhmhmhm!" The boy quickly nodded his head as his messy scrawl flashed across the page. "Yesssss! Oooh that works…"

The proctor took a moment to decipher the messy scrawl before letting out a slow, low whistle of appreciation. "Damn, that's good."

"Yesssss!" Naruto nodded his head almost violently as he continued to madly scribble across the page.

"Hello! We're supposed to be having a match here!" Temari grumbled slightly, crossing her arms about her chest and pouting lightly.

"The artistic process cannot be rushed!" The proctor declared firmly, crossing his arms about his chest and nodding sagely next to an eagerly agreeing Naruto.

"It must be, like a fine wine, properly, and patiently cultivated." Baki's voice sternly lectured down at Temari. "Temari, you should know this!"

Temari stared a moment, before dropping her face into her palm and sighing heavily with a slight grumble. "This place is contagious."

"And you're already infected." Naruto noted, before his eyes lit up. "Oooooh! Thanks, Temari-chan! That's another great ideas!" And with that the fury of his scribbles increased, and in fact he popped out a clone whom he quickly handed a spare pen and notebook to, the pair scribbling away like mad.

"Ooh, that's good." The proctor noted as his eyes bounced back and forth between the two Narutos' notebooks. "That's even better… Ouch, hate to be that guy… Naughty, naughty."

Temari sighed again as she lightly palmed her cheek in annoyance before grumbling again. "Stupid friggin' authors… I couldn't get a nice, normal, ninja, noooo I had to get the one that writes the books everyone loves."

"Aww, poor Temari-chan." A pair of voices purred in her ear, causing the girl to almost yelp and jump in surprise at the two Naruto clones that appeared behind her. "We'll help you relax!"

"What?! Hey! Sto-! Ooooh!" Temari's struggles immediately stopped as she practically melted into the skillful fingers of the clones. "Damn, that's good."

"Lesson One, Lee." Hinata spoke up as she turned to the bushy browed boy who immediately had a notebook and pen of his own in hand, looking attentively at the girl. "Girls LOVE a good massage."

"Temari-chan expecially." Ino winked at the boy, who blushed lightly but nodded quickly.

"Do you think… Naruto-sama would be willing… to teach me?" The boy said hopefully as he watched in awe how quickly he reduced Temari to a quivering, purring state.

"Oh, I'm sure we can convince Temari-chan to help too." Ino offered with a wicked grin on her lips.

"Really?" Lee said hopefully his eyes glistening with hopeful, unshed tears.

"It'll just take… the proper convincing." Hinata grinned back at the boy before leaning into Ino.

"All right, all done!" Naruto declared happily as he took his notebooks back and banished his clones, leaving a suddenly off balance Temari to almost fall down on her ass before she managed to steady herself on her fan.

"No fair!" The blonde girl half whined, her face flushed slightly as she glared back at her opponent. "You can't get me all wound up like that and then pull it out from under me!"

"Would you rather I wound you up until you popped, leaving you dazed, unable to focus and drooling happily while the match started, and I had no trouble at all tying you up, and presenting you to Lee?" Naruto countered with a simple little grin on his face. "I could do that if you'd like!"

Temari blushed brightly as she shifted slightly, unconsciously rubbing her thighs together before she started and glared back at the boy. "I swear, every day I spent in this village I become more of a pervert! Is there something in the water?"

"Hmm…" Naruto stroked his chin lightly, before shrugging slightly. "Wouldn't know. But, from what I understand… Ninja Hotties: Bondage Issue?" He offered up a slight smirk on his lips.

The blush remained full force as the girl grumbled slightly and crossed her arms with a pout. "Fine, you win."

"Oh, forfeiting already?" The proctor noted with a shrug. "All right, Winner…"

"NO!" Temari hastily shouted out, glaring at the innocently smiling, sickly man. "The argument, not the match!"

"Oh, then begin!" The man responded, still smiling innocently as she gawked at him while Naruto burst into motion, suddenly multiplying from one into 30.

"…What? Hey!" Temari growled as she swung up her fan, the iron weapon spreading open as she darted backwards, using a sweep to send a gust of wind at the rushing clones as well as sending her back wards further and faster. "Grrrr!"

The clones scattered in response, a few of them vanishing in puffs of smoke as the rest spread out, darting at her like a small swarm as suddenly she was dodging chains and ropes from a variety of different directions. Twitching just a bit, she swung the fan hard, her entire body twisting in full rotation as a blast of air ripped out at all sides with enough force to divert the variety of lengths away from her before she immediately started to race away. There were fewer clones now, she noted as she let out a blast here and there, the numbers slowly dwindling as the boy seemed content to merely continue tossing chains and ropes at her through his clones.

Her eyes narrowed, she growled slightly as she furiously ran her mind through the what she'd seen, trying to figure out just what the boy's strategy was. He was smarter than this, she knew it. Despite the casual, natural air of carefree mischief he exuded, she'd seen enough to know he was both cunning and insightful. He had something planned, she just wasn't sure what.

Then, as she reached beneath the overhanging railing, she saw a sudden triumphant grin on one of the black clad figures, as suddenly a voice rang out. "SPIDER'S WEB!"

Her eyes wide, she tried to jump away as ropes suddenly exploded towards her, latching onto the railing above her as they moved to lash out and grab hold of her. Twisting wildly, she immediately brought her fan racing down throwing a sudden, cutting gale at the chakra laced ropes. As they diverted away, she landed unsteadily on her feet back in position where Naruto had begun his assault.

And suddenly she could feel hands on her ankles, suddenly tugging back hard as rock transformed into a clone. As she shifted around quickly slamming her heavy, iron fan down towards the clone's head, she none the less was thrown off guard enough that when the clone dispersed, she began to fall herself. Only, to find herself caught in a pair of familiar arms.

"Oh, shit," was a all she managed before she looked up to see the figure smiling back at her, before suddenly exploding into a eagerly seeking mess of ropes that bound her tightly and allowed her to continue her descent to the floor, falling helplessly mummified.

Naruto casually picked up her fan, grunting slightly as he felt the weight before handing it over to one of his clones as he crouched down and lightly patted the top of a glaring Temari's head. "You did great, Temari-chan. Took me a lot longer to get you corralled like I needed than I thought it would." He paused a moment, before grinning at her. "Ready to admit defeat, or do I need to get creative?"

She stared at him for a long moment in utter contemplation , debating as she tested the tightness of the ropes on her body, grunting slightly as they only seemed to tighten instead of loosen in response. Finally, she sighed and grunted as she hung her head in defeat. Turning over to the proctor, as he scooped Temari up, Naruto grinned at the man. "I think that's that."

"Then, Winner: Naruto Uzumaki." The proctor coughed before looking up at the Hokage.

"Very good." The man smiled back down at the genin as he slowly stood up and addressed them all. "You've all done a fantastic job getting this far. The final stage of the exam, a single elimination tournament, will be held in one month's time." Pausing he gestured towards where Inoichi had dropped down onto the tower floor, holding up a bag. "Please, will all the winners draw their lots?"

It took only a few moments for the winners to collect their numbers, and for Naruto to hand over the still bound Temari to a brightly blushing Rock Lee, before the tournament seeds were revealed.

Gaara of the Desert Vs. Naruto Uzumaki

Shikamaru Nara Vs. Ino Yamanaka

Shino Aburame Vs. Sasuke Uchiha

Hinata Hyuuga Vs. Rock Lee

Gaara merely looked at Naruto for a moment, before slowly inclining his head. The blonde ninja met the boy's eyes, and nodded back, a slight little smile on his lips. A smile that hesitantly Gaara matched with one of his own, grateful for the lack of fear in his friend's eyes.

"Oooh, Looks like its going to be you and me, Shikamaru!" Ino said with a wicked grin as she slung her arm around the boy's shoulder. "Just like old times, neh?"

"Someone, just kill me now." Shikamaru sighed slightly as he slumped forward, grumbling just a bit as he hung his head. "Too damned troublesome."

"Yosh!" Lee grinned brightly at Hinata, his eyes almost burning as he pumped his fist. "I look forward to testing myself against you! To see how brightly…."

"Lee," Hinata cut him off, smiling slightly at the eager boy. "Let's just leave it at looking forward to testing yourself against me, shall we? I think we've already talked about the… connotations that might be had from all that."

Lee hung his head, but slowly nodded. "Yes, I look forward to facing you, Hinata-san!"

"Well, things are sure going to be interesting, eh Nai-chan?" Anko grinned at her friend. "Now we just gotta make sure all of em get the right amount of training."

"Yes, should be most interesting, indeed," Kurenai agreed, lightly tapping her lower lip in contemplation, plans already starting to pop into her mind.

Author's Notes- Mmm… well, next chapter should be what a lot of people have been eagerly awaiting… Naruto's face to face meeting with his infamous rival in the publishing world.