A/N: Preliminaries… Reminds me of my PSLE prelims. But that's over. Now I have O-levels to slave over. Sigh… Anyway, here's another chapter. I hope it doesn't disappoint.
Babyuknowme13: I went to your profile page. I like the extra instalments nyan~! I wanted to put it on my profile but my com crashed while I was doing so…
Chapter 18: Preliminaries Part 1
Akadou Yoroi vs. Uchiha Sasuke
The two whose names were displayed on the board stepped forward while everyone else moved up to the mezzanine floor. Kakashi stopped near Sasuke, but decided against it and continued on. 'Don't push yourself, Sasuke,' Kakashi thought as everyone stared down in anticipation. "Begin," Hayate announced, jumping back to give the competitors space to fight. Yoroi formed a hand seal and chakra flared around his hand as he reached into his weapons pouch. Sasuke reached into his own and brought out a kunai just as his opponent let loose a few shuriken. Sasuke reflected the shuriken and charged, kunai in hand.
Yoroi launched a punch which Sasuke dodged and lashed out with a punch of own, feeling it connect. He was about to pull his arm back when it was caught by Yoroi, chakra dancing around the latter's hand again. Sasuke felt his energy slipping away and suddenly felt very drained, falling to his knees. Yoroi punched the downed Uchiha in the gut for good measure before leaping away, leaving Sasuke on all fours, coughing. Yoroi gave a battle cry and charged, grabbing Sasuke's head and shoving him onto the floor. Sasuke grabbed his assailant's arm, trying futilely to get him off. "My chakra… Are you…" Sasuke choked out.
"Finally figured it out?" Yoroi teased, as more of Sasuke's chakra was sapped away.
"Get off!" Sasuke brought his foot up to Yoroi's abdomen and summoned his remaining strength to kick him off. Yoroi was pushed off, and skidded to a halt.
"Don't worry. I'll end it quickly," Yoroi taunted, his hand alight with chakra as he charged again and thrust his palm at Sasuke, the latter dancing around his attacks. Yoroi's hand missed his hair by centimetres as he crouched down and shoved his fist into his opponent's abdomen, causing the boy to fly back a few feet.
"Seems like you can still move, but this is the end!" Yoroi declared, charging once again. Yoroi thrust his hand, Sasuke backpedalling with each attempt as he dodged the attack. A smirk broke out on Sasuke's lips and he disappeared, causing Lee's eyes to widen. The Uchiha reappeared beneath Yoroi as his foot made contact with the masked Gennin's chin, sending Yoroi flying. Sasuke put his hands on the ground to brace himself as he disappeared again, reappearing beneath the airborne Yoroi.
"From here on out, it's all original," Sasuke muttered, putting a hand on Yoroi's back. Yoroi's eyes widened behind the shades as he was forcefully spun around and a kick was aimed at his side.
He brought an arm up to block the incoming attack, saying, "Not good enough." Sasuke twisted out from under him and spun in mid air, using the momentum to power his attack as he brought his arm down onto Yoroi's face, sending the latter towards the ground head first.
Sasuke cocked back his other fist and delivered a vicious bunch to Yoroi's face, speeding up the fall as he shouted, "I'm not done!" Sasuke flipped in midair, bringing his leg up and letting gravity do its job as he powered his leg into Yoroi's abdomen shouting, "Shishi Rendan!" Blood flew past Yoroi's lips as Sasuke skidded away on his back, away from Yoroi. To the crowd above Yoroi lay prone on the floor, blood covering his mask, spider web cracks running from where he impacted with the floor. Sasuke got up slowly, his body shaking as he brought a hand up to his mouth and wiped away the blood, panting heavily.
"I will stop this match now. The winner of this round is Sasuke. He passes the preliminary rounds," Hayate announced. Sasuke smirked, falling into a sitting position as the onlookers analysed what had just occurred, ominous looks on their faces. The medics loaded Yoroi onto a stretcher and carried him away to the infirmary. Sasuke shakily got to his feet and made his way to the mezzanine floor with the help of Kakashi. The screen started up again displaying the names of the next two fighters.
Zaku Abumi vs. Aburame Shino
Zaku smirked and said, "So who's the other weakling." The two boys made their way down to the arena and faced each other, waiting with bated breath for the proctor to start the match.
"Begin," Hayate made way for the two fighters yet again.
"If you fight me here, you'll never be able to fight again. Retire," Shino stated calmly. "This one moves somehow," Zaku said, taking his left arm out of the sling.
"One arm is good enough for you!" Zaku proclaimed, charging at Shino. He struck at Shino with his arm, only for Shino to raise his own and block the strike.
"You can't beat me with just one arm," Shino stated, his voice unwavering.
"Shut up!" Zaku shouted, shoving his hand in Shino's face.
"Zankuuha!" he cried, as a large explosion erupted and engulfed Shino, the latter falling to the ground and tumbling out of the smoke. Zaku smirked, only for it to be wiped off his face as Shino stood up and scuttling noises rang out through the arena. Bugs started crawling out of Shino's skin and across his face and coat. Zaku turned around and saw a wave of bugs crawling towards him, the shock and fear evident on his face.
"If I use this many bugs, you'll never be able to fight again. If you use that move on me, I'll have the bugs attack you. If you use that attack on the bugs, I'll attack you. Either way, you cannot get through this situation. You're supposed to keep your trump card until the end," Shino brought his hands into a hand sign. Zaku grimaced at Shino, his eyes shaking.
He jerked his right hand outwards, towards the sea of bugs, and directed his other hand towards Shino shouting, "You're supposed to keep your trump cards until the end, right?" Suddenly, chakra started erupting from his arms, a stunned expression plastered on his face. "My arms!" Zaku ground out in pain, clutching his injured arms. He chanced a look at his palms and found bugs blocking the holes.
"When I recommended that you give up, I told the bugs 'Block those annoying holes with your bodies and stay still.' This is what a true trump card is," Shino stated calmly.
"Shut up!" Zaku shouted, cocking a fist back and turning around to punch Shino, only to feel a fist connect with his cheek as he was beaten to the punch, literally.
Hayate bent down to inspect Zaku and found that holes were blown into his arms when the chakra burst out, "I guess this match is over. Winner, Aburame Shino." Zaku was bundled into a stretcher and carried off as Shino wordlessly made his way back onto the platform, his team mates congratulating him on his win.
Tsurugi Misumi vs. Kankuro
Kankuro unstrapped the figure on his back and it landed on the floor with a thud. "Begin," Hayate announced.
"Victory goes to the swiftest!" Misumi struck out with his arm. Kankuro blocked it, smirking, but that was wiped off his face when Misumi's arm extended and started to wrap around his arm as Misumi himself bound his body, forcing him to drop the bandaged figure.
"Unless you give up, I will continue strangling you," Misumi tightened his grip around Kankuro.
"Idiot. You're the one who's gonna die," Kankuro taunted, only for Misumi to carry out his threat and snap the Suna-nin's neck.
Kankuro's head snapped towards Misumi and rasped, "Now, it's my turn!" Wooden appendages wound around Misumi, securing him in place as Kankuro's form changed to that of a puppet. A hand jerked out from the bandages and pulled, revealing the real Kankuro. Chakra strings trailed from Kankuro's fingers to the puppet, controlling it.
The appendages began tightening around Misumi, causing the latter to choke out, "I gi-" His words turned into a scream as he was crushed to death. The puppet and Misumi fell to the floor.
"Since his opponent is unable to fight, the winner is Kankuro," Hayate coughed. Misumi was loaded onto a stretcher like his team mate before him, and sent to the infirmary. Sakura frowned and excused herself, making a beeline for the toilet. She shut the door and ran the water, smoothing her hair with the liquid, before frowning again and looking up.
"You're scared aren't you? Even Sasuke-kun was so badly hurt. Actually, he got away with such light injuries because it was him fighting. If it was you, I wouldn't want to think about it. You should give up," Ino taunted.
"Give up? Who's gonna do that? Actually, I can't wait for my turn," Sakura responded to the jab, giving her rival a fierce gaze before walking out of the bathroom.
Haruno Sakura vs. Yamanaka Ino
The two girls met each other once again in the arena. "Begin," Hayate started the match. Sakura swiped at Ino with her leg, the latter ducking under the attack and returning it with a punch, which was blocked and pushed away by Sakura. Sakura dropped to the floor and swept her leg, trying to unbalance Ino, only for Ino to jump over it and duck under a kick that went over her head in a wide arc before jumping away. Sakura pulled three kunai out and released them, Ino dodging two and catching one between her fingers. The blond launched the projectile back at its owner, Sakura deflecting it by throwing another kunai. They charged at each other once more, Sakura throwing a punch which was blocked by Ino, the latter breaking away, panting. Sakura charged once more, punching again, Ino blocking it once again.
The two lashed out with their legs, forming an 'X' in the middle as they crossed each other out. Ino let loose a hail of punches, which were intercepted and pushed away by the pink haired kunoichi. The last punch was caught as Sakura drove a chakra laced fist into Ino's stomach, before raising a hand and stopping mid way, reminiscing the times they'd been together. Ino recovered and seemed stunned as well. They stood there before Sakura broke the silence shouting, "I'm not going to fight with you over Sasuke anymore. You and Sasuke just don't match. I'm also stronger than you now. You're not even a rival!"
"Sakura! Do you know who you're talking to like that? You cry baby!" Ino shot back. Sakura smiled, untying the hitai-ate. Ino let a shocked expression cross her face before doing the same to hers, both of them tying the hitai-ate to their foreheads at the same time. Sakura charged at Ino, creating two Bunshin at the same time. Ino stood her ground, concentrating on picking out the real one when Sakura tackled her, channelling chakra to her feet to put more power behind her attack, sending Ino tumbling.
"If you still take me for a cry baby, you're gonna lose! Fight me seriously Ino!" Sakura exclaimed.
Ino got up, wiping the side of her mouth, "I'm happy to hear that. I'll go all out with you as you've requested!" The two charged at each other, battling for dominance, but matching up in everything.
"There's no way you're as good as me!" Ino shouted across the arena.
"If you keep spending that much time with your looks and hair, you'll never match up to me," Sakura taunted.
Ino withdrew a kunai from her weapons pouch, "Stop underestimating me!" Ino brought the kunai up to her hair and cut it to match Sakura's. Those from Team 10 stared on in shock as Ino threw the severed hair at Sakura. Ino held her hands out in a seal, before Sakura started talking about the weak points of Shintenshin no Jutsu. Ino executed the move, only for Sakura to run away and both their bodies to slump forward. Sakura lifted her head and smirked, but found that she couldn't move her legs. Ino lifted her head, having created a rope of chakra to bind Sakura using her hair. This time, Ino didn't miss. Just as Ino was about to put her hand up, she shuddered and stopped, bringing her hands up to her head, clutching it saying, "Sakura? That's impossible."
"What is it? Are you going to give up?" Hayate inquired, before Ino-Sakura raised her head and shouted, "There's no way I'm going to give up damn it!" Ino-Sakura clasped her hands into a hand sign, causing Ino's spirit to return to its original body. Sakura slumped onto the floor, gasping for breath, Ino doing the same.
"You have two minds? Who are you?" Ino panted.
"I have the strength to match my beauty. After all, girls have to be strong," Sakura replied, a smirk gracing her lips. The two got up shakily, on their last legs as they charged at each other, meeting in the middle. Both punches connected. Both Ino and Sakura were sent back, blood flying from their mouths. The two propped themselves up on their elbows, struggling to get up. Ino went down first, Sakura getting onto her knees, a smile ghosting across her lips before falling face first onto the floor.
"This match has ended. Due to the double KO, none advance to the Third Exam," Hayate announced. The two were carried back onto the mezzanine floor by their respective Jounin senseis and set side by side on the floor, their backs resting on the wall.
Tenten vs. Temari
"Begin!" Hayate called. Tenten jumped away, Lee and Gai shouting and cheering for her. Tenten jumped upwards and unleashed a few shuriken, Temari using wind to deflect the projectiles.
"I missed? That can't be!" Tenten landed on the ground. Temari reached for her fan, Tenten breaking out into a run, keeping her distance at the same time. Tenten launched herself into the air again, pulling out a scroll and swiping it open. She twirled in the air, creating a cocoon around herself, projectiles raining down from her position. All of the weapons missed.
"What? My weapons! Is there a trick to that fan?" Tenten muttered.
"This is the first moon. There's two more. Once you see all three, you lose," Temari smirked. Tenten whipped out another two scrolls, holding them before her.
"Whatever you do, it's useless," Temari taunted as Tenten placed the two scrolls on the floor adjacent to each other and started making hand seals,
"Soushoryu!" A large plume of smoke engulfed the arena before twin dragons made of smoke burst forth, circling each other in perfect sync. The smoke sloughed off, leaving two scrolls spinning in mid air, Tenten at the centre. The latter then launched herself upwards once more, towards the source of the two trails, and proceeded to unseal all the weapons and hurl them at Temari at a rapid pace.
"Second moon!" Temari announced, moving her fan in a sweeping arc, blowing away all the weapons.
The scrolls fell lifelessly to the floor, "I'm not done!" Tenten flipped through the air, ninja wire trailing from her fingers as she collected all the weapons from the floor and whipped her arms, causing the weapons to be directed at Temari yet again. Temari smirked and blew the weapons away, Tenten getting hit by her own weapons as a backlash. She skidded across the floor, blood dripping from her wounds.
"Third moon," Temari's fan was fully spread out behind her. Temari swept the fan and completed a revolution before vanishing. Tenten glanced around, before catching sight of Temari floating in the air above her, landing perfectly on the ground before her.
"Ninpou: Kamaitachi," Temari gave another sweep of her fan, before a tornado engulfed the brunette, the wind slicing into her, before she fell from the sky, unable to move. Temari shifted her fan, Tenten falling onto the butt of her fan, coughing out a mouthful of blood.
"That was boring. Very boring," Temari griped.
"Winner, Temari," Hayate announced, walking over to the two. A sadistic smirk crossed Temari's lips as she flicked her fan, sending Tenten flying. Lee jumped out to catch her before she hit the wall.
"Is that something you should do to someone who's fought her hardest?" Lee shouted.
"Shut up. Take that trash and leave," Temari commanded, slamming her closed fan onto the ground.
Nara Shikamaru vs. Tsuchi Kin
Shikamaru clasped his hand into a seal and drawled, "Ninpou: Kagemane no Jutsu." Kin looked questioningly at him before releasing two senbon with bells tied at the end. Shikamaru moved into a squat, his hands still in the hand seal. Kin smirked, moving backwards as she made to throw another two before screeching to a halt.
She trembled, forcing her body to move. Her eyes gravitated to the ground, noticing the link between her shadow and her opponent's.
"What?" Kin shouted, as her hands flew to the area above her head and bent at the wrists. Shikamaru started moving his hands about, Kin mirroring his movements. Shikamaru reached into his pouch and produced a shuriken, smirking as he did so. "Are you stupid? If you attack like that, you're going to get hurt too," Kin's eyes widened.
"I know. We're gonna stab each other with shuriken now, let's see who'll hold out longer," Shikamaru tossed the shuriken, Kin's body doing the same. Shikamaru dodged the shuriken, Kin's body doing the same, a smirk spreading on her face before her head came into contact with the wall, knocking her out. Shikamaru flipped back to his feet saying, "Ninja need to grasp the landscape and situation, then fight. Even if we move the same, our distances to the walls are different. I just used the shuriken to get your attention away from the wall." Hayate raised his hand in Shikamaru's direction, announcing the latter as the winner.
Uzumaki Naruto vs. Inuzuka Kiba
Minato made his way down to the arena and faced Kiba. "Drawing you as my opponent means I've already won!" Kiba proclaimed. Minato remained silent, his eyes growing cold. 'Naruto-kun… I'm sorry, but there's no way he can beat Kiba,' Kurenai turned to Kakashi.
"Begin," Hayate said, stepping back.
Kiba bent down next to Akamaru, making a hand seal, "Gijyuu Ninpou: Shikyaku no Jutsu." Chakra leaked from his being as he got down on all fours, his nails lengthening and sharpening. Kiba charged, his speed enhanced as he rocketed towards Minato. The latter just sidestepped, backpedalling as he dodged the subsequent swipes.
"Kiba, you really should use Akamaru. You need him in your attacks don't you? If I have to fight, I want you to be at your full power," Minato stated, catching a punch and pushing it away.
"Fine! I'll go all out now! Just don't come crying to me when I whoop your ass!" Kiba shouted, tossing a food pill to Akamaru, the latter swallowing the pill. Kiba consumed one himself as Akamaru's fur turned red and the dog itself became more feral. Akamaru jumped onto its master's head as Kiba slapped his hands into a hand seal, "Gijyuu Ninpou: Jyuujin Bunshin!" Smoke went off, and where Akamaru once was, there was a Kiba clone in its place. "Now this match will end. Let's go!" Kiba and the Kiba clone jumped away from each other, the two gunning for Minato.
Minato flipped onto his hands and away from the two. Kiba and Akamaru made passes repeatedly, only to have Minato dodge all attempts. "Damn it!" Kiba shouted before smirking as Minato jumped upwards. "I see an opening! Gatsuuga!" Kiba and the clone started to rotate rapidly, forming twin drills. Minato's eyes widened as the attack powered towards him, digging up the arena floor. The attack connected and Minato was sent flying several feet. "Proctor, call the match. He-" Kiba was face planted into the ground, hard enough to cause spider web cracks to spread from where his face had come into contact with the floor.
The 'Minato' on the floor poofed out of existence, revealing that it was a shadow clone. Kiba got up, blood streaming from his nose, his lips pulled back in a snarl. Kiba pulled two orbs from his pouch and tossed them at Minato, turning his body into a drill, Akamaru doing the same. Purple smoke engulfed Minato, the twin drills cutting into the smoke, attacking blindly in the smoke. Everyone stared down at the large smoke screen, thinking, 'There's no way Naruto could come out of that unscathed.' The drills stopped and the smoke slowly dissipated, Kiba and the Kiba clone peering intently into the smoke, only for their eyes to widen when the smoke cleared and the blond was nowhere to be seen. Kiba whipped around, catching his opponent's scent and bringing a hand up to block an arm strike from a very battered looking Minato. The latter jumped away, having accomplished his task.
Kiba produced another two orbs and hurled them at Minato again, ripping into the smoke once again. The smoke dissipated once more, revealing a bloody and bruised Minato. Kiba panted, feeling drained. The Inuzuka brought a hand up to his vision, his breathing ragged. "Damn it!" Kiba shouted, signalling for another attack. Kiba and the clone charged at Minato, swiping wildly at the blond, the latter dodging or blocking all their attacks. Kiba's arm lashed out, his claws scratching four bleeding lines into the blond's cheek, before the former's eyes widened and he pitched forward, ending up on all fours, panting doggedly, his chest heaving, sweat dripping down his nose.
"Why's this happening?" Kiba looked up at Minato as the Kiba clone returned to its master's side. Kiba staggered to his feet, Kiba struck out at Minato, only for Minato to raise an arm and block the strike. Kiba fell to his knees, shaking as he tried desperately to get up, growling in frustration. Kiba stood shakily, throwing a weak punch before hurtling head first into a void of darkness. Minato caught the brunet before he could collapse, the Kiba clone growling menacingly at him before reverting back into Akamaru.
Hayate walked up to Kiba and inspected the boy before announcing, "Winner, Naruto." Minato put his hand on Kiba's arm and removed the seal. The effect was instantaneous. Kiba's eyes shot open and he pushed himself up off the floor into a sitting position.
"Damn you Naruto!" Kiba growled, his eyes flashing dangerously, "What did you do to me?"
Minato laughed nervously as he scratched the back of his head sheepishly, saying, "I kinda put a seal on you that would absorb your chakra. The more you moved, the more chakra it absorbed. I removed it, so your chakra was returned."
"Damn you! You humiliated me!" Kiba snarled, picking Minato up by his collar.
"No, but what's important is if you're happy that you went all out. That way you wouldn't have regretted it if you'd lost," Minato reasoned.
Kiba noticed the subtle hint. Minato had said 'if' he'd lost, not 'when' he lost. That was saying that he'd more or less gone all out too. Kiba punched Minato in the cheek before grinning and letting the blond down, "Next time, I'll kick your ass so hard, you'll go crying to your mommy."
"I look forward to it," Minato returned the grin and they rejoined their teams. Minato looked to Sasuke, who'd recovered enough to stand, and the two bumped fists, both having made it to the Third Exam. The names on the screen started to rotate again, displaying Hyuuga Hinata vs. Hyuuga Neji. Hinata looked up fearfully at the screen, before letting her pupil-less eyes towards Neji. It was a battle between cousins.
A/N: Kinda lost interest cuz the rest of the battles are canon. It's kinda boring just describing canon events, but I'll go on with it, sometime this year... Sakura didn't chop her hair off, she cut it short after spending time on Kakashi's squad. Sorry this is kinda short, and maybe boring... Anyways, please review, especially if you have questions or some part of my fic is wrong. Really late poll but...
Sasuke
1) Receive the curse seal
2) Doesn't receive the curse seal
Just tell me the number of your option nyan~! Thx! :) (Sob... :'( I wanna just cry!)