Chapter 22: Genjutsu Hurts

The moment I laid eyes on his, well, eyes... I knew everything I thought was reality a moment ago was a big fat lie.

"Kufufufu, illusions. And even further illusions in illusions. Real objects in illusions, and illusions in real objects. So what is your reality?" His voice echoed around me. I slowly became more and more confused. Since when - the beginning? Or was it the swirl? When I saw his eyes? When I was spaced out and placed in front of him?

I began over-thinking it all - and losing sight of what was literally right in front of me.

What felt like the trident sliced across my abdomen, as his annoying 'kufufufu' echoed everywhere. My god, this arrogant and annoying bastard!

Now that I was snapped out of my reverie caused by my confusion (I know I'm only booksmart), I began focusing on fluctuating my chakra to feel where I am. I closed my eyes, and I felt the arena area around me. Everywhere around me, people were murmuring to each other, asking why I hadn't moved, while Mukuro laughed and sliced at me every now and then.

Was he trying to give me a mental breakdown?!

My scene shifted back to the arena. This genjutsu has just been making me angrier and angrier. I let out a burst of chakra, and I saw cracks appear in the space.

Everything shattered.

My eardrums ringed in pain as I screamed from the blinding light and the pain in my ears.

"My genjutsu, when broken, causes extreme pain to the dispeller. Well, it's your fault for wanting to leave a world in which you win. You'll never win against me," he laughed. I looked up at him and glared. I glared like there was no tomorrow. "Oooh, so scary! The terrifying injured little girl wants to hurt me!" he taunted. His voice sounded awfully faint. Extreme pain? More like deafness. This idiot knows how to make a jutsu, alright.

"Don't give up, Saya!"

Who... Who yelled that out to me? I couldn't tell, it was so faint. I kind of wanted to give up, with the spots that dotted my vision. I squinted, but I could barely see. What's the point of winning, anyway? Chuunin isn't that great. More responsibility and missions. It's so annoying. There's less life for a person to live - but that is indeed what they get for wanting to be a ninja of the Leaf.

Why did I ever choose this path?

It's painful, and people die all the time.

It's a world in which I sometimes wish I had never set foot in, when Mom or Dad give me a sad, distant look.

I know they're afraid. Dad lost his whole team - Obito, Rin, and his sensei. Mom lost everyone.

Mom met Dad when she was trying to hang herself. Mom wasn't a ninja yet when she was sixteen. She came from the village of Hot Springs. They had quit being a Hidden Village, so no one knew the ways of the shinobi.

Maybe if they had, bandits wouldn't have been able to come and go as they pleased, killing off everyone.

Mom's home was raided.

Perhaps that's why she showed such hatred to the ones who took me?

... Where am I?

Oh... That's right.

This pain that I didn't want to feel anymore. It hurt, it hurt!

"SAYA!" Someone screamed. I was so angry.

"Just let me fall asleep," I murmured, the darkness tugging at me so heavily. I wanted to sleep. Sleep and never wake up. It's calm there - no one dies, no one gets hurt, no one cries.

That's because there is no one in nothingness. I faintly felt the blood pouring from my deep gashes. Mukuro laughed obnoxiously, and at this point I didn't care if he was hot or not. Rage filled me.

I'm going to kill him.

No one's going to stop me, because I WILL kill this pineapple son of a whore.

"And the winner is Roku-"

"Call the match right now in his favor, and I will personally butcher you," I growled to the proctor. Mukuro smirked as the proctor backed away to allow the match to continue.

"Now, sweetie, play time is definitely over. You should go home and suck on your mommy's milk before you come out here playing ninja," I growled to him. He only laughed. "You're about to go through a world of pain, Mukuro."

"All I hear is growls, but no swipes, little kitten."

I laughed.

"But you're already stuck in MY genjutsu, fool!" He spun around wildly at my well-called bluff.

"So, where am I?" I summoned clones with my hands behind my back. I crept around in the mass of solid clones and illusions. The rest of the me's walked around in a mass, greeting each other and sharing ways to brutally murder a man with purple pineapple hair. His eyes widened.

"How?!" He cried.

Fool, he fell for it! Hook, line, and sinker!

"Just kidding," he laughed. He placed his hands in the release sign and focused his chakra.

"Fool! That won't work on me!" I giggled, pouncing on him with a kunai. My clones all disappeared in an explosion of smoke, providing cover for me to fight him. He laughed and parried.

Dodge, parry, swipe, clang, parry...

This went on for a while, my kunai versus his mini-trident. Does he only use tridents? What's up with tridents?

He drew blood for me and cackled.

"What, don't tell me that when you drink my blood we form a spiritual link and you're coincidentally immortal so you're going to stab yourself in the heart and kill me!" Everyone went silent and I heard crickets chirping. Mukuro cocked his head in confusion like a puppy. "Oh, so you're not Jashinist? Okay then! Ignore that!"

I jumped away as he licked my blood off of his trident.

"Dude, you just said you're not a Jashinist. PLEASE don't tell me you're either a creep or a vampire! Because I don't see any damn sparkles!" Mukuro shook his head and grinned.

"My ultimate genjutsu. Every illusion I make is not an illusion. It's real. It is reality."

He's bluffing!

Two Mukuros appeared next to the original, and all three of them charged. All of them hit their target (me) who was being held down by vines. The vines were wrapped tightly around me; my legs were immobilized by thick green roots, my midsection layered with nutritious greenery, and my hands held apart by thinner vines. I gritted my teeth, refusing to scream as the Mukuros danced around and cut, and cut, and cut. Blood pooled around me and I felt so faint, so very, very, faint. I wanted to give in - to this darkness... I felt cold. So cold.

"The match goes to-" I glared at the proctor. No. Mukuro smirked and dispelled his doppelgängers.

"NO!" I screamed, interrupting the coughing proctor. "NOT YET!"

I briefly looked up to the rafters and saw Kiba with a crestfallen face. He looked so sad and powerless. The railing seemed to dent under the pressure of him tightly gluing himself to where he was standing. He knew not to interfere. My eyes flew to Gaara. He looked at me indifferently.

He thinks I'm weak.

I'll show them.

I'll show them all!

I activated my third chakra nature, fire, and burned away everything.

"Unluckily for you, Mukuro," I spat his name, actually spitting at his feet, "I can channel my chakra throughout my body. I can burn or electrocute anything without using handsigns. I train too much, you see. My hobby is training. That's all I really do."

He looked indifferent, like he could care less.

"Let me give you a handicap. I'm a bloody mess, and I'll tell you my chakra natures are fire, earth, and lightning. Those three I'm the best at. Wind and water, I can do, but it's pretty difficult for me. I guess those can be strengths or weaknesses."

"What are you trying to say?" He asked, bored.

"Like I said, giving you a handicap."

I charged at him, and he didn't even bother to dodge that well. Mukuro sidestepped, and I twisted my foot so I could aim a kick at him. Chakra burst through me, increasing my speed and strength. My kick landed, and he flew across the arena into the wall.

I grinned as he shakily stood, "Like I said: handicap." I rushed to him, aiming a punch at his face. He flew to the left about five feet.

"Come on, you're like a rag doll! The only reason I'm still standing is because I'm using sheer willpower. If I wasn't so damn stubborn, I'd be dying right now." I paused. "I probably am!"

I felt his chakra signature, and it was weak. I snickered. "Don't tell me you spend all your chakra in two killer moves!" His lack of response or obnoxious laugh suggested I was right. Well, there was also his lack of consciousness... I sighed and sat down on him.

"So, do I win?" I grinned, poking the knocked out pineapple head.

"This match goes to Hatake Saya!" He announced. I heard Kiba cheer ridiculously loud, along with a: "That was awesome, believe it! Did you see that, Sakura-chan?! Kakashi-sensei's daughter is awesome, believe it!"

I held my hands over my ears. They're so obnoxiously loud! Everything was growing dark.

"Hey, proctor dude." The guy turned to me. "I think I need a medic. Oh, I don't know, really soon?"

Everything went black as I gave into the darkness...

AN: What is this? Two updates in one day? Not to mention this whole chapter is a fight scene? No, don't get your hopes up that I'll update twice in one day until book one is over. I wish I could do that, but my hands are really hurting. The previous chapter is what I wrote over a period of a month. This chapter is the result of me sitting my ass down for half an hour and nonstop pecking at my bluetooth keyboard typing this shit. MY HANDS HURT SO MUCH OH MY GOD!

At first I was going to have her win relatively unscathed, but doesn't that happen in all the fanfictions? God, I hate how the main character gets through the rest of the battles by nearly dying, and then the prelims they're just like, "Oh hai I'm actually really strong LMFAO trolled!"

So. Saya just nearly dies in nearly all the fights she gets into. Hmmm...