Yup, it's me again. Thanks for all the reviews for last time (and thanks to Liu, who pointed out my mistake, it's been fixed already). I hope you're gonna enjoy this chapter as well.
Just as a note to all of you guys who still haven't participated in the popularity contest: this is your last chance to do so as in the next chapter I'll be placing the results. If you have your favorites, don't hesitate on giving them your votes.
With that said, the only thing left to do is to get on with it, I guess:
Chapter #49: Battle for their Dreams
Title Page: Kusari is driving a sled, using his chain, Kumiko is sitting next to him, laughing, Ibuki sits behind them on a big, brown bag with a candy stick in her mouth, while the one pulling the sled in Kai with a big, red nose attached to him
"Before I go any further…" announced Kiba loud enough for everyone that gathered in the room to hear him: "About the third exam… congratulations to you all for passing!" Kai, along with his teammates, stood now in a big hall with a statue of hands performing a seal in front of him. Under the statue stood jounin instructors of every team that made it to this point, as well as all three examiners, the Hokage and one guy that Kai didn't recognize. The man had helmet-like, black hair and largest eyebrows that the blonde has ever seen. He wore a green battle suit and his arms were covered with bandages.
"Damn, I already missed… twelve meals…" Hanamaru calculated as his stomach let out a loud 'burk'. It didn't disturb Rei however, who was standing right before him, coz she was fighting with falling asleep and barely winning the fight.
"Hey, look, Takaru-kun's team made it as well…" Kogane cheered quietly as she looked to her right and noticed Naruto's team. Kitsune only sighed and looked around as well: "This many passed?" he got a bit surprised. "Damn, this sucks…"
"What do you know, Hinata-chan, both our teams made it…" Naruto whispered to the white-eyed jounin with a smile, making her blush slightly. The kunoichi nodded and then looked at her subordinates. Her eyes widen a bit as she noticed Tsume's pup behavior, which hid in the dog girl's jacket:
"Uramaru can estimate one's strength… could it be that he's acting the way he is because he felt strong people in the room like Akamaru did all those years ago?" she wondered, but didn't let the blonde jounin notice that.
"Look at that, Mikka…" Senkou turned around to his teammate and pointed right with his head. "Even dead-last is here…" the kunoichi only looked in the direction he pointed and smiled slightly under her nose noticing Kai standing just a row away.
"Why is Uramaru still acting strange?" Galu asked Tsume, noticing the dog's shivers.
"It's those guys from Hidden Sand…" replied the dog kunoichi. "And grass-nins…"
"Look at that, Hizoku…" Taka whispered into his teammate's ear. "The brats really made it here… this could be interesting…" the redhead only looked to his left where Kai and his team stood and smiling under his nose returned to observing the jounin.
"Huh, all Konoha rookies made it?" Kumiko was a bit surprised. Ibuki didn't care. She just kept looking where her brother stood along with his teammates.
"How many?" Akira asked quietly. Horohoro, who was standing right in front of him, looked around and then answered: "Sixty five people… many…" and just then he spotted Naruto's subordinates. "Hey, even those brats we beat up are here…"
At hearing that, Funbo followed his teammate's glare and spotting Ibuki, he lowered his head, smiling widely: "This should be fun…" he thought to himself and then threw a quick glare to his right, where stood a team of sand-nins with the black-haired boy, carrying a scythe standing in front. "Indeed, very interesting…"
"I hope Takai will manage to restrain himself…" Temari thought to herself as she observed her teammates and throwing a quick glare at Torune, he looked towards Shikamaru. The lazy jounin noticed that and nodded slightly, yet said nothing.
"Sixty five people?" calculated Hari a bit surprised. "Waaaay more then I expected…"
Teela looked to her left, where few rows away, stood Kusari. Her eyes slightly narrowed, but that was enough for Tasuki to notice it anyway. He followed the girl's glare and found himself starring at the chain master. "Oh, it's just that idiot…"
However, at the same time, someone else was staring at the young, Konoha gennin as well. Futatsu frown, noticing the chain user and then, looking back at the jounin, he just said to himself: "This time around you won't be saved by anyone…"
"Did you guys every had that feeling that people were staring at you?" Kusari asked his teammates, a bit annoyed that he attracted so much attention. Ibuki only shrugged, but Kai looked back and replied: "Sure, all the time… with so many girls around it's no wonder though…" he joked, making Kumiko hold back her anger as a vein began to pulsate on her forehead.
"Quite a few people, right Tsuino?" Nazaa bended over to his teammate, who stood right in front of him, to whisper into his ear. "And that headgear guy… he's here too…" and as his companion said that, the scar-faced gennin looked around and noticing Saiken, his eyes narrowed.
"If he's here, it can mean trouble…" but then he noticed the shadow-nin holding his side, from which blood seemed to escape. "He's wounded? But with that injury… could it be…"
"Man, this is boring…" Tetsu complained in his mind. "Whatever we're gathered here for… get on with it already!" and with that he looked at the man with a Hokage gear on his head. "Huh? What's with that lame eye-covering?"
"Hold him down, Yari!" Aisu raised her voice slightly as she noticed Yamazaru starting to get impatient. "I don't care what he'll do once his fight will begin, but if we'll get disqualified because of him, I'm gonna make him return to where we dig him from!"
The spear carrier just looked at the kunoichi with a worried look and tried to calm his big teammate down, succeeding after a longer while.
"Hokage-sama will now explain you the rules of the fourth exam, so do shut it and listen!" announced Kiba loudly and then nodded towards the Rokudaime. Kakashi just nodded back and stepping forward, he toke a deep breath. Once everyone's eyes were set on him, he began: "Well, right now I should just tell you what is expected from you during the final test, but before that you should know that this exam isn't just to pick people who have the qualities that are required from a chuunin…"
"It's not?" Taki's eyebrow went up from surprise.
"Naturally, those who'll prove worth it, will be promoted to chuunin, but don't misunderstand:…" the Sixth Hokage continued slowly, so that his words would reach everyone's minds before he moves one. "Those of you, who are aware of our history, know that in the past the allied countries weren't exactly in… friendly relations. So in order to stop be mindless killing and decrease of each other forced, this Chuunin Selection Exam was invented…"
"And how does getting promoted to being chuunin relate to keeping peace?" Reiji asked out loud, yet he didn't seem interested in that at all. The Rokudaime merely sighed before continuing: "Well, the answer isn't that complicated really… you see, this final exam… is a really battlefield… for you see, those who take part in the last test are their village representatives… they carry the reputation of their home on their shoulders…"
"I still don't really see how those things relate…" stated the bald metal-nin.
"Well, for starters, you should know that your fights in the final exam will be seen by many, potential, customers along with your village leaders…" answered Kakashi calmly. "They will be your judges. With such audience, the consequences of the fights that will be fought in the last test seem rather obvious: if the difference in strength will be visible, the 'strong' village will get many missions, whereas the 'weak' will get few. Naturally, by showing how strong you are, you also send a message to other countries that your village 'produce shinobi of certain strength'…"
"Some 'bounding' exam this is…" Torune thought sarcastically as a sad smile appeared on her face. And then she looked at Takai, who seemed to be one of the few gennin gathered, that made nothing from the Rokudaime's explaining. "As usual…" she only sighed.
"A battlefield, eh?" Ibuki thought to herself and then threw a quick glare at her brother.
"Well, I could now begin explaining the rules of the final test to you…" announced Kakashi, but then he looked back and the huge eyebrow jounin stepped forward. "I believe I'll leave that to Rock Lee, who was chosen to be the examiner of that test…"
And as the Hokage stepped back, the eyebrow guy saluted. He the turned towards the young gennin: "Hello youngsters! My name is Rock Lee and I'm happy to see so many people with the burning spirit of youth gathered here!"
"He didn't change much…" Naruto thought to himself as he lowered his head while sweat dropping. "And he still has those eye-brows…" But unaware of the blonde jounin's behavior, the Green Beast of Konoha just went on: "You all did a great job by getting this far, however I'm afraid that before we'll attend the final exam, you all will have to do something for me… and that is taking part in the eliminations to the Fourth Exam!"
"Eliminations?" asked Hitomi a bit confused. "What's that all about? Weren't the three, previous tests enough?" Lee however didn't lose his calm and simply replied: "As Hokage-sama already mentioned, the final exam will be watched by many, important people, including village leaders… we can't allow for endless fights to take place, because we need to respect their time. And as it is now… too many made it through the first, three tests…"
"This just keeps getting better and better…" whined Hogosha loudly.
Lee however ignored the metal-nin and went on: "Anyways, if some of you feel that won't manage to handle it, I suggest forfeiting now, coz eliminations will begin this very moment…" and with that statement several 'what' were heard in the room. "The fights will be individual from now on, so you can make the choice without worrying about your teammates…" the Green Beast added and looked around the room.
Saiken slowly raised his hand up. "It's sad… I'd love to play a bit more, but I have my orders…" and at that moment Lee noticed his hand: "Tenma Saiken from Kumori, right?" and as the boy nodded, the jounin crossed out something from the list. "Very well… you might wanna check in the medical wing about that wound…" and so the boy headed towards the door, throwing a quick glare at Takaru as he passed him.
Tategamaru smiled slightly from under his hood as his subordinate began to walk away. "That's a good boy…" he whispered in his mind with another smile, which would reveal he had fangs, yet the shadow of his hood hide that fact.
Kokoro also threw a quick glare at the headgear guy as he passed. While his eyes narrowed, Galu who stood behind him got worried and asked if everything was alright. The blonde only nodded slightly and turned away, but he knew something wasn't right.
Toku followed Kokoro's example and also became suspicious of the shadow-nin. "I've seen his fight… he wasn't wounded… so why the whole act?" he wondered to himself.
Lee's eyes narrowed slightly as he observed the headgear boy. He threw a quick glare at Kakashi, but the Rokudaime only shown him to continue: "It seems no-one else wishes to forfeit… that's the spirit of youth! Anyway, I suppose I can now tell you that eliminations will be one on one fights and those who'll come victorious from their battle will receive the right to participate in the final exam…"
"That's strange…" Naruto whispered to Hinata surprised slightly. "With that there'll still be around thirty people allowed in the final exam… isn't that still a bit too much?" but the white-eyed woman only replied: "Kakashi-sama made the rules… maybe he had something in mind by doing it this way?"
"We now have sixty four people, which makes exactly thirty two matches…" Lee carried on. "There are no rules; you can use any weapon or technique you find suitable for winning. Those who will lose consciousness, die or calculate they can't win and will surrender themselves will be declared losers. If I'll estimate that the fight is over, I'll stop it, coz we don't want unnecessary deaths… from now on, your fate will be decided by what's behind that curtain…" and with that he pointed up at the wall.
As the curtain disappeared, the young gennin notice a big screen. "On that screen the names of those who'll participate in the next fight will appear. And to not make this any longer, lets see who will go first…" and the moment the Green Beast said so, names began to appear and disappear on the screen.
As everyone (A/N: well, most anyway) hold their breaths, the names stopped changing and noticing the first pair, Takaru only smirked: "Well, what do you know…". Kai's eyes also widen at the realization: GEKIDO TAKARU versus FUMA.
"Don't overdo it, Fuma…" Kyuu ordered his teammate quietly. "You know the orders…"
The boy didn't cared however. He just smiled widely and glared at his opponent, stopping for a split second on the eye with the scar. "You're mine…" he announced to himself and just then Lee's voice was heard again: "May the participants of the first elimination fight please step forward…"
---to be continued---
And with that this chapter ends. Hope you enjoyed and that you're ready for the pre-lims to the final exam! They're gonna take a longer while. Seriously. But you'll get to know most of the gennin gathered better and considering that fights usually weren't that hard for me to write, there's hope I might be able to update a bit more often (not promising it though).
And before I finish this, here's the complete list of all the gennin taking part in the eliminations. That list will be updated as the fights will move on, with the names of the 'losers' either crossed out (when they were taken for medical treatment) or wrote in italics (when they were allowed to stay in the room). Those who'll win their fights will have their names underlined so that you'd know who's left on the battlefield (noticed Saiken's name isn't mentioned already). So, here's the list:
KONOHA: Kumiko Murasakki, Ibuki Tanken, Takaru Gekido, Kusari Hagane, Kai Haisha
KONOHA: Mikka Igaku, Tsume Inuzuka, Kokoro Benda, Senkou Hatake, Galu Kobushi
KONOHA: Rei Konpaku, Kogane Rikoteki, Toku Amagasa, Kitsune Debano, Hanamaru Gusoku
KONOHA: Taki Hamano, Hitomi Hyuuga, Akira Manako, Funbo Tanken, Horohoro
SUNA: Aoru, Torune, Honemaru, Takai, Tarakudo
SUNA: Hari, Sabaku no Sabure, Dekai, Horamaru, Karame
KUSA: Tobane Hokku, Nezumi Kanraku, Taka Kuchibashi, Tokame Kyohaku, Hizoku Wanabi
AME: Youji Kasano, Karei Nokogiri, Ryo Eshaku, Tsuino Furikuzu, Nazaa Hebereke
BAKUFU: Kawa Azarashi, Miaka Tora, Tetsu Abura, Shita Makko, Kasui Rein
TSUKI: Teela Juusei, Tenka, Kumo Chishio, Nobu Chishio, Tasuki Kihako
KANE: Naginata, Reiji Ono, Futatsu, Hogosha, Sentou
YUKI: Aisu Nadare, Kuri Sutaru, Yari Sarumaru, Kato Urufu, Yamazaru
KUMORI: Raina, Bakara, Fuma, Kyuu
And that's it for this time. Hope you liked it.
Best wishes and until next time, hopefully.