Chapter 27: Mud
"Hey!" Kiba shouted as he pointed towards the battle field. "Take a closer look!"
Sasuke smirked. Maybe there was still something left to watch in this match.
Shino followed the direction Kiba's finger was pointing. To say he was surprised was an understatement.
"Isn't that mud?!" Kiba inquired as he glanced at Sasuke and Shino.
The cloud of dust was slowly disappearing and a gigantic puddle of mud could be seen situated in the middle of the arena. There, in the middle of the huge mud patch, was a struggling Lee.
Shino fixed his sunglasses and nodded. "I definitely didn't see this coming."
"I was surprised when I saw her use an earth technique but now, I'm even more surprised knowing that she has affinity for water as well!" Kiba stated. His eyes were wide in disbelief.
"She is quite talented." Shino began. "Making a mud patch this huge isn't easy."
Kiba nodded as he glanced at Shino. "It's so large that you can actually call it a mud lake!"
"Don't forget she created her own water source." Shino pointed out.
Kiba's eyes widened a bit. "Come to think of it…"
Sasuke simply smirked. This match was far from over.
Lee clicked his tongue as the mud seemed to pull him in further. "How can mud be this strong?!"
As Lee struggled out of the trap, he saw Tenten slowly rise out of the mud just a few meters in front of him.
"Doton. Doryuu Taiga (Earth Flow River)." Tenten whispered with a smirk.
Kakashi's eyes widened in surprise. "Who would have thought…?"
"I see. You can use water and earth techniques now. As expected. I should have not underestimated you." Lee spoke with a few pauses, his struggles against the mud were evident.
"You didn't underestimate me, Lee. You just didn't know what to expect." Tenten corrected as she formed a seal with her right hand.
Lee's eyes widened as the mud began to pull him down at a faster rate. It seemed to become denser and heavier as each second passed.
Lee gritted his teeth. It was like he was fighting Gaara all over again.
"I won't let you out that easily, Lee."
"I will not lose here!"
Tenten watched in surprise as Lee broke free from her mud's grasp.
Lee grinned at her as he charged. "What was that about not letting me out that easily Tenten?"
Tenten gave him a tired look. "I meant what I said."
Tenten released more chakra into the mud and before Lee knew it, he was being dragged back to the mud lake with even stronger force.
"What the?!" Lee yelled in frustration as the mud circled around his entire body – his arms, legs, torso, then eventually crawling up to his face. His eyes grew big as he felt his body being dragged down into the mud. None of his struggles had any effect. He couldn't break free.
A few seconds later, Lee's whole body was engulfed by the mud.
Tenten exhaled as she brought down her right hand. Jumping out of the mud, she glanced around in search for Kakashi when he suddenly appeared beside her.
"Mud, eh?" Kakashi said as he glanced at Tenten.
Tenten simply smiled at him.
Kakashi glanced at the mud patch. They needed to get Lee out of there and fast or else he would suffocate.
"So, does this mean we have a winner?" Kakashi inquired in uncertainty as he glanced around the mud patch.
A loud explosion was his reply.
Kakashi and Tenten jumped backwards and took shelter behind the thick cement divider. It was now raining mud.
The audience grew restless as the mud fell on each and every one of them.
"I guess it really was a good thing that we took seats located far behind the arena." Griselda commented.
Yue nodded. "Or else we would have been covered in mud."
Tenten peeped out into the battle grounds from behind the divider to her surprise.
There, in the middle of the mud, stood Lee. More chakra was flowing from his body. "Seventh Gate! Kyomon (Gate of Wonder)! Kai!" Lee shouted.
A strong gush of wind was forced away from Lee's body. His chakra's pressure was insane.
People shuddered as they continued to watch the battle.
Tenten sighed in frustration. Things were going to get even more troublesome.
"Looks like this fight isn't over yet." Kakashi stated as he glanced at Tenten. "Good luck."
Tenten grinned sheepishly at Kakashi as she scratched her head. "I'm seriously going to need that." Tenten sighed and did a bit of stretching. "Ok. I'm gonna head back now!"
Kakashi jumped up to stand on the cement divider as he watched Tenten walk back to the battle field. He folded his hands in front of his chest, determined to watch the match with his Sharingan in full blast. Something was telling him that Tenten still wasn't releasing her full potential yet.
Tenten stood in front of Lee preparing for his next attack. The match needed to end and fast. She could only hold out her blood limits for so long. She was already starting to feel them trying to claw their way out. The excitement was getting them high. "Now, now, children." Tenten whispered to herself as she took deep calming breaths. No need to get so hyped up. She needed to control herself.
"Eight Gate! Shimon (Gate of Death)! Kai!" Lee shouted.
Tenten clenched her fists. She was in big trouble.
"Hachimon Tonko no Jin (Eight Gates Released Formation)!" Lee began to slowly remove the bandages on his hands.
Tenten's eyes grew big in realization. Faster than ever before, Lee appeared right in front of her in a crouched position. With a kick to her jaw, Lee sent her flying upwards into the air. Tenten cringed in pain while Lee appeared behind her as expected.
"It ends here, Tenten."
Lee wrapped Tenten up with his bandages and held her in place.
"It didn't expect myself to go this far against you."
Tenten's eye twitched. "Is that supposed to be a compliment?!"
Lee began to spin to gain momentum. "You're a worthy opponent!" Lee concluded as he spun faster.
Lee and Tenten landed hard on the battle grounds. The arena shook terribly.
"Damn! It felt like an earthquake!" Kiba screamed, his eyes wide with disbelief. "Is she even going to survive that?"
This time, Shino was as worried as Kiba. "He may have over done it."
Sasuke looked at the explosion with narrowed and skeptical eyes. Was this really the end?
"Byakugan!" Neji searched the now ruined arena grounds for Lee and Tenten.
When the cloud of dust disappeared, everyone was shocked.
There lying in the middle of the grounds was an exhausted Lee. He was breathing heavily, with one eye closed. He was back to his normal state. All his gates seemed to have closed. But the image that shocked them was Tenten's body sprawled helplessly on a huge crater.
"Tenten-sama!" Yue and Griselda yelled in unison as they both stood up.
Kiba and Shino were in shock.
Sasuke looked at the scene impassively.
Kakashi immediately approached the middle of the arena to inspect the two fighters.
He passed by Lee who was slowly making his way back to his feet. He went down the huge crater hastily to inspect Tenten's body. The moment he touched her, his eyes went wide with surprise.
Griselda and Yue slowly sat down. The anxiety in their faces was replaced by irriation. Something wasn't right. They both glanced at Lucas and Mifuyu only to see that they too had the same sentiments.
"I don't understand." Griselda whispered through gritted teeth.
Yue and Mifuyu glanced toward her.
"Why is she so weak?" Griselda stated. "Last time I checked, she was able to beat all four of us just by herself!"
Yue let out a deep breath. "That's what I've been thinking about as well."
"She's doing it on purpose, isn't she?" Mifuyu asked as she glanced worriedly at Lucas.
Lucas closed his eyes. He folded his hands on his chest and nodded.
"What?!" Griselda and Yue yelled at the same time.
"Why would she do something like that?" Griselda frustratingly asked as she looked at Lucas, waiting for him to answer.
"After all the trouble she's been through, why would she-" Yue stopped talking. He finally understood.
"Get it now?" Lucas said as he opened his eyes to glance at Yue.
"Get what!?" Griselda inquired irritated. She didn't understand a thing.
Yue faced Griselda as he spoke. "If Tenten wins in this match, who will be her next opponent?"
Griselda glanced at the schedule of the matches shown on one of the many small screens scattered around the spectator's area. "That Saito idiot. Like she needs to get worried about that clown!"
"Look further." Lucas instructed.
Griselda grumbled before scanning the page once more. "Uchiha? She's going to fight an Uchiha?"
"Uchiha Sasuke, to be exact." Mifuyu pointed out.
"Get it now?" Yue concluded.
Griselda's eye brows furrowed in confusion. "So what are you implying? Tenten-sama's trying to avoid a match with that Uchiha Sasuke so she's losing on purpose?"
Yue, Mifuyu and Lucas didn't answer. That was enough to tell Griselda that her statement true.
"No way." She whispered incredulously as she glanced at Tenten's lifeless figure on the battle grounds.
Lucas looked on with a mixture of anxiety and surprise. For once she actually listened to the warning they gave her about avoiding potentially dangerous opponents.
Lee stood in the middle of the arena breathing heavily. He glanced down to where Kakashi and Tenten were and his eyes widened. Looking at his hands in disbelief, he couldn't believe what he just did. He was so caught up in the match that he actually forgot to hold back.
All of a sudden, Kakashi appeared beside him.
Lee's eyes softened in regret. He looked at his hands once more as if he was some sort of murderer.
"Don't worry. She's fine." Kakashi smiled in comfort as he began to walk away. "This match isn't over yet."
Lee's eyes widened with surprise. "What do you…?"
Lee glanced at the crater where Tenten's body once lay. His eyes widened in surprise. Tenten's body was slowly turning into mud.
"Replacement…" Lee whispered incredulously.
All of a sudden, Lee sensed Tenten's chakra behind him.
Turning around, he watched in awe as Tenten slowly rose out of a small puddle of water.
"No way…" Lee whispered in shock.
Tenten glanced at Lee and sighed out loud. Then her face changed from relief to anger. "What the hell were you trying to do? Get me killed?"
Lee flinched at her tone. "I-I'm sorry! I got carried away! It was just that… The match! And… And you! And then there was the! And then I was… I'm sorry!"
Tenten placed her hands on her hips and chuckled. "It's fine." Eying Lee with a challenging gaze, Tenten smirked. "I survived anyway."