A/N: I've just gotten an anonymous review on several of my other stories pretty much trolling them for being cliché and unoriginal. Well I have this to say to you: say bye-bye to your review! This goes for all of you who think you can get away with trolling me anonymously—your reviews will be ignored and deleted before I hunt you down and re-enact the "Pulp Fiction" Ezekiel 25:17 scene on your ass! Other than that, do read and review would you kindly?
…
[Akado Yoroi vs. Len Ferro]
Hayate quirked an eyebrow at the second name. Normally the names would be displayed the traditional way, but for some reason Len's name came out with his given name first. Then he shrugged; it didn't really make any difference what order the guy's name was in.
"Alright, everyone," he said loudly, before coughing, "Everyone who is- *cough* -isn't Len Ferro or Akado Yoroi, clear the battle- *hack* -battleground!"
Len cracked his neck with a grunt as everyone else walked away up the nearest stairs. Dunno how I should feel about this...upside, I fight first, get this out of the way. Downside? He grimaced at his opponent, a rather generic-looking young man with a mask over his face. I'm fighting cannon fodder. Whoop de fucking doo.
"Got somethin' to say, beanstalk?" sneered Yoroi.
Len's eyebrow twitched. "Beanstalk? Are all the other tall jokes are too good for you or something? I guess your material is about as original as your appearance."
There were quite a few snickers from the stands, but the Elf just rolled his eyes. Oh come on, it's not that funny, he thought, but now to kick into high gear.
"Let's get this show on the road," sighed Hayate. He raised his hand and chopped downward, "Akado Yoroi and Len Ferro: Hajime!"
Immediately Yoroi darted forward, extending a glowing hand. Alright, some kind of contact ability, thought Len, hopping back quickly and repeatedly out of range, either for inflicting pain, or some other unpleasant effect. Bluh, thinking's annoying... Yoroi suddenly surged forward again and Len turned to the side to avoid the attack. "Hey man, look, I know I'm hot and all, but I'm really not okay with just being groped in front of everyone." This drew another laugh from the balcony.
"Screw you!" yelled the masked Genin, taking a few more swipes at the large elf, "And hold still, will you? Or how about you just kick your own ass and save me the trouble?"
Len seemed to consider it. "Nah. This is boring and all, but I ain't that desperate."
Suddenly, Yoroi's hand closed around his wrist. "You'll be desperate now! I'll be taking that chakra of yours..." He trailed off, suddenly confused. "Hang on...what the shit? Your mental and physical energies are all screw-"
*BAM!*
The Genin was sent flying by a punch to the jaw from Len's free hand. He flew back a few feet and hit the ground hard. "Hand-holdin's not till the second date, moron," Len drawled, flexing his wrist, "Jeez, if you keep ignorin' the rules like that, I'm afraid I won't be willing to go another round wit' ya." He grimaced and put a hand to his stomach. "...Don't think I could even if I wanted."
"Looks like he still hasn't healed entirely from his encounter with the Berserker," Ayakasia murmured to Françoise.
Yoroi scrambled to his feet, his jaw aching fiercely. "W-what are you?" he stammered.
"Here's a hint!" said Len, smirking. He mocking put his hands to his ears, deliberately tracing their elongated shape.
"Take me seriously, damn it!" roared Yoroi.
Len rolled his eyes and sighed dramatically. "Fine, you big baby. I'll meet you half-way, alright?" Ignoring the way his opponent was now positively steaming, Len reached into his left coat pocket and pulled out a tiny black cube, which he tossed in the air. There was a high-pitched, very annoying buzzing sound, which dropped alarmingly in pitch (Naruto winced in pain) as the cube suddenly grew larger, landing back in Len's hand with a smack. The cube was now a smooth, rectangular block of iron, and would have gone up to Len's knee, had he placed it on the ground.
All Yoroi could do was stare at it. "What is that?" he asked.
"I call it Pandora," the elf said proudly, as if that explained everything. However, in a world where no one knew Greek myths, the name had no significance whatsoever, and so failed to provoke a reaction from the audience. Len beamed for a moment, then scowled when no one applauded and said, "You all suck."
"...What's it do?" Yoroi found himself asking. There wasn't any harm in asking, right? It was just a big chunk of-
"Catch!"
What?
*WHAM!*
His eyes bulged behind his sunglasses as a very heavy block of metal flew into his chest. Len had tossed it in a casual underhand, but Yoroi was knocked clean off his feet, cracking a couple of ribs. He hit the ground with a thud, 'Pandora' sitting on his torso. If one looked at it right, it almost seemed to have an air about it; like a faithful dog that was sitting on a recent kill. Obviously, the only one who 'saw' this was Len, who snorted in amusement.
He walked over to his downed opponent and reached down to pick up the block. However, Yoroi's hands suddenly sprang up and seized his wrist again. "This again?" asked Len, unconcerned, "That won't work, you know-"
"Ynmi giqvmq."
Len froze for an instant, then leaped back, taking the block with him. "No..." he said flatly, "No, no, no..."
Slowly, Yoroi sat up; the little of his face that could be seen was twisted in a disturbing grin. "Vmwuiron, cqung iqwef nvj fmgao!" he sneered, "Grnso gbioa!"
The elf scowled. "You don't want to do that," he said lowly, "The Horrorterrors aren't known for helping with anything but their own disputes."
"Vnnnda oi!" scoffed the young man, "Bbaihg rriannk, fvime."
Up in the stands, Yoroi's teammate Misumi glared at the elves. "What the fuck's going on?" he growled.
Ayakasia shrugged. "Who knows?" she asked rhetorically.
"Your teammate seems to have been infected by Len's weird religion," said François, shivering slightly, "Jeez, and I thought one 'Grimdark' was bad enough. Don't bother asking what he's saying though—even I can't understand him."
Len passed a hand over one of Pandora's sides, the surface shimmering and rippling. "You know, I was going to let you live and all," he growled, "But you've pretty much just screwed yourself over."
"Rfesa nvcy miem? Ha! Tghawmen famia jiogbnm gbok!" Yoroi laughed, a gray pallor stealing over his skin. He threw back his and yelled, "Fluthlu fhta-"
Len's eyes flashed and his hand flickered. A silvery-gray knife flew across the room and nailed Yoroi in the throat. The young man choked, apparently surprised as blood poured from his neck. For a moment he scrabbled with his hands, but they were already too weak to pull it out. Then, with one last gurgle, he pitched forward and collapsed, blood pooling on the floor.
With a gesture, the knife tugged itself out of his throat and went spinning back to Len's hand, shedding blood as it went. With a final flick, Len slid the knife back into Pandora, the weapon dissolving to fill the hole that had been made in the block. "Fucking idiot," he sighed, shaking his head. He glanced at Hayate, "Call it, Proc!"
Hayate walked over and knelt by Yoroi. It was just a formality; he could tell the man was already dead. "Winner by Fatality: Len Ferro!"
Len nodded, shrinking Pandora back down to a small cube, which he pocketed. There was a long silence as he walked back up to the stands, the sound of his geta seemingly thunderous. As he reached the top of the stairs, he hissed with pain and pressed his hand to his stomach again, but shrugged it off and joined his teammates.
François asked, "You alright?"
"Yeah," he shrugged, "Not my fault he got greedy."
…
"Okay, that was pretty weird," said Hayate, watching as the medics carried the body away, "But all that aside, let's see who's the next match…" The pictures on the screen started flying through the names of the shinobi present at the arena. The tensions were high in the stands as people awaited their turn—the names were rolling through the screen at a high speed and showed no signs of slowing down. The tension was so thick that even the blind Naruto started thumbing the tsuba of Mizu-hime.
Finally, the board landed on two names, and Hayate called, "Would Ayakasia and Uchiha Tsukiko please come on down to the arena?"
…
[Ayakasia vs. Uchiha Tsukiko]
"Are you ready for this Tsukiko?" asked Mikoto as she looked at her youngest daughter concernedly.
"No worries mom," answered the younger Uchiha twin, momentarily forgetting about her depression, "I've got this match in the bag."
"All the same, be careful. I may not be too well-versed in elf anatomy, but even I can see that while they may seem dainty, they pack a wallop in terms of speed and grace. Do not underestimate them, and most certainly do not underestimate your opponent."
With a nod of confirmation, Tsukiko went down the stairs to meet her opponent face-to-face. Her mother was right…while her Sharingan was active, the male elf was actually rather fast (but seemed unwilling to move), and used what appeared to be a kind of energy similar to chakra in his attacks. It was as though he drew this energy from his environment, sort of like Naruto did when he performed his jutsu. What was it that he did anyway? Perhaps she'll ask him about it after her mom explains to them why they are infected with Naruto-kun's condition.
On the other side of the stands, Ayakasia walked down the steps of the stands as she analyzed her opponent. Truth be told, she was not kidding about what she told that Iwa kunoichi from the Forest: their spy network was on par, if not better than the Gama Sennin Jiraiya's. Such was the skill of their spies that even when New Lorien was being founded, the NLIA was still spying on the Elemental Nations, to the point that they even know the so-called 'secret' of the Uchiha twins. Not that there was much point in exploiting this secret at the moment.
Even as the two Kunoichi stopped on either side of him, Hayate could feel the tension building up. He watched as the two kunoichi stood at the ready, resting their hands on their blades. Tsukiko had her Sharingan activated while the purple-skinned elf's blue eyes took on a silvery glow. He could practically feel the tension increase with every second.
With a snap, his hand dropped to the ground in a blur. "Hajime!" With barely a millisecond's pause, it began. The two fighters began the fight with a quick-draw attack using their respective short blades. The clash of blade meeting blade rang through the air before their attacks started to move at speeds that blurred their arms—this surprised Tsukiko a great deal, as she knew how fast she really was. She knew that while she was pretty fast, she was nowhere near as fast as a Hyūga warrior, and yet here she was, matching a dark elf blow for blow in what could only be described as a high-speed knife fight. Such was the speed and aggression of the attacks that every parried thrust and countered slash sounded like shattered glass hitting the floor.
The attacks were too fast for the untrained eye to see, but Satsuki and Mikoto both had their Sharingan active, and were watching carefully how the battle progressed. They were not the only ones who were able to tell what was happening, as Meilan had been trained to see things at high speed and Naruto simply listened to all the subtle cues. The standoff was broken when the two fighters jumped back only to strike at each other again at ultra-high speeds before Tsukiko broke the monotony by spinning around for a kick. Ayakasia jumped over it, however, landing a good distance away from her opponent before rushing in to stab her in the back. Tsukiko countered by ducking, and using the momentum of her turn to perform a sweep kick to trip the dark elf princess. Then she performed an underhanded slash on the now-airborne Ayakasia, only for her to burst into a puff of smoke and reappear a good distance away from her opponent.
This was the opportunity to press the attack! Tsukiko charged in to pin down her opponent and tire her out. After all, in a battle between speed-type fighters, the winner was the one who lasted the longest. Ayakasia moved quickly with her dual kukri held up. She caught the blade which would have otherwise cut into her head just in time to push it back and roll away from the second sword stabbing at her. She retaliated with a kick to her opponent's face, only to see Tsukiko dodging with a simple movement of her head, before countering with a single swing of her own blade. The battle soon became a dance of slashes directed at cutting the enemy's vitals…or at least to score more cuts than the opponent as quickly as possible. An underhanded slash aimed at slitting the opponent's throat by one side by Tsukiko, a heavy swing from Ayakasia intended to dismember her opponent; so many attacks at high speed before the two of them broke off.
"You're pretty good," said Ayakasia, panting as she stared down her opponent, feeling dozens of cuts all over her body. To her satisfaction, however, her opponent had almost as many cuts on her body. "It looks like I've got to take this up a notch! You should feel honored, Uchiha, not many people get to fight a Silver Moon that decides to get serious—and almost none survive to tell about it!"
Ayakasia's already glowing blue eyes increased in intensity to the point that they became a silvery white. Without another word, the elven princess suddenly vanished, moving so quickly that she could not be seen. Almost immediately she reappeared in front of Tsukiko in the middle of a horizontal cut, only to be countered by a stab. Ayakasia dodged to the left, this time going in with a downward slash, aiming to sever her opponent's arm at the elbow. Almost sensing what would happen, Tsukiko pulled back, the kukri blade passing by the tip of her sword, and then leaped forward with a countering knee to the stomach. But even as the joint impacted her, however, Ayakasia vanished. Instantly the ebon-haired girl rolled to the side to avoid a downward slash from behind. With a flick, the dark elf princess sent one kukri spinning towards her opponent, only for it to be deflected up into the air. Tsukiko only had time to see Ayakasia grin, before she vanished and reappeared above her, catching her blade and pivoting in the air for an extremely heavy downward slash from behind, towards the shoulders.
Unbeknownst to the elven princess, Tsukiko grinned deviously for a minute. Perfect! The young Uchiha simply stood there looking over her shoulder at her opponent…she needed to time this right or else she'd be rendered armless. As she stood there practically looking her death in the face, she remembered exactly what her goals in life were: to avenge the Uchiha with Itachi's death, to learn of her family's connection with the Curse of Kazan, to become chūnin with her elder sister, and ultimately, to help her elder sister revive the Uchiha clan with the boy they loved, while dominating all other girls who loved him as much as they did! She had too many things she wanted to do and had come too far to die at the hands of some smoking hot, purple-skinned foreigner. With her opponent in mid-swing to dismember her, and close enough to enact her plan, her moment of truth arrived!
Tsukiko dug her short swords into the ground and bent forward, curling her body into a ball. Using all the strength she could muster, she performed a handstand using her swords and drove both of her feet solidly into Ayakasia's solar plexus, driving the air out of the elven princess' lungs and sending her soaring back into the air. Landing, Tsukiko pulled her swords out and leaped into the air in pursuit. With a heavy underhanded slash, the younger Uchiha's first attack was blocked. "You're kidding me!" said Ayakasia, before her momentary cockiness was replaced with fear the second she saw Tsukiko using the momentum of her swing as a pivot to swing around behind her opponent and land a heavy kick to her back, sending her crashing into the ground.
Landing on the ground herself, Tsukiko used what little chakra she had left to walk slowly towards her opponent. Before Ayakasia could pick up her weapons, Tsukiko interfered, kicking the twin kukri away from their owner. The princess could only feel confusion as her opponent leaned over her and placed a blade to her throat, grinning victoriously. "Do you surrender, princess?"
What Tsukiko didn't expect from her opponent was the grin of excitement. Her answer was joyous laughter. "...Seems you Uchiha really are all that. I yield, but only because I want to fight you again!" With the assurance that she had won, Tsukiko stepped away from Ayakasia, who stood up and sheathed her blades before extending her hand to shake. "Next time we fight, I won't be pulling my punches!"
The younger Uchiha twin took the hand graciously, and simply grinned. "Same here, I'll make sure to bring every dirty trick in my book!"
The challenge was issued. They would meet again one day, and their true skills would be put to the test. But for now, the two of them turned and jumped back to their respective stands, awaiting the next match.
…
The stadium once again cleared as Hayate returned to ground level. With another fit of coughs, he glanced up at the crowds. "Without further ado, le- *cough* -let's move on to the next names on the list." More names began to scroll across the screen. Tensions rose as the names slowed down. Meilan was flexing her fists in anticipation for her own match. Kikyo thumbed the safety pin to one of her grenades. The two of them started in surprise as they felt fingers snaking through their free hands, and found Naruto silently reassuring them.
"The next match will be Baihe Meilan and Nara Shikamaru!"
…
[Meilan vs. Shikamaru]
There was no way around it. Meilan gently released her hold on Naruto's hand and started walking. "Be careful down there Meilan," he said seriously as she passed by, "I don't know if even I can outmuscle Shikamaru. I've got a feeling that he's been holding back; mainly from laziness, but I can tell he's more powerful than he lets on, so you watch yourself."
Smiling, Meilan turned to her lover fully and hugged him lovingly, in front of a jealous Kikyo. "I can take care of myself. Just listen in as I beat him down." She leaped from the stands and landed on the ground lightly, before walking towards her opponent. The apathetic look on his face clearly stated that Shikamaru wanted to be anywhere but here. If what she'd seen of him in the past was true, then he'd much rather be lying on the grass and either sleeping or watching the clouds. As she approached, she kept her tonfa holstered and instead pulled her gloves to snugly fit over her hands, flexing her fists with loud and satisfying cracks and creaks.
Hayate looked between the two and slowly raised his hand "Baihe Meilan and Nara Shikamaru! Hajime!"
He did not even have time to back away before Meilan crossed the distance between herself and her opponent and decked Shikamaru with a devastatingly powerful right hook. Quite a few people in the crowd got bug-eyed as they witnessed the sheer speed and power behind the blow. Unfortunately, her punch passed straight through the face of the bunshin in Shikamaru's place, which wavered and dispelled in the rush of air accompanying her attack. "So troublesome," sighed Shikamaru, who was in fact a foot or so behind where his clone had been, "If I hadn't Kawarimi'd with that clone in time, what would've happened?"
"And what are you going to do about it if I don't tell you?" asked Meilan, looking at her opponent with a bit of scorn.
"It's already been done."
Meilan suddenly found her body unable to move as she wanted. With a great effort, she cast her eyes downward and saw a black trail linking herself and Shikamaru. Nonchalantly, the Nara boy picked at his ear, and to her embarrassment she copied him. "You're already trapped in my clan's specialty: the Kagemane no Jutsu," he said calmly, "As long as your shadow meets mine, I control all your movements. Whatever I do, you'll do. For example…" He slapped himself in the face, forcing Meilan to slap herself as well. "...Anyway, I just want to get this over with so that I can go back to sleep, so I'll finish this quickly."
Shikamaru reached into his back pouch and rummaged through it before finding a kunai. With a quick throw aiming for a headshot, he would assured that victory would be his... his strategizing was interrupted as a sudden headache seared his mind. Wincing, he looked up, and his eyes bulged almost comically at what he saw. In direct defiance of his jutsu, Meilan had caught the kunai by the handle! "Naruto-kun said that I should worry about you," she admitted, twirling the kunai by the ring on the end, "And he was right. Your jutsu did work on me for a time. But I don't think you took into consideration how strong I actually am. If you think that jutsu is going to stop me entirely, you've another thing coming! Now, to pay you back for making me slap myself…"
Shikamaru ran through the hand seals, watching apprehensively as Meilan ran towards him. By the time he finished his jutsu, she was already an inch away from smashing her fist into his face. Quickly back-flipping, Shikamaru put distance between him and the last Baihe. As he landed, his jutsu took effect again, causing her to struggle against the power behind it. Shikamaru immediately tried putting more chakra into it, but it was no use, as Meilan tore her foot free and took a heavy step forward. Shikamaru strained, his headache worsening as she slowly crept closer, her feet bound by his increasingly ineffective jutsu.
By the time she reached a foot away from Shikamaru, the Nara heir had collapsed from both his headache and from chakra exhaustion. As he hit the ground, Meilan felt the weight on her arms and legs vanish. Slowly, she walked over to his downed body, and smirked as she saw that his eye was still open, meaning he was conscious. She drew back her foot and kicked viciously at him, making him tense up, only to stop and lightly tap him with her foot. He went limp as he fainted from fear. Satisfied with her victory, Meilan walked back up the stairs to her lover, practically shaking her ass in such a manner that nearly all the foreign shinobi had dirty thoughts about it.
…
The medics came and removed Shikamaru with a stretcher while Hayate watched, not really paying attention. To think that a Baihe member would have enough brute strength to break out of the Kagemane no Jutsu! It was simply mind-blowing. And the way she swayed her hips really made him wish (on a really deep and locked-up level) that he was much younger so that he could at least try to make a move. "Okay then, *cough* now that that's squared away, let's get to the next match!"
Once more the LED screen scrolled through the names. As the names started slowing to a crawl, tensions built up again. "Uzumaki Naruto and Inuzuka Kiba, please come on down to the arena."
Kiba's features brightened. This was his chance! He would do this or die trying! If he could prove that the dobe was not worthy of Hinata-chan's attention, then he would be one step closer to making up it to her for what he did almost a year prior. That was assuming he could beat that blind freak first…which he was sure to do!
…
[Naruto vs. Kiba]
"I'd surrender if I were you Kiba," warned Naruto, his left hand hovering near the tetsubo slung over his shoulder. His other hand neared the short sword at his lower back, "I'm afraid that if I don't hold back, I might kill you. Which is more than you deserve for what you almost did—if it were up to me, I'd castrate you here and now so that your rapist genes don't pass on down to your kids."
"Make no mistake dobe, I've done wrong by Hinata-chan," said Kiba, gnashing his teeth in anger, "But after I kick your ass, I'm going to do everything I can to make up for what I did. And I'll start by saving her from a pimp and player like you!"
Hayate glanced at the two shinobi with a cautious look in his eyes and a hand in the air—with a quick chop and a shout of "Hajime!" The match began.
Kiba and Akamaru began the fight by charging in for the kill right off the bat, only for Naruto to quickly grab hold of the handle of his tetsubo. The duo were forced to scatter in order to avoid the iron club, which smashed down with a thunderous crash. The ground cratered and fragmented from the force of the blow, making Kiba and his companion gulp. They had just been that close to being turned into pancakes.
Naruto heard them and grinned. "This is how much power I already have with one hand," he taunted, "What makes you think you're ready to take me on with both?"
"Shut up you blind freak! Who do you think you are, some kind of oni?" shouted Kiba, shaking off his fear, "You think pissing me off is going to win you this battle? Tough luck! I've already learned my lesson from the academy, and there's no way your senses are better than an Inuzuka's! Besides, you haven't even fought me at my best!" Kiba pulled a small blackish ball out of his jacket pocket and threw it at Akamaru, who immediately ate it, causing the puppy's whitish fur to turn a blood red. "Akamaru's name means 'Red' dobe," he continued, before charging chakra into his body and getting down on all fours, "And when my friend eats a Soldier Pill, things get more interesting!"
"You realize that you're explaining all this to a guy who can't see colors and crap like that, right?" Naruto deadpanned.
In response, Akamaru pounced at Naruto, intent on pinning the Alpha's leg so Kiba could finish the match. However, Naruto merely shifted his leg and brought the tetsubo down once more. It was too late for the puppy to dodge entirely; he could only shut his mouth and move to the left as much as he could. Fortunately for him, the metal club only grazed him lightly as it struck the floor, stunning him. Almost as soon as it hit the ground, Naruto swung it up, over and around his head and punching Kiba, who had been sneaking up from the other side, in the nose. He crouched, ready to jump and deliver a heavier punch, only to pause as he sensed Akamaru moving in, having recovered. The puppy was preparing to rescue his master from potentially being pounded into a bloody pulp.
Finally, Naruto knocked his opponent away with a swing, before jabbing the tip of the club into the ground with a crash. A strangling, dark atmosphere filled the air. "I guess I'm going to have to take this up a notch," said Naruto dark. He switched the Tetsubo to his right hand, "Normally I would use this against multiple opponents, but this is probably as good a time as any to use it."
Kiba tried to shake off the feeling of dread. He had succeeded in regaining much of his nerve, but he still felt that hand around his throat slowly but gradually squeezing harder. At this point, he knew that he needed to end this match quickly before he died of asphyxiation. To disguise his desperation, he put on a predatory grin. "Giju Ninpo: Jujin Bunshin no Jutsu!" Akamaru leaped onto Kiba's back, and let out a howl before transforming into an exact copy of a now bestial-looking Kiba. The both of them leaped towards their opponent while spinning in the air. "Jūjin Taijutsu Ōgi: Gatsūga!" They're bodies erupted into tornadoes of claws and fangs. However, before making contact with their opponent and literally scratching him to death, Naruto's free hand shot up into the air. Chakra exploded off of him, knocking both Kiba and his Bunshin back and interrupting their jutsu. Immediately the blind Genin dashed forward and hit Kiba in the temple with a quick left hook, at the same time sweeping his legs out from behind with his tetsubo. Kiba crashed onto his back, disoriented, and Naruto raised his club to bring on Kiba's head, only to be attacked by the other Kiba. He was only biting his shackle, but the drool was still pretty gross.
There was a moment where Naruto and his opponent struggled, while the original Kiba scrambled away. Finally, Naruto broke off with a heavy jerk, causing the feral boy to back off before he took an even stronger backhand. As he cleared some space between them, Kiba thought furiously. Damn it! The dobe was strong before, but how the hell did he get stronger?! He glared at the red-armed boy. Hey, wait...both of his arms are red now. And they've got those chains too! Maybe those shackles have sort of...chakra-amplifying seal on them or something, and that red arm is a side effect. He smiled as he came up with a plan. If he could get rid of those shackles, the match would be his! He nodded to Akamaru.
"What's the matter Kiba?" taunted Naruto, "So scared that you can't even come close to me?"
"Not a chance dobe," shot back Kiba, "But I think I've found a way to even the odds! And once I use it, you're going down!"
"Do your worst, Toilet-head," replied Naruto, not believing his opponent was capable of any such thing. He tucked the tetsubo under his arm and brought his hands up in a familiar hand seal, causing a loud 'poof' before a second Naruto appeared, "I'm just dying to finish this match!"
"And if you won't come to me," added the clone, brandishing his tetsubo in a threatening manner, "Then we'll come to you!"
Both Naruto clones charged in, leaping into the air with their tetsubo ready for a downward swing. The Kiba that they were going after simply stayed down on his knees. He had to time this just right, and ensure that his attempt was a success…otherwise he'd end up a pancake. As they descended, Kiba rolled away just in time for the iron clubs to create another hole in the ground and counterattack with a successful Gatsūga from the flank.
The other Kiba followed the first at the same time, managing to dispel the Kage Bunshin. The remaining Naruto leaped backwards and avoided being ground into dust by the attack, but froze at a sound he heard through the high-pitched whine and whirling of the jutsu: the sound of pressurized snaps and hisses. By the time he landed on both feet with his iron club in hand, he noted that a weight on both arms had been lifted. No, this was not good—and the fact that this was done in an entire stadium of genin was what compounded the error in addition to the pain he was now receiving!
"What's the matter, dobe?" mocked Kiba, holding two of the shackles in his hand as he watched Naruto grab both of his arms in pain, "You suffering some kind of withdrawal? Well don't worry; your pain will be the least of your worries when I beat your junkie ass down!"
"You must have a death wish," Naruto snarled, his words containing a mix of pain and anger, "If you want to get out of this alive, mutt, then you'll give me those back right fucking now. You have no idea what you've just done!"
The Inuzuka heir simply smirked, not realizing the danger he was in. Akamaru, on the other hand, was petrified by the anger suddenly radiating off of Naruto—terrified enough to drop the shackles in his hands. "What? And let you get your undeserved strength back? Puh-lease! How stupid do you think I am? It doesn't take an idiot to figure out that your shackles are a power amplifier, giving you an extra boost of chakra for all those fancy jutsu! The worst you can do now is get everybody to laugh themselves to death as I beat you down in the most humiliating way possible!"
Naruto was actually taken aback. He thought he knew the depths of stupidity that the Inuzuka could sink to, but this was definitely a new one. Kiba's pride and arrogance were blinding him to the danger that he and everyone else was now in. Even through his pain, he had to laugh. "First off, Ki-Baka, I think you're really fucking stupid. If you think that was an amplifier, then you're definitely the idiot here, not me." His face became downright stony, even as his shoulder hunched. "Those aren't for making me stronger, retard. They make me weaker! Congratulations on killing everyone in the room, you god damn piece of shit!" Naruto's legs buckled and he moaned in pain. The moans quickly gave way to a scream of agony; a scream that went on and on, growing deeper and less human by the second as the redness started to spread from his shoulders to the rest of his body.
Kiba froze, horror starting to sink in as he realized just how much of a mistake he'd just made. Slowly, Naruto got to his feet and let out a loud roar before throwing his arm back; a short sword materialized in the air behind him, point down with a flame at the end before slipping into a stance, his claw-tipped fingers curled into talons, ready to scratch his opponent.
…
[In the Stands]
(Team 11)
"What's happening to Naruto?" asked Yūgao, both scared and concerned for her genin.
"He's going through the real Curse of Kazan," said Kurama, catching Yūgao's attention with the fact that she was outside Naruto, "When he is like this, I have no control over him; because I'm not the one possessing him. Now he's being possessed by the real demon…a lesson that the Inuzuka-brat will soon learn."
Kikyo and Meilan said nothing in response to this development. They were too engrossed by the sight before them. Something in their minds was telling them to 'serve the master' as they gazed upon Naruto, not to mention that their already natural desire for him had intensified. What was happening to them? While Yūgao looked around at Team Seven, she saw that the Uchiha family was dead-silent, watching the fight with bated breath…the looks on the twins' faces were unreadable, but there was horror on Mikoto's face.
(Team 8)
The roar had been brief, but it sent shivers of terror up the spines of all that heard it. Everyone had differing reactions to the transformation. "I have a bad feeling about this," Kurenai murmured, "And I don't doubt that Kiba is going to pay with his life."
"Kurenai-sensei, I think would be a logical idea to get Kiba out of there immediately," gasped Shino, his sunglasses shattered by the roar, "I believe that whatever it is that Naruto-san has become is the source of the sound we heard earlier in the Forest of Death. I don't know how, but I do know that my Kikaichu are afraid of Naruto-san."
As she looked on at the fight, Hinata's only emotion was of horror. This monster was Naruto-kun? Then again, she had felt a sort of malevolent presence whenever she neared his red arm. Yet she knew that it was not Naruto's doing (at least, not fully), but whatever it was that seemed to be living in the claw-tipped appendage. When she'd first heard that roar, she never knew what it was that made that sound, but she did know that there was equal parts pain and rage in it, and for that she felt an immense amount of pity for the pain Naruto must be going through. She wished to be there for him, to calm him, to stop him from descending any further into madness. Kiba certainly deserved to die for what he did to Hanabi, but not like this. Not in this way.
(Team 10)
Asuma simply stared at the standoff between Naruto and Kiba, as well as the fact that the former summoned a sword from nowhere. Out of reflex, he pulled the cigarette out of his mouth to flick it away, but found that the tremors wracking his body had already done the job. "This is beginning to look grim," he said seriously, putting in a new cigarette and attempting to light it.
While his sensei struggled to strike up a light for his cigarette, Choji found himself too engrossed in the tension between the two shinobi staring each other down to even grab a chip. His heart was pounding with fear as he recognized the source of the roar he'd heard in the forest. At this point, Naruto's transformation had finished; his hair had become spikier and paler, his face had become more feral and animalistic, and his teeth had become sharper, which only made the Akimichi heir even more nervous.
Ino thought back to the omen she'd seen earlier…of the blind fox that was bitten by a snake, killing the surrounding birds, mice, and the snake that bit it before it died. Was this the truth of what she saw? Was it a warning? But as she studied the now-bestial face of Naruto, she noted that Shikamaru was right; it did look like he was hurting, as if being in that monstrous form was causing pain for him. With that thought on mind, she found herself torn between pity for Naruto's pain, and fear of what he would do next now that he became a monster thanks to that fool Inuzuka.
(Team Gaia)
Kankuro stared at the faceoff between Naruto and Kiba. He wondered what the former would do now, even as he realized that the roaring from the forest was his doing. "What the hell is going on?" he asked uneasily.
"I don't know," answered Temari, "But whatever it is can't be good. It looks like our coming here for safety was for nothing; It seems that roar we heard came from him in that form."
Unbeknownst to her siblings, Gaia had unconsciously started forming up her Suna no Yoroi while shivering at the sight before her. The savage panting of the red-skinned boy was unnerving her to no end, despite normally being that way herself, and what her 'mother' had told her did not calm her down much. She'd said that the limiters on Uzumaki were used to keep the demon sealed in his arm from ever taking control. Her thoughts of fear soon turned into reassurance, however, with the realization that she had just found the ultimate challenge. If she could feed mother this boy's blood, then it would be more than enough to reaffirm her existence! She could be free from all threats to her existence before she went out to kill everyone in the world! But not now; she needed to study this fight to find a weakness in her opponent.
(Team Yugito)
Another Jinchuriki in the stands felt her heart pounding at the sight before her. Yugito studied the blind genin as he started and snarled at his opponent. She could not tell if the adrenaline rush she felt running through her veins was from her fear of being ripped to pieces, or her excitement at the sight of his abs. This was not an ordinary boy. The Curse of Kazan, said her tenant, only a handful have it. I do not envy the people infected with it, especially if they have not been trained with their limiters removed.
What happens if they are removed, Matabi? asked Yugito inwardly to her tenant, worried about what she might hear.
Death and suffering, said the Bijū, The curse transforms the victim into a savage beast and drives them into a murderous frenzy. The sad thing is that throughout the whole ordeal, the victim's cells are constantly destroying and repairing themselves, putting them in a constant state of pain, adding fuel to an already large fire. Even I'm afraid of those poor souls…they may not be as powerful as some of my fellow bijū, but even Son Goku knows to fear their ferocity.
(Team Minet)
"Geez... That idiot's gone and done it now," sighed Len in exasperation, most definitely not looking forward to another tussle with Berserk Naruto, "You want I should go break it up before someone gets hurt, 'Kasia?"
"I highly doubt there's any reason to yet," answered the elven princess, "Dog-boy down there needs to learn a lesson in humility the hard way."
Len merely grunted. "Point. Still, he can't learn if he dies; that'd be the same as skipping class."
"Unless you want another blood-sword in the gut, Len, I'd stay back for a bit," interjected François, "That little trick you pulled may have won the fight last time, but it won't work the next time. I heard a story about a rampaging berserker Minet hunted down a long time ago. The asshole got away after she almost killed him, and next time they met, she tried the same attack on him. This time the clever bastard turned the tables on her and beat her down—he'd learned from the experience. If it weren't for the intervention of her majesty the queen, she wouldn't be alive today."
The tallest elf grimaced and put a hand to his stomach, clearly remembering said sword.
"Besides, I really don't want to test the red queen over there," added Ayakasia, motioning to the red-skinned woman, who briefly glared at them, "I've sensed her power level—she's higher than any of us. Hell, I think she's even stronger than mother."
(Team 9)
Maito Gai looked on at the spectacle with wide eyes. He studied the stance carefully; it reminded him of something he'd heard about in taijutsu circles. Where had he seen it before? "No, that's impossible!" he hissed to himself, realizing what he was likely seeing, "It's supposed to be a myth!"
"What are you talking about Gai-sensei?" asked Lee in curiosity.
The look on Gai's face was mostly horror, with more than a little disbelief. He could not take his eyes off the arena floor, and as he spoke, his voice took on a chill. "If I'm correct, Naruto is using a stance that was, until now, considered a myth. A stance that allowed for an ancient taijutsu style so brutal, so effective, and so deadly that nobody has been able to learn, or even teach it—it is said that even practitioners of Jyūken could have been defeated by this style. What you're looking at my precious student is the dreaded Naraka Stance."
Neji merely snorted and stuck his nose in the air. "There is no such style! Nothing can defeat the might of the Jyūken. Even if it did exist, then it would be fated to fall by my hand! There is no way that anybody can defy fate—least of all a monster wearing the disguise of a little boy!"
Tenten glared at him, furious at his words. She seriously wondered what she'd seen in him, back when she'd tried to use him as a distraction from Naruto, who at the time was away on his training trip. Because honestly, with the way he was now, how could she have thought it a good idea? However, she soon returned her attention to the fight between Naruto and Kiba. Whatever it was that Gai-sensei was afraid of couldn't be worse than what had happened already. Could it?
…
[Naruto vs. Kiba]
"Is that supposed to scare me dobe?" shouted Kiba, with false bravado in his voice, "'Cause I'm not buying it! I'll prove that you're nothing but a sham right now! I'll make all your girls dump you for being a weak playboy! Even your Uchiha whores won't be staying with you for long! Surprised I know? Any Inuzuka or Aburame already knows their so-called 'secret'! It's just that we all swore to our clan heads, out of respect to their mom, to never say a word! And when I beat the crap out of you, I'll prove to those stuck-up Uchiha bitches that you're nothing at all!"
"Y'know, I'm surprised Naruto-san hasn't attacked at all at this point," Len muttered with more than a little amazement, "I mean, I know he probably can't understand everything, but geez! Does he even hear this bullshit?"
Finally done with his latest diatribe, Kiba ran at his opponent for another Gatsūga. Akamaru, on the other hand, stayed where he was out of fear, leaving his master to attack alone. Even as the drill-like attack approached, Naruto stayed still. However, just as it reached him, the berserker let out a bark and finally moved. Kiba's rapid rotation was suddenly halted as Naruto's sudden uppercut smashed into his chin with such force that he was flipped over in midair. Before he could even hit the ground, however, Naruto seized his ankle, swung him up and over his head and smashed him face-first into the ground. Trying desperately to ignore the agony in his broken ribs, jaw, and nose, Kiba heard another bark of madness before he rolled to the side, just in time to avoid Naruto's claws as they slashed easily through the stone floor. Wheezing with effort, Kiba scrambled to his feet, and then leaped at his opponent with a weak swipe of his own claws. The pale-haired boy whirled in a full circle and struck the Inuzuka heir full across the face with a roundhouse kick, then in the chest with a reverse hook kick. Kiba couldn't help but scream open-mouthed in pain as his opponent's clawed toes gashed open his chest, blood pouring from his broken ribs and his mouth.
Kiba only barely managed to land on his feet, barely able to breathe from the pain in his chest. Then more pain escaped his gaping mouth as Naruto used both hands to scratch him over the shoulders, followed by another two hook kicks (one forward, one reverse) that opened yet another cut on his abdomen, blood gushing out and painting his front. He staggered back, his vision blurring and darkening from blood loss. He could still faintly see the sword hovering behind Naruto's shoulder. Kiba blinked. Did that thing grow bigger? Indeed, the blade had lengthened since the Jinchūriki had first summoned it. The flame was still burning at the tip, like a bizarre, inverted candle. What the Inuzuka didn't realize was that he himself was the cause of the blade's growth; every bleeding wound that was inflicted on him was spiritually fed into the sword, making it potentially stronger. Before Kiba could wonder why his opponent hadn't used the blade yet, Naruto vanished. Kiba's eyes widened briefly, before a sudden, crushing blow to his head made him bend over—his opponent had landed an axe-kick from behind his head, causing the blood from his broken jaw to splatter onto the ground. The red-skinned boy spun around once more and landed yet another kick to his chest (a straight one, this time), that sent him tumbling back.
His landing was most painful—cuts practically everywhere, and he was getting more and more tired as he fell to his hands and knees, coughing up blood while trying to stifle a howl of pain due to his broken jaw. This was not supposed to happen! He was supposed to beat down the dobe and start working to pay Hinata back! Naruto was supposed to get weaker and thus make it easier for Kiba to get what he wanted! The playboy was not supposed to turn into a monster, scare the hell out of Akamaru and kick Kiba's ass; and definitely not this brutally.
Kiba was severely weakened, but he had just enough strength to lift his head and watch as Naruto let out a long howl before reaching for the sword over his shoulder. As his red hand closed over the handle, the flame went out and the whole sword began to glow with a fiery light. Setting it over his shoulder, Naruto charged, a grimace twisting his sharp-toothed mouth. As his death approached on powerful legs, time seemed to slow down for Kiba. This...this is it! Kiba actually felt tears of regret slide down his face, I'm going to die in this place!
Had Naruto been allowed to continue, there was no doubt whatsoever that Kiba would have died. However, between one stride and the other, Kurama appeared behind him. Her arms snaked under his armpits and her hands laced behind his head, forcing it down suddenly while she kicked his legs out from under him and pinned them with one of her own.
In his surprise at being grappled so suddenly and unexpectedly, Naruto's sword went flying out of his hand as his arms were forced up. Those who were not watching the woman subduing him with a choke-hold followed the sword with their eyes as it arced, tumbling through the air, before finally landing point-down in the floor, twenty feet away. There was a single second of silence and stillness. Then the room exploded. The ground beneath the sword ruptured and shattered, fragments flying as an enormous pillar of fire erupted upwards from where the sword had pierced. Everyone shielded their eyes against the heat and glare of the flames, which roared high enough to splash against the ceiling, scorching it black.
Finally, the flame dwindled and thinned, before vanishing altogether, leaving a gaping crater where the sword had been and a scorched hole molten into the ceiling—to the point that the sky could be seen. That could've been me! Kiba thought to himself, horrified at the prospect of dying in such a manner.
"Proctor, I would recommend calling the match in favor of Naruto-kun here," said the savage beauty with a dangerous fanged smile, effortlessly holding her struggling and snarling charge back, "Unless you'd like him to finish the job. If so, then you can explain to the clan heads, especially Inuzuka-san, why they're all one heir short." She glanced at Kiba and sniffed, "Not that it'd be much of a loss for her in his case."
Hayate didn't need to be told twice. Truth be told, he was disturbed by that woman's grin. He had no doubt that she could indeed release Naruto and allow him to slaughter everyone in the arena. He was also not looking forward to being on the receiving end of any sword that the blind genin made. "Th-*cough* the winner of this match by default is Uzumaki Naruto," he said loudly, "Now please, *cough-cough* put those things back on now!"
The woman's smile brightened. "No worries, then." With a quick chop to the neck, she knocked Naruto out and slung him over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes. Stopping in front of the (relatively) unhurt Kiba, the red-skinned Amazon winked at the poor boy, causing him to blush, dispel the henge on Akamaru, and then faint. Snorting derisively, she picked up the both sets of limiters and, with a single bound, she jumped all the way up to the balcony. She landed in front of Yūhi Kurenai and the rest of her team before snapping the first two limiters back onto Naruto's arms. "I'd like some smelling salts, if you have them," she said simply.
"U-um!" squeaked Hinata. Kurama glanced up, and almost had to restrain herself from squealing and hugging the exceedingly adorable Hyūga. Said girl shifted uncomfortably under the scrutiny, but held out a small, corked vial. "I-I made this a few d-days ago. It m-might...Naruto-kun..." she trailed off, blushing.
Kurama smiled sincerely and took the vial. "It certainly will; thank you," she said. She snapped the other two limiters back on, then popped the cork before waving the vial under the blind Genin's nose.
Naruto jerked and woke up, limbs flailing briefly. "Ah, what happened?" he sat up, grabbing his head, "And why do I feel like I just played tag against the wall with my head?
Kurama shrugged, and then remembered he couldn't see it. "The Inuzuka brat got your limiters off. Don't worry, you didn't kill him. Sadly." She glanced at Kurenai. "...No offense."
The red-eyed Jonin merely frowned confusedly at the Amazonian woman. "None taken, ah..."
"Kurama," said the Kyuubi, extending a hand, which the Jōnin shook, "I'm a close...friend of Naruto's." The corner of her mouth twitched ever so slightly at the word 'friend.' "Now, we should get you back to your team..."
"Um, w-wait please," said Hinata quietly. Both stopped in their tracks as she tentatively approached, a small container in her hands, "P-please take this, N-Naruto-kun," she said in a small voice, placing it in his hand, "It's a he-healing cream that I made myself...um w-well, i-in my spare time...I know that's n-not much, but I hope it'll help y-you."
Behind his headband, Naruto's eyebrows went up in surprise. Then his confusion melted into something else. Meilan recognized it instantly. "Thank you, Hinata," he said gently, pulling her into a hug, "I'll treasure this for a long time." Hinata could only squeak as her face flushed bright red from being in physical contact with him. Her blush deepened as dirty thoughts ran through her head at such intimate closeness. Fortunately, she no longer fainted around the boy, but the proximity still made her heart pound, and she felt an embarrassing warmth between her legs.
Finally, Kurama chuckled and broke up the hug. "A word of advice, Hyūga-chan," said the red-skinned woman, her expression turning serious, "If you're paired up with that red-headed Tanuki from Suna or that asshole cousin of yours...no one would think less of you if you backed away. They are simply too strong for you to beat."
Hinata flinched at her words as the woman carried Naruto. She looked after, fascinated by the aura she gave off. It was quite a contradiction; on the one hand, Hinata sensed a potential for great savagery, but at the same time there was regality, gentleness and wisdom. Who was she? But this was not the time to think on it. The next match was coming up, and she needed to see who would be fighting. All the same, she remembered the words of the red-skinned woman. When it was her turn, who would she fight? And what would she do about it?
…
Gekkō Hayate watched as a traumatized Inuzuka Kiba was carted off by the medics, while Doton specialists worked to patch up the holes in the ground. He could not blame the boy for his shivering; not even he felt he could survive a few rounds with the Uzumaki, at least not with those limiters removed. Still, the boy had only himself (more specifically, his arrogance and stupidity) to blame for that one. From the murderous look that the Uchiha Matriarch directed at Kiba, Hayate was obviously not the only one who thought this. He took a minute to cough into his hand, making sure to hide the blood, before turning to address the crowd. "Let's have our next fighters, then!"
Silence fell instantly as the names flashed up on the LED screen. There was a flicker and one name stopped: Hyūga Hinata. The other name continued for another second, then it too stopped. On Hyūga Neji. Hinata stiffened, feeling the blood drain out of her face, and there was a stab of fear in her heart. Then she shook her head furiously and took a deep breath. She had come a long way from the incident from ten years ago, and she would not have her progress end now! Not here! With her resolve reaffirmed, she descended the stairs behind her cousin.
…
[Hyūga Neji vs. Hyūga Hinata]
Hayate watched with trepidation as the two Hyūgas came to a stop in front of him. He raised his hand, but Neji interrupted him. "Just a moment, Proctor. I'd like to say something to my cousin before we begin."
He saw nothing wrong with it, but he could not help the sneaking suspicion that something was up. Hayate nodded silently, giving his permission. "Hinata-sama, step down from this match," Neji said instantly, false respect poisoning his blunt words, "I have already foreseen the end of this match, and already know that it will end in your defeat. You may have bested me once, but I guarantee that I've become stronger since then. There is no shame in surrendering."
"Maybe no shame for you, Neji," replied Hinata coldly, surprising the elder Hyūga with her backbone, "But I have more reason not to back down. Don't think you are the only one who's grown stronger! Proctor, may we begin?"
"Wow," muttered Naruto, surprised as well. There was a surety in her voice that had not been there a few seconds ago. While the stutter was kinda cute, this was...
Hayate nodded, relieved that crisis was averted; for now, at least. He raised his hand, looking between the two. Neji settled into the traditional half-bow stance for Jyūken, but Hinata shifted to a crane stance. If he was surprised, Neji didn't show it.
"Hyūga Hinata vs. Hyūga Neji!" Hayate chopped down, "Hajime!" Instantly the two Hyūga clan members clashed. Neji started off with a jab at his cousin's shoulder, aiming to close her tenketsu, only for Hinata to spin away from the strike. She sprang into the air, lashing out with a kick to the head (which was blocked), then bounced into a straight kick, which caught Neji in the solar plexus and made him stumble back a foot.
Neji felt his forearm and chest throb. With his Byakugan, he had noticed something about both kicks. They both contained chakra, like a normal Jyūken strike. "What is this trickery?" he asked aggressively.
"None whatsoever," Hinata answered evenly, "I simply found a solution to a weakness in Jyūken and am making up for it."
Neji's eyes narrowed at his cousin. What nonsense was this disgraceful heir talking about? "What are you talking about? It's the Jyūken, it has no weakness!"
"There are plenty of weaknesses, but the elders refuse to admit it!" she snapped back, "They fear change, and refuse to acknowledge the fact we rely too much on our hands. I mean, not that it's bad to use our hands at all, but shouldn't we expand our movements to more than the same attack over and over? It makes us predictable!" Her face was becoming redder as she spoke passionately, "So I added kicks to the Jyūken's style! Obviously I haven't perfected it yet, but there is potential for Jyūken to rise to a new level!"
Meilan found herself nodding at Hinata's words. When Kikyo looked at her, she shrugged and said, "What? I use Taijutsu too, and she's right. Powerful as the Jyūken is, it's too predictable."
The whole time she spoke, Neji's expression was twisted with bitterness and fury (so basically the same, only worse), before he finally sneered as she finished. "You speak blasphemy! The fact that you even thought of adding to something already perfect speaks levels of your own deficiencies. It tells me you have no faith whatsoever in a style that has proven itself time and time again to be the ultimate fighting style! And I will prove to you that even your blasphemous and deluded ways are powerless before the wheel of fate and the strength of the Jyūken!" He charged in again, ready to strike again, only for Hinata to keep him back with another straight kick. Even as he stopped himself from running into her, she flipped over and kicked out with a Jyūken strike from her other leg. Using the momentum from the attack, she pulled in her leg and spun, before firing another kick from the same leg with greater force. Neji ducked under the Jyūken kick and managed to close the distance before the second could hit, aiming for her head. However, one of her hands struck out and nailed his shoulder, diverting his own attack into her shoulder as well.
Both Hyūgas backed off. Both had just taken their first real hit in the fight, while moving at the high speed their clan was known for. As they reengaged, Neji found himself not only blocking Hinata's hand strikes, but also having to avoid her kicks. Hinata kept Neji at a distance with her straight Jyūken kicks, while taking every opportunity she could see to attack with her hands. But even as she fought, she hoped Neji would not notice the weaknesses of her style, new as it was. As such, as Naruto listened he could tell that the match was pretty much even. Neji had the advantage in the offensive, but Hinata possessed the superior defense and versatility. Silently he cheered for her whenever she scored a hit and winced when she was the one hit.
They began to slow down, both panting from exhaustion and with chakra burns on their bodies from their opponent's attacks. Neji, however, had a devious grin. It was clear to Naruto, with his ability to read auras, that he had something planned. Once more Neji moved in to attack, but Hinata had another new trick for him. Chakra flared from her heel and she kicked out so fast, Neji had no time to dodge. Her ankle smashed hard into his ribs, cracking one or two, before he was sent flying off to the left. He hit the ground and bounced, but flipped to reorient himself, flipping twice more to distance himself. And still he grinned. Hinata, baffled at her cousin's expression, shifted slightly, only to gasp as both her forearm and calf exploded with pain and went limp. "W-what?!" She fell to her knee and quickly looked with her Byakugan. Her major Tenketsu had almost all been closed in five areas of those limbs.
"Give up," said Neji, spitting out some blood, "You can no longer move that arm and leg, now that I've closed those Tenketsu."
Hinata's eyes widened. Is…is this it? No! I can't! In front of Naruto-kun…I cannot run away! She wanted more than anything to be acknowledged by him. She wanted to make music with him in the band. And most importantly, she wanted to set things right in her family, starting with those inflexible elders. "I always…used to give up," she said haltingly, rising to her feet despite the pain in her leg, "But I no longer have that option…if I start backing down again, I'll never be able to stop! I will overcome all of those who call me a failure, just like I will overcome the Seal that has divided our family, Neji-nii-san!" Neji's face twisted with anger at the honorific, but said nothing.
She struggled to reassume her stance, panting from the agony of her Tenketsu attempting to re-open themselves. It was impossible, but damn it she would try! She tried to get into a stance with one hand, but Neji had crossed the distance between them and struck her shoulder hard, making her stagger and fall down again. "Your fate is to remain weak, Hinata-sama," he spat, turning his back on her, "My eyes see the truth, and you will never succeed in making yourself better. Just like you will never mend the rift between the Branch and Main houses. "
"You're wrong." Neji froze. Hinata sat up, coughing up blood, but continued. "Your eyes…see nothing, Neji-nii-san." Once more, slowly, painfully and shakily, she stood up, gazing defiantly at her cousin. "You talk about me fighting fate…but it looks to me like you are the one fighting your fate. Just like…you are the one who has been hurt the most by our family's pride and arrogance." Neji turned around slowly. For a moment, she thought she saw shock and confusion in his blue-tinted eyes, before pure rage suffused his face. He charged with a yell of anger, aiming to hurl a Jyūken strike directly into her heart. I…can't dodge this one, Hinata thought sadly. Time seemed to slow down for her. She closed her eyes. At this point, she only had two regrets: first, that she would not be able to say good bye to Hanabi. And secondly…she had never gotten to tell Naruto her feelings. Would he even have returned them?
"Please. Keep going," hissed a furious voice. Hinata's eyes snapped open and she stared. Neji was being pinned by the Proctor Gekkō Hayate, who gripped his attacking wrist; Naruto's sensei Yūgao, who held her blade at his stomach; and his own sensei Maito Gai, who was holding him back from under his arms. In front of him was Naruto, who was hefting his tetsubo in a low stance, and looked as if he were about to castrate him. Hinata almost gasped as she looked at Naruto's face (the little of it she could see, anyway), which was twisted with a fury that far surpassed the one in Neji. "Go on," he repeated, the runes on his limiters glowing ominously, "Just give me an excuse to wipe out your descendants!"
"Neji, you promised that you wouldn't involve your family matters in the exams!" Gai growled at Neji, looking extremely disappointed, "So explain to me why three Jōnin are holding you back from losing your manhood to a Genin because you just tried to kill your cousin."
The Hyūga prodigy only scoffed. "She's already beaten." But he relaxed, and the Jōnin had to let him go.
Suddenly, Hinata gasped and started coughing up copious amounts of blood, before her legs finally gave out and she collapsed. Instantly dropping his tetsubo, Naruto caught her before she hit the ground, frantically putting two fingers to her neck. "She's alive, but her heartbeat's erratic!" he said, panicking, "She needs medical attention NOW!"
Kurenai immediately took her student from him and ran off. She needed to hurry, or her precious student might die! Gai and Yūgao both walked back to the stands, giving Neji the evil eye. Wishing he could join them, Hayate sighed quietly and raised his left hand. "Winner by both knockout and default: Hyūga Neji!"
Naruto didn't move, still kneeling in front of a pool of Hinata's blood. "You see, Uzumaki?" asked Neji, glaring at him, "Now you see what happens to those who try to defy their fate." A hand brushed against the blood, before pressing into it. "A pathetic weakling such as her never stood a chance!" The fingers curled, blood soaking into the skin further. "And if she couldn't beat me, what makes you think you can?" Smirking, he turned away from Naruto, having finished his piece (for the umpteenth time). Which was a shame, because as he turned around, Naruto did so as well, his face a mask of calm as his fingers curled around the handle of his fallen tetsubo.
Neji paused as he heard a slight grunt. He looked around, and froze as Naruto's club blasted past his left ear and smashed into the wall behind him, embedding itself in the stone. Slowly, Naruto walked towards the elder Hyūga, who was still frozen by this sudden, violent outburst. "First off, Hyūga," Naruto said calmly, although anger was clearly rising in his voice, "I'm blind, I can't see shit. Second, if Hinata was fated to lose from the start, then how did she make you bleed?" he poked Neji in the chest for emphasis, making gasp in pain at his cracked ribs and stumble back, "Third, if you call her pathetic again, I'll kill you, no ifs, ands, or buts about it. Fourth, the only reason I'm holding back right now is because I'd rather not get disqualified. Which reminds me…" He slapped his bloody hand against Neji's chest, leaving a red hand-print over his heart. "When we fight in the finals, I will destroy you. You and your predestination crap. I don't care what either of our fates are. I. Will. Beat you. I swear it on Hinata's blood, which you spilled! Don't you fucking forget that!"
He stalked past the older boy, pausing to wrench his tetsubo out of the wall before ascending the stairs. Neji glared after the blond. You dare challenge one of the Hyūga elite? Fool! You have no idea what you're up against! No one can defy Fate!
Even as Meilan escorted Naruto back to their team, he thought of Hinata. He vowed to avenge her, to knock that smug prick off his high horse. By the time Naruto was done with him, Neji would see just how wrong he was. And if he failed… Naruto's hand brushed the hilt of Mizu-hime. He would rather commit seppuku than fail Hinata. But hopefully, it would not come to that.
…
A/N: Sorry it took a while. Christmas holidays, coupled in with school projects have eaten my time as much as Halo 4. I can only apologize for the lateness, and hope that my creative juices still flow hot and free. Also, there will be a poll as I'm beginning to consider changing my mind about not adding Tsunade to the harem. You can also tell me in your review, but please, please, PLEASE tell me yes or no.
By the way, I'm hearing word that my punishment to Kiba in chapter 7 was a bit over-the-top. If you have any suggestions on a better punishment for Kiba short of neutering him, then I'll take said suggestions into consideration.
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Dungeon Fighter Techniques Used:
Murderous Wave—the Asura lets out an aura mixed in with their killing intent. The effect it has is very harmful to enemies, causing them to be demoralized—sometimes to the point of death as being within range of this aura causes a feeling of being gradually strangled to death.
Mountainous Wheel
Extreme Overkill—the Berserker creates a flaming blood sword that hovers behind him. As he lands hits on his opponent, the sword gets larger from the opponent's blood until it reaches maximum size. Once the sword is used, a miniature nuclear explosion happens upon hitting the ground.
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Songs Used:
"Sunday" by Les Friction—Len vs. Yoroi
"Darkened Streets" by Homestuck—Len vs. Grimdark Yoroi
"We Will Never Fight Alone"—Tsukiko vs. Ayakasia
"Ultimate Secrets" by Toshiro Masuda from "Naruto"—Naruto vs. Kiba and Akamaru
"Counting Bodies Like Sheep to the Rhythm of the War Drums" by Perfect Circle from "Rage"—Berserk Naruto vs. Kiba
"NFL Fox Fanfare"—Meilan struggles against Kagemane no Jutsu
"One More" by Superchick—Neji vs. Hinata
"Arrival" by Neil Davidge from "Halo 4"—Hinata rises to continue fighting Neji
"Overtaken" from "One Piece"—Naruto promises to beat Neji
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Vocabulary/Culture Notes:
Oni—the Japanese ogre; normally horn-headed and humanoid, these yōkai are barbaric and strong. They are so strong that they are normally seen using clubs of all kinds with about the same skill as a samurai swordsman, and it does not help that said clubs are rumored to be magical (hence the saying 'oni ni kanabo'). In olden days, not all oni were bad but were given a bad rep later on to make the samurai look better much like the dragons of European mythology, such that 'oni' often refers to someone just plain being mean.
Crane stance—a famous Kung Fu stance in which the practitioner balances on one leg with the other leg held up.
Half-bow stance—a Kung Fu stance where the practitioner has one leg straight and the other is bent into a lower stance. The Jūken makes heavy use of this stance.