~Scroll 38~

"I mean it, Naruto." Kiba warned as he flicked a small pebble toward Akamaru, "No holds barred… no mercy."

Naruto, let go! Shisui shouted as he watched the small pup swallow a Military Ration pellet.

Doing as he was told, the petite blonde released his prey just in time to see the once white pup transform into a red, bristled beast.

Instinctively Naruto stepped away from Akamaru's frothing jaws while the small creature re-joined its master.

That kid means to end this, here and now. The Uchiha warned as he closed in next to his charge.

"Their Heart Songs are synchronizing…" Naruto whispered.

Kuso… The spirit cursed, Means they're go—

The phantom's explanation was cut short when Kiba suddenly shouted.

"Ninja Art of Beast Mimicry! Jujin Bunshin! Man-Beast Doppelgangers!"

"Not good…" Naruto mumbled as he looked at not one Kiba but two.

Really not good. Shisui remarked with a scowl on his usually cheerful face, That was a Hyorogan, a military ration pellet, that the mutt just ate. They are a class of nutritional supplements… meaning their chakras probably have doubled their normal level.

"Really not good." The petite teen stressed at his companion's explanation.

"Shikyaku no Jutsu! Down on All Fours Techniques!" The Inuzuka growled, attacking Naruto.

The petite blonde barely managed to defend himself and dodge the wild-haired pair's continuous attacks.

"Take this!" Kiba snarled, "Man-Beast Ultimate Taijutsu! Gatsunga! Fang over Fang!"

NARUTO! Shisui shouted as he rushed over to where the smaller Genin had fallen as he struggled to his feet.

"This perfectly illustrates the difference between our levels of strength…" The brunette gloated.

"I…" Naruto breathlessly panted, "won't lose… have to… stronger… protect what's precious…"

"Protect what's precious?" The wild-haired teen scoffed, "You can't even beat me! No one's deluded enough to think you really have what it takes to protect 'what's precious'…" He sneered before smirking, "Tell you what, though… I'll protect whatever is 'precious' for you!"

"Naruto!" Sakura's voice echoed throughout the arena, "Get up!"

His eyes were closed as he took a deep breath and exhaled, lifting his head up.

He rose to his feet. His glowing Kashmir Sapphire eyes locked onto his opponent and never wavered.

"If you try to come between me…" Naruto quietly and calmly spoke, "and protecting my precious treasure… you'll whimper… like a whipped dog!"

Well, you're in for it now, kid. Shisui thought as he almost felt sorry for the Inuzuka… keyword being 'almost'.

It was a known fact that Kistune guarded their treasure just as fiercely as a dragon. And while most assumed a Kistune's treasure was made of gold, silver and jewels, it was actually a misperception, especially in case of Naruto's treasure. For Naruto, his Kitsune treasure was his precious people, and for the Inuzuka to insinuate that he could better protect Naruto's treasure was tantamount to declaring open war.

"Geez…" Kiba dismissed, "You're a stubborn one, aren't you?"

Ungh… The blonde grunted as he barely dodged the pair's attack despite having seen the technique already.

Naruto broke away from the attack.

"We're not done yet!" Kiba threatened.

The smaller Genin knew that his only chance was to take one of the pair out, preferable the Inuzuka. The trick was to determine who was who. His eyes lit up as a rough plan took root in his mind. It would be a gamble, but if it worked, he would have the upper hand in this match.

Here goes nothing… and everything!

Weaving his hands together, Naruto instantly transformed into a third Kiba.

Ah! Shisui smirked as the smoke cleared, revealing three Kibas, Clever little fox… by transforming into Inuzuka, the real brat won't know which is his mutt and which is Naruto… and the same goes for the mutt, but Naruto knows who his enemies are and will strike with impunity!

"A word of warning…" Kiba growled, "I was careless before, but now I'm on to you. Your art of transformation trick no longer works on me…

"And here's the reason why…" The brunette grabbed a clone and punched him, causing the clone to fly through the air, "I can smell you!

"Never underestimate a canine's olfactory acuity!"

The knocked out clone groaned.

"I win." The wild-haired teen gloated, but his cheer morphed into utter shock when he witnessed the clone's disguise drop, revealing…

"AKAMARU!"

Enraged that he had been tricked into attacking his partner, Kiba viciously attacked the other clone.

The other clone flew farther than the first clone had, de-spelling the ninjutsu… but instead of revealing a battered blonde… it revealed a battered pup.

Kiba let out a pained whine in confusion.

Turning around, the brunette watched in a daze as Naruto suddenly appeared and delivered a bruising high kick, sending the Inuzuka through the air and landing just a foot away from the down pup.

YES! Shisui cheered at the blonde's little trick on the brunette.

"You should really think about the consequences of throwing those techniques around…" Naruto cautioned his opponent, "Otherwise they'll just be used against you."

Kiba only growled as he got to his feet, armed with shuriken.

Naruto ran his hand through his hair, securing this hitai-ate tighter around his head.

Need to draw him closer for this to work… He thought as he tensed up and weaved his hands together.

"Let's try this new move I've been practicing… that should end this fast!"

I don't recognize the technique, but-! The brunette thought as he fired off his shuriken in rapid succession, all I have to do is keep him from releasing it!

Effortlessly, the blonde dodged the shuriken with the grace of a dancer.

Kiba then charged, activating his Down-on-All-Fours technique.

The Inuzuka landed behind the blonde.

"Too late!" The wild-haired teen growled, "Take this -!"

Suddenly it was as if time had slowed down…

Naruto lunged into the air, flipping over the Inuzuka at the same time breaking a capsule in front of the brunette's nose then using the youth's back as a springboard to do a series of backflips away from Kiba.

"AARGH!" The feral teen howled as he dropped to one knee and holding onto his nose, "GAAAH…"

"That, my friend," Naruto spoke, "was the essence of the titan arum, or better known as the corpse flower. That beast mimicry skill you have, gives you your heightened sense of smell, making it tens of thousands of times sharper than normal… and thanks to that little flower, your nose is your undoing…

"Normally, I wouldn't kick a guy while he's down, but you dared to come between me and my treasure." It was the blonde's turn to growl, "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu! Art of the Shadow Doppelganger!

"I cannot allow that to go unpunished." Echoed the five Narutos.

Then as one the five Narutos attacked, sending Kiba's body through a barrage of kicks and punches before the brunette's frame sailed into the air and received a final roadhouse by the real Naruto.

Inuzuka's battered body crashed with a resounding thud on the arena's floor.

Naruto landed quietly on his feet, watching and listening to the down teen with a keen eye and ear. Just because he was aggressive in defending his right to protect his precious people, it did not mean he wanted to kill the other teen.

Hayate approached the unconscious brunette, checking on the youth while looking at the Yondaime's Legacy in surprise.

The surprise tone in the proctor's Heart Song caught the petite Genin's attention, drawing his focus on the sickly Shinobi.

A slow smile graced the pale man's face as he slowly stood up and gave the small blonde a reverent nod of his head.

"And the winner is Uzumaki Naruto!" Hayate declared loudly and proudly.

Stay tuned for the next installment of Konoha no Yoko: Chuunin Exams come 1 Dec 2015.