~Scroll 46~

The Emergency Unit quickly arrived in the arena and kindly pulled Gai and Hayate away from the unconscious Genin.

Naruto cautiously approached the older Jounin, whose Heart Song was in turmoil. The petite blonde did not know what to do to ease the older shinobi's pain. Quietly, Naruto approached the older man, lightly pressing his hand against Gai's larger hand.

Gai then gave a shuddered breath as if finally gaining the strength to compose himself.

Soon, one of the medics stood up and approached Gai.

"Are you the Jounin responsible for him?" The medic asked. Gai could only give him a weak nod, "If I may have a word…"

From the balcony, Kakashi watched his colleague follow the medic. To the untrained eye, the jovial Nin was calm, cool, collected and very much composed, but Kakashi knew the truth. He knew that the other Jounin was barely holding it together, and he feared that whatever news the medic was about to give was going to be the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back. With a quick 'stay here' to his pinkette student, Kakashi disappeared; re-appearing down in the arena, next to Gai.

"… though he's breathing on his own, he has compound compression fractures and torn muscles throughout his body." The medic quietly explained, "If that were the full extent of his injuries, we could still expect a full recovery but… the damage to his left arm and leg is especially severe."

Gai felt his mouth go dry before letting a raspy, "Wha-what are you saying?"

"His body is so destroyed…" The medic gently said, "He'll never recover enough to be a shinobi again."

Gai let out a pained whine as guilt began to gnaw at him. He did not allow himself to think of the possibility that his beloved protégé could lose. It was why he ignored the rules regarding to teaching Lee the Forbidden Arts; he only wanted to help his student achieve his shinobi path. His heart broke as he watched the medic gently cart Lee away; all the while he mentally plead for his precious boy's forgiveness…

As instantly as he felt himself drowning in his guilt, Gai immediately found himself cocooned in a warmth that enabled him to find his footing. He took a deep breath, and finally, he felt a small hand within his own. Confused, he looked down to really see a small hand in his own and not some figment of his imagination. Slowly, looking up, Gai found himself looking into a pair of oceanic blue orbs belonging to his rival's student.

"It was his own choice to use a forbidden self-sacrificing art…" Kakashi's voice seemed to draw Gai's attention away from Yondiame's Legacy, "He sacrificed himself to honor an unspoken oath… an oath between him and Sasuke, Neji… even Naruto."

Reflexively, Gai squeezed Naruto's hand.

"Don't forget that." The silvery-haired Nin reminded his colleague of the unspoken bond that often forms between shinobi; may they be friends or enemies.

Gai gave a small nod of understanding as he released the petite blonde's hand.

Kakashi approached the other shinobi; all the while looking at his petite bundle of sunshine, wondering if he were put in the same position, would he have kept his own students from making the same sacrifice?

"C'mon, we're in the way. Let's go back upstairs…" The former ANBU Nin remarked, placing a firm hand on Gai's shoulder.

Gai took a deep breath and whispered, "… yeah…"

"Well…" Hayate called as he watched his two colleagues and the blonde Genin walk off of the floor, "It's the finale… the 10th round battle. Both contestants, please stop forward!"

Dosu's eye looked wild with anticipation as he murmured to himself at being the last contestant. He was beginning to see a small glimpse of his Lord's plans. He was slowly realizing Orochimaru's so-called assassination orders was truly a test of the Uchiha's strength and capabilities. His Lord did not want to end the brat's life; instead, he wanted the boy himself. As Dosu jumped over the railing, the Sound ninja slowly came to the realization that he and his teammates were mere guinea pigs; playthings for their Lord.

He stared at his fat opponent; barely acknowledging the proctor's command to begin the fight.

Vaguely, he heard in the background the plump Genin's teammates cheering him on.

Mentally, he sneered at his opponent and the entire Leaf Village as well as at himself for falling for his Lord's games. Well… he would show his Lord that he did not need the Uchiha brat and that he, Dosu, would be all that Lord Orochimaru needed.

"I'll disperse with the games…" The Oto Genin muttered, "and quickly finish it… starting with you, Fatso!"

The heavily bandaged Sound Nin watched with passing curiosity as his opponent's face puffed up like an overstuffed chipmunk. The younger Genin then clasped his hands together and… expanded like a beach ball?! Dosu did not want to admit it, but that was something he had never seen before, and his Lord had experimented on various techniques.

Suddenly, the teen's extremities, including his head, were sucked into his body; making him into a giant human bowling ball.

The large rolling mass of human flesh immediately charged at him; surprising Dosu at the Konoha Genin's speed.

Absently, the Oto shinobi kept dodging his opponent; slowly leading the blind youth toward the arena wall.

Eventually, Dosu felt the wall against his back as he waited for the human bowling ball to come barreling towards him.

At the last second, he jumped out of the way and then stabbed his right fist into the extended human flesh.

Beneath his bandages, Dosu smirked as his opponent's foolishness. If the teen had thought by having his head safely tucked within his body, like a tortoise, would protect him from Dosu's shockwave then the fat Genin was sadly mistaken. After all, the human body was composed of over 70 percent water, and water was a great conductor for sound. Which meant that it would not be difficult to transmit a shockwave through a wall of flesh.

Dosu gave his bracer a small flick then watched as the sound vibration assaulted the fat boy's body, and within seconds, the Konoha brat's frame shrank to his smaller form.

The teen, a drooling mess, was knocked out cold.

Dosu continued to smile at his win.

"We have a winner!" The proctor shouted, "Dosu Kinuta!"

Dosu clutched his fists as he acknowledged his win and as he thought back to his Lord's plans. Walking out of the arena, Dosu mentally vowed that he would show Orochimaru that Dosu Kinuta was no one's guinea pig.

Hayate let out a small series of coughs as he felt some of the tension he was holding evaporated. It's finally over… He thought as he straighten up and announced.

"Well then, as of this moment, the preliminaries to the Third Exam are now complete!"