Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto nor any of the characters, beside the main OC. All credit for creating this amazing series goes to Mr. Kishimoto

Author's note: Thanks to everyone for reading! Answers to the reviews are at the bottom.

I hope you enjoy the chapter, so here it is:

THE FINALS CONTINUE: AKIMI vs. TENTEN

Or: "May the best kunoichi win"

"Next match: Katora Akimi and Tenten!" Genma shouted, while the crowd was still cheering happily at the prospective of a new match, after the two disappointments they just had had.

"This is going to be good." Kiba said, rubbing his hands together. "It'll taught that Tenten what we rookie nine are really made of!"

"You mean what Team 7 is made of." Sakura said. "What's your issue with Tenten, anyway?'

"She is too arrogant." Kiba said. "She despises rookies. Isn't this enough?"

"Arrogant?' Sakura exclaimed to the Inuzuka, who was himself very confident and loved to brag about his abilities. "Look who is talking!"

"I think Kiba is right." Ino interrupted them.

"But that is only because Tenten totally owned your ass." Kiba replied, derisively.

"Come on, the only one of us who put a good fight up was Chōji." Ino said. "So I don't think you can speak, dog boy, especially considering the way Temari defeated you. Did it hurt?"

"Oh, come on, guys! We shouldn't be fighting." Sakura shrugged. "Besides, as long as you survive, and learn from your mistakes, then no battle will be truly lost."

"And when did you get so, munch, munch, wise, Sakura?" Chōji asked.

"Akimi told me her grandfather always said it to her after their spars."

"Hosh, mina-san!" an enthusiastic voice cried out, interrupting their small bickering.

They all turned. "Lee-san!" Sakura greeted with a warm small.

The genin, clad in his hospital clothes, was there, in front of a smirking Guy.

"Did I miss out much?" he asked, limping towards them with the help of his clutches.

The genins quickly made some room for him.

"No, Naruto and Neji fought, then they delayed Sasuke's match because he is late. Kankurō has given up, so Akimi and Tenten are up next." Ino explained.

"Yosh!" Lee exclaimed. "I hope your friend Naruto-kun isn't hurt too much."

Kiba frowned. "What do you mean? He is unscratched!"

Lee looked surprised. "Nani? Did he give up?"

"No, he simply kicked Neji's ass!" Kiba shouted. "He was amazing!"

"What? He beat Neji?"

Gai frowned. 'Ah, how impressive! You trained him well, my rival. And Neji definitely needed to be defeated once. It may be good for his attitude.' He looked down at the arena. 'I hope Tenten does well in this match.'

Sakura smiled gently at him. "He did."

Lee was very shocked. 'He did what I could not... why does everyone surpass me?' "Naruto-kun is very youthful. I hope he will agree to spar with me sooner later." he smiled, a little forcefully. "What matters is that I am in time to see Tenten's youthful match! GO TENTEN!"

"I won't make the same mistake Neji did." Tenten seriously said. "I'm not underestimating you."

Akimi smiled. "Are you? Good." she replied. "It's always an honour to fight a kunoichi who does live up to the name!"

"You hate fan girls too?"

"With all my being." Akimi smirked. "It looks like the crowd is thirsty for some action... let's give them what they want, uh? No hard feelings."

"May the best kunoichi win!"

Genma listened to the conversation with a serene smile. 'Ah, this is refreshing after the animosity of last match.' "Very well... begin!"

Immediately Tenten jumped back, dropping into a semi defensive stance and staring intently at her foe. Akimi tilted her head, smiled again, then assumed the semi crouched stance of her style as well, returning Tenten's gaze as well.

From his position, Sarutobi was impressed. 'Tenten's distance with the enemy is amazing... not too far, not too close. She can both deal with offence, or defence. But then again, Akimi has always a way to surprise you, doesn't she?'

In fact, Tenten was intently studying Akimi's face, watching out for any movements and wondering how the younger and less experienced girl would attack. Or how she was going to attack. Tenten saw her opponent slowly moving her left hand towards her belt. She had almost missed it.

Akimi was relaxed. 'I need to show the judges I have got the skills to be a chūnin. I also must save my chakra. So no fancy moves.' She considered. 'She is waiting for me to act, since she doesn't know basically anything about my fighting style. But I do know the she is a weapon specialist. I can sense a lot of storage scrolls on her. She isn't going to run out of ammo. My best shot is to engage her at close combat, seeing how good she is. I can easily create a distraction with ninjutsu and escape if she is too strong to handle. And one, two, three...'

Akimi moved suddenly, throwing a dozen of shurikens at Tenten with her left hand. She didn't wait for the other girl to parry – she knew Tenten was going to parry – and immediately leaped forwards, boosting her momentum with chakra. She was midway when she activated one of the special seals she had on her right glove and took out her folded Fūma Shuriken.

Tenten, as predicted, easily deflected the projectiles coming her way with a kunai, just in time to see Akimi's charge. She sidestepped, hoping the other girl would not be able to change the direction of her charge... to no avail, because Akimi gracefully turned and aimed a stab to her left shoulder. Fortunately Tenten managed to unseal a melee weapon as well, more precisely a short sword, and used it to block the attack.

'She is definitely quicker than me.' Akimi thought, as the two were locked in a standoff. 'But I think I'm a little stronger...' suddenly, she pushed vehemently, forcing Tenten to twist her arm, before jumping away to avoid any injuries. Akimi turned on her heel, crouching, then bounced again towards the other girl.

'She almost looks like a tiger...' Tenten considered, parrying the violent slash Akimi delivered. 'Short and powerful blows.' She tried to counterattack with a direct stab to her foe's upper body, but Akimi parried with her left hand, using a kunai. At the same time, she attempted another slash with her claw-like weapon. Tenten jumped out of the way, but Akimi launched the kunai, before disappearing with a quick Sunshin to reappear behind her. Tenten was forced to deflect the kunai with her blade, instead of put more distance between them as she wanted to, before turning to block Akimi's Fūma shuriken which was slicing perilously near where her head had been.

The two kunoichi started a furious exchange of blows after that: as one attacked, the other parried with perfect timing. It was like they had previously agreed on the moves to make.

Naruto was watching the display with a small smirk. "She is good." he said. "Akimi can't overpower her this way."

Shikamaru nodded. "She is only testing Tenten... and showing off." he agreed. "Isn't she a ninjutsu type anyway?"

"Oh, you'll see."

In that moment, Tenten ducked to escape the umpteenth vicious slash Akimi sent her way, deciding she had enough. 'I must distance her if I want a shot. We are basically equals in close combat, if I keep this up I'll only tire out in vain! Luckily I think I'm a little faster than her...' And with that thought, she moved as fast as she could, distracting Akimi with a dozen of shurikens. She disappeared with a blur of movement,

Akimi stopped her previous charge, dropping on her basic stance and swapping away the projectiles like they were annoying flies. She sharpened her senses to find her opponent. 'Behind you, trees' Kaera whispered in her mind,being bounded to a sensor did come in handy. She didn't turn, not wanting Tenten to know she had discovered her. 'If I were to wager, she is right now measuring the distance that separates us... then she'll attack big time.' She smirked, toying with her Fūma Shuriken and carefully unlatching the secure that made it stay folded.

"Yosh! Akimi-san is very youthful as well." Lee shouted. "Tenten has found a good rival!"

"What is she doing?" Ino asked instead, puzzled, although she was amazed by Akimi's performance. "Why doesn't she look for Tenten?"

"What doesn't she move for that matter? Tenten is amazing with throwing weapons!" Kiba exclaimed.

"I think she is looking right now." Sakura answered. "She is a sensor... has any of you seen where Tenten went anyway?"

The other genins shook their heads, save Lee, who nodded. "She is..."

"... in the trees." Shino curly said. "Akimi knows."

Naruto nodded. "This time, she'll let Tenten do the first move." he simply stated. "And every second that passes she recovers a little."

Tenten was pressed against the bark of the highest tree, catching her breath. She carefully peeked in the arena. 'She is completely still... she is waiting for my move, but if I stale too much she'll look for me. Not that I'm letting that happen... being stationary isn't a good idea when you are up against me. Is she so confident?' and she started a small series of handseals.

Akimi saw five Tenten jump down from the three, quickly running so to surround her. It was easy for her to spot the true one, right in front of her. One would expect the original to stay hidden, maybe behind... it was a smart tactic, one that Naruto used a lot. Which is why Akimi wasn't surprised in the least. That and the fact she was a fairly good sensor. Her grip tightened around her Fūma shuriken.

Tenten hoped her Bunshins would confuse Akimi, but her opponent's focused expression didn't falter. 'I just hope she doesn't get too hurt from this.' she thought, slowly taking a scroll from the punch behind her back. The clones mirrored her movements.

Akimi shifted a little, obviously to adjust in a more stable position.

Tenten placed a scroll on the ground and jumped in the air. She started to spin, as the long scroll unfolded, enveloping around her in a spiral like shape. Eventually, she was spinning so fast she really looked like a blurred spindle.

Akimi knew enough about Fūinjutsu to immediately recognise a storage scroll. She was only able to make out few of items there – sword, mace, Fūma shuriken, few kunai – it was obvious that Tenten was about to unleash a barrage of weapons towards her. 'Very dramatic, but it leaves the opponent plenty of time to react. Not to mention, her visibility is probably limited a lot.' With a lazy but powerful flick of her wrist, Akimi sent her Fūma Shuriken flying towards the place she believed the true Tenten to land, before going through a long series of handseals. One thing she was proud of, was how quickly she was with handseals.

As the first kunai made her way towards her, Akimi's hands had closed in the snake seal. She smirked. "Doton!" she shouted, watching the hissing projectiles coming her way. "Doryū Engo no jutsu!"

Tenten watched with a little defeated look as a shield of earth, high enough just to cover Akimi completely, appeared in front of the girl. All the weapons either embedded into the solidified mud or scattered around it, leaving Akimi unscratched.

"Oh, that's not good..." Tenten murmured, just as she heard an hissing sound coming from her right. With the corner of her eye she saw the rotating Fūma Shuriken coming her way and quickly jumped to avoid it, watching in amazement as if flew back to Akimi's open hand.

The younger genin was obviously using strings to control the weapon's movements and with impressive skills as well. Tenten noticed she had jumped on top of the small earth wall.

Akimi simply closed her shuriken and hung it to her belt. "That was a remarkable display, Tenten-san." she said with a strong and uneven voice. "Now it's my turn."

Before Tenten could reply, Akimi threw half a dozen shurikens towards her, before doing once again a long series of handseals. "Shuriken Kage Bunshin no jutsu!"

"Oh, crap!" Tenten shouted as the projectiles in front of her duplicated in a hissing barrage coming from all directions. 'Even if her accuracy is subpar compared to mine, she makes it up with numbers...' There was only one way to escape the technique. Up.

But that was exactly what Akimi wanted. Her hand closed in the tiger seal. "Goukakyuu." she whispered and sent a massive fireball against the raising form of Tenten.

Tenten's eyes widened in fear and surprise, before her training kicked in and she regained her bearings. 'Thank the kami sensei told me to work on some kind of defence!' "Kai!" she swiftly grabbed the iron, round shield she summoned and hid behind it.

The fire clashed with the metal, the heat so strong she could actually feel it. 'Damn it, that's vicious!' Tenten eventually had to let the object go because it was too hot, the metal melted. Fortunately the fireball had dispersed by then. Tenten landed on the ground with a pant, looking around: Akimi was nowhere to be seen. 'This isn't good at all.' She thought, looking around.

She hadn't the time to regain her bearings, though.

"Doton: Shinjū Zanshu no Jutsu!" Akimi's hand shot out from the ground, grabbing Tenten's ankle. Tenten was used to high speed and sudden attacks – if you consider who her teammates were it's not so surprising – so she reacted in a split second, jumping upwards to pull an opposite force to Akimi's grasp. Her foe was stubborn, though, and stronger than her.

Tenten kept her cool and threw a shuriken at Akimi's hand. Her aim true, she successfully wounded the younger girl. Akimi's grasp lessened ever so slightly and it was enough for Tenten to run free. With a sigh, Akimi retreated her hand, just before she jumped out from the ground to face her opponent once again. One difference was easily visible, nevertheless: she was panting.

Tenten forced herself not to smile. 'She is tired. I bet she was sure she could entrap me with her last jutsu and end this! But she didn't. And one thing I learned, a tired opponent is a sloppy one. I can finish this.' She was going to exploit that moment and immediately started to throw kunai and shurikens at Akimi.

Akimi ducked at the last good second, before leaping toward Tenten. She was obviously looking for a taijutsu match. Tenten didn't. The two kunoichi started a game of chase with each other, the older girl trying to distance Akimi to use her weapon proficiency against her. To the many experienced eyes in the audience it was clear that the battle had turned... apparently in favour of Tenten, because Akimi's movement were obviously slower and seemingly weaker as well.

Only few weren't thinking among those lines. One was the Sandaime Hokage who knew very well Akimi's stamina was astonishing in her own, very personal way. She was not a powerhouse like Naruto but she did have more than the average genin.

The others were the girl's teammates.

"Mmm." Naruto said, leaning a little more against the railing. "Interesting."

Shino looked at him, frowning. "Akimi is able to keep up with you when we do 'team survival training.' There is no way she is already that tired. What is she up to?"

The blonde shrugged. "Look at her hand, Shino."

The bug user complied... and smirked: there was no blood where Tenten had hit her minutes before. "I see." he said. "You aren't the only one who can act."

"Well, you know 'mi-chan and I taught each other everything we know. Right?" Naruto laughed. "The match is over."

Eventually, after Tenten almost managed to hit Akimi, the older girl found herself in a perfect spot for her final attack. Her foe had gotten slower and slower and finally she had distanced her enough. Tenten took out two scrolls, trying not to smile too smugly. She tossed them on the ground behind her and went through a small set of handseals. "Sōshōryū" she screamed.

Akimi seemed cautious – and worried - as she looked the two smoke dragon raising near Tenten, looking somehow very threatening. She started to retreat even as Tenten jumped between the two scrolls. Then, without further ado, a massive barrage of weapons started to fly towards her. She tried to parry and dodge them, but was inevitably hit.

Tenten landed on the ground, watching with a sigh of relief the sight of Akimi crushing on the ground, holding a particularly nasty wound on her stomach. 'She is going to recover in a few months. I didn't really want to hurt her so badly...'

"YES, GO TENTEN! THAT WAS SO YOUTHFUL!"

"I can't believe it." Sakura exclaimed. "Tenten beat Akimi!"

"Well, if you think about it, she has a whole year of experience to back her up." Ino said. "We are rookies."

"Yes, but..."

"Tenten hasn't won, I am afraid." Gai seriously said. "But she put up a youthful fight! I'm very proud of her."

"Check mate." Naruto calmly said. "How long have they been fighting for?"

"Almost half an hour." Shino replied, bored. "It has been a good show."

Genma slowly got closer to Akimi, kneeling to assess her injuries. With a sigh he got up and raised his right arm. "Winner Ten..." he started.

And then Akimi's form slowly melted to reveal... mud.

Tenten cursed, immediately going to the defensive... only to discover she couldn't. With horror, she noticed the small seal tag on her right ankle. 'Damn it!'

"Fudou no Fūin." a quiet voice said, as Akimi – the true one – shot out from the ground. "Activate."

Tenten gaped – or better tried to, because she was paralysed – as the cold point of Akimi's Fūma Shuriken touched her throat. Akimi smiled. "You know, when you are in a team with someone who can create solid clones as much as Naruto-kun, it's kind of inevitable you learn how to do so as well. Of course, Tsuchi Bunshin is not as good as Kage Bunshin, but it makes due, you know. Deception is a shinobi greatest weapon."

"Winner... Katora Akimi." Genma said, impressed. 'Her clone lasted a lot of time after being hit. That's probably a combination of genjutsu and earth manipulation. She is really skilled. Kakashi did very well with his brats.'

Immediately, Akimi released the seal and removed her weapon, giving her right hand to Tenten. "It has been a nice fight, Tenten-san."

The older girl hesitantly accepted the peace's offering. As they shook hands, Akimi whispered: "The strings attached to those weapons are a very neat trick, but you should really watch out for wind users. They could deflect your attacks without breaking a sweat."

Then she turned and slowly walked towards the stairs, even as the crowd cheered for her as strongly as it did for Naruto.

'She doesn't look tired at all...' Tenten realised. 'All this time she played me.'

Hiruzen Sarutobi smirked. 'Very well played, Akimi. It was a long battle, perhaps you could have won more quickly, but you chose to be cautious and in the end you prevailed without getting hurt... and without hurting your opponent. I think we got yet another chūnin in this bunch.'

"Interesting." the Kazekage said then. "Konoha sure has some powerful genins this year."

The Hokage nodded. "A very promising generation, indeed." he said. "The Will of Fire carries on." he looked intently at the Wind Shadow and clearly saw the man restrain a derisive snort. He mentally sighed and turned to the field, then to crowd, which seemed to have calmed down after the uproar caused by the delay of Sasuke's match.

In that moment, his bodyguard leaned on his ear. "We dispatched two ANBU squads to look for Sasuke." the man whispered. "Hatake Kakashi also made contact."

Hiruzen nodded. "Very well." he said. "In the meantime, let's go on with the matches."

As soon as Akimi arrived back to waiting room, Naruto literally jumped on her. "Well done, 'mi-chan!"

The girl laughed, trying to regain her balance. "Try to restrain yourself, 'to-kun. I need a little time to fully recover." she replied, even though she didn't look worn-out at all. "And thank you."

"Troublesome." Shikamaru said as the two went back to the railings. "Couldn't you have fought a little more? Now it's my turn."

Akimi raised an eyebrow. "I could have, yes. But it would have been a waste of chakra and time. Not to mention it could have ruined my chance of a promotion."

"Next match up..." Genma shouted in that moment. "...Temari and Nara Shikamaru."

JUTSU NOTES:

Sōshōryū [Twin Raising Dragons]: offensive, mid range. The user launches two scrolls in the air, releasing smoke and a barrage of weapon in the air. The weapons are then launched at the enemy in a inescapable attack. Should the opponent dodge it, the weapons can be launched again thanks to ninja wire.

REVIEW'S ANSWERS

DexG23: thank you very much for reviewing. I'm glad you enjoyed the fight! Kick-ass Naruto is fun to write, but mocking kick-ass Naruto is even more fun! =)

Unmei Ryu: thank you very much for reviewing! I'm glad you liked the fight and also that you enjoyed the POV switches (as you see I use them in this chapter as well). As you said, this was basically the first time Naruto shows his potential in public and it will have some positive repercussion in future. And yes, Akimi did pull a Kakashi on Tenten (the funny thing is that I did not realised it at first, it just came natural to write it like that XD). I hope you like this chapter as well.

RayneRodgers20: thank you for reading and reviewing. I am very glad you liked the story, as I have a lot of fun writing it, but it is always nice to see other people enjoy it as well. I hope this chapter is good as well.

Skeleus: thank you very much for reviewing! I am happy you liked the change of points of view and the fight as well. I hope you liked this one as well. =)

hector4349: thank you for reviewing! Here is the new chapter, I hope you enjoy it!

CHAPTER NOTES:

So, I got positive responses about the change of point of view and I am very happy because I think it's a good writing style for battle scenes. I actually thought of doing that while watching the anime cause it's kind of what they do there (although sometimes they do exaggerate a little xd)

The way Akimi defeated Tenten is a little similar to Naruto's strategy against Neji and I hope you are not disappointed. However, Naruto and Akimi are so close and always train together so it does not seem so unlikely. Moreover Akimi fought with a lot of caution, trying to save chakra and at the same time buy time.

The pull about Shino's affinity is still open and will be open up until the invasion finishes (but I will tell you again when that's happens.)

That's all, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. =)

Next time up: it's so troublesome...