A/N: As a brief note, I'd like to thank everyone who's read the story so far.

The makeshift arena shook in the heavy wind. Vendors shouted loudly, the smell of cooking fish on lines and grills, smoke and flames rising from the sales mixing with the smell of sand and dirt. The white clouds scudded across the sky, a series of clouds shining in the sunlight.

Sasuke returned to her seat. She set down the drinks on the chairs. Her face turned dark as she thought of the stranger, the mark on her neck twinging as she recalled the event. "What's going on?"

Sand gathered across the ground.

"This is the last main match. There are two follow up matches…"

Naruto shivered. These guys… Well, that Gaara guy still scares me!

"You guys got lucky. You're not on that list, thank the Emperor." Asahi sighed quietly, leaning back in her chair.

Sand gathered around Gaara's hand.

"Basically, the winners from alternating matches would be put into it… So the Hidden Sand team is on that list."

The sand blew upward across the arena floor.

"You two will never reach me like that." Gaara stood motionless, his eyes narrowing. "So far, this has been a pretty pointless match…"

"Eh?" Sasuke frowned, tilting her head to one side.

"Those two are fighting solo against Gaara. Mano-a-Mano, close-up fighting." Asahi coughed. "It's an unusual practice but the examiners allowed it… Their fate is tied to that of their teammates'."

The blue eyes shimmered, reflecting the image of a stylized chrysanthemum blossom. Neji scowled.

Lee gritted his teeth.

"On the other hand… These guys aren't doing so well. It's pretty damn stupid to take the kind of action these guys are doin'." Asahi reached downward, picking up the

"If you mean to attack me, then you must use your full power." Gaara's fingers extended.

Neji wiped off a drop from his lips. "Amusing." He glanced at Lee. "Lee… I know you are one who has always despised me. It is no great secret."

Lee wiped blood off his face. His eyes narrowed.

"But in order to beat this guy… We'll need our full power."

"You mean…" Lee's eyes widened. His fists clenched tightly.

"You've been saving up a technique for the purposes of beating me… But to defeat me, we must first both make it to the final round." Neji lifted his palms. "Go ahead; release it. I thank you."

Lee released the weights.

The arena floor exploded.

Lee rushed forward, suddenly fast again.

Gaara's eyes widened.

The fist pierced the protective wall of sand.

"Heh." Neji's eyes narrowed. "How's that?" He walked calmly forward, ignoring the walls of sand spiraling above.

Gaara's face remained blank.

"Like this, it ceases to be possible for you to dodge us…" Neji blurred forward.

Gaara's eyes widened.

The palm slammed through the wall.

The face crumbled and cracked.

The crumbling exposed Gaara's smirking mouth.

The sand collapsed to the ground.

Eh? Temari blinked in shock, brushing her fingers across her brow.

"Yeah… He's using Armor of Sand." It's been a while… But it looks like he's actually being pushed back… Kankurō scowled.

"…Interesting." Gaara's hand rose. The sand gathered on his face again, rapidly. "May I take it this is the end of your dramatic comeback?"

Neji's shoulders tensed.

"If so, then let me say this…" Gaara's face remained blank and immobile. "I shall take great pleasure in killing you."

Lee swallowed.

"We have no choice… it would seem." Neji's eyes turned disdainful. "Here goes nothing. Hell Moon." Neji's eyes turned a deeper blue. The space around Neji warped slightly, a thin blue film surrounding the area.

"Sensei…" Lee gritted his teeth. He looked upward. "More than anything else, I'd like to win against this man."

"For this purpose, it's fine." Gai smiled down into the arena.

This is amazing! Naruto grinned broadly. These guys are all strong! I knew that about Lee, at least, but these others—

If my brother is like this, I'll have to be careful… Sasuke swallowed. Neji, at least, is reasonable, but that monster on the other side of the arena.

Kōju's eyes stared down at Neji and Lee. I hope we don't end up like them. Her breath accelerated.

"Initial Lotus!" Lee vanished rapidly, his arm extending as green power spread from his shoulders.

Gaara's eyes widened.

Lee's foot slammed into Gaara's neck.

Gaara growled.

"It's not over!" Lee's body spun in a circle, his feet kicking rapidly toward the body before him.

A series of hits slammed into Gaara's body. Piece by piece, the armor fragmented away under the blows.

Lee groaned.

Gaara glared at Lee coldly.

Lee shot toward the ground, grasping Gaara as he plummeted. His limbs trembled and shook with exertion.

Gaara slammed into the blocks of stone within the iron fences.

Lee leapt to one side.

"No way! Is he dead?!" Kōju shouted, her eyes wide. I thought it'd take longer…

The armor fragmented.

Naruto gasped. "What happened?!"

"Gaara left the armor…" Asahi sighed. "Lee must have lost concentration because of fear, or pain."

Lee swallowed hard. Biting his lip, he turned around.

"Hey… is that really all you've got?" Gaara demanded, his voice harsh. His fist rose in the air.

Lee turned around.

The sand lifted, blotting out the sun.

"Pathetic…"

"Yeah… you're way too predictable." Neji stood motionless behind Gaara.

Gaara's eyes widened. What…? Gaara's hand rose, his eyes widening with shock. He's—

"Pretty much, ever since you left that dead-end spiral, I've known your fragility, and where you'd land." Neji folded his arms.

The blue energy surrounded the space.

Gaara turned.

"Heh…" Neji's hands blurred outward.

Gaara's eyes widened in shock.

The hands blurred into the motionless figure.

Gaara flew backward.

"Sorry, Lee… but the way things are now, it's my show." Neji sighed. It seems that your power has a very specific set of limitations. Given that, even if you had used it against me, most likely you couldn't have won.

The blue energy rippled.

Gaara flew backward through the darkening sphere.

"He's mastered Hell Moon already…" Gai frowned. "I was wrong about Neji-san not taking things seriously…"

The rock wall filled with sand, cushioning Gaara's flight backward.

Gaara's eyes narrowed. A drop of blood fell to the ground. He wiped off his lip.

Neji's eyes narrowed. "What's the matter? You're standing still…"

"It's been a long time… since I've bled." Gaara's eyes narrowed, reflecting the light like a beast's eyes.

"This guy! You can't fight him alone, Neji-san…" Lee shouted, his voice stern and determined.

Gaara smirked. He reached upward, touching the bleeding spot. "I said I'd come all the way through the trials without relying on your help… Rokuemon. But I was wrong, it seems."

"Serpent Child." Neji's fingers laced together, a pattern reflecting in his eyes as he moved.

Lee put his hands together, his eyes narrowing.

This is bad… shit. At this rate, Gaara's going to forget the whole plan. "GAARA!" Kankurō shouted, his eyes narrowing.

The blue energy darkened.

Gaara's eyes narrowed. "What?" he asked in a cold, flat voice. His fingers lowered slightly. The sand rose and twisted in snaking motions around his body.

"Remember not to reveal all your abilities!"

Gaara gritted his teeth. Reaching upward, he touched the side of his head. Blood dripped off the finger.

Neji blurred forward.

Lee clutched his limb. As I thought, I'm too slow like this. I can't move fast enough to intercept him.

Gaara extended his arm. His sand shield reached upward, blocking the strike.

"Huh." Neji's hand pierced through the wall.

Gaara's eyes widened. He rolled backward swiftly.

"I see…" Neji's eyes narrowed. "Though I'm surprised that you can still use your sand shield… it surprises me more that you are still capable of dodging after so many years of blocking with your sand."

I need to understand this ability… Oh, corroded bones and old ash! Gaara's hand bashed against his leg.

Lee rushed forward rapidly.

Sand gathered beneath Gaara's feet. A cloud of sand gathered beneath Gaara's feet. Gaara flew upward in the sky.

Eh?

There's no choice! Release, Initial Gate!

Green energy gathered around Lee's feet. Lee vanished.

Gaara's eyes widened. Block!

The sand rose in front of Gaara.

Blood trailed down from Lee's fist. Lee scowled. His feet twisted beneath him as he rushed downward toward the earth far below.

It's not my sand… Gaara exhaled after a moment.

"You shouldn't be so complacent…" Lee shot upward, his foot pressed against the earth as he leapt.

Gaara's eyes widened.

Lee's foot spun around.

Behind? Gaara gasped in shock.

The foot slammed into Gaara's back.

A loud cracking sound echoed across the stadium.

Naruto gasped. "No way! This guy…"

Gaara rushed forward.

"With you, as well…" Neji's palm shot upward.

Gaara's eyes widened.

Neji smiled. "You should understand better than anyone… challenging an elite on their own terms is folly. As you're so arrogant, it must be your destiny to lose on this battleground."

Gaara soared up, the palm impacting his face. …Destiny? Blood dripped from Gaara's nose. It is my destiny to lose here, you say?!

Lee spun in a circle. "Extreme Lotus!" he shouted, shooting downward toward Gaara.

Gaara's arm extended swiftly. The sand expanded. The crimson-red eyes darkened, blood veins popping out as he lowered his hand.

What the hell? He also had this ability?! Neji's eyes widened.

"What's the matter?"

A fist of sand slammed into Neji's shoulder. Neji flew forward. His nose impacted the wall.

"Can't keep up?"

Neji turned around, his eyes narrowing.

Gaara stood motionless at the other end of the arena.

Lee lay in a puddle of sand, his legs crushed.

"What was that attack?" Neji raised his hand briefly, his palms rising and moving in a circle.

"It isn't an attack. I simply started thinking…" Gaara paused. "If you can see using that Sanshigan of yours, I'll simply deflect it using my own gift. I figured that it has to work through chakra… so I filled the arena with too much particulate matter to deflect or see through."

"What did you do to Lee?" Neji reached upward, touching the blood on his arm.

"I didn't do anything. I guess that 'Extreme Lotus' of his simply tired him out." Gaara grinned. "Well, I did crush his legs."

The sand shifted.

"To be honest… I figure it doesn't matter whether I can figure out that trick of yours. I haven't the faintest notion. It's like you could read my mind."

Shiba bit her lip. Come on, Neji-san. Pull through this!

"But…"

The sand gathered over Lee's head.

Neji's eyes widened.

"I figure that, since one of the victory conditions is having your teammate survive, and you're a very close-range fighter…" Gaara's grin broadened. "You can decide. Crush Lee to dust, or give up. You said something earlier about it being my destiny to lose here. I'll say it clearly. Destiny, to me, is a word without meaning. I survived my mother's womb, which killed other siblings too easily. I survived my role. I survived assassination attempt after assassination attempt…"

Naruto's eyes widened. Huh? What a rotten life! He's like me!

"To me, this destiny you keep yammering on about is something I discarded many years ago. Ask yourself this—if the Jade Emperor existed, why would He allow a being as violent as me to continue existing in His kingdom?" Gaara grinned.

Neji bowed his head. "I suppose it was a good performance, for a caged bird." Neji vanished from Gaara's sight.

Gaara turned from side to side rapidly.

"There's no point in continuing this…"

Naruto blinked. Huh? I saw him that whole time… what happened to Gaara?

Neji reappeared at the other side of the clearing. He set down Lee. "There's no point in continuing this fight. Examiner… I forfeit." His blue eyes turned toward the examiner. "We've lost."

Saliva trailed down from Gaara's mouth. Scowling, he lifted his arm.

Sand rose in the air, sharpening into weapons.

Gaara focused, his eyes narrowing. His fingers tensed.

Neji's body tensed. This is bad. In the worst case…

"Hold it, yeah…" A figure appeared in front of Gaara. "Shouldn't you be more attentive to your surroundings, yeah? A bunch of jōnin are ready to stop you, yeah."

"And you are…" Gaara began, his eyebrows furrowing.

"Deikōgi of Hidden Stone, yeah. I'm something of a pro, yeah." The blonde-haired woman jumped back, landing in the ring surrounding the arena once more.

A figure stepped forward from the shadows. "Needless to say… Gaara-kun, your condition means that I won't accept any silly one-on-one deals. You understand of course." Brown hair ran down the boy's face. A Hidden Stone headband covered the boy's forehead. Brown eyes shone beneath the sun's light. The drab, brown clothing draped lightly across the boy's light skin. A small pack rested at the boy's side. A thin, chiseled face, sharpened at the edges, revealed itself beneath the sky.

Gaara's eyes narrowed. "Chinmoku…"

Chinmoku smiled. "Well, I was hoping to avoid facing you for a while, since I'll probably have to reveal my skills… but at any rate let's skip the formalities, shall we? How much?"

Gaara blinked.

"I'm referring to how much you wish to die. I will attempt to limit myself to the same amount."

Gaara scowled. "You're… a pretty weird guy…"

"I have to be. It's very rare that I get the opportunities that I would like…" Chinmoku's tongue licked over his lips. "But I can assure you that I will be absolutely discreet about anything that happens during the match."

"This guy's… a pervert, right?" Temari asked Kankurō, swallowing.

"Definitely…" Kankurō sighed. "Somehow I felt more enthusiastic about this round… Temari-imōto…"

"Call me that again and I castrate you." Temari's eyes narrowed.

Kankurō gulped.

"Yare, yare… you sure are hot under the collar, you two!" Smiling, a large, chubby teenager walked forward, grasping in her hand a light short-sword. Her deep black clothes lay lightly across her skin.

"Yep. He's getting riled, all right…" A ten-year-old girl, if one went by appearances, giggled behind her hand. Her fingers reached into an embroidered pouch. Deep black clothes covered the skin, tight against the body.

A sweat drop ran down Gaara's face. Somehow I feel like my desire to kill suddenly vanished. He looked up at Naruto momentarily.

Naruto's eyes widened.

Gaara grinned. No, wait. This is definitely due to my opponent.

Chinmoku sighed wearily, rubbing his hair. "This is going to get messy, I think."