A/N: I caught an error in Ino's monologue for the previous chapter's recap. I mistakenly kept Gekkō Hayate as the proctor even though there are subtle references to his death in the chapters preceding. I have corrected that oversight as well as a few other "overlooked" mistakes.
Political conflict is difficult to choreograph across large scales of varying influence. I will admit that it's fun to observe if it flows smoothly. To answer a Guest comment, no, the Hyuuga Elders do NOT have the authority to (legally) draw up a marriage contract between the Daimyo's third cousin and the Hyuuga heiress let alone the Yamanaka heiress. That's part of the problem that drew such a heavy-handed response from Hiashi. While the Daimyo holds considerable power, legal dealings involving the children of notable clans would preclude that sort of overreach which implies that he is perhaps less concerned with such a contract if the expectation is that Konoha will, at a minimum, suffer enormous losses and perhaps, just perhaps, the confusion might be enough to allow some underhandedness to take place during the confusion?
For the second Guest comment asking how Eito lost his bond with the Umihebi, I actually answered that at the beginning of Chapter 45 in the Author's Note, the very topic your question posted about. It's the paragraph immediately after the "Hand of Fate" comment. Please reread that section for the full explanation. If it's still unclear, I'll be happy to explain as best I can in the next A/N.
I suppose that I've written and rewritten this chapter enough. It's as good as it's gonna get. Enjoy as you will.
~Siva'a-tasi
~III~
Standard Disclaimer: "Um... did you say something?"
Chapter 46: Mono A Mono
~III~
~ Previously on No More ~
The sounds of metal clinking echoed sharply in the brightly-lit apartment for several moments as three pairs of eyes watched apprehensively from the small kitchenette table. The apartment containing this small gathering was modest and functionally barren aside from the warm furniture colors, muted skin-hued walls bereft of ornamentation, and the slightly overlarge floor plan. The apartment's one saving grace happened to be the large bay window looking out over the front courtyard of the building as a perk for being one of the highly prized corner lots; the obnoxious amount of warmth-giving sunlight made a huge difference in the sadistic personality of what folks would normally call the demonically-charged Snake Whore of Konoha.
Despite all she suffered for Konoha, Anko was not a perennial favorite so she played up the role as much as possible beyond the walls of her modest home.
In truth, it was all a front as the three women patiently sipping Anko's latest herbal blend at her modest kitchen table could and would readily attest to at her next periodic psych evaluation.
There are several ways to reliably peek into the life of someone and see what their true inner self, that eerily accurate image we hold of ourselves, that no one wants others to see for fear that their revulsion at who we are deep down inside would drive them away. The quickest option most take involves copious amounts of alcohol being that the devil's drink lowers inhibitions commensurate to the amount imbibed bringing forth that ugly personality we suppress daily through years of practiced dishonesty. Less sought after is the path to uninhibited violence, often avoided due to the uncontrollable rage and extreme levels of pain and suffering required to bring about and contain such homicidal carnage when finally released. Less known but more often used than realized is the far less destructive method of observing your intended subject in their natural habitat where they are often less guarded and at their most vulnerable, a path requiring either unparalleled stealth or far more unfiltered exposure as that much acceptance must be preceded by unabashed self-exposure to the subject in question - you must risk exposing yourself to befriend another deeply enough and to a point where they'd allow you into their personal sanctuary in the first place.
Risk begets reward, as it were, especially in the case of these three women chatting at her table.
For Kurenai Yuhi, Yugao Uzuki, and Hana Inuzuka, these women had long since opened themselves up to such risk hence the three of them sitting placidly in the warm cascade of sunlight filling their appointed safe haven amidst the flurry of activity that was Anko Mitarashi prepping for the invasion to come.
Why do you ask? Why was she scrambling at the last minute when her three friends have long since completed their own preparations? Well, that is because she'd wasted far too much time agonizing over a bronzish-greenish envelope now resting peacefully in the center of the aforementioned table (the current topic of discussion) and the fact that she hadn't written out a response since she received it the night before the exam finals began. As a result, her indecision pushed everything else to the right and that led directly to her current flurry of last-minute activity in combination with her friends being called in to conduct a personal mental intervention on her behalf.
If Anko had a conscience then these three women were it.
"I don't see what the big deal is," Hana quipped. "She loves him and he's a freaking royal - a smokin' hot royal - so things like this aren't unusual for a royal family trying to rebuild. It happened all the time in the Warring Clans."
"Not everyone shares a pack mentality, Hana," Kurenai sniped.
Anko stifled another groan. Those two have been going at it for almost an hour while she packed up for the invasion to come. Rolling her eyes yet again, Anko carefully inspected her standard-issue tanto before snapping the blade home in its sheath.
"We've evolved as a nation past the Warring Clans." Kurenai grimaced showing exactly where she stood on that idea. "Also, I can't believe what I'm hearing. You're literally saying that harems weren't a bad thing?!"
Anko tried to keep one ear on the conversation as she jammed another half-dozen Stingers into her hip pouch and strapped her spare bandoleer of six to her sexy left thigh and her main holster to her equally sexy right one and tried very hard not to picture a mop of golden hair buried between them both.
"Of course they were! The objectification of women in any form is a bad thing even if the wealthy and powerful claim that it was 'for their protection and well-being'," Hana heatedly countered complete-with-air-quotes. "I'm saying she's not going to get the simple marriage she wants with this guy-."
"He has a name!" Everyone at the table looked up at the interjection.
Anko's interruption was not a surprise given the subject. While the three women at the table were fiercely loyal to their Tokujo running mate, even they sometimes forgot how sensitive she could get when they got heavy into a debate and began sterilizing everything associated with the conversation into generic labels. Apparently this included her favorite blond shinobi.
Who knew that objectification despite the degrees to which it differed between the sexes could and often did go both ways?
"Right... like I was saying, a simple marriage with... Naruto... isn't going to be an easy thing. He's a freaking royal from a nearly dead clan with an exceptionally dangerous profession." None of the women at the table could deny any of that. "His life expectancy isn't the greatest and his shinobi education, despite making a remarkable comeback as of late, wasn't the most sterling at the hands of Konoha's finest." Hana's eyes flickered briefly to the woman roughly jamming ninja wire and explosive notes (she winced there every time a stack of fifty violently disappeared) into her tactical pack. "On top of that, he comes from a really powerful clan no one important in Konoha wants to see die out or leave the village."
All true comments unfortunately but Kurenai stuck by her prudish guns, which was why Anko loved her as the moral compass of the group.
"So, you're saying she should just give up on romance, bend over next to a dozen equally naked women and take it like a champ?!"
Bless Kurenai's archaic devotion to romance as a dead sexy Amazonian kunoichi but, as the other purplette noted, she was single-handedly keeping the conversation moving in an infinitely circular path.
"She's not saying that." Yugao's voice was almost nonexistent it was so soft but it got the intended response. They all turned to stare at her, even the edgy woman trying to self-immolate through static energy applied directly to inert tags being violently packed away.
"What she's saying is that romance will have to come after she's secured the affections of the man she's been in love with for years despite denying it both on her own and on the orders of her command." Yugao's pained eyes lifted from her still steaming mug and locked with the chocolate orbs of her almost-sister. "You won't get another chance if you don't take it this time."
None of them missed the tear trailing down her left cheek and all of them shared the fresh pain of her recent loss. They all adored Hayate.
"What will you do once it's gone?" Yugao summed up just as quietly.
They all understood her unspoken meaning of 'what will you do when your love is irrevocably lost after you waited too long thinking you'd always have tomorrow?'
Anko, who'd been eerily silent throughout the morning long debate, broke her mind-meld with her older twinsie and focused on the single envelope resting innocently in the middle of her dining room (such as it was) table, the primary cause for an entire week of chaos and confusion in her life.
~III~
"The true strength of a warrior becomes apparent during difficult times."
– Respect, One of the Seven Virtues of Bushido.
~III~
~ Chunin Exam Festival, Quarter Finals, Konoha Stadium ~
"Odd," the relatively young Daimyō from the Land of Wind began, "but I was certainly expecting more from the Uchiha you spoke so highly of." Suguru's fingers were lethargically stroking the immaculate grooming of his oiled mustache and trimmed goatee showing his rakish humor at his peer's expense.
The Fire Daimyo, Masato Shijimi, was clearly not amused as indicated by his refusal to verbally engage a smirking Suguru of the Sand. Why those Suna nutjobs took the name of their beloved desert wasteland was beyond his modern sensibilities. If only the other Daimyo's sharing their rather crowded section of private seating weren't being equally insufferable. It wasn't important as they'd all be humbled once Konoha trounced the invasion force before their very eyes. They'd see then. They'd all see.
Speaking of which, that reminded him of something important.
His thinned eyes cut briefly to Suguru's smug face before turning back to the cleanup effort before the next bout, his fan humming in mild annoyance. It was bad enough they had to sit within several empty seats of their poorer country cousins, their smaller countries unable in most cases of even hosting a hidden village.
Oh, the indignity of it all.
Suppressing the distasteful grimace bubbling up from his core, the elongated features of the outwardly timid leader leaned just enough to his right to cue General Ihro Ueda to lean down and receive his direction as he snapped open his small fan to hide their discussion.
"I want him protected once it starts, General. Give the order."
Without hesitation, the highly decorated combat veteran bobbed a quick bow before backing away to speak hurriedly with one of the two Captains accompanying the Fire Lord to Konoha, the man in question snapping a quick salute before turning on a metal heel to step smartly from the Noble's stadium box housing the elemental nation's ruling class.
The good general stood there for another few seconds indulging in an inner debate as he paused half a heartbeat to consider the ramifications of the action he just took. While the officer's helmeted face would fade from his mind's eye in the next few minutes, just another loyal servant about his master's business, the weight of the decision that sent him would remain until his final breath. After all, it wasn't every day that a loyal samurai disobeyed his liege lord and ordered the death of that lord's subjects without permission or express authority.
After all, what was the issue at heart here? Was it the worthless death of another equally worthless shinobi? They were all without honor as far as Ihro was concerned and that, to the aged warrior, meant that they were all equally beneath his concern.
For forty years he fought and clawed his way up through the ranks to protect this fool of a man that wasted good men like he wasted money, clothes, and wine. To serve him until his last breath, the very thought of lifelong humility in the service of this moron, was a notion that sickened the respected war veteran and he fought daily to keep his subservient mask in place lest he loses his head in the capital.
Here in Konoha it was different. Accidents happen all the time in war...
The general's stern gaze swept around to his sister's husband - the equally greedy Provost serving as the Daimyo's chief advisor during this trip - and nodded, just the barest nudge of his helmet downward to indicate that the deed had been done. Without so much as an acknowledging blink, the even greedier politician turned back to the fights below but Ihro had not been fooled; the general saw the familiar glint of avarice blossom in the overly soft politician's eyes.
The two of them over the past year worked exceptionally hard to keep Danzo's original agreement in place despite the issue being compounded by the sneaky bastard's disappearance and rampant Hyuuga incompetence in containing the situation. More than once the General felt exposed as a result of the nosy Hokage poking around during the forest field test but the slimy Provost came through, in the end, heading off that nightmare. They worked too hard keeping things from the Daimyo knowing discovery, at best, would result in a painful death via ritual suicide, and Ihro planned to be leagues away on his own personal tropical island prior to his guilt ever being exposed.
Juggling two deceptions was always easier with a willing accomplice and he resisted the tiny urge to break his emotionless facade by grunting in humor when his gaze met the back of his Daimyo's frilly headpiece. The fool actually thought he was ordering his men to take up positions supporting Konoha and the new Genin hopeful.
The fool would learn too late the truth.
Casually retaking his position behind and to the right of a far too trusting Masato Shijimi, the seasoned veteran spared the briefest glance at the tweaked corners of the younger man's unblemished face and buried his brief moment of celebration deep in his soul. He'd survived too many brushes with death to fear its embrace now that he'd thrown down his lot with the traitorous scum responsible for the death of a once-great shinobi clan. No, he'd seen the signs in his daimyo one time too many but backing out now, after having come so far, would not end well for him or the ruler of Hi no Kuni.
Sometimes a servant needed to save his master from his own indecision. If he profited from it in the interim, who was to blame him? Losing the support of the one-eyed traitor wasn't enough to stop them at this point since all of the pieces needed to transfer his war prize were in place. Let Konoha deal with the excess - he never considered himself an overly greedy man and the old Uzumaki Clan had plenty of wealth squirreled away, so people said, in the depths of their clan home. The clan's accounts in the capital would be more than enough for Ihro. He could always blame his brother-in-law later and steal his share.
Besides, as one of his best officers, Captain Shun Ushida simply did not fail. Ever.
Speaking of the good Captain, he was striding briskly and confidently through the halls of Konoha Stadium, three carefully selected individuals bearing the distinctive crimson and gold armor of his Phoenix Brigade hot on his heels. A swift hand signal and the individual banners peeking up from between their shoulder blades quickly found their way into the hands of retainers as the squad of four delved deeper into the concrete bowels of the arena.
Captain Ushida never once stopped to consider the morality of his orders. It was not his place to even debate such a thing. Ushida, at his core, was a samurai, and when his general ordered he complied. Simple. He was a soldier of the highest order meant to act as his lord's blade until he earned the right to rule a province of his own on his lord's behalf.
A blade never questioned the deeds of its victim or whether or not its job was righteous.
Its job was to strike true.
He was so into his job that his normally quick feet, which would have side-stepped the masked and hooded figure he collided with, sent the less solid ANBU staggering a step or two as he was bumped into the nearest wall. The good Captain Ushida, being the honorable servant of the Fire Lord, took umbrage at the interruption of his master's business rather than use his normally gentle nature to smooth the situation over.
"Pick up your oafish feet, shinobi!" Teeth gnashed in irritation, Ushida let his mood show with the briefest flash of intent before allowing the penitent bows of the slightly larger group to calm him enough to move on. Feeling vindicated at their humbled posture and silent apology, the good Captain stormed off rather than see to their proper humility personally. Weren't shinobi supposed to be lighter on their feet?
Back in the hallway, the pale-faced lead of the six-man ANBU team lifted one gloved hand to still the angry hissing of his group.
"Let them go," Kabuto's gentle voice cautioned. "They will serve their purpose and we have ours to tend to. We cannot afford to explain why four of the Daimyo's samurai turned up missing."
With only the briefest of mutterings in their wake, the muted padding of their sandals wound upwards through the stadium's innards until the roar of the crowd greeted their hooded ears. Kabuto spent all of ten seconds assessing their location and nodded once to indicate things were as they should be. A quick turn back once they were out and about in the stadium bleachers and upwards to his left soon found the full squad lining up along the wall near the middle rows one tier above and behind the Genin observation pen.
"This will do nicely."
The cold tone of his voice sent shivers along the spines of his "helpers" even as his eyes found the passive face of his Otokage seated next to the Sandaime Hokage, his disguise firmly in place and everything falling in line as it should be.
Now they just had to wait for the signal.
To his immediate left, an equally hooded and masked Guren took as large and as quiet of a steadying breath as she was able.
~III~
"Gaara no Sabaku of Suna and Lee Rock of Konoha!" he called out to the ecstatic fist-pumping of the green-clad Genin. "Get your tails down here for the next round! You have three minutes!"
"YOSH!"
Lee's very jubilant cry did little to ease the suddenly very nervous cadre of Konoha Jounin turning to follow with their eyes a leisurely strolling Gaara of the Desert from his seat to the arena floor below. It would appear that Lee's enthusiasm was shared only by his equally extravagant sensei even if his keen eyes tracked the unstable sand wielder, each nin wondering if the team bouts and his more forgiving demeanor was a fluke.
If it was, Lee's overcharged enthusiasm and refusal to yield very well could get himself killed in a hurry.
Naruto paid it all barely any attention, his mind rolling through a recent spate of discoveries even as his eyes vaguely tracked the figures milling about beneath his bleacher seat in the observation deck. Seeing nothing new from the plucky Goken practitioner, he very nearly missed the unusual shift in Gaara's normal apathy to a rear-bracing defensive stance, his left arm held before his body-palm up and outward with his right handheld with the fingers steeped together, the palm facing the ground behind his feet.
'Tai Chi?!'
That snapped his attention away from more important issues as his mouth dropped open partially as surprise took over. 'Someone taught the Ichibi warden taijutsu?!'
"Why so surprised? You learned to fight, didn't you?"
'Yes, but I had to teach myself mostly until the pervert came along. Even then the Mountain Toads had to finish what he half-ass started.'
"Emo does not become you."
Naruto snorted gaining the unwanted attention of some of his fellow gawkers.
"Care to share with the rest of us, dead last?" Kiba, along with most of his not-mostly-dead fellow fight losers, continued to share the observation balcony so that they could watch the rest of the fights - since none of the competitors were given tickets. Too bad his loss didn't make his personality - or his very vocal interruptions - any less intolerable.
"I'm the dead last, remember? Surely you're smart enough to figure it out for yourself."
Kiba suddenly found the fight below more interesting than arguing with a former classmate he felt was beneath him.
To be honest, it was a fight worth watching, Naruto's gaze refocusing on the two competitors. Despite the two previous renditions of this encounter in the Chunin Exams, seeing a more active and engaged Gaara was entertaining on some level.
"Humor me Kit and look to your right."
'Hnh?' Blue eyes snapped in that direction even though he had no idea what the great fox could be interested in. Having been subjected to dozens of different sources of KI or curiosity, he'd been gradually suppressing the associated sensations that came with them all. From mild shivers - as it would take ridiculous amounts of KI to affect him at all - to a dull warmth in the middle of his back or a mild tingling itch at the base of his neck, Naruto was rapidly becoming an expert at ignoring focused chakra projection.
Any other time and the fox would be railing at him not to ignore the stimuli as it could and would keep him alive in heavy combat. Today, however, they both expected it in the observation area and the great Kitsune had given him permission to drown it out.
It didn't mean that she couldn't filter through it all and find interesting tidbits to help pass the time.
"Hnh, figures."
'What? What figures?' He was interested now.
There was a distinct tinkling sound in the back of his mind as Kyūbi giggled. "The redhead."
Kyūbi said nothing more but she'd piqued his curiosity so his eyes snapped up to the Kage booth. Four of the occupants were focused on the match about to happen but the fifth, the chesty woman with luxurious hair the color of cherries locked eyes with him. He counted to three before turning back to the arena floor but those three seconds were long enough for the calm-faced woman's emotions to bleed through his bijū-gifted filters to convey... hope?
There was zero anger or animosity as all he could weed out stemmed from worry backed by frustration, lots and lots of frustration.
He suppressed a very strong desire to snort again. His finesse with the Nine Tail's ability to sense emotions was infantile at best. He'd need a great deal more practice with it to become combat effective and, for the most part, left it to his tenant to teach and coax him along.
He'd worry about the Mizukage later. He had other things to focus on in the meantime, his eyes wandering back down to the redhead below patiently waiting for the start of his match.
Right before the proctor began the match, Gaara closed his eyes much to the shock of the entire stadium. Lee, mistaking his opponent's posture as some new demonstration of "explosive youth," reacted in typical Lee fashion by youthfully roaring his encouragement and streaking off to probe the jinchuuriki's defenses with a blistering barrage of punches and kicks delivered at a blurring pace.
Gaara remained calm and poised the only similarity between his previous fighting style and his current one being that he did not move from his stance or location. When Lee struck, Gaara's outer sand defense rose up to intercept the blow as before. However, Gaara reacted this time, his arm sweeping outward in the direction of the perceived attack as a small wave of sand in the shape of a hand lashed out at Gaara's prompting to either shove the green taijutsu phenom away or to try and grab a temporarily blocked limb. The longer the encounter dragged on, the less blocking by the sand became the norm as the floating limb made of grainy earth tried harder to grab his opponent.
To Naruto's surprise, those floating masses of sand were getting closer and closer to success, and, with a very near miss by his fellow Leaf nin, the blond Genin understood why as his focus shifted from the incredible defensive display of his fellow container to the boy's still-closed eyes.
Gaara had learned to track his opponent's movements through vibrations, the very vibrations transmitted through the very thin layer of sand littering the arena floor in a thirty-meter patch like a giant spider web. To make matters worse, the sand demon was getting better at timing his fleet-footed opponent meaning it was only a matter of time before Lee ended up captured in an unpleasant situation. His deduction was reinforced when Lee jumped away to the high perch of one of the statues beneath the Kage box in order to gain enough space to seek permission from his sensei to remove the anchor blocks he called leg weights.
It made little difference despite the increased speed once Gaara adjusted to the new pace. Lee broke through the outer defense in short order, his fist bursting through Gaara's head forcing it to explode in a bloodless shower of sand. The momentary surprise as Lee registered his new "exploding skull trick" was enough for the rest of the sand bunshin's body to surge forward and wrap around the stunned Lee in a [Desert Coffin].
Lee gave a great effort trying to escape his capture by opening up five of his gates, much to the disapproval of many observing, but his effort failed when Gaara upgraded his technique to the vastly overpowered [Sand Prison Burial], even converting a large swath of the stadium floor into extra sand to keep Lee from shattering the binding construct altogether.
Then the entire stadium held its breath expecting the crazy Suna Genin to crush the raging green grape into wine right up until Genma nervously called the match in Gaara's favor, the latter gently laying the panting Leaf Genin out on an undamaged section of the stadium floor before calmly walking away.
None of them knew that Temari, being fearful of the psychotic blond that held them captive for three days in the Forest of Death, struck a deal with her psychotic sibling and promised to obtain from Gaara's new friend a fresh box of Poky for every opponent he defeated without killing them. Gaara walked away thoroughly pleased with himself his mind already picturing the new flavors he'd be able to explore after glancing to his rather busy bracket on the screen above, his static image moving forward another slot with a happy sounding electronic beep.
Despite the heavy sigh of relief, Temari rose from her seat to approach the apparently surprised star of her recent batch of nightmares wondering what of herself she'd have to offer in order to fulfill her promise to her crazy brother.
She would be equally shocked to receive three free boxes of various flavors (the traditional Mikado - or milk chocolate; Gaara's personal favorite of Strawberry; and the rare yuubari melon flavored Poky) coinciding with her brother's favorite treat and a grateful hug from the blond pleased to hear what she'd done to convince her brother to tone down his behavior.
She was more stunned - and flushed with embarrassment - by the sudden and unsolicited hug from her personal boogie man than the free candy.
~oOOo~
For his part, Naruto tried to ignore the other Jounin instructors chastising Gai for failing to instill a little common sense into his student instead of encouraging the youth to use self-destructive techniques as a last-ditch effort rather than choosing to withdraw until other options were available. He knew from Gai's defiant behavior in previous slides that the green monster wouldn't listen to and didn't care for their opinions, the same instructors that had once dismissed Lee as a hopeless case. As far as Gai cared, Lee would remain his sole burden to bear so their admonishments meant very little to the seasoned instructor when it came to nurturing his pupil's youthful dreams.
Alternatively, Naruto chose to focus on the current situation and his upcoming role in it. In between a brief visit by the Ichibi's rather nervous sister and the ant-like Chunin resurfacing the arena floor, his mind was busy cataloging the rush of continued activity.
Temari departed after handing her rather pleased looking brother a fresh box of Poky (newly acquired after a rushed bout of haggling from the Kyuubi container) resulting in the rather predictable defeat of Tenten Higurashi. Naruto's one consolation was that the eldest sand sibling did not try to break the defeated kunoichi's back across her metal fan as she did in their first meeting, a noted improvement. As Temari returned nervously to her seat, her worried gaze receiving a subtle nod of recognition from the blond terror, Shikamaru expertly outmaneuvered and defeated Kin Tsuchi from Oto in a very familiar match of cat and mouse. What wasn't expected was when Kankuro defeated Zaku Abumi using Crow when Naruto expected him to forfeit in preparation for the invasion yet to begin. He hoped this meant Suna heard Konoha's warning and opted to change course for the better.
Given that the last three matches were low impact causing next to no damage to the arena floor, he had no time to consider it further before Ino and Sakura took to the floor in what he expected would be a very eye-opening match for the Konoha Twelve even without Sasuke in the stands.
~oOOo~
Konoha's Sakura Haruno vs. Konoha's Ino Yamanaka
Ino could feel the hungry eyes on her back as she took the field, her traditional purple outfit replaced by form-hugging black cargo pants taped from her shins down to her instep. Sure, she modified the pants that now rode low on her hips held up by the sturdy double-pronged belt holding her utility belt and pouches in place but she wasn't ashamed of her curves.
When comparing her to the boyish frame of her former friend there wasn't much to detract from Ino's stunning form; she was out to put on a show for a certain blond shinobi and wasn't concerned with the perverted eyes shamelessly undressing her. Let them drool kept cycling through her mind and she transitioned into what she dubbed "kunoichi mode."
A dark compression shirt that crept up her neck into a low half-mask still stopped short enough to reveal her taut midsection and the mesh shirt underneath it to protect her unblemished body. That, however, was where the sexy vanity stopped.
A black tactical vest, thinner than the standard Jounin version but lined with high-quality ceramic weave and armor plating over certain vital body parts, sported a number of pockets, weapon hooks, and compartments for whatever she needed. Slim leather bracers (reinforced by Uzumaki seals like most of her gear) had been dyed the same dark color to protect her forearms leading to the fingerless gloves braced by thin plates of chakra metal on the backs and knuckles.
It wasn't practical for missions at night or in the trees of Hi no Kuni and she knew that. This was meant to draw the deep blue eye of one individual in particular.
With all of her hair pulled back into a braided ponytail, she was as ready as she could be for the long road ahead. The very focused look in her eyes as she stared down a minimally geared Sakura said as much.
"A new look won't win Sasuke's heart, traitor!"
'More of the same rhetoric from a rabid fangirl.' Ino tried not to laugh outright in her face. She wanted to set a good example here and make a clean break from her fangirl days since she had a proper love of her own. They'd all learn the truth soon enough.
It was too bad she'd also need to make a clean break from her former frenemy in the process.
"Nothing to say for yourself, Piggy?!" The Pinkette was shrieking now, nearly frothing at the mouth. "Don't worry! I'll make you scream his name out when you start begging for forgiveness!"
Ino brushed her fingertips across the storage seals inscribed on the outside of her cargo pockets and a pair of reverse-gripped Kunai materialized in her hands as both came up in a tight defensive stance.
Sakura blinked sheepishly thinking, 'Hnh, that's new,' right before fumbling a kunai of her own from the holster on her right thigh and taking a textbook perfect beginner's Hakage offensive position.
Seeing that the two were ready and that the crowd was settling down to focus on the fight, Genma chopped the air between the glaring kunoichi and skipped backwards just out of weapon range.
Like her glare, Ino's stance never changed. Sakura fidgeted briefly expecting the blonde to try using her family's jutsu so that she could dodge it and pummel her bloody. Deep in the angry corners of her mind, she was planning to embarrass a thoroughly helpless Ino by knocking her out right before stripping her naked in front of the crowd. Sakura had imagined in vivid detail her former friend's extremely public humiliation (topped off by a few facial scars to mar her doll-like face) hoping that it would earn Sasuke's favor, her lecherous glare quite apparent to the Yamanaka heiress.
'Poor Sakura... one step forward, three steps back.'
Seeing Ino's admittedly frightening glare and eerily relaxed combat posture, Sakura gave in to her inner rage monster and charged with a shrieking battle cry.
Ino didn't flinch as her raging classmate closed the distance, right arm drawn back to stab her in the torso.
Shrieking Sasuke's name at the top of her lungs (much to the crowd's pained dismay), Sakura stomped to a stop just short of an arm's length away as her kunai thrust itself forward to stab one of the overly inflated orbs strapped down to Ino's rather healthy chest, a blow intended as a fatal strike to the heart.
It was such a textbook basic attack of the Hakage form Konoha taught to its Genin that Ino nearly dozed during the girl's approach... then her body went into reflexive combat mode.
Ino slipped effortlessly to her left, her left hand (her lead hand) shooting across her body to press the flat of her blade to the soft flesh of Sakura's tricep. The motion forced the Pinkette's strike wide and clear of anything fleshy but Ino felt Sakura wasn't taking the risks seriously so she left a reminder of what a lack of proper training could mean for her friend. Quickly and efficiently Ino slid the flat of her blade upwards at the end of her push and, at the very last second, pushed the tip of her kunai forward enough that the blade point broke the skin of her former friend's arm drawing a wicked slice across the unmarred surface Sakura took great pains to keep pale and unblemished in order to catch her crush's eye.
Even as the shock of pain registered in Sakura's bulging eyes, Ino's body dipped downward as her knees flexed and her torso counter-pivoted so that the flat of her second kunai could repeat the process while slicing through both cloth and flesh protecting Sakura's squishy stomach. Ino's first strike elicited an agonizing shriek of pain from the Pinkette followed by the hissing-spitting curses of her former friend as she clutched the back of her arm with her unencumbered hand while pressing her right elbow into her stinging side.
Ino, untouched by Sakura's desperate strike danced forward on the balls of her feet spinning to her left one-hundred-eighty degrees so that both blades came up defensively between her and her opponent, her face undisturbed by the sight of her bleeding fellow combatant.
In Naruto's first life, he'd worked and worked and chipped away at the stubborn wills of his teammates dragging them along in his quest to become the strongest Kage with them kicking and screaming the entire way to avoid the "Dobe's taint" of failure. As a result, a slightly less fanatical Sakura managed to pick up a few minor skills after the mission to Wave, one of which had been a passable facility with Genjutsu. That was not the case this time around as neither Chouji nor Kakashi had managed to make much of a dent in her stubborn devotion to the Uchiha and, as a result, her blatant refusal to do anything that might dim her eternal beauty where said Uchiha was concerned, save from her earlier decision to better herself just that morning.
That spur of the moment revelation did little for her progress at the current moment, the underfed damage to her body too far along to correct with a single filling meal. No matter what, her decision to train up had done nothing to break Sakura of her devotion to the idolized image of her tragic teammate.
Her nutrient-deprived epiphany could only provide so much in the way of worldview alterations. Furthermore, her current state of battle fatigue (after less than three minutes) only added further to her frustration at her former friend following her nigh-apparent loss in the match after Ino's unpunished embarrassment of her romantic interest.
Were she rested, fed, and fully-trained perhaps Sakura could have weathered the metaphorical storm buffeting her outlook on life but such was not the case. As a result, her fragile hold on reality surrendered its tentative grip.
It took a few seconds for Sakura to recover, her eyes going crazed for a second right before she charged again this time sans battle cry. Ino let her as the now raging fangirl swung her single blade about with reckless abandon, the blade missing in greater and greater arcs as Ino's lithe body dipped, dodged, swerved, and spun effortlessly away before leaving another shallow slash on Sakura's un-battle-tested flesh. It was becoming childishly easy as Sakura's breathing became more and more labored, her swings becoming less and less frequent.
Coming to rest two paces away from the pink-haired amateur socialite, Ino's hands came up to reveal she'd hidden away her kunai at some point during Sakura's mad charge, the still-raging near-Genin broiling with a new sense of outrage at the not-so-subtle insult.
You aren't worth sullying my blades with your blood.
She's saying we're not worthy to dirty her blades! She's saying we aren't good enough to fight seriously! Inner Sakura tried to stoke the girl's rage furnace once more for one final charge. Make her pay! Make her suffer! Make her bleed!
Summoning what remained of her strength, Sakura lumbered forward with a final gurgling cry, her still-bleeding arm drawn back to support a clenched fist, only to meet the metal knuckles of Ino's own face-first.
~oOOo~
Something dark buried deep down inside Naruto enjoyed the sight of Sakura's head snapping backwards right before her semi-lucid body slipped into full unconsciousness once it struck the earth like a dropped plank of wood. Here he was in his third time through life and she was the same spiteful creature she'd been before Sasuke's abandonment of the village left her with no alternative but to grow up.
It was petty thinking but seeing the Pinkette that droned on about Sasuke-teme getting knocked down a peg or two by the smokin' hot kunoichi he personally trained felt good.
Naruto chuckled briefly from his viewpoint in the observation deck. The total fight barely broke the two-minute mark, most of it filled with Sakura's unintelligible shouts as she hopelessly tried to fillet Ino. The blonde's almost casual punch to the bridge of Sakura's nose would most likely black both eyes and lead to bandages across the bridge of her nose but he desperately hoped it also would metaphorically open them later, bruised ego or not, as to how outclassed she'd been thus motivating her to train seriously.
One could hope.
His snarky laughter turned to an appreciative smile once his eyes settled on the gently swaying hips of the match's winner as she calmly strolled back up to the observation deck. He noticed too late that she caught his stare when a perverted blush made him tear his eyes upwards along her very curvy form to catch her wink in his direction.
"Busted, perv."
'Gimme a break, Kyuubi. Can't you see what she's taunting me with?!' In his defense, her body was a weapon in and of itself but the fox apparently was unsympathetic to his plight.
"Super-Perv!"
Being compared to his worthless godfather was not on his to-do list today. Naruto tried not to face-fault as the match he was hoping to see came up before his own with Neji.
'Saving the best drama for last I take it.'
Resting fully on the guardrail, Naruto settled in to watch Suigetsu Hōzuki of Kirigakure no Sato take on the mummified Dosu Kinuta from Oto.
~III~
A braided tail of blonde hair thwapped lightly onto the taut back muscles of Kumo's Nibi jinchuuriki as she landed softly on the rooftop of a building facing the Arashi Seal Consortium. Having adapted quickly to the richer air at Konoha's elevation, she was feeling much better than normal, her mood far to pleasant to sulk about in absolute silence while moving around.
Besides it wasn't like there was anyone out to even notice her given how creepily empty the streets were.
Taking another quick glance about the normally busy cobblestones beneath her rooftop perch, the slim kunoichi made another mental note of the Oto shinobi slinking their way towards the shinobi academy. Despite her frowning lips and pinched eyebrows it wasn't her fight and, on her Kage's orders, she would stay clear of all unnecessary drama.
Once the motley crew of potential hostiles were beyond her keen sight, Yugito counted slowly to ten before dropping to the alley beneath her high ground then calmly, with both hands behind her back, sauntered casually without a care in the world across the empty street to stop before the storefront and try the door handle. Much like the frustrated group before her now moving on to easier pickings, the handle refused to budge but a quick glance through the paned (and completely vacant) storefront explained why.
It was empty. It was completely empty meaning even the shelves had been taken if the cleaner outlines on the tiled floor were any indication.
'Oh, Raikage-sama isn't going to be very happy about this.'
Glancing into the back of the front store area she could tell that even the counter and cash register were missing, the walls as barren as the Suna desert. The place had been picked clean before the vultures could arrive to feast.
"Wasn't the whole point to coming here for your leader based on the slim chance to get back in the merchant's good graces, kitten?"
The container paled slightly at Ay's possible reaction to the news even as she searched for a note or some announcement announcing where the storefront may have relocated to. Finding nothing helpful she searched around the entire building for a way in (without breaking and entering) only to give up once she noticed in despair that even the company sign out front had been removed.
With a slightly reduced but still cheerful mood, Yugito Nii took to the rooftops on her way back to the arena to share the unpleasant news.
~III~
Suigetsu's victory was underwhelming to say the least. Perhaps he didn't think Dosu warranted a real effort but Naruto didn't see anything between the Kiri nin's team match and this individual bout to make him nervous.
The "Second Coming of the Demon" as he often loudly referred to himself in the observer's area didn't have the strength to wield his stolen prize one-handed unless he used some unknown jutsu to swell up his right arm increasing his strength. Even then his arm speed was far below Zabuza's skill.
Naruto caught the odd move or three borrowed from the Water Dance he'd partially mastered under Umi but Suigetsu tended to use them as finishing moves often yelling absurd titles he was sure no one in the Grotto would admit to knowing. He'd yet to hear Umi bellowing "Super Fantastic Tsunami Crusher!" at the top of his lungs during any of their spars the past month. If Naruto had to guess, whatever Kisame shared with Kiri when he handed over his stolen fang had been turned into some sacred technique over time, the name growing disproportionately out of scale to the two or three (he wasn't sure if the 'Dreaded Mountain Crusher' Naruto knew as a horizontal one-eighty-degree slash counted as a finishing move) basic moves he learned in the first week of his training.
No, Suigetsu had not earned the right to die by his sword, The Eternal Fang.
He was barely good enough to sever Dosu's arm bearing the Melody Gauntlet the nin loved so much after five minutes of chasing his opponent across the entire length and breadth of the arena. Dosu spent the entire time trying to avoid Suigetsu's sweeping swipes with the blade turning the match into a near parody of a child's cartoon only to suffer the loss of both limb and match in the end.
"I need Naruto Uzumaki of Uzu no Kuni and Neji Hyuuga of Konoha down here for the final match of the first round! You have three minutes to wrap up your wagers before the action begins!"
Genma's voice cut through the chatter of his mind to snap him forcefully back to the real world as the excited chatter of the arena began to pick up.
~oOOo~
Everyone in the Kage box leaned forward in their seats to match the intensity flowing from the observation area housing the remaining contestants, previously defeated Genin hopefuls, and their Jounin senses. Hiruzen took particular note of his student's interest and concluded the slippery bastard was after two prizes, neither of which the old man could allow him to corrupt with his brand of evil.
The line he could not draw before his betrayal to the village had to be drawn.
~oOOo~
"I don't need to explain the rules to you two, do I?" Genma's face was stern as he tried to convey there would be no more shenanigans like he saw during Neji's last match.
Neji smirked but nodded his head once in response.
"Hai," Naruto whispered as he cracked his neck and loosened his shoulders in preparation.
Once Genma's hand raised, Neji slid easily into his favored combat stance without a word, his eyes pulsing with chakra as he wordlessly intoned his clan's doujutsu.
"No ramblings on fate this time, Neji?" Naruto's eyebrow was quirked in amusement as the stadium ground to a silent halt so people could listen in.
"Why discuss what is a foregone decree? The others will see once I've won anyway."
Naruto shrugged and eased into the first stance of the Tetsuken as his body pulsed once with visible chakra energy.
When Genma chopped the air this time his body was already in motion as he leaped to the relative safety of the stadium wall.
Naruto's smile went from casual indifference to sadistically cruel as a clone shimmered into existence halfway between himself and Neji, slammed the backs of his metal gauntlets together with a resounding clang of metal striking metal, then charged forward, its chakra body taking on a dim blue aura. Naruto eased out of his stance and folded his arms as if studying a bug. Neji returned the grin with a smirk as he awaited his opponent for the first round.
"Too afraid to face me, Uzumaki?" The older shinobi's face carried an insulting sneer as he stepped backwards to deflect the clone's lead strike. He kept that sneer up until he received his first shock of the match.
The clone fluidly slid into a lunging strike, its body extended just a bit too far exposing the right side of its ribcage. Being an exceptionally skilled taijutsu expert, Neji flowed effortlessly into a pivot as he spun to the clone's exposed flank shooting the pointer and index fingers of his own right hand into the shortribs of the copy, his hand ablaze with his own chakra. Smugly, he kept his eyes firmly on the original as if to say, 'Really? This is the best you have to waste my time with?'
TIIINNNNNNNGGG!
His fingers jabbed into the clone's body and it felt as if he'd struck a metal plate. The fact that the clone did not disrupt as he expected, the fact that his blow produced a resounding ring of something striking a metal bell or sheet metal plate, and the fact that his fingers felt as if he'd jammed them striking something as unyielding as real metal promptly removed the smirk from his face. Neji just as promptly hopped sideways and away from the responding sidekick of the clone as he clutched his fingers and frantically shook his hand to return normal operation to them. A quick glance forced his eyes from the original and on to the clone showing that insufferable grin on the copy's face as it resumed a lazy combat stance, its lead hand beckoning the Chunin hopeful.
Cursing this resilient clone after it survived his initial strike, Neji resumed his Jyuuken offense mentally switching to flat palm strikes vice the more accurate finger pokes of his clan's chosen style. Perhaps he just needed a larger influx of chakra to disrupt the shadow clone's shell?
The original's smirk grew as he calmly folded his arms across his chest. "Who is afraid? I just don't think you're strong enough to face me directly. Cue exhibit 'A'." He motioned to the grinning copy with a lazy hand.
Neji snarled even though his brightly glowing eyes drilled down onto his near opponent.
"You're going to need to earn the right to face me directly, Neji."
On that note, the clone charged with a much more conservative defense and, before Neji knew it, he was in a furious battle of skill while trying to deliver a much more punishing blow to an opponent with very few honest openings. Much to his annoyed realization, he admitted to himself that their first engagement must have been a feint to test the clone's defense against the Hyuuga's taijutsu.
Apparently the defense was winning.
Neji gnashed his teeth and swore silently to prove the Jyuuken superior to whatever trick this no-good loser had up their sleeve (the whole time praying for forgiveness while fighting against someone he considered a hero to his family). With a strangled growl, he began using more palm strikes as he bore down to crank up his hand speed...
~oOOo~
Hiashi's breath caught in his throat as he watched. Beneath the privileged box he shared with his daughter and elder clan members his nephew waged a war of attrition with his eldest's savior.
"I do not understand Neji's difficulties with the de-... I mean, with the Uzumaki urchin." Hiroaki's voice was a petulant whine just off Hiashi's right shoulder.
"Never fear brother," Hiroki Hyuuga sniffed distastefully. "They boy will vindicate his clan or he will suffer for his shortcomings."
Hiashi's teeth began to slowly grind behind the working muscles of his jaw through a combination of worry and irritation.
To his immediate right, an increasingly nervous Hanabi forced her eyes back to traditional impassivity as she silently urged her cousin on to victory, the high-speed Ting-Ti-Ti-Ting-GONG-TIIING-GOOOOOOOOOOOONG sounds of Neji's palms being blocked or slapped aside by the powerful clone he still hadn't defeated.
Neither paid attention to the Branch members being swapped out near the rear of their box seats, some encouraged by the brute force of surprise Jyuuken strikes to the back of the head.
~oOOo~
Neji dropped to the ground, his right leg sweeping out counterclockwise as the clone hopped up and away from his spinning opponent. Making a complete turn, Neji rose from the dusty ground like an apparition, his hands coming up in the standard defensive posture of the Jyuuken's fifth kata and what he saw made him blink in surprise.
Not fifteen paces away from where he gaped stood the original and his clone, the copy standing next to what he believed was the original with his back to his opponent. Biting back the angry comments the clone's disrespect brought to the surface, he instead focused on what the two were doing.
The clone was talking, too low for Neji to hear but the original, whose eyes were still locked on the long-haired Hyuuga, was nodding in agreement as he followed along.
Then the clone vanished with an audible pop and a very small cloud of smoke that wafted away on a gentle breeze.
"Okay then, Neji," the original sighed out with a gentle shrugging of his wider shoulders. "It's time we end this farce."
Naruto stepped forward five paces then slid into a very aggressive stance with his gauntleted gloves hovering near either side of his chin. "Time for you to pay up."
For some peculiar reason, Neji thought back on the difficult time he had with the shadow clone and did not feel at all comforted by having to face the original. Unfortunately, he could not afford to let on that he was so concerned.
The two charged and the combat began anew but Neji immediately found the difference between a clone and the original; the original was fast enough to easily keep pace with Neji and that was a problem.
Neji's palms were a blur of motion, blue streaks trailing behind his strikes as he paced his breathing to prevent fatigue. Whatever blue chakra shell the clone used the original was capable of using and that meant Neji couldn't see his chakra network - all he saw was a skin of solid energy covering Naruto from head to toe. This meant Neji couldn't target a chakra network he couldn't locate. So limited, he had to rely on basic anatomy.
While every Hyuuga developed the Byakugan, they weren't born proficient with it. It took years to develop the necessary combat-level precision and technique required to master the clan's taijutsu to the level where chakra networks could be disabled in real-time. The skill was terribly disorienting for the novice so students learned to strike larger targets within the body, like large muscle groups and bone joints. As their skill improved, they learned to target smaller areas like a heart or lung or kidney. From there it was only a small jump to tenketsu points and chakra coils.
Given that Neji couldn't end the fight by crippling his chakra network, he regressed to his roots and began focusing on easy to target muscles like his opponent's thighs, abdominals, and shoulders. One way or another, he was going to-gurrk!
Fighting the overwhelming desire to collapse into a helpless heap on the stadium floor along with his blurring vision, Neji's body crumpled as a metal fist struck him beneath his ribcage jamming the smaller bones up and into his diaphragm. As the air rushed from his body, most of his strength fled along with it as he staggered away from the outstretched hand curled into a fist.
The blow had rocked his entire frame and his left arm was hanging limp at his side as his right arm cradled his side. 'Step backward, try to dodge, suck in air, and force it down!'
Neji didn't remember ever being struck so hard before. He prided himself on being agile and fast enough to avoid Lee's stone-crushing attacks but, even amongst his inferior teammate, he had to tank the occasional lucky strike. This was far worse and he was definitely in trouble if he couldn't regain his equilibrium.
He was injured and his opponent knew it.
Neji swayed to his left trying to keep his injured side turned away from Naruto's searching fists, the wind howling as his metal gauntlets shredded the air with each strike. One block. Two blocks. A narrow dodge followed. He frantically leaned to his left, his right arm coming up to deflect a wild haymaker as the blond boy spun clockwise nearly two-hundred and seventy-oh no!
He realized too late that, while Naruto was in the air, his right leg had chambered up near his hip during the spin resulting in that same leg shooting outward and into his now exposed ribcage with a teeth-rattling crunch.
Neji folded nearly in half as his body shot across the stadium reacting violently with the wall. There was a brilliant flash of white before darkness claimed his senses.
He never heard the proctor call the match on behalf of his blond opponent and secret hero.
~oOOo~
Naruto turned to walk away once the proctor dashed over to confirm that Neji was out of it, his deep blue eyes glancing up towards the box holding the gnashing visages of the Hyuuga Clan. He ignored the angry-looking group of old men in favor of sending the briefest nod to the younger clan head holding his breath.
Uzu's Daimyo calmly returned to the combatant viewing area hiding a gentle smirk as a pair of fast-moving med-nins covered the stadium floor to retrieve the unconscious Neji Hyuuga.
He barely heard the proctor yell to the crowd that there would be a thirty-minute break as they prepared for the second round of matches.
'Good luck, Neji, and farewell.'
~oOOo~
"It takes a powerful fighter to overcome a Hyuuga in taijutsu," Ay mumbled in appreciation. The boy was indeed skilled and faster than he appeared.
"Skilled yes, but he didn't provide anything sufficient to merit his performance worthy of promotion," Hiruzen countered.
"True but he will have the opportunity to do so in his following match. Besides, would you truly suppress such a powerfully talented shinobi? Were he in Suna, I'd have a specialist badge on his uniform by the end of the week."
"It is a fortunate happenstance that we are not in Suna then," a stone-faced Hiruzen intoned somberly to the hissing disbelief of more than one Kage sharing his box.
The Kazekage peered up at the electronic board showing the evolving bracket as did every other Kage following his gaze. "I for one am excited for his next match and what it will reveal. Raw strength will not help him against the Mizukage's kunoichi."
Hiruzen frowned despite his hateful former student being correct. Overwhelming physical power would not help Naruto against the Kiri speed fighter, especially should she use her Hyoton bloodline limit.
"We shall have to see, Kazekage-dono," was all Hiruzen would say on the matter.
~III~
Tenten, though not competing was enjoying the company of her other teammate in the observer's box even with the boy's crestfallen face. Lee was not shouting about the benefits of youth. He was not spouting off some ridiculous physical challenge any sane person would consider suicidal. Neither was he glaring with the "Blazing Orbs of Youth" at his now defeated eternal rival.
Lee, for the moment, was a normal Genin as he processed the crushing defeat of his teammate and one-sided friend at the hands and feet of another and her heart went out to his crushed spirit; a subdued Lee, no matter how peaceful, was not a thing of nature.
Instead, Tenten turned her eyes across the breadth of the observation deck and spied the target of both her affections and Lee's crestfallen trepidations, the Uzu Daimyo she hoped to win for herself. He was slumped backwards, his arms resting lazily on the bench seat behind him staring blankly out into the far side of the stadium. More importantly, he was sitting and staring all by himself.
Tenten shot a look to Ino wondering why the admittedly sexy kunoichi (it still hurt to admit that bit), who clearly dressed to catch his eye, wasn't all over him. From where she sat, her ploy worked admirably before, during, and after her match (much to Ten's bitter jealousy as she could have dressed like that!) so why wasn't she capitalizing on it? Plus, why were his teammates so far away from him?
It made no sense.
With a final pat to the despondent arm of her green teamie, Tenten slid out of her spot and crossed the observation deck, much to Ino's teeth-gnashing unhappiness, to see what was bugging the rich, powerful, and handsome husband she refused to share with another woman. I mean... she needed to explain why she was turning down the Uzu CRA after all and now seemed like the perfect opportunity.
Too bad that hussie from Kiri with the billowy sleeves had to beat her to it!
~oOOo~
Shiroi had been watching the dynamics of the "fighter's lounge" as they'd been calling the bleacher corner and found the Konoha Genin, with few exceptions, painfully obvious to read. It's why the bun-haired weapons thrower getting bold all of a sudden irked her. This was a perfect time to deliver her Kage's message and she'd be damned if this clanless tart was going to ruin it for Kirigakure.
So, with a well-placed ice mirror, she vanished to appear standing directly in front of, and in between the male's widespread legs, presenting her supple form in a slightly intimate and seductive position to gain his attention. The fact that she popped up just as the weapon user was opening her flabbergasted mouth to speak was just a bonus.
"Greetings, Daimyo-sama." Shiroi noted that his gaze was remarkably focused as she stepped from her mirror as if he knew she was coming to see him. 'Peculiar.'
Tenten quietly seethed at the rude hussy literally cock-blocking her in the cheap seats.
Naruto motioned that she should continue with a brief nod of his head. Shiroi, in turn, bowed until she was sure he could see the slightly opened neckline of her kimono framed between her flowing curtain of chocolate hair. Mei-sama was planning to offer her up as a political marriage anyway so, loyal kunoichi that she was, she figured now to be the perfect time to get a jump on the pending nuptials with a little seduction. He was a fresh Genin still so what could he know of seduction?
"Kiri offers his greetings with the following salutations endorsed by the Yondaime Mizukage, Mei Terumi."
She had loosened her chest bindings enough during the break to show more of her admittedly modest just-shy-of-C-cup assets since she wouldn't be fighting anymore. It would allow her elbows to push her meager holdings together enough to hopefully gain a physical response. Boys were simple creatures and liked cleavage, didn't they? Well, Haku was barely a B-cup so maybe he was more of a butt guy and her lack of back pain-inducing hooters wouldn't be a problem? Hoping her slightly larger chest would give her an edge, she gently clasped her hands between her thighs and pressed inward with her elbows ever so gently so as to not make her intentions blatant.
She inhaled deeply to produce a noticeable swelling and continued since he didn't interrupt her and she couldn't see his face with her head bowed.
"First, Kiri recognizes your grudge against the Seven and will set aside claim to the Severing Blade, the Kage herself viewing your upcoming match with Suigetsu, should he win, as an honorable duel per the standing rules - should you accept of course."
In the corner, the so-named Genin was grinning like a shark hoping the worthless Genin wouldn't chicken out, his grin (and Tenten's gaping mouth) both growing wider as he verbalized his consent.
"Second, I will officially withdraw from our match and Kiri - win or lose in the aforementioned duel - officially requests a meeting to discuss their third stipulation intended as a peace offering between our two nations in the hopes that it will foster goodwill between Umi and Uzu."
She couldn't see Naruto's eyebrow rise as his interest piqued but she could see his rock-hard core flex as his head tilted to one side, his movements and the blood rushing to her head making it harder to fight down the rushing warmth to her cheeks. She also couldn't see Tenten Higurashi's eyes bulge as the bun-haired girl's arm shot up to interrupt only to be cut off by Naruto's own curiosity.
"What could Kirigakure offer to garner such goodwill?"
The silky mane shifted as her head rose just enough to show her eyes taking in his muscular body with definite feminine interest, her mouth curling up to one side in what could only be considered a naughty smirk. Her elbows squeezed just enough to catch his obvious attention as his eyes dipped without shame once again to her neckline.
"Why, me of course."
~III~
A/N: I was hoping to finish up the Exams with this update but there is still a lot to work through especially with the nobles getting involved. I figured keeping this update back trying to push out a 40K word chapter would be cruel and unusual and this seemed like a good breaking point. Lots of questions and resolutions still await. Will Mei succeed and get what she wants? Will Ay catch a break and get out from under Ōnoki's thumb? What is the strange relationship between Neji and Naruto? Does Tenten have an actual plan and how will she deal with Shiroi? What will Anko do?
This chapter just introduced all sorts of questions on the path to answers, didn't it?
Remember to read, follow, and review. Reviews encourage writers to update faster, or so I'm told.
~III~
[Jutsu Used In this Story]
[B-Rank] Gokusamaisou (Sand Prison Burial): This technique is performed with the "cursed" Kekkei Genkai of the Yuki clan. Shiroi creates several large mirrors out of ice, which he surrounds a target with. By entering one of these mirrors, Shiroi's reflection will appear in all of them. Shiroi can travel between these mirrors very quickly, giving the appearance that she occupies all of them simultaneously. As such, any attacks she makes from these mirrors - usually rapid volleys of thrown senbon - can overwhelm opponents, seemingly coming from every mirror at once. Using the technique requires a great deal of chakra from its user, meaning they cannot use it indefinitely. In the anime, if the mirror the user is in is broken, they can leap out of one of the fragments and continue their attack or move to another mirror.
[C-Rank] Sabaku Kyuu (Desert Coffin): Sabaku Kyuu is a Ninjutsu technique utilized by the Sand ninja Gaara. Gaara will cause sand to rise from the ground and wrap around the legs of his target, making them restrained in place. The sand will then rise up to fully encase the target. This technique alone can crush the bones of his opponent but the technique is usually used to prepare the victim for the Sabaku Sousou (Desert Funeral) technique.
[E thru A-Rank; C-Rank as used in the Chunin Exams] Hyōton: Hyōken no Jutsu (Ice Release: Ice Sword Technique): The user condenses the moisture in the atmosphere into swords of ice that can then be used for close-range combat or shot at a target (short to mid-range, ~10m). As Shiroi's control is not as powerful as her prodigal cousin, Haku, she condenses her blades into extra-long kunai to make them sufficiently strong enough to resist low-ranked Katon techniques or Chunin-level chakra enhanced weaponry. The swords can be formed from great distances away.
[C-Rank] Suna Bunshin no Jutsu (Sand Clone Technique): Suna Bunshin is a Ninjutsu technique utilized by the Sand ninja Gaara. The clone functions like a normal Bunshin except it is made out of sand. The clone itself can be formed out of the Suna no Tate that protects Gaara. When a ninja goes to attack the Bunshin, the malleability of the sand allows the blow to sink into the sand, which can then wrap itself around the limb to constrain the attacker.
~III~