Okay, we have finally arrived at the Chunin Exam finals which means I have to write fight scenes. However as many of you should know by now, I suck at them. Please be patient and enjoy. If you have any tips on how I can improve this problem then please leave a review. I seriously need the help.
Chapter 11: The Finals
Naruto and Hinata were speeding through the village. they had gone to sleep later than they should have because Naruto was trying to add seals on a new weapon he was designing in the workshop he called a room and he asked Hinata if she could test it. It would have worked out fine if they didn't fall asleep before they could set an alarm to wake them up.
If not Kakashi coming home to grab a set of clothes for Sasuke, then they would have stayed asleep. What's even worse is Kakashi caught them sleeping in the same bed, Naruto with his arms wrapped around them. The poor teens were still red even now as they tried making their way to the stadium before being disqualified for running late.
"We're not gonna make it are we!" Naruto panted as they took a wrong turn and ran into a dead end.
"Don't worry Naruto-Kun, we'll be there in time. Maybe we should take to the rooftops. We'll be able to see better." Hinata assured the depressed blond.
"*SNIFF SNIFF* You're always so positive Hina-Chan. You're like an angle. Let's go, we'll make it to the stadium and then I'm gonna kick Neji's ass!" Naruto yelled, grabbing the bluenet's hand and jumping to the rooftops.
:-:
In the stadium all the contestants, minus the members of Team 7 and Dosu, where lined up. Hayate Gekko standing infront of them and explaining the rules.
"Okay guys, you made it... most of you anyway. The rules are the same as the prelims, you fight until your opponent either forfeits, is knocked unconscious, dies or until I call the match. Some of you may not be alive after this so let me give you a piece of advice, if you know you're loosing give up immediately. There's no shame in forfeiting if you live to see another day. Understand?" Hayate asked and when he saw most of them nod he sighed and continued, "Now the first fighters will be..."
Just as the proctor was about to call the names of the first match, he was interrupted by a loud yell coming from the sky. Looking up everyone saw a strange black blob blocking out the sun, growing bigger every second. After awhile the yell split into two different voices and the blob took on the form of two teens.
Snapping into action, everyone ran out of the way in fear of being landed on. However a very unfortunate Shikamaru Nara, who somehow fell asleep on his feet, was in the wrong place at the wrong time and was used as a fall cushion for the two members of teen seven.
"I'm gonna kill that damned cat." Naruto groaned as he rubbed his head.
"What the hell, Naruto." Shikamaru almost yelled from underneath Naruto and Hinata, "Where did you come from."
"Sorry Shikamaru-kun, we got into a bit of trouble with Tora and then we somehow ended up in the sky over the stadium." Hinata explained as she climbed of her teammate so the other two could stand up.
Everyone just sweatdropped at the explanation which only got worse when Shikamaru grumbled something about, 'Anything's possible with that troublesome cat.'
Looking around the stadium, Naruto noted that everyone was still present which means that they made it before the matches started, either that or the fights wrapped up so quickly that the exams are over.
"Oh... you made it just in time, I was about to send everybody up to start the fights."Hayate said as he stepped forward, "Naruto and Neji stay, everyone else go to the platforms." he ordered.
:-:
Naruto and Neji stared eachother down, they had spend a month honing their skills for this battle. Both of them getting stronger to win this battle and prove to the other that their ideals and believes are superior.
"Give up, Uzumaki. You are destined to lose here." Neji stated.
The only response was for Naruto to readjust his sword from his back to his hip before drawing the blade.
"Very well, don't say I didn't warn you." Neji said as he dropped into the gentle fist style of the Hyuuga Clan.
Seeing the two contestants where ready, Hayate began the match and jumped away to make room for the two fighters.
The two shinobi only continued staring at eachother, waiting for the other to make the first move. After about 30 minutes of not moving , Neji rushed the blond when he saw the younger boy's sword drop a bit.
Naruto, however saw the older boy's attack coming as he purposely made it seem like he's dropped his guard. Using the flat of his blade, Naruto deflected Neji's chakra infused palm strike before maneuvering his body to slash at the Hyuuga's back. However Neji sprang forward causing the blade to only cut the skin, barley enough blood dripping out to be classified as a scratch.
"First blood." Naruto teased, trying to get Neji to lose his cool. It worked.
Neji was seriously pissed. How could this no name loser injure him, a Hyuuga destined to win, let alone draw first blood. Turning around to face the red-tipped blond, Neji activated his Byakugan and again dropped into his Taijutsu stance. Observing Naruto's chakra network, Neji was surprised at how large the boy's reserves where but quickly recomposed himself and went back to watching the boy.
Naruto took one hand off of his sword and formed a seal, grinning at his opponents wide eyes and the gasps around the stadium. He's used the Shadow Clone jutsu so many times during his training that he finally managed to mold the chakra needed to use the technique by only using one hand. Forming 20 Shadow Clones, Naruto ordered them to attack the stunned Hyuuga who was, quite literally, snapped out of his thoughts when a Shadow Clone flew through the air and kicked the 'prodigy' in the stomach.
The rest of the clones went to follow up on the attack and although a few managed to land a few good hits, Neji managed to gain control over situation and quickly disposed of the copies. Charging at the blond Neji was finally fast enough to land an attack on the blood that send the younger boy flying. Moving with the Uzumaki, Neji managed to land a few more hits before Naruto managed to block the strikes.
The two shinobi went back and forth for an hour, beating eachother senseless until Naruto jumped back. Sheathing his sword, Naruto formed 50 Shadow Clones before sticking his arm in the Shadow his body formed and pulling out two large containers full of water. Opening the containers, Naruto went through handseals: Ox-Snake-Ram and all the water in the containers began dissipating.
At first, everybody in the stadium laughed and pointed at the blond and then a thick fog began to cover their view. All the attending Hyuugas activated their Byakugan and gasped in shock as most of them couldn't see through the chakra laced mist, the older and more experienced Hyuuga who could see through the Jutsu, found it hard to do so.
Laughing at the cries of indication from the Hyuuga Clan, Naruto searched for Neji using his superior senses. Finally finding the Hyuuga's scent he drew his sword and charged the boy, unfortunaly he promised Hinata that he wouldn't kill the older boy so the match would have to be drawn out more than he would like.
Silently arriving behind the boy, Naruto cut Neji's thigh and disappeared into the mist before his opponent could turn around and find him. If he had to draw out the fight, he might as well enjoy it by angering the older boy.
The blond managed to get in 13 slices all over Neji's body before the Hyuuga's rage boiled over and he called out, "Eight Trigrams: Heavenly Palm Rotation!"
Naruto was caught off guard as he ran straight into the Ultimate Defense of the Hyuuga Clan and, along with the mist, was flung backwards. Pushing himself off the wall he collided with, Naruto spit out blood and started observing Neji's movements but couldn't fide a weakness to strike at. Deciding to try and sense the boy's chakra in the dome, Naruto found that Neji's chakra was spread evenly throughout. (A/N- I completely forgot to mention Naruto's ability to sense chakra in the previous chapter. Let's just act like he also trained this ability through the training month ;] )
:-:
Up in the stands Hiashi Hyuuga sat wide eyed as he stared at his nephew performing a Jutsu that only the main house of the Hyuuga Clan should know. He knew that no Elder of the Main house would teach the boy this technique, which would mean that Neji learned it all on his own. Honestly he was proud of the boy. "Hisashi, if only you could see your son. You would have been proud, my brother." He thought.
:-:
As Neji stopped the technique he stumbled a bit, the Eight Trigrams really took a lot out of him. Staring over at the blond laying on the floor, he grinned before charging his opponent, intending to end the match as quickly as possible. Infusing his palm with chakra, Neji went to strike the blond's heart but before the fatal attack could land, Naruto disappeared in black wisps. Looking around, Neji realized that he was covered in the shadows of the towering arena wall.
Naruto opened his eyes and saw the welcome sight of his Shadow Realm. He sighed in relief as he remembered just how close to being killed he was, if he had been second too late he would have been a goner. Calling over the viewing crystals he used to look into the real world, Naruto found a spot between some trees where he could pop out.
Looking around, the blond realized that Neji hasn't spotted him yet. Using a kunai to cut his thumb and draw some blood, Naruto went through a few handseals before slamming his hand on the ground and calling out, "Toad Summoning Jutsu: Gamakichi!"
The little orange toad looked around before looking at the blonde.
"Hey Naruto. Where are we?" He asked.
"Hey Kichi. We're in the Konoha Stadium for the Chunin Exams, I'm fighting a Hyuuga."
"I see. What do need my help for then?"
Leaning over, Naruto whispered his plan into Gamakichi's ear. Nodding at his summoner's plan he answered, "It'll work, but I better get a lot of snacks for this."
Chuckling, Naruto pulled out some sweets and handed them to his summon. Forming his signature Ram handseal, 20 more Naruto's popped into existence. If Neji hadn't known where he was before he did now.
:-:
Neji looked everywhere he possibly could with his Byakugan activated, but for some reason he couldn't find his damnable opponent. He spun there in the middle of the stadium, looking like a fool. This went on for about 20 minutes before he felt a large chakra spike in the small forested area of the arena. Looking over he saw 20 chakra signatures charging at him and went back into his fighting stance.
The clones surrounded the Hyuuga boy, throwing kicks and punches that he had trouble blocking and dodging. After a few minutes he dispelled 20 of the clones and was now on a one on one battle with the original who, for some reason, fought in a different style than the clones. He was quickly growing tired while fighting the blonde who kept jumping around, making it hard for Neji to land a punch.
When Naruto was about to land a punch, Neji began channeling chakra throughout his entire body, spinning as he did so. The chakra leaving his body and creating a dome as he spun.
Naruto crashed into the dome and again was sent flying to a wall, but before the blonde could crash, he disappeared in a cloud of smoke and was replaced by a large orange toad sticking it's tongue out at him. Eyes widening, he spun with his Eight Trigrams technique ad saw the real Naruto dashing at him with a small orange spinning sphere in his hand. Looking at the chakra sphere with his Byakugan, Neji saw that the technique was unstable and would collapse at any second which would cause a large explosion.
Believing he would be safe from the explosion though, Neji smirked and continued spinning, ignoring the blonde lunging at him with his Rasengan. For this reason, he was surprised when he felt the speed of the rotating dome rapidly dropping before he was blasted away, crashing into a few trees.
:-:
All around the stadium, everyone sat in silence. The blonde boy almost everyone in the village hated and despised, just used the Fourth Hokage's first original Jutsu. Some even realized that if you squint your eyes juust enough, the blond looked exactly like their hero.
:-:
Naruto calmly walked to his opponent, using his sheathed sword like a walking cane. The battle took it's toll on his body, he was thankful for both the Fox and his Uzumaki heritage for his super healing. Standing next to the face down Neji, Naruto crouched down and pulled the Hyuuga up by his long hair. He stared into the older boy's pale eyes with anger before slamming his opponents head into his knee with great force. Continuing this movement for a few times, he finally let go and went to sit next to Neji.
"You know... you really piss me off. I dug around a bit and found out what happened to your dad, I also found out what that seal on your forehead does. I understand why you're mad, but you're mad at the wrong people." Naruto said.
Neji weakly pushed himself up and sat against a tree he crashed into. Spitting out some blood he looked at Naruto and answered, "If you know what this seal does then you should know why I despise my uncle and the rest of the Main Branch. They use us as slaves and if we disagree with their choices they activate this cursed seal, breaking our minds. But I can't expect you to understand the burden of having a seal placed upon you, taking away all freedom you have in the choices you make."
"That's exactly why you piss me off. You go on and on about something bad that happened to you without taking into consideration the things other people might have to endure too. You think I don't know what It's like to have a seal placed on me but I know what it feels like more than anyone in you clan. A seal was placed on me to safe the entire village from the Nine Tails fox. The Fourth Hokage couldn't kill the Fox like many stories lead us to believe, in order to stop the Fox's rampage he had to find a strong enough vessel to seal it in. Me being an Uzumaki, and therefore have a much stronger body and larger Chakra reserves than most people, even at birth, was the perfect container. From the day I was born I had the burden of the entire village's safety placed on my shoulders and the people of this village only made it harder by beating and insulting me. But you don't hear me complaining do you. Even after my brother was killed I stayed strong, I had to stay strong for the little people that cared for me and it's for them that I'll become Hokage. Not for the people but for the people that acknowledges me and for the future generation. I'll bring back the Will of Fire that the First Hokage believed in." Naruto explained, not noticing the tears both he and many of the audience let loose.
Looking over at the red-tipped blonde, Neji couldn't help but feel a sense of awe. This boy had such a burden placed upon him and yet he still stood strong and defiant in the faces of those that oppose him. Could he be that strong, could he go against destiny and carve his own path through the Hyuuga clan. So lost in thought, he barely notices Naruto standing up and standing before him.
"If you truly believe that you can't change your fate, then I won't stop you. But if there's even a small part of you that's willing to try and fight against the odds then take my hand and I'll stand by your side as you prove to the rest of your clan just how useless it is to try and force a fate onto others."
Reaching out a limp hand, Neji was pulled to his feet as he thought, 'You are wrong Naruto Uzumaki. It is not you who will stand alongside me, but I who will stand alongside you.' Turning to to the proctor, he exclaimed, "Proctor, I've Lost!"
And here is a new chapter. I finished this one rather quickly. I also started a new story which you could find on my account for those interested. Please leave a review, I enjoy reading them. If you're confused about anything just ask. I got a question asking about Naruto's brother and the sword. I plan on expanding on Naruto's brother in later chapter but for now I'll just say, I gave Naruto a brother to replace the mystery on who Naruto's dad is (we all knew who it was from the start). And as for the sword, it belonged to Naruto's brother, nothing special, just a chakra conducting katana.
Anyway, this is The_Dovabean signing off. Peace.