Ace looked ahead at his foe, Dosu, preparing for the fight. He smiled confidently, believing this was his best chance to win. His eyes locked onto Dosu, whose face was bandaged, leaving only one eye visible. The arena, already torn up from previous battles, set the stage for their confrontation.

"Let's go," Ace called out as he activated his Blaze Release without a word. Flames sparked and covered his hands as he dashed forward.

Dosu, prepared for a close-range battle, raised his porous metal gauntlet on his right hand. This gauntlet acted as a speaker to channel his sound abilities, aiming to disorient his foes and create openings for his attacks. He wanted this fight to stay close, believing it gave him the best chance to win against Ace.

Ace moved in quickly, then stopped and pointed his flaming hands at Dosu. "Blaze Release: Blazing Cross!" he said, forming his fingers into a cross and sending off a cross-shaped projectile of fire right at Dosu.

Dosu reacted swiftly, raising his gauntlet to block the incoming attack. The flames collided with the metal, and for a moment, the arena was filled with the intense heat and light of the blaze. Dosu's gauntlet absorbed some of the impact, but the force of the fire still pushed him back slightly.

Ace smiled. "Blaze Release: Fire Fist!" he called out, throwing a punch from range as a fist made of fire shot forward, cutting the distance between himself and Dosu. The fiery fist was aimed right at the gauntlet, the resonating echo speaker, and it hit hard again. The metal gauntlet heated up, warping slightly from the intense heat.

Ace moved in quickly, planning to ruin Dosu's weapon and end his real threat. Dosu, realizing the danger, tried to counterattack. He aimed his gauntlet at Ace and activated his sound jutsu. The air around them vibrated with the intense sound waves, aiming to disorient Ace.

Ace winced as the sound waves hit him, but he pushed through the disorientation, determined to press his advantage. He launched another fiery punch, aiming for the gauntlet again. The flames clashed with the metal, further warping it.

Dosu, now desperate, tried to create some distance between them, but Ace was relentless. He closed the gap quickly, unleashing a barrage of fiery punches. Each strike further damaged Dosu's gauntlet, rendering it less effective.

Finally, with a powerful blaze-infused punch, Ace shattered the gauntlet. The resonating echo speaker broke apart, pieces of metal falling to the ground. Dosu stumbled back, his primary weapon destroyed.

Ace stood tall, flames still covering his hands. "It's over, Dosu. You can't beat me now," he said confidently.

Dosu, realizing his defeat, lowered his head. "I give up," he said, admitting his loss.

Ace went over to the side, feeling perfectly good as he looked at his teammates and then smiled, giving Kaza a high five with a proud smile.

"That was amazing, Ace! You were so cool," Kaza said, proud of his brother. He knew that Aoba had been pushing Ace very hard, but he hadn't realized just how much Ace had grown and in how many ways he had improved.

Ace grinned, feeling the adrenaline still pumping through his veins. "Thanks, Kaza! It's all thanks to our training. Aoba-sensei really knows how to push us to our limits."

Sakura joined them, her eyes sparkling with excitement. "Ace, that was incredible! You handled Dosu's sound attacks like they were nothing."

Ace rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "It wasn't easy, but I knew I had to keep my cool. His gauntlet was tough, but once I got the hang of it, I knew I could win."

Ino, still catching her breath from her own match, walked over and gave Ace a thumbs up. "You really showed what you're made of, Ace. That Blaze Release is something else."

Shikamaru, ever the tactician, nodded in approval. "You played it smart, Ace. Taking out his gauntlet was the key. Well done."

Ace smiled at his friends, feeling the support and camaraderie. "Thanks, everyone. We've all come a long way. Let's keep this momentum going."

The group watched the fight between Gaara and Sasuke. This was the one that brought everyone to buy out the tickets so quickly. It was after all the last Uchiha who was still part of Konohagakure, vs the son of the Kazekage. It was a match up of stars who everyone had at least heard of in the town. One that promised to be the stuff of legends.

The fight started intense as Sasuke was able to show his improved speed, and his improved Taijutsu fighting much like how Lee had fought against Gaara in the prelims. It was an awe inspiring fight as moves, and then counter moves were made, each fighter adjusting to the others. The intensity of the fight only grew more and more as it went along.

The seemingly climax point was when Sasuke came down with his Chidori, slamming it into Gaara as he hit home with the attack. It was an impressive strike and for a moment Sasuke looked like he was going to win. However something odd happened. Temari and Kankuro came in and grabbed Gaara as his face contorted in pain and something odd, and sinister too.

A moment later suddenly purposefully placed genjutsu went off around the whole stadium as person after person fell sleep due to the power of the genjutsu, in the watching area, Ace, Naruto, and Kaza all passed out right away, leaving Shikamaru, Ino and Sakura away.

Ace was quickly snapped out of his genjutsu-related sleep by Sakura. Similarly, Kaza was saved likewise by Ino, who managed to break the genjutsu's hold on him. The brothers, notoriously weak against genjutsu, were grateful for the quick intervention of their teammates.

"What's happening?" Ace asked, shaking off the remnants of the genjutsu-induced haze.

Sakura, alert and focused, replied, "It's an attack. We need to be ready for anything."

Ino nodded, her eyes scanning the arena for any further threats. "Stay close and be prepared. We don't know what's coming next."

Shikamaru, always quick to assess the situation, added, "We need to regroup with the others and figure out a plan. This isn't just a random attack; it's coordinated."

Kaza noticed Sasuke had followed Gaara. "Should we head that way? I have a bad feeling about that exit," Kaza reasoned, looking at the others gathered. "Sakura, could you wake up Naruto? I think we are going to need his help here too."

Sakura nodded, quickly moving to wake up Naruto. "Naruto, get up! We need you," she called, shaking him awake.

Naruto groaned and rubbed his eyes. "Sakura? What's going on?"

"There's trouble. We need your help," Sakura explained urgently.

Naruto sprang to his feet, instantly alert. "Trouble? Where?"

Kaza pointed toward the exit Sasuke had taken. "Sasuke followed Gaara, and I have a bad feeling about it. We need to go after them."

Ace, always ready for action, agreed. "Yeah, let's move. We need to stick together and be ready for anything."

Shikamaru sighed but nodded. "Troublesome, but you're right. We can't let Sasuke handle this alone."

Ino chimed in, "We'll need to be careful. If this is a trap, we can't walk into it blindly."

The three followed through a hole in the arena created during the battle, pursuing Gaara and his siblings. Moving quickly, they soon realized they were being followed by a group of chunin and higher-class ninja catching up rapidly.

"Ace, Sakura, Naruto, go on ahead. Ino, Shikamaru, let's clear the tail we have. Ready for this?" Kaza said, looking at the others. "We know they will catch up, but if we act now, we can create an ambush and let the others move on ahead to fight Gaara."

Ace nodded, eyes determined. "Got it. Be careful, you guys." He gave Kaza a quick pat on the back before dashing forward with Sakura and Naruto.

"Come on, Naruto! We have to catch up to Sasuke and Gaara," Sakura urged as she ran ahead, Naruto right beside her.

Ino and Shikamaru stayed behind with Kaza, quickly finding a suitable spot to set up their ambush. They crouched low, waiting for the pursuing ninja to get closer.

"Let's make this quick," Shikamaru said, already forming a strategy. "Kaza, you hit them hard from the front. Ino, use your mind transfer jutsu to take control of one of them and create chaos. I'll use my shadow possession to hold them down."

Kaza nodded, eyes steely with determination. "Understood. Let's do this."

Kaza looked at the approaching group of six and attacked quickly. "Light Release, Light Ball Jutsu!" He called out, his left hand creating a ball of light chakra that he threw at the group. It slammed into the first ninja before exploding in mid-air, creating a blinding light in the small area around it.

Ino quickly followed up, her hands forming the necessary seals. "Mind Transfer Jutsu!" she called out, her consciousness entering the mind of one of the enemy ninja. She used her new host to attack their comrades, further adding to the confusion.

Shikamaru, taking advantage of the chaos, used his shadow possession jutsu. "Shadow Possession Jutsu!" His shadow snaked out, capturing several enemy ninja and holding them in place.

Kaza protected Ino's body for a moment until she returned. He looked over at Shikamaru, throwing up hand signs. They were on the same page. Kaza attacked, getting close to each ninja. Just before he struck, Shikamaru released them one at a time, allowing Kaza to take them down with powerful attacks. He moved swiftly between the ninja, ending the threat as quickly as possible. When they were all down, Kaza was breathing hard.

Kaza thought he had it cleared when a sudden attack hit him, a kunai slamming into his arm. He pulled it out, his arm bleeding, and prepared for more of a fight. Four backup ninjas appeared, and Kaza found himself quickly overwhelmed. He blocked and tried to buy time. Ino moved in quickly, slamming her hand into one ninja's chin. They backed up, knowing they were in trouble. Ino and Kaza stood back-to-back as Shikamaru barely managed to capture the other ninjas with his shadow possession jutsu again, but he knew it wouldn't last more than a couple of seconds.

As they reached their limits, a fireball slammed into the side of the group. Another attack came from the opposite side as two powerful ninja entered the fray. Asuma and Aoba quickly dispatched the remaining enemies.

"You kids okay?" Asuma asked, surveying the scene.

"Just in time, sensei," Shikamaru said, breathing a sigh of relief.

"Thanks for the assist," Kaza said, wincing as he clutched his wounded arm.

"Okay, let's head to get you three taken care of and out of this fight," Asuma said firmly, looking at them. "You're all either out or nearly out of chakra."

"Let's go to your shrine, Kaza," Aoba added, understanding the situation well. "The enemy won't be targeting there, and if they do, it's best we be there to help your mom." He knew Kaza would push himself too hard if not given a different purpose. He also knew that Shikamaru would realize this and that Ino wouldn't want Kaza to risk himself in some reckless way that he was prone to.

Kaza paused for a moment, then nodded. He knew his arm was still hurting and bleeding, and that he could only cause problems for his brother if he joined the fight. "Okay, let's go make sure it is okay. I don't want anything happening to my mom. If that's okay with you two," he said, looking at Shikamaru and Ino.

Shikamaru gave a tired smile and nodded. "It's a drag, but it sounds like the best plan right now."

Ino placed a reassuring hand on Kaza's uninjured arm. "I agree. Let's make sure your mom is safe."

The three headed for the shrine, which was not near the center of the fight, in fact it was far away from the fighting. Many people came fleeing the fighting and Tia was there helping them as she passed out water and food she cooked up, The beautiful black haired woman helping the people who were stuck in the crossfire and doing her best to be a good person.

The three of them landed nearby as Aoba looked at his team, "Let's help these people, they need our help and support, Shikamaru, Ino help with first aid with those who needed including you Kaza."

Tia looked at her son and ran over and hugged him, seeing the very bloody sleeve of his shirt as it was covered in blood from his wound. She looked around and started treatment. She did her best to use the basic first aid she knew to get the blood stopping as she looked at Ino, "Please keep pressure on the wound, and you guys help pass out the water please."

As the others got to work, Ino looked at him and stayed close, "We have to trust in your brother, Sakura and Naruto if they run into anything I have a feeling something really off was happening with Gaara."

"Yeah, but they are strong, and they got it, I know it," Kaza said as he finally let himself relax a bit as he knew he had to have faith that Ace, Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura could handle any problems with Gaara they ran into.