Disclaimer: I don't own the Naruto franchise or its characters.

Chapter Twenty-Five: The Storm Arrives Part (III)

—-

[Ding!]

[Skill Tree Unlock used.]

[Choose between the two skills shown.]

[Camouflage Lvl 1]

[Black Flash Lvl 1]

Naruto eyeballed the choices for another moment before deciding to choose later on.

More importantly, he looked towards the crowd that cheered his name. He soaked in all the applause, a bright grin on his face.

I did it!

If Naruto was being honest, he had almost completely forgotten about the Perfect Henge technique for a few weeks after he got the choice between it and Iron Touch. He had ended up picking Perfect Henge as he didn't find much use in Iron Touch when he was most likely going to use a sword regardless. It could have been an unpredictable tactic if he suddenly fought with a leaf or something similar that had properties with iron, but Perfect Henge had infinitely more possibilities.

Naruto knew from the first jutsu he fired that Neji could somehow see jutsus being cast before his opponent actually unleashed them, maybe due to the Byakugan being able to see any sudden influxes of chakra in the body. However, Neji had not responded to any skills that he got from the system as there was no influx of chakra. Furthermore, the properties of Perfect Henge made the disguised kunai impossible to detect either.

He walked towards Neji, who had several medic ninja around him the moment the fight was decided in his favor. The Hyūga's eyes looked shocked as if they couldn't believe the situation they were in. The ponytail he normally had was gone, leaving his long hair to cascade around his face. The blond decided that he wasn't going to make any type of remark—he wasn't cheap enough to talk shit when someone else was at their worst.

"Good fight, Neji," Naruto said slowly. "You almost had me there."

Neji froze. An uncomfortable silence enveloped the air between them. Finally, his mouth started moving. "Good…fight."

Naruto shrugged. That's about as good of a response you can get from this guy.

At the same time, a very smug Sakura crossed her arms while looking at a stricken Tenten. "You got nothing to say, senior?"

Tenten stumbled a bit, before regaining her composure. Right now she was in enemy territory and had no win to back her up. "A-A lucky f-fight, am I right Lee?"

She looked pointedly at the bowl-cut ninja, daring him to not support her. Lee gulped at his teammate's stare. He looked to the right as he felt an even more frightful aura emanate from Sakura, her hair blazing as a hellish fire radiated toward him.

"Umm…it was a very well-fought match!" Lee squeaked out nervously. "There was certainly some luck involved, but I wouldn't detract any of that from Naruto-san's ability. Luck is an important part of any fight."

There. Lee thought with a relieved sigh. I managed to answer without angering both of them too much.

Ino smirked. "Our deadlast showed him alright! That was a great fight; I almost thought Naruto lost for a second."

"It's almost like I've been telling you how unpredictable Naruto is for the entire day," Shikamaru grumbled, yawning. "I can't believe I'm gonna have to fight this monster."

Choji chuckled. "Good luck with that."

Hinata stood by herself, reflecting upon the fight and the moments that led up to it. A faint blush invaded her pale skin. Thank you, Naruto-kun.

Naruto ran back up to his seat after the fight, responding embarrassedly to the couple of congratulations he got from the audience along the way. The usual looks of fear were still there, but the more recent expressions of awe were more than welcome.

"Good fight, Naruto," Sakura exclaimed. "That was a close one."

Naruto laughed bashedly, his hand scratching his hair. "Yeah, it was. I got him in the end though."

Sasuke's face was impassive. "You better not get injured before you reach the finals, dobe. I wouldn't want you to face me at half your strength."

Naruto knew that was how Sasuke normally said his congratulations. He nodded before smiling deviously. "You sure you're gonna be in the finals with me? You will have to get through Fuu."

Sasuke scoffed. "I'll handle her."

They both knew it was bravado. Everyone in the audience and stadium instinctively understood that Fuu had a huge edge over all of her opponents. She was simply faster and stronger than everyone else—with loads of combat experience to back it up. Naruto wasn't sure if Sasuke had any chance against Fuu, but he would still root for his teammate. Sure, Fuu was his friend, but thinking of rooting for someone to beat Sasuke left a bitter feeling.

The Uchiha continued to speak. "You have to be careful with Shikamaru."

Naruto nodded in agreement. Shikamaru wasn't as strong or fast as any of the other final contenders, but he compensated for those weaknesses with sheer intellect and determination. Naruto was sure he could beat Shikamaru without too much of a challenge, but he didn't want to risk it regardless. He would fight Shikamaru with the same amount of respect he would give any opponent.

Kakashi appeared a moment later next to the blond. "Good win, Naruto."

"Thanks, sensei," Naruto replied with a grin.

It did feel good to get compliments from his elusive sensei, who mostly preferred to barrage the blond with lidded insults to anger him into working harder. It was effective, of course, but it wasn't at all good for the teacher-student relationship, in Naruto's opinion.

On second thought…

Observe.

[Observing… ]

[Observation failed.]

[Would Player like a partial observation?]

[Yes/No]

Ahhh…I wonder when I'll be able to see Kakashi's true stats. Yes, by the way.

Name: Kakashi Hatake

Title: "Copy Ninja"

Occupation: Jonin Sensei

Level: ?

MP: 100/100

Chakra: ?

STR: ?

VIT: ?

DEX: ?

INT: ?

WIS: ?

LUK: ?

Reputation: 75

75? Not bad.

"In fact, it was a very good fight. There's a good chance you might end up being Chuunin after these exams, Naruto. You and Sasuke…a shame, my team is going to be split up already. The consequences of being such a good teacher, I guess," Kakashi said, sighing in what was a mockery of sadness.

Naruto felt his eyebrow twitching. "Good teacher? I'll just pretend I didn't hear that. Anyways, what do you mean me and Sasuke can both be Chuunin? Doesn't the winner of the tournament get that? And before you interrupt, Sakura, yes, I know that it's 'Sasuke and I'."

Sakura stopped whatever she was going to say immediately,

Kakashi chuckled. "You can't actually believe that only one of you becomes Chuunin, right? If that were true, then our Chuunin population might as well just collapse entirely. They spot potential prospects who show the best ability to be considered a Chuunin and promote them after the exams are concluded. Winning would likely guarantee the promotion, of course, but other than that, it's not a necessity that you have to win to be promoted."

Naruto hummed thoughtfully. I guess that makes sense. It would be a waste of time for people just as talented to wait for another exam to begin. And it's not like the Leaf can afford to not have more shinobi.

The blond suddenly felt his stomach groaning with hunger as he fell down the rabbit hole of thinking, rumbling desperately for food. He would happily oblige. "Alright, everyone. I'm just gonna go outside for a bit."

"The next fight is in twenty minutes, Naruto," Kakashi stated. "It would be smart to scope out your enemies' skills."

"I'll be back!" Naruto promised as he kept his hands in a peace sign.

—

"Oi, Teuchi-san, give me a large bowl of miso ramen!" Naruto ordered with a jubilant yell.

The old man with kind eyes lit up when he saw his number one customer. "Extra pork like always?"

Naruto laughed. "You know it!"

He noticed a familiar, pretty girl near the counter. "How's it going?"

Ayame sighed. "As good as making ramen everyday can be. Awesome! How about you, Naruto? I've heard you won your match."

Nartuo's eyes widened. "Yeah, I did. I didn't think you guys would know so fast."

"Konoha's gossip chain is faster than you expect. There was this one time…"

The Jinchuuriki relished in the conversation, finding that talking with a regular civilian really gave emphasis on just how crazy Naruto's and his friends' lives were, as well as a sort of glimpse into Naruto's life if he weren't a shinobi. Scratch that. If I wasn't a Jinchuuriki.

A porky, fatty smell enveloped his senses as Teuchi placed a steaming bowl of ramen onto the counter. Naruto's hands flashed towards the bowl and chopsticks in record speed as he first savored the beauty of the dish in its entirety before he ravaged it. Steam washed over his face like a delicate embrace, soothing his skin with heat. The broth, a symphony of rich tonkotsu flavors, swirls harmoniously with delicate, hand-pulled noodles, each strand a testament to craftsmanship. Crowned with tender slices of chashu pork, vibrant marinated eggs, and a delicate fish cake spiral—it was utterly beautiful.

"Itadakimasu!" Naruto shouted before digging into the dish.

He ate a bit slower than normal, not wanting to eat too much before the fight he would have later that day, and thus savoring the food. At the same time, Naruto checked his stats. He had leveled up with the fight against Neji, meaning he had an attribute point to use. Without much hesitation, Naruto placed the point in dexterity.

Now time to look at the skill tree options. Naruto thought while slurping up a stray noodle on his chin. Oi, system, give some more information on these skills.

[Camouflage Lvl 1]

[Blend into the environment with near perfect accuracy, further allowing the user to be near invisible if completely still. This ability consumes 10 MP and drains a further 10 MP every three minutes.]

Naruto's eyes widened with wonder. This is seriously useful…I'd practically be invisible. If I activate it during a fight I could get very sneaky hits in as well. But it's not at all powerful, is it? 'Near'. It mentions 'near' for both aspects of the ability—can I really depend on it if my life is on the line? Regardless, it still would be useful to have in most situations.

[Black Flash Lvl 1]

[A phenomenon where space warps when chakra is applied within one-millionth of a second of a physical blow. When the user manages this feat, their chakra appears black, and the force of their attack is raised to the power of 2.5.]

W-what? Naruto thought with creased eyebrows. What do these words even mean?! Let me read it again. Chakra…one-millionth…black…to the power of 2.5? I know some basic math. Let's see, what did Iruka sensei say again? To the power of two would be multiplying the number by itself once.

So if I had six ramen and squared it…I'd have thirty six ramen! Naruto whooped in joy as he realized he had managed to remember the math. Heh, maybe it's due to my INT points. So if I hit with the force of ten ramen bowls thrown at an enemy, Black Flash would make it the force of a hundred. No, more than that cus' it's 2.5!

So…what this is trying to say is…if I somehow manage to apply my chakra within a certain time interval of a hit, I'll get a huge power boost to beat up my enemies!

Naruto finished his bowl of ramen with pride. "Amazing!"

A smarter person would have taken longer to figure out the logistics and benefits of picking either skill, but Naruto wasn't the type. He quickly picked Black Flash, feeling an ounce of regret after he saw the Camouflage skill disappear, but quickly swallowed it down. If he was honest, his decision had a few other reasons. Firstly being that Naruto's fighting style wasn't optimal for camouflage, and would more than likely interrupt his game plan.

Naruto knew that if he had picked Camouflage, he would have to change his fighting style to match the ability as well. The blond was an upfront brawler, utilizing his vast array of varied skills to overwhelm the opponent. Offense was the best defense.

Black Flash seemed to agree.

And the second, main reason—Black Flash didn't have a cooldown or any MP usage.

For all intents and purposes, Black Flash was a passive skill. For a moment Naruto had assumed that it was a technique older Jonin would be able to do as well as it was an application of chakra, but he quickly threw away that idea. He was sure he would have heard or seen someone use it before.

This made Naruto the only person in the world who could use the technique.

"What's so amazing?"

Naruto slowly turned his head to the side to see a familiar face. "Fuu?"

The mint-haired girl was standing right next to him with squinted eyes. "I've been trying to figure out what you've been looking at for the past few minutes. Either you've gone crazy or the sky is really attractive today."

"I thought last time would be our final meeting?" Naruto asked somewhat stiffly.

Fuu fidgeted. "Hehe…I said that, didn't I? Oh well, promises are meant to be broken, anyways. What are you up to?"

Naruto looked blankly at the empty bowl of ramen in front of him.

She coughed. "Right. Dumb question."

"Why are you here?"

"Am I not allowed to visit my friend?" Fuu asked, pouting. She took a seat next to him, slumping her hands down on the counter. "Great win, by the way."

"Thanks," Naruto drawled. "Sorry if I'm rude right now, but we didn't have the best of conversations last time, and I'm not just going to believe that you came here without any reason, dattebayo!"

Fuu nodded in understanding. She looked around at her surroundings. There were currently no other customers other than Naruto, and the two chefs inside the ramen shop were busy with something inside. "In that case, I shouldn't waste time. You said you're leaving Konoha after a while?"

Naruto sighed. "Look, Fuu, I'm not exactly sure—"

"But there's a chance, right?" She interrupted with a glint in her eye. "I'm not forcing you too, even if leaving is easily the best option. I'm just trying to help you when you eventually decide to leave."

"Help?"

She nodded. "You think I'd ask you to run away without any kind of goal in mind?"

"A little bit—"

"Don't finish that. I've met some of the other Jinchuuriki, Naruto. They don't want to just sit by and wait for the Akatsuki to attack them either—they've been planning for a long time. Bee, by now, must have been contacted by the other Jinchuuriki as well," Fuu explained, pursing her lips.

Naruto nodded slowly, beginning to understand. "You're forming a group with all the Jinchuuriki to fight back against the Akatsuki?"

She winced. "Group…is pushing it, to be honest. We're more like a secret club as of now. We simply pass on as much information as we can to each other. But the leader wants us to develop more. As of now, we have nearly no information about the Akatsuki. There have been a few sightings of their members, but other than the fact that they want to capture all the Jinchuuriki for some reason, that's all we know."

"Who's the leader?" Naruto inquired seriously.

Fuu smirked. "I can't tell you, unless you join, of course."

He shrugged, ignoring the pulling sensation of curiosity filing in his stomach. "Where are you guys getting this information from? Or does knowing that also require me to join?"

"No, I'll give that for free. You should know this person, actually. He's from Konoha."

Nartuo's eyes perked up. Someone from Konoha?

Fuu pushed a strand of her short hair behind her ear. "He goes by Jiraiya—apparently he's very famous. The leader managed to get in contact with him and ask for help. Jiraiya has a very extensive spy network, which came in handy."

Jiraiya…where have I heard that from. That's right! Jiraiya of the Saanin, one of the three legendary shinobi in that group. If someone like him is tracking the Akatsuki, then the situation is more serious than I thought.

"He's from Konoha? Then why can't I just tell the old man about this and your plan?" Naruto asked with a frown.

"Old man?" Fuu repeated confusedly.

"Oh, that's the Hokage. I've known him my entire life pretty closely, so I call—"

"Do you really think he's going to let you leave Konoha?" Fuu asked impatiently. "You think your village is going to let their main offensive powerhouse and a crucial military unit just leave their country?"

Naruto knew the answer. Of course they wouldn't. "You said something about help, right? Where would I need to go if I wanted to leave Konoha?"

Fuu brightened up immediately. "Of course! You'll come to my village, of course. Takigakure! It's beautiful! There's this huge waterfall with some caves underneath, and as long as you know the path you'll be able to come in. I have a spot near the entrance that you can stay in for a while."

"How would I get there?" Naruto asked, a bit flustered by Fuu's sudden enthusiasm.

"I'll get you a map after the Chuunin Exams are done! Or maybe a bit before. Don't worry about all that stuff, I have it covered."

She looked expectantly at Naruto, who just wallowed in uncertainty, unsure what to do.

"Thanks?" Naruto said, gulping. "Good luck on your fight, not that you really need it. But Gaara is a different type of insane—"

Let it be known that Naruto wasn't the most uncertain of people, but conversing with Fuu seemed to have some effect that made him second guess everything he knew.

Fuu smirked. "Ahh…are you worried for me, Naruto? Don't be. I know Gaara's type all too well. I'll show him and Shukaku the difference between the One-Tail and the Seven. Anyways, it's getting a bit late. This conversation took much longer than I expected, you see. I'll see you in the finals, Naruto!"

With a final peace sign, she left a second later.

Naruto stared into the distance for a minute or two before giving Teuchi the amount for the ramen.

Teuchi grinned widely. "It's on the house, Naruto. I can't be seen making Konoha's number one pay for my food, can I?"

The blond thanked the man profusely, glad that he wouldn't have to put another dent into his steadily decreasing wallet. He hadn't been able to get money from the smaller D-rank missions for a while due to the Chuunin Exams.

"Back to the exam!"

—-

"Gaara versus Fuu!"

Naruto watched in anticipation as the said participants made their way into the center of the stadium. Two juggernauts in the bracket were finally facing off. Before the bracket was officially announced, many had put their bets on these two making it into the finals, but with the way the matches were ordered, one of the two Jinchuuriki would have to be eliminated. Not that Naruto was complaining, of course.

He was sure that Fuu was going to win, but Gaara could definitely give her a tough time. Naruto had quickly found out that she was hiding many of her abilities just like him, leaving her at a disadvantage as well. Regardless of her missing skills, Fuu was just better. Stronger and faster than everyone else by a huge margin.

It was like a kid trying to fight a fully grown adult; no matter how much grueling training you gave the kid, he or she would inevitably lose.

Now make the adult the host of a primordial mass of chakra and you have Fuu. Not to mention the fact that they are somehow friends. Naruto grumbled internally. He looked distastefully at the seal in his stomach that was covered by his clothes. Couldn't you be a lot nicer?

It wasn't like Naruto was asking them to be best friends or anything, but any sort of acknowledgment could have been nice. I guess I shouldn't expect that from the Kyuubi of all…people? What even is it?

"Your friend doesn't seem too scared, Naruto," Sakura said in slight disbelief.

"Cus she's really strong," Naruto said, answering the 'why' in her question. "Super strong."

Sasuke creased his eyebrows. His eyes were alert and wide, the Sharingan flashing red in both. He would have to face one of the two monsters before him in the next match, meaning getting as much information as he could with the Sharingan was crucial.

"How'd you even meet her? You said something about the forest?" Sakura asked.

Naruto reminisced about the moment with a wince. "I was trying to get a scroll from Kurotsuchi when I met her. I somehow managed to persuade her to not beat me to a pulp in the forest. Now we're friends."

Let's omit anything related to Jinchuuriki. I don't think Sakura of all people is ready for that conversation.

Fuu had a wide grin on her face as she looked down on Gaara due to her taller frame.

Gaara looked indifferent as always, his arms crossed as sand slowly trembled near his feet.

The air in the arena seemed colder as the two stared at each other. A malignant aura—filling up every little bit of space it could—radiated from the two, causing some of the civilians to shiver in place. The more battle-hungry ones watched in awe and anticipation of the fight that was about to occur.

It was almost like the entire world was watching their fight right now.

Gaara beckoned towards the proctor.

…

"I forfeit."

The crowd erupted into shouts of disbelief and dismay. Naruto just watched with a wide open mouth. What? What the hell just happened? His teammates and friends all looked equally shocked. Those who placed bets yelled curses at the Jinchuuriki, for a moment unafraid of the possible consequences of yelling at a clearly unstable shinobi. Others just watched in confusion as one of the tournament favorites surrendered before even attempting to fight.

No one was more surprised than Fuu. Her eyes were wide open as the previous smirk that donned her face morphed into a furious snarl. "Y-you can't forfeit! What the hell are you doing?"

The boy in question didn't respond.

Fuu looked at the proctor in outrage. "Tell him, proctor, someone like him shouldn't be forfeiting right now!"

"And why can't he?" Hayate asked, raising an eyebrow.

Fuu sputtered indignantly. "H-he's been wanting to fight the entire exam! Why would he suddenly give up?"

The crowd surged with noise to support her complaints, more so due to their own selfish reasonings. The proctor waited patiently for the complaints to die down before speaking.

"While the timing is…unfortunate…there is nothing we can do," Hayate sighed. "Due to the forfeit of Gaara, Fuu of Takigakure advances to the semifinals."

Fuu slumped in defeat as her further protests were immediately silenced.

Sakura nudged him from the side. "Why do you think he forfeited?"

"I have no idea," Naruto said blankly, for once completely stumped. "He didn't seem like the type."

"I, for one, am glad he's gone," Choji said with a shiver. "He's not right in the head."

Ino mushed her eyebrows together, as if contemplating something. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but I agree with Choji."

"Hey!"

Naruto inwardly contemplated everything that was happening. This makes no sense. Someone as bloodthirsty as Gaara wouldn't forfeit against Fuu, the person he was vying to fight the entire exam for no reason. There must have been some motive. The blond wasn't smart enough to figure it out himself, nor did he have the time to even try right now.

Gaara had looked strangely at peace when he made his decision. There was no expression on his face, but his eyes were more than telling. He was excited for something. Naruto wasn't sure what that something was, but he also wasn't sure if he wanted to know. He was sure it wasn't anything good.

The next fight would be announced, either being Naruto versus Shikamaru or Fuu versus Sasuke.

"Oi, Shikamaru. You know I won't take it easy on you, right?" Naruto asked with a confident grin.

Shikamaru grunted. "Right back at ya'. This is going to be a pain in the ass…I hate fighting small and quick brats."

"Language!" Ino shrieked a second later.

Small? I guess I'm still somewhat the shortest here…when am I going to get my growth spurt?

[Ding!]

[Bonus Quest: "Taking it Easy" Created]

[Quest Details: Defeat Shikamaru without using any of your system skills.]

[Quest Rewards: Exp. 2000]

[Failure: None]

[Yes/No]

A bonus quest? Naruto looked over the details quickly.

Could he beat Shikamaru without using any of his system's skills? That would include Iron Skin, Iron Clones, Perfect Henge, and his newly received Black Flash. Normally, Naruto wouldn't accept the quest. He didn't want to risk losing against someone as crafty as Shikamaru by overestimating himself.

But at this point in time, he needed the experience,

Fuu was still levels ahead of him. To even stand a chance against her he needed a level up. Naruto had assumed his leveling up would have concluded with his last fight with Neji which had been a quest, and he had no more quests left. By completing this bonus quest and along with the natural experience of beating someone in a battle that he gained, there was a chance that Naruto could level up.

Furthermore, there was no consequence for failure. Meaning if shit really hit the fan during the fight, he would use one of his skills to prevent losing.

Yes.

The lazy genius' eyes lit up as if they made a revelation. "I could pull a Gaara and forfeit immediately to—"

He suddenly felt the angry glares of all of his classmates at him, threatening to burn with their sheer intensity. "Nevermind."

The proctor coughed, bringing everyone's attention back to him.

"The next fight will be Naruto Uzumaki versus Shikamaru Nara."

Naruto felt his adrenaline spiking up with fervor, blood surging through his body as the fight was announced. He was getting a bit…addicted to the feel of a fight. He wasn't sure if it was because of the tournament or not, but he didn't care right now. Any sort of fatigue he would normally feel after two grueling fights was absent, replaced by a hunger for winning.

"Good luck, Naruto!" Sakura said with a small smile.

He nodded, pumping his right fist into the open left palm. "Thanks."

"You better not lose against lazy bones, Naruto," Sasuke stated casually, his arms crossed and posture lazy. "That would be a boring final."

"You got it!"

He made his way through the crowd, grinning as he passed by Tenten who still had a sour look on her face. Lee's eyes shone as he gave a massive thumbs up to Naruto. Neji wasn't beside them. I guess having your ideals prove you wrong would shake anybody up. I wouldn't really want to watch more matches if I lost so late in the tournament either, to be fair. Naruto reasoned as he almost tripped on the final stair.

Shikamaru followed a few steps behind.

Hayate signaled for both of them to come to the middle before he began to speak. They did so, looking at each other straight in the eyes as they ignored the rumbling of the crowd.

"Begin!"

Naruto immediately dashed backwards, ignoring the instinctive urge of his body to rush forwards. It turned out to be the right idea as Shikamaru had instantly used his shadow possession technique which was made obvious by the strands of darkness that darted forward from his position. If Naruto had recklessly come forward he would have been instantly immobilized.

Phew. Dodged a bullet there. Naruto thought as he analyzed the situation.

In an instant, both of them stood still.

The blond knew that he couldn't win with Shikamaru like he always did. Therefore he did something a lot of people didn't know was possible.

Think.

I can't blitz him with speed like the others in case of being caught by his technique. The second he manages to trap me—it's an absolute victory for him.

On the other hand, he can't rush me either, knowing that a one on one fight with me would result in his complete loss. Shikamaru hasn't shown his complete skill set with his shadows, or else he would have actually forfeited the match already.

I can't trust what I completely know about his abilities, and forcing an attack right now would be suicidal.

The main issue was the lack of any drawbacks of the shadow possession technique. Other than having to stay still, Shikamaru had a jutsu which guaranteed his win if properly executed. It was an incredibly flexible jutsu, working both on offense and defense equally.

If Naruto was able to use his skills, he would have spammed iron clones and forced Shikamaru to keep on moving, preventing any chance of his using the Nara clan's strongest technique and seal the fight with a strong hook to the face. But right now, he had no choice to do so if he wanted the extra experience.

So both of us are at a standstill. If I go forward swinging there is a chance of getting caught in his technique, and if he goes forward there's no way for him to win.

Shikamaru had come to the same conclusion, albeit much faster, and emptily stared at Naruto through half-lidded eyes.

The crowd looked at both of the frozen students in bewilderment.

"Move!"

"Fight already!"

"Godamnit! Move blond boy, I spent my entire salary on you!"

"Are they constipated?"

A fleeting sensation of anger at his inaction poured through Naruto, the instinct of attacking once again reappearing. What the hell is that? It disappeared as fast as it came, so he ignored it.

Shikamaru threw some kunai into the air in front of Naruto. On first glance, they seemed inconspicuous, yet one would immediately notice how slowly they descended in the air. Each of the few kunai had miniature parachutes in the air cast a shadow onto the ground, the position of the sun perfect for the length of the kunai to be as long as possible.

He must have positioned himself to his advantage from the beginning. Naruto realized with a grimace.

He moved backwards as threads of shadow emerged from Shikamaru, connecting with the shadows of the airborne weapons to increase their range. Naruto moved as fast as he possibly could, careful to avoid any traps the shadows were attempting to make such as forcing him into a corner that another sneaky tendril of darkness was lurking. A rookie mistake would have been trying to jump over the shadows, missing the point of the technique entirely in which the person jumping would still have his shadow casted onto the ground.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

The clones that formed immediately darted to the side, avoiding the shadows entirely. Naruto wasn't sure whether the shadow possession worked on his shadow clones, but he wasn't willing to test it. The clones were tasked to throw shuriken at the floating parachutes, which they did a second later. The kunai fell to the ground with a thud. Naruto found himself panting as Shikamaru's onslaught finally ended. He wasn't necessarily tired but could still feel the exertion on his body.

It's time.

He summoned seven more clones, making the total number of Narutos in the stadium ten.

Naruto followed from behind as the eight other clones ran forward, they slowly circled around the still Shikamaru, who looked relatively relaxed at the position. One of his clones stood next to Naruto, but wasn't paid much attention to by Shikamaru who had much more pressing matters at hand.

What Naruto needed was an opening to strike Shikamaru without the latter using his shadow technique while they were in close proximity. And for that…

His clones moved forward, not at all scared of whatever Shikamaru was planning.

"Fire Style: Flame Stream!"

The jutsu was cast without a single use of hand signs, most likely done by his shadows like he had used against Fuu.

Naruto noticed with a furrowed eyebrow that Shikamaru had slightly hesitated while using the jutsu. Was he remembering what happened to Kurotsuchi? Whatever, at least he was able to use it in the end. Shikamaru's a lot stronger than people give him credit for.

Shikamaru held a hand near his mouth as he released a torrent of blazing red fire, moving in a tight circle to form a ring of flame that rapidly protruded from him. The ring of fire caught the clones who refused to give up their assault, causing them to be destroyed as the scorching heat burned through their chakra bodies.

A resulting circle of smoke formed around Shikamaru due to the sudden destruction of the clones, blocking his line of sight from the rest of the world.

Shikamaru immediately went on high alert as he noticed that he was stuck without any vision. He brought his hands up into the shadow possession jutsu position, ready to trap anyone who appeared through the smoke.

Two Narutos burst through the smoke, clearing away most of the white apparition with their sheer speed.

Shikamaru's eyes narrowed as he examined the two. Which one is the clone? Rationally speaking, the one in front has to be the clone or else he wouldn't have been so brazen in attacking like this. So the one in front is a shadow clone, meaning a single hit wouldn't be enough to dispel it. If it were to dispel, the resulting smoke would hide the real Naruto's position as he goes for a killing blow. Too bad, Naruto. In this situation, I just have to brush aside the shadow clone without dispelling him and focus my technique solely on the original!

Shikamaru had calculated all of this in a span of a second.

As the clone moved forward, Shikamaru focused on not instinctively hitting the shadow clone too tough in case of it dispelling. He softly parried the incoming strike to the side, preparing mentally to start the shadow possession as quickly as possible.

The clone dispelled immediately.

It wasn't a shadow clone.

It was a regular Bunshin—one of the academy's three beginner jutsu.

The smoke covered most of the area inside the circle of smoke Shikamaru found himself in; he tried to run backwards in response while urging his shadow forward, but he had no idea where to direct the shadow when he couldn't actually see his target.

In the end, he was too slow.

Through the smoke, a grinning blond ninja appeared.

"Gotcha!"

Naruto delivered a perfect left hook to Shikamaru's face, who was too slow and surprised to even attempt to dodge. The Nara felt his consciousness fade for a brief moment as he fell to the ground with a pained groan. A second later, a kunai was making itself at home next to his pale, vulnerable neck.

"Uzumaki Naruto wins!"

[Ding!]

Naruto ignored the notification. He looked through the crowd for a certain someone. The second he noticed a head of green hair, he tried as hard he could to convey a message with his eyes. Fuu seemed to have noticed, for she grinned widely in response, a challenging look on her face.

You're next.

—end—

Yo!

Thanks for reading!

For anyone confused by Shikamaru getting outplayed, realistically Shikamaru had no way to win here. Shadow Clones are a clear counter to his very being, imo.

Question of the day: What other abilities from different anime would fit this Naruto? Black Flash is already done so I'm curious, maybe something from Demon Slayer? Idk.

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Cya' next week.

Review down here, it really makes my day! Next chapter is releasing on Tuesday, 30th of July.