A/N: So, today I am going to publish a new chapter. To those wishing to see a fight or something, sorry this chapter is just a build-up for the upcoming fights of the "Konoha crush", so please bear with it. Once again, I would like to express my gratitude for all the love and support this story has garnered.
I came to know last night that UrBoiPedro12 has passed away due to an accident. I really enjoyed his writing, especially "Last Day On Earth" and "Come Back To Me". May he rest in peace and May God give strength to his bereaved family.
Anyways, Happy reading.
CHAPTER 11: PRELUDE TO THE FINALS
*Konohagakure Stadium, Round-1 of the Chunin Exam Finals*
At exactly 9:00 in the morning, all genin competing in the final rounds of the Chunin exams had reported at the stadium, including Sasuke. Much to the surprise of many jonin, Kakashi had reported at the stadium, together with Sasuke, 15 minutes earlier. (This was because Hiruzen had recalled Kakashi citing an emergency situation developing in the village and the copy ninja had complied) Much to the surprise of the genin (Except Shikamaru), Naruto had yet to report.
The beginning of the matches were yet to be announced since the visiting Kage had not arrived.
Soon, a carriage surrounded by eight Suna-shinobi arrived at the gates of the Stadium and a man who had his face covered by a veil, wearing white robes and the kage hat with the kanji for "wind (kaze)" got out of the carriage. Hiruzen personally received his counterpart from Sunagakure.
"Welcome to Konoha Kazekage-dono, I hope you had a pleasant trip. It is my honor and pleasure to host you again in our humble village and I hope you will have a good time watching the battles between the chunin hopefuls." Hiruzen said showing his Suna counterpart the best (diplomatic) smile he could show and moved his hand forward for a handshake. 'Why are you planning on betraying our alliance Rasa, what are you going to get out of this, do you really think that you can just invade Konoha and get away with it?' Hiruzen thought to himself. The Kazekage shook hands with him and said,
"Hokage-dono, it feels really good to be in your company in Konoha once again and yes I look forward to the performances of the chunin hopefuls of our villages. My children competing in this exam to earn their promotion makes this particular exam all the more special for me and I am looking forward to see them in the arena. I also look forward to the performances of the chunin hopefuls of Konoha as I was informed that several clan heirs are competing in the exams. I hope that these exams will bolster our alliance."
The Hokage then escorted the Kazekage to the Kage box in the stadium.
Due to the alliance between Sunagakure and Konohagakure, the sight of Suna's Kage in Konoha was not a rare one. However, the arrival of another Kage raised a lot of whispers, put unease among civilians and shinobi alike as this particular Kage, since his inauguration had never visited Konoha till this date. Also the tense relations between Konoha and the village of the Kage concerned didn't help relieve any of the unease among Konoha's shinobi ranks and civilians either. As you see, soon after the arrival of the Kazekage, another delegation carrying the Raikage, the supreme ruler of Kumogakure (Village Hidden in the Clouds) arrived at the gates of Konoha. Unlike the Kazekage, the Raikage arrived on foot, escorted by 2 Kumo Jonin, one young blonde haired woman and another black skinned man, who wore a lazy look on his face similar to many male members of the Nara clan, especially the clan head and his son. As the Kumo delegation made their way towards the Konoha stadium a lot murmurs and whispers erupted in the streets of Konoha but the Kumo delegation paid them no mind.
At the stadium entrance, after having the Kazekage settled, Hiruzen was back to receive his counterpart from the Land of Lightning. It was perhaps the first time since the reign of the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju that a Raikage had set foot in Konoha on a diplomatic trip. Unlike many among Konoha's shinobi ranks, Hiruzen and the top brass of the village were aware of the Raikage's visit.
It was customary for a Hidden Village organizing the Chunin Exams to send formal invitations to all recognized great and small nations to send their shinobi to participate in the exams. So did Konoha this year. While as expected Suna and smaller villages such as Kusa (Hidden Grass), Ame (Hidden Rain) and new Oto (Hidden Sound) accepted, Kiri (Hidden Mist), Iwa (Hidden Stone) and Taki (Hidden Waterfalls) declined to send their teams to the exams, however Kumo's response to the invitation was intriguing. The village politely declined to send teams to the exams citing unavailability of genin squads strong enough to participate in the exams, but the Raikage expressed his interest to visit Konoha, watch the finals and have a talk with the Hokage to try to improve the diplomatic standing between their villages.
Of course Hiruzen agreed. It would have been treated as a great insult to Kumo had the Hokage declined to host the Raikage during the Chunin exam finals. Also the old Hokage had hoped for a long time to improve the diplomatic relations of Konoha with all other Shinobi nations, Iwa and Kumo in particular. The last time, Kumo sent a delegation to Konoha to discuss peace and cooperation ten years ago, a very serious incident took place and its repercussions on one particular clan had been very severe. However, unlike last time, the Raikage had personally showed up, therefore any backstabbing was much more unlikely due to its implications on the honor and international standing of the Kage.
As the Kumo delegation reached the stadium, the shinobi accompanying Hiruzen internally flinched but the old Hokage who had seen many battles, betrayals and a whole lot of other things remained impassive both internally and externally.
"It is a pleasure to host the Raikage in Konoha for the first time in over 40 years. Welcome to our village Raikge-dono, I hope you had a pleasant trip. I am sure you will not be let down by the performances of the chunin hopefuls in the exams." Said Hiruzen as he extended his hand to Ay, the 4th Raikage for a handshake. Ay took his hand and said,
"Hokage-dono, it's a pleasure to meet you. Yes, my trip was safe and pleasant and I do look forward to the performances. Although it is quite unfortunate that no participants from my village are here in the tournament but that can't be helped. As I have already indicated, our current genin squads lack promise and hence I have decided to let them compete next year once they acquire some experience and start showing promise as shinobi."
The Hokage nodded as he internally debated about the degree of truthfulness of the Raikage's statement, though he knew he could do absolutely nothing about it at the moment. And the Raikage was also currently not the most pressing of his concerns. His mind was occupied by the incident of the previous night. Hayate's report on the conversation he overheard between Kabuto and Baki was a startling revelation. The old Hokage was very concerned about the upcoming invasion. The village had very less time to prepare. They didn't have very much information about Otogakure and Ibiki still needed some time to complete his interrogation which could at least give them the number of invaders and the possible quality of shinobi in their ranks.
'Just like Hashirama-sensei used to say, "War, no matter what the era."' Hiruzen sighed to himself as he escorted the Raikage into the Kage box.
At the stands, the members of the Konoha 12, who had not qualified for the finals had all taken their seats. (Except for a certain Hyuuga girl of course) Both Ino and Sakura had their eyes set on Sasuke, the last Uchiha stood silently with his hands in his pockets and a serious expression on his face. 'Oh! Sasuke-kun looks so cooooool!' both the girls thought at the same time.
"Hey, billboard where is your other teammate?" asked Ino. "Isn't he supposed to be facing Neji Hyuuga, last year's rookie of the year? Did he get scared and chose not to turn up at all?" the Yamanaka heiress added.
"I don't know pig. I mean, I hardly believe Naruto could actually win against Neji but it's not at all like him to run away even before trying and he made a vow to defeat Neji as well. Never mind, I think only Sasuke-kun's match will be interesting."
"Agreed."
In the contestants' stand, Neji carefully looked around the other genin present there and smirked as he noticed the absence of a certain loudmouthed blonde genin.
'Looks like that loudmouthed idiot understood that he is fated to lose. All that showing off and blood vows! He and Hinata are a perfect couple, a couple of pathetic losers. If that blond loser is not here, who could be a good challenge? Sasuke Uchiha and Gaara, those two seem to be good, let's see which one of those two is fated to fight me.'
Back in the stands Kiba was sitting with his sensei Kurenai by his side.
"Hey sensei, where's Hinata, I thought she would like to come here and cheer for Naruto, also that blond baka is nowhere to be seen?" the Inuzuka heir asked.
"I think the paperwork at the hospital is taking up time, so Hinata might be discharged a little late. Anyways have you brought your gear like I told you?"
"Yes sensei, I came fully battle ready but I don't understand why did you tell me to come here ready with my gear?"
'Because an invasion force is about to strike us anytime during the tournament.' The Genjutsu mistress thought to herself.
"Because Kiba, as soon as the finals are over you and me are going to have a one-on-one spar. I think it's been some time since I last trained you individually."
"Got it sensei." Kiba replied excited and his canine partner Akamaru barked in approval.
Hiruzen had gathered all the Jonin at dawn and informed them about the upcoming Suna-Oto invasion. Only the Jonin, special Jonin and some selected Chunin such as Iruka were informed of this. The Jonin, not present at the arena were already in the process of evacuating all the civilian population in the vicinity of the places most likely to be struck first during the invasion, such as the hospital, the ninja academy, the Hokage tower, the ANBU headquarters and the power grid of the village. The reason of this partial evacuation was that firstly there was not enough time to evacuate all the civilians to emergency shelters. Secondly there could have been enemy sleeper agents within the civilians who could have the means to alert the enemy forces of their cover being blown which although could sway the results of the war either way. However Hiruzen and Shikaku had deduced that if the Suna and Oto forces got the wind of Konoha having the knowledge of their invasion, they most likely would call upon reinforcements which could make the situation worse as Konoha's shinobi forces were already undermanned.
Meanwhile the Hokage and the Raikage were making their way towards the Kage box. Hiruzen decided to at least alert his Kumo counterpart about the invasion, since the latter was his guest whose security was Konoha's responsibility.
"Raikage-dono, there is something I must inform you as your host, although it is unpleasant for the both of us. In the early morning today, we got the intel that during the matches our village will be invaded by a joint force of Sunagakure and Otogakure. If we had gotten the information sooner I would have requested you to at least postpone your visit, but it is not possible anymore. As your host I promise you that if you or your shinobi are threatened in any way we will protect you to the best of our abilities." Hiruzen whispered.
"It seems your village is in a difficult situation then Hokage-dono. However I must thank you for trusting me enough with this information, especially considering the current state of affairs between our villages." Ay whispered back.
The Hokage nodded.
"Unlike Suna, since unfortunately the diplomatic standing between our two villages are far from ideal, the movement of shinobi from the direction of Kumo is heavily monitored and since our villages are far away from each other, any large invasion force would lose the element of surprise long before it reaches its target. So far the status quo between our villages continues. Therefore, now as your host your security is my responsibility and I had to let you know about this."
The Raikage nodded.
"You are an honorable person Hokage-dono."
The two kage then reached their seats and sat down silently.
Hiruzen carefully eyed the cheerful crowd in the arena, totally unware of the upcoming chaos and inwardly sighed. Then he got up and announced with a chakra enhanced voice.
"LADIES, GENTLEMEN AND RESPECTED SHINOBI. DID I MISS ANYONE?"
A round of laughter was heard from the stands.
"THANKS FOR PATIENTLY WAITING TILL NOW. OUR ESTEEMED GUESTS, THE RAIKAGE AND THE KAZEKAGE HAVE ARRIVED. NOW IT'S TIME FOR THE FINAL ROUND OF THE CHUNIN EXAMS TO BEGIN. ONCE AGAIN I WOULD LIKE TO CONGRATULATE ALL THE CHUNIN HOPEFULS WHO HAVE MADE IT TILL THIS ROUND AND COMMEND THEIR SKILLS. YOU HAVE MADE YOUR VILLAGE PROUD BY MAKING IT HERE AND I WISH ALL OF YOU THE BEST FOR YOUR UPCOMING FIGHTS. NOW I ASK THE PROCTOR, JONIN GENMA SHIRANUI TO TAKE OVER. "
A Jonin with a senbon in his mouth walked into the middle of the arena and bowed to the Hokage. Then facing the crowd and the chunin hopefuls. The genin stood up in attention. Then he also announced with a chakra enhanced voice for all to hear.
"I GENMA SHIRANUI WELCOME YOU ALL TO THE FINAL ROUND OF THIS YEAR'S CHUNIN EXAMS. THE RULES ARE SIMPLE. THE CONTESTANTS WILL FIGHT TO THE BEST OF THEIR ABILITIES AND ARE ALLOWED TO USE ALL THE TRICKS AND TECHNIQUES AT THEIR DISPOSAL. THE FIGHT WILL CONTINUE UNITL EITHER ONE OF THE CONTESTANTS FORFEITS OR I JUDGE ONE OF THEM UNABLE TO CONTINUE. NOW LET'S MOVE ON TO THE FIRST MATCH OF THE FIRST ROUND OF THE FINALS."
The crowd cheered as two names were displayed on the large display.
"KANURO OF SUNAGAKURE AND SHINO ABURAME OF KONOHAGAKURE PLEASE STEP INTO THE ARENA!" Called Genma.
Kankuro flinched and looked at his sister Temari who was also a little unnerved. The first match was supposed to be between one Naruto Uzumaki and one Neji Hyuuga as decided at the end of the preliminaries however the match up was changed and Kankuro's match had been moved to the first.
"I was supposed to withdraw from this match. What should I do now sis? I am supposed to go up first. Baki-sensei also hasn't showed up till now. What are we supposed to do?" the puppet user whispered.
Temari let out a breath.
"So far we haven't received any new orders regarding the invasion, so we wait for the signal and then make our way to spot alpha with Gaara. As far as your match is concerned I think you should go, forfeiting the first match might raise some eyebrows and in this way you can at best render the Aburame useless during the invasion and at worst get a knowledge of how he fights. From his fight in the prelims I can say that this guy is intelligent and can prove to be a formidable opponent for us. However don't get too cocky and if his insects get to you forfeit before they drain you of your chakra." Temari whispered back.
"Got it sis."
The puppet user then started making his way towards the arena.
Meanwhile, if Shino was in anyway affected by his match suddenly being moved to the first place, he didn't show it. (Our usual stoic Shino) The Aburame heir looked towards his sensei and teammate who were not too far from him. Kurenai gave his a small smile and nod and Kiba flashed him a thumbs up. The Aburame nodded and silenly walked towards the arena.
Meanwhile a few kilometers away two lovebirds were sitting in training ground number 7 against the training posts, having instant ramen for breakfast. Our blond hero was a little bit nervous. Of course he had trained his butt off with his parents, the perverted Toad sage and the self-proclaimed green beast of Konoha. He has collected all the information about Neji's fighting style and trained hard to counter it. After getting up from a peaceful sleep with the love of his life, the blonde had gone to his apartment to get freshened up and have a shower. His lavender eyed girlfriend had told him to meet her there after she got freshened up and completed the formalities of her discharge from the hospital. The pair ate in silence. Hinata noticed that her boyfriend was a little unnerved, so after finishing her cup of ramen, she moved to his side and put her hand on top of his.
"Are you nervous Naruto-kun?"
The blonde looked into her lavender eyes full of trust in him and affection.
"Yeah, a little bit. You know Hinata-chan, I literally worked my butt off for this match but still…I just can't help feel it. You know, I always act all mighty, heroic, proclaim loudly about becoming Hokage and all, but in the end, it's all an act. You might find it funny but many times, I really am the idiot everyone claims me to be. I am not really that great." Naruto said looking down.
Hinata placed her hand on his cheek and moved his face towards hers to match her gaze with his.
"Naruto-kun, I know about this goofy and confident mask of yours. You may not be perfect, you may be a failure but to me you are a proud failure."
"A-a proud failure?"
"Yes, because whenever you do fail, you always get back up and try again. I believe that's what true strength is. So in my eyes, you are an incredibly strong person, Naruto-kun."
Just like the previous timeline Naruto just stared at Hinata wide eyed. He found himself falling for the beauty before him harder and harder.
Hinata then pressed her forehead against his while wrapping her arms around his neck.
"And as far as being an idiot is concerned Naruto-kun, you are my idiot. Don't worry about anything Naruto-kun, Minatot tou-san, Kushina kaa-san and I have got your back, always and forever."
At this, any doubts the blonde jinchuuriki had about himself totally vanished. He gave his girlfriend a true smile before cupping her cheeks and kissing her hard while Hinata gladly kissed him back.
After a minute the two separated.
"I won't lie to you Hinata-chan, earlier I thought you were a weirdo but as I got to know you better, I understood that you are the most awesome person and best girl in the world. I am indeed the luckiest guy in the world to have a girlfriend like you Dattebayo!"
Hinata who still had her forehead pressed against Naruto, smiled as she ran her fingers over the whisker marks on his cheeks.
"And I consider myself the luckiest girl in the world for being your girlfriend Naruto-kun."
The two then shared a hug.
"I just love this girl more and more every day and I can't help notice how similar she is to you Minato-kun." Said Kushina to her husband inside Naruto's mindscape. The blonde Hokage smiled and nodded.
"My son, as I have said earlier, I am proud of having you as a son and I believe in you no matter what. I have believed in you from the moment you were born. And just as Hinata-chan said, the three of us always have your back." Minato said from the mindscape. Naruto smiled back.
"Thanks Dad"
He then got a tight hug from Kushina.
"You are my little hero Naru-chan and you always will be."
"Naruto-kun, I think we should head to the stadium now." Said Hinata and Naruto nodded.
The two lovers then got up and began walking towards the stadium.
"Hey! Hinata-chan, can I ask you something?"
"Of course, anything Naruto-kun."
"Well, I know you don't talk much about your family with others but can you tell me why Neji hates you like he does. I mean I heard that you two are cousins and you are too nice to hurt him in any way possible. Please don't mind but I am a bit curious about that."
Hinata nodded. Naruto was the most precious person to her by now, so she didn't really feel the need to hide anything from him.
"It's because of the division in our clan Naruto-kun."
"Division?"
"Yes, the Hyuuga clan is divided into the main house and the branch house. The branch house members are sworn to serve and protect the main house members who lead the clan. All branch house members are branded with the caged bird seal."
"The caged bird seal?"
"Hai, it's a seal I can't tolerate. It was supposed to keep our Byakugan safe from others as when a sealed Hyuga dies or has his eyes removed, the Byakugan is destroyed. However, that blasted seal as another feature. Whenever a main house members activates the seal, the branch house member suffers unbearable pain and if it is kept active for a longer period of time, the target could die. D-Due to this seal, the elders have practically made the branch house their slaves."
"That's really cruel Hinata-chan."
"Hai. What's more unfortunate is that Neji nii-san's father was placed in the side-branch even though he was my father's twin brother, just because my father was born a few minutes earlier. Uncle Hizashi, along with his family was forced into lifelong slavery without any fault of his."
"I-I understand, but none of it is your fault. You were not even born back then."
Hinata nodded and then continued.
"However, in a way I am responsible for uncle Hizashi's death Naruto-kun. When I was 3 years old. Kumogakure sent an ambassador to our village to discuss a peace treaty. The ambassador stayed in our compound as an honored guest. But then one night, h-he kidnapped me."
"WHAAT!"
"Hai, but before he could escape the village, my father found him and killed him. Then Kumo demanded my father's head while they denied responsibility for the kidnapping and claimed that my father deserved to be punished. In order to avoid a war, my father had to be killed but being a branch house member uncle Hizashi died in his place. Since then, Neji nii-san blames me for his father's death and in a way I am responsible Naruto-kun. Sometimes I feel ashamed to belong to a clan which follows such cruel practices. B-but…"
Suddenly Hinata got teary eyed
"I'd understand if you stopped liking me for belonging to such a cruel clan Naruto-kun."
Naruto immediately pulled his girlfriend into a tight hug.
"Hey, I will never ever hate you. And no, you are in no way responsible for your uncle's death. How were you supposed to save yourself from some Jonin at three years of age Hinata-chan? You were a victim here and I don't care what kind of people your clan has but you still are the most awesome person for me. "
"B-but.."
"Tell me one thing Hinata-chan, do you know how to activate the caged-bird seal?"
Hinata looked down sadly and nodded.
"But even when Neji almost killed you in rage, you didn't activate it, not even to save yourself. There is no way you could be anything like those stuck-up pricks your clan has my Hime."
"H-Hime?"
"Yeah, the most beautiful and kindest princess in the world, Dattebayo!"
Hinata could only blush at the comment. The two then continued to walking towards the stadium, now tightly holding each other's hands
"Wait a minute Hinata-chan, you have a sister right? So if Neji's dad, even after being your dad's brother was placed in the branch family then your sister might be-?"
"No, Naruto-kun, Hanabi-chan won't be placed in the branch family. Publicly I am still the heiress but the truth is that I had been stripped of that title three years ago. I-I was always considered weak in my father's and the elders' eyes and my jyuuken was not good enough. Three years ago, my father and the elders made me spar against my sister. I couldn't bring myself to hit her and I lost. Then I was deemed unworthy to lead the clan and Hanabi-chan was made the heiress."
Naruto immediately understood the implications of that statement. He tightened his fists.
"T-That means you will be!"
Hinata nodded sadly.
"Yes, Naruto-kun, the fact that Hanabi-chan is the heiress will made public as soon as I turn sixteen, as the clan has to officially make its position clear about the heir. So on my 16th birthday, I will be moved to the branch family and be branded."
"THOSE BASTARDS! THEY WILL PAY!" Naruto spat and he was joined by Minato, Kushina and Kurama in the mindscape. The blonde was trembling in rage. Hinata was touched by how much her love cared for her. She placed her hand on his cheek.
"It's okay Naruto-kun. It was either me or Hanabi-chan and I could never bring myself to hurt her in our spars, neither could I have lived with her being thrown into the branch family, so I don't mind being branded in her place. Besides, it might be painful but I have you now. And just having you is more than enough for me, I can face anything and everything having you by my side, so don't worry I am not really sad about it anymore at least ever since you came and confessed that you loved me." Said Hinata smiling.
'Just having me is more than enough? Even if they brand you with that blasted seal? Do you really love me that much Hinata?'
"That's true and yes I love you that much." Hinata said as if she was reading his mind making him stare at her with disbelief.
By that time the couple was already at the entrance of the stadium. Since the matches had already started, nobody around them was paying them any mind.
"Gomen, I distracted you a bit by telling about my clan Naruto-kun. Just remember that I will always believe in you no matter what and I know you will win. I will cheer for you. Do your best ok?" Hinata said as she cupped his cheeks and gave him a chaste kiss on his lips.
Naruto pressed his forehead against her as he held her cheeks.
"My Hime, I promise I will show Neji that he is not the only one who suffers or who is special. I also promise you that I will change the way of the Hyuuga, no matter what. I swear that on my…no…on our nindo, our ninja way. Just watch me Hime."
This declaration brought tears into Hinata's eyes. She knew if Naruto promised something he will do it and she trusted him absolutely. Then they heard Naruto's name being called for him to report in the arena.
The lovers parted.
"All the best Naruto-kun."
"Thanks Hime." Said Naruto as he began walking into the light, into the arena. Hinata watched for some seconds and then turned towards the viewers' gallery to find herself a good seat and watch her boyfriend fight.
A/N: Well, another chapter done here and special thanks again to GBAboy313 for doing beta-editing of this story and this chapter. Naruto and Neji's fight takes place in the next chapter. No rewards for guessing who would win the fight. I hope you all had a good read. See ya in the next chapter.