Chapter 11 - The End of The Preliminaries

"I must admit, what we just witnessed was one of the most impressive matches that I've ever seen in my history as a jounin sensei," Ishida-sensei slowly admitted as she turned to her team. "Unfortunately, this same battle could have cost one of its participants his ninja career."

"Wait, what do you mean by that Ishida-sensei?"

"Isn't it obvious Haruka?" Nanami mumbled as they watched a couple of Leaf jounin use an earth-based jutsu to even out the ground. "Opening a bunch of your Inner Gates in such a brief time span is considered a forbidden technique for a reason. . . It puts too much strain on the body, causing more harm than good if used for too long. Broken bones, possible paralysis, even death."

"Death? Damn, Lee risked all that, and he still lost," Haruka mumbled, shaking her head in disbelief. "I know being a ninja means running into a lot of situations that aren't fair, but man some things really aren't fair."

"That's the life of a ninja . . . All kinds of unfairness, from the common born to royalty," Ishida added. "When Lee recovers from all the trauma he's been through, he may come out worse mentally, or he may become a better ninja than ever before. He definitely showed that he has the determination and heart of one down there."

"When Lee recovers?" Shizuka parroted, sensing something more behind the wording. "How long do you think that'll take?"

"My best guess? A few weeks to a couple of months, but it's not just the bones that'll have to heal. His chakra network and his nervous system have been put through the ringer in that match, let alone his mental state," Ishida theorized as she looked at the Sand team standing across the room. "Only time will tell if he will be able to physically function the same way he did before this all started though."

Shizuka followed her sensei's gaze until her blue eyes landed on the redhead. Instead of looking at her or her team, he was paying attention to the ground, looking lost in thought as he kept his arms crossed tightly across his chest.

"Ryuna, do you think Gaara feels . . . a little guilty for what he did to Lee?"

"I do not believe he feels guilty for beating Lee and winning the match. Truthfully, I believe he feels guilty for letting Shukaku grab control, and I can't blame him. My youngest brother has a terrible tendency for biting the hand that feeds him too much; no wonder he's considered the most unstable of the 10 of us,"The dragon demon calmly replied as the monitor started shuffling through names again."The prince came into the match knowing he had to beat Lee to move to the next round. . . Shukaku must have jumped in when he found his chance. He tends to be quite the opportunist in that regard."

"Hmm, Gaara is probably thinking through every detail of his battle just to comprehend everything," Shizuka mused as she continued observing the redhead. "He's likely not in the best headspace right now."

"With Shukaku being his tailed beast, is he ever?"

"Really Ryuna . . ."

"I was simply asking an honest question."

"I possibly just ended another ninja's career, and all because I couldn't maintain full control in a simple battle," The redhead thought to himself as he glared at his feet. "Shukaku, you just had to fucking interfere . . ."

"If I hadn't interfered, you would have lost! You would've been stuck with Baki in the stands, watching as your siblings represented your kingdom while you wallowed in self-imposeddisappointment!" The tanuki bit back as the monitor settled on the next two names. "That Lee kid would have beaten you clean if it weren't for me. . . If only this seal wasn't keeping me at bay."

"Haruka Nekonome, Akio Sakamoto, make your way down for your match!"

"You would have done a lot worse, but you still would have been stopped in the end," Gaara predicted as the brunette from Princess Shizuka's team and the last Grass genin both swung themselves over the railing. "Remember, if the Fire shinobi can seal away the Nine and Ten Tails, then they are more than capable of sealing you away too if need be."

"You really have a knack for ruining the mood, you know that right?"

"You ruin my mood, I ruin yours. Fair trade off!"

"Fuck you too fleshbag, fuck you too!" Shukaku grumbled as the redhead started paying more attention to the battle instead of him.

As soon as Proctor Gekko signaled for the match to start, Sakamoto launched himself forward to punch Haruka in the face, but the Leaf kunoichi saw it coming and dodged accordingly. She bent herself backward, becoming almost vertical with Sakamoto's arm before rolling out of the way and nailing him in the back with a forceful kick that sent him sprawling.

Pressing her advantage, Haruka moved before her opponent could get back on his feet, flipping over him to nail him with another kick, this time to the side of his skull.

"One thing's for sure: that girl is definitely agile." Kankuro mumbled as he watched the Grass genin slowly stand up, already looking a little dazed as Haruka moved around him.

"Agility, flexibility, they've always been the Nekenome Clan's strong suit," Baki explained. "Comes with their long-standing partnership with ninja cats."

"Like the Inuzuka Clan and their ninja hounds?" Temari asked as she watched Haruka's nails elongate into sharp claws half a foot long. Her face also became more feline in appearance, giving her a more feral look as she charged forward.

"Pretty much," The turban-wearing jounin agreed as they watched Haruka release an onslaught of slashes and kicks on Sakamoto. Her opponent tried to fight back, but it was quickly proving futile in the face of her speed and viciousness. "Of course, the Nekonomes and the Inuzukas have been rivals for centuries. Not to the degree that the Senjus and Uchihas were, but close enough. . . However, once they're side-by-side on the battlefield, they're quite the fearsome fighting force."

By the time Haruka was done, her opponent was lying on the ground unconscious, an absolute mess of bruises and slash marks you would think was a living abstract painting. Save for a few scratches and bruises along her own arms, Haruka was fine, looking at her handiwork with an impassive expression as her nails returned to their natural size.

"Well, that was a beatdown alright," Temari mumbled as the proctor announced Haruka as the winner of the match. "The other guy practically had no chance!"

"Nekonomes also have a tendency to be relentless in their onslaughts," Baki informed his charges as Haruka walked off the field, leaving Sakamoto to be tended to by the reappearing medics. "Once they hit you, they won't stop until you're down, permanently in some cases of course."

"Noted. . ." Kankuro mumbled, hoping that he wouldn't need to fight her in the next round.

"Now that girl knows how to fight a bloody fight. . ." Shukaku mused, but Gaara ignored him, still not over his own battle just yet.

"For our final match, Dosu Kinuta, Choji Akimichi, please make your way down!"

"Finally, the last match," Kankuro mumbled as he watched as the two that were called made their way down. "A fat kid and a living mummy . . . Should be interesting."

"Shouldn't be long either," Temari added as she observed the two. "The Akimichi doesn't look like much, but he could surprise us with his clan's body expansion techniques. As for the Sound mummy, well, if he's like his teammates, his repertoire must be sound based as well."

"If Akimichi wants to win this, he must be mindful of any sound techniques his opponent has," Baki advised. "Sound travels very well through the body because of our high water composition. His body expansion techniques would only give the Sound genin more of a target to attack if he's not careful."

"Well, he should be aware of something as simple as that," Kankuro mused as the match began. "If he's not, it's his downfall."

The match ended up being one of the shortest ones of the day. The Akimichi heir appeared to have had an advantage in the early goings of the battle, forcing Dosu to stay on the defensive. However, once Choji put himself at a disadvantage by getting stuck in the wall, Dosu grabbed victory by sending sound waves into Akimichi's body with the use of his gauntlet, letting the water within Choji's body do the rest.

Once the match was called and Choji was taken away by the medics, the proctor called for all the winners to make their way down to the floor, just as Sasuke returned to the room with his sensei.

"Well that last match was anticlimactic!"Shukaku grumbled as Gaara followed his siblings to the staircase. "But at leastthe men were finally weeded out from the boys!"

"That's true. . ." Gaara unenthusiastically grumbled as he looked across the room to see Princess Shizuka's team already descending the other staircase. "There's only 12 of us now."

"Which means six matches, well, if they continue with the whole one-on-one battle strategy that is . . ."

Gaara quietly followed his siblings down the stairs. When the preliminary match winners were all gathered, they formed a single line in front of the Fire King and his jounin, ready to hear the next course of action.

Little did they know that they were going to hear from the King himself.

"Congratulations everyone! After thirteen battles, you twelve genin have proven yourselves worthy of making it to the next round," King Minato spoke with authority as he stepped forward, his hands clasped behind his back. "Now then, I am sure that you are all under the impression that the third round will immediately begin after I'm finished speaking . . . That will not be the case."

"What do you mean by that?" Kankuro blurted out, getting a sudden feeling of self-doubt when he felt all eyes suddenly on him. "What?! I wasn't the only one thinking it!"

"Real smooth brother. . ." Temari whispered under her breath, but loud enough that the grimacing puppeteer could hear her. "Real smooth indeed."

"Oh, shut it sis!" He quickly whispered back, a response that only made Temari smirk in return.

"Today marks the end of the preliminary competition. . . As per Showcase tradition, the finals will be held one month from today. Though these next few weeks will serve as a time to rest and recuperate, it's not an excuse to get lazy. We expect you all to be at your absolute best once the finals begin, so use your time to improve on your abilities, maybe add something new that your opponents would never expect," The King calmly explained, not even hinting that he was annoyed by the interruption.

"This month is also meant to give enough travel time to those who plan to attend the final rounds, as well as make their respective bets. After all, people travel from far and wide to see the Showcase every year . . . Hmm, from the looks of things, there is no question that at least two other monarchs will be making the trip to Konoha to see the proceedings this time around."

"The only ones that he could possibly be talking about is the Sound King and your father. Along with Fire, Sound and Wind are the only other kingdoms that still have a stake in this thing . . . Ready to see your old man again, flesh bag?"

"Hardly"

"I had a feeling you were going to say that. . . Predictable."

"Now then, before you are all dismissed, there is one more thing that needs to be addressed first," The King announced as Proctor Morino came forward with a small box in hand. "You all need to pick lots to see who you will be facing first."

"I still have no idea who I want to fight first," Kankuro thought as he subtly looked up and down the line. "My skills don't give me a definite advantage against most of the remaining competition, especially not my siblings . . . As long as I don't have to face a close-range fighter, I should be okay for Round 1."

"You will come up one-by-one in alphabetical order by first name," King Minato added as he gestured to the box in Morino's hand. "Please, don't open the paper until I give you the go ahead . . . Genin Kinuta, you're first."

The mummy-looking Sound genin simply nodded before stepping forward to take a slip of paper from the box. Once he picked his slip, everyone else, starting from Prince Gaara and ending with his sister, came forward to grab slips of their own. When the king eventually gave them the go ahead to open them, Gaara opened it to see that all that there was inside was a single blue dot.

"Now then, each slip has one of six colored dots stamped on it. Whoever has the same-colored dot as you will be your first opponent in the finals," King Minato explained, locking eyes with each finalist. "Let's see, for the finals' first match, who holds a red dot?"

Both Neji and Naruto's hands went up, with both nodding at each other as Proctor Morino wrote their names down on a clipboard he somehow procured.

"The Hyuga gets to fight the prince first huh?" Temari mused. "Both favor close combat, but unless Neji has some useful ninjutsu in his repertoire, the odds favor Naruto."

"For the second match, who has a blue dot?"

Gaara slowly raised his hand, and when he looked down the line, he saw that Sasuke had also raised his hand.

Shukaku was almost giddy.

"So, the Uchiha is our next opponent . . ." The tanuki observed said in a tone that Gaara didn't like very much."This is going to be fun. His blood should be fun to spill."

"And there you go again, acting like the bloodthirsty animal you are," Gaara mumbled as he tried to pay attention to the rest of the proceedings. "You really can't go one day without mentioning blood in some way, can you?"

"This has been the way I've acted for years now. I've always been bloodthirsty, but when you get consistently sealed into people for the sake of their family members maintaining a stranglehold on their power, can you seriously blame me for my attitude towards humans?"Shukaku asked, his tone slightly condescending.

"When you put it that way, honestly, I really can't," Gaara admitted, knowing that the beats had a point. "But still, tone down the rhetoric. I can understand the reasoning, but that doesn't mean you have to repeat yourself everyday like a broken record."

"I make no promises, but still, aren't you excited?"Shukaku asked, but Gaara offered no reply. "If not for the blood, then you must be excited to face an opponent from such a strong lineage as the Uchihas. It's not like you get to test your strength against someone like that everyday back in your homeland."

"The Wind Kingdom isn't known for having doujutsu wielding clans like Fire does, but I'll admit, you're not wrong," Gaara mumbled. "It will be interesting to see which comes out on top: sand or Sharingan."

"If you allow me to take control, then no question, we will be the ones on top!"Shukaku advised, but Gaara wasn't biting."Not taking the bait huh? Fine then, I'll drop it, but still. Once we beat Uchiha, if they're successful in their matches, the other jinchurikis could be future opponents for you, and the same could be said for your own siblings . . . I hope you don't plan to take it easy on them."

"They may be my family, but I plan to treat Kankuro and Temari like any other opponent I'll have to face, and no, I'm not letting you have a turn!" Gaara announced. If he had been staring at the tanuki face-to-face, he would have been glaring holes at him, despite the obvious size difference. "So, don't get any bright ideas! You've already done enough damage for one tournament."

"Again, I helped you win!"

"By interfering when I didn't want you to!"

"We can agree to disagree, but still, I helped you win!"

"I'm ignoring you now."

"Alright, the pairings have been made," The king announced, his words finally breaking Gaara out of his thoughts. "Competition wise, you all are each other's enemies. You may immediately know your first opponent, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't prepare for everyone else as well. . ."

"Here's a recap of the order, for your benefit of course," Morino announced as he turned his clipboard around, giving the group one more look at the order.

They were quick to learn it by heart.

Naruto Namikaze vs Neji Hyuga

Gaara vs Sasuke Uchiha

Kankuro vs Haruka Nekonome

Shino Aburame vs Nanami Otoribashi

Dosu Kinuta vs Shizuka Namikaze

Temari vs Shikamaru Nara

"You know who you will face, you know the amount of time you have to prepare yourselves, and I am eager to see the results of your hard work," King Minato admitted as he looked down the line. "Work hard, fight harder. . . Good luck to you all. You are dismissed!"

Before anyone could say anything else, the king used his Hiraishin technique to disappear from the room, leaving without a trace as some of his guards quickly followed suit.

"Ok, that was impressive," Kankuro mumbled as the rest of the class began to disperse. "So, that's it huh?"

"Pretty much . . ." Temari concluded as people started leaving the room. "We now have a full month to prepare for the finals. I get to face the lazy kid, you get the cat girl, and Gaara gets to fight the moody Uchiha"

"I was hoping to not get a close ranged fighter in the next round . . . The universe hates me." The puppeteer grumbled as Baki reached the three

"If you don't want to get beat by a close combat fighter, then I suggest you increase your taijutsu training," Baki quickly advised, his words only making Kankuro grimace at the thought. "However, you can save that training for tomorrow. . . You've done enough for today after all."

"Rest today, train tomorrow. Simple enough." Temari mused as the four moved to leave. "We can't let this month become a complete waste."

"I get it. No being lazy for the next thirty days," Kankuro grumbled as he crossed his arms. "Sheesh, four weeks of training in an unfamiliar village. Sounds like fun."

"It's not all about fun. There's still kingdom pride to think about," Baki reminded them. "You're not in it just for yourselves. You represent the Wind Kingdom, so keep that in mind when I put you through your paces in the coming days."

"As if he could show you anything that could help you at this point." Shukaku scoffed as his fellow vessel as he snuck a look at the Fire twins' teams, who were lingering in the room as they conversed amongst themselves.

"I wouldn't dismiss him just yet. . ." The redhead mused. "He's just thinking about the kingdom's reputation, something that you don't care about of course."

"Damn straight I don't!"

"Still, I highly doubt that the rest of the remaining competition are going to slack in their training these upcoming weeks," Gaara suggested as he looked forward. "I don't plan to either."

A/N: Leave a comment if you like!