Crossover Fan Fiction / Naruto Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ K a z o k u ❯ Prelude to a Storm ( Chapter 10 )

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The stunned silence in the auditorium was interrupted only by painful coughs and wheezes from the proctor Hayate. Everyone including the girl left standing in the middle of the battle area looked at the smoldering ashes in front of her with emotions ranging from incredulity, awe and some even fear.

 

One redhead in particular was basking in bloodlust. The brush of power before the genin turned her opponent into a pile of dust had awoken his inner beast, demanding bloodshed. The display of power had been impressive and exhilarating, but there was no crimson liquid splashed on the walls or agonizing screams that were music to his ears. He wanted more.

 

“T-the winner is Uzumaki Kagome,” Hayate's voice trembled slightly, but no one noticed. They were all too busy trying to wrap their minds around what the heck just happened.

 

A disguised Orochimaru could barely conceal the effects of his adrenaline rush, never had he thought his target to have this much potential. He knew from his own experiences and experiments that she was special, but this act exceeded even his highest expectations. He couldn't wait until the time came for him to harness that power and have it under his complete control.

 

Kagome brought trembling hands in front of her face, knees buckling. “I . . . I . . . what have I done?” Arms snaked around her waist to support her before she fell flat on her face. Blue eyes shining with unshed tears didn't even recognize who was holding her upright. “I didn't mean to kill her!” She pleaded for anyone to understand, “I . . . I wasn't thinking!”

 

“You sure talk big for someone who doesn't have the power to back it up.”

 

Naruto gently rubbed his sister's back to calm her down as she explained, “I was . . . it was like . . . I felt like I wasn't in control anymore. I was just so mad and I only wanted to wipe the smirk off her face,” and continued to sob, burrowing into his shoulder.

 

“What is your dear friend going to think when she finds out you can't even help her with your puny efforts?”

 

A clean-up crew came forward and neatly swept the ashes off the arena. A pale-faced Arashi was conferring with the other high representatives, with the Sandaime keeping a hand on his arm to physically restrain him from rushing to his daughter's side. Mushin was currently talking to them.

 

“The only way to save your friend is for you to kill me.”

 

The frustration of feeling helpless, the thought of her best friend dying, and the white hot anger that accompanied Kagura showing off how much difference they had in power by dealing damage after damage to her without even laying a finger on her body compounded. Kagome aptly nicknamed her the Wind Witch, since she used her fan to manipulate the wind to attack her opponent, and her attitude was that of a witch.

 

As the fight progressed, the young miko had a multitude of cuts all over her body while Kagura continued to play with her, taunting her from her position high above, sitting on a giant floating feather. Kagome's biggest wound was on her right thigh, and it bled profusely as she continued to barely escape attacks. Kagura enjoyed not only inflicting physical wounds on her target, but also relished in messing with the kunoichi's mind.

 

“Defeat me and Kanna will give your friend's soul back. Or you can just let her die. Don't worry, I'll make sure that Kanna's mirror savors your friend's soul as it eats it.”

 

She was jealous of the close interest her master had on this untrained, unskilled, unworthy girl, and even if she wasn't allowed to kill the miko, she also wasn't prohibited from giving her hell either. She served with blind loyalty and devotion just to gain a little praise and rare pats on the head, but this girl only had to exist to gain her master's attention? It was bad enough that she had to compete with her own sister and that clone who took most of their master's time! Having this twit gain favor just by being what she was grated on her nerves. She wanted to see this nobody suffer. A cut here and another there wouldn't make her master angry at her now, would it? Inflicting emotional pain was fun, too.

 

“After we're done with all your little friends, we'll devour your family's next. Your brother's soul looks a little tasty. Or maybe your dear old daddy's―” The wind witch's eyes grew wide when the miko suddenly catapulted herself on a wall, chakra-laced feet boosting her jump unto Kagura's feather. Faster than she could duck, the girl had her in an unbreakable hold.

 

The touch of Kagome's hand on her skin was electric.

 

Kagura looked into Kagome's eyes which changed from blue to all white, freezing her in position. It was the last thing she knew before unimaginable pain running through her very blood and then ceasing to exist. The feather disappeared and Kagome fell back to the ground together with ashes neatly piling themselves on the floor.

 

White pupils turned back to blue when she blinked, eyes growing wide at her actions. Confusion mixed with the anger still running through her veins. Seconds felt like an eternity. She didn't even hear Hayate announce her as the victor, too absorbed at the reality that she just killed someone. She never noticed Neji, who stood behind Naruto; didn't even notice Itachi struggling to keep his stoic façade beside Neji. All of them worried about how she was reacting, knowing this was her first time killing someone.

 

“It's not your fault, Gome. We don't have to stay and watch the rest of the remaining matches,” Naruto whispered for her ears only, his voice filled with tenderness and pride. His sister had just kicked butt. He didn't want anyone to laugh at her because she looked traumatized by what just happened. She was on the verge of tears, he could tell. “Why don't we go visit Hinata-”

 

Kagome whirled around so fast, her hair hit Naruto in the face, cutting him off. “Hinata!” Her shock immediately vanished. Now wasn't the time for self-pity. She had to focus. She was not only a kunoichi, but a friend first. Crying would not bring Hinata's soul back; she reminded herself and hardened her resolve.

 

Itachi and Neji raised an eyebrow each over the sudden change in her demeanor. One minute she was distraught and the second next she was fired up. Tch. Girls . . . or was it just her? They followed closely as she slightly limped up the stairs to where the two white-haired Sound genins were.

 

“Give it back,” she whispered harshly as she stopped just within inches in front of Kanna, determined blue eyes looking down at the shorter girl.

 

Kanna didn't even bat an eye.

 

Kagome leaned closer, teeth gritting in an effort to stay calm. She didn't know how long Hinata would survive her current state and she wasn't willing to gamble on it. The girl was wasting precious time.

 

“What are you doing?” Naruto whispered, confused.

 

He was ignored. Kagome's full attention was on the impassive chibi. “If you don't cooperate-” she took a threatening stance, shoulders squared, fists clenched.

 

“Kagome, you're not allowed to fight outside the ring,” Neji reminded, preparing to step in.

 

Hakudoshi sighed loudly from his position on the wall with his arms crossed across his chest. The wounds from his fight with Neji had already healed through his fast regenerative powers and he didn't care one bit about what happened to Kagura, but they couldn't afford to lose Kanna at the moment. She still had a mission to fulfill and who knew how the miko would react? She looked pretty weak to him but the power she exhibited moments before worried him.

 

Was that the reason why Orochimaru-sama wanted the girl? If not for his master, he wouldn't be participating in these stupid, idiotic, unimportant tests. Being a ninja held no value for him, but who was he to deny an order from the one who saved him? He had no memory of the life he had before the snake sannin rescued him and his sisters from angry villagers who labeled them freaks. He could only recall for sure that Kanna and Kagura were kin, although he and Kagura bore no physical resemblance to each other.

 

Life before Orochimaru-sama was filled with poverty, no roof above their heads and regular abuse from people who labeled them abnormal. Orphans who exhibited strange characteristics were considered outcasts and the lowest scum, good only for occasional beatings or public acts of humiliation that was considered sport in the village they stayed at. Orochimaru-sama changed that, and serving him without reservations was the only way to pay off their life debt. Orochimaru-sama was their master, their everything.

 

And his will was absolute.

 

“Isn't that enough, Kanna?” He ignored everyone else in the room, looking only at his sister. “Let it go already, she's not important.” Talking to her through their mental link would be useless; she never replied to anyone and had the habit of talking only to their master anyway.

 

The siblings stared at each other, seemingly having their own conversation through the looks in their eyes. Sounds of the adults talking below, locked in an apparent serious discussion, floated up to the balcony but the people who weren't gossiping amongst themselves were too busy trying to eavesdrop on the group of Konoha shinobi making demands on the Sound-nins.

 

Was there going to be a showdown? Was the Konoha girl going to attack if her demands weren't met? Was she going to show them another spectacular feint before leaving her enemy, literally, in the dust? It was all confusing and abnormally riveting at the same time.

 

Naruto exchanged glances with Neji, silently wondering if the Hyuuga was as confused as he was. Itachi looked stone-faced as usual, never revealing anything, but he did look prepared to do battle if the two white-haired chibis decided to attack.

 

Off to one side, not even Kankuro or Temari notice Gaara's confusion as he stared at Kagome. He could feel Shukaku's restlessness but didn't understand what caused it. The One Tail was insane and never made any sense to him. If he cared, it was almost like the Ichibi was trying to tell him something. . . but he didn't, so it was a moot point. Perhaps it was just excited at the death that occurred and was eager for more. Hell, he was. He was eager to see a lot of blood spilled but incineration would do for now, too.

 

Whatever anticipations anyone had for a fight were dashed when Kanna finally broke eye contact with her older brother and silently held her mirror up. Nobody had the slightest idea what it did when it glowed again, but Kagome looked visibly relieved to see a willowy white substance visible only to her escape it and float away from the glowing death trap. She turned around without saying a word, intent on following the soul to make sure it went back to its proper body, but the Yondaime was waiting for them at the end of the stairs.

 

Arashi longed to give his children a hug, but not here. Not in front of others. Right now he had to be the Yondaime first before being a father, no matter how confused his son looked and no matter how traumatized his daughter seemed.

 

“Go take her to the infirmary to get her wounds treated,” Arashi looked at Itachi as he gave his order, pausing to include Neji in his line of sight. He continued to look nonchalant as he dropped his voice to a whisper at the next words, only for the Uchiha's ears. “Take her straight home afterwards and don't let anyone but family in. I'll come home as soon as I can.”

 

A slight nod was the only sign Itachi gave to indicate his orders were heard, mind already set on staying over the Yondaime's house for the night.

 

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“Demons!” Mushin gasped, unwilling to believe what his grandson just said. The rest of the shinobi in the circle looked at the monk in the same way. They were giving the young monk looks that suggested he'd lost his marbles.

 

“Think about it,” Miroku nodded at his grandfather. “Did you feel her aura just before she was purified? Her true self shone through before she turned to dust.”

 

Mushin's face was grim. “I suspected as much but I didn't want to jump to any conclusions. Not all demons mean harm, and it's not my place to question why they're pretending to be shinobi.”

 

“What do you mean not all demons mean harm!?” A Rain-nin shrieked shrilly, showing behavior that was very unbecoming of a shinobi. “Demons are demons. They're evil. They need to be exterminated on sight! Just think of the damage bijuu inflict on poor, unsuspecting citizens! They're a danger to society!”

 

Arashi glared at the man. “The Tailed Beasts only pose a threat when they're attacked or feel threatened. They will do you no harm if you just let them be.”

 

“Says you who defeated the Kyuubi,” The Rain-nin scoffed at him. “Not all villages have the man power to face off against a Tailed Beast, Yondaime-sama,” he sneered. “Not everyone knows of forbidden techniques to seal bijuu into human containers.”

 

Arashi's fist curled tightly, body tensing.

 

“Tailed Demons are very different from demons who take on human forms,” Mushin interrupted softly before a brawl broke out. “If you think bijuu are dangerous, then you can't even begin to imagine the damage a demon in human form is capable of. Your strongest shinobi techniques are child's play compared to a Tailed Demon in human form, or any demon in human form for that matter.” He felt a perverse sense of satisfaction from the scared looks on the shinobi's faces.

 

“Then what of the girl who defeated the demon?” A Grass representative asked. “I think I heard the demon call her miko,” he watched closely for any signs on the Leaf nins' expressions, “during their fight.”

 

“A holy miko?” A Sand representative gasped. He couldn't believe he didn't catch that particular exchange. “Is she a true priestess? There are many monks and shrine maidens spread out in the different countries, but if Konoha has a genuine one that has true purification powers, it makes me wonder why their so-called allies,” he spat the word, “weren't informed of this earlier.” If Konoha had a trained miko under their command, their plans for invasion needed a lot more tweaking.

 

“The referee said `Uzumaki Kagome' when he announced the winner,” a carefully disguised Orochimaru added, pointing out what the rest of the non-Leaf-nins additionally missed. None of them had the slightest inkling that he wasn't who he appeared to be on the outside, thanks to his superior concealment jutsu. To everyone else, he looked like a perfectly normal shinobi. “Is she related to you, Yondaime-sama?” He asked in an innocent tone of voice.

 

“She is my daughter, yes. Is there anything wrong with that?” Arashi replied evenly, a little defensive. Was he trying to imply something?

 

“And Uzumaki Naruto, the genin who looks just like you is your son, is he not?” He continued, waiting for Arashi to nod. “Hmmm, interesting. So Konoha not only has a miko, but if memory serves me right, the jinchuriki with the Kyuubi sealed inside him as well. That's very impressive. Bijuu are uncontrollable, even if jinchuriki are able to harness their power. The First Hokage of Konoha was rumored to be able to know jutsu that could control them, but with a miko at your disposal . . .” He purposely trailed off.

 

“With a miko at their disposal what?” The Suna representative prodded.

 

Orochimaru turned to look at him straight in the eye before answering, “With a real priestess at their disposal, they could make any jinchuriki do anything they want.”

 

Arashi's eyes widened, “I've never heard of that. . .”

 

“That's absurd!” The Rain representative exploded.

 

“It can't be!” A Cloud Village representative gasped, stunned. If what was said was true, their village's own two-tail jinchuriki, Yugito Nii, was at risk. He refused to believe it, but it was worth reporting to his village for.

 

“You react as if you expect Konoha to turn around and stab you in the back with an army of demons!” Mushin didn't bother to hide the disgust in his voice. “I have been training that child since she could identify one sutra from another. I can assure you that she is not being groomed for plans of world domination.”

 

“And we can trust the safety of our villages based solely on your word because . . . ?” A Rain-nin blistered.

 

“My grandfather does not lie about things concerning Kagome-sama,” Miroku answered in behalf of Mushin. “We have taken a sacred oath to keep her pure and safe from evil intentions. Priestesses gifted with holy powers are our guardians, protectors from evil. The need for humans with holy powers have diminished throughout the years with the decline of demonic attacks against ordinary people and the rise of the shinobi, so all of you should consider meeting a true miko in your lifetimes a very rare opportunity.”

 

The shinobi took a minute to digest the information before turning on each other again.

 

“It still doesn't change the fact that she is a risk to all the other villages.” The Rain representative insisted.

 

“Don't you mean a risk to your two-tail,” a Sand-nin sneered.

 

“Fools, all of you.” Mushin muttered, earning glares from the others. “What I am personally worried about is the demon that the miko just purified, and what he was doing, posing as a Sound Ninja. Shouldn't you all be more worried about that as well?”

 

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“That's cool!” Naruto stated loudly, caught himself, looking at the others in the room for confirmation. “I mean, come on, it's cool, right? I've never seen anyone turned to dust by a mere touch before. Who knew Kagome knew such a cool move?” Hah, nobody was going to laugh and say old monk Mushin taught his sister nothing but girly jutsu now! “You shouldn't feel bad, Gome. I thought you did really well. You showed those creeps what you're made of!”

 

He maintained his enthusiasm even though all she gave him was a forced smile.

 

“And Hinata's okay now, the medics say all she needs is some rest. Her dad even said we can drop by tomorrow to see how she's doing, so cheer up, okay? You should be excited, you passed the preliminary exams! The next time we fight, we'll be even stronger and we'll show everyone who whispered behind our backs our true power!” A tightly clenched fist shook angrily at the thought of the whispered comments he overheard behind their backs, but his hold around his sister remained at the same time.

 

Kagome had refused to let go of him, burying her head in Naruto's chest for comfort as soon as they exited the stadium. He felt every tremor that wracked his sister's body, and although it made walking very difficult, he allowed her to do it. They made a quick stop to check on Hinata, Itachi having to use his powers of persuasion to allow the guards to let them sneak a peek.

 

Hiashi walked in on them several seconds later, alerted of their presence, but he didn't kick them out. Instead, he was generous enough to inform them of his daughter's condition, assuring them that the medics told him of her miraculous recovery and that she was just sleeping now. He didn't know what happened out there, but he heard reports of what transpired between his daughter's bestfriend and his daughter's opponent. He had no evidence to prove it, but he had a sneaking suspicion the child had something to do with it. Addressing Neji in particular, instructing them to come to the Hyuuga compound tomorrow if they wished to.

 

“I'm sure Hinata would like the company.”

 

The Hyuuga clan head extended the invitation to everyone, but Itachi got the silent `Don't bother to come, you're not welcome' message hidden behind his words. The Uchiha chose to ignore it, disliking the rival clan head even more.

 

“We'll all go visit her tomorrow,” Itachi said, emphasizing the word `all' as they now gathered in the Uzumaki home. There was no way in hell he was going to be left out by that crafty old man. They saw Kakashi when they checked up on Sasuke's condition and the man was insisting on beefing up security on the recovering, still unconscious genin.

 

“Hinata-sama is fine,” Neji added, pausing before getting to what he suspected was the root of her mood. “Shinobi are expected to eliminate targets when their mission deems it so. We must all be prepared for that day to come, no matter what our preferences might be. I understand your distress, but what you have done is only normal. I would have done the same thing to my opponent if the proctor didn't stop me in time.”

 

If his attack wasn't halted by Hayate, he doubted Hakudoshi would still be standing right now.

 

“Yeah,” Naruto agreed, “You just happened to be faster than him, that's all, right?”

 

“I still didn't intend to turn her into dust,” Kagome muttered, disgusted with her actions. “I don't even know what I did. It felt like an outer body experience. One minute she was there, the next minute she went literally poof. My anger blinded me so much I couldn't focus on anything else.”

 

“But that was cool though,” Naruto insisted. “I wish I could do what you did. I bet it'd come in handy in a tight pinch.”

 

Haku nodded, wishing he had something more to say than just sit there silently. “I wish I could've seen it.” Naruto filled him in on the action he'd missed, but he would've preferred witnessing it first hand.

 

Naruto shot him a pitying look. “Well, once Kagome figures it out, maybe she'll be kind enough to teach you, Haku. I want to learn that move, too.” He sounded just a little bit envious.

 

“I'm afraid that's one jutsu that you'll never get to handle, brat” interrupted a droll voice from the window.

 

“Holy crap old man, don't scare me like that!” Naruto frowned, hand on chest as if to slow the pounding there. “Don't you ever use the doors, ero sennin?”

 

Jiraiya hopped into the room, drawling “Not when I'm eavesdropping on conversations, brat.”

 

Naruto's frown deepened, biting back a retort, instead asking, “What do you mean I wouldn't be able to handle it? Do you mean to say it's a high level technique?” He snorted, “Of course I can handle it! I'll practice until I get it, no big deal.”

 

“Not from what I heard,” Jiraiya snorted right back at him, settling down on an unoccupied sofa, away from Neji who was sitting on one, Kakashi and Haku who were sitting on another, and Itachi who was flanking Kagome with Naruto on her other side.

 

“What do you mean?” asked Itachi.

 

Jiraiya looked at the teen in the eyes for a moment, then answered. “From what I heard, it's not anything top secret mind you,” he clarified just in case anyone got the wrong impression, “Kagome's opponent was a demon in human form.”

 

Naruto visibly tensed.

 

Itachi looked pensive. “You mean a jinchuuriki?”

 

Jiraiya shook his head, “No, I mean a demon in human form. No container, just the demon. Imagine a bijuu shape shifting to look human.”

 

“Impossible!” Neji was an unbeliever. “What would a demon be doing, taking a chuunin exam?”

 

“That is an excellent question that no one knows the answer to except for the demon itself,” Miroku answered from the door as he entered with his grandfather. “Arashi-sama is still talking to the other representatives,” he explained at the twins' searching looks. “They're all in an uproar at how Sound could have done this, but the Sound representatives are strongly insisting they didn't know one of their genin was a demon or had any demonic nature for that matter. They claim to have no knowledge of her demonic background when they recruited her. According to them, they're a newly formed village so they're not exactly selective of their new shinobi. `Anyone who wants to join is welcome',” he quoted.

 

“Lies, I bet.” Jiraiya quirked a brow.

 

“I think so too but they keep denying any knowledge about her true nature and not even grandfather or I have any solid proof to smoke the other two out without causing more tension than there already is. Jinchuuriki are one thing; all the villages used them in the great shinobi wars. This is another.” Miroku let out a sigh. “We were allowed to use some sutras, and I can almost feel a demonic aura if I try hard enough, but they're either really good at keeping their auras down or I need more spiritual power to sense them. I don't have Kagome-sama's power and they look so innocent, it's really hard to convince the others they're more than what they seem. They could just be really good shinobi with really good jutsu after all. And even if they're `siblings', they claim to have no recollection if they really are blood related. The older chibi claims to have no memory of their lives before they lived in a village before they joined Sound.”

 

Kagome was slowly getting out of her pity party, leaning on Naruto's shoulder instead of burying her head there. It was comforting. She dared a quick look at Itachi's face and was surprised to find him looking at her in the corner of his eyes. He wasn't smiling, though his eyes conveyed emotion that wasn't perceptible to the others but was crystal clear to her. She gave him a tiny smile and reached for his hand, giving her a soft squeeze in return while everyone was focused on the conversation.

 

Only Jiraiya noticed the exchange, but didn't give any indication.

 

“That boy I fought. . . Hakudoshi, was it?” Neji spoke. “When I fought him and used my Byakugan, I didn't notice anything different with him from that of any other normal human being. His chakra supply was above normal, but I could say the same thing for many other ninjas, Naruto and Arashi-sama for instance.”

 

Miroku reluctantly nodded. “That much was confirmed by two other Hyuugas in the meeting. I don't think we could expose a demon masquerading as a human just by looking at their chakra alone, but it was still worth a try. The smaller chibi's reluctance to speak to us or answer our questions doesn't mean she's a demon either. Just very unfriendly and reserved. The older one says she's very introverted and doesn't like to talk.”

 

“So, what now?” Jiraiya asked.

 

Miroku focused his gaze on Kagome when he replied. “I was hoping you could give me or grandfather some pointers on how you were able to tell that Kagura was demonic. Any tip could help, something that we missed maybe-”

 

Kagome's eyes widened and she blurted out, “But I didn't even know she was a demon!”

 

Miroku was undaunted. “Didn't you notice anything odd about the other two? Anything at all?” He paused, “Did you sense anything else from anybody for that matter? What about that red haired kid from Suna? The one with the gourd strapped on his back, gave me the chills. Weird kid. He fought against Lee after you left.”

 

“Did Fuzzy Brows win?” Naruto asked. Oddly enough, the results of the other matches didn't interest him until now.

 

“No, he was defeated and got injured badly. He almost died. If Gai-san didn't intervene in time. . .” Miroku suppressed a shudder from his encounter with the kid. The red head kept giving him odd looks. He would've welcomed them if only Gaara was a curvaceous, fertile woman worthy of bearing him a child, but sadly, the creepy genin just wasn't his type. “Maybe you could do that purification jutsu on them and see if-”

 

“Purification jutsu?” Kagome knew what that was from her scrolls, but she didn't know . . . “So I purified her? Is that what I did?”

 

“Yes, you did.” Miroku's brows furrowed at her puzzled look. “I thought you knew that's why you did it? In any case, if you do it again and they're just ordinary humans, it wouldn't hurt them one bit.”

 

Kagome was more embarrassed at her ignorance now, compared to her earlier mortification at `killing' someone. Somehow, the knowledge that she purified a demon instead of killing a fellow human lifted the burden from her heart. Ignoring the shame settling in her gut at placing more importance on a human life than a demon's, she replied “I wasn't very um, aware of what I was doing at the time and didn't even know she was demonic. I just reacted to her taunts. To tell you the truth I wasn't really in full control,” and turned crimson. “I've read about purification before, but Mushin-sama has never given me exercises or instructed me to practice it.”

 

“So how did you do it to that girl?” Naruto inquired.

 

Kagome shrugged, absently fiddling on Itachi's fingers nervously as she shifted uncomfortably. “I can't explain. I don't know . . . It just sort of happened I'm telling you. I'm not even sure if I can do it again.”

 

If they wanted her to do it again, they were in for a world of disappointment.

 

“I'm sorry,” her dark head bowed pitifully.

 

Naruto patted her hair sympathetically. “That's alright, it's not your fault.”

 

“You should be proud you were able to do something not even your master has accomplished,” Neji contributed, earning him a narrowed glance from Mushin from the unintentional jab.

 

Arashi didn't care if anyone thought him rude when he excused himself from their presence with a quick “Now if you'll excuse me, I have some business to attend to.” Not bothering to wait for their reply. There were still a lot of unresolved matters between the villages, but the representatives were also eager to report back to their own villages, so the meeting was adjourned.

 

At this point, he frankly didn't care what the other villages thought of their village. All he wanted was for them to stop insinuating that his children were involved in some diabolical plot to overtake all the other villages by use of bijuu and something or other crap he didn't give a rat's ass about.

 

Impatience and urgency got the best of him as he exited the building, instinct guided his hands to form familiar seals of the technique that deemed him the Yellow Flash of Konoha. He entered his home just in time to hear Neji's suggestion:

 

“If they're really concerned about it, why don't we just accompany Kagome to where they're staying and surprise them? We do it incognito or on the pretense of a casual visit and our numbers would ensure her safety. It wouldn't hurt to see if we could get a reaction from them or not. If you're that worried about it, we might ease some of that worry right now.”

 

“That would be a no go,” Arashi answered before anyone else could speak. “The representatives have gone to report back to their villages and Sound has taken their two remaining genin with them. For protection, they said,” he added in disgust. “They fear attack from overzealous shinobi who wouldn't think twice about proving if they really are demons or not.”

 

“Papa!”

 

Arashi braced himself from the impact of the body thrown at him. Naruto was more reserved, leaning forward only to earn the pat on his head. Maneuvering back to the sofa they vacated was a little difficult with a small body attached to his torso and another one hovering at his side, but he managed to arrange all three of them into a cramped position beside Itachi with his daughter on his lap and his son squished against his side and half on top of him, sharing the space with his sister. Kagome happily curled on his lap, stress and worry washing away at his mere presence. Papa always made things right.

 

“And you let them go just like that?” Mushin asked in disbelief.

 

“We had no other choice,” Arashi answered, a little bit of frustration in his tone. “Our greatest bet of outing them were you and Miroku but you didn't provide us with any solid evidence. We can't risk an all out war with Sound just on the basis that the one and only proven demon in their ranks, which they claim to have absolutely no knowledge about, was already eliminated by our own. If we condemn the two kids without any solid evidence, we might lose a lot of support and even our allies.”

 

“Unless you, Miroku or Kagome prove otherwise, it will be seen as an unprovoked attack against innocents,” Jiraiya surmised.

 

“Exactly,” Arashi nodded. “We have to trust on their statement that Kagura wasn't really their biological sibling for all they knew. The boy called Hakudoshi and the girl Kanna have the same coloring so they might really be siblings, but Kagura looked entirely different from them.”

 

“For all we know, they might actually be telling the truth, right?” Jiraiya concluded. He might not be Hokage, but he was no stranger to village politics.

 

“I personally don't buy it but as far as that issue is concerned right now, my hands are tied.” Arashi said with a helpless shrug. “And I'm not about to force my daughter to repeat something she's not even sure what. For all we know it was just a fluke.”

 

“More like a dormant power she doesn't have control of,” Mushin muttered under his breath.

 

“What was that?” Jiraiya asked, not quite hearing his words.

 

“I said we'll just have to wait for the finals then,” the old monk replied. Jiraiya narrowed suspicious eyes at him as he put on his most innocent, serious face. “We'll out them one way or another. I think they're up to something but I don't have any idea as to what. I'll have Miroku dig out some specialty scrolls on that jutsu so we'll be ready next time.”

 

“If we even have any,” Miroku quipped. “I wonder if we even have learning scrolls on that technique,” he confided to Haku. “I'm afraid it's a lost art.”

 

Haku nodded sympathetically then added hopefully, “Maybe it'll come natural to her. I didn't have any record of techniques my lost clan used as well, but several jutsu just came naturally after I discovered my bloodline limit. Perhaps it's the same for her?”

 

“I hope so,” Miroku was optimistic. “If we're lucky, Kagome-sama would be able to face the creepy chibi in the Chuunin finals.”

 

“Haha, yeah!” Naruto whooped, unaware he was digging an elbow on Arashi's side. “Then she can kick that chibi's butt, demon or not. That chibi's already afraid of you from last time, sis.”

 

Did he forget that the chibi's older brother had to intervene? Kagome wished she had her brother's confidence in her but didn't say it out loud. Instead, she laughed feebly, “Hehe, yeah. . .”

 

Naruto was already in deep discussion about what he was planning to do to his opponents in the finals with Haku, while Miroku egged him on, suggesting more painful ways of dealing with opponents when Naruto's ideas weren't good enough. Arashi looked deep in thought as he half-listened to the smaller, noisy blond. In contrast to him, the two old men in the room were loudly debating what take out food they should order in celebration of the genins' successful passing of the preliminary exams while Kagome quietly made plans to visit Hinata with Itachi.

 

“Wait, wait a minute. So that's it? Case closed?” Neji couldn't believe it. He looked from one face busy planning their various activities to the next. Even Kagome looked completely recovered from her earlier scare.

 

“For now, I guess,” Arashi shrugged, looking as unconcerned as the rest of them. Neji had the overwhelming urge to bash his head against something hard. One minute they were discussing serious matters, and the next minute they were acting as if nothing serious had happened. Were they nuts?

 

It was Itachi who summarized Neji's feelings in one sentence:

 

“Well that was anti-climactic.”

 

ღ

 

“Kazekage-sama, I beg you to reconsider!” Baki pleaded on his hands and knees before his leader. “We might have Shukaku as a secret weapon, but Konoha not only has Kyuubi at their disposal, but a genuine miko as well. If we continue with the invasion, who knows how even Shukaku will stand against them!”

 

Perhaps the Kazekage would consider his many years of faithful service and use it to reevaluate the situation if he groveled hard enough. There was no way Suna was going to survive the full scale attack they had planned with this unexpected turn of events, even with Oto's help. Those monks might not pose much of a threat, but Sound would need an army of demons to counter Leaf's priestess just to make sure in his opinion, if legend was true.

 

Orochimaru, perfectly disguised as the Kazekage, leader of the Hidden Sand Village, waved Baki's desperate plea aside. He had no qualms in sacrificing countless lives if he could reach his goal. These fools who were stupid enough to overlook his replacement of their beloved leader weren't important; they were easily replaceable. They were all useless, good only for the jinchuuriki they had.

 

“They might have a priestess in their midst, but she is untrained and her potential is untapped. We will proceed as planned. Tell your team to get ready and make sure Gaara follows the plan. There will be no room for failure. Is that understood?”

 

Baki's nails dug into the palm of his hands as he clenched his fists tightly. A man of his position and pride had done the unthinkable and lowered himself to ask the Kazekage to reconsider, but no amount of pleading and begging could get their leader to change his mind about this doubtful alliance with the Sound Village. He hung his head in defeat, sighing, “Hai, Kazekage-sama.”

 

He could only give his all and hope for the best now.

 

ღ

 

Although they remained suspicious against the Sound village, the Konoha shinobi and their village soon had bigger things to think about. The Chuunin finals was going to be a huge highlight and there was no time to slack off as delegates, leaders and visitors from all over kept pouring through their gates. Rumors about what happened during the prelims circulated, but there was no word on the speculations about the Sound genin being remotely demonic, as none of the villages wanted to cause mass panic by what that information would cause.

 

Hinata's recovery was extremely fast, virtually overnight as her friends noticed when they visited the next morning. The gentle Hyuuga couldn't even recall what type of move her opponent used, puzzled as to how she could be knocked out easily and then get up the next day with not a single scratch on her body.

 

Everyone was too busy with their own lives, no one paid any extra notice to the trio of Sand genins or looked deeper into the mysterious death of the Chuunin Exams preliminary round, Hayate.

 

Training for the Chuunin finals had been in the forefront of all the final exam qualifiers. Team 7 had an especially hard time with it, starting from day one.

 

Kakashi took Sasuke out of the equation quickly right after he was released from the hospital, earning the jounin two sulking genin accusing him of favoritism. He and Sasuke were very similar, he explained to the grousing twins, and it was best to go with a teacher who was most compatible to a student. Jiraiya had grudgingly agreed to training Naruto, while Mushin already had Kagome's schedule planned since she became genin.

 

“Sensei is playing favorites!” Kagome complained loudly, stomping her foot in protest.

 

“Yeah, that's unfair!” Naruto agreed just as loudly, cheeks puffing in obvious irritation. “He's our sensei too! Why does Sasuke get to have him all to himself before a very important match?!”

 

“Anything Sasuke can do, we can do too!” She didn't care if they were attracting attention from the people passing by. Why did she have to get stuck with Mushin all the time? “I want to learn new techniques! Mushin-sama always teaches me, can't I train with Kakashi-sensei this time?”

 

“Yeah, me too!” Naruto echoed.

 

Kagome gave him a deadpanned look, “Aren't you supposed to learn the summoning jutsu? What do you want with sensei? It's my turn now, you can have the next one.”

 

“No way!” Naruto huffed, crossing his arms in a posture that screamed displeasure. “I want to summon dogs, not stupid old frogs like that old pervert!”

 

“Hey!” Arashi felt the need to defend himself. “Frogs are cool, too! Think of Gamabunta!”

 

Naruto blinked, considering it for a second. “Oh yeah . . . I forgot about that.”

 

“So it's decided then. I get Kakashi-sensei and Sasuke can train with his dad or someone else.”

 

“Ah,” Kakashi waved Kagome's conclusion away, “that won't do, Kagome-chan. I already have Sasuke's training in mind and I honestly don't have any techniques to teach you that would be more beneficial than what Mushin-sama could offer instead.” He used his gentlest and most persuasive tone of voice in hopes of earning her agreement but he could tell it was useless. The kid was as stubborn . . . no, even more stubborn than her dad and brother combined. It was a no win situation for him.

 

“I wouldn't mind if Kakashi teaches Kagome at the same time as he does me,” Sasuke offered nonchalantly. “It's no big deal.”

 

“No way!” Mushin loudly protested at the same time Naruto sputtered incoherently, then caught himself.

 

“What!” Pointed an accusatory finger at the traitorous Uchiha, face darkened with anger. “You bastard, you're willing to speak up for Kagome but not for me?!”

 

Sasuke looked unaffected by his bravado. He wanted to know why Kakashi would take time to train him but not Kagome. Perhaps Kakashi's techniques would be too hard for The Idiot to learn, but Kagome wouldn't have the same problem. He thought Kakashi should train them both and told him so, insisted in a monotone fit for someone of short mental capabilities, prompting an enraged war cry from the offended party.

 

Jiraiya sighed as Naruto launched himself at the boy and attempted to gnaw on his head. “Naruto,” the old sannin shook his head when Kagome joined the fray, chewing on Naruto's head in retaliation while telling him not to be a spoilsport that Kakashi was going to teach her and Sasuke and not him.

 

“Naruto!”

 

Mushin tried to pry Kagome off of her brother, telling her in his most authoritative voice that she wasn't going to be taught by Kakashi even if Sasuke was willing to share their sensei.

 

“Come on sis, why don't you go with ero sennin instead and get him to teach you rasengan or something? You need a high level technique in your arsenal that packs a real punch.”

 

Kagome pulled harder on his hair in response, relishing his cries of pain. “How many times do I have to tell you Naruto, that I can't learn that technique like you can! Reminding me every time is just rubbing salt on my wounds.” Sasuke ignored the idiot gnawing on his head and kept his attention to Kakashi, who was still yet to give him a valid answer.

 

“Naruto, I was planning to teach you a technique that is stronger and cooler than chidori. But if you really want to hang out with Kakashi instead of learning the technique from me, then I guess-”

 

“Do you swear on your stash of dirty magazines, peeping skills and perverted ways that it's really cooler and more powerful than chidori, ero sennin?!” Abandoning Sasuke's head for a minute, Naruto focused his full attention to the old man. Even Kagome looked interested.

 

“Of course! When have I ever lied to you, brat?”

 

“Hello two weeks ago when you said you'd treat me to ramen but ran off and left me with the bill afterwards,” Naruto frowned at him.

 

Jiraiya gritted his teeth, ignoring the disapproving glare from Arashi. “Okay, once. That was one time-”

 

“And the incident before that when you promised you'd teach me a new trick but you spent it spying on those girls in the onsen.”

 

Jiraiya ignored the bitter tone and tried not to sweat under Arashi's growing annoyance. “Twice then-”

 

“And before that when you sent me on a fool's errand to get those jugs of sake, telling me they were for dad but in fact they were for you.”

 

Jiraiya glowered at him. Naruto seemed oblivious to it, forgoing his attack on Sasuke altogether and concentrating on listing the times when the old man lied to him as he kept count with his fingers, Kagome hanging off his back.

 

“Remember when he promised to take us to the park and we spent the day waiting for him but he never came?” said his sister.

 

Naruto bobbed his head in agreement, “Yeah I do. He said he was going to fly kites with us so we spent the night before making some.”

 

“And remember that time when we were six and he convinced you that a shark could come out of the toilet?” added Kagome.

 

Naruto nodded, remembering. “Or when I was five and he said those mushrooms were going to make me stronger than dad but it ended up giving me a stomachache because I wasn't supposed to eat them.”

 

“You were asking him to teach you a new technique and he just wanted to get you out of the way so he could flirt with the ladies. I don't think he thought you'd actually go and eat random mushrooms on the side of the road,” Kagome pointed out.

 

Jiraiya turned bright red, feeling a little hot under Arashi's intense glare, amusing Kakashi to no end. He didn't dare to laugh although watching the great sannin squirm was too fun. Haku looked at the sannin with more and more disappointment, never having thought the old shinobi he had come to respect so much was capable of doing the things the twins were listing. Itachi didn't bother to conceal his disgust.

 

“And that time when he promised to take you to a hot spring resort, remember?” Kagome reminded, loosening her grip on Naruto.

 

“Yeah!” Naruto frowned at the ero sennin some more. “I didn't even get to take a dip. He told me it was going to be a day of relaxation for just the two of us, but he only brought me there as a lure for the women!” The memory of how abused his cheeks were from the countless pinching and torture he suffered that day made him shudder.

 

“All right, that's enough you brats!” Jiraiya exploded, and Kakashi did laugh then. He couldn't help it. Jiraiya glared at the jounin before turning on the twin terrors. “Naruto, I promise - and I really am telling the truth this time, I'm not pulling your leg - that I'll teach you a jutsu that's cooler and more powerful than chidori. I think this time you're ready for it, but if you think you can't handle it, that's okay, I'll just-”

 

“Of course I can handle it, old man!” Naruto interrupted, just as Jiraiya knew he would. “I can handle anything you dish out, dattebayo!”

 

“Yay, that settles it then!” Kagome jumped off of her brother's back and clapped her hands together. “I get Kakashi-sensei and-”

 

“Not so fast, missy.” Mushin cut her off. “You're training with me and that's final. Isn't that right, Arashi-sama?”

 

“What?!” Arashi exclaimed, then recovered as the old monk shot him a withering stare. “Ah . . . uh . . . yes,” he reluctantly agreed, avoiding his daughter's wide blue, pleading puppy dog eyes. “I think that would be for the best.”

 

“But papa, that's so unfair!” Kagome protested, bottom lip protruding, eyes gathering moisture, fists clenching and chin trembling ― everyone recognized the signs of Arashi's impending doom. Beads of sweat started to form on the Yondaime's forehead at the strain of trying to hold his ground.

 

“I'll teach you something new and even throw in a couple of rare high level scrolls,” Mushin intervened before the Leaf's great leader caved. The man could cut down an invading army within mere minutes but he turned into putty when faced with his children.

 

Kagome pondered this for a moment, turning her attention to her old mentor. He could almost see the gears turning inside her head. Seconds spent in silence felt like years as he waited for her answer. After a while, she cocked her head to one side.

 

“Can I pick which ones?” She hedged, still not giving in. Mushin nodded. Another tense minute passed as Kagome weighed her options. Finally, she shrugged, “Okay then, we have a deal.”

 

Mushin, along with Arashi and Jiraiya, let out a relieved breath. Arashi wanted to remind the old monk to hide the more dangerous scrolls out of his daughter's reach, but he thought it wiser to say so once the girl was out of earshot. Crisis averted, everyone enjoyed a relaxed afternoon lounging in the living room or training loosely in the backyard.

 

ღ

 

The weeks passed by in a blur, each individual busy with their own preparations for the exam. True to what he promised, Jiraiya took Naruto to the forest on the borders of Konoha to train. Nobody knew what happened between the two of them there, but Naruto was positively crowing with delight upon their return.

 

Kagome had also been busying herself with training, and despite her earlier protests to doing it with her old teacher, the young genin's mood was definitely more improved. Gone were the difficult mornings where Arashi had to literally drag her out of bed. Instead they were replaced with days that stretched into weeks where the family would only be complete at dinner. Breakfast was either eaten in a hurry, earlier or later than everyone else, to go or not at all. Lunch found Haku eating by his lonesome self or with whoever was hungry enough or free to come home during the day.

 

The twins were rather secretive about the techniques that they were learning from their masters, Kagome more so, and nobody really knew what was going on with her training save for Itachi who has become her sole non-monk training partner. The succeeding days leading to the Chuunin Finals that Itachi had free were spent with Kagome. Whatever they did remained secretive, not even Miroku or Mushin had any idea what they were doing.

 

When asked, both always replied, “Training,” and dropped the subject. The two cohorts were very tight-lipped about it and often went home looking roughed up and exhausted.

 

“You look like you were just fighting for your life,” Haku mentioned to Kagome one afternoon she came home early, clothes dirty and parts of her hair singed. “That or you were the recipient of a katon jutsu.”

 

Kagome merely grinned at him, neither confirming or denying anything, and then skipped off to have a bath before dinner.

 

In the Uchiha household, Fugaku also expressed the same concern, although he never voiced it to anyone but his wife. It was she who remarked one afternoon, unable to hold on to her curiosity any longer at seeing her son's clothes ripped away at certain places, as if an animal had attacked him. The only thing that put her mind at ease was the fact that Itachi had no visible wounds or bleeding cuts.

 

“You're not overdoing yourself, are you, son?” Mikoto asked as casually as she could.

 

Itachi shook his head, “No, mother. Don't worry, I'm alright.” Kagome always fixes me up after training. It was a good thing Kakashi kept Sasuke busy. Otherwise, Itachi could already see the questions he had to dodge.

 

The day the Chuunin Finals started, the gates of Konoha opened wide to let everyone in. Security was tight although Arashi still felt they didn't have enough manpower to cover every nook and cranny. He couldn't stop fidgeting as he sat at the Sandaime's side at the Hokage box, the Kazekage at the other.

 

Even as Sarutobi told him to sit still, the Sand's leader merely chuckled at him and said to the Sandaime, “My children are participating as well, so I could understand his feelings.”

 

The first fight was between Shikamaru and Temari. The girl from Suna clearly had more power, but in the end, Shikamaru's ingenuity made him victorious. Tired and chakra-exhausted, he limped his way back to his genin friends, waving the medics away. Kagome healed his injuries and told him to rest to restore his chakra. Doing just that, he relaxed with his back against the wall as Genma announced the next match up.

 

“Uzumaki Naruto versus Hyuuga Neji!”

 

“Good luck, bro!” Kagome stood on tiptoes and pecked her brother on the cheek. Naruto returned the affection with a brief but tight squeeze and turned to his other teammate.

 

“Don't even think about it, dobe.” Sasuke coldly interrupted him before he could do anything.

 

“You're so cold!” Naruto accused, wounded at his rejection.

 

Sasuke snorted, unaffected by the hurt in his voice. “Whatever, you're not my type, idiot.”

 

“Yeah, well, you're going to die a virgin, you bastard!” Childish as it was, Naruto turned after blowing him a raspberry and headed for the ring.

 

Kagome waved goodbye to his retreating back, laughing at their exchange. “Do your best!” Sasuke frowned when Kagome turned to Neji and gave him the same treatment. “You too, Neji.”

 

Neji had the slightest trace of pink in his cheeks where Kagome pecked him. “Thanks.”

 

“It doesn't matter if you win or lose,” she encouraged. “May the best man win!”

 

Without even turning, the blond gave her a thumbs-up in response. Sasuke rolled his eyes and shook his head at his corny friend.

 

“Just to let you know Naruto, I'm aiming for the win.” Neji said as they walked towards the center of the arena.

 

Naruto grinned, unabashed. “Don't worry. I'm planning to win too, so no hard feelings when I do, okay? Just as she said, may the best man win.”

 

“Oh don't worry, I plan to.”

 

“Why you. . . I meant to say that I'm the best man so I'm going to win, Neji! Wha- don't give me that smirk, you know I'll win!!!” and Naruto continued his one-sided argument until they joined Genma, who was the new replacement for Hayate.

 

The crowd buzzed excitedly, eager to see the anticipated match between the small Yondaime clone and the ousted Hyuuga prodigy. Outsiders and fellow villagers alike avidly hoped for a chance to see if the rumors were indeed true about the Hyuuga. Was his forehead really unmarked or were the gossip about him committing atrocious deeds responsible for his banishment from his clan? The people were also interested in measuring the potential of the Yondaime clone. Each day he looked more and more like his father save for the whisker-like features on his cheeks. Did he possess the same set of skills or was he just a copy in looks, and not in talent?

 

Bets were placed and Genma gave the signal.

 

Both were dead serious as the match began. Despite being friends, the fight between the two was brutal, each genin going all out against the other. Naruto fell on his reliable kage bunshin no jutsu while Neji countered with his jyuuken. It was clear from the first few minutes that Neji's skill surpassed Naruto's. However, in the end, Naruto's tenacity and will power pulled through and the match ended with an almost draw ― just as Neji hit the ground with his body totally exhausted and chakra depleted, Naruto fell right after him with the same state, chakra holes closed and no longer in any condition to fight.

 

Genma declared a draw, much to the crowd's displeasure, and announced the combatants for the next round.

 

“Alright, it's your turn!!!” Naruto hooted and hollered as he cheered enthusiastically for his sister.

 

Neji was still in the infirmary, so Sasuke capitalized on his absence by giving Kagome words of encouragement. “Good luck,” he said over Naruto's noise.

 

“Thanks!” Kagome waved to her teammates, Shikamaru, and Shino who was leaning on the far wall. Inside the ring, she couldn't help but grin at the half-wink Genma gave as he ordered the opponents to face each other. Kagome tried to find her center and refused to be intimidated as Kanna stared impassively at her.

 

“Begin!” Genma declared and stepped out of the way.

 

Kagome jumped back several feet away from the chibi. The crowd watched in confusion as no weapons were drawn by the two girls. The white-haired chibi was holding a mirror while the Leaf genin brought her right hand forward. The pointer and middle finger pointed up, while the three remaining fingers curled together. Everything else was tuned out as she gathered her energy and aimed at the chibi.

 

Surprise was reflected in Kanna's eyes as a barrier suddenly appeared around the lower half of her mirror. She pulled her looking glass, but discovered that it was stuck in Kagome's kekkai. With a sweeping hand motion, the barrier shrunk and imploded, shattering the mirror inside it. Broken glass splayed where her precious soul-sucking mirror once was, tearing Kanna's sleeves and breaking through her soft skin.

 

Kagome pointed and aimed again. Reacting out of instinct, Kanna suddenly materialized a few meters from where she originally stood, just in time to avoid the kekkai that appeared near the ground, designed to capture her feet in place.

 

“Drat!” Kagome lunged, continuing her assault. “Stay still, darn it!” If she could only capture the girl in place like she practiced with Itachi. . .

 

“So, what special scroll did Mushin-sama give you?” asked Itachi as they met for practice one afternoon.

 

Kagome huffed and plopped down on the ground, hard. “He cheated. He gave me two scrolls as promised but I don't understand the basics of the techniques written, so they're pretty much useless to me at this point. Cunning old man! I bet he knew this, that's why he didn't object when I picked the ones on the highest shelf.”

 

Itachi looked down at the sulking genin, amused. “Do you really need to get ahead of yourself though? Aren't the techniques he already taught you enough?”

 

“Of course not, duh.”

 

The young ANBU shook his head. “I think you have the best jutsu in your arsenal already. You're just not making full use of it.”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“Well. . .” Itachi squatted on the space beside her, picking up a discarded twig and drawing a box on the ground and a little stick figure inside it. He drew a circle to represent an enemy outside the box and several arrows pointing towards the stick figure inside the box to indicate the enemy attacking her barrier. “Your kekkai jutsu is almost impenetrable against attacks by now, right?”

Kagome nodded, curious as to where he was going with this.

 

“How about,” underneath he drew another stick figure and another circle, but instead of drawing a box around the stick figure, he drew it around the circle, “creating a kekkai, not around yourself, but your enemy.”

 

“As a way of capturing him?” Kagome immediately guessed, liking the idea. “It would probably save me a lot of needless battles if I do it right,” she nodded.

 

“Or you can destroy a target from a distance without even touching it,” Itachi suggested.

 

“Huh?”

 

“Think about it. If you shrink the kekkai or better yet ― cause it to implode on itself ― wouldn't you be able to take out targets from a distance? I think that's just as good as any of the best jutsus around. If you can make it strong enough, you can be on the offensive and defensive at the same time.”

 

Kagome's eyes sparkled at the possibilities. “Let's try it!”

 

Itachi easily agreed to be her sparring partner, and all their time away from work and training for the Chuunin finals were spent perfecting this technique he theorized. Days turned into weeks and little progress had been made. The idea of imploding a kekkai on itself was easier said than done and executing the act proved strenuous for Kagome. Itachi couldn't provide anything more than support and theory since he couldn't really do the jutsu himself.

 

Neither of them gave up though, and as soon as the young miko got used to collapsing the barrier unto itself rather than fortifying it in a steady pace, the real training began.

 

First Itachi told her to start with small things: leaves, rocks, sticks and whatever else they could find in their training grounds. Then it progressed into Itachi's shadow clones, which took a few more weeks to overcome. The rest of the time they had left until the chuunin finals after that was spent trying to enclose and negate small-sized, weakly powered katon jutsus.

 

They made the terrible mistake of going at it in normal power the first time and the results were disastrous. It was really a good thing that her long hair hid the bald spot she got from the backlash of the imploded fire jutsu.

 

The real tricky part of her newfound technique was to how to make the kekkai collapse safe enough not to cause a recoil reaction. Kagome nearly gave up hope until she was finally able to control it just mere days before the finals.

 

Having tested it only on Itachi in a half-hearted match, Kagome found her new jutsu to still be inadequate. Sure she had Kanna on the run, but it was only a matter of time before the girl could think of a counterattack.

 

Up on the balcony, Sakura turned to the girl sitting beside her. “Wow Hinata, I've never seen Kagome so relentless and aggressive in a fight before.”

 

“Yeah,” agreed the blonde girl who was sitting on Sakura's other side. “I never thought she could use her technique in that way either.”

 

Hinata smiled at Ino and Sakura, “Y-yeah. . .” She was proud of her friend's obvious improvement, but she couldn't help but feel nervous. Kagome was fighting the girl who took her out during the prelims without even touching her. It was her sincere hope that the same fate wouldn't happen to her best friend.

 

The crowd grew more restless as the fight dragged on; Kagome kept up her offensive and Kanna did nothing but evade.

 

“The chibi is so afraid of that weird jutsu, she's probably gone blank,” a spectator mused as he cheered for his Hokage's daughter.

 

“Doesn't she have any other weapon aside from that mirror the Konoha genin shattered earlier?” Another questioned loudly from the middle row.

 

Kagome was now more aggressive than ever, adding taijutsu attacks to her assault. Tired of dodging the blows, Kanna was paying Kagome back for every blow that she got. Blows landed on each other became harder than the next one. Exhaustion was slowly taking over Kagome but she maintained her relentless attack. Seeing the beads of sweat on Kanna's forehead showed her fatigue as well.

 

“I've never seen Kanna exert so much effort before,” a hooded figure standing beside Hakudoshi said.

 

“Hn,” replied Hakudoshi, keeping his eyes on his sister and her opponent.

 

“It's too bad she's destined to lose,” his companion continued. “If Kagura didn't fumble with her role and if you won against that Hyuuga, it could've been you or Kagura out there.”

 

“Yeah,” Hakudoshi gritted his teeth.

 

“Maybe if she's lucky enough, she won't end up in a pile of dust like Kagura did.”

 

Bitch, Hakudoshi thought but said nothing. Hopefully, his own hood covered his narrowed eyes and pursed lips.

 

Back in the arena, a lucky break presented itself when Kagome cornered Kanna using two kekkai walls and landed a hard kick at the chibi's head. Kanna fell with a thud on the ground, dizzy. Kagome pounced on the opening, erecting a barrier around her.

 

“Hah!” Kagome paused to catch her breath, right hand shaking with the strain of holding the barrier. “I did it,” she breathed, hardly believing it actually happened. The plan took longer to execute, but she followed Itachi's instructions carefully and now, she actually did it.

 

Kanna kicked and punched at the walls to no avail. She tried a complicated fire jutsu next, but Kagome held fast, supporting her right hand with her left to keep up the prison that encased her prey. Shikamaru faced a similar situation earlier when he trapped the Sand genin using his kagemane no jutsu.

 

Does that mean I'm also at a stalemate? Kagome shook her head, banishing those thoughts away. No, she didn't practice so hard all these weeks just to give up at the end.

 

The kekkai visibly shrunk, limiting Kanna's movements.

 

“Say you give up,” Kagome advised seriously. “Tell the instructor you give up and I won't hurt you. I'll let you go.”

 

When Kanna remained stubbornly silent, she shrunk the barrier again, prepared to use torture if necessary.

 

“Say you give u-”

 

“I give up,” Kanna said in a monotone.

 

“Wha-?” Kagome and Genma said at the same time. Kagome didn't think victory would come so swiftly.

 

“I do not wish to fight anymore,” Kanna directed the statement at a bewildered-looking Genma.

 

The crowd roared, half in displeasure and half in excited disbelief.

 

“Well then,” Genma recovered, raising a hand in Kagome's direction. “The winner is Uzumaki Kagome!”

 

“Yeah!” she could hear Naruto's voice above the crowd's noise. “That's my sister! Woohoo! Way to go, sis!!!” He engaged Shikamaru in a happy dance, much to the genius' annoyance. A safe distance away from the dancing pair, Sasuke clapped his hands at his teammate. His match was next against that redhead who gave Miroku goose bumps.

 

Kagome grinned widely and happily cheered as she released Kanna.

 

Genma gave her a congratulatory pat on the back. “That was a good fight, Kagome-cha -”

 

BOOM!

 

The sudden explosion rocked the foundations of the coliseum, startling everyone. Heads turned to look for the cause of the blast when a woman's voice suddenly screamed.

 

“The Hokage's Box has been blown up!!!”

 

Kagome looked up to where her father should be sitting with the Sandaime and the Kazekage, but the smoke from the bomb obstructed her view. Another moment later, a lightheaded feeling overcame her.

 

Even as she fought to keep her eyelids open, they already had a mind of their own. Drooping low to cover her vision, the last thing she saw was Genma performing a hand sign.

 

Konoha was under attack.

 

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