Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Faith in Humanity ❯ Kibi and Kijin Kitsune ( Chapter 11 )

Title: Faith Arc - Faith in Humanity (PG-13)

Author: Karrafear

Summary: AU. What if Naruto survived a murder attempt on his life at the age of 6 and had to leave Konoha for his protection. Now 12, Naruto and Jiraiya returns to face the genin test.

 

Disclaimer: Naruto is an anime and manga series created by Masashi Kishimoto. It does not belong to me; I'm simply using the characters and plot for my own creative devices.

 

"Demon's talk", /Thoughts/, "Speech", 'Speech emphasis', (FLASHBACK), Titles, (Author's interruptions)

 

Warning: Naruto OOC. PG-13. Some of you will probably be argumentative about the shifts in moods within Naruto and Hinata's personality in this chapter. My only reply is that all these changes are deliberate. So don't complain please. I don't want to hear it. Anything else, I'm all ears. ^_^

 

Pairings: eventually NarutoXHinata.

 

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Chapter 11 : Kibi and Kijin Kitsune

 

(Previously in the last chapter)

 

Naruto shouted more loudly into the room. “Reveal thy true form! Kibi Kitsune!” And immediately, the small form of the fox changed dramatically. It grew larger in size (more than one metre in length - tails not counted); its fur turned a slight reddish tint and from its back stretched five fluffy, large tails instead of just one. Each tail had its tips glowing a fiery red colour, as well as Kibi's short yet spiked up ears. Finally, when the transformation was completed, Kibi growled dangerously at the two stunned boys in front of them.

 

“Master, let me fight them. Please rest and reserve your strength.” A low, angry voice echoed through out the room as all the audiences' (including Kiba) eyes widen in shock. After all, it isn't everyday you meet a talking fox.

 

“Take it easy on him, Kibi. I don't wish to have any casualties in this fight.” Naruto said softly behind his determined pet fox. And Kibi, in turn, nodded in acknowledgement. Naruto turned back to the two Kibas'. “Kiba-kun. Let me introduce you to Kibi Kitsune. He is very similar to one of those summoned animals from the Kuchiyose no Jutsu, but slightly different. Do not underestimate him!”

 

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The Kibas' blinked back their astonishment as they both gulped in nervousness at having to face this strange and powerful foe, both could feel the large amount of Chakra still swirling around the fox as if it were a living entity in its own right. Naruto, seeing that both of them were still bewildered, continued with his explanations. “Kibi has five tails instead of one, enabling him to control a total of five different elements at any one time. If you wish to surrender, now is your chance.”

 

Hearing the word `surrender', both Kibas snapped out of their stunned reverie and snarled at the fox. “Come on Akamaru! We can do this!” One of the Kibas exclaimed and the other growled in response. Instantly, both Kibas launched themselves onto both sides of the room with lightning quick reflexes. Jumping onto the walls on both sides of Kibi, they ran across it as if they defied gravity. Reaching the appropriate location, they both jumped off the walls at exactly the same time, aiming directly at the still snarling fox.

 

“Kibi! Kazedan! (Wind bullets) (1)” Naruto directed from behind the tense fox. Immediately, the five tailed fox looked up at one of the Kibas (the one on its left) and sucked in some air. Opening his mouth, Kibi revealed a basketball-sized air bomb and blasted it toward Kiba.

 

Since he was moving at such a high speed towards the wind attack, Kiba (the one the attack was aimed at) didn't have enough time to dodge. Taking the blast head on, he protecting himself by clamping both his arms across his chest. Upon impact, Kiba was slammed back onto the same wall he had just jumped from. Sliding onto the ground, the viewing audiences could see a large dent almost five inches deep into the metal walls where Kiba had been slammed.

 

Having dealt with one of the opponents for now, Kibi quickly jumped up and over the other boy whom just barely missed the fox with a swipe of his own newly formed claws. Landing lightly on its hind legs, Kibi launched another Kazedan at the second Kiba. But this Kiba managed to dodge the blow which continued on its one-way path directly towards Naruto and Kirin.

 

The Kiba that had been slammed into the wall sat up after catching his breath, and watched in satisfaction as Naruto was knocked to one side by his own fox (Kirin), just barely dodging his other fox's attack. /Heh! Having your own attack flung at ya, eh?/ He smirked as he saw he could use this opportunity to his own advantage, since Naruto seemed to have been interrupted half way through performing a seal and had to restart it again. Flicking his eyes towards his other self (Akamaru) and sending a silent message about the next plan of attack, both boys launched into their next assault while Kibi was still distracted, howling in regret at almost hitting his own master with its' jutsu blast.

 

Kiba threw two smoke bombs at Kibi, rendering the fox unable to see for the time being. /But it won't last damn it! The stupid fox can use Wind attacks! That's one of the five elements that Naruto said it could use! Shit! There's still four more trump cards held in that seemingly deceptive body!/ Growling at the unfairness of fighting such a strong opponent, Kiba used his anger as fuel for his next assault.

 

Running at top speed, Kiba shouted towards Akamaru. “Let's do this! GATSUUGA!! (Piercing Fang)” Twisting their bodies forward in a circular motion, both Kibas had transformed themselves into powerful human drills, with sharp claws that could slice their way through most surfaces, heading towards Kibi who was still obscured by the cloud of smoke. For the next few seconds, no one could tell what was happening within the area covered by the smoke, other than the sounds of animals snarling, biting, scratching and clawing.

 

Naruto was still kneeling on the floor where he had been knocked down by Kirin. He bit his lips in nervousness and wondered if Kibi was hurt by Kiba's attacks. However, he soon pushed his worries aside for the moment and concentrated on finishing the seal he had began to perform before but was interrupted.

 

Concentrating hard on the intricate hand gestures, Naruto didn't look up to watch the upcoming battle, if he did, he would see that both Kibas had launched themselves out of the smoke, continuing to perform their Gatsuuga (Piercing fang) and was heading straight for Kirin and him.

 

Finally looking up and seeing the incoming attack, Naruto quickly completed his unfinished seal, slapping his still bloodstained palm onto the head of his other fox. He quickly summoned forth Kyuubi's Chakra, enabling it to fuse with its other partial entity, Kirin, using Naruto's own body as a channel.

 

Naruto gritted his teeth as pain laced through his arm for a second time that same day, due to channelling such large amounts of Chakra at any one time. /If I thought commanding the Rasengan was painful. This type of summoning is about five times worse! I hope I don't burn the chakra pathways in my arm and hands too much, I still need to use them later./

 

Watching through half lidded eyes due to pain, Naruto watched in horror as he realise that he was too slow in completing his summoning and was going to pay for underestimating his opponent.

 

Shutting his eyes tightly and bracing himself for the onslaught, Naruto suddenly heard a loud `BANG' followed by a series of curses and pained growls. He peaked his eyes open just enough to see both Kibas lying on the floor directly in front of him, both holding onto one of their arms as if in pain. Naruto gasped as he saw a barely visible, violet spherical barrier surrounding him. He looked up and around, blinking at the large fox standing over him in a protective stance and snarling ferociously at the two Kibas.

 

At the same time, Kibi had just successfully blown away the smoke emanating from the smoke bomb by using another wind-based jutsu to redirect the smoke. Being preoccupied with avoiding Kiba's violent claws, Kibi had become too distracted by the smoke and the anticipation of the next attack that it didn't even notice when the Kibas' had launched against its master instead. Realising that his master needed rescuing, he cleared up the smoke and was rather surprised at finding his counterpart, Kirin, standing tall, though slightly hunched over, defending their master from harm.

 

Breathing in heavily at the exertion and lost of Chakra within his own body, Naruto looked at his trembling and burnt right hand. /Damn! I'll have to bandage that and not be able to use it all day!/ Looking back at the enormous Kirin, Naruto struggled to stand on weaken legs, grabbing onto Kirin's fur for leverage and dragging himself up. He then took some time to analyse both of his pet foxes.

 

It was true what he told Kiba, he had never used both Kibi and Kirin's battle forms in a real fight before. He had trained to summon them, yes, but never actually use them in a genuine fight and had little to no knowledge about the extent of their true powers.

 

Kibi had five tails he knew that, indicating that the fox could command five different elements: air, water, fire, lightning, and sound. Though small in size, Kibi was incredibly fast and agile, often preferring to take on an offensive position.

 

Kirin on the other hand, was almost Kibi's complete opposite. Kirin's true form was very large, almost two metres tall and three metres in length (tails not counted). She (Kirin is a girl) had sprouted two tails instead of one. Her dark brown fur had also turned a slightly reddish tint, due to the influences of Kyuubi's Chakra, and her two tails both bore tiger-like strips across them. She always had a very protective personality and she was often seen standing physically close to him. In this sense, she was primarily a defensive fighter, complementing Kibi's offensive attitude. This was why both of her powers were usually used as barriers or shields. However, other than that and some of the basic jutsus he had taught them, Naruto really didn't know how much of a trump card he had with them by his side.

 

Ignoring the desire to analyse his pets for the time being, Naruto returned his concentration to his adversaries, who were currently arguing with the referee about the fairness of having three against two, and the use of summoned animals in such a fight.

 

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“Hey! He can't possibly use those two foxes, can he?! It's unfair to have so many creatures helping him. Not to mention, he hasn't lifted a single finger in this fight at all!!” Kiba yelled at the referee, displaying his anger and frustration.

 

Hayate coughed sickly in response. “Actually, you're allowed to call forth as many animals as you want in a fight. Take the Aburame fight for example, he summoned thousands of bugs to assist him and Naruto only used two foxes. It is not against the rules to use more than one animal. They are all considered Ninja tools.”

 

Kiba growled low, his fist shaking in suppressed anger. “Then what about the fact that these two SUMMONINGS are too strong! Isn't there any rule against THAT!! It's not fair to the rest of us NORMAL Genins to have to fight something like that! These creatures have more charka than I do!!”

 

Hayate continued to cough as he slowly spurted out his comments. “On the contrary…” He paused and coughed. “Summoned animals are also considered Ninja tools, and therefore there is no difference between comparing them to let's say…” Pausing once again, Hayate let out a series of coughs before continuing with his explanation. “…a well honed sword. If the user possesses such a sword then it is to the user's benefits. In a real battle, the opponent cannot say that just because his adversary has a good sword, that the fight wasn't fair. It's just not done. So...” Coughing one last time for emphasis, Hayate finally concluded his long speech. “In this sense, Naruto is allowed his two foxes, just as anyone is allowed to use their most secretive and powerful ninja tools.”

 

Kiba's eyebrows twitched irritably. “But HE'S NOT FIGHTING!! HE'S JUST STANDING THERE WAITING FOR HIS PETS TO FINISH ME OFF!!” He screamed in retaliation.

 

Hayate looked at the growling boy with mild irritation at being forced to reply for a third time during this one fight. “This preliminary battle is to test the true strength of you Genins and the strength of their weapons are a mere reflection of the Shinobis power. If you are unable to defeat his summons, then it is just the same as saying you are unable to defeat him. Wasting time complaining is not part of the training to become a true Shinobi. If you really feel you are not capable of defeating your foe, you can always resign.” Hayate added crisply, showing a slight amount of his irritation.

 

Kiba growled softly, unsatisfied by the answer but unable to back down due to his pride. He looked at his opponent, now leaning heavily against the sides of that large fox and gulped down his nervousness. /If I have to go down, then I'm going down with a BANG!/ He thought determinately.

 

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Kiba readied himself in a battle stance, standing with Naruto and Kirin in front of him and an angry Kibi behind him. He flicked his gaze towards his companion for a split second and nodded in acquisition about their next plan of attack. /There really isn't any other option left. I have to use it./ Shoving his right hand into his pocket, Kiba took out two more black pills. He flipped one to Akamaru, who promptly swallowed it; and placed the other one in his own mouth, where he also swallowed it in one gulp. Instantly, Kiba felt a surge of Chakra rejuvenating all the sore spots on his body as well as giving him extra energy to use in his next attack.

 

Nodding in comprehension after swallowing the pill, Akamaru (still in Kiba's form) jumped onto the other Kiba's back while the original Kiba bent forward slightly and followed up with producing four shurikens gripped within each of his hands. /I need to make this quick!/

 

As if awaiting a hidden signal, Kiba (the original) suddenly started running forward, towards Naruto at a high speed, while his counterpart held on to his jacket, still sitting atop his body. Kiba quickly threw all of his shurikens at Naruto and then launched himself into performing new seal.

 

Naruto, watching the shurikens approach, instinctively called out for defence: “Kirin! Gekitai Jiki! (Repel magnetism) (2)” Instantly, the repelling force of Kirin's power over the magnetic fields changed and started reflecting the metallic shurikens from their current trajectory, sending them back towards the still running Kibas.

 

Seeing that their first assault had no real impact, Akamaru quickly launched himself off Kiba's back, jumping high into the air to avoid colliding with the incoming shurikens. The original Kiba, on the other hand, had just finished performing his seals and yelled out in anticipation. “Doton: Chikahodo no Jutsu! (Earth type: Underground Pathway no Jutsu)” (3) Immediately, Kiba's body submerged into the concrete floors underneath him, enabling him to dodge his own shurikens passing over his head.

 

Naruto blinked at Kiba. So far, he had seen Kiba use all sorts of `beast' type Ninjutsu but this one is a simple `earth' type Ninjutsu that enables the user to simply travel underground. However, before he could continue contemplating why Kiba suddenly used such a normal yet predictable jutsu, his attention was brought towards Akamaru, whom had just landed on top of his and Kirin's Gravity force field.

 

Akamaru, having jumped from his master's shoulders into the air, started performing the Inuzuka Taijutsu move - Gatsuuga (Piercing Fang) almost immediately. While still spinning, Akamaru aimed his attack directly down towards Naruto and his huge fox.

 

Hearing the sound of the impact from Akamaru's seemingly determined drilling into Kirin's gravity force field, Naruto wondered nervously if the force field could hold up to the constant piercing of Akamaru's claws. Having his attentions completely focused above him, Naruto almost reacted too late to the sudden splitting of the concrete ground underneath him. Reacting instinctively, Naruto hauled himself completely on top of Kirin's back with all of his strength, to move away from whatever's underneath him.

 

That was when he realised that Akamaru's actions were to draw his attentions away from the real threat. Kiba had travelled underground with the Chikahodo no jutsu (Underground Pathway) until he was stationed directly beneath Naruto, Akamaru was suppose to draw all the attention away from his master by making Naruto focus on its own attempts to breach the barrier. Once Naruto was sufficiently distracted, Kiba had launched another Gatsuuga (Piercing fang) directly upwards towards Naruto from under his feet. Being attacked from both above and below, Naruto had not realised that he and Kirin had left such an obvious opening when Kirin created the gravity force field in the first place - she had not considered being attacked from beneath.

 

Kirin, recognising the assault, waited for Naruto to completely settle on top of her before she quickly broke up her original gravity force field, only to conjure up a second force field to completely envelop her and Naruto in a full sphere. Changing the intense pressure of the gravity barrier into anti-gravity properties, she jumped off the ground and launched herself upwards, dodging all of Akamaru's and Kiba's claws while she hurried to take her master to a higher, safer plane and stayed floating in the air.

 

Having missed their perfect opportunity at beating Naruto, both Kibas landed lightly onto the ground again and glared at Naruto, sitting on top of Kirin's back, still floating easily in mid air about four metres up. Once again, considering his options, Kiba (the original) had completely forgotten about the other fox until he saw Naruto flick his gaze towards Kibi.

 

Seizing the opportunity at hand, Naruto yelled to Kibi from his high position. “Kibi! Hosuiho!! (Water Cannon)!” (4) Following the order, Kibi took another big breath and quickly followed up by releasing a huge blast of water. The large amount of water rapidly flooded the room, even while draining into the new hole created by Kiba in his previous attack. The force of the water rushed passed the two Kibas, washing them away and slamming them onto the walls behind them. Seeing that the two opponents were dazed by his attack, Kibi finally slowed and soon finished with his water attack.

 

Even though both Kibas were currently down, Naruto didn't want to take any more chances and continued with his assault, wanting to finally end the fight. “Kibi! Follow up with a Da Rai! (Lightning Strike)” (5) This time, Kibi kept his mouth wide open as small sparks started appearing from within his throat. Soon, the tiny sparks started growing in size and power until they became full-grown, electrical spikes and lines travelling all over Kibi's body.

 

“Do it! NOW!” ordered Naruto from above. Straight away, Kibi released his pent up power, letting the electric spikes touch the water still present on the floor as well as all the wet surfaces within room. When the electric spikes touched the water's surface, it instantly electrified it and shocked whatever was wet and within reach.

 

Both Kiba and Akamaru were still within the water's reach. And so, they watched with trepidation as the electric lines rapidly travelled through the water to reach them. Upon contact, both beings screamed in pain as they felt their bodies being electrocuted from the inside out. A large explosion followed the yell as the electricity finally enveloped both beings and started blowing up the water molecules as well.

 

Watching warily from above Kirin's protective form, Naruto hoped he had not gone overboard with his attack. He really didn't want to hurt Kiba any more than he had to. As the smoke cleared, it revealed a very battered and unconscious Kiba lying still on the floor. Next to him laid his faithful dog. Upon seeing their lifeless forms, Naruto instantly regretted his previous actions. “Kibi! Vaporise the water in the surrounding area with the heat from your fire element.” Kibi quickly followed the instructions by releasing a large amount of heat from his body; Kibi's form literally shimmered in a red hue as all the electrified water slowly but surely disappeared, vaporised into thin air. Naruto then told Kirin to put him down onto the ground, which Kirin swiftly obeyed.

 

The Referee, having already jumped towards a safer position on the walls when Kibi had launched his original water attack, finally returned onto the ground once all the water had gone. He looked over the comatose boy and dog with a nonchalant expression and then announced to everyone in the room that `Uzumaki Naruto' was the winner of this match.

 

Ignoring the pronouncement of his victory, Naruto hurried towards Kiba and Akamaru just as Haku appeared with the rest of the medic team to over see the boy's injuries.

 

“I didn't hurt him too much did I?” Naruto asked nervously, as he shifted from one foot to the other. He would have helped with the healing process as well, but currently, he was almost completely drained of Chakra from summoning forth both Kibi and Kirin.

 

After a short moment of checking over the boy's life signs, Haku gave him a small smile in return. “He's not that hurt. His nerves will be numb for a while though, having been electrified the way he did, but it will return to normal after a few days' rest. And other than that, there doesn't seem to be any other serious injury. He'll be fine, Naruto.” Haku continued with his work by helping the other Medic Nins carry the boy onto the stretcher. Soon after, the rest of the Medic team carried the boy and dog away, leaving Haku behind to deal with the rest.

 

Turning towards Naruto's relief filled face, Haku's small smile stretched into a smirk. Happy and wanting to congratulate Naruto on passing the preliminary exam, Haku suddenly noticed all the dried blood crumpled all over Naruto's body, from his forehead to his arms. “Naruto?” Haku asked, concern filling his voice. “Would you like me to look over those wounds of yours? You look like hell.”

 

Naruto chuckled in response, happy to have that fight over and done with. That is, until he started swaying on his feet. Loosing his balance, Haku was just about to come over and grab on to Naruto's swaying form when another person beat him to it. After the appearance of a sudden puff of white smoke, Jiraiya was revealed standing tall behind Naruto, with one of his hands steadying his student. “Naruto. We have to go.” He declared.

 

Naruto grimaced and then whined in a child-like voice. “Do we have tooo?”

 

Jiraiya grinned an ironic smile. “I certainly don't want the Lady to be angry at me for being late, do you?”

 

Naruto pouted in a very cute fashion. “I don't wanna… Why should I be forced to face the Lion's den? I'm too young to die…” Naruto continued to whine.

 

Haku giggled at the display. “Well, anyway. Let me have a look at your injuries and I'll heal up whatever I can.”

 

Wanting to waste as much time as possible, Naruto settled in to let Haku fix up as much of his injuries as possible. Anything was better than facing his Aunt's wrath. Unfortunately, that was when the referee stepped into their little conversation. “Uh...” Hayate coughed for attention. “If you don't mind, could you please take the healing somewhere else, either on the balconies or in the Medic wing? I still have an exam to run.” Hayate coughed again for emphasis.

 

Haku blinked at him in all innocence, wondering if he should look over the referee as well since he too, looked very sick. But he wasn't given the chance when Jiraiya grabbed onto both his and Naruto's arms, and started dragging them away, taking them up the stairs and onto the balconies above.

 

Stopping suddenly, both Naruto and Haku rammed into the heavy back of Jiraiya as he blinked in confusion and then his eyes widen in realisation. “Ah! Almost forgot! Naruto!” He turned towards Naruto, who was back to swaying unsteadily on his feet. “You have to release Kibi and Kirin's powers before we leave.”

 

Naruto blinked in response. “Oh yeah.” He too, had forgotten about the two foxes, which had now followed him up the stairs. Well, Kibi did, Kirin merely hovered beside him, against the balcony's ledge.

 

Well, it wasn't exactly his fault, Naruto was still too concerned about how he was going to survive his meeting with his Aunt, and didn't have the energy or attention span to focus on anything else.

 

Haku giggled again, finding the interaction between Naruto and Jiraiya to be terribly amusing. He had heard from Naruto all about his dreaded Aunt and her torture training techniques. He had also heard from Jiraiya all his complaints about her bossy attitudes and arrogant actions. He was looking forward to meeting this infamous Lady Oracle. After all, it isn't everyday you find someone whom was both respected and feared by both the perverted Sennin and his disciple.

 

Still complaining, Naruto finally turned his attention to Kirin. He placed his left palm on top of her head (his right one was pretty burnt and hurting) and focused on trying to will Kyuubi's Chakra back into his body. “Kyuubi Bubun Fuuin!” (Partial Kyuubi Seal) Naruto whispered harshly under his breath. Immediately, his left hand recoiled back from Kirin's now original form - a large spark of pain had surged through his left palm, burning through his arm, and across his shoulder, following the path the Kyuubi's Chakra would have followed until it finally returned to his belly button, the source of the original power. Unbeknownst to him, Naruto had unconsciously yelped out loud in pain and had instantly stepped back, away from the ledge, hitting his back on the wall behind him and then slumped onto the floor shivering.

 

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After a short amount of time, Naruto blinked his eyes hazily, until he finally saw without any blurring on the edge of his sight. He then realised there were a lot of people surrounding him at the moment. Haku was by his side checking his life signs as if he had almost died; Kibi and Kirin were on both his sides, licking his unsteady hands in distress (Kibi was still in battle mode while Kirin was back to her normal self). Jiraiya, Hinata, Sakura and Kakashi hovered over him a short distance away. And behind them, were the curious and slightly concerned gazes of Ino, Shikamaru, Chouji, Asuma, Lee, Neji, Gai, a slightly angry looking Kurenai and the now returned Tenten.

 

Naruto blinked again in astonishment at the worry upon all their faces and he tried his best to force away the blush that was most definitely forming on his face, but to no avail. He could distinctly feel his ears burn with all their eyes locked on him. Naruto started shifting nervously again until he remembered he hasn't finished transforming Kibi back to normal yet. Reaching his left hand out again, he was surprised when Haku grabbed onto it and locked determined eyes with his.

 

“No you are NOT going through that again. When you have some strength back, THEN we can work on transforming Kibi back to normal. UNTIL THEN, you STAY PUT!” Haku stated in an unwavering tone of voice, and Naruto could do nothing else but nod in acceptance. There was no way he could win against Haku when he's in his mother-hen mode.

 

Haku nodded, accepting his response. He then backed up and started pushing the other people away from the currently flushing boy. He knew Naruto needed some air anyway and with so many eyes on him, there was no way Naruto would feel comfortable. Finally, the only people left were Haku himself, Jiraiya, Sakura and Kakashi standing by the side.

 

Naruto was about to speak up when a soft, shy voice interrupted his musings. “Um… Naruto-kun...” He looked up into the timid eyes of Hyuuga Hinata and was surprised to see her hold up something towards him.

 

Not knowing what else to say, Naruto stated blandly. “What is it?” Hinata only blushed in reply, unable to find any courage to answer that question. Silence hung awkwardly for a while until Haku stood up and took the small white bottle away from Hinata's trembling hands and looked at it more closely.

 

“Oh WOW!” Haku suddenly exclaimed, catching almost everyone's attention. “I've heard of these! Is this one of the Hyuuga remedies for rapid healing of cuts and bruises?” Hinata nodded shyly and Haku beamed at her, making her blush even more. Haku then turned to Naruto. “Naruto! You should thank her. It's not common for the Hyuuga household to let just anyone use their secret remedies and medicines.”

 

Naruto blinked at Haku, then looked towards the furiously blushing Hinata. He then smiled sincerely at her, not knowing he had unwittingly stopped her heart for several seconds. “Thank you, Hinata-san. I really appreciate your help.” Stunned into silence for a long moment afterwards, Hinata finally but stiffly nodded in return and quickly turned her back towards him and ran away towards her other teammate and teacher.

 

Naruto looked at Hinata's back with total confusion in his eyes. He then turned to a laughing Haku by his side. “What I do?” If it was even possible, Haku laughed louder in return, while Sakura only rolled her eyes at the display. She, Kakashi, and Sasuke had also become close friends with the ex-missing Nin. After all, they had travelled together from the Wave country. Though their bond of friendship was not as strong as that between Haku and Naruto, they all feel safe and secure around each other, implicitly trusting one another to help them when they have a problem.

 

Naruto was starting to feel all relaxed again, that is, until Jiraiya took this opportunity to remind him of the upcoming meeting with his Aunt. Clearing his throat to catch Naruto's attention, Jiraiya continued. “Naruto. Have you forgotten about the lady?” All colour drained away from Naruto's face as his wide eyes stared blankly at Jiraiya. Haku huffed in irritation. /Damn, all that work to relax him and then, with one question, Jiraiya completely destroys the mood!/ He internally berated the white haired Sennin.

 

Sakura and Kakashi, on the other hand, had absolutely no idea what the other three were talking about and so, looked on with amusement as well as a slight curiosity in their eyes.

 

Looking at the pleading, wide eyes from Naruto, Jiraiya finally gave a resigned sigh. “Fine. We'll stay until the end of the Preliminary matches. After all, we still need to stay and hear about what the final third exam would be like afterwards anyway. So you've probably got another few minutes left to live, kid.”

 

Hearing the concession, Naruto heaved a sigh in relief and started smiling once again at having escaped his Aunt's clutches, even for a short while, it was still a small victory. He knew he was going to pay for his lateness but then again, at least he'll be able to hold on to his freedom for a little while longer yet.

 

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A few minutes ago, Hinata bit her lip as she watched Kiba and Akamaru launched themselves at Naruto and his giant fox again, leaving the other fox distracted enough to not interfere. /Kiba-kun... Naruto-kun../ Her fingers twitched nervously, grasping tightly to one another and then letting go only to start the whole process again. She gazed avidly at the battle between her teammate and someone whom she admired. /I don't even know why I admire Naruto-kun... it's not like we're really close or anything. Oh! We've only just met a few days ago but for some reason, I can't stop thinking about him!/

 

Hinata shifted from one foot to the next as she watched Naruto being taken in surprise by Kiba's new assault from underneath him. /Kiba used the same trick against Shino-kun and won their first battle, but Shino-kun quickly learnt of Kiba's tactic and overcame him in the second. I hope Naruto-kun won't be too injured…/ Hinata shook her head again. /Why do I keep on thinking about him??!!/ She mentally wailed. /I should be cheering for Kiba-kun since he's my teammate!/

 

It was only a few minutes later that the battle was over, with Naruto the clear victor. As the unconscious forms of Kiba and Akamaru was being carried away by the medic team, Hinata caught up to them and handed them one of her herbal remedies for nerve traumas, they gracefully accepted and she looked on with an expression of sympathy on her face towards the comatose boy. /Poor Kiba-kun…/

 

Returning to her original location on the balconies above the battle arena, she was just in time to watch the backlash of pain on Naruto's face as he recoiled from un-summoning the enormous amount of Chakra that had transformed the Kirin fox into its battle form. As she watched the proceedings and the worry over Naruto's health from the Medic ninja, Hinata felt her heart skip several beats and unconsciously, she quickly moved towards the injured boy's side, almost ramming Sakura aside in her haste.

 

A few more moments of fussing over the slightly moaning boy, Hinata suddenly realised that she was showing more concern about this almost stranger than her own teammate. Flustered by the realisation, Hinata quickly stepped back, away from the confusing enigma known as Uzumaki Naruto, to calm her own racing heart and try to understand her own emotions. /I don't understand it. Why am I acting this way?/ She wailed internally.

 

As she pondered over her own actions, she shyly looked over at the now barely conscious blonde. /I've only talked to him for a very brief moment during the first exam and all he actually said to me was just a few words of encouragement, that's all. Why do I feel this way? What is it that I am feeling anyway?/ She shifted nervously as she took out another white container of the same herbal remedy. /I guess it's because I'm not use to having anyone encourage me, or praise me… I mean, I get praises from Kurenai-sensei, Kiba-kun, Akamaru-kun and Shino-kun whenever I train hard enough to make my own hands bleed. But sometimes… sometimes... it feels as if I don't deserve their praises because I haven't done anything to warrant them. It's as if they're only putting up with me because they have to, not because they want to... I've tried, really I have... to improve myself so that I'm not a burden on them, not such a total loser and being so useless to them all. But... it always turns out worse than before./ Hinata thought to herself gloomily. /I just wish… I just wish that there was someone out there that thinks I'm worthy of something, that I'm actually needed by someone, that I'm appreciated by people just because I'm me… just me../

 

[FLASHBACK]

 

Hisashi stood stiffly and watched dispassionately as Hanabi struggled onto her own shaking legs. He spoke to Kurenai without even looking back at her. “The Hyuuga Clan doesn't need her. A looser below in ability than her 5 years younger sister Hanabi… is of no use to the Hyuuga family.”

 

[END FLASHBACK]

 

Hinata flinched slightly at the memory. It was one of the most painful words her father had ever said to her. Well, it wasn't exactly said to her, but she overheard it none the less. And it hurt, not just the spiteful words itself, but the way her father had spoken of her as if she was a thorn in her own family. Hinata was brought out of her depressing thoughts when she realised that Naruto was now fully conscious. And so, she caught his attention and held the remedy in her hands out towards him. “Um… Naruto-kun…” Suddenly, all the words she had wanted to say was stuck within her throat as if they were jammed there, she had completely lost her nerve to say anything more.

 

Hinata blushed as she fought for control over her reddening ears, racing heart and trembling hands. /WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME??!!!/ She thought frantically and couldn't come up with anything to say as Naruto just stared confusedly at her and asked what it was in her hands. She just stood stiffly like a complete moron waiting for the baffled boy to make the first move, because she just couldn't bring herself to do anything more.

 

Thankfully, Haku came to her rescue (well, that's the name she heard Sakura call him anyway). Hinata gave a small sigh of relief as the medic nin drew Naruto's attentions away from her and onto him. She could only nod in reply to his question; her voice was still not working properly. However, the relief was short lived as the boy suddenly thanked her for her small contribution.

 

Feeling her face flush again at another stranger's compliment, she suddenly found her heart pause in mid beat as Naruto gave her a dazzling smile. Well, it was just a sincere smile on Naruto's part, but to Hinata, she thought the sun had just risen above a beautiful horizon and beamed its radiant light directly on her. She heard the words faintly but somehow they seem to echo within her mind. “Thank you, Hinata-san. I really appreciate your help.”

 

Dazedly, Hinata felt as if she was floating on air. Mentally shaking her head to be rid of those thoughts, she realised she had to get a grip on herself and knew that all she could really do now was retreat from Naruto's presence, hide herself and try to analyse what was happening to her. She nodded to him stiffly, turned around swiftly and literally ran away to a safe distance, before stopping to analyse her feelings for a certain blonde boy without the boy knowing how he had affected her.

 

Hinata thought frantically to herself about how Naruto can affect her so much even though they are almost complete strangers. As the frantic thoughts kept rolling on, Hinata was finally pulled out of her musings when Kurenai shook her shoulder to get her attention.

 

“Wha?” Hinata blinked at her sensei, completely puzzled as to why she had pulled her out of her frantic thoughts.

 

“Hinata. It's your turn.” Kurenai said with a firm, but serious voice, with a hint of concern.

 

Hinata turned to look at the board and all the blood drained out of her face immediately.

 

Hyuuga Hinata versus Hyuuga Neji.

 

---------------------------

 

“You won't make a good Shinobi. Forfeit now.” Those were the first words Neji said to Hinata when she got down and it did nothing to help her anxiety at all. “You are weak. You avoid conflict and choose to follow instead of asserting yourself. You never resist because you're too afraid. You have no self-confidence and you have always felt that you are inferior to those around you. You cannot defeat me and you know it. Forfeit now or I can't promise I won't hurt you.” Neji continued in an icy tone of voice, completely devoid of emotion as his Byakugan stared indifferently at Hinata.

 

Hinata shifted nervously. “I..” She gulped. “I just wanted… to change myself…” She looked away from Neji's piercing eyes.

 

“People can never change. Destiny dictates it as such.” Neji replied, slicing directly through Hinata's heart and hopes. “Losers are losers, their personality and strength will never change. People are simply born into their destinies and they will die following the threads of Fate. You know as well as I do, that the difference between us can never be reconciled and we will forever remain as we are - you will always remain a member of the main house, and I, a member of the Branch house. That is all we can ever be.” Neji's cold voice rang through the room, reverberating from the concrete walls and seemingly echoed within the mind of Hinata.

 

She bit her lip hard enough to make it bleed, but she didn't care. She felt as if her entire world was collapsing around her, her hopes, her dreams were slowly fading away. She remembered all those training sessions with her father, how he had continuously scolded her on her weak stance, her timid personality, her futile attempts at offensive manoeuvres. She remembered feeling a pit of jealousy as she watched from the sidelines how everyone in the household would praise her younger sister for her performance and skill, while they completely ignored her existence all together. All these dark thoughts threatened to overwhelm her until a firm but gentle voice broke through her trance.

 

“Hinata!” She blinked and looked up at the origin of the voice, Naruto. He smiled gently back at her, making her heart once again skip a few beats. “I believe in you. Ganbatte! (Do your best!)” Those were all the words he offered in support, but they were all the words she needed to bring herself back. She gave him a tiny smile back, though nervous, she had already made up her mind to fight Neji, no matter what the outcome.

 

Hinata lowered her head to try and collect all her courage. /Thank you, Naruto-kun, for standing on my side, for supporting me, for understanding me./ The realisation hit her like a freight train. /Those were the words I had always wanted to hear from my father, but he never gave them to me. He never gave me any encouragement at all, and I've tried so damn hard to get him to notice me but he doesn't. Everything I do is never good enough in his eyes. No matter what small achievement I've gained, he'll always compare it to the wealth of accomplishments that my sister had attained. I've been waiting for so long to hear those words from someone I looked up to, someone who is a person of authority in my mind. Not just Kurenai-sensei, Kiba-kun, Akamaru-kun or Shino-kun, but someone who I truly respect and admire, someone whom I wanted to notice me./

 

Hinata's smile brightened though she kept her head lowered. /I understand now why I act as I did around Naruto-kun, at least…some of it anyway. He gave me what I've always strived for, the sense of achievement and the feeling that I'm not just a burden. Arigato Naruto-kun. Without you, I doubt I'll ever be able to change by myself. From now on, I won't runaway anymore Arigato./

 

Having completely understood her own feelings (as much of it as possible for now), Hinata lifted her head finally and turned her determined gaze at Neji, readying herself into a Jyuuken fighting stance. “I'm ready now, Neji-niisan. Let us fight.”

 

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(1) Original Kibi Jutsu! Kaze - Wind, Dan - Bullets. It's basically a ball of air being flung at one direction, it is NOT the Rasengan because the Chakra doesn't swirl around itself, the air just goes in ONE direction, and cannot be changed. Though it is the size of a basketball, it is a very weak wind attack, used only to bruise their opponent and cause them immense pain for a short time without any permanent injuries. Inspired by the attack launched by Shukaku against GamaBunta.

 

(2) Original Kirin Jutsu! Not sure if that's how you translate the English into Japanese but “Gekitai” is suppose to mean “repel or drive away” and “Jiki” is “magnetism”. Kirin uses both magnetics and gravity as her power.

 

(3) New original jutsu, very simple - it just lets the person travel underground, that's all.

 

(4) Original Kibi Jutsu! Direct translation from English using a dictionary - `ho' means `let go', `sui' is `water', and `ho' is `cannon'. I guess you could say it's inspired by watching too much Pokemon. ^_^

 

(5) Original Kibi Jutsu! Once again, not sure of the translations, in Chinese, lightning strike is something like “Da Lei”, so I got the Japanese translation of those words. `Da' means `hit', and `Lei' is `lightning', so I hope I got it right - `Da Rai.' Another influence from Pokemon.