Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Naruto of the Mirage ❯ Chapter 13 ( Chapter 13 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
Sasuke woke up with a splitting headache and a funny taste in his mouth. He looked around and quickly deduced that he was in some hospital wing, although he couldn't identify which. Pushing the covers off of his chest he sat up and shut his eyes against the harsh light emanating from the windows. Hearing the easily identifiable sounds of his brother snoring, he looked to his left and saw Naruto laying face up on the adjacent bed. As the sunlight crept onto Naruto's face, the boy turned over, exposing the back of his neck. The inverse tomoe of the cursed seal glared at the Uchiha survivor and suddenly the memories from the forest of death came pouring back into his head.
He remembered the adrenaline rush that the seal gave him, the extreme feeling of invulnerability and most of all the power. Oh the power, it was like a drug, he remembered the power he held over Zaku and remembered that he had dislocated every joint in the boy's arms. He quickly ran to the trashcan in the corner of the room and nearly vomited. It wasn't from the fact that he had broken a person completely, or that he had ignored his teammate, but his tone of voice when he spoke those words.
“Such a pity too, you were so proud of those arms of yours.”
`I…I sounded so much like…him. But I'm - I'm nothing like Itachi. Am I?' He asked himself, expecting no response. `Ah, but are you? Are you truly different, you were always looking up to him; it is him who you are constantly judging yourself against. You wish to emulate him, which is why you will come around…in time.' A sinister voice not his own replied
Caught unawares by the new voice, Sasuke surveyed the room for intruders. He found no one.
`That won't do at all boy, I'm afraid that you won't be able to rid yourself of me with a silly kunai.' The same voice goaded him.
“Who are you?” The now paranoid boy demanded.
`Me? I'm no one really. I'm simply you.' With that the voice went silent and didn't answer any more questions.
“Sasuke?”
This time when surveyed the room he noticed that Anko was looking at him having just woken up from a fitful sleep by the side of her biological son.
“Kaa-san…I…he…Orochimaru…Naruto sacrificed himself…I broke Zaku's arms…” The broken sentence from her adopted son confirmed every one of her worries as she watched the usually calm face that Sasuke kept up fall.
“Why? Why is he like this, I was ok…but he I don't know…so much chakra…” He tried to ask.
“Naruto…the seal forcibly draws out chakra from within the victim…Orochimaru…he put a seal over the Kyuubi seal and blocked off Naruto…mostly. Some how, the seal didn't completely seal off the chakra…and the cursed seal…it forcibly withdrew demonic chakra at such a great amount that some civilians on the other end of Konoha fainted.”
“I-it drew out the fox's chakra?” Sasuke stammered.
“Hai.” She replied running a hand threw his hair. “We've sent for Tsunade but she won't be here for a few days, and well…you two are supposed to be in the preliminary fights in two hours.”
The amount of time that seemed to disappear from Sasuke suddenly caught up with him.
“What happened? That last thing I remember is Naruto's seal activating and surpassing mine, but since that was Kyuubi's chakra I'm not surprised.”
“Sakura and Team Ten managed to carry you two to the tower and Sakura summoned myself and the Hokage through the scrolls. He then sealed up the cursed seal with the Fuuja Houin. (Evil sealing method.) Now I want you to understand something. The seal will stop the Heaven seal from spreading, but the force that is preventing it from doing so, is your own will power. Or it would be normally. Hokage-sama has developed a newer version of the seal and got to try it out on the two of you. No longer is it your own will power that holds the seal at bay, it is Naruto's. You're will power holds his seal in check. This means that if you succumb to the seal, his containment seal will break.” Anko recapped all of the important events from the previous three days for her son.
“But why? If I am weak than Naruto will suffer because of me?” Sasuke argued.
“That is one of the reasons that the seal was done this way. Hokage-sama recognizes that Naruto's will power is exceptionally hard to break. He also realizes that despite the possible threat that this procedure poses, he trusts you to protect your brother. I know that Naruto would agree, you are not weak in any way, shape or form.”
It was at that moment that Naruto began to stir in his bed.
“Uh, Kaa-chan, what happened? Is everyone all right?” He asked with his eyes still closed due to their sensitivity.
Anko smiled at her son and began to recount the happenings of the previous three days to him.
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While Anko and her son's were getting reacquainted, Kabuto's team was meeting with their true jounin instructor.
“I'm sorry Orochimaru-sama, but Sasuke was able to get out of the forest before I could gather more information on him.” The spy reported.
“I am disappointed Kabuto…however there is now another player in my plans and you would be advised to gather information on him as well. I believe you are aware of him…Uzumaki Naruto. Or should I say, Mitarashi Naruto.” The snake sannin grinned evilly at his spy.
“M-Mitarashi!” Kabuto was taken aback by the new information. “Then that would mean that…that the senshin…is alive and well!”
“Indeed it is Kabuto, but that is not the only good thing to come of this excursion into familiar territory. It would seem that Naruto and Sasuke are closer than we thought. If we are able to lure one to our side…”
“Than the other would surely follow.” Kabuto finished. Amazed at the luck of the situation.
“Not only one, but possibly two. You forget, Anko-chan was the only one to survive giving birth to one of my `children' and she could still prove useful to us. I want you to amend the contingency plan for an extra two `passengers'.”
“Hai, Orochimaru-sama, I will do it immediately.”
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Naruto was in a bad mood. First of all he is told that he has about two hours to prepare for the preliminary rounds of the third exam, and that he is forbidden from taking any medical aide until after his fights, unless he has it on him. That wouldn't be a problem normally, that is a distinct advantage of having a nine tailed demon sealed inside of you, but fate was feeling especially vindictive today, and had seen fit to give him a severe case of chakra exhaustion. He didn't have enough chakra to perform Kage Bunshin, or Mizu Bunshin and although the Goguoufuuin (Five elemental seal) had been removed, courtesy of the Sandaime, he still couldn't use the Mastery of Water and Ice. He barely had enough to sustain the sharingan for a minute or two at the most, and he could maybe - maybe produce a magnetic pulse once.
`If I ever needed another reason to hate the snake freak, I think I might have just found it.' He thought.
He wanted to get to the arena where the fights were to be held, but was forced to wait. Sakura was patrolling the hallway in front of his room and she wanted answers. He didn't want to give them, and so the very boring game of cat and mouse began.
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Seven teams were assembled in a large indoor stadium, located in the central tower of Training Area Forty-four. Rookie Genin team's Seven, Eight, and Ten from Konoha had made it through the second round of the Chuunin selection exam. Also first time entrants Team Gai had gotten through as well as the eight time entrants Team…Kabuto, no one knew what team they were because they had failed so many time previous. There was also the team from Suna and Oto. The Oto team looked the worse for the ware and Zaku's arms were still in slings.
“Congratulations on passing the second phase of the examination. From here on out there will be a series of one on one matches. Since so many of you passed there is a need to do preliminary fights to determine the final ten contestants for the third phase.” Aoba's voice cut through the silence. “This means that one of you will have to fight twice, unless one or more of you withdraws yourself from consideration. From here your individual performance will not negatively impact your teammates.”
At first no one seemed to be volunteering, until Kabuto raised his hand and asked to be excused. He claimed that he was still feeling the effects of the sound attack back at the beginning of the first exam.
Most of the remaining participants wrote him off as a genin who didn't take being a ninja seriously and ignored his departure. Shikamaru wasn't one of them.
`Lee took two of those attacks and he seems fine. Besides he can't use chakra to heal himself, so why is Kabuto still injured?'
The Hokage was giving a speech about the true meaning of the chuunin selection exam, how it was a substitute for war and that each of the ninja here were a testament to their own village. Suddenly a sickly looking jounin asked to finish.
“My name is Gekkou Hayate. I will be the proctor for these preliminary matches. The matches will be to the death unless I decide that there is a clear winner. Anything goes, but if you continue your attack after I have called off the fight, you will be stopped, by force if necessary.” He coughed a number of times in the midst of his speech and the bags under his eyes seemed to grow in intensity as he went on.
“Anyway, the thing that will decide your opponents…” he motioned to a wall were there were two statues of shinobi with their arms outstretched. A panel slid away to reveal a large monitor with the names of the remaining genin cycling quickly through it. The names began to go slower and slower until it stopped with the first fight of prelims.
Sabaku no Gaara vs. Inuzuka Kiba
“Alright Akamaru!” The brash boy yelled as the other contestants went back up the stairs.
“First match of the Chuunin selection exam preliminary matches…hajime!” Hayate wheezed.
Very quickly Kiba charged the stoic sand ninja and cocked his arm for a hard punch. It never connected. Gaara's sand simply stopped the punch before flinging Kiba into the wall, knocking him blissfully unconscious.
“Um, ok, winner Sabaku no Gaara.” Hayate coughed.
Hyuuga Neji vs. Abumi Zaku
The Hyuuga boy stared at his opponent, his pale eyes betraying no emotion. Likewise the Oto shinobi stared back with a smirk on his face.
“I don't see what's so funny.” Neji scolded his opponent. “You are fated to loose this match to me anyways. There is nothing you can do to stop fate.”
“We'll just see about that.” Zaku retorted.
“Second match, begin!” Hayate wheezed at the combatants.
Neither boy made a move.
“By the look in your eyes I can tell that your mind isn't in our fight.” Neji read the boy's expressions like an open book. “There is fear there…yes, fear that you won't be able to defeat me. You know as well as I do that I alone am fated to win this match. Quit now or you will be broken.” Neji's byakugan flared to life and Zaku took an involuntary step backwards.
“Hm, your arms aren't even dislocated let alone broken, you should drop this charade.” Neji goaded the boy once more before rushing forward to attack his opponent.
“Zankuuha!” The started Zaku cried as he unleashed his attack on Neji. The only real problem was that he was so frightened by Neji's byakugan that he forgot to remove his arms from the sling they were in. His attack went off to the side as Neji landed a number of sharp strikes to Zaku's rib cage and arms. The strikes cut off all chakra flow to Zaku's arms and made a large portion of his right side numb.
“Examiner, he won't be getting up.” Neji coldly said as he turned away. He was right too, because after a ten second count from Hayate, Neji was declared the winner and the board once more sprung into action.
Mitarashi Naruto vs. Tenten
Most participants noticed the name change; the Konoha shinobi were used to referring to Naruto as `Uzumaki' and so the new name was a glaring change. The foreign shinobi recognized the name as one of the most dangerous kunoichi in their bingo books, Mitarashi Anko, the former apprentice to the traitor sannin Orochimaru.
Tenten recognized the name for a completely different reason. Mitarashi Anko was the biggest customer in her father's weapon shop. The amount of kunai she went through annually easily fed her family for three months a year, and with the addition of Naruto and Sasuke a while ago, that figure had grown exponentially.
The pair made their way to the arena and Tenten was able to take a look at her opponent. Naruto appeared to have seen better days as he seemed very tired and sluggish. Naruto was too busy trying to plan for this fight that he didn't notice. The fake hiraishin kunai he had created would work, but he only had a couple of them. Most of the other seals he had learned and used weren't meant for combat like those were.
`Besides, with a weapon specialist like Tenten, kage bunshin would be mostly useless.' He thought and moved on to his next option.
“Begin.” This time the announcement was shortened to simply one word in anticipation of the fight.
Naruto quickly drew two kunai and held them in a defensive position as Tenten withdrew a small scroll from one of her two supply pouches and swiped some blood over it, summoning a staff for her use.
`Yeah, just my luck, the only genin with any kind of sealing skills besides me, and it has to be her.' Naruto grumbled.
Tenten didn't seem it, but she was fast. Not like Lee, but when your sensei is Maito Gai, `the fastest green streak in the world' you tend to pick up some points in the speed department. As it was, she was able to push Naruto back, since his reach was less with the kunai. Naruto jumped back and threw one of the fake hiraishin kunai at the brown haired girl. He once more transformed into a stone on the ground, and once more the trick worked like a charm. The clone poofed into existence behind Tenten and quickly grabbed her in a choke hold with a kunai to her throat.
“I'd withdraw if I were you.” The clone threatened.
Tenten merely smirked.
“Fat chance!” She quickly whipped the staff around and the clone had to loose its hold to grab the wooden pole. If that had been the whole of the kunoichi's attack, everything would have been fine, but alas, she followed up the staff swipe with a wrist flick, loosing a kunai at the clone's stomach, which promptly vanished.
This caught everyone in the audience by surprise.
`Just like you to weave tricks into serious attacks.' Sasuke admonished to himself.
“Where is he?” Sakura asked loudly, her question was echoed by all of the remaining contestants.
`Naruto-kun keeps impressing me beyond my wildest dreams!' Orochimaru was nearly salivating, disguised as the jounin for the Sound Village team.
Due to his lack of chakra, Naruto was forced to release the henge and reappeared in a poof of smoke. However, he didn't waste any time in attacking the started girl, and succeeded in disarming her before he forced to towards a wall.
Thinking quickly she threw a handful of shuriken at Naruto, who was forced to jump backwards due to their trajectory. Both fighters were looking exhausted, their fight had been going on for about ten minutes now, and with Naruto's handicap, he didn't have much strength left. As he was evading another wave of metal, he slipped on a pebble that was strewn about the arena and went down.
Tenten took this opportunity to launch her most advanced attack. She quickly placed a pair of scrolls that were eerily similar to the scroll she had retrieved the staff from earlier, on the ground and quickly performed a series of hand seals before a large plume of smoke surrounded the area.
“Soushouryu!” (Twin Rising Dragons) Tenten yelled as she leapt into the air, the scrolls unfurling themselves and the smoke taking the appearance of two dragons. She bit her thumb, drawing blood, and swiped it over the twisting scrolls, summoning an endless amount of weapons, before hurling them at the prone form on the arena floor.
Naruto was in a bind. He didn't have time to scramble away, and he was never very good at Kawarimi. His options were limited if he didn't want to die. He readied himself and concentrated on drawing out as much chakra as he could safely. As the first of the projectiles was about to strike him, he emitted a magnetic pulse that successfully halted the progress of the weapons. Due to the twirling nature of her attack, Tenten didn't notice and continued throwing. As more and more metal came towards him, it became harder and harder for Naruto to stop them all. He was almost out of chakra and he decided to use most of it in a last ditch effort to finish this match. He repelled some of his floating armada of steel back at his opponent, in an attempt to either stop her attack, or pin her to the wall with sharp pointed objects. Most of his weapons were blocked by new incoming ones, but since he caught her at the tail end of her attack, the last ones flew by her, missing her body by inches.
To say that Tenten was surprised was an understatement. No one had ever defeated her Soushouryu without moving an inch. Not only that, but he still had some of her projectiles floating around him which he quickly loosed back at her. She was forced to dodge a shuriken aimed for her right arm, and a number of senbon needles which were heading for her neck. She barely managed to avoid the sickle that whirled past her head, and she was unable to avoid the kunai that successfully pinned her left leg to the mortar of the far wall.
In a moment of worry, Tenten looked away from her opponent and at her leg. In that instant, Naruto was able to pin her remaining leg and arms to the same wall. Try as she might she couldn't break free.
“I guess I have no choice but to surrender.” She said glumly.
Hayate simply nodded before announcing Naruto as the victor. Naruto walked over to her and removed the kunai that impaled her clothes to the wall.
“Good match.” He offered, holding out his hand for her to shake.
“Yeah, good match.” Tenten replied. `Wow, he's gentlemanly…no one here is probably as kind as he is. He's got really nice eyes too…'
As that final thought drifted through Tenten's mind, she blushed red and averted her eyes away from those black depths. She quickly retreated up the stairs to her teammates.
The board once more began its programmed duty of selecting the combatants.
Sabaku no Kankuro vs. Yamanaka Ino
Ino and Kankuro began their descent to the arena floor, Gaara spoke up.
“Kankuro…if you harm her more than necessary to win the match…I will make you physically unable to use those `toys' of yours ever again.”
Kankuro simply gulped, not wanting to cross his brother
“Alright, next match…begin!” Hayate ordered.
Ino quickly placed her hands into a weird seal before she called out her attack.
“Shintenshin no jutsu!” (Mind Body switch technique) Her body slumped to the floor, and everyone who was familiar with the technique shifted their gaze to Kankuro. But nothing happened. He simply stood there, mouth open, staring at the slumped over body of his opponent. He didn't want to get too close to her, knowing that it could easily be a trick, but he didn't know what to do. He continued to stare for about five minutes, not moving incase it was a trap.
Ino slowly began to stir, clutching her head.
“Ow. What was that?” She questioned. She suddenly slumped over onto the floor and into unconsciousness.
The crowd was shocked into silence. Until the medical team rushed onto the floor and placed Ino on a stretcher. Kankuro smugly walked back up to the balcony, ready to gloat, only to come face to face with the enraged eyes of his younger brother. Sand began to snake its way up Kankuro's legs, until the make up clad boy couldn't move.
“What did you do?” Gaara asked, his voice betraying no emotion.
“Hon-honestly, G-Gaara, I didn't do an-anything.” He stammered.
Gaara's eyes narrowed and his sand contracted around his brothers legs. Crushing them into sawdust. The real Kankuro slowly stood up from the bundle that was slung on the back of the now immobile puppet.
“Wait, you are a puppeteer?” Shikamaru asked.
“Yes, I am, and I'll have you weak Konoha shinobi know, that I am the greatest puppet master since Sasori!” Kankuro boasted.
“It's too troublesome to argue, I just wanted to check my concerns about Ino.” The lazy Nara drawled. “The Shintenshin no jutsu would normally replace a person's mind with Ino's, but if she misses, she has to wait for five minutes before she can re-enter her own body. Also, she would experience chakra fatigue and migraines. I suppose that trying to switch minds with a puppet will have the same effects as missing completely.”
The next set of names scrolled through the board before stopping on two names that would prove for an interesting fight.
Uchiha Sasuke vs. Dosu Kinuta…
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(Well, I must say that this chapter came much easier than the last one, it just took me a while to figure out what the fights would be. I hope you enjoy this one, and thanks again for all the reviews.)
