"Now for the first fight of the finals, Gaara vs. Naruto!"
Gaara lost in thought, stared past Naruto as he mumbled to himself before the match began.
"What should I do, Mother?" he received no reply as his mind remained empty.
The proctor started the match.
"Begin"
Naruto created six shadow clones and charged with them toward Gaara. Gaara absentmindedly thrashed out his sand, and the Narutos easily countered with some as they used Gale Palm and other wind jutsu to disperse the sand away as they continued to approach.
In the skybox, Rasa was displeased with the display.
"What is that boy doing? It's like he's not even trying," he said as he gritted his teeth.
Gaara put his hand against his head; the silence was overwhelming, and he needed someone to talk to, anyone. As the Naruto clones got within a few feet of him, Gaara put his hand up disarmingly.
The Naruto's stopped their advance, confused. Gaara addressed them, "Uzumaki, tell me why I should fight you?"
The Narutos looked at each other with puzzled looks.
"To win?" the Narutos chorused
"For what reason if not to draw blood? What other reason is there?" Gaara asked, his voice getting desperate.
Temari and Kankuro shared looks of concern.
The crowd began to get upset with the pause. "Hey, less talking, more fighting!" someone yelled. Their sentiment was echoed as more jeers sounded throughout the arena. Gaara ignored them; his gaze focused on Naruto.
"Tell me, Uzumaki, why do you fight?"
Naruto looked down momentarily before he locked Gaara's gaze as he held up two fingers. "I fight for two things: to become Hokage and to protect the people I love." Naruto's voice was steadfast
"You do not fight to kill?"
The Naruto clones nodded profusely.
"Only weak shinobi have to kill. Killing is easy, but choosing to show mercy is the sign of a true ninja. A fight like this is meant to be fun."
"Fun?" the word stumbled off of Gaara's tongue
"Yeah, like we're fighting, but we're not trying to kill each other, and that can be fun."
Gaara collected his thoughts; he briefly searched for Mother again in his mind, to no avail.
"Very well, Uzumaki, show me how to fight for "fun." Gaara's gaze changed into something no one had ever seen; it wasn't the detached, far-off gaze he had earlier, nor was it filled with bloodthirsty hunger. It was intense and purposeful. Gaara closed his eyes as he clasped his hands together.
The ground of the arena began to rumble as the dirt around it began to crumble. Naruto stumbled as the earth beneath him began to break apart into small grains. As the soil around the arena started to break down into sand, the center of the arena began to sink down until the entire battlefield became a small desert.
Gaara started to experiment with his sand like he never had before,
Sand Dragon
The sand coalesced into the shape of a dragon and launched itself toward Naruto; Naruto retaliated with
Wind Release: Great Breakthrough
Naruto spat out a rush of wind that dispersed and blew the dragon apart. With a wave of his hand, Gaara then transformed the particles of sand still in the air into small birds and had them charge at Naruto.
Sand Flock
Naruto attempted to evade by using his gale palm to disperse some, but the birds were fast and spread out. One slammed into his side, knocking him slightly off balance, and another collided with his knee, knocking him over. As he fell on his back, the sand beneath him formed a hand trying to grasp him; Naruto quickly made clones all around himself as all of them used gale palms to disperse the sand,
Naruto then formed more clones as he had them all throw shuriken and use,
Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu
The storm of shuriken sped toward Gaara as he formed a wall of thick sand, blocking all of the projectiles,
As the sand settled from Gaara's defensive wall, the crowd buzzed with excitement. This was the kind of battle they had come to see. Yet Gaara stood still, his breath slightly uneven, his mind racing.
For the first time in his life, he had fought without bloodlust. Without her voice. Without the urge to destroy.
And it had been… fun.
The realization struck him like a physical blow. His hands trembled.
How many people have I killed?
Images flashed in his mind, faceless corpses, terrified screams, the slick warmth of blood under his fingers. All of it had been meaningless. All of it had been for nothing but pain.
And now, here, in this moment, he had enjoyed himself.
Naruto's words echoed in his skull: "Killing is easy. Choosing mercy is the sign of a true ninja."
A deep, shuddering breath escaped him. His chest ached.
The sand around him stilled.
Naruto, panting from the exertion, frowned as Gaara lowered his hands.
"I forfeit."
The crowd went silent, and then there was an uproar. Yells of confusion erupted. The proctor blinked. "Gaara, are you….?"
"I forfeit," Gaara repeated, louder this time.
Naruto's clones dispelled as he stepped forward. "Gaara…?"
Gaara didn't answer. He turned away, his sand slithering back into his gourd as he walked toward the exit.
Temari and Kankuro exchanged stunned glances before rushing after him.
Rasa started in disbelief, and then rage erupted in him as he slammed his hand into the skybox glass, causing it to crack where he impacted it. He stormed out of the room.
Naruto was left alone, dumbfounded,
"Well, due to Gaara's forfeit, Uzumaki Naruto is your winner of the first bracket!" The crowd gave half-hearted applause and cheers, severely disappointed in the outcome.
"Now it's time for the final round of the second bracket, Neji vs. Sasuke."
Neji and Sasuke stood across from each other, both bandaged from their previous fights.
"This has been a long time coming, hasn't it?" Sasuke spoke, the anticipation in his voice overwhelming
"Like my own fate, this outcome of this fight was decided long ago, Uchiha," Neji spat.
"Begin"
Both of them charged forward, their dojutsus flaring, analyzing each other.
Sasuke's fist shot foward. "You just say that because you're not strong enough to change!" Lighting Release: Great Powerful Breath. A bolt of lightning exploded from his fingers.
Neji dodged elegantly, his body twisting around the blast, and countered with two quick jabs to Sasuke's ribs; Sasuke stumbled slightly as he spat blood but quickly retaliated with a lighting-infused kick. Neji put up his guard in time, but the force of the kick sent him skidding backward.
"How dare you!" Neji's normally controlled voice cracked with rage as he regained his footing. "You know nothing of my struggle or the die fate cast for me!" He surged foward, ready to disable Sasuke's arms.
Sasuke flashed through hand signs, Lighting Release: Depth Charge. A pulse of electricity erupted from his body, forcing Neji to leap back.
"I don't need to know you to see the truth," Sasuke growled. "You gave up. Fate is just the lie you tell yourself to feel better."
"Give up." Neji's laugh was sharp and hollow. "Uchiha, giving up implies I had a chance to win in the first place." Neji ripped off his headband, revealing his seal.
The crowd gasped.
"This brand that I was given at birthmarks me as a slave to the main branch, a fate given to me due to me being born on the wrong side of my clan. Uchiha, do not act like you are better than me; you are a slave yourself. Your clan's destruction was destined, and it has put you on the path of an avenger."
Sasuke blitzed forward with his blade. "I do not look to avenge my clan out of duty, but out of love and justice; I fight for their memories and their honor; do not compare that to your self wallowing!"
"Pretty words!" Neji sneered as he barely deflected the strike. "What should I fight for, for my father's memory and legacy? He died a slave to the main branch!"
Sasuke landed a punch in Neji's gut, knocking the air out of him. "Then don't! Sit there and cry about it for the rest of your life, about how unfair it all is; be miserable and hateful!"
Neji landed a palm strike on Sasuke's shoulder, "What other option is there?!" he screamed.
Sasuke locked eyes with Neji. "Live, That's the other choice. Just live."
Both of them paused the fight as they stood across from each other. "That's impossible, Uchiha; like I said, my fate is already set."
"Like it fate's plan that you beat me today?" Sasuke challenged,
The smallest of smiles came across Neji's face
"You haven't won yet, Uchiha."
Then, they moved.
Neji exploded forward, his Byakugan veins bulging as he unleashed the Eight Trigrams: Sixty-Four Palms, his hands becoming blurs of chakra-disrupting strikes.
Sasuke met him head-on, his Sharingan tracking every motion, his body weaving between the deadly precision of Neji's assault. He couldn't dodge them all. Neji's fingers found their marks, sealing chakra points along Sasuke's arms and chest.
But Sasuke had planned for this.
As Neji lunged for the final strike, Sasuke feinted left, then twisted, his Lightning-Charged Kunai flashing into his palm. He stabbed downward, not at Neji, but at his seal, disrupting the Gentle Fist's blockade with raw electricity.
Neji's eyes widened
Sasuke's free hand blurred through seals in that split second of shock.
"Fire Release: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!"
A barrage of slight, controlled fireballs erupted, not aimed to kill but to herd Neji into position. Neji deflected them with Rotation, but the flames forced him back until his heel hit the arena wall.
Sasuke didn't hesitate. He gripped his palm as he began to channel lightning into it and charge forward.
Chidori
Neji braced, his Rotation flaring.
But at the last second, Sasuke shifted. Cutting through Neji's technique, twisting his wrist, the Chidori veered right, smashing into the arena wall. Neji looked in disbelief at Sasuke's arm, elbow-deep in the wall.
The proctors began discussion amongst themselves, and a decision was made quickly,
"Since it was clear Sasuke avoided landing a final blow not to kill his opponent, The winner of the match is Sasuke Uchiha."
The crowd exploded in cheers.
Neji slid down the wall, exhausted; it had been a long day. Sasuke yanked his hand out of the wall and looked down at Neji.
Sasuke extended a hand.
Neji stared at it. Then, slowly, he took it. As Sasuke helped him, he said, "You always have a choice whether you think you do or not."
"Perhaps you're right, Uchiha, though next time, I hope you don't have to nearly kill me to make your point."
A dry chuckle came from Sasuke.
"And now the final match of the exams, In the third bracket, Shino vs. Sakura!"
As she stood across from Shino, Sakura was amidst a mental overload as she couldn't decide how to approach the fight. She didn't have much chakra left after her fight with Samui, and she could probably only use Earth Flow Spear once or twice more before she neared chakra exhaustion. Shino had already shown that his bugs could burrow underground, making tunneling too risky a proposition. Before she could think further, the match began."
"Begin!"
As soon as the match started, Shino sent out a moderate swarm of Kikachu at Sakura, keeping most of his hive for defense; the swarm began moving away from Sakura, and Shino immediately flared his chakra. The Sakura he saw in front of him vanished as he saw the real one running to the edge of the arena, his beetles always on the right track,
Sakura clicked her tongue and figured his bugs wouldn't be easy to fool; she hopped off the sand onto the arena wall and began running.
Some of the crowd was confused, but those who got it were enthralled. It was a game of cat and mouse; both were near their limit. Whoever landed the first hit would be the victor.
Sakura pulled out two items from her pouch: a bottle and a small bell. As they rang the bell, Shino tensed. He knew from Kurenai's sensei teachings that specific ninjutsu is used to dull the senses and make the opponent more susceptible to other techniques. Shino used his Kikachu to circulate his chakra around his ears, absorbing his chakra and funneling it back into him; after a moment, Shino's hearing became clearer as the genjutsu dispersed.
Sakura continued sprinting along the wall, using subtle genjutsu to wear down Shino's senses. Knowing that the loop could go on indefinitely, Shino decided to commit more of his beetles to attack, as he sent out two swarms; one went to pincer Sakura along the wall, and another swarm burrowed into the sand to catch her when she made her way back to the ground.
As the swarms converged on her, Sakura activated a genjutsu and vanished from Shino's sight; he began flushing his chakra system again, but her move was of no consequence, he didn't need to see her as long as his Kikachu kept track of her…
Suddenly, his beetle frantically spilled off in random directions as they sped to the arena wall. Their tracking of Sakura's scent was disrupted. Shino spotted the now empty perfume bottle next to the arena wall.
He rapidly ordered his Kikachu to flush the chakra around his nose. Afterward; his nose was hit with a woody scent and hints of sniff jasmine. Never mind that. Shino flushed the chakra around his eyes and quickly looked around to see no Sakura in sight; his realization came too late as a steel fist came crashing from beneath him, crashing into his chin.
Shino flew off his feet and landed on the ground, his tired body unable to get up.
Winner: Sakura
"Thanks, Ino," Sakura whispered under her breath.
The arena exploded in cheers,
"What a fight, What a tournament! A total sweep for Team 7 of Konoha. Would all members of the team and their teachers please step onto the field? In the scramble of post-celebration, Team 7 made their way to the center of the arena; they were greeted by Vancouver, who was a short, portly man in a red and black suit.
"My goodness, what a performance from your team," he turned to Anko and Kakashi "How does it feel to know that all three of your students have reached the top today?"
Kakashi leaned forward slightly. "I think she can answer for the both of us."
Anko elbowed Kakashi in the side lightly. "Jackass," she said as it picked up on the mic echoing through the arena.
Anko looked directly into the mic, trying to form words; she then turned to her battered and bruised genin, "It's its…" Anko took a deep breath
"When we started to teach you, I never imagined you three would come this far so quickly; it's almost sad. I thoroughly enjoyed every day with you three, and post-training meal, every spar," Anko took another breath as she addressed the genin.
"Sasuke, you have grown so much and have worked so hard to heal yourself, and there's no doubt in my mind that if your clan were here right now, they would be proud to call you a Uchiha."
Sasuke quickly wiped away the tears forming in his eyes.
"Sakura, you are a wonderful kunoichi. Your poise, intelligence, and strength are all your own. You told me once that you didn't know who you were or wanted to be, but I'll tell you this: You are Sakura Haruno, and there's no one else like you." Sakura let tears fall from her face, "Thank you, sensei."
"And Naruto, you were brash, stupid, uncoordinated, and ill-prepared when we started," Naruto playfully stuck his tongue out at her. "I mean, you're still some of those things, but you have matured so much, you have so much kindness in you, so much that it goes beyond empathy, your drive is unmatched, and Naruto, I know that one day you will change the world, my little brother." Anko couldn't hold it together anymore as she choked on tears during her last words.
The genin rushed her, tackling them in a hug. Kakashi hovered awkwardly until Anko pulled him down and said, "Get in here." As Team 7 soaked in their victory in the chunin exams, this day would mark the moment that the five elemental nations witnessed the arrival of the legendary Team 7."