18. Beginning the Preliminaries

"A preliminary exam? The hell?" Kiba asked.

Most of the twenty-four genin had similar concerns. They were all confused about what was happening.

"According to exam protocol, we are…ahem…required to have a preliminary exam if the number of participants goes over a certain limit." Hayate explained before he went into a coughing fit. He waited until he finished coughing before continuing to speak. "Ahem…sorry about that. Anyway, as Hokage-sama said, many important guests and potential clients will be attending the exams, so we will do our best to ensure that they are fast-paced and intense. Therefore we will have a preliminary exam right now."

"What? Now?" Ino shrieked.

"Yes. Now." The exam proctor affirmed. "If this is an issue to anyone, you can walk away and leave the exam. From this point, the Chūnin Exams will be based on the individual, so a team will not be disqualified if one member has to leave."

Naruto turned to his two teammates. The three friends gave each other a look. All three would stay and compete.

"Excuse me. I'll walk out then."

All genin turned to face the voice. Yakushi Kabuto was rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.

"Kabuto-san, you are leaving?" Sakura asked with wide eyes.

"Yeah. I have some injuries from the forest that I need to get treated." He answered with a frustrated sigh. "I don't think I could handle another exam right now. My health is more important. Guess I'll just have to try again next time."

"Yakushi Kabuto, of Konoha's team nineteen?" Hayate questioned the silver-haired genin. The genin nodded in response. "Very well then. You are free to go."

Kabuto immediately broke formation and started to walk away. The genin in the room stared at him as he left. Some were staring in shock and others in disbelief that somebody would have to quit the chūnin exams after coming so far. A few, however, were looking at him with suspicion for that reason.

'So that's the seventh time that guy failed?' Naruto wondered as he narrowed his eyes. 'I don't get! He just quit before even hearing what the preliminary exam was like! He could maybe have done it, no matter what injuries he has! Is he not even trying to pass?'

Shikamaru was wondering the same thing. His eyes turned to focus on one of the Oto genin's: a black-haired boy that had his arms wrapped up in a sling. 'That guy's still competing with two broken arms. And Kabuto, who seems physically fine, quits and fails the exams. Again.' He closes his eyes in thought. 'That guy…there's something going on with him.'

Silence filled the room as Hayate waited to see if anyone else would quit. It soon became apparent that no one else would.

"If no one else is planning on leaving, then…ahem…I'll explain the rules of the preliminary exam. It will be series of one versus one fights." Hayate explained as he pointed a finger upwards towards a large screen on the ceiling. "That screen will display two names at random. When your name is shown, you will fight against the other person chosen. The winner will move on to the third exam and the loser will fail." Hayate's explanation was interrupted by another cough. "…there will be twelve matches in total. Since there is an odd number of you, the twelfth match will be between the person who hasn't fought yet and one person chosen at random from the winners of the previous eleven matches."

"Wait, what? So that means that one of us will have to win two matches to pass the preliminaries?" Sakura asked as some fear crept on to her face.

"That's a bunch of bull!" Kiba shouted. "That means one person is going to have an easy match against someone who was tired out!"

"That's not even fair!" Ino shouted.

"Call it whatever you like, but you're not going to change the system." Hayate stated firmly.

"…troublesome." Shikamaru sighed in frustration. 'For the love of God, please don't let me have to do two fights.'

"The preliminary exam will begin now!" Hayate declared.

The screen lit up and names started flashing on the screen. All the genin focused intently on the screen. A full minute passed by before the screen stopped on two names.

Hyūga Neji vs Abumi Zaku

"This is the first match. You two will stay here. Will all the other combatants please move to the raised platform?" The exam proctor stated as he gestured to the stairs in the room.

The genin all nodded in response as they (excluding Neji and Zaku) headed to the stairs.

'So that jerk is going first, huh?' Naruto noted as a smirk developed on his face. 'Heh, alright then. Let's see if you can back-up any of your big talk.'

'Neji-nii-san…good luck.' Hinata mentally wished her cousin good luck.

The genin finally reached the upper platform and stood near the rails of the platform to watch the matches. The jōnin-senseis walked over to meet up with their students.

"Yo guys!" Anko called out as she walked behind her students. "Gotta say, I don't remember seeing a preliminary ever. This is actually exciting to me. You all better not fuck up your fights."

"Do you honestly think we will?" Naruto rolled his eyes at her question.

"Not really." She shrugged in response. She then turned to Hinata. "So, one of those guys is a Hyūga. You know him?"

"Yeah…" Hinata answered quietly.

"Hmm…" Anko realized that Hinata didn't seem to want about the guy. She decided to comply to her student's desire. "Well, the match I guess is about to start.

The members of Team Three stared down at the two genin.

Neji chuckled to himself. Zaku noticed this and scowled.

"You have something to say?" The Oto genin asked sharply.

"I'd advise you quit now." Neji advised.

Zaku's eyes widened at the declaration before they narrowed into a glare. "And why do you say that, punk?"

"While I do not know much of Oto nor do I know your skills, I can see that you are crippled. You cannot hope to beat with that kind of a handicap." Neji answered, giving a condescending smirk. "Fate has decided you will not pass. Just quit and save everyone the time."

Zaku grit his teeth as he glared at the boy in front of him. "You arrogant piece of…" He growled before his mouth turned upward into a smirk. He got into a position to charge. He then wiggled his right arm a little. "Well, look at that? Guess I can use this to beat your punk ass face into the ground."

"…hmph." Neji shook his head before he got into the stance of the gentle fist. "You'll regret this."

Hayate looked back and forth between the two genin before he raised his hand.

"First match…begin!" He stated.

Zaku made the first move, charging towards Neji. He removed his right arm from his sling and tried to land a punch at Neji's face. The Hyūga only smirked as he used his hand to push Zaku's fist away. He then used his other hand to deliver a palm to Zaku's chest, knocking him backwards a few feet. Neji proceeded to make a hand sign.

"Byakugan!" He shouted.

Neji charged at the Oto genin. Zaku attempted to avoid the Hyūga's palms and fight back, but he couldn't. The Hyūga was moving too quick to avoid all of his attacks. Zaku also realized that each time he blocked, it still felt like he was getting hit.

Zaku moved back and tried to land a kick at the Hyūga's stomach. Neji easily dodged it and hit Zaku's chest with another palm. The Oto genin was sent flying backwards. He hit the ground and coughed up blood.

"Just give up. You can't win." Neji advised again, the condescending smirk still on his face.

"Fuck you…" Zaku hissed in response as he lifted the right hand. He pointed it at the Hyūga. "Decapitating Airwave!"

A blast of air was fired directly towards Neji. The Konoha genin avoided the attack and charged again. The Oto genin smirked as the Hyūga proceeded to get in close to him. He then pulled his left arm out of the sling and aimed at Neji.

Zaku attempted to use another blast of air from his left hand. Neji, however, moved faster and landed a palm strike on Zaku's hand at a point where a hole was.

Zaku's jutsu was not released through his hand. The air blast was released through his left arm, puncturing his skin and creating holes so it could be released. The Oto genin screamed in pain as he fell to his knees.

"AH!" He moaned, trying to pull himself up. His effort failed and the boy fell face-first to the ground. "What the f-fuck…did you to me?"

"My Byakugan allows me to see your chakra network. I saw how those tunnels in your arms since I activated and I also saw how that air technique worked: you release the chakra through those holes in your hands. So, I sealed off the tenketsu in your hand at the point where the hole was located." Neji answered. "Your chakra couldn't get released from the hole, but it needed to get released somehow. So, it released itself at the expense of your arm." The Hyūga proceeded to walk away, towards the stairs. "Proctor, call the match. It's over and he will not get up."

Zaku could not retort this: the boy succumbed to the pain in his arm and chest and passed out. Hayate signaled for medical service as he pointed to Neji.

"Winner: Hyūga Neji."

"…damn!" Naruto whistled. "I guess he can back up some of the stuff he says."

"Neji-nii-san is considered a prodigy in the Hyūga clan." Hinata stated quietly with a smile.

"Hinata-chan, I don't know why you are so happy he won. That guy was a jackass to you earlier." The Uzumaki commented.

Hinata looked down. "…it's complicated."

Neji walked upstairs and headed to his team while Zaku was carried away by medics. Hayate took the time to speak up.

"The second match will begin now." He stated as the screen lit up.

All eyes were focused on the screen again. Another minute passed before the screen stopped on another two names.

Akimichi Chōji vs Nara Shikamaru

Naruto's and Hinata's eyes went wide as they turned to face their teammate. Shikamaru's mouth dropped for a second before it twisted into a frown.

"You have got to be kidding me." The Nara groaned as he shook his head.

"Isn't that the Akimichi boy you guys hang out with sometimes?" Anko asked.

"Yeah…" Naruto answered.

"Shikamaru-Kun…" Hinata frowned as she looked over at her teammate and friend.

"Whatever. It's what was picked, so I guess it is happening." Shikamaru sighed as he walked towards the stairs.

"SHIKAMARU'S LAZY! HE WON'T WANT TO DO SHIT! YOU CAN TOTALLY KICK HIS ASS! GO CHŌJI!" Ino shouted as she watched Chōji walk down the stairs.

Both Asuma and Shino sighed. The two of them were cheering for the Akimichi as well, but they felt like keeping their comments to themselves; unlike a certain blonde member of their team.

Shikamaru and Chōji finally reached the fighting ground. The two boys stared at each other, both frowning. Chōji, himself, almost looked ill at the prospect of fighting his best friend. The two continued to stare for a few seconds before Shikamaru finally broke the silence with a sigh.

"It can't be helped. Let's just get this over with, eh Chōji?" He commented as he got into a stance.

"…you really want to fight, Shikamaru?" Chōji asked hesitantly. "I…I don't think I can. I don't want to have to fight you…"

'Chōji, you are way too gentle.' Shikamaru shook his head before speaking. "I don't want to either, but it is what it is. And after the hell I went through in the second exam, I'm not quitting, and I don't want to see you quit either. We just have to do this. So, let's just give it our best and see what happens. No regrets and all that."

Chōji still looked hesitant to fight. Shikamaru's eyes then widened as an idea entered his head.

"Chōji, let's turn this fight into a bet. If I win, you have to help me out with a few chores at my house. And if you win, I'll take you out for barbeque: my treat." He suggested.

Shikamaru's plan worked. At the mention of 'barbeque', Chōji's eyes brightened. His disposition changed entirely as he got into a fighting position.

"You're going to regret that beg Shikamaru." The Akimichi declared confidently; all traces of hesitation gone from his voice. "Now that barbeque is on the line, I can't lose!"

'Typical Chōji. The way to motivate him is through the stomach.' Shikamaru chuckled to himself before speaking aloud. "Well, my mom has a few things she needs me to get done and it's all going to be a pain in the ass, so I'm going need your help with it. I won't lose either!"

Hayate raised his hand. "Second match: begin!"

Chōji quickly made a hand sign and shouted "Expansion Jutsu!" The boy's body expanded causing him to look like a giant ball.

"Human Boulder!"

Chōji tucked in his limbs and then rolled towards Shikamaru at great speeds, resembling a moving boulder. The Nara jumped out of the way of his rolling friend. Chōji responded by changing directions, aiming once again for Shikamaru. Shikamaru continued to dodge his rolling friend while Chōji continued to try and run him over.

'I can't do a damn thing to him with that expansion jutsu activated. I need to end that jutsu of his!' Shikamaru mentally noted.

The Nara pulled out a kunai with an explosive tag attached to it. He then threw it onto the ground directly in front of Chōji's rolling body. The Akimichi rolled over it almost immediately and the tag went off. The explosion caused Chōji's rolling body to fly into the air.

The Nara smirked as he tossed another kunai with another explosive tag attached to it at Chōji's body. To avoid the explosion, Chōji canceled his jutsu, making his body return to normal size. Chōji was then able to avoid the kunai and land on the ground on safely. There was a noticeable chunk of his shirt missing and the exposed skin on his stomach looked as if it was burned.

'Those explosive tags really hurt.' Chōji winced as he attempted to ignore the pain. He then made another hand sign.

"Partial Expansion Jutsu!" He shouted as he made a punching gesture.

The Akimichi's arm expanded in size. The enlarged fist zoomed across the arena. Shikamaru avoided a punch directly to the face. Chōji then enlarged his other arm and made a pushing gesture. His hand was able to hit Shikamaru. The Nara was then pushed against a wall and held there from the waist down. Shikamaru immediately started coughing from pain.

"Ugh…this is new…" Shikamaru spoke up with a slight cough.

"Yup. Dad taught to me about a week or two ago. Pretty cool huh?" Chōji said, proud of his jutsu. "I guess this is game, huh Shikamaru? Barbeque is all mine!"

"Not yet." The Nara responded as he lifted his hands and made a hand sign. 'Shadow Possession Jutsu!'

Chōji immediately lost the ability to move his body. He felt himself letting go of Shikamaru.

"That was a good try, but next tune you try and restrain me or anyone, make sure you also restrain the hands." Shikamaru noted, a smirk on his face.

"I thought I did." Chōji sighed in frustration. "And because my hands were still holding you in place, our shadows were connected. I set that up for you easily, didn't I?"

"Yup." The Nara said as he raised his right hand and brought up to his face. Chōji's enlarged right arm was also brought to his face as well. "Chōji, I'd suggest you forfeit, otherwise I will punch myself in the face. It'll hurt me a little bit, but considering that huge ass hand of yours, it'll probably hurt you a lot more."

"Your jutsu only paralyzes my body, you know. Not my chakra." Chōji commented as his arms decreased in size back to normal. A smirk developed on his face. "Still want to punch yourself?"

"...nah, I don't see the point anymore. But I do have something just as effective." Shikamaru commented as he pulled out another kunai with an explosive tag.

"I don't remember you ever having this many explosive tags." Chōji laughed a little as he pulled out a kunai of his own. His, however, didn't have a tag on it.

"I was getting tired of all the comments about not being offensive. What is more offensive than big explosions?" Shikamaru answered with a snicker.

The two friends threw their kunais directly in front of the other.

"And that's game Chōji. All I need to do is activate the seal on the tag. Unless you surrender of course." Shikamaru noted.

Chōji let out a deep sigh.

"…you're right. I surrender."

"Winner: Nara Shikamaru." Hayate called the match.

Shikamaru immediately canceled his jutsu, freeing Chōji. He then walked over to his friend and extended his fist.

"Almost had me there. You did good Chōji." Shikamaru complimented, a smile on his face.

Chōji returned the smile with one of his own as he bumped fists with the Nara. "You did good yourself. You'll make chūnin easily by the end of this."

"Hopefully. This exam has been too troublesome to not walk away from it without a promotion." Shikamaru claimed.

The two best friends laughed as they headed up the stairs and walked back to their respective teammates.

"Got to say lazy ass, you did a good job." Anko said to the Nara as he came up.

"Yeah, you and Chōji really kicked ass." Naruto said as he raised his hand.

Shikamaru responded by giving him a high five. "We tried to."

"Shikamaru-kun…" Hinata started as she dug into her weapons pouch. Instead of a weapon, however, she pulled out a small container. "Here. It's a cream for your injuries."

"You made this?" Shikamaru asked, impressed. He opened the container and started to rub the creain on some of the bruises he got from his fight

"Mhmm." Hinata replied. "I'll go give one to Chōji-Kun too. I hope that helps."

"Heh." The Nara gave the Hyūga heiress a smile in response. "You're way too kind Hinata."

"Hey! Shikamaru!"

The members of Team Three turned their heads to see Kurotsuchi approaching them.

"Good job out there. Thought he almost had you, but you reacted quickly and effectively." She complimented before a playful smirk appeared on her face. "Heh, looks like you can actually do things besides lying down and sleeping."

Anko and Naruto laughed loudly, Hinata giggled, and Shikamaru rolled his eyes in response.

"Thanks…I guess." The Nara said with a shrug.

"No seriously, I meant it. Good job!" Kurotsuchi said seriously, giving him a pat on the back.

Shikamaru was about to respond back to her, but was cut off as the screen started to brighten up. All attention was focused on it as it went through the various names.

Inuzuka Kiba vs. Kurogane Risho

"Kiba is going to fight Risho? The guy who hates Iwa more than anyone here versus the guy who hates Konoha more than anyone here?" Shikamaru commented.

"Kiba hates Iwa?" Naruto asked. It didn't surprise him too much, considering he had an issue with Iwa at first before meeting Han's team, but it was still news to him.

"Oh yeah." Shikamaru sighed. "He was being really troublesome about it."

"…I almost feel bad for the dog boy." Kurotsuchi said with a frown on her face.

All eyes turned to her.

"Why's that?" Hinata asked her.

"Roto mentioned it once before last night. Risho's been pretty antsy ever since we got to Konoha." Kurotsuchi sighed in response. "I'd hate to fight him right now when he's like that. I don't think he's going to be 'gentle' with the Inuzuka."

"…and neither will Kiba. This match isn't going to end pretty for the loser." Shikamaru shook his head.

Kiba and Risho stood across from each other in the arena. The two of them were glaring at each other.

"It's only fitting I get an Iwa scum to fight." Kiba said, a feral grin on his face. Akamaru barked in agreement.

"Hmph. And why's that, Konoha trash?" Risho asked back with a scowl.

Kiba's grin turned into a scowl as he started to clench his fists. "You know of another Inuzuka Kiba?" The Konoha genin asked with a growl. "That was the name of my mom's older brother. He died in the last war at the hands of you stupid scum. You all killed him and his partner!" Kiba's voice was now getting louder. "You all killed him and so many Inuzuka shinobi! It's only fitting that I, named after my uncle who you killed, rip you apart!"

"Who the fuck cares about your damn uncle?" Risho shouted back.

"Obviously not you, you damn murderer!" Kiba growled in response. Akamaru growled back with equal passion.

"Fuck you!" He pointed a finger at the Inuzuka. "Your uncle, the rest of your filthy clan, and your village killed Iwa shinobi too! Do you have an idea how many Kurogane shinobi died in the war?" Risho then clenched his fists. "Over a third of Iwa's casualties came from my clan alone! A FUCKING THIRD! And a lot of them were genin. They weren't experienced killers; they were just kids thrown into war that were focused in fights first because of our kekkei genkai! Don't you DARE talk to me about deaths in the war!"

As Kiba and Risho continued to curse each other out, the people observing the fight were getting more and more uncomfortable.

'Oh Tsume, your son is so full of hate…' Sarutobi lamented, a large frown on his face. 'This is what war really causes…it only sows more hate.'

"…Kurotsuchi, is all of that true?" Naruto asked the Iwa girl.

"Yup."

Team Three turned their heads to see Roto and Han approach the group. Roto, being the one who answered, continued to speak.

"The Kurogane clan is one of the three most important clans in Iwagakure. Their kekkei genkai is infamous throughout the shinobi nations. So yeah, the Kurogane members were focused whenever one of them was in a battle. The clan was devastated in the war. There aren't too many left either." Roto explained.

"There around around fifteen to twenty Kurogane clan members left." Han clarified. "Originally, they had a population similar to that of your Hyūga clan with both branches."

"…" Hinata nearly gagged at the mental image of her clan losing that many members. "…that's horrible!"

"It is." Anko nodded, a frown on her face. "…but it's what happens in war. So many people just end up dead."

Naruto and Kurotsuchi looked at each other. Both of them could see the determination in the other as they remembered their conversation a few nights ago.

'…we have to make sure that never happens again. We have to end all wars!' Naruto told himself. Kurotsuchi was having similar thoughts.

The two genin in the arena stopped arguing and instead got into position to fight. Hayate took this time to raise his hand.

"Match three: begin!" He stated.

Kiba immediately made a hand sign and shouted: "Ninja Art of Beast Mimicry: All-Fours Jutsu!"

The Inuzuka positioned his body with his hands on the ground as chakra coursed through his body. He became more feral as his teeth and nails grew sharper and his eyes developed slits. He then charged forward at Risho like a wild animal.

Risho smirked as he drew his sword. Kiba swung his claws at him. The Iwa genin blocked the claws with his blade. He then attempted to slice Kiba, but the Inuzuka jumped out of the way. Risho proceeded to charge after him, gripping his sword tightly.

Kiba avoided another of Risho's attacks and proceeded to strike again with his claws. Risho was able to block the claws with his sword's blade again. The Kurogane then used his force to push Kiba backwards. The Inuzuka, as he was sent flying backwards, grabbed a smoke ball from his weapons pouch and dropped it on the ground. The smoke soon covered the arena.

Akamaru, at the sight of the smoke, charged into it. The white dog moved its way through the smoke until it reached the Kurogane. It immediately jumped towards the boy in attempt to bite him. Risho, however, was able to see Akamaru's attack and he intercepted Akamaru by giving the dog a kick. Akamaru was sent flying backwards into the ground. It whined at impact before pulling himself up and growling in anger. The dog than rejoined his partner.

"I have a teammate who specializes on stealth. Don't you dare even try that bullshit on me." Risho taunted as he pointed his sword at Kiba.

"Hmph." Kiba scoffed before turning to Akamaru. "Come on Akamaru, let's kick some ass. You ready?"

Akamaru barked in agreement. Kiba bent over and Akamaru jumped on his back. "Man Beast Clone!"

Akamaru transformed into a near perfect clone of Kiba. He jumped off his partner's back. They then got on all-fours and charged towards Risho.

Kiba reached Risho first and swung his claws again at him. The Kurogane moved backwards to avoid the strike. Akamaru then jumped in and tried to elbow him. Risho blocked it with the hilt of his sword. Akamaru then responded by trying to claw him. Risho was forced to put distance between him and the two partners.

Kiba and Akamaru charged again. Risho gripped his sword tightly.

"Kurogane Kenjutsu Style: Intercepting Blade!"

As Kiba and Akamaru attacked Risho, he spun around in a circular fashion. He moved his sword at a rapid speed. The hilt intercepted the claws of his attackers. Upon intercepting, Risho would turn his sword around to make a tiny cut onto Kiba and Akamaru. He blocked all strikes and successfully retaliated with plentiful cuts. Kiba and Akamaru eventually ended their attack and made distance. They were breathing hard and covered in cuts. Some blood was leaking and stained their clothes. Risho, on the other hand, was perfectly fine.

"The hell was that?" Kiba asked before he shook his head. "Never mind, it doesn't matter. You may have blocked that, but I know as hell you won't be able to block this!"

Kiba and Akamaru moved in opposite directions. Both dropped smoke balls, covering the arena once again in smoke with Risho at the center of the smoke. The two partners then started to spin and rotate rapidly.

"Ninja Art of Beast Mimicry: Fang Over Fang!"

Kiba and Akamaru, still spinning, charged into the smoke and drilled through it. They could feel themselves make contact with something, which caused the two to grin. Kiba and Akamaru eventually ended their assault and waited to see the Kurogane on the ground, covered in wounds.

Instead, when the smoke cleared, they saw Risho standing perfectly still. His body was covered in a silver-greyish colored armor. Kiba and Akamaru were gaping at the sight.

"What…is that?" Kiba asked from the shock.

"My kekkei genkai: the Iron Release. Congrats: your attack made me actually have to use it." Risho answered with a malicious grin. "Now, you had your chance to finish me off. I believe it's my turn now!"

Risho charged forwards. He took advantage of Kiba and Akamaru's shock to get in close. He delivered a cut into Akamaru's chest. The white dog was forced out of his clone as it fell down in pain, a large cut running down his chest.

"AKAMARU!" Kiba shouted before he turned his attention to the Kurogane. His eyes almost looked red. "You…you…"

"Oh relax: that cut isn't enough to kill him. No way in hell was it deep enough to do so." Risho responded nonchalantly. "Just needed to knock him out for a bit. You on the other hand…we'll see how deep your cut will be."

Kiba wasted not another second. He charged at Risho with his claws raised. Risho used his sword's blade to block the claws. He then pushed back with more force again, knocking Kiba backwards. This time, though, Risho then stabbed Kiba in the stomach with his sword.

"Ah!" The Inuzuka hissed in pain. He started to cough up blood.

"How does it feel, Konoha trash?" Risho taunted as he dug his blade further into Kiba.

In seconds, he pulled the sword out of Kiba. The Inuzuka coughed up more blood and fell down to the ground. Blood from his wound started to leak onto the ground.

"…hmm…should I?" Risho debated aloud as he raised his sword as if he was about to strike again.

Immediately, Han and Hatake Kakashi jumped into the arena. Han restrained his student from the back while Hatake Kakashi stood in front of him, a kunai in his hand and aimed directly at the Iwa genin's chest. Hayate also interfered, gripping the Kurogane's sword tightly.

"What the-" Risho started to say before he was silenced by a glare from the Konoha jōnin in front of him.

"The match is over. Kiba is in no condition to fight. There is no reason to continue." Kakashi stated sharply. "You aren't going to do any more damage."

"And why not?" Risho shouted, not even caring that the man in front of him was a jōnin. "I thought your damn Hokage said this was a substitute for war. People die in war!"

"I am not going to let you kill my student, genin. I will sooner kill you!" Kakashi threatened.

"There will be no meaningless deaths." Hayate affirmed.

"Risho, the match is over. Head back upstairs." Han ordered.

"…hmph."

The jōnin eventually released Risho. The Kurogane scoffed as he sheathed his sword and walked away towards the stairs.

'This was war…why interfere?' He asked himself. His eyes were still clouded with anger from his fight. 'No one bothered to interfere during any of the battles with clansmen...so why get all moral and intervene and now?'

Hayate made a hand gesture, calling for medical assistance. He then finally made the call for the match. "Winner: Kurogane Risho."

Medics arrived in the arena and picked up Kiba and Akamaru's bodies before they were carried off.

"Kiba…" Sakura watched her teammate and his partner get taken away with a concerned look on her face.

The two genin of Team Seven continued to stare at Kiba until he was removed from the room. They said no word until Sasuke finally broke the silence.

"Kiba deserved better than that." Sasuke concluded, a scowl on his face. "Kurogane better hope I don't have to fight him anytime soon."

"…agreed." Sakura nodded. Her eyes started to water slightly. "Kiba can be annoying at times, but he is a nice guy. There was no need to go that far."

Sakura couldn't help but glare at Risho as he walked up the stairs. All she could hope for was that the boy would get his ass kicked when the true third exam occurred.

Silence had filled the area around Team Three and the other members of Han's genin team. Risho had walked up the stairs and headed to a corner away from his team and Team Three. Han then appeared again in the group. At the sight of the Iwa jōnin, Roto broke the silence.

"…was Risho…really about to kill that guy?" He asked hesitantly.

"I couldn't tell, but I wasn't going to risk the Inuzuka's life by assuming he wouldn't." Han answered. There was a disappointed edge to his voice. "…I must say, I've never seen Risho that angry or violent before. That was…" The Iwa jōnin stopped mid-sentence, looking for the right word to say.

"Disgusting." Naruto finished Han's sentence with a slight growl. The blonde was clenching his fists tightly. "…even if he lost most of his clan, even if Kiba was also being an ass, that is no excuse for that. He looked like he was going to straight up kill him, and Kiba didn't do a damn thing! He wasn't the one who killed anyone in war." The Uzumaki turned his look over to where Risho was in the corner of the room. His eyes narrowed. "It's disgusting and pathetic!"

Hinata put her hand on his shoulder, gripping it tightly. "Naruto-kun…"

Naruto took in a deep breath. After a few seconds, his anger subsided a little bit. He turned to Hinata and sighed. "…thanks. I needed that."

Silence filled the area again as Hayate decided to announce the fourth match. The screen started to flash with different names appearing on the screen. Eventually, the screen stopped on two more names.

Rock Lee vs. Tsurugi Misumi

"YOSH!"

Everyone turned their heads to face the direction of the noise. Rock Lee was practically jumping up-and-down in place, a large smile on his face.

"I didn't have to wait too long at all!" He exclaimed happily and loudly.

"That's right Lee! Not long at all!" Gai, his sensei, shouted back with equal intensity and volume. "It is now your turn to show everyone here the flames of your youth! Go Lee! Make me and your teammates proud!"

"YESSIR GAI-SENSEI!" Lee nearly screamed as he jumped off the railing, not even bothering to take the stairs.

Gai looked down at Lee, pride beaming in his eyes. Tenten appeared embarrassed by the actions of her teammate and sensei. Neji acted as he if he didn't notice a thing, although his eyes were twitching slightly.

Tsurugi Misumi took the stairs down and reacted much more calmly to the news of his fight. He stood across the arena from Lee, who was already in position to fight.

"Misumi-san, is it? Let us have a wonderful fight." Lee stated to his opponent.

"Hmph. Sure." Misumi responded with a scoff as he got into position of his own. "Better be ready freak, because I'm going to take you down hard."

Hayate raised his hand. "Fourth match: begin!"

Misumi charged, making the first move. He attempted to land a punch on Lee, but the spandex-wearing genin blocked the blow with his arm. Misumi's arm then stretched. It wrapped itself around Lee's arm before he could react.

"What?" Lee gasped as he struggled to pull himself out.

His attempts ultimately failed. The elder Konoha genin had wrapped his entire body around him. A part of his stretched out arm had started to choke Lee's neck.

"I can dislocate any of the joints in my body and then, using my chakra, can soften my skin and then stretch it." Misumi explained his technique with a smirk. "Surrender now kid. Or else you're going to end up with a broken neck. Wouldn't want that, would you?"

Due to the way Misumi had tangled himself around him, Lee was unable to move his arms and legs to break free. The spandex-wearing genin, however, knew of another method to break free. He made eye contact with his jōnin sensei. Gai simply nodded his head, giving Lee approval to use it.

"I'm afraid I have to decline Misumi-san." Lee responded as he closed his eyes. "Gate of Opening: Open!"

Lee's body was now able to utilize one hundred percent of its strength. Using this strength, he was able to now finally move his arms and pull Misumi and his stretched limbs off him before the elder genin could react. Misumi was sent backwards, his eyes wide.

"H-How did you break free?" He questioned.

"That kid can open the eight gates?" Anko's eyes went wide. "Well damn!"

"…eight gates?" Naruto repeated the phrase.

"I've heard about that before." Hinata closed her eyes, trying to think where she had heard it. She soon realized what they were and her eyes went wide. "Wait, aren't those the eight central points in a person's chakra pathway system?"

"Bingo. It's possible to open those points and, in return, gain access to strength, speed, and power that would normally be impossible for their body to utilize." Anko explained. Her eyes were fixated on the boy. "But still, opening even one of the gates puts a great deal of physical stress and damage on the body. They are considered forbidden techniques. And this kid knows how to open at least one of them?"

"…how strong is Lee?" Naruto asked himself as he turned back to the fight.

Upon breaking free from his constraint, Rock Lee undid the bandages on his arms. He then rushed forward to the still-shocked Misumi and delivered a strong kick upward into the elder genin's jaw. Misumi was sent flying into the air. Lee then jumped up and his bandages wrapped around him and his stretched out limbs. Once Misumi was wrapped up, the two Konoha genin started to fall downwards. Lee soon began to spin himself and the wrapped up Misumi.

"Primary Lotus!"

The two genin made contact with the arena ground, filling the arena with dust. Once the dust cleared, Lee could be seen standing in the middle of the arena breathing hard. Misumi, however, was laying on his back, unconscious.

"Winner of the fourth match: Rock Lee!" Hayate called the match as he motioned for medical assistance.

Despite his exhausted physical condition, Lee couldn't hide his excitement. "YOSH!"

"EXCELLENT WORK LEE!" Gai shouted down to his student.

"GAI-SENSEI!" Lee shouted as he rushed back upstairs.

"LEE!"

"GAI-SENSEI!"

"LEE!"

"GAI-SENSEI!"

"…you Konoha shinobi are weird." Roto shuddered as he stared at the two spandex-wearing shinobi celebrating.

"Agreed." Kurotsuchi and Han said in unison.

"I like to think we aren't like that. No…not like that all." Shikamaru said with a shiver.

"Not even a little bit." Anko nodded with a shiver of her own. "Gai is a special case…"

"…I think they look kinda cool." Naruto said quietly.

"Naruto-kun…it really isn't." Hinata said back with a frown.

The screen lit up again and started to flash more names before it stopped on another two.

Aburame Shino vs. Haruno Sakura

"Heh. Calling it right now: Shino wins this easily." Shikamaru said with a chuckle.

"Hmm…you never know. Sakura-chan could give him a run for his money." Naruto responded.

"…Sakura-chan?" Roto repeated the name. "She somebody you close with?

"Well…yes…" Naruto answered hesitantly before he sighed and shook his head. "…no. Not really. At least on her end. I used to have a crush on her back when were in the academy days. She would always blow me off when I tried to ask her out though. I don't think she likes me that much at all honestly."

"…do you still have a crush on her?" Roto asked with a slight hopeful edge to his voice.

Hinata was now listening very closely for the blonde's response.

"Nah. We are on two separate teams and I haven't really seen her that much since we became genin. After a couple of months, I guess I just stared to realize that she never liked me and that a crush on her was kinda pointless." Naruto answered.

"Hmm…" Roto mumbled with a sigh. '…hopefully he's not interested in Hinata-chan now though.'

Hinata also sighed, but her sight was out of relief.

Shino and Sakura walked down to the arena. Sakura's eyes were still wet from Kiba's fight, but they were also filled with determination.

'Shino was strong in the academy, but I know that his taijutsu was not good at all. If I can get up close and fight him like that, I can win this thing.' She told herself. She then noticed her eyes wander to where Risho was in the corner of the raised platform. 'Then I can maybe get a chance at fighting him…'

"Fifth match: begin!" Hayate stated as he raised his hand, calling the match.

Sakura was the one who made the first move. She ran forwards, pulling out shuriken and tossing them at the Aburame. Shino avoided the shuriken and attempted to put more distance between the two. Sakura, however, continued to come after him.

The pink-haired kunoichi got up to the Aburame and attempted to punch him in the face. Shino blocked the attack with his arm. Sakura then responded by delivering a sweeping kick. The Aburame jumped to avoid the kick, but in the process left himself open. Sakura delivered a punch straight to his stomach, knocking him down to the ground.

Sakura hurried over to the boy and waited for him to get up. To her surprise, though, he remained motionless.

'…there's no way that was enough.' She noted suspiciously. 'What are you up to Shino?'

Sakura received her answer as the Shino in front of her soon changed shape into multiple kikaichū insects.

'Eww…a…b-bug clone?' Sakura mentally realized before her eyes wandered over the arena. 'When did he make one? And where is he now?'

Once again, Sakura received her answer as she felt herself get backhanded. The real Shino had been able to sneak up behind her.

The pink-haired kunoichi hit the ground hard on her back. As she slowly pulled herself up, she noticed Shino approaching her slowly. She also noticed that on the other side of her, the kikaichū insects approaching her at a similar pace.

'…crap…' She realized after she pulled herself up.

Once the kunoichi had gotten up, the kikaichū moved at a faster speed. They latched onto the girl and started consuming her chakra. She screamed in response as she tried to pry the insects off her.

"Sakura-san, I believe this is the end. You may wish to surrender." Shino suggested. "Why you ask? Because the kikaichū are slowly consuming your chakra. The longer this goes, the less chakra you will have, and the more likely you will fall unconscious."

Sakura shook her head, refusing his suggestion. Soon, though, she realized he was right. She could feel her low chakra reserves starting to fade. The kikaichū insects were not coming off no matter how hard she tried to get them off. She was getting exhausted.

'…damn. I still can't do anything.' She realized and tears started to drip down her face. "Proctor…I surrender."

Hayate nodded. "Winner: Aburame Shino!"

Shino nodded his head at the result and called off his insects. The kikaichū left Sakura alone and returned back to the Aburame. Sakura immediately then ran off towards the upstairs platform.

'I couldn't do anything in Wave, I couldn't do anything in the Forest without help, I couldn't even land a solid hit on Shino…I really am pathetic.' She told herself as she ran to the bathroom.

"Good work Shino!" Chōji told his teammate with a smile.

The Aburame nodded in response.

"It was quick and impressive. I have a feeling you are going to earn your promotion in the real exams quite easily." Asuma added with a chuckle.

Ino said nothing as she turned her head towards the direction of the bathroom. A frown soon developed on her face. While she was glad that her teammate, no matter how creepy he is, won his match, she was also upset to see Sakura react so negatively.

While she and the pink-haired girl were by no means friends any more, she remembered a time when they were...

"…Ino? Are you okay?" Chōji asked his teammate.

"Hmm? Oh yeah. Yeah. Congrats Shino." She answered quickly before she stared to walk off. "Hey guys, I've got to do something for a little bit. I'll be back soon."

"Shouldn't you wait until they announce your match? You wouldn't want to miss it, right?" Asuma asked his student.

"I'm not going to miss it." She dismissed before she walked off.

Ino walked back to the bathroom. Inside, she saw Sakura crying in the corner of the room. She didn't notice that she walked into the room. Ino hesitated for a second but after a deep breath, finally walked forward and put her hand on Sakura's shoulder. The pink-haired girl turned around and finally noticed her.

"…what do you want Ino?" She asked with a sniffle. She rubbed away the tears that were on her cheeks. "Yeah, Shino won. I get it. Can you rub it in my face some other time?"

Ino's frown deepened. She sighed before she started to talk. "I'm not here to 'rub it in your face'. Let's talk for a little bit."

"I've never seen Sakura-chan cry like that before…" Naruto noted with a sigh. "…hope she's okay."

"She'll be fine. People cry at times, you know. Just give her some time to let out whatever's bugging her and she'll be fine later." Anko told her student.

"…that's actually pretty wise." Shikamaru stated.

"Your beautiful and lovely jōnin-sensei is filled with plenty of ancient wisdom. Ask and you shall receive any answer." She responded with a dramatic bow.

The Nara rolled his eyes in response.

'…maybe I should go check up on her as well.' Hinata wondered, looking back at the restroom. Sakura was always nice to her and she has always had respect for her fellow kunoichi (with an exception made for whenever Naruto was involved). Hinata was about to walk over and see how she was when the screen started to flash. '…I'll just see who the match is really quick.'

The screen eventually stopped on two names. Hinata's eyes immediately widened. '…well guess I'm not checking on her yet.'

Hyūga Hinata vs. Yowamusi Roto

"Shit!" Roto cursed. 'Of all the people here, it just HAD to be Hinata…'

"That's another bad match-up! Are we just going to end up fighting friends this entire time?" Naruto asked with a scowl on his face. "I'd like to see people I like actually get a chance to become chūnin!"

"You're telling me." Shikamaru said with a scoff. He was still a little sore about the fact that he had to fight Chōji.

"It's just bad luck." Anko answered with a sigh. "It is what it is."

Roto eventually walked over to the stairs with Hinata walking by his side.

"…well, good luck Hinata-chan. May the best shinobi win!" Roto stated.

"Same to you Roto-kun." Hinata responded with a smile: a smile Roto returned.

'…Roto-kun?' Naruto repeated the name in the back of his head. He didn't like it.

'…is it bad that I'm hoping Hinata-chan kicks his ass?' The Uzumaki wondered to himself.

The two genin stood facing each other in the arena. Hayate raised his hand.

"Sixth match: begin!" He declared.

"Byakugan!" Hinata shouted, activating her kekkei genkai. She then got into the gentle fist stance.

Roto got into position. He started digging into his pockets, his mind working out a strategy. 'The Byakugan pretty much makes it useless to try being stealthy…and she'd be a nightmare to fight against taijutsu wise. My best bet is to keep as much distance as possible and try and knock her out with some poison.'

Hinata made the first move, charging the Iwa genin. Roto quickly moved backwards and tossed a poison-smoke bomb onto the ground. Hinata stopped rushing forward and moved away from the smoke. The smoke quickly disappeared, but Roto was able to use it to make a significant amount of distance between him and the Hyūga. He then made a hand sign.

"Earth Style: Earth Clone Jutsu!"

Four clones of Roto appeared from the ground of the arena and pulled themselves up. They all stared at Hinata.

"Keep her away from for a while, will ya?" Roto asked his clones. They nodded in response.

Two of the clones charged forward toward the Hyūga. Hinata proceeded to dodge the clones' attacks. She was then able to land palms onto the clones. After a few successful hits, she was able to destroy the clones, causing them to turn to mud and sink back into the ground.

"Ninja Art: Poison Darts Jutsu!"

Roto spat out multiple shots of poison that were shaped like darts. Hinata managed to dodge the poison. She responded by quickly pulling out her bow and launching arrows towards the Iwa genin. One of the two remaining clones, however, took the arrow shots head on, blocking them all before he turned into mud and sank back to the ground.

Roto proceeded to toss multiple poison-smoke bombs at Hinata. She was able to avoid the smoke clouds and ran forward at the Iwa genin. He proceeded to spit out more poison darts, but she was able to avoid the poison. Hinata finally got up close enough to deliver a palm directly to Roto's chest. The Iwa genin's eyes widened before he turned to mud and sunk into the ground. This caused Hinata's eyes to widen.

'But that was the real one! I know it was! Then what…' Hinata's mind realized what was happening. 'He used substitution with his last remaining clone…'

Roto had released another barrage of poison darts at the Hyūga while she was shocked. The girl attempted to dodge them, but was hit by a few of the darts. The girl winced in pain. Suddenly, the world in her eyes started to spin.

"What…" She mumbled as she tried to remain steady.

"The poison utilized messes with your perception. The world's probably spinning right now, isn't it?" Roto asked with a smile.

"Y-Yeah." Hinata answered.

The Hyūga took a deep breath and made a much more conscious effort to remain steady. Slowly, she was becoming used to the changes to her perception.

"…guess I didn't hit you with enough poison to truly knock you out." Roto's smile turned to a frown. "…fine. Let's end this Hinata!"

"Right!" She agreed. 'I still feel dizzy…I can move but everything is still spinning. I can't let him hit me again or else the fight will be impossible. I have to end it now, before he lands another hit on me!'

Hinata charged forward again, slower than previously. Roto, once again, threw out another poisoned-smoke ball, hoping to create distance again. Hinata, however, decided to make hand signs instead of backing off.

"Water Style: Gunshot!"

Hinata released a giant ball of water from her mouth that went through the smoke. The water ball pushed the smoke away and smacked into the Iwa genin, soaking him and knocking him backwards. Hinata was then able to reach him and deliver another palm to his chest. He immediately choked, spitting out some blood. She then made a sweeping kick, sending the Iwa genin down to the ground. Hinata then held him down against the ground.

"D-Dammit…" He cursed as he tried to struggle and pull himself up.

"Roto-kun…it's over." She told him.

"I don't quit!" Roto declared as he continued in his efforts to pull himself up. "I...I can still win this!"

Hinata frowned to herself. 'I didn't want to really hurt him…but if he isn't giving up…'

Hinata made a chop to his neck. Roto's eyes widened in pain before he eventually succumbed to the pain and fell unconscious. The Hyūga got up.

'…there. That shouldn't have hurt too much.' Hinata told herself. 'Sorry again Roto-kun. You put up a great fight.'

"Winner of the sixth match: Hyūga Hinata!" Hayate called the match as medical came to give Roto assistance.

"Hmph. Of course he loses." Risho rolled his eyes as he watched Roto get taken away. "A civilian-born idiot like him brings shame to any true Iwa shinobi..."

Hinata had just made it up the stairs when Naruto ran over to her and gave her a hug.

"You did great Hinata-chan!" He told her as he proceeded to spin her around.

Hinata's face was turning a mixture of red from the hug and blue from sickness. Her face was slowly becoming purple.

"N-Naruto-kun, I-I'm still f-feeling dizzy. P-Please put m-me down before I f-faint…" Hinata begged. She didn't really know if she was going to faint from the dizziness or from the hug.

"Oh!" Naruto immediately dropped her and rubbed his head in embarrassment. "Heh, sorry about that. Just wanted to tell you good job and stuff."

"No, it's fine! Thank you!" She said with a smile.

The two genin walked back to their group.

"That's two for two. Am I a great sensei or what?" Anko exclaimed, a large grin on her face. Her grin soon turned into a normal smile though as she faced Hinata. "You did good out there."

"Yep." Shikamaru nodded in agreement with his own smile.

"Heh, thanks." Hinata giggled in response. She was happy to hear the praise given to her from her team.

"Roto really needs to get his physical condition better. All it took was for her to get in close to him and he was done." Kurotsuchi commented, a frown on her face.

"He never listened to our suggestions on his fighting style before. Perhaps he will take this loss as a sign to improve his taijutsu and his strength." Han responded.

"He was good though. His poison is really effective. I'm still dizzy actually…" Hinata told them, defending her opponent.

"Oh I know, his poisons are great. Honestly, he will probably end up surpassing most poison-users once he gets more experience. He just needs to improve his other skills." Han clarified.

"Good job out there yourself, by the way." Kurotsuchi told her. "Oh, and the poison will fade off in about five minutes. Roto wouldn't use any of his long-lasting or lethal stuff on a friend of his."

Hinata smiled and was about to respond when the screen lit up again. All eyes focused on that as everyone awaited the next match…