Chapter 52: The Preliminaries Part II

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto

"Hmm…."- Bijuu

Chapter 52:

The Preliminaries Part II

Emi took a step away from Kushina when she felt the air around the redhead become more heavy. The Yamanaka had no other way to explain it than that.

Tsume also felt the same thing. And thanks to her Inuzuka senses, she was able to pick out that it was coming from Kushina. But the Inuzuka girl could also also feel a hint of malice flowing out of her red-haired friend in an unrestricted manner.

The rest of the Konoha genin also felt the same thing to different degrees, depending on their proximity to the redhead. Heck, even the genin from Suna on the other side were also exposed to this dark feeling.

Both Sakumo and Sarutobi glanced at one another, already knowing that Kushina was the one behind this.

'I know Arashi told me that he had loosened up the seal some,' Sarutobi thought with a frown, 'but this is….'

'It seems that the Kyuubi's chakra is already being affected by her emotions,' Sakumo deduced with a frown of his own. This was an interesting new development, not one that he would actually call good. He, of course, already knew of Naruto and the fact that he had mastered the power of the Kyuubi of his time. But it wasn't a power that was easy to control either. Even if the Kyuubi of this time had agreed to not be a nuisance for the young girl, his power itself was something else entirely. Even if the Kyuubi did nothing, some of his chakra would leak out if Kushina's emotions turned for the worse. That was the way that the jinchuriki worked. Mito had been an exception to this, mostly because she had mastered her control over her emotions. It was why she had been a perfect choice to be the first host of the legendary bijuu, other than the fact that she was an Uzumaki, a fuinjutsu master, and the wife of the Shodai. Kushina was the complete opposite, though, other than being an Uzumaki. And at the moment, the Kyuubi's chakra was rolling out of her without her even being aware of it. Even if it was only a small portion, it was enough to make the other genin uneasy.

Inside Kushina's mind, now freed from his boulder confines, Kurama raised up his head, already being aware that some of his chakra was being taken from him by the Uzumaki girl without said kunoichi being aware of it. Normally, he wouldn't care. But….

"Oi, brat. I know you're pissed about your Hyuuga teammate. But you're tapping into my chakra, you know. It's freaking the others out."

Kushina blinked at this, not actually aware of her surroundings for the moment. All her focus was on Takao and how much she wanted to pummel him to the ground.

But taking heed of Kurama's words, Kushina glanced next to her to see Emi staring at her with a look that could only be described as confusion. No doubt that the Yamanaka girl was trying to figure out just how such pressure could emanate from her. But Kushina wasn't about to go into that story right now.

"Something wrong?" Kushina asked, titling her head to the side, pushing Kurama's chakra back down.

Emi blinked, feeling all of the malice and pressure from before disappearing. "Uh…..no? What just happened?"

Her mind still hadn't caught up yet it seemed.

The others didn't notice a small insect flying by them and back towards Shibi himself, who was inspecting the scene with a curious gaze, even if no one else could tell from his shades.

'This is odd…..what was that chakra from before? And was Kushina-san the one responsible for it?' The Aburame had many questions now.

Takao had made his way up to the viewing level with the others by this point with Hizashi already having been carried away by medical ninja. Seeing this, the chunnin coughed, making the others turn their attention back to him while the screen up on the wall flashed into life again.

'Sorry, Fugaku, Hizashi,' Kushina thought with a frown while glancing at Takao. 'But I can't dwell on you two for the moment. I have to make sure I make it to the final round.'

Placing his head over his paws, Kurama made himself comfortable again in Kushina's mind while he said, "I don't mind sharing my power with you, you know."

Kushina was surprised at this, not actually having been expecting the bijuu's offer. Granted, Kurama had already told her that he would train her in using his power. But he had also said that she just wasn't ready yet.

As if hearing her thoughts, the bijuu added, "I already know what I said before. But I wouldn't mind starting your training with me earlier. If you're anything like Mito, then I'm positive that you will be able to handle it. But we'll talk about this later. It looks like the next two names have been picked."

Kushina turned her attention back to the real world, seeing that the next two genin had indeed been chosen. And she pouted yet again when she saw that it still wasn't her.

Aburame Shibi vs. Nara Yoshino

"Damn," Tsume cursed. Already putting the strange moment from before to the back of her mind, she said, "Not only Hiashi, but now bug boy too? That screen is rigged!"

"I appreciate your support," Shibi commented while readjusting his shades next to her. It was hard to tell from his tone whether he was being sarcastic or not.

Tsume chuckled uneasily while scratching the back of her head. "I didn't mean it like that! I already know you're going to do great!"

"Did she already forget about Yoshino?" Emi muttered with her eyes twinkling in amusement.

Said Nara was once again by her teammates, looking up at the screen with a small frown.

"Are you worried?" Minato asked next to her.

Glancing at Shibi, Yoshino nodded. "I would be lying if I said I wasn't. He's not someone to be taken lightly. I know that for sure."

Mikoto was still leaning against the wall, her arms crossed and eyes closed. But Yoshino wasn't expecting any words of encouragement from her.

Minato patted her back. "Don't worry, Yoshino. You have a good head on your shoulders. I know that you will do great."

Yoshino chuckled at that. Seeing Shibi already making his way down to the battle area, the girl decided to do the same.

"Thanks, Minato. Although I guess I would have been more worried if I had been put up against you."

Minato merely tilted his head to the side, not understanding the girl. He wasn't so menacing…..he would like to think of himself as a nice guy. Granted, he could get carried away during fights. But that was only because he liked a good challenge. It was perfectly normal!

'Hopefully,' he thought in an attempt to reassure himself.

"Man, this is getting boring," Itsuki said with an irritated growl.

"What? Rasa said with a raised eyebrow. "You don't think any of them are a challenge to you?"

That would be a highly arrogant statement to make.

The sword wielding genin snorted. "That's not what I meant. You already know I'm not a fan of watching others fight. It's boring. I'd rather be in the fight myself."

"Relax," Karura said, joining the conversation. "We'll all get our chance soon enough. But remember not to get too carried away. We're here to aim for the top."

"You don't have to tell me that twice," Itsuki said in return with a small grin. "Even if it's against you two, I'll be the one to clear this tournament in first place. You can count on that."

Neither genin said anything in return. But they didn't have to. Itsuki already knew that they felt the same, after all.

In the battle area, both Shibi and Yoshino were already facing one another with Shibi having his hands in his coat pockets.

'Hmm,' Sarutobi hummed to himself while watching the two genin. 'I can't really say how this fight will go…both of them are highly qualified.'

Either way, it would be another interesting fight. But with so much potential from all the genin present, all the matches would be interesting ones.

Down below, neither Shibi nor Yoshino said a word to one another as the chunnin raised up his arm. Shibi wasn't one for words to begin with while Yoshino was too busy trying to come up with the best way to end this fight as soon as possible. She was already aware of the Aburame clan's dangerous jutsu, and Shibi himself made her more wary about the techniques. The boy had the mind to put them to perfect use, after all.

"The fourth match…..begin!"

Yoshino instantly jumped back, putting some more distance between herself and Shibi. Said Aburame didn't move a muscle. But Yoshino was certain that he was watching all her movements from behind his shades.

Kushina had her eyes glued on Yoshino, already praying for her win. She had nothing against Shibi, but he wasn't exactly a friend of hers while Yoshino was. So she had a clear favorite in this match.

'Neither one is underestimating the other,' Tsume thought as she observed her fellow genin down below. 'Just what I'd expect from Yoshino…..and Shibi is already aware of her jutsu too. He knows not to make any reckless moves.'

The Inuzuka glanced to the side to see Shikaku actually paying attention to the match from the beginning. 'And yet, he's actually worried already…..'

Tsume chuckled.

"If you're so worried, then you should have wished her good luck," Choza commented, already noticing with just how much intensity his friend was staring down at the fight.

Shikaku didn't respond, either too focused on the fight to listen or not in the mood to answer.

Inoichi grinned.

Down below, Yoshino was getting restless with the lack of movement from her opponent.

'Is he trying to get me to make the first move already?' Yoshino wondered with a frown. 'I don't want to reveal my jutsu without a plan, but I don't think I have a choice. He's not going to move.'

Shibi was studying his opponent, already being aware that getting too close would be a bad thing for him. Which suited him just fine. He was better at long range combat either way.

Which is why Yoshino took a step back when she saw a swarm of insects erupt all around Shibi's body.

'He's not going to take it easy on me,' Yoshino thought with a small smile. 'He's probably thinking he can overpower me with frontal attacks before I can focus on my jutsu.'

'Except that I've already made the first move,' Shibi thought, his shades sparkling for a moment. 'It seems that even you weren't able to catch it, after all.'

'Either way, I'm not going to be outdone here,' Yoshino finished with determination as she brought her hands together.

'That's right, put the pressure on him as well,' Shikaku thought from the viewing area. 'Otherwise, his long range attacks are going to be too much for you.'

Shibi didn't make another move for a moment, noticing the shift of the shadow at the kunoichi's feet.

'The Nara clan's specialty…..you have no problem with a long range fight then…..'

The Aburame was soon forced to move from his position as the shadow at Yoshino's feet shot straight for him, his insects disappearing around him.

Yoshino t'ched as she noticed this, now realizing that Shibi had tricked her into attacking first. 'That was careless of me….'

'But I have to hand it to Shibi,' Shikaku thought as he observed this with a small smirk. 'Even I would have made the first move in that situation.' How could he not? Shibi had given every indication that he was preparing to attack. But instead, it had all been a bluff. A very good one at that.

Yoshino scowled when she noticed the Aburame evading her jutsu with relative ease. The boy was quick on his feet, that was for sure. But what was surprising for her was the fact that he wasn't trying to counterattack yet. If anything, the boy had plenty of chances to send his specialized insects towards her in a way to distract her from her jutsu. But he wasn't doing any of it.

'What's going on?'

Kushina was also starting to become a bit bored of all the dodging that Shibi was doing. "Why isn't he attacking Yoshino already? I know that he must have some ninjutsu up his sleeve."

'And he does,' Tsume said in her mind, her eyes narrowed as she too watched the fight closely. 'But there is something else going on here…..Shibi must have something in mind if he isn't trying to attack-'

Tsume's eyes widened as her nose finally picked up something strange. Kuromaru also noticed this, barking softly in an effort to inform his partner.

'So that's your game,' Tsume thought with a frown as she bragged the railing in front of her. 'You sneaky bastard…..'

Sarutobi smiled, also observing the same thing that Tsume had just picked up on.

'Ah. Well, isn't this interesting. I wonder when he placed it on her exactly…..'

Down below, Yoshino began to pant, feeling her chakra levels go down faster than she was used to. It was something that began to nag her. 'What's going on here? This isn't right. It hasn't even been eight minutes yet. Why do I feel so tired already!?'

Eight minutes was the amount of time that it took her to start becoming tired after having used her jutsu consecutively.

Shikaku narrowed his eyes form his position, also seeing the fatigue starting to show in Yoshino's form. 'But how? She shouldn't feel this tired already.' He also knew the extent of Yoshino's ability. And he could already see that something was wrong here. His mind began to ponder the situation, trying to find the solution to this problem.

'Maybe the fight before this tired her more than she thought? No, that can't be it. From what I've gathered, she's more of a support for her team. And neither Minato nor Mikoto has showed any sort of fatigue…..but then what?'

Thinking along the lines of the Aburame style jutsu, his eyes widened. 'Could it be….!?'

In the battle area, Shibi finally stopped his evasive moments, seeing Yoshino's shadow retreating back to her while she panted more heavily than before.

"It seems that you're at your end," Shibi stated, readjusting his shades yet again.

Yoshino gritted her teeth, feeling her chakra reserves dangerously low. "What did you do to me?"

More insects began to crawl out from Shibi who took a single step forward. "You haven't noticed her yet? I would have thought you'd be more aware of your surroundings, Yoshino-san."

Yoshino's eyes widened at that, finally understanding what Shibi was getting at. Namely, that he had placed one of his insects on her sometime ago, said insect having been sucking the chakra out of her this whole time. Given that she had also been using her jutsu, it was no surprise that her chakra had gone down incredibly fast.

"When did you…..?"

"Right after the match began," Shibi answered. "My bluff in the beginning wasn't just to get you to attack me first: it was also to sneak one of my insects by you while your focus was entirely on me. So while it may have seemed that you had attacked me first, I had already made the first move. All I had to do after that was to keep away from your jutsu."

'Well, well. Would you look at that?' Sarutobi thought with a grin, completely impressed with the Aburame's foresight. 'In that single move, his victory had been assured.'

Yoshino's eyes were wide, not completely believing what she was hearing.

"Now, surrender, or I'll make things worse," Shibi stated.

Yoshino looked down at her hands, her mind already knowing the answer to her predicament.

"Fine…..I surrender."

The chunnin nodded at hearing this. "The winner is…..Aburame Shibi!"

"I can't believe this!" Kushina said in surprise. "How did that happen!"

"Shibi is a sneaky bastard like that," Tsume stated with a low growl. "He'll avoid a direct confrontation if he can, mostly so that he doesn't have to reveal his cards until he has to. And that's what he did here. Now, the others that move on to the finals won't know what other jutsu he has up his sleeve."

"Heh. I like that guy. He's a trickster!"

'Of course,' Kushina thought, internally rolling her eyes.

"But I'm surprised," Inoichi said with a slight frown. "I didn't think that Yoshino was this careless."

"She wasn't careless," Shikaku said in response with a sigh. Scratching his neck, he added, "Shibi's move was simply that good. Even I wasn't able to realize it until it was too late. I would have been caught in it too. You guys as well."

"So, Shibi is that good," Choza muttered as the Aburame walked back up to the viewing level with Yoshino in tow.

'He's definitely chunnin material,' Sarutobi thought. 'I'm impressed.'

Itsuki yawned as the screen on the wall sprung back into life. "That fight was just boring."

"But it did the job," Rasa retorted, keeping his eyes on the Aburame. "There are definitely many dangerous shinobi here."

Karura didn't comment, keeping her eyes instead on the screen.

"You did well, Yoshino," Minato said with a small smile as the Nara stopped next to him. The girl merely nodded but didn't say anything in return. She was still too angry at herself for her poor performance in her match.

'Well, this time it has to be me!' Kushina said to herself with eagerness as the screen continued to scroll through names.

'C'mon, I'm sick of waiting. It's gotta be me!' Tsume thought.

Emi chuckled uneasily at the eagerness on the faces of her two friends. At least they were excited. That was good, right?

It wasn't long before the screen finally settled on the next two names.

Uzumaki Kushina vs. Akimichi Choza

"Yes! Finally!" Kushina exclaimed in excitement, making Sakumo behind her shake his head in amusement.

'Dammit, not again,' Tsume thought in irritation.

On the other side, Itsuki merely groaned, no longer feeling like cursing out anymore. It was getting too tiring, even for him.

Shikaku patted his friend's back who wasn't looking too eager for his. "C'mon now, you're already here. You have to show your stuff."

"But I'm too hungry," Choza whined.

Inoichi chuckled as he patted the Akimichi's stomach. "Think of it like this: fight with everything you've got, and Shikaku and I will treat you to something to eat after we get out of here."

At the mention of free food, Choza's spirit was ignited. "YES, IT'S TIME FOR ME TO FIGHT!"

Shikaku groaned while looking at Inoichi. "Did you really have to say that? You do know how much he eats."

Inoichi shrugged. "Yeah, but I also want him to go all out. If anything, so that he can actually try to make it to the finals."

Shikaku sighed but didn't say anything else. There was no way to talk Choza out of their deal, that was for sure.

"Keep your head straight, Kushina," Sakumo said as the redhead prepared to make her way down. "Always be on your guard and planning your next move. Understand?"

The girl nodded in excitement while Emi and Tsume bid her good luck. While passing by Takao, however, the boy turned to her with a small smile.

"Show me what you're made of, Kushina."

Kushina felt her anger spike again but soon got it under control. Meeting his eyes, the Uzumaki stated, "Be careful, teme. If we meet in the finals, I will pound your head in for what you did to Hizashi."

Takao frowned. "Why the hostility? I already told you that I-"

"And I'm not interested," Kushina cut in. Even though there were others present, Kushina nevertheless said, "I already like someone else. And if he was here, he would have already kicked your ass a hundred different ways."

Takao's frown became even bigger as Kushina left it at that.

"Ha! I knew it!" Emi exclaimed in excitement. "I knew she was into someone already!"

Tsume didn't know what to say while Yoshino glanced their way in slight confusion, wondering just what they were talking about.

'Well, it's finally her turn,' Sarutobi thought from his position as Kushina and Choza took their positions in the battle area down below. 'I'm interested to see what she can do as well.'

Kushina grinned when she saw the excitement in Choza's eyes, even though said excitement was more about the free food than the actual fight.

"You better be ready, Choza. I'm not going to go easy on you."

"That should be my words," Choza said in return, feeling his lips moisten at the thought of all the food he was going to get after this match was over. "I won't let you stand in the way of my food!"

Kushina sweatdropped, wondering just what the boy was talking about.

Up on the viewing level, Shikaku facepalmed while Inoichi grinned. That was Choza alright.

Shaking her head, Kushina put that aside as she readied herself. Seeing that both genin were ready, the chunnin raised his arm for the fifth time today.

'This is it,' Kushina thought, her whole body waiting in anticipation as she stared at Choza.

"The fifth match….begin!"

Deciding to take the initiative, Kushina rushed at Choza, intent on making an early hit. But as she neared the larger boy, the redhead was forced to ducked down as Choza's entire hand grew in multitude of size.

"Bubun Baika no jutsu!"

Now on the ground, Kushina was then forced to roll over to the side as Choza's larger hand came descending down on her.

A few moments later and a safe distance away, Kushina was surprised to see the spot she had been at moments earlier completely battered from Choza's hand.

'What in the world…'

Inoichi smirked. "That's Choza alright. His jutsu is still impressive as always."

Shikaku agreed, but he knew Choza's weaknesses better than anyone. And from the looks of it, Kushina wasn't going to be a good opponent for his Akimichi friend.

Itsuki still raised an eyebrow in surprise at seeing this. "Wow. I didn't think the guy had it in him."

"He's still full of openings," Karura countered with a frown. "He may have the strength. But it doesn't mean much when he can't land a hit. His speed is far too slow, judging from that last attack."

Rasa silently agreed while Itsuki shrugged. The latter was simply happy that he had seen something go "boom."

Now standing back up again, Kushina narrowed her eyes, taking in the fact that getting hit by Choza would be bad for her.

Choza screamed, Inoichi's earlier promise still ringing in his head. The Akimichi charged towards the Uzumaki, his other fist growing in size as well.

"Oi, don't panic," Kurama said from within Kushina's mind. "While he may have more raw strength than you, you're still faster than him. Use that to your advantage."

Nodding in agreement, the redhead let the Akimichi get closer. At the last second, she avoided the incoming fists with relative ease, becoming more and more confident over her advantage.

"Tch, dammit," Shikaku swore. "It looks like Kushina has become aware of Choza's opening."

So busy with trying to hit the redhead that Choza didn't see Kushina's kick coming. The Akimichi hunched over, the kick knocking the air out of his lungs.

But Kushina wasn't finished. Crouching, the redhead sent a second kick for the boy's chin, sending the Akimichi rolling back.

'Your taijutsu really has improved,' Sakumo said with pride as he watched the fight of his final student. 'Before, your form was sloppy. But thanks to your natural senses, you were able to overcome it. I'm proud of you, Kushina.'

Sarutobi was silent, watching the ongoing fight with a calculating gaze.

Up on the viewing level, Takao smirked. 'That's right. That's my Kushina…..'

Choza rubbed his chin as he stood back up, his fists no longer enlarged.

"That hurt, you know!"

Still crouching, Kushina rolled her eyes. "This is a fight. What did you think was going to happen?"

Growling, Choza brought his hands together. "That meal is going to be mine!"

"Nikudan Sensha!"

Kushina's eyes widened when she saw how Choza grew his whole body in size before turning himself into a human-sized ball, propelling himself into a powerful roll via his chakra.

"Oi, don't just stand there flabbergasted! Dodge!"

Thanks to Kurama knocking her out of her surprise, the redhead was able to jump up into the air, using her chakra to give her an extra boost.

Shikaku sighed. "Good. That should tip the scale back to his favor."

Inoichi hummed in agreement.

Landing back down, Kushina was forced to do the same thing for a second time as Choza came rolling back her way.

'Dammit, I can't do anything but dodge!'

"Yes, you don't have a jutsu powerful enough to stop that. You're already at a disadvantage in this terrain with your Suiton style."

'Then what should I do!?'

"You have no choice, brat. I know you didn't want to reveal them until the finals, but you have to use your chains. It's the only way that you're going to be able to stop that jutsu of his."

Kushina frowned. She had wanted to use them as an ace in the finals. But if she didn't do something now, then she would be forced into a stalemate and not advanced to the finals at all. It didn't seem that Choza was going to run out of gas anytime soon.

Up on the balcony, Shikaku narrowed his eyes when he saw Kushina land back on the ground. 'She's planning something….'

Focusing on her chakra, Kushina inhaled deeply as Choza came rolling back her way.

"Oi, what is she doing!?" Emi asked with wide eyes, wondering why the Uzumaki was just standing there.

Tsume didn't comment, opting instead to see what her friend was planning on doing. If she even had a plan anyway.

All the genin's eyes widened when they saw gold glowing chains erupt from Kushina's body, wrapping themselves around Choza's makeshift ball body and stopping the Akimichi in his tracks.

Even Mikoto had her eyes opened, a look of pure surprise on her face after she had felt a shift in Kushina's chakra.

"What the hell are those!?" Inoichi screamed out with wide eyes.

Shikaku had no answer for the Yamanaka, already seeing his friend's chances of winning this match going down considerably.

"This is a surprise," Yoshino muttered. Minato was too busy staring at Kushina's chains, a serious look on his face.

'To think you had this hidden all this time,' Tsume thought, feeling her urge to fight Kushina grow even more now. Next to her, Emi was silent, not knowing what to say.

Takao was too busy chuckling in his head, staring at Kushina with a deranged look. 'That's right. That's the you that I want.'

With the Suna team, Itsuki came out of his surprise with a smirk. "Well, well. I wasn't expecting this….."

Karura didn't have any words to describe her surprise. To think there was someone else with such a unique skill…..

'I had ruled you out without knowing you,' Karura thought with a frown. That had been a mistake on her part.

Rasa on the other hand merely watched Kushina with a calm look.

Down below, Kushina gritted her teeth as she felt Choza trying to break away from her chains.

'He's strong…..'

"Don't give in, brat! Remember what your old man taught you about these chains of yours! Remember your training!"

Listening to the bijuu, Kushina calmed herself, pushing more chakra to her chains. The gold chains began to expand even more, embedding themselves all around Choza.

"Yes, that's good. This is your special skills as an Uzumaki: fuinjutsu!"

Sweat began to pour down Kushina's forehead as she focused more intensely on her chains. Just like how Arashi had taught her, her gold chains soon created a barrier around Choza, a powerful one at that. According to her father, her chains were meant to suppress chakra, including that of a bijuu. It was why she had been chosen to be Kurama's next jinchuriki. The second property of her chains were their raw strength, able to cut through just about anything. They served as both a shield and a sword. This was something she had been honing ever since she had arrived to Konoha, and it was time to show it off.

The genin were soon treated to a entrancing sight of a powerful seal array appearing all around Choza, making said Akimichi return to his normal size and out of his ball form.

'Those chains are even more impressive than Arashi told me,' Sarutobi thought, looking at Kushina with a bit of awe. 'And she's already mastered how to create a powerful barrier with them. Poor Choza can't maintain his chakra in such a thing. Heck, I think even I might have some trouble escaping them if I did get caught…'

Glancing at Minato, Sarutobi had a clear understanding about just how Naruto had inherited his powerful chakra. He had two great parents.

Even Sakumo was surprised at the moment. Kushina had never shown him this before. 'She must have been saving this as an ace…..'

The chunnin hummed, already noticing the barrier that Kushina had created. The Akimichi was trapped.

"That's it. Good job, brat."

Grinning, Kushina pointed at the shocked Akimichi. "I suggest you surrender now, Choza. Now that you're trapped, you can't escape my barrier. You can't even mold your chakra properly now."

Up above, Rasa narrowed his eyes at hearing this. 'She's adept at fuinjutsu as well? This girl…who is she?'

Looking around, Choza knew that Kushina had gotten him good. Raising his arms, Choza sighed as he said, "Alright, fine. I give up."

The chunnin nodded at hearing this and pointed at Kushina. "The winner of the fifth match is Uzumaki Kushina!"

If she could have, Kushina would have jumped up in excitement. "Hell yes! Bow down to my awesomeness!"

Up on the viewing level, Tsume smirked as she shook her head. "No matter how powerful you get, you'll always be the same, Kushina."

Next to her, Emi nodded in agreement.

"Well, that's that," Shikaku muttered as Kushina dispelled her chains.

"It looks like you're interested now, eh, Mikoto?" Yoshino said while glancing at said Uchiha.

Mikoto didn't respond as she kept her eyes on the now jumping Kushina.

"That was amazing, though!" Minato exclaimed. He had always been interested in seals. And to see someone his age so good with them made his belly jump in excitement. "I really want to go up against her now."

Yoshino shook her head in amusement. "Well, if you win your match, then you might get to see her in the finals. So, good luck with that."

Minato nodded, already praying that the chance came.

Takao was grinning widely, pleased with the match. 'I was right. I really do want you, after all.'

Shibi merely readjusted his shades, observing all of this silently.

'Well, at least one of my students made it,' Sakumo thought with a chuckle as Kushina came waltzing up the stairs, humming a happy tune with Choza following behind her.

The screen flashed to life again.

'Even Kushina had her turn,' Tsume complained to herself as Kushina stopped next to her. 'It's gotta be me next!'

The other genin watched in silence as the screen scrolled through the remaining names.

Kushina was already content, having had won her fight. Now, she only wanted to see Emi and Tsume win theirs.

'Let's see, along with Emi and Tsume, Shikaku, Inoichi, Minato, and the three from Suna are the only ones still left. I wonder who will be next…..'

The screen stopped.

Inuzuka Tsume vs. Karura

"Hell yes! It's my turn now!"

Yoshino raised an eyebrow. "Just Karura? No last name?" No one had an answer to her question.

On the other side, Itsuki perked up when he saw Karura's name. "Oh, my. It looks like you're the one that's going to go before us. Lucky."

Rasa glanced at his teammate. "Don't let your guard down, Karura. Remember why we came here."

Their squad leader behind them nodded in agreement to Rasa's words.

Shifting the small gourd strapped behind her, Karura said, "Don't worry. I'm not going to lose here."

Kushina patted her friend's back. "Go get her, Tsume!"

Smirking, Tsume ran down the stairs in excitement, overjoyed that her match had finally come. It was her turn to prove herself.

'Just watch, Mikoto. I'll be coming after you next.'

Sarutobi watched the two kunoichi face off a few seconds later, inspecting the Suna kunoichi a bit more. 'So, I'll finally get to see what this team from Suna has to offer…..'

From the way they carried themselves, Sarutobi knew that they were confident in their skills. So the Hokage knew that he was about to witness another interesting match.

Down in the fighting area, Tsume brought Kuromaru out from within her hoodie, placing her small partner next to her as she knelt beside him.

"Our time is finally here, Kuromaru. You remember our training, right?"

Kuromaru barked, his way of saying "of course."

Grinning, Tsume stood back up, locking eyes with Karura. "Sorry, but this is as far as you're going to go," Tsume stated as she pointed at the Suna kunoichi. "I have someone I need to beat in the finals."

Karura sighed. "That doesn't interest me in the slightest. But at the very least, do know that I'm not aiming to lose here either. No matter who stands in my way, I'll crush right through them."

Itsuki whistled at hearing this. "Damn. Now I see how she managed to scare all those guys who were crushing on her at the academy."

This was the first time that he was seeing Karura so determined. But Itsuki knew why that was. He felt the same way, after all.

Tsume growled but didn't say anything in return. She would let their fight speak for itself.

Seeing the two kunoichi ready to go, the chunnin raised his arm again.

Just as the chunnin brought his arm down, the cork popped out from Karura's small gourd.

"The sixth match….begin!"

"Let's go for it, Kuromaru!" Tsume exclaimed as she went in with Kuromaru watching her rear, barking in agreement.

From the viewing level, Shibi hummed silently, noticing how his teammate hadn't even entered her Beast Mimicry state.

'She must be trying to test her opponent first…but that's too unprepared, even for you, Tsume.'

Karura didn't move a muscle as Tsume's fist came flying towards her face. Seeing that the Suna kunoichi wasn't going to dodge, Tsume thought that she had her with the first hit.

Until her fist was intercepted by a wall of sand, preventing her from reaching Karura's face.

'So, that's what it is,' Sarutobi thought, observing the match with the same calculating eyes as the rest.

"Sand?" Kushina blinked at seeing this.

"That's going to be annoying to get around," Emi muttered.

Tsume for her part growled when she noticed the sand, jumping back to put some distance between her and Karura. Seeing his partner retreat, Kuromaru followed behind.

"Is that all you have?" Karura asked, a hand on her hips. "Where did all that confidence of yours go?"

Tsume smirked as she brought her hands together. "That was only a test run. Now, we're going for the real deal."

Karura raised an eyebrow when she saw her opponent crouch down on all fours.

"Shikyaku no jutsu."

"That's Tsume's special taijutsu," Kushina muttered, watching her friend become even more feral. The same could be said about Kuromaru.

"Now, here we go!" Tsume stated as she charged towards Karura again, this time at an even faster speed. Kuromaru was once again right behind her.

Surprised at the faster speed, Karura was nevertheless still able to block all of Tsume's attacks with her sand, even if she did find Kuromaru's interventions here and there annoying.

"Aww, man," Itsuki said with a grin, "that girl is starting to annoy Karura."

"She's got great speed," Rasa commented, referring to Tsume. "Not to mention that her combos with her ninja dog partner aren't bad either. But her attacks aren't powerful enough to penetrate Karura's sand."

Itsuki hummed as he glanced at Rasa with another grin. "Ya know, Rasa buddy, if you and Karura ever hooked up, your kid would be killer with sand manipulation. I can already see it now….."

Rasa scoffed but didn't reply.

Down below, Tsume felt herself being pushed back more and more by Karura's sand. So far, all of her strikes had been blocked with relative ease.

'I guess I have to kick it up a notch,' Tsume thought, glancing at Kuromaru who already knew what his partner was thinking.

Karura raised another eyebrow she saw Tsume gather more chakra along with her ninja dog partner.

'What is she planning on doing now?' she wondered, her sand already in front of her.

Grinning widely, Tsume brought out a pair of smoke bombs from her pouch behind her. "Let's go, Kuromaru!"

Barking in agreement, the ninja dog followed behind Tsume just as she threw her smoke bombs straight for Karura who brought her sand in front of her.

'What is she-'

She didn't get to finish her train of thought as she was blinded by the smoke bombs which exploded around her.

"Gatsuga!"

Karura's eyes widened when her sand was penetrated by Tsume and Kuromaru, their attack hitting her straight on.

Both Rasa's and Itsuki's eyes widened in surprise at seeing their teammate flopping back from the smoke, Tsume's technique having been too powerful for her sand to stop.

Itsuki was at a loss for words. And that was saying something.

Karura held her stomach in pain, blood dripping down from her mouth and forehead. 'I underestimated her…..'

And it had cost her.

"Don't tell me that's all you got!?"

Turning her attention to the smokescreen, Karura t'ched when she saw two Tsume's now instead of one, no doubt the ninja dog having had transformed into his partner in an attempt to fool Karura. And it was working.

"Way to go, Tsume!" Kushina said from above. "You have her now!"

Tsume grinned at that.

As for Karura, the kunoichi stood back up, not minding the blood currently dripping from her lips and forehead. 'It looks like I'm going to have to expend some chakra here,' she thought, looking at Tsume more carefully now.

Taking out three more smoke bombs, Tsume prepared to rush towards Karura again.

Karura scowled as she saw the girl charging towards her again. "That strategy isn't going to work on me twice!"

The sand started to engulf Karura, forming a sand sphere around her.

Tsume narrowed her eyes at seeing this but nevertheless pressed on with her attack. As usual, she threw the smoke bombs first before she charged in with Kuromaru at her side.

"Gatsuga!"

For the onlookers, it seemed as if Tsume had her victory in sight. It had already been proven that Karura's sand wasn't strong enough to shield her from Tsume's devastating attack. And why would this time be different? And it seemed that was the case as Tsume burst through the sand sphere with relative ease, only to find that there was no Karura in sight.

'What the hell?'

Coming out from the second smokescreen, Tsume looked around in slight confusion, the transformed Kuromaru still next to her. Sniffing the air around her, Tsume's eyes widened when she noticed that Karura's scent was coming from somewhere else inside the smokescreen.

"You're mine!"

Tsume gritted her teeth in pain as she felt a wave of sand collide with her and Kuromaru roughly, sending them flying back.

'A smart strategy,' Sarutobi thought as the smoke cleared, revealing a panting Karura who had now turned the table in this match. 'Even though it's only from a genin, I too would dodge that move. It's one to look out for. And that's what she did. Using the smoke to her advantage, Karura must have sneaked out from the sphere and waited until Tsume gave her an opening. She used Tsume's own trick against her. Interesting…..'

Kushina's eyes were wide when she saw Karura man-handle Tsume like no tomorrow with her sand. It seemed as if Karura wasn't going to let Tsume have another opening at her.

"Well, that's what happens when you annoy Karura alright," Itsuki said with a chuckle, feeling no remorse for Tsume.

Kuromaru was the first one to go, his henge dropping as he fell down to the ground unconscious.

Tsume noticed this with gritted teeth, trying to avoid Karura's restless attacks with her sand. But she had already been hit quite a few times, and it was already putting a toll on her body.

"This match is over!" Karura exclaimed with a scowl, still deeply annoyed with Tsume.

But Tsume's stubbornness won over, the Inuzuka desperately hanging on as she continued to dodge Karura's sand.

"Well, the girl has guts," Itsuki muttered, watching Tsume stand on her last legs. "But she's not going to last much longer."

Rasa merely watched the one sided fight that the matched had turned into.

Kushina was watching this with wide eyes, not believing that Tsume was being bested so easily. This Karura person…..she was good. That sand of hers was incredibly fast. And she had the mind to put it to good use.

From her position, Karura sighed as she held her head. "Enough of this. You have nothing else to show. Your partner is out. And your jutsu is wasted. Just give up."

Tsume growled, blood dripping down her face. Reaching for her kunai pouch that was strapped behind her, she pulled out several shuriken.

"I'm not giving up so easily!" she roared out as she threw the shuriken straight for Karura.

The Suna kunoichi scoffed, raising her sand in front of her which effectively blocked the shuriken.

Tsume was rushing for Karura again despite her body howling at her in pain. 'Kushina….Mikoto…you won your matches. I'm not going to be the one to lose here!'

"Tsuga!"

Karura's eyes widened in surprise, not having expected that the Inuzuka could actually pull the move on her own. Or rather, that she still could. Karura was sure that she had already delivered plenty of damage to the girl.

But not plenty enough it seemed. Already knowing that her sand was useless against this technique, Karura was forced to duck out of the way, pushing chakra to her feet as issuance with her sand following behind her. But she was able to dodge Tsume well enough. Except that Karura was getting tired of seeing the same technique over and over again.

Coming out from her move, Tsume fell down to one knee, holding her stomach as she coughed up blood.

"It seems that it was foolish of you to try that move again considering just how much damage I've given you already," Karura commented with narrowed eyes.

Tsume growled again, glancing at the downed Kuromaru. "I already told you: I have reasons to not give up. I will try until I can no longer move!"

"That's easily remediable," Karura retorted as she brought her hands together.

Tsume's eyes widened when she saw more and more sand pouring out from Karura's gourd.

"How can she have that much sand in that small gourd?" Kushina questioned with a confused look.

"It takes much control," Sakumo answered behind her. "But it isn't something that can't be done either. She's no doubt expanding her sand with her own chakra. She has great control over her jutsu."

"Yeah, and this only spells more trouble for your friend."

'But Tsume's technique can render that sand of hers useless!'

"True. But your friend can no longer use her move carelessly like in the beginning. She's taken too much damage for that. If she wants to win this match, she's going to have to time it perfectly. But judging from what happened last time, it's likely that she can only pull off that move one more time before she collapses. If she misses…..well, it's all over. But that Karura girl isn't standing still either. She has a plan from the looks of it."

Kushina gritted her teeth, grabbing the railing in front of her with as much force as she could. 'C'mon, Tsume, you can come out of this! I know you can!'

Rasa raised an eyebrow at seeing Karura expanding her sand more and more. 'Are you going to pull that move off…?'

It seemed as if this Tsume girl had really irritated Karura for some reason. Well, not that it mattered to him. If this Tsume died as a result of this, then so be it.

Down below, Tsume tried to stand in an effort to evade Karura's sand once more. But she found her legs unable to move. 'This can't be….!'

"I'll show you the difference between you and I," Karura muttered, her hands still clasped together as all of her sand rushed towards the Inuzuka girl.

"Tsume! Get out of there!" Kushina screamed.

But it was too late. The sand grabbed a hold of Tsume, wrapping itself tightly around her body. The Inuzuka girl screamed out in pain as her whole body was being squished to death. The pressure was too much.

But Karura didn't seem in any mood to stopping anytime soon.

Both Sakumo and Sarutobi glanced at one another, already seeing where this was going. It was during this second that Kushina acted, jumping down towards the battle area before Sakumo could stop her.

"That's enough already!"

The chunnin glanced up to see Kushina jumping down towards them.

Frowning, Sakumo appeared in front of Kushina the moment the girl landed down. "Kushina, this type of behavior isn't allowed!"

"But she's going to kill Tsume!" Kushina said in return with narrowed eyes.

It was at this point that the chunnin stepped forward, pointing at Karura. "That's enough. Your opponent is already unconscious."

Scowling, Karura decided to relent, dropping the unconscious Tsume on the ground.

Up above, Emi watched this with wide eyes, not believing that the girl had actually been trying to kill her friend. Not even Takao had been so hostile with Hizashi.

Yoshino was in a similar state along with the other genin from Konoha.

'They're not big fans of us, are they?' Shikaku thought with narrowed eyes as he looked over to the other two genin from Suna who were watching this with calm expressions.

Down below, the chunnin pointed at Kushina. "And you. I suggest that you don't pull something like that again. Or you will be disqualified."

But Kushina wasn't paying attention as she ran towards Tsume, going around Sakumo who could only watch her go with a sigh.

Kneeling beside the unconscious girl, Kushina looked up at Karura. "You…why would you do this!?"

Karura shrugged. "It's a match. Anything can happen."

"But you were aiming to kill!"

Karura narrowed her eyes. "This is the way that the shinobi world works. Or have you forgotten? It wasn't long before our villages were trying to destroy one another. If you can't handle the facts of this world, then don't bother being a shinobi. You'll only die a pointless death, just like that friend of yours."

Sarutobi was silent as he heard this, already getting an idea of why this genin was so hostile towards his village.

But Karura soon found herself on the receiving end of unfathomable pressure and malice. Except that it wasn't anything physical. It was pure killer intent. Everyone else in the vicinity also felt the same thing.

Standing back up, Kushina locked eyes with Karura, the sand kunoichi taking a step back subconsciously when she met Kushina's now crimson eyes. It took all of Kushina's willpower not to lunge at the Suna kunoichi.

"You…..pray we don't meet in the finals. Or I will destroy you. That's a promise."

Inside her mind, Kurama stood back up from his relaxed position with a chuckle. Oh, yeah. He was going to need to teach the girl how to control his powers.

And soon.