By the time Enma returned to the Central Tower, the last Preliminary Match was underway.
It was a match between Atsui of Kumo and Choji, who was being beaten to a pulp and was completely helpless.
Karin pouted at him when he returned to her side, not happy that he had missed her match, but she smiled again when he apologised to her.
The Uzumaki Princess and Shizuka then informed him of what had happened so far.
After Shino won the second match, Karin and Karui from Kumo were called for the third match.
Needless to say, his sister made easy work of her very skilled opponent. She had completely left the other Kunoichi helpless.
The fourth match was between Kankuro and Kakui of Kumo. The son of the Kazekage won after a great battle, but he was forced to reveal his prized puppet, which he was not happy about.
The fifth match was between Sakura and Ino, and the blonde soundly defeated her old rival and friend. Her flawless victory had sent the cherry-blossom-haired girl into a state of shock.
When he glanced her way, he found Sakura distraught. She clearly could not believe how far she had fallen behind her best friend and everyone else...
The sixth match was between Temari and the second teammate of Kabuto, which the Sand Kunoichi won with ease, displaying mastery over the Wind Nature.
The seventh match was between Naruto and Kiba, and the Inuzuka lost despite giving his very best in the match. The match was close, though, mostly because the blond Uzumaki was struggling with his Chakra.
He, however, pulled something ridiculous, and the way he won left people with mixed feelings. He had farted on Kiba's face, causing him to lose his mind due to his sharp sense of smell, and then he imitated Sasuke's Lion Barrage, the axe kick and the combo the Uchiha had used to end his battle, and ended his own battle in the same fashion, just changing the name to Uzumaki Barrage.
However, he showed a lot of skill, including how he tricked Kiba into knocking out Akamaru using the Transformation Technique, and showed that he was a Shinobi who would do everything to win.
It was also why Hayate had declared that he had progressed to the Finals.
The eighth match was between Hinata and Neji, which the latter won, and several Jonins had to step in to stop him from harming his cousin.
There seemed to be a deep-rooted resentment in his heart against the Hyuga Main Family, and Enma could guess why he felt that way.
His father had told him about the Hyuga Incident that took place on the night of Hinata's fifth birthday.
The Uzumaki curiously glanced in Hyuga's direction, who was still very agitated about something, leaning against the wall, away from everyone else. But he was not sure whether it was Hinata who disturbed his heart or what happened to Lee earlier.
The ninth match was between Shizuka and Shikamaru. And the Nakagami managed to secure the win despite the Nara giving his all with his plans.
Unfortunately, Shizuka was his old friend and classmate, and she was also very informed about his techniques. She managed to outlast him using both her tactics and skills.
The tenth match was between two Kumo Shinobi, and it was an exhilarating match. Omoi of Team Samui was up against Futsu of Team Darui, who surprisingly possessed Boil Release. The latter won the match in the end and progressed to the finals.
The eleventh match was between Tenten and a Kunoichi from Kumo, Ran, and it shockingly ended in a double knockout.
The twelfth match happened to be between Dosu from Oto and Kin from Oto, which the former won after defeating his teammate in a one-sided battle.
As for the thirteenth match, it was between Gaara and Rock Lee.
Enma had already sensed what had happened in that match when he was coming over, and he just sighed and shook his head.
The Jinchuriki Seal on Gaara needed to be reworked as it gave Shukaku a lot of control over him. It was so clear that he was intended to be raised into a war weapon, and now, he had grown a little too strong and fond of blood.
He was not merciful, and once Lee managed to catch him by surprise and landed a hit on him, he nearly lost his mind and ended up crushing the boy's left arm and leg.
Had Guy-sensei not interfered, he would have probably killed Lee...
When Shizuka finished telling him everything he had missed, the last match came to an end.
And unsurprisingly, Atsui won it.
The Akimichi, however, fought harder than many expected him to, especially after the initial beating he received, overwhelmed by his opponent's speed. And despite his loss, they were all impressed by his performance.
From Konoha, Karin, Sasuke, Shizuka, Naruto, Ino, Shino, and Neji had progressed.
From Kumo, Atsui and Futsu progressed.
From Suna, Temari, Kankuro, and Gaara had progressed.
From Oto, only Dosu had progressed.
The Hokage then called all the winners of the Preliminary Rounds in the Arena, and addressed them, informing them that they had a month to prepare for the Finals, and then the Participants were asked to pick a ball from a pot.
Naruto found himself up against Hyuga Neji in the first match.
Karin was up against Atsui from Kumo in the second match.
Shizuka was up against Dosu in the third match.
Sasuke was up against Gaara in the fourth match.
Ino was up against Temari in the fifth match.
And Kankuro was up against Shino and Futsu in a three-way battle for the sixth match.
After the first round of the Finals, draws were going to take place again to decide the next six matches, whose winners would then enter a three-way battle in the final round that would decide the ultimate winner of the Chunin Exams.
Some of them were very excited, whilst others were very nervous. As soon as the Hokage dismissed them, they all left to go and get some rest.
Almost all of them chose to stay at the Central Tower for the night, and only Karin, Shizuka, and Ino left to return to their homes.
Enma had to stay back to attend the Jonin Meeting, and when it finished, the Hokage informed them that he would be leaving in the morning to bring Tsunade back to the Village. He also openly expressed his wish to see his student become the Fifth Hokage by the end of this year or the next.
When the Uzumaki Heir walked out of the Tower, he found a certain cherry-blossom-haired girl sitting outside against a pillar, hugging her knees and sobbing.
Hearing his footsteps, she panicked, but after seeing him, she quickly wiped off her tears and stood up.
"You were right. Are you happy now?" she asked, and hearing him sigh, she lowered her head.
"Why would I be happy, Sakura? We have known each other for over six years now. And we were friends, remember? It was before you created that fuss over Naruto and started ignoring us."
"I..." she shed some more tears and lowered her head.
The two stayed silent, and Enma then sighed and spoke to her.
"So, have you finally decided to focus on becoming stronger or not? You don't plan on quitting, do you?"
"No, I won't quit." She stubbornly shook her head and then took a deep breath and said something that caught him off-guard. "I request you to train me, Enma-sensei."
The Uzumaki tilted his head at her words.
"Ino told me that you trained her. Shizuka said the same thing... they are strong. And I want to become stronger than them." She clenched her fists. "Please train me. I will work as hard as you would ask me to and never complain."
Sakura promised and deeply bowed to him.
"Please..." she begged.
For a good minute, the Uzumaki stayed silent, observing her Chakra, and he could tell that she was speaking from the bottom of her heart.
"Why do you want to become strong?"
"I don't want to lag behind everyone." She unhesitatingly said. "I want to become a Kunoichi whom the world will remember and acknowledge as strong. A Kunoichi who will not be a burden on her teammates and will be strong enough to save them and help them..." she said all that as she kept bowing to him.
"You are not my student, Sakura."
"Please..." she begged again. "Kakashi-sensei will be busy training Sasuke and Naruto for the Finals. I cannot waste their time. They need to prepare to fight those guys..." her voice trembled.
Enma sighed at her words.
"I am leaving for a mission at 8 am tomorrow, and I will be gone for a while. If you can get permission from Kakashi-sensei, you can come with me."
Sakura straightened her back and wiped away her tears.
"Thank you. I will go ask him right away..." she took a step forward and stopped. "Umm... do you know where he is?"
"Yeah," he chuckled. "He's standing behind the pillar you were sitting against."
Sakura turned around and was stunned to find her sensei there, and then she lowered her head in shame.
"Kakashi-sensei... how long have you been standing here for?"
"A few minutes before Enma came." The Copy Ninja kept staring at the stars. "So, you want to grow strong?"
"Yes," she resolutely answered.
"I am glad." He sighed in relief and smiled her way, squinting his eye. "You have my permission to go with Enma."
As soon as she heard those words, she became excited and rushed forward to hug her sensei.
"Thank you, Kakashi-sensei!"
"You're welcome." He patted her head and turned to look at the Uzumaki. "Take care of my student."
"I will." He promised.
A short while later, Sakura found herself chasing Enma through the dark and deadly Forest of Death, and somehow, she managed to make it out alive and arrive at the Village.
She smiled when he dropped her at her home, and then obediently waited for his instructions.
"Go, freshen up and eat well. No dieting from now on. Pack your stuff. We will be gone for a while, so make sure you bring everything you need with you." He handed her a Storage Scroll. "You know how to use it, right?"
"Yes," she nodded her head as she accepted it from his hand.
"Get some sleep too. And meet me at the Gate at 8 am sharp. Understood?"
"Yes!"
"Good night."
Sakura was stunned when he just blurred from his position and disappeared.
However, soon a happy smile formed on her lips and she excitedly rushed into her house to do everything he had asked her to do.
Her parents were pleasantly surprised when they saw her eating the proper amount that a Kunoichi her age should be eating, and her mother then helped her pack everything up before she closed her eyes and fell asleep.
Given how tired she was, sleep came to her very easily, and after waking up at six o'clock, she quickly took a shower, got ready, had her breakfast, picked up her stuff and the storage scroll and rushed to the Gate.
She arrived thirty minutes early and was a little disappointed to see that Enma was not there.
Sakura leaned against the gate, lost in her thoughts, and a short while later, she raised her head as she heard the hourly clock at the Gate ring.
She pouted a little, but then froze as she heard a voice from the outside.
"Let's go."
When she rushed out, she saw Enma walking into the forest and quickly caught up with him.
"Here, open this map and tell me where we should go first."
"What's the mission?"
"Do what I told you to do. No questions. It's not your mission." He lightly said, and Sakura felt chills run up her spine.
"Yes..." she looked at the map and then furrowed her brows.
"We are searching for a person who has been hiding for years." He gently told her, and she nodded before looking at the map with a new perspective.
"I think we should explore the Land of Tea first."
"Alright. Lead the way." He said, and she surprisedly looked at him.
"How were you going to find your way if I had not come?"
"I have my summons to guide me."
"Oh..." she recalled Kakashi-sensei summoning his dogs, and understandingly nodded her head.
"Here, wear them."
Sakura curiously looked at the two ankle cuffs that he gave her, and she wore them without raising a question.
She blushed a little when he sat down and grabbed her ankles, but then suddenly felt her legs and feet growing heavy.
"Now lead the way."
A part of her wanted to scream at him that she was not Rock Lee, but she persevered and stayed true to her promise by not making a single complaint.
If this was what was needed to grow stronger than Ino and Shizuka, she would do it. No matter the pain.