Amaya Uzumaki POV
It was almost time for the third stage to start when Ichiro asked to talk to me. I could easily sense the apprehension Shisui still felt towards the Uchiha, and I couldn't say I didn't feel the same.
I considered what Ichiro, Seiji, and Hiroshi had done to me since I arrived in the village justifiable. They were scared, and the first Uchiha in particular was angry that I had attacked his mother, the nurse Yumi.
If their retaliation had stayed focused only on me, I wouldn't have seen it as a problem or held any hard feelings towards those boys. But when they tried to use my brother as a target to get to me, the situation changed.
Even though many of Ichiro's actions that day were because he was grieving Takafumi's death, nothing justified using Shisui for that. Above all, Shisui was an Uchiha just like him.
Because of all that, I couldn't say with absolute certainty that I had forgiven him.
– What did you need to talk to me about? – I asked as soon as we were at a distance where no one else could hear us.
– I'm sorry, again – He said sincerely, his voice low, but he didn't look at me – I know an apology isn't enough to change what happened, but I'm asking anyway – Ichiro paused for a moment, as if hesitating about what to say – About that time my mom and I went to your house... You said if I waited, we could handle things my way...
– Yes, in a fight – I calmly pointed out the topic in question.
– Well, I was wondering if we could have that fight today, if we both pass the first round. I want to prove that what I'm saying to you isn't just empty words – He looked at me for a moment.
– I don't see why not – I said, and the boy finally brought his eyes to me – But on one condition – He nodded for me to continue – Don't try to throw the fight to make up for what you and your friends did – His expression immediately turned surprised.
– How did you... – I quickly interrupted him.
– A person's expression can give them away, just like their gestures and tone of voice – I explained – I want to fight you and see what a legitimate member of the Uchiha clan has to show – Ichiro stared at me, and this time he didn't look away.
– Alright – He agreed after a few moments, and I noticed his voice was now decisive, no longer reluctant like before – Just don't complain later when I don't go easy on you – I gave a faint smile.
– If you went easy on me, you wouldn't stand a chance – I pointed out, and noticed a faint, confident smile form on the Uchiha's expression.
– Ichiro Uchiha and Yuki Sato! – One of the jounins called them, and we looked at him – You're up first. Head to the field – The two boys nodded and the jounin left.
– Looks like it's my time – Ichiro said, and I looked at him for a moment.
– Good luck – I wished him and didn't delay heading back to where my team was.
– I thought he wouldn't leave you alone anymore... – Shisui complained as soon as I stopped between him and Hatake.
– He just wanted to settle something we agreed on a while ago – I leaned against the guardrail that let us see the open area of the arena field – It's nothing to worry about – I shifted my gaze to the two beside me.
For a moment I saw they had an irritated look towards Ichiro, who was leaving the waiting area, but they soon returned to their normal postures.
The same jounin who had called Ichiro and Yuki was already in the center of the arena, announcing to the spectators the start of the third and final stage of the Chunnin Exams. Shortly after, he allowed the fight between the genin to begin.
Even though Ichiro was two years younger than Yuki, who was 12, the Uchiha showed much better combat development than his opponent.
Ichiro wasn't that fast moving around, but his attacks seemed heavy enough to pressure Yuki. And he still had full mastery of fire-style techniques. As expected from a member of the Uchiha clan..., I pondered.
Their fight lasted a little less than five minutes, ending with Ichiro's crushing victory over Yuki. He probably still has techniques saved for emergencies, I thought. The audience cheered fervently for the Uchiha's victory.
– Next are Akira Imai and Amaya Uzumaki! – The jounin announced in the center of the arena as the first participants returned to the waiting area.
– Make sure you beat him up, otherwise I'll do it later – Shisui commented and I looked at him.
– Shisui... – I scolded him.
– Right, right... – He said, shrugging – Do your best – I gave a faint smile and my brother looked at Kakashi – Hey, scarecrow-face, aren't you going to encourage Amaya?
– Why would I? – Hatake asked nonchalantly – I know she'll beat him easily – I couldn't help but laugh softly at that.
– I'm the one who should be confident, baka – I commented, and the platinum-haired guy looked at me, a faint smile under his mask.
– Try to give us an interesting show, strange one – Kakashi requested with his confident expression, and I smiled.
– Thirty seconds – I announced, and the two stared at me, not understanding.
But I didn't give them time to question me about it as I headed for the staircase leading to the arena's combat field. Akira had just arrived near the jounin instructor, and I did the same, stopping in front of the genin, about two meters away.
– It's a bad joke letting people like you take the Exam – The boy commented scornfully and I looked at him.
– In what sense, exactly? – I asked him calmly.
– Delicate little girls don't belong in this place – I lowered my eyes and had to stop myself from laughing at that moment.
Delicate, huh?, I thought. If there was one thing I was absolutely sure about myself, it's that I wasn't delicate like most females are supposed to be. No wonder Shisui bothers me by saying I look like a boy...
– Okay, you two, attention – The jounin instructor spoke up, and we turned our attention to him – As for the rules... There are none. You will fight until one dies, surrenders, or is declared physically unable to continue the test – He alternated his gaze between us – Naturally, the one who is losing can accept defeat to avoid a fatal blow – The man put his hands behind his back – Also, as a sensor, I have some discretion to judge the matches. I may intervene if the fight proves pointless, to save as many lives as possible – He looked at me – Understood? – I nodded and he looked at Akira, who also nodded – Any objections? – We shook our heads.
– Just one thing, Akira-san... – I said, and the boy turned his eyes to me – If you really want to have any chance to do something and prove yourself in this test, you'll have 20 seconds for that – He gave a weak laugh.
– What is this, a joke? – He asked, and I denied.
– No, just a warning – I warned him seriously – Once I start, you'll have already lost the fight.
Kakashi Hatake POV
– If you're ready, begin the fight! – The jounin announced the start of the combat, and Akira was the first to make a move.
He threw some kunai and shuriken in Amaya's direction. She just drew her wakizashi and deflected the weapons without even moving from her spot. They're just sizing each other up.
– Four, five, six... – I heard Shisui counting slowly and quietly beside me.
Yeah, Amaya had said thirty seconds..., I thought. Does she plan to defeat him in that time?
Akira seemed to be trying to figure out if Amaya was a short, medium, or long-range fighter with his first attacks. I smiled faintly. If I had liked him before, I might even feel sorry for him for not knowing she can handle any combat range.
I noticed Akira had an irritated look towards the redhead. And it seems he has a really short fuse, I determined. The boy put distance between himself and the Uzumaki and joined his hands, quickly forming some hand seals.
– Water Style: Wild Water Wave!
He expelled a large amount of water towards Amaya. The redhead kept her serene expression and was already finishing the hand seals for the jutsu she would use.
– Earth Style: Earth Wall! – She announced as she touched her hands to the ground.
The earth wall rose in front of her, completely blocking the attack launched by Akira. Even though the boy had put a lot of chakra into his technique to give it more attacking power, it still wasn't enough to break Amaya's defense – and it never would be against her.
– Twelve, thirteen, fourteen... – The Uchiha's count beside me continued.
Since she was behind the earth wall, Amaya had no direct visibility of the movements her opponent was making at that moment. The boy quickly advanced towards the defense, jumping over it to strike the redhead from above.
She looked up just as Akira jumped over the earth wall and was descending towards her to attack, as if she knew he would do that. A direct hit, a normal person wouldn't dodge at that distance, they'd only risk defending themselves. I laughed softly. But I can't say Amaya is normal in any aspect...
As I imagined, the redhead dodged Akira's kick at the last instant, before it hit her, making him strike the ground. Even though we were far from the fight, it was possible to see the boy's surprise at the Uzumaki's movement speed.
– Nineteen, twenty – When Shisui announced the 20 seconds of fighting, I noticed Amaya changed her posture.
Akira got to his feet after the attempt to hit the redhead, and as he did so, for the first time, the redhead was the one who advanced towards him. Fast, I thought. He'll only manage to defend himself, at best!
Having only managed to grip a kunai, Akira raised his arms to face level to defend himself. Amaya's high kick hit his arms squarely, making the boy immediately recoil.
His surprised expression only grew, and I smiled. She's strong, even if she looks otherwise. Having fought and trained with her, I know that well...
Akira tried to hit the Uzumaki with a quick strike, using the kunai he held, but the redhead easily dodged, ducking down and hitting his legs, making him stumble forward.
Without losing a second, Amaya grabbed the opponent's left arm and propelled her own body towards the boy, ending up behind him. She wrapped her legs around Akira's waist, throwing him to the ground.
He struggled, trying to break free from the redhead's hold, but it was obvious he couldn't. Since the Uzumaki had only held one of his arms, the boy used his free hand to grab his kunai and stab one of Amaya's legs.
A deep cut, right in her thigh. Everyone rushed to the safety railings of the stands, and gasps of concern filled the environment at that moment; after all, that was the first bloodshed of the competition.
But unlike what everyone expected, Amaya didn't let him go or even show any expression of pain or discomfort – Akira was probably the person with the most frightened look on his face at that moment.
– Lightning Style: Electric Discharge! – Amaya announced right after, raising her hand.
– What?! – I said nervously, my expression turning worried.
As a lightning style user, I knew that using that jutsu at such close range could leave someone seriously injured, even dead. Is she really going to do it?, I wondered.
When using that jutsu, the user's chakra, after being concentrated, should be discharged into everything in contact with it. But what I expected from the jutsu didn't happen when the Uzumaki used it.
Instead, I noticed only her free hand had been raised and was brought the next moment to Akira's neck, to the back of his head. At the same moment, the boy stopped struggling.
– Thirty – The Uchiha beside me announced the end of the count.
The sensor jounin approached the two on the ground and spoke quickly with Amaya, then looked at Akira.
Amaya Uzumaki POV
– The winner is Amaya Uzumaki! – The person in charge of organizing the fights announced, and I heard the audience cheer, surprised by my victory.
The jounin also gestured for the medical team, which was outside the arena for support, to come to us.
I got to my feet and felt a slight tingling in my leg from the wound Akira had made on my thigh. I looked at the boy, who was unconscious on the ground.
The med-nin quickly evaluated him and placed him on a stretcher, taking him out of the combat field area.
– Come with us, we'll assess your injury and prepare some emergency treatment – A girl from the group of med-nin said, and I looked at her.
– No need, I'm fine – I said quickly – It's not a serious injury, I can heal it with my medical ninjutsu – She looked surprised.
– Ah, you can use it? – She smiled faintly – It's a surprise someone so young can do it.
– Well, then return to the waiting area for your next fight – The sensor jounin instructed, and I nodded, leaving the arena field – Let's move on to the next match: Seiji Uchiha vs. Kakashi Hatake! – I heard him announce shortly after I started climbing the stairs to the waiting area.
And before I reached the top, I saw a figure with silver hair and another with black hair quickly descending the staircase, coming towards me.
– Amaya! – They both called out, and I could already hear the concern in their voices.
– I'm fine – I said to reassure them, but it was like talking to a wall.
– Fine? – Shisui questioned, clearly annoyed – Your leg is bleeding!
– Why didn't you go with the med-nin? – Kakashi also asked immediately.
– How are you going to fight your next match like this? – They continued.
– You have to go get a bandage for that... – I interrupted them before they could continue.
– First: I am fine – I told them seriously – Second: You – I pointed at Kakashi – Start thinking about your fight, which is right now, by the way. Third: I can use medical ninjutsu, I can heal myself. Did you forget?
The two fell silent and gave up talking. My brother was the first to start laughing, making Kakashi look at him as if Shisui were crazy. Which isn't entirely untrue..., I pondered for a moment.
– That's our Venus – He commented, and it was my turn to look at him, not understanding.
Kakashi laughed softly, and I looked at him, seeing that he understood perfectly why Shisui had said that. It was easier to understand these two when they weren't conspiring..., I complained silently.
We saw Seiji coming down the stairs to head to the arena field, and I turned to Kakashi.
– Good luck, baka – I wished him sincerely with a smile.
He smiled faintly and then looked at Shisui, who just gave a faint nod. Soon after, Hatake and Seiji headed to the arena field.
– Let's go – Shisui said and pulled my arm, placing it over his shoulder.
– Nii-san, you don't need to... – I said quietly, but it was like talking to a wall.
I sighed heavily and couldn't help but smile faintly as I was practically carried by the Uchiha. We reached the top of the staircase, where the waiting area was.
There were some benches near the safety railings, and I asked Shisui if we could stay there to watch Kakashi's fight.
I used my medical ninjutsu, and in a few moments, the wound on my leg was sufficiently healed that it wouldn't reopen. The sensor jounin was just finishing giving the fight instructions to Kakashi and Seiji at that moment.
– Before you focus on the scarecrow, tell me, what did you do to Akira? – Shisui asked, and I turned my eyes to him.
– You mean at the end, with the lightning style? – He nodded – Well... Instead of using the jutsu to release my electrified chakra throughout my body, I focused it on my right hand at that moment.
– And you hit the back of his neck. But how did that not...
– Cook him alive? Simple: I didn't focus the attack on his body, but on his interior to defeat him – My brother raised his hand.
– Sensei, translation, please – I laughed softly.
– I combined what little I learned about medical ninjutsu and the human body's structure with lightning style to stop the communication between the nerves in his body – I explained calmly and in a way that made sense – So when I hit the area on the back of Akira's neck, I used the nerves connected to his spine, which carry electrical impulses straight to his brain, to freeze his movements, though I kept his vital functions working – I looked at Shisui again.
He was speechless and said nothing for a few seconds. Good thing Kakashi didn't hear this, I thought, because I'm sure he'd be calling me strange right about now.
– Kami-sama... – Shisui finally said – How can you be such a nerd? – I laughed softly.