Konohagakure No Sato :
Forest OF Death ( Central Tower ) :
The dust in areana hadn't even settled from Shikamaru's match before the medics were scrambling onto the floor to haul him and that human-noodle Misumi off to the infirmary. The air in the Great Hall was thick with stress , sweat and tEnsion , and the remaining Genin were starting to look a little twitchy.
( Is it me next ?? ) X Genins
Everyone was wondering who was next, but nobody was really prepared for the names that flashed onto the screen.
Hyūga Neji vs. Kankurō
The hall went quiet for a second. Up in the stands, Neji didn't say a word. He just hopped over the railing and landed with a silent thud on the arena floor. He looked serious—deadly serious.
Honestly, he wasn't even thinking about the guy from the Sand. His mind was still looping back to Hinata's match. Her defense, her new techinques and moves and that savage resolve...... it was eating at him.
The clan already stopped them sparring for a year by now , and the reason that neji concluded was since the day that failure met with Uzumaki , but he never thought that she would progress this much .
( ......how could that failure ?? )
Kankurō followed Neji down, looking as smug as a cat that found a bowl of cream. He had that giant, bandaged bundle strapped to his back, looking all mysterious and tough.
"Oy, white-eyed freak," Kankurō sneered, adjusting the hood of his cat-eared suit. "Don't go using your distratction an excuse to lose this one, eh? I'd hate for you to have a 'distraction' to blame it on."
Neji didn't even give him the satisfaction of an eye roll. He just pushed all those thoughts of Hinata into a cold corner of his mind. He looked at Kankurō's face—filled with that classic Sand Village arrogance—and felt his patience evaporate.
He didn't want to talk. He just wanted to end this.
"Byakugan!"
The veins around Neji's eyes bulged, his vision piercing through the hall, the walls, and the smug jerk standing in front of him. He dropped into the classic Gentle Fist stance, his feet sliding perfectly across the stone.
Kankurō's sneer deepened. "Haa, not much of a talker, eh? Fine by me. Don't worry, freak, I'll make this quick."
He swung the bundle off his back and propped it up beside him. Neji's eyes narrowed at both Kankuro and the bundle
(Hmm.... This is ?? ) Neji thought.
"Ready?" Hayate Gekkō coughed into his hand, looking like he was five seconds away from a nap or cough
"Three.. two.. one.... BEGIN...!"
The second the word left Hayate's mouth, Neji was a blur. Kankurō, surprisingly bold, charged head-on to meet the Hyuga
" clashing head on against hyuga ?? "
" A taijutsu against A hyuga ?? "
" .....he must have his reasons "
" hmm "
While others discussed , Neji just looked everything with his byakugan and thought one sinle thing
(......Such stupidity) Neji thought.
As they closed the distance, Neji didn't even try to hit Kankurō. He crouched low, sidestepped with precision, and got extremely close to the Sand Genin. Then, his hand began to glow with a faint blue chakra, and he started waving his arms through the air like he was swatting invisible flies.
"Huh? What?" Chōji muttered, pausing mid-chip-crunch. "Is he.. shadowboxing?"
"What is Neji doing wasting his youth like that?!" Lee cried out, leaning so far over the railing he was practically horizontal. "He needs to strike!"
"Why is that Hyūga waving his hand in empty air?" Kiba barked, Akamaru let out a confused whine. "WOOF"
"No.." Shino said, his voice as monotone as ever. "He must have seen something with his Byakugan. Look closer."
( He's cutting the strings,) Naruto thought, his eyes locked on the fight. ( He should have saw them the second he activated his eyes )
The crowd was baffled for exactly 1 second. That's how long it took for Kankurō to suddenly crumble to the ground like a marionette with its strings cut. No resistance, no opening—he just fell flat.
"Wait, what?!" someone in the crowd yelled.
But Neji wasn't done. He stepped over the "downed" Kankurō and, instead of a Gentle Fist strike, he delivered a brutal kick. But he didn't kick him sideways; he kicked him straight up. As the "body" reached eye level, Neji spun into a savage roundhouse kick, sending "Kankurō" flying across the arena like a sack of garbage.
Hiss. hiss.. hiss..
"Look!" Sakura pointed, her voice shrill.
The "Kankurō" flying through the air was covered in 3 of flickering explosion tags.
BOOM!
A massive explosion rocked the far side of the hall, sending stone debris everywhere. Neji didn't even look back at the explosion on his back .
He was already sprinting toward the bandaged bundle Kankurō had left on the ground earlier.
(Did the Sand not tell him about the Byakugan?) Naruto mused. (Or was he just too arrogant to care? and was focused on sharingan )
Just as the crowd realized what was happening, the bandages on the bundle flew open. A sweating, wide-eyed Kankurō scrambled out of the wrappings, his heart hammering against his ribs.
(How did he know about the puppet?! He even cut the chakra strings... F*ck!)* Kankurō thought frantically.
But he was too slow. Neji was already on top of him. Kankurō, disoriented and panicking, reached into his pouch and hurled a dense barrage of senbon at Neji from point-blank range without any accuracy , not that he needed much from such close distance .
( I need distance ....maybe then i can use my backup puppet from the scroll )
( In range ) Neji didn't flinch while moving . In his mind, this was already over. He was about to just brute-force his way through the needles, using his eyes to dodge the vitals, but then his Byakugan caught the glint on the tips. They were a nasty, purplish-green.
(...Poison ? )
Thump-thump-thump-thump!
Thump-thump-thump-thump!
"Kyaaa!" Sakura screamed, covering her eyes.
"No way.."choji muttered.
"Damn, he got him," KIba said, his eyes widening.
A dozen senbon buried themselves into Neji's chest and torso. Blood splattered across the floor as Neji's body slumped down, unmoving. Kankurō let out a massive, shaky sigh of relief, a smug grin returning to his face.
"Haaa.. a freaky trash-heap like you should stay dow—"
*PUFF!*
Suddenly , The "Neji" on the floor turned into a plain wooden log with a dozen needles sticking out of it.
"Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms!"
The voice came from Kankurō's blind spot. Neji appeared like a ghost, his hands already moving in a rhythm that was impossible to track.
"Two Palms!"
Thwack-thwack!
"Four Palms!"
Thwack-thwack-thwack-thwack!
"Eight Palms!"
"Sixteen Palms!"
"Thirty-Two Palms!"
"Aarghghhhh!"
Kankurō's body was jerked around like a ragdoll. Each strike felt like a hot iron rod being driven into hisChakrasystem. By the time Neji stopped at thirty-two, Kankurō was bobbing on his feet, his eyes glazed over. His chakra was completely locked down, and the sheer pain had his muscles in a state of total paralysis.
Kankurō wasn't a like Gaara with Sand Guard , and he didn't have the versatility of Temari , the NInjutsu or decent Taijustu. He was a puppeteer. Without his "toys," his Taijutsu was only slightly better than Sakura's—and against a genius like Neji, that was as good as being a training dummy.
(The fight was over the second Neji destroyed the Puppet) Naruto thought, watching the Sand Genin start to wobble.
Kankurō tried to say something, his knees buckled. But Before he could hit the ground, Neji stepped forward. He didn't use a palm strike this time. He wound up and delivered a full-force penalty kick right to Kankurō's head.
*SMACK!*
Kankurō spun like a horizontal top, sliding across the floor until he slammed into a pile of debris against the tower wall. He didn't even groan.
He was already out cold.
Hayate blurred over to the body, checked the pulse, and looked up.
"Winner: Hyūga Neji of the Hidden Leaf."
"Man, I knew that bastard was strong," Kiba said, leaning back and sighing. "But that was cold."
"A one-sided crush," Shino agreed.
".....Neji-niisan.." Hinata whispered, her eyes filled with a mix of awe and worry.
Sasuke, standing further back, narrowed his eyes. The speed of those palm strikes and the speed of the Taijutsu was something even his Sharingan would have trouble with.
" That stupid " Temari spoke worriedly
" ......a waste " Gaara
" ...*sigh* , did he not read the intelligence that I gave him before attending the exams " spoke Baki , The Sand Jonin Responsible for Sand TEam.
Up on the Jonin balcony, the teachers were already dissecting the Fight .
"Well, that was efficient," Asuma said, lighting a cigarette. "The Hyūgas really aren't playing around this year."
" Hmm , first that girl and now this boy "
Kurenai noted, glancing at Hinata. "He's more aggressive than usual."
"YOSH!" Guy roared, tears of pride streaming down his face. "THAT IS THE POWER OF YOUTH! NEJI IS TRULY THE GENIUS OF HIS GENERATION...!"
"He cut the chakra strings before the puppet even moved," Kakashi said, his eye crinkling in a half-smile. "That's some impressive vision, even for a Byakugan user , noticing the strings instantly and scheming against the puppteer "
Tsunade, sitting on the Honored seat , just smirked. "not bad , well with Byakugan , this much is ok "
The medics quickly cleared Kankuro from the arena, heading straight for the infirmary. As the floor emptied, the digital board above began to flicker, the names scrolling rapidly until they finally clicked into place.
Haruno Sakura vs. Yamanaka Ino.
The atmosphere shifted instantly. Both kunoichi tensed, their eyes locking across the balcony.
"Hmph"
"Hmph"
They shared a synchronized scoff before turning away, but as Ino started her descent toward the arena, her gaze flickered over to Naruto. She noticed his hands moving in a specific pattern, his eyes fixed on her , something she whanted but didn't expect like this .
(Wait, is he trying to signal me?...... Telepathy?)
Ino stopped in her tracks. Instead of jumping down the hall , she ducked toward the stairs. Once she was out of everyone's direct line of sight, her hands blurred through a set of familiar seals.
Mind Body Transmission Technique (Shinshin Tensō no Jutsu).
She established a telepathic link, sliding into Naruto's chakra signature.
[What's up, idiot?]
[...I wanted to talk about your match with Sakura,] Naruto's voice echoed clearly in her head.
[Heh, you want me to go easy on her?] Ino projected a smirk. [Don't worry, I'll take it easy and end this fast so she doesn't look too bad.]
[...WRONG.]
[Huh? What do you mean?]
[Ino, I'll explain the details later, but for now, I need you to do me a favor. No questions asked.]
[..You sound way too serious. Alright, tell me.] Ino's pace slowed as she felt a sudden chill from his tone.
[Thanks. What I want is for you to crush Sakura.]
[.......Excuse me.?]
[Don't end the fight quickly. Let Sakura do whatever she wants. Neutralize everything she throws at you and then crush sakura at her absolute strongest........ Break her resolve,] Naruto spoke slowly
Ino's steps faltered. She took a breath and started moving again, finally stepping out into the arena. To the rest of the Genin, Ino looked like she was moving at a leisurely, almost lazy pace. The Jonin sensed something was off, but the students were just confused.
To them, it looked like Ino was completely disrespecting her opponent, acting as if Sakura wasn't even worth her attention.
Everyone watched as Ino moved at leisure pace towards the front , with her eyes and posture compleately disregarding Sakura .
"Damn, Ino looks cool," Kiba remarked, leaning on the railing.
"Certainly," Shino noted.
"Ino so cool" Choji muttered through a mouthful of chips.
"Ino-chan...?" Hinata whispered, worried.
" ...... I should have walked like that too " Temari
As Ino stood across from her pink-haired rival, she reached back out to Naruto.
[Why?]
[Ino, I told you—]
[I get it, but I still want an answer, even a short one..... You're asking me to humiliate her. Why? Aren't you her teammate? Do you hate her?] Ino asked worriedly
[I don't hate Sakura. As for the answer... in the months since graduation, Sakura hasn't grown at all.]
[...Are you serious? Didn't you guys go on those serious missions? You even had an A-rank!].......and what does this have to do with humiliating her ] Ino argued
[The problem with Sakura is... ...she forgets,] Naruto said, his mental voice cold and analytical.
[What do you mean? Sakura has the highest academic marks; she was top of the class with you ]
[ it's useless to know many things but not using it ]
[ huh ??]
[ .........Sakura's focus is still entirely on Sasuke. She learns, she remembers, and then she forgets everything within three days....... The only thing in her head is Sasuke and how to get his attention.]
[......Still? Even after graduation?]
[I'll tell you the details later. For now, just defeat her. As thoroughly as possible.]
Ino's mind raced as she stared at Sakura. Sakura's hair was now cut short, her forehead protector was tied firmly around her forehead instead of being used as a hairband, and her face was full of a newfound determination.
Thinking a little , Ino soon connected the dots
[...You want to humiliate her. Is it to make her feel embarrassed because Sasuke is watching?]
[That too.. but there's more.]
[I don't feel good about this, Naruto. I once considered Sakura a friend. Even now.... this feels wrong.] Ino admitted while remembering her past with Sakura
[Ino, I know how you feel. But the way Sakura is currently, she's going to die on a future mission.]
[Aren't you going to protect her?.....and your sensei and Sasuke ??]
[Sasuke doesn't care much ] Naruto said bluntly [...... and I can't be there every time. My hands are already full protecting you, Hinata, and Karin ]
[...BASTARD.] Ino cursed, though her heart fluttered for a split second before refocusing.
[ I have got my priorities straight you know ]
[ Will you SHUT UP ]
[ *Ahem* The point is, Sakura fails as a Genin in every way possible. Physically, she's weak. Mentally.... well, she's just finding ways to throw her life away. Technically, against minor odds, she might do okay, but against real enemies? Her only choice is to die.]
[......Is it really that serious?]
[She hasn't grown. She's still dieting to get Sasuke's attention.]
[Oh my God.]
[She hasn't asked Kakashi-sensei for a single jutsu. She hasn't asked me for help with any training. She doesn't care about fitness, missions, or anything else. Without Sasuke, she doesn't communicate, she doesn't help, she doesn't train. She is a total failure as a shinobi.]
[.....I had no idea things were this bad.]
[Sasuke got attacked, and she took care of him all night. She got beaten up and almost killed by the Sound Genin just yesterday..... But in all that time, she forgot to use the reinforcement dagger seal to call me......for a whole night ...Ino ....for whole night ..at least for 4 hours ]
[.....ugh ]
[ Her mind was so focused on Sasuke's well-being that everything else just vanished.....That's why ..... Defeat her. Humiliate her.]
[.....]
[ Let her know her place. Show her that her absolute strongest can't even make you break a sweat. Tell her she's lacking...... a lot.]
Ino's face hardened. She completely disregarded Gekko Hayate's question of whether they were ready and turned to look back at Naruto. Blue eyes met green as she communicated one last time.
[...All of this in front of Sasuke?.... In front of her team? Her sensei? Her classmates? In front of every proctor, Jonins, and....... even Tsunade-sama? Tsunade is her idol, you know.]
Naruto's heart shook, but he didn't waver. Even through the telepathic link, his voice sounded hoarse.
[....Yes.]
[Naruto... I still consider her my friend. I don't think this is the righ—] Ino spoke while massaging her head
[All the more reason to do it.]
[......]
[She considers you a friend too, or at least a rival. But despite everything, she hasn't opened her eyes to the real world—the Shinobi world........ If nothing is done here, she'll go back to her old ways in three days or less.]
[...Is there really no other option?]
[It's better to hurt her here than in the field...... Most medicines are bitter, Ino........ Do it now before she gets killed on a mission outside the village.]
The crowd watched as the Yamanaka girl kept her eyes locked with the Uzumaki boy. The Jonin, noticing the slight flare of chakra, realized they were speaking telepathically.
[ Ino .....Sakura isn't courting Sasuke...... She's courting death ]
[...Alright.] Ino answered after a while
[Thank you, Ino. I know how hard this is........ But as her friend, this is what we have to do ]
[ I get it ]
[ ...as her rival and friend , only you can do it , Ino ......Beat her and wake her up to reality.... ]
Ino exhaled and looked back at Sakura. Her expression was like stone. While everyone thought Ino was finally taking the match seriously, only Naruto knew the storm that was about to hit.
Shaking his head Naruto moved coldly and started Playing his part as the supportive teammate, Naruto leaned over the railing and started cheering while activating acting skill .
"Go Sakura! WIN! WIN! WIN!"
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Author's notes :
Next chapter tomorrow
a question
HOw Humiliating the fight is to be or do you have any suggestions to make sakura punish and humiliate , I will try to write everything except killing .
don't involve unrealistic things . Like stripping sakura naked or something.
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