Chapter 93: Victory For?! Semifinals!

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Kakashi's POV (Edge of Courtyard of Iron Arena - Land of Iron)

Kakashi and a litany of Anbu guards appeared below, forming a loose ring around the arena and soon-to-be crash site. Each signaled purposely as they cooperated and began a technique. "Collaboration Jutsu: Great Dome of Earth!" They roared in unison. The Courtyard was soon enclosed with a large dome with a hole at the top. This cut the audience off from seeing anything, but only for a short time.

The so-called comet flew through the hole and crashed into the arena with a massive boom. The thick dome of earth surrounding the arena cracked and collapsed from the force of the blast, showing a wrecked field covered in flames and smoke. Kakashi walked forward as the Anbu stayed back to protect the stands from any more backfire. As he did, he observed the burning and leveled Courtyard. The forest was gone, trees uprooted and fragmented, strewn around the space chaotically and slowly burning to ash. The top layer of the sand portion had ultimately become charred and molten glass. The entire stone section was charred and covered in ash. The river in the center was noticeably lowered, a good portion of it seemingly having evaporated.

Most of the smoke originated at the center of the arena and the site of ground zero. As it cleared, Kakashi approached, waving away smoke and floating ashes as he did. The smoke fully dissipated, revealing quite the scene.

Sasuke was kneeling, covered in burns, bruises, and blood. His hand was buried in the ground upon first inspection. But with further scrutiny, Kakashi realized he was holding something. Fuu had been driven headfirst into the ground for the clash; the upper half of her was partially buried. Kakashi prepared to race in to check on the surely dead girl before she jerked. With a janky pull of her legs, she ripped herself free from the weak grasp of Sasuke and the hold of the earth. She stumbled as she stood, looking confused and shell-shocked. Fuu glanced at the stunned Sasuke, who hadn't moved and looked utterly perplexed she was even standing. Kakashi winced as he eyed her. Similar to Sasuke, she was bruised and bloodied from head to toe. But unlike the Uchiha, who was only burnt in patches, she seemed even coated in blistered and pink burns. Even for a jinchuriki, it was a wonder she was standing.

"U-used… Lucky Instance… it…" Fuu said in between pants. "Saved my life…" As the woman said this, she fell backward, completely splayed out and spent. "Guess I'm lucky. You win this one, emo." Fuu concluded with a chuckle.

"H-how the hell… are you laughing?" Sasuke asked, struggling to breathe while he questioned his foe.

"I- had fun," Fuu replied with a chuckle. "Plus, I might not have won, but I kicked ass. A win in my book. Good fight!"

Sasuke was stunned by this before he, too, laughed. "Fuu of the Waterfall, I won't be forgetting you anytime soon. Y-your right, it was… fun." He decided as he painfully stood up. Kakashi offered a hand but it was shrugged off. Sasuke marched over to the down Fuu and offered his hand. Fuu snorted at this but took it all the same. Sasuke helped her sit up and shook her hand with a nod. "Thank you." Fuu seemed confused by this but had no chance to question it as he marched forward and weaved hand signs. Kakashi watched with curiosity as he spat a fireball into the air, silencing the crowd and getting everyone's attention.

'Using a jutsu while that battered and exhausted? Is this guy even human?' Kakashi wondered. He knew better than most the cost of pushing yourself like this. The pain must've been unbearable.

"MY NAME IS SASUKE UCHIHA! I WILL BE THE VICTOR OF THESE EXAMS AND DEDICATE SUCH TO MY CLAN. I AM THE ASHES OF THE UCHIHA CLAN! WE WILL RECLAIM OUR FORMER GLORY!" Sasuke roared; his beaten and charred state made it only more compelling. Unlike the first time, the crowd roared in applause, and Sasuke smirked at it openly. Before, it had been held back somewhat due to his association with his defamed clan. But after such a show-stopper, the crowd seemed fully won over. Roaring in approval of the performance. Sasuke faced the Kage Box and acknowledged them with a mocking bow. With this done, he offered a nod to Fuu and Kakashi before he marched off the field.

'Looks like the crowd has found their favorite. It's not surprising, those two have no business being in these exams. And Sasuke somehow managed to beat a jinchuriki. The scariest part,' Kakashi's eye wandered over to Gaara, who still sat on the roof of the competitor's section. 'is that my gut is saying he's the worst one here. Gaara of the Sand is no mere Genin. Be careful, Naruto, this is the most dangerous exam I've ever seen.'

"Hmm," Kakashi thought as he gazed around the destroyed Courtyard. Freeing his mind to focus on his duties as the proctor. With a shrug, he stomped his foot, raising the earth beneath him to rise himself above the chaos that had become the Courtyard and get the crowd's attention.

"Well, that was quite the match. That will conclude the first day of the exams." His voice was amplified with chakra as he spoke. "We will take the rest of the day to repair the stadium for obvious reasons. Allow medical staff to ensure the victors are ready for tomorrow and celebrate victory or heal from defeat. In the capital of the great Land of Iron, we will hold a fare, a mere meager journey from here in mere hours. The Land of Iron will graciously hold this fare, with food, games, and drink aplenty. We encourage you to return tomorrow to continue the exams and wish you enjoy the fare and future matches. Before we go through ~!" Kakashi finished by pointing to the screen above the Kage Box. On it scrolled the names of the six competitors randomly paired. It continued to flash possibilities before it settled on the configuration of the next day.

"Seems we have quite the matches to look forward to ~!" Kakashi cheered as everyone took in the following matches:

First Match

Hinata Hyuga VS Gaara of the Sand

Second Match

Sasuke Uchiha VS Shikamaru Nara

Third Match

Naruto Uzumaki VS Samui of the Cloud

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Naruto's POV (Contestant Section of Iron Arena - Land of Iron)

Naruto glanced at Hinata, who nodded back at him determinedly. It seemed she wasn't scared of Gaara. Though Naruto couldn't help but think she should be. She offered a polite bow before she excused herself to check on Sasuke. With that, Naruto glanced around, his eyes meeting Samui. She smirked as she walked over with a odd sway to her walk.

"Seems I get to fight you myself, very cool." Samui said with a smile. "Bring you a game, Blondie. Oh, and I'll see you at the fare." She said with a wink before nodding at him and walking off to meet with her team.

"I can't decide if she likes you or wants to kick your ass," Shikamaru commented after her departure. "Glad to enjoy the lack of drama in my fight, but our favorite broody Uchiha will melt my insides. Can't decide who's worse off between the two of us." Shikamaru mused.

"She doesn't like me for one, and two no one kicks my ass." Naruto replied with ease.

"Never mind, it may really be you," Shikamaru sighed. "At least I know for a fact how screwed I am."

"Oh shut up, you lazy bastard!" Naruto snapped back. "I'm excited we're all a step closer to winning this thing. Hell, we may have already earned promotions!"

"So either I'm going to be sent on deadlier missions with more responsibilities and eventually die or be killed by the dramatic Uchiha. Really feeling excited, let me tell ya all about it. My life is such a damn drag." Shikamaru concluded.

"Oh, come on, we get to go to a fare!" Naruto said excitedly.

"Rather nap," Shikamaru replied blandly.

"The hell you are! This land is awesome and surely they'll show off some unique weapons and sights! Neither Sai nor I have been and as our team captain you must lead us through it." Tenten sounded out, now fully healed and with a big smile. "Mind if you tag along with our team tonight, Blondie? Otherwise, this lazy bastard will find a way to escape me and Sai."

"Pineapple can be rather sneaky when trying to escape social gatherings. And I am very excited about the fare. From my reading it is quite the event." Sai agreed.

Naruto roared with laughter at Shikamaru's nickname, which caused the Nara to growl, annoyed. "He nicknamed you Pineapple?! HA! Now that he mentions it, I can see the resemblance!"

"Glad you like his nickname! I was going to name you Dickless. Is that good as well?" Sai asked innocently.

"The fuck he say? I'll kill him dead!" Naruto roared as a distraught Shikamaru used his shadow possession to hold him back.

"Ya, welcome to my world, troublesome and offensive." Shikamaru said. "If you stop with the nicknames, and Tenten promises not to trick you into doing so, both of those for the entire night. I'll agree to go to the fair with the three of you." He offered. Tenten and Sai nodded with all smiles at this, and Naruto relaxed with a glare at Sai. "Lovely, let's drop off our equipment and prepare for this." With that, the group attempted to depart, but we were stopped by the sudden arrival of a sand cloud. Inside were the Sand Trio.

They all appeared in a swirl of sand. Gaara in the front, and his siblings flanked his sides from behind. Gaara held a wide smile as he stared at Naruto.

"Uzumaki, the time draws ever closer." Gaara said with a manic smile. "I look forward to seeing if you can perform as well as they just did, though I should warn you." He said as he stalked forward. Shikamaru was frozen by fear; Tenten drew a blade but noticeably kept her distance. Sai also drew him and stepped closer to Naruto. The blonde strolled forward to meet Gaara.

He felt a small amount of fear but didn't hesitate. Naruto had worked hard to be ready to face Gaara; he wouldn't shy away now. If it came to violence Naruto was ready for it.

They were inches away from each other, glaring openly. Their eyes both seemed to almost glow as they faced off. The backup of both seemed to tense at this, Sai and Tenten edging closer from opposite sides.

"I wouldn't interfere." Temari warned darkly. "Especially when I have a score to settle with you Paleskin." At odd with the tense threat she seemed to almost attempt to joke with the nickname. As if hoping to keep things from getting violent. Kankuro nodded as he stared down Tenten.

"I wouldn't suggest the two of you try anything, either." Neji's voice cut in. He was behind the two. And walked into the section as if utterly confident. "I see. I can't leave you alone for any amount of time, Naruto." Kankuro and Temari flinched, likely realizing from his match with Sasuke that they would stand no chance in a fight with the Hyuga genius.

"No need for violence, not yet anyway." Gaara stated with a smile. "Uzumaki, I will be the greatest challenge you ever face, and I will not fall to your plan. Impress me in the battle and join me, or fail to do so and die." He ordered with a chuckle. "Come, human siblings, let them play before the monster comes." He said darkly as the three disappeared in a mass of sand.

"Why the hell does that psycho want you so bad? Is both of you being jinchuriki really a reason to fight so intensely?" Shikamaru asked, utterly confused.

"It's more than that." Neji countered. "I don't fully understand it, but I recognize the look in Naruto's eyes. It's the same look he had when we clashed. For whatever reason, the other represents a challenge to Naruto's ideology it seems. Naruto is willing to go through the violence to prove a point. Though I must admit I don't understand why."

"Your somewhat right, I can't look away while someone like me is hurting, ya know? I must show him his ideals are flawed, and he needs his humanity. I'd want someone to do the same for me if I was like him…" Naruto explained while looking at his palm.

"Seems like a foolish reason to fight." Sai commented.

"This is one of these emotional things, Sai." Tenten explained. "Or male emotional things… or something."

"Or something," Shikamaru concluded with a nod.

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 Ino's POV (Corridors of Iron Arena - Land of Iron)

Ino panted as she looked around. Despite her best efforts and even seeing Choji and Yuno being taken, Ino had found no trace of where they may have gone. Worse yet, the screams of Ino and Choji seemed to stick to Ino. Were they even alive? Did she watch some of her friends die?

"Ino!" Sakura yelled as she ran over. "I heard what happened from Gai! Yuno and Choji are missing as well now?"

"Y-yeah," Ino said. "I saw it in person, Kami Sakura, I don't know what happened…"

"I was afraid to hear it would be true." Lee concluded as he walked up to the group. "How strange. From what I heard, it seemed like some kind of attack."

"There was a lot of smoke, but after it was gone, all that was left was scratches and… blood," Ino said. "I thought it might've been a body flicker, but the smoke didn't dissipate immediately, and you couldn't use it to carry others, especially against their will. You'd have to do in burst and would be just as likely to drop them anyway."

"It certainly makes no sense. Yuno was strong enough to make it in the latter exam rounds. I find it hard to believe anyone took her and the Youthful Choji." Lee added.

"The whole thing is strange. We're down a teammate, and poor Shino is missing both of his." Sakura said sadly. "Furthermore, there's no trace…"

"Indeed." Gai called out as he walked to Genin's group. "I, as well as the most kind Samurai, found no trace of them. I have been left with assurances they will look into it, and the Kage will have such addressed before tomorrow's matches."

"That's it?" Ino asked incredulously.

"We surely are gonna keep looking!" Sakura spoke openly. "Our teammates and our allies are missing!"

"Indeed, we will search all night!" Rock Lee agreed with her. But Ino's eyes widened when Gai shook his head. The other two gasped audibly at such.

"Gai Sensei-" Ino tried but was stopped as Gai suddenly lashed out, easily punching through a concrete railing. Gai flinched as if realizing what he had done, taking several deep breaths and a weighty sigh. Gai seemed to regain control of his emotions. His smile and regular expression returned. But all were stunned by the anger from the usually jovial man.

"I understand your frustration; those embedded with Youth such as yourselves can't help but want action in times of peril. But for now, we must be patient. Things are more complicated here than you know." Gai explained. "Go to the fair, have fun, and take your mind off this. That's an order." He marched off having said his piece, but his walk was slow and purposeful.

Ino looked at the others in shcok. Sakura seemed as shocked as her, while Lee looked agonized. "We gotta tell the others… You, you two have to tell the others." She decided with a flinch remembering how things were between Naruto and her. "Kakashi is supposedly a big deal. I'll try to win him over as well. Perhaps he can use his clout to help. We won't let them forget about this."

"Still avoiding Naruto?" Sakura asked with a sigh. "Fine, we need help with this anyway. Come on, Lee, the others will surely be at the festival." Sakura hugged Ino recognizing the state she was in, before running off.

"YOSH LET'S GO RECRUIT OUR ALLIES!" Lee said excitedly as he raced off to pursue his teammate.

'Focus Ino, like Anko taught us, business first, feelings after. Need to find Kakashi Sensei after a stressful day so… dive bar?' Ino nodded to herself as she set off to convince Kakashi to aid them.