After announcing Gaara's win, Sarutobi Hiruzen sat back down at his place by the Kazekage, glancing over at the man with suspicion in his eyes.
"What kind of monster have you raised, Kazekage-sama? That man is no Genin."
The Kazekage sat peacefully, gazing off at Gaara floating back to his position within the stands with an almost chilling indifference.
"The child is unstable. He lacks control over the very power he wields. Such a man is worthless as Chunin. Only as a Genin may he know his place under the yoke of command."
Hiruzen could not agree with this. The way the man talked about his own son was almost unbelievable. As for his own flesh and blood, he...
The Third Hokage thought back to his son Asuma, who defected from the village for a period of time. Rules would normally require him to declare him as a missing-nin, but Hiruzen had gone soft. When Asuma finally took up work guarding the fire Daimyo, he sighed in relief. He never wanted to become enemies with his sons, his disciples.
Even Orochimaru. His disciple had taken the fall for his old friend, Danzo. Hiruzen could not bear to kill him. And it seemed he had grown soft, too. Even after playing around with multiple Genin in the forest, Orochimaru held back and didn't kill anyone. He had not seriously injured or killed a single Konoha ninja.
Hiruzen hoped that his student would come back to meet him soon. Maybe he could offer Orochimaru a secret position within the Anbu like Itachi, working together with him for the sake of the village. The Third Hokage saw him as one of his own sons, currently estranged. If Orochimaru one day had a change of heart, he would welcome him back with open arms. He already had secret plans set up within the Anbu should such a day come.
"I see... Regardless, allow me to offer my congratulations for Gaara's victory. The strength of the Sand is the strength of the Leaf, and the strength of the Leaf is likewise the strength of the sand. By working together we may yet prosper for generations to come."
The Kazekage smirked. This foolish old man...
"Thank you. The Sand appreciates Konoha's considerations and will repay the Leaf in kind..."
Seeing the arena was now vacated, save for the ground that was now covered in sand, Hiruzen walked back up to the railing.
"The next match! Temari and Tenten, make your way to the arena!"
(Yes, I rematched with a randomizer, and yes, the exact matchup for these two as canon came up. Their fate was just meant to be.)
The fight went even worse for Tenten this time. Tenten tried throwing weapons at Temari from multiple angles, but the winds laced with sand bit into her deeply and drew blood. Temari was clearly used to standing among the shifting sands as well, utilizing her winds to change the landscape in her favor while Tenten had to use chakra adhesion just to maintain a stable footing. Physically Temari was stronger than Tenten too, leaving the woman with no other option than a loss.
Their match was over quickly. Hiruzen promptly announced the next match.
"Kurama Yakumo! Abumi Zaku! Make your way to the center of the arena!"
Zaku was a Ninja from Otogakure, the village hidden in the Sound. In the center of each of his palms were two small holes. Saul remembered him from the anime, where a cursed seal Sasuke had blitzed him in the forest of death and cruelly broken both of his arms. After the month-long break, the man's arms were back in good condition.
Depending on how ruthless Yakumo wanted to be, this match would be either really easy for her or impossible to win. Saul felt a little nervous.
"Good luck, Yakumo. Don't hold back."
She smiled back at him. "Don't worry, Saul-kun. I won't lose."
"Now for a little background on you two contestants." Hiruzen announced, addressing the excited crowd. "Kurama Yakumo is not a Ninja who went through the standard academy graduation procedures. Instead, she was and is a disciple of the Genjutsu specialist, Jonin Yuuhi Kurenai. Heiress to the Kurama clan of the village, she is certainly quite a promising Genin!
As for Abumi Zaku, he is part of the newly registered village of sound. Not much is known about their Ninja, but I'm sure we'll all be in for a surprise!"
The spiky haired Genin glanced over at Yakumo.
"Genjutsu? Like Kin? Your tricks won't work on me, woman." He raised one arm. "I could crush a frail bitch like you in an instant."
Yakumo smiled, clearly not taking his insults to heart.
"Are you now? Are you going to show me what a big, strong man you are?"
Zaku puffed out his chest despite himself, clearly too stupid to discern the mockery in Yakumo's words.
"That's right! At least you know your place."
Yakumo's eyes curved with amusement. "Zaku-sama, will you please go easy on me? I at least need to fight to make a good impression on my village."
Zaku patted his chest with his fist. "Alright then, I'm a gracious guy. I'll even let you cast your Genjutsu!"
Hiruzen's voice rang out. "And the match begins... Now!"
Yakumo unthreaded the yellow tulip from her hair. A pleasant scent caressed his face, tickled his nose. It smelled light, citrusy.
"Zaku-sama, do you like flowers?"
She smiled at him, looking completely non threatening. When was she going to cast the Genjutsu?
"I don't care for such things. Women like you should be growing flowers back at home, not playing at being ninja."
Yakumo made a couple of hand seals in his view. Zaku smirked, already pulling up his arms. Once she cast the Genjutsu, he'd be ready to end her in an instant.
"Illusion technique."
Suddenly, Zaku's world shifted. No longer standing among sand, Zaku was in a flower field.
"Is that so?" Yakumo's voice echoed around him, "Maybe you should give it a try?"
"HA!"
A gigantic column of wind shot out of his palms and completely destroyed the area that Yakumo was previously standing upon.
"Was that supposed to hurt?" Her voice echoed out again, this time closer.
"DON'T YOU DARE!"
This was nothing like Kin's Genjutsu! What the hell had he allowed her to do? God, he was so stupid!
"STAY AWAY!!!"
Zaku began blasting the area around him indiscriminately, uncaring about where he was aiming. If he couldn't figure out where she was, then he'd just raze the entire arena to the ground! He bet that girl couldn't even withstand one hit!
The voice resounded right next to his ear now. "Are you done?"
Zaku felt a light pressure on his forehead, and suddenly, he was sent falling. Passing through the ground like air, until the world faded into complete darkness. Zaku blacked out.
This is how the fight was to the sound Ninja's perspective, but to everyone else the fight looked much different. Shortly after the fight began, Zaku froze in place for some reason. Then Yakumo walked up to him, slowly but surely, until she tapped his forehead. The man fell over onto his back like a sack of potatoes, unconscious.
Genjutsu was scary. Sometimes, you wouldn't even know how you died.
"And now we have a winner! Kurama Yakumo!"
Author's Note: Just one more fight until the anticipated match between Neji and Hinata! It's coming soon!
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