Temari shook her head at the last fight as the two dog-like warriors tore into each other. She'd seen the older one looking at the dark-haired girl with glasses like some sort of cradle-robbing pervert and was more than approving of his being batted around like a chew toy.
"What is with this Tanigakure freak or that girl in the glasses?" she wondered darkly. "Their skills and jutsu don't follow the ordinary rules."
"It doesn't matter," Kankuro said. "We're not going to have to worry about a handful of freaks with unknown blood gifts. Especially one it doesn't look like one group will be here in a month for the finals. They're down to just one more."
Gaara stayed silent as he watched the fights.
Sasuke interested him, of course, given that he was supposed to be facing the Uchiha in the finals according to the plan. There was quite a bit about the other boy that interested him. By comparison, the next two fights had only been irritating.
The second had been such a clear mismatch of abilities that he felt no particular way about either fighter, though the loud cheering girl had annoyed him with her voice. The third hadn't been anything more than a lot motion and blustering.
He heard the sound of the electronic board running through names and looked up towards it to see the next match.
"Hmm, Hyuuga," Kankuro said dismissively. "One of Konoha's great clans. Let's see how they do."
He leaped over the edge and moved down toward arena floor, walking past the debris to where the sickly proctor waited for him and his opponent.
Kankuro watched as his enemy came slowly down the stairs and across the ground to stand across from him.
"Kankuro of the Sand," Hayate said. "Versus Neji Hyuuga."
"This is an unfortunate match up for you," the cold, grey-clothed boy said as Kankuro took him in.
"Tsh," the dark-clothed sand genin responded arrogantly. "I wouldn't count me out yet."
He swung out his burden and planted on the ground next to him with a smirk.
"Ready, begin," Hayate called out.
Neji calmly stepped back and pulled his hands up in a sign.
"Byakugan," he said in almost a whisper.
Kankuro flinched as the veins in the side of his opponent's head, near the eyes, started to bulge.
"What the heck is with this guy's eyes," he wondered before shaking it off.
"As I said," Neji noted. "You've been poorly matched."
"Come on then, if you're so certain of yourself," Kankuro said with a snicker and a wave with his free hand.
Neji darted forward and the sand genin prepared to block the predictable blow coming in.
Right up until Neji turned at the last moment and slammed a chakra filled knife hand into the bundle that Kankuro was holding at his side.
Instantly, the sand genin toppled over with a crackling sound as his skin flaked off to reveal the puppet underneath. As for the bundle, it toppled over with a grunt as Neji tore off the wrappings to reveal the real Kankuro hiding there, his face a rictus of pain after the jyuuken strike had ravaged his system.
"I told you," Neji said coolly. "Your match up was unfortunate, proctor."
He nodded to the chunin proctor, who grimaced irritably.
"Winner, Neji Hyuuga," Hayate said, triggering Neji to start walking back for the stairwell.
Temari watched down in shock at the result of the fight and concern for her brother, currently being looked over by the Konoha medics.
"What the hell was that?" she asked. "How did he know that Kankuro was in the bundle?"
"Pathetic," Gaara muttered bitterly.
See other episodes by Thrythlind
(Posted Tue, 21 Sep 2010 12:00)
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