Spiraling Ring

Under normal circumstances, a Rasengan took on the color of its user's chakra. For example, the ones Naruto formed were golden, close to the color of his hair. (The blue ones in the anime were an adaptation.)

But as he repeatedly formed Rasengan, Naruto discovered that if he infused one with a large amount of chakra and compressed it further, it would turn black as its power increased, with a ring of white light appearing around it.

Compared to an ordinary Rasengan, the black Rasengan was a qualitative leap in power, far exceeding Naruto's expectations.

After carefully studying it with his parents, and with a "little" reminder from his master, Naruto figured out why. As he compressed the Rasengan, his highly focused mind caused the chakra infused into it to undergo a Yin Release nature transformation.

So, to be precise, the black Rasengan should have been called "Yin Style: Rasenshuriken."

But Naruto thought "Yin Release" didn't sound cool. After asking his master and parents for suggestions—his mother's in particular—he gave the black Rasengan a new name: Spiraling Ring.

Compared to Wind Release: Rasenshuriken, Spiraling Ring had overwhelmingly greater destructive power, and its area of effect was relatively controllable.

After sensing Gaara's location, Naruto stomped hard, shaking off the sand wrapped around his feet. Before it could coil around him again, he surged forward, Spiraling Ring held out in front of him, and slammed into the closing sand.

Spiraling Ring immediately began to expand. White light welled up at its center, and in less than a second, the black Spiraling Ring became a white orb, sucking in everything it touched.

The strange thing was that the white orb didn't "explode." It didn't even release any noticeable energy outward. Instead, it grew at a fairly restrained pace, devouring anything it came into contact with.

Using the white orb as a "spearhead," Naruto pushed straight ahead and quickly burst through the sand.

This put some of the people in the stands slightly at ease.

Gaara stared at Naruto and the orb in his hands, feeling a faint sense of danger. "That jutsu... It's different from before!"

Naruto said nothing and silently picked up speed.

Wary of Naruto throwing a kunai, Gaara used both hands to shape the surrounding sand into a series of claws. They went around the orb and reached straight for Naruto.

Naruto maintained his speed as two Golden Chains extended from his back, piercing the massive claws reaching for him and locking them in place.

Gaara tried to make them move, but the sand claws couldn't budge, even though the Golden Chains had only wrapped around them. He frowned. "A Sealing Jutsu?"

Two seconds later, Naruto had pushed the orb right up to Gaara. Gaara immediately gave up attacking and pressed both hands to the ground, pouring out a huge amount of chakra. "Shield of Shukaku!"

All the sand around Gaara gathered into the shape of a fat tanuki wearing a conical hat. Its claws spread wide as it stood in front of him.

Naruto pushed the orb into the fat tanuki's rounded belly, and his speed dropped until he had nearly stopped. Despite its chubby appearance, its insides were packed with dense sand and mixed with hard minerals. Reinforced by a huge amount of chakra, it was even harder to break through than steel of the same thickness.

"It's so hard!"

Naruto spoke to Gaara in a slightly delighted tone. "Is this your strongest defensive move?"

"Yes."

Gaara didn't know what state of mind he was in as he answered. "This is the strongest shield I can make right now."

"The strongest?"

Naruto suddenly grew excited. The Golden Chains retracted behind him as he focused as much chakra and attention as possible on the Spiraling Ring ahead. "Then I'll break through it, even if I have to grit my teeth!"

Where the orb touched the sand, powerful chakra clashes continuously generated shock waves. The fat tanuki made of sand was wearing away at a visible rate, and it looked as if it would soon be punched straight through.

Gaara felt the pressure in front of him steadily rising. Just as he was about to use Sand Body Flicker to dodge, Shukaku's voice suddenly rang in his ear. "Kid, you gave this jutsu my name. If it gets broken, doesn't that mean I'm weaker than that stinking fox? Hold your ground!"

Gaara poured out chakra with all his might and answered Shukaku in his mind. "With my current abilities, even if I keep going until I've used up all my chakra, I still won't be able to hold it back."

"Tch! You're useless, kid!"

Shukaku said disdainfully, "I'll give you some Magnet Release chakra. Do what I say."

Gaara asked, "Are you planning to fight alongside me?"

"Who cares whether I am or not!"

Shukaku sounded annoyed. "Hurry up and do what I said!"

Gaara seemed to understand, more or less. "Okay."

As Shukaku exerted his power, the pattern on the surface of the Shield of Shukaku in front of Gaara grew more intricate, and its color shifted from red to deep blue. Its rounded body grew even fatter, and the conical hat on its head turned into ears. Its two short, outstretched arms grew thicker and longer, gripping the ground. A stout tail extended from its back, propping up its body like a pillar.

"Why did it suddenly get harder?"

Using his sensory abilities, Naruto realized the Spiraling Ring's advance had been blocked. The sand was even pushing it back little by little. "Ohhh! As expected of the strongest! This is the first time I've seen a jutsu that can take the Spiraling Ring head-on!"

[Idiot! How could this panda kid alone possibly hold off the Spiraling Ring?]

Kurama's voice sounded in Naruto's mind. [The fat tanuki inside him is the one powering it!]

Naruto: "Fat tanuki?"

Kurama: [Didn't I tell you before? The One-Tail, Shukaku!]

Naruto: "I think you might have?"

Kurama: [What are you, some forgetful old man!?]

Naruto: "Ha~ Of course I remember! So, are you going to help me too?"

Kurama: [Hmph, don't get the wrong idea. I can't stand that fat tanuki. Helping you is just a side benefit.]

Naruto: "That's fine with me~ Let's go, Kurama!"

Kurama slowly increased his chakra output. [Don't end up like last time, unable to withstand my power and losing consciousness, only for your master to have to wake you up afterward.]

"Of course not!"

Naruto: "Just watch how much I've grown lately!"

In the stands, the Third Hokage had already deduced Gaara's identity from his performance. "Lord Kazekage, you actually let your village's Jinchuriki take part in the Chunin Selection Exams here in Konoha?"

"That Uzumaki Naruto is a Jinchuriki from your village too."

The Kazekage replied calmly, "If he can take part, then our village's Jinchuriki can as well."

"It's not the same."

The Third Hokage said slowly, "Naruto's mental state is very stable, and his seal is strong. He also gets along well with many people in the village. I don't know the state of the seal on your Gaara, but his mental state doesn't seem very stable."

"Are you worried Gaara might go berserk, Lord Hokage?"

The Kazekage said, "There's no need to worry. I'm right here. If Gaara really does go berserk, I'll suppress him immediately."

The Third Hokage replied, "Before that happens, our village will surely suffer considerable damage. Would Lord Kazekage be willing to help pay for the repairs?"

"Of course."

The Kazekage answered calmly. "But none of that has happened yet, so let's keep watching the match."

The Third Hokage nodded silently and turned his attention back to the arena...