Winner: Naruto Uzumaki

"All right, the winner is-"

"Wait, I haven't lost yet!"

Naruto's voice rang out as he climbed out of the crater. His clothes were torn and filthy, but he was otherwise fine. Kiba froze.

"Looks like I've played around with you long enough, Kiba. Time to get serious." Naruto took his Toad Style Taijutsu stance again.

"Quit talking, dead last, and give up already! You can't beat me!" Kiba roared, charging at him again with Akamaru.

This time, Naruto leaped straight over one Kiba and kicked the other away, landing smoothly behind the first. Using his opponent's momentum, he hurled him toward the wall.

Naruto stepped back, took out a kunai, wrapped an explosive tag around it, and waited for his opponents to regroup.

Kiba and his clone surrounded him again, attacking from both sides. Naruto stood still, waiting until they drew close before tossing the kunai at his feet.

Smoke exploded outward. When it cleared, Naruto stood with his eyes shut and his nose covered, while Kiba and his clone sneezed nonstop.

"My new pepper-smoke explosive tag is perfect against anyone with a sensitive nose. Now, it's time to finish this. I stole a move from Sasuke, but my version will be even better."

Naruto created twenty shadow clones, which rushed forward and kicked Kiba and his clone into the air, then landed another kick on them in midair.

"Naruto Uzumaki barrage!"

Five clones leaped behind the airborne Kiba and struck his chest with spinning kicks, driving him toward the ground. Naruto delivered one final kick to his head, knocking the boy from the Inuzuka Clan out cold.

"His opponent can no longer fight. The winner: Naruto Uzumaki!" the sickly examiner announced between coughs.

Naruto went over to check on Kiba and placed Akamaru on a stretcher. Hinata immediately ran down to check on her teammates.

"C-congratulations, Naruto-kun. You... you're really amazing," the blue-haired girl stammered.

"Thanks, Hinata. Kiba will be fine, so don't worry. Good luck in your match." Naruto spoke casually as he walked toward Jiraiya, who was waiting for him.

Naruto and Jiraiya

"Well done, kid. You made it to the finals without revealing too much of your strength. I'm proud of you." Jiraiya's voice brimmed with pride.

"Thanks, Pervy Sage." Naruto happily accepted his teacher's praise, completely oblivious to the fatherly smile on the Toad Sage's face turning into a look of mock irritation at the nickname.

"Next match: Hinata Hyuga versus Neji Hyuga!" the examiner called.

Neji and Hinata were both skilled in taijutsu, but as the match progressed, the gap between them became increasingly clear. Her attacks were nowhere near as fierce as her cousin's. Near the end of the match, Neji prepared to deliver a fatal blow, only to be stopped by the Konoha jonin watching.

"So this is the favoritism the Main Family gets? Even here!" Neji roared.

"The match was already over, yet you tried to kill her. This isn't favoritism. We're preventing a murder," Kurenai sternly told the usually aloof Hyuga boy.

"What are you doing? She's your family! How could you hurt her like that?" Naruto shouted from the railing.

"Shut up, you worthless fool! A failure like you could never understand. The strong move forward, and the weak are eliminated. That's fate, and it can't be changed!" Neji ignored the disgusted looks from the jonin around him, as well as his teacher's disappointment.

"Then I'll prove you wrong! I'll win this tournament and become a chunin! If I have to beat you to do it, all the better!" Naruto shouted defiantly.

"Hmph. A worthless fool like you thinks he can beat me?" With that, Neji walked to the other side of the hall.

"All right, the arena has been cleared. Next match: Gaara of Sunagakure versus Rock Lee!" the examiner announced after Neji and the jonin returned to the spectator stands.

"Youth! Now I'll show everyone just how fiercely the flames of my youth burn!" the thick-browed boy shouted.

"Go, Lee!" Guy struck his signature dashing pose as he cheered on his student.

The match showed everyone the red-haired boy's bizarre abilities. Sand blocked every one of Lee's attacks, while Gaara merely watched coldly with his arms folded, as though he found the Konoha ninja's struggles rather amusing.

"That's a powerful ability, but I know Bushy Brows hasn't gone all out yet. Come on, Lee, show them what you've got!" Naruto watched eagerly, hoping for a surprise.

"Lee, take off your weights!" Guy called.

"Sensei, are you sure? You said I couldn't remove them unless my comrades were in danger," Lee asked.

"You have my permission. Take them off now!" Guy ordered. Lee reached down to unfasten the weights on his legs.

Now this should be good. I know Lee uses weights like I do, but how strong will he be without them? As Naruto wondered, a tremendous crash stunned the entire arena. Lee moved so fast that he left afterimages.

He's so fast! Even if I used the Nine-Tails' chakra, I probably couldn't keep up, Naruto thought.

With his vastly increased speed, Lee finally broke through the sand's automatic defense and landed a blow on the unstable Sunagakure ninja.

The battle continued for a while. Despite Lee giving it everything he had, Gaara remained standing. Lee decided to use his finishing move, opening several gates and charging at Gaara to unleash the Lotus. Afterward, he rose shakily to his feet.

That was amazing, Bushy Brows! I hope I don't face you too early in the finals. I'd probably need the One-Tail Cloak to withstand that move, Naruto thought.

But in the next instant, sand suddenly surged out, coiling around Lee's wrist and ankle and crushing them. Then it covered his entire body.

"Impossible!" Everyone in the stands was stunned. Gaara lay on the ground as the outer shell on his face cracked and fell away, revealing a layer of compacted sand beneath.

He made armor out of sand, just like the Iwagakure ninja I met in the forest, but this sand armor doesn't restrict his movements. We have to stop the match, or Bushy Brows will die! Naruto was about to jump into the arena when Guy rushed in first, knocked the sand off Lee, and took him to the Medical Team.

Because of the interference in the match, Gaara was declared the winner. He did not care, however, and instead flew into a rage because he had failed to kill Lee himself.

The final match was Choji Akimichi against Dosu of the Sound Ninja. The boy from Konoha displayed tremendous strength, but the Sound Ninja easily knocked him unconscious with sound waves emitted from his arm guard. Dosu won the last preliminary match.

"All right, the finalists have been decided. Now we'll draw lots to determine the first-round matchups," the examiner called.

When the results came out, Naruto was overjoyed. His opponent was Neji. He would prove to Neji that even a dead-last student could surpass a genius!

The finals matchups were as follows:

Naruto Uzumaki versus Neji Hyuga

Sasuke Uchiha versus Gaara of the Sand Waterfall

Shino Aburame versus Kankuro

Temari versus Dosu

Shikamaru versus the winner of the first two matches

With the draw complete, the contestants left the arena and began their month of preparation for the finals.