Show No Fear ; Give No Mercy

Contest Special : Part Two

When the others arrived at the clearing they were surprised to see Winter already standing in the center. Her eye was closed, her long hair shifting with each playful whisper of the wind. She wore black ninja pants that went to her ankles, a red tank top, and her normal shinobi shoes. Her twin katanas were placed on her back in an X formation, her ninja pouch on her right leg. She looked perpetually calm. It was then that Emiko noticed Ja'far leaning against a tree at the edge of the clearing.

His eyes were closed as well, and for once, Ja'far had casual shinobi clothes on instead of the clan clothes. He wore a tight fitting, black, sleeveless shirt, and gray shinobi pants that were tight on his ankles. He wore black shinobi sandals and the thin, red wire that was usually hidden under his sleeves was visible, winding up and around his arms, ending at the top of his biceps. The blades that appeared at the ends of the wire— they were shaped like kunai without the handle, a silver-gray color, and had peculiar designs on the sides —were hidden quite well, like usual.

Clearing her throat, Emiko speaks up as everyone, excluding the two fighters, got comfortable. By the tension slowly brewing the air, they knew this was going to be a long fight. "Would Ja'far stop acting cool and get his ass into the clearing?" She states quite loudly, knowing that the white haired man had heard their arrival, but didn't bother to move a muscle. Emiko expected a quick retort, one full of dry sarcasm or pure sass, but instead Ja'far stood up straight, opened his amber eyes, the flecks of gold shimmering in the sparse sunlight. Without a word towards the purple haired woman, Ja'far walks onto the grass covered clearing, his breathing slowly down as he pushes any unnecessary information out of his mind. He needed to focus on this fight.

The two teenagers stare at each other, each unmoving, the bet from last night lingering in the back of their mind. Then, with conviction, each thought a single sentence in their head with enough ferocity that it caused a chill to rise in the air.

I will not lose!

They didn't wait for a signal, they both knew that the other was ready. So without any tell tale signs that they were going to start, the two sprung at each other, their eyes' sharp and focused. A bright flash makes Sasuke and Naruto go temporarily blind, the others having to shield their eyes since the flash wasn't right in front of them.

When the spots clear from the spectator's' vision they find a sight worth remembering. Winter pressed her katana's harshly against the two kunai-like blades, one in each of Ja'far's hand. A violent wind issued from the contact, whipping any loose hairs around. Lighting crackles and wind howls as the two test their strength, bearing down on the other as strongly as possible, a horrible grating sound ringing out— the sound of metal scraping against metal.

The two jump back as sparks begin to fly. The sky overhead has already started to darken considerably, the thick taste of electricity making everyone's mouth go numb.

Winter spun her katanas in a circle, lighting racing across the blades, her single eye narrowed in on Ja'far. Nothing about her seemed even remotely friendly right then. Her single eye was a brewing storm, every sense was on high alert, and she gripped her katanas firmly. She looked as if she was preparing to fight someone to the death. In a similar aspect, Ja'far carried a cold aura about him. He cracked his neck, a strong burst of wind circulating around him, his fingers intertwined with the red wire in an intricate fashion. He looked almost as feral as he did in the Coliseum.

In short, the two ninja looked as if they were out to kill, not participate in what was supposed to be a friendly sparring match.

"I don't think I've ever seen Winter look so..." Rock Lee trails off, watching as his friend sprints across the arena, lighting wrapping around her like a protective shield.

"Scary?" Naruto supplies a word to Rock Lee, his eyes wide as he watches the two nin fight each other. The two's movements were so polished, and so deeply engraved into their very being, that it looked like a graceful dance of wind and lighting, steel and wire, black and white.

Sairen scoffed at his word choice. "Don't be ridiculous, she doesn't look even as remotely as scary as she did when we," referring to most of the Originals, "met her. She's just getting a tinsy bit serious, I highly doubt she'll actually go all out against Ja—" Her friend's name gets stuck in her throat as she sees lighting strike Ja'far.

Blue flares up and the lighting hits the shield with enough force to make the hairs on the back of Ja'far's neck stand up, his rarely used kekkai genkai protecting him instinctually. His eyes glint dangerously and his hands conform together as he rapidly produces handsigns, chakra rippling around him in visible waves.

"Okay, I stand corrected. Those two are going to kill each other." Sairen comments nonchalantly, although brief confusion flickers in her eyes.

Emiko stared at the two battling shinobi, Winter acting oddly aggressive, and Ja'far her mirror. Every strike she made against him was returned with equal ferocity, the two feral and bloodthirsty. Winter threw one of her katanas, a cut appearing on Ja'far's cheek as the blade sunk into the grass behind him. She felt her own cheek sting as his kunai sailed past, blood beading up before crawling down the side of her face.

"They made a bet." Eien finally speaks up, pulling at some grass nervously. "I don't know what the bet was, but it has some very high stakes apparently."

Emiko froze. She stared at the two battling teens. And then she released such an exorbitant amount of chakra that it made everyone else jump. Her face grew dark, and she snarled lowly under her breath. "Those. Two. Idiots! That is not something you decided because of a bet. I'm going to beat them senseless once they're finished!"

"You know what the bet is?" Aexstra asked curiously, voicing the thoughts of everyone else.

"Damn right I do." She lets out an irritated sound, pinching the bridge of her nose. "The Storm Village needs a proper leader, someone to be sworn in as Augur, and the top candidates are Winter... and Ja'far."

Naruto looked at the purple haired woman. "So the bet was whoever wins becomes Augur?"

She shook her head. "Neither of them want the title. Unlike you, Winter doesn't wish to become a leader. She's perfectly fine with being a subordinate, a weapon. Ja'far on the other hand simply hates being put in the spotlight. His kekkai genkai is already abnormal, his past is one that makes people shy away from him, and the people of the village will learn more about him then he would care if he became leader."

"I don't understand... why make the bet then?" Sakura asks, her eyebrows furrowed slightly as she thinks.

Emiko sighed. "Whoever loses, has to take the title."

Winter throws her other katana, the black blade ripping through the red wires and tearing them as if they were made of tissue paper. Snarling she dashes forward, punching Ja'far in the stomach. In return the male lunges to the ground, kicking one foot out, and sweeping Winter's feet out from underneath her. She falls to the ground, the impact making the breath escape out of her in one fell swoop. Arching her back, Winter rocked back slightly before snapping her upper body forward, pushing up with her feet. Landing soundly on her feet she wastes no time in stopping the punch coming towards her jaw. She twists his arm before flipping her body to the side, her left foot kicking Ja'far in the face, followed swiftly by her right foot.

Ja'far spits out an arch of blood, the crimson color visible as it splatters against the bright green grass. As Winter lands he kicks her straight in the stomach, the blow harsh and sending her stumbling a few feet back. Wiping the trail of blood on the side of her mouth, Winter narrowed her eye at Ja'far before lunging.

Throughout this entire fight not one word was exchanged, everything was displayed through their actions.

Rain poured down in torrents, the two fighting faint silhouettes illuminated now and then by lighting. The watchers were entranced, although there were a few that were feeling something other than awe.

Sasuke Uchiha felt a sense of dread coiling in his stomach. Winter had grown so much, and while before he felt as if he could take her on with no sweat, but now... now he felt like he might lose if he fought her. He hated that feeling. A scowl etched itself on his face, the black haired male becoming even moody than normal.

And then there was Naruto Uzumaki. He watched as the field was splattered with small droplets of blood, as bruises were formed, as the two fought because neither wanted a leadership... something that he had spent his whole life chasing after. Was being a leader so bad? Was being someone that kids and adults alike looked up to really that horrible enough that the two were willing to fight with all their strength to not gain that title? He felt sick to his stomach, and he honestly couldn't wrap his mind around the fact that this is what they were fighting for.

The fight seemed to stretch on, time also seemed to stand still. But eventually, it came to an end.

Lighting howls in the air, Winter's katanas now on opposite sides of the clearing. She bites her thumb hard enough to draw blood, pulls out a scroll with her right hand, unravels it and presses down on the seal with her left hand. The blood activates the seal and a small cloud of smoke appears, hiding whatever she summoned. She bursts from the smoke, Kiba— the Lightning Swords of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist —glistening in all its vicious glory as she pours the remainder of her chakra into the two blades.

Without batting an eye, Ja'far reaches up and wipes off some of the still wet blood off of his face, sliding his bloodied index finger across his right wrist. A blue mist surrounds his hands before disappearing, a long, slim rapier in his hands. The blade rippled with blue hints immersed in the dark steel. He sprints forward, drawing his sword back slightly as he prepares himself, a shining blue energy wrapping itself around the rapier. Winter does the same, her two blades sparking with lighting. Winter jumped, high, and came barrelling down towards Ja'far, her blades pointed at him.

The world slowed. As both weapons touched, all went silent. It seemed as if the world had sucked in a huge gasp, and, when the weapons touched, blew it all back out again in a roaring explosion. There was a blinding light and a deafening boom that shook the earth. Both ninjas were blown off their feet and thrown harshly away from each other. And when the dust cleared, only one got to their feet.

Winter stared down Ja'far, the male's eyes half closed as he struggled to get up to his feet. But his body was sore, his chakra was exhausted, and he felt dizzy. The black haired female wasn't much better. Her head was pounding, her mouth was dry, and there was a faint buzz in the back of her ears.

The barrier cracked before collapsing in a shimmer, the storm starting to disperse.

Winter collapsed.

Her eyes fluttered close, and the last thing she remembered was hearing the faint shouts of her and Ja'far's names.

* * *

It took three days for the two ninja to be healed. In that time they were visited by the various teams and the other Originals, some came to entertain her, others came just to talk. One of those was Sasuke Uchiha.

It was near midnight when he snuck soundlessly into the hospital room she was in, his hands stuffed into his pockets, and a blank look on his face. Instead of sitting in the chair by the bed she was laying in, he leaned back against the wall. He didn't speak for a moment, watching her sleep.

"I didn't mean to kill her." His voice is barely a whisper. His eyes flicker to the window, watching the stars calmly rest in the inky blue sky. "She pushed the target out of the way, and I couldn't stop in time." He fidgeted, feeling weird standing in the room with a sleep girl. It was creepy, yes, but he would never say this to her when she was awake.

"I guess... I'm trying to say..." The two words get caught in his throat and he clears his throat, struggling to get them out.

"I'm sorry." He spits the words out and turned to leave, the always present weight on his chest lessening slightly.

"This doesn't make us bestest friends, Sasu-baka."

"I didn't imagine it would, Yuki-aho."

The girl smirks softly, her single turquoise eye opening halfway as she glanced at him. "Next time you act like my stalker, I'm shaving half of your head."

"Duly noted." And with those words, Sasuke disappeared, his apology still lingering in the air.

Bleh, sorry that sucked :/ fighting scenes aren't my forte. 

This was supposed to uploaded yesterday, but we've been having insane thunderstorms, and the power went out twice, and my wifi was down... anyways, you guys should tell me jokes cause I really need a good laugh rn. 

What was your favorite part of this special?