Naruto of the Homunculus

Chapter 17

I am really sorry for making all of you wait. I was having one of those times where I just lost my muse for the story. I am happy to say that I have found it again and am looking forward to continuing this story with the hope that it will soar to new heights.

Also, I'd like input on what kinds of alchemy to teach to Naruto's harem. Hinata, Haku and Tenten are covered, but Anko and Koyuki are still out there. I want them to have styles based on how they act and fight.

Now, let's do this.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

As the medics carted the unconscious Neji out of the crater that Naruto had made when he used the Primary Lotus on him, Naruto headed back to where his friends were waiting. He had a huge smile on his face as he walked to greet them.

"That was amazing," said Kiba, "you really kicked his ass!"

"Thanks," said Naruto.

"That was a pretty good technique," said Sasuke, "where's you learn something like that?"

"Oh," said Naruto, "Guy-sensei and Lee helped teach me."

"Hn," said Sasuke, "I might try and adapt it for one of my matches."

"You still won't beat me," smirked Naruto.

"We'll see," Sasuke smirked back.

"Boys," sighed Sakura.

"Hey," said Kiba, "I think they're going to announce the next matchup."

"The second matchup of the Chunin Exams," said Genma, "Rock Lee vs Shikamaru Nara."

"Yosh!" yelled Lee as he literally jumped into the arena, "I will show my burning youth through this battle."

"Troublesome," groaned Shikamaru, "I have to face him of all people. Maybe I should just forfeit?"

"Shika," said Naruto, "think carefully. Who would you want to face more? Rock Lee, or your Mom who's watching from the stands?"

Shikamaru paled and groaned, "Troublesome. Now I can't even back out."

"Nope," said Naruto, "now get in there."

With that, Naruto kicked Shikamaru's back gently, sending him flying into the arena.

"Damn Naruto," groaned Shikamaru as he picked himself up, "are you trying to kill me?"

"Are both combatants ready?" asked Genma.

"I am ready," said Lee.

"Yeah, I guess so," said Shikamaru.

"BEGIN!"

Lee started off by rushing at Shikamaru with a barrage of spin kicks, "Leaf Hurricane!"

The lazy genius was barely able to flip out of the way of the kicks as they came at him. Jumping back, he quickly looked around the arena, assessing the situation and making a plan.

'Alright,' thought Shikamaru, 'he focuses on Taijutsu and has poor Ninjutsu skills.'

"SEVERE LEAF HURRICANE!" yelled Lee as he sent another barrage of kicks at Shikamaru that the lazy Genin had to dodge.

'He tends to charge into things,' thought Shikamaru, 'I can use that.'

Shikamaru pulled out several kunai with explosive tags tied to them and threw them at the green-clad Genin that was rushing at him. It wasn't hard for Lee to twist out of the way of the knives, but the explosion caught him a bit off guard, and Shikamaru threw a smoke bomb to disorient him.

Lee flipped out of the smoke cloud and landed on his feet, looking around. Suddenly though, he found that his body had become frozen and unmovable. Looking at Shikamaru, Lee saw his opponent with his hands in the rat seal, his shadow snaking out to connect with Lee's.

"Shadow Possession Jutsu, complete," said Shikamaru, "you won't be able to get away now."

"No," ground out Lee as he put all his strength into his limbs to resist Shikamaru's Jutsu, allowing him to gradually move into a stance with his arms crossed, "it's not over!"

'He's resisting my Shadow Possession with pure strength?' thought Shikamaru in awe.

xXsceneXx

"That stance," said Naruto from the stands, "Bushy-Brow is going to do it."

"You recognize what he's doing?" asked Sasuke.

"Yeah," said Naruto, "he's going for an all or nothing gambit. He's going to use the Lotus."

"Isn't that what you did against Neji?" asked Sakura, "How is that an all or nothing gambit?"

"It's because of the cost," said Naruto, "I'm able to use the Lotus because of my enhanced strength and speed. Bushy-Brow can only use it by paying a certain price."

"A price?" asked Sakura.

"Yes," said Kakashi as he walked up to sit by his students, "the chakra network in every ninja has eight limiters that regulate chakra flow. Certain ninja can learn to force these 'gates' open, granting a temporary boost to their natural abilities. Opening all eight gates, can give one power greater than the five Kage, but it comes at a cost."

"What do you mean cost?" asked Sasuke.

"Opening even four gates grants immense strength and speed, but the sudden boost will cause your muscles to tear apart," said Kakashi.

"Why use it then?" asked Sakura, "I mean, if it's so dangerous…"

"That's a question I can't answer," said Kakashi, "now, let's watch this fight, shall we?"

xXsceneXx

"First Gate," said Lee, "OPEN!"

Shikamaru's eyes widened, Lee had almost broken free of his Jutsu with that boost.

"Second Gate: Gate of Healing: OPEN!" yelled Lee.

'Crap!' thought Shikamaru as he tried to maintain his jutsu.

Lee suddenly broke free and shot at Shikamaru, dodging a kunai that was thrown at him. The spandex-clad Genin slammed a kick into the gut of his opponent, sending Shikamaru flying into the air. Lee then jumped into the air after him, unwinding some of the bandages on his arms and using them to wrap Shikamaru in a partial cocoon.

"This ends now!" yelled Lee, "PRIMARY LOTUS!"

Lee sent the two of them spiraling down into the center of the arena, causing a dust cloud to rise up upon impact. The crowd waited with baited breath as they watched the battlefield, waiting for the cloud to clear.

When the cloud cleared, they saw that a battered and fatigued Lee was standing over a battered Kunai covered in Lee's arm wrappings. Suddenly a streak of black shot out and connected with Lee's shadow, and the crowd turned to see Shikamaru standing where the Kunai he had thrown earlier had landed.

"Shadow Possession Jutsu, complete," said Shikamaru, "now we end this. Let's see how long we can both dodge weapons."

Shikamaru reached down for his weapon's pouch, but when Lee was forced to reach for his own, he found that it wasn't on that side.

"Confused?" asked Shikamaru, "I switched my weapon pouch to the opposite side."

Shikamaru pulled kunai out of his pouch and walked up to Lee, forcing the spandex-clad genin's tired body to follow his movements. They walked up to each other, and Shikamaru placed the knife to Lee's throat. Instead of cutting him though, Shikamaru canceled the jutsu and punched Lee in the face. The green-clad Genin couldn't react fast enough due to the usage of the Primary Lotus and he was knocked out and knocked to the ground.

"Winner, Shikamaru Nara," said Genma.

xXsceneXx

"I gotta admit," said Asuma as he took a drag from his cigarette, "the kid's clever. He used that kunai as a distraction to make a failsafe in case he needed to substitute out of trouble. And even then, he switched his kunai pouch so that Lee wouldn't be able t grab a weapon when he traps him in his jutsu."

"Is he really that good?" asked Kurenai.

"Heh," chuckled Asuma, "I once gave him an IQ test by disguising it as a game, and the kid scored in the high genius levels. Not only that, he continuously beats me in Shogi."

Up in the Kage's box, the Hokage was smiling as he watched the battle end, 'That kid really is something. He came up with several plans in the time allowed and made them work, having backups ready if they failed. He definitely has the mindset of a Chunin.'

All right. That's a wrap! Before you go, I have a question. Do you want Orochimaru to die during the invasion or at a later date?