Legacy of A Flower: Naruto (remake)

Chapter Thirty Seven: Hider vs Seeker

I remember...

"N-no." Basil shakes his head. "I can't... I can't hurt her... Please don't make me fight her."

"I'm supposed to protect you." He mumbles. "Don't be sad."

"I'm sorry, Lily. That you had to do that. That I wasn't strong enough to do it for you."

Basil falls silent, clenching his hands, holding back his anger for my sake. "I'm sorry, Lily."

The genuine words of Basil Yoshida. The boy who was supposed to be a cold-blooded shinobi. He never smiled or laugh. He was an empty shell. The weapon he was brandished to become and now is.

But that wasn't what I saw or see. Basil. My dear Basil. His laughter was like a bell to my ears. He had a knack for learning, especially big words. He would always use them when speaking to me so I would be forced to learn them myself. Because he had an even bigger knack for wanting me to flourish. To be just as great as him.

So here I stand with Basil Yoshida. The boy who once refused to raise a hand towards me now prefers to see me dead.

It is right after Naruto had won his match against Neji. Sasuke hasn't arrived. His match with Gaara has been postponed to be after Shikamaru's. Of course the audience is much more eager to see Sasuke than anyone else here. Kankuro has also forfeited from his match against Shino. Some more small details: Dosu dropped out and Hayate has been pronounced dead. Now a man named Genma is the proctor.

I can hear Naruto cheering loudly for me up in the stand where all the other competitors watch. Basil is only a few feet in front of me. I try to push back the overwhelming feeling that is starting to wash over me.

It doesn't feel right. I'm about to fight the person who I once killed three men for. I have stood up to our intimidating father and grandfather for him.

Now suddenly I'm the one fighting him. I try to scan my own mind, searching for any reason to encourage myself. I can only find one: After everything that happened during these exams, I have decided that I never want to have to take them again. So I have to win.

"Are you two ready?" Genma asks us.

Basil looks on intensely. Those eyes of his never seem to falter, "I am."

Genma glances over at me. I have no choice but to be, "I'm ready."

"Alright," Genma nods. "You may begin!"

He doesen't waste any time. His vines followed me with great speed and intensity. Sharp and precise. He's left me with no choice, but to evade them. He is very technical with each movement. He makes sure they don't overlap, probably recalling the tangled mess I made with his teammates attacks.
However, I am also technical. Where my feet, arms, and head are moving. I sense where each vine is coming from. I'm as quick as his vines are.

Just like before, I jump onto one of his vines. Squirrel-like, I run along the length of it. Thorns protrude a second too late every time my feet hit. I jump upwards, kunai in hand as I launch myself at him. My kunai strikes and his forearm is up.

A red vine, comes from his skin. It is sharp and pushing against my kunai.

"You're quick," he comments, "But you're nowhere near strong enough."