Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, if I did, the Raikage would end up owning the emo kid

A/N: Sorry for the delay; I've been caught up the thrills of life, minus the thrills. Enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 3: Tension

"It would seem we have been lucky so far," spoke Sasuke.

"I agree. We have yet to run into any of the other teams running through this tunnel," replied Naruto.

"It's been easy to avoid everyone, since we can pick up on the locations of others so easily," spoke Hinata, "I doubt there is another team where all three members are doujutsu users."

"I wouldn't assume that. There are bound to be some in here who are looking for fights with other teams," spoke Sasuke.

"That is true, though, most will likely avoid others, so they may show their skills to the public in the second half of the tournament," replied Naruto.

"That's my thinking, as well," spoke Hinata.

"Of course. Caution never hurt anyone. I was also expecting there to be more traps. At least something that would be more of a challenge," spoke Sasuke.

"I've been wondering about that, too. Perhaps there are more traps near the exits. It would make sense to put them there," replied Naruto.

"Everyone would be more worn out and much more likely to fall for traps near the end rather than near the beginning," spoke Hinata.

"Agreed... there is a trap down the end of this corridor. It appears to be the only way to advance. Do you two agree?" asked Sasuke.

"I don't see any way around it," spoke Naruto.

"There is a way around it, but it would be much faster to find a way to disable the trap," replied Hinata.

"I see. Alright, let's see what this one is all about," spoke Sasuke.

The team of Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata approached the corridor. They took note of various seals on place in the wall. The chakra within brought forth a dim glow. They weren't loaded with enough chakra to be obvious, but they could be seen easily by trained eyes.

"They don't appear to be explosive tags," spoke Sasuke.

"I think I know what types of seals these are. They seem to follow the basic format of a space-time seal," replied Naruto.

"Space-time? So they may summon something. Interesting. If that's the case, then we have no way of knowing for sure what will happen if we activate the seals by mistake," spoke Sasuke.

"Naruto-kun, do you know any way to disable the seals?" asked Hinata.

"Hmm... juuken. (gentle fist) If you use your juuken to disrupt the flow of chakra within the seals, it may cause them to not work properly," replied Naruto.

"You don't seem sure," spoke Sasuke.

"I know that messing up how a space-time seal works can cripple its ability to function properly, as they require precise control to use properly. Hiraishin could be broken easily if someone were to disrupt my seals before I could use them," explained Naruto.

"Well, if messing up the seals will ensure they don't work, then why do you seem so unsure?" asked Sasuke.

"He knows of my ability to use space-time seals. He may have accounted for my ability to disrupt them, and placed a second layer within the seals to act as a backup, should we damage the primary seal," replied Naruto.

"I see," spoke Sasuke.

"I can't see any evidence of such a mechanic within these seals. It should be safe to disable them," spoke Hinata.

"Are you sure?" asked Naruto.

"Positive," replied Hinata.

"Alright, let's go," spoke Naruto.

The team of three continued their approach into the corridor. When they reached the first of the seals, Hinata hit it with her juuken. The seal appeared to flash for a moment, then went inactive. The trio looked around carefully for any sign of something being brought into being in the area.

"It would seem you were right, Hinata. There is no backup in these seals," spoke Naruto.

"Hai. I will make sure to keep an eye out, in case there is a seal like that amongst these," replied Hinata.

The trio continued on down the corridor. Hinata disabled each of the seals the group ran into. Each seal did the same as the first; there would be a bright flash as the chakra of the seal was released, and then the seal would become inactive.

"There are only a few more left," spoke Hinata, as she struck another seal. Once again there was a bright flash. As the group continued on, Hinata paused, then pulled back Naruto and Sasuke.

"Hinata-chan, what is it!?" asked Naruto.

"That last seal had a backup! The second layer used the chakra of the first, making it impossible to detect with my Byakugan!" spoke Hinata.

"Shit!" shouted Sasuke.

Something appeared within the corridor. The group of three took a defensive stance, awaiting the appearance of what was brought forth.

"Ah, Naruto-kun, Sasuke-san. I was wondering if I would meet you here or not. Seems your knowledge of seals still needs some work," came a voice from the corridor.

"I know that voice," spoke Naruto.

The pair of three looked on as the smoke filling the tunnel subsided. A pair of Rinnegan eyes stared down the group of three.

"Pein's Preta Path," spoke Naruto.

"Ah, Naruto-kun, it would seem you do remember some things from our previous encounter," replied Preta Path Pein.

"What was the ability of this one?" asked Sasuke.

"He can absorb all chakra based attacks. Ninjutsu is useless. Likely, the juuken will not work, either," replied Naruto.

"Is that possible?" asked Hinata.

"I wouldn't want to find out the hard way. Basic taijutsu and kenjutsu are the only way to defeat him," replied Naruto.

"This should be interesting, three on one," spoke Sasuke.

"I will acknowledge that you are aware of this bodies weakness. However, do not assume I have not worked on finding ways around it," replied Preta Path Pein.

"It wouldn't be interesting, otherwise," spoke Naruto, as he took a taijutsu stance.

"That stance... I see, you've been learning a couple things from Hinata, have you?" asked Sasuke.

"Hai. It would seem you've been taking pointers from Rock Lee," replied Naruto, commenting on Sasuke's stance.

"I've always wanted to fight alongside the two of you like this. Shall we?" asked Hinata.

"Let's go!" shouted Naruto, as he charged forward, followed by Sasuke and Hinata. Preta Path Pein formed a small grin as he prepared to take the first strike.

Naruto struck first, aiming his fist for Pein's midsection. The bulky individual took Naruto's hand, and deflected it. Sasuke saw his chance, and attempted to land a hit on Pein's face. Pein deflected Sasuke's strike with his other hand, apparently leaving himself wide open to Hinata's attack. The bulky man spun around quickly, releasing Naruto and Sasuke, and sending a kick towards Hinata. Hinata was able to catch Pein's foot, and swung around to land a hit on Pein's midsection. The man able to avoid a directly hit, taking a glancing blow to the side. Naruto and Sasuke appeared behind Pein, and readied to strike him from behind. To the surprise of the pair, Pein was able to duck both of their strikes, and send a pair of kicks at the two, knocking them back. The group of Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata once again stood before Pein.

"He shouldn't have been able to see us like that," spoke Sasuke.

"It's impossible for him to see from behind without one of his other bodies here... Hinata, do you see sign of any of his other bodies in a position to see this Pein's blind spots," asked Naruto.

"I don't see anything... wait... there are a pair of chameleons behind him," spoke Hinata.

"I see, so he prepared a couple of his summons in advance to work around his blind spots. Figures he would be able to use their eyes, too," replied Naruto.

"So we have to assume he can see us at all times, eh?" asked Sasuke.

"So it would seem. Too bad for him, I've racked up a lot of experience with such fights by challenging Hinata-chan," replied Naruto.

"Glad to see you are putting what you've learned to good use. Let's give it a go once more, shall we?" asked Hinata.

Naruto and Sasuke smiled as the three charged towards Pein's Preta Path once more.

"I see you figured out one of my tricks, but will it help you?" asked Preta Path Pein.

"There's only one way to find out," spoke Naruto, as he aimed a blow at Preta Path Pein's midsection. The man blocked the strike, only to have Sasuke direct a strike towards his head, forcing him to duck. Hinata headed behind Preta Path Pein, and motioned to strike the body down. Pein knocked back Sasuke and Naruto, aiming to block Hinata's strike. Pein was surprised to see Hinata taking out his summons.

"Now's your chance!" shouted Hinata, as the bulky Pein knocked Hinata back in retribution.

"Rasengan!" shouted Naruto.

Preta Path Pein smiled as he absorbed Naruto's attack. His grin faded upon realizing Naruto's strike was a diversion. Sasuke used the opening given to him to get behind Pein. The portly man had no time to react as Sasuke unleashed a barrage of strikes upon the man's body. Naruto and Hinata joined Sasuke working fast to disable their opponent. A finishing blow from Hinata finished off Pein's Preta Path. The body hit the ground, and disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

"A kage bunshin?" asked Sasuke.

"No, that was the real one. He was reverse summoned upon his defeat," spoke Naruto.

"How can you tell?" asked Sasuke.

"I've learned to see space-time shifts with my Sharingan. It's something me and Hinata have been working on. It still can't track something like the Hiraishin, but at least it gives awareness that such a jutsu is being used," explained Naruto.

"You'll have to show that one to me sometime," replied Sasuke.

"Maybe; I was hoping to keep it to myself for a little while; wouldn't want to give you an edge over me in our spars," spoke Naruto, with a grin on his face.

"Ha ha, indeed. Let's go," spoke Sasuke.

The group of three continued on their way through the tunnel, looking out for further traps such as the one they had encountered.

In another part of the tunnel, Akari had gathered up and healed the other members of her team.

"Hey, I didn't know you knew iryou jutsu," spoke Tsuki.

"I thought it would be wise to learn such jutsu, just in case. I had initially planned to only use such jutsu for myself. I suppose it's one of the world's ironies that leaves me having to use my knowledge to the benefit of others," replied Akari.

"I see," replied Tsuki.

"I'm glad. This means I can have another crack at the Uchiha. I won't lose to him a third time," spoke Kukai.

"You may act as our leader, but your decision making skills hardly give you the right to such a position. I'll be taking over leadership duties from this point forward," spoke Akari.

"Oh? And I should listen to you for what reason?" asked Kukai.

"Because you're leadership led to us nearly being killed," replied Akari.

"Fine, if that's how you want to look at it, then so be it," spoke Kukai.

"Good. You'll have your chance against the Uchiha. If we make it to the finals, you'll get your chance then. Something tells me he won't lose before then. Is this acceptable?" asked Akari.

"Gah, whatever. I need time to repair my armor, anyway. I didn't intend to challenge him again during this phase of the tournament," replied Kukai.

"Wise choice. We should continue. We lost a lot of time recovering and fighting that team from Konoha. We need to avoid the other teams here in order to make it out of here on time. Agreed?" asked Akari.

"Agreed," replied Tsuki and Kukai.

"Good. Let's go," spoke Akari.

The group from Ankoku dashed through the sections of the tunnel before them, with Akari taking point. Even in her haste, she was careful to disable any of the traps that made it into her field of vision. After Akari personally disabled all the traps in a corridor, those with her began to question what they knew of the kunoichi.

"Hey, Akari, how are you able to see all these things so clearly? I didn't know you could read things so well," spoke Tsuki.

"I have my ways," replied Akari, as she threw an explosive tag at another trap before her. The tag ripped the trap to pieces.

"Perhaps I should have made you take point from the start. However, wouldn't it be better to avoid the traps altogether. You seem more than capable of being able to spot them," asked Kukai.

"I am aware. However, from what I can tell, the traps are heaviest through the tunnel shortcuts," spoke Akari.

"I wouldn't assume that, if I were you. You forget that one dead end corridor we found in the beginning. It was littered with traps, even though it was a circle. We ended up wasting several hours in that corridor.

"I remember. Don't worry about it, I know how to avoid running into such places again," replied Akari.

"If you say so, but I'm taking lead again, should you happen to lead us into such a place," spoke Kukai.

"So be it," spoke Akari.

The Ankoku team found themselves in a corridor littered with seals of all types. Some appeared to be explosive tags, while others appeared to be space-time seals.

"Interesting trap. I've never seen something like this before," spoke Tsuki.

"It seems to be something of a contradiction. Why would you risk summoning something into a corridor that's also littered with explosive tags?" asked Kukai.

"They may summon other weapons. Animals aren't the only thing that can be summoned through space-time seals," spoke Akari.

"I suppose," spoke Kukai.

"These are easy enough to disable. Disrupting the chakra balances causes them all to malfunction. These are the weakest traps I've seen in these tunnels," spoke Akari.

"I guess... shit! Did you miss that one?" asked Kukai, as he noticed something appearing behind the group. Several kunai were thrown at the team. Tsuki pulled out her katana and deflected all of the kunai.

"I was hoping that would get your attention," came a voice from behind the group.

"Who the Hell are you!?" shouted Kukai, as he took a defensive stance. The smoke around the person disappeared to reveal an individual with long orange hair, tied in a long ponytail on top of his head. The man's face was covered in piercings; his standout feature being the eyes of the Rinnegan.

"The Rinnegan!? Are you the one known as Pein?" asked Akari.

"So you are knowledgeable on some things. You are correct, I am Pein," replied the man before them.

"Doesn't he have control over six different bodies?" asked Tsuki.

"I've heard that. He may have different bodies working in different parts of the tunnels. I've heard each of his bodies have different jutsu, but I don't know what those jutsu are," replied Kukai.

"I wasn't aware of that much. Seems we'll have to go into this one blind," spoke Akari, as she pulled out several kunai. She threw them all in the direction of Pein, only to see all of them deflected by what appeared to be a barrier. Kukai and Tsuki were knocked back, as well.

"A barrier?" asked Kukai.

"That was no barrier! It was something else!" shouted Tsuki.

"Something else, but what?" asked Akari, as she prepared another round of kunai. She observed the same effect as her first attack.

"Alright, you can block that, then how about this?" asked Akari, as she flared her chakra, increasing the light around her, while she was working through hand seals.

"Hikari Kantsuu Kousen no Jutsu! (Light Piercing Ray Technique)" shouted Akari. The light around her turned into spears, propelling themselves towards Pein. Akari was smiling until she saw her jutsu turned back in the same way as her kunai were.

"He can block ninjutsu, too!?" shouted Akari.

"Useless," replied Deva Path Pein, "Such attacks are useless."

"Alright then, let's see you deal with this!" shouted the team of three, as they charged towards Pein. Pein frowned as he sent all of them crashing through the tunnel with his Shinra Tensei.

"It seems you Ankoku shinobi are not as strong as you make yourselves out to be," spoke Deva Path Pein.

"Uh... I don't believe it..." muttered Kukai. As he was nearest to Pein when he unleashed his attack, he found himself in the worse shape. His armor was torn apart, even where he had increased its density. Tsuki was unconscious. Kukai and Tsuki were knocked into each other, causing them the crash into the nearby walls, while nothing was in the way of Akari's body, allowing her to be knocked far down the corridor.

"Figures... he would manage to take out the team iryou-nin..." muttered Kukai.

"It seems luck is not on your side. The body sent to an activated trap is decided at random. Of my bodies, this is my strongest," spoke Deva Path Pein.

"I see..." muttered Kukai.

"My purpose is to slow you down. I am not about to kill anyone in here. You're on your own," spoke Pein. He was about to have his Deva Path summoned back, only to see another opponent before him.

"You... you are not a member of any of the teams sent in here," spoke Pein.

"You're right," spoke a man before Pein.

"Who are you?" asked Pein.

"Me? All in due time. It won't be fun if I reveal my identity too soon. I have to say, this tournament of yours is the perfect breeding ground for the next great conflict. Are you even aware of what you have done?" asked the man.

"What do you mean?" asked Pein.

"The chuunin exams have the same flaw. A replacement for war? What a joke! Instead of allowing an outlet for aggression, you've provided a breeding ground for it. This tournament of yours is even better at fostering the fires of war!" shouted the man.

"What brings you to this conclusion? I am aware of the chains of hatred that bring forth wars in the world of shinobi. These chains can be broken through the unification of the different nations. When they were forced to join together against a common foe, they forgot the past, and were able to move on to the future," replied Pein.

"Oh? This unification is temporary at best. Some people are simply unable to forgive the sins of the past. You must have seen some of the conflicts taking place in these tunnels. That one there tried to attack a member of a team from Konoha, out of a grudge he held against the man for actions that took place nearly five years ago. Do you think he's the only one who's taken such actions? I'm sure there are other teams doing the same," spoke the man.

"You are incorrect. I have been observing what has taken place down here. Most teams are focused on the objective of making it out of these tunnels as fast as they can. Very few are participating in combat; most are taking measures to avoid the other teams," replied Pein.

"Bah, so be it. But the final rounds of this tournament will bring to light my predictions for the future. We're on the eve of another great uprising in the shinobi world. Unlike the events leading up to the previous conflicts, the world appears blissfully unaware of the events set into motion," spoke the man.

"You would be in the minority in your beliefs," spoke Pein.

"Maybe. I grow tired of talking. There's only one thing I have an interest in!" shouted the man, as he ran through a long chain of hand seals. Venomous chakra erupted from the man and surrounded Pein.

"Let's see how you handle this one! Hijutsu: Kekkei Genkai Heigou! (Secret Technique: Bloodline Limit Absorption)" shouted the man. The chakra around Pein flared as it entered his body.

"Now those legendary eyes are mine!" shouted the man, "Struggle if you want, but once that jutsu takes hold, there is nothing you can do."

Pein frowned at the man. He quickly demonstrated the ability to move his body freely.

"Banshou Tenin!" shouted Pein. The mysterious man was pulled near Pein. He found himself with one of Pein's chakra blades embedded in his side.

"Impossible! How! Why can't I absorb your kekkei genkai... wait... this body... it feels dead... what the Hell are you!?" shouted the man.

"That is for you to figure out on your own. I will say this; your attempts to steal my doujutsu through this body are futile. As you are an intruder in my tournament, I have no problem with eliminating you hear and now," spoke Pein, as he plunged his hand into the man's body.

"What are you doing!?" shouted the man.

"I don't know who are what you are, but any attempts of yours to upset the delicate balance of peace this world has achieved end here. Shinra Tensei!" shouted Pein. Pein focused the point of origin for his jutsu at his hand, causing the body of the man he held to explode in a shower of blood and organs. Pein frowned at his blood soaked body.

"Intruders in my village will be dealt with swiftly and mercilessly," spoke Deva Path Pein, as his body was reverse summoned.

"This guy... perhaps we've underestimated him..." spoke Kukai, as he struggled to his feet. He took hold of Tsuki, and looked for where Akari had been thrown. They found her at the of the corridor. She appeared to be covered in blood from being thrown into the tunnel wall at high speed. She was busy healing herself when she was found.

"So, you two are alive. I'm afraid I couldn't do much. This wall was damaged by another conflict. Bad luck I was thrown into a wall with a jagged surface. None of my major organs were damaged, though. I suppose it was good luck in bad luck that saved me. Were you two able to defeat Pein?" asked Akari.

"No. Some other shinobi approached him. Pein identified him as an intruder, someone who isn't on one of the teams in the tournament. I don't know how someone managed to sneak past the best jonin of the shinobi nations, but Pein took care of him before leaving. Pein brutally killed that man like he was nothing, even though he had Pein trapped in this bizarre looking jutsu. Pein said he was only here to slow us down, not kill us. Seems he did an exemplary job," explained Kukai.

"I've almost restored by body. You two appear to be in need of rest. We'll take a break down there. It's a dead end created by the fight that took place here. We won't be found in there," replied Akari.

"Very well," spoke Kukai, as he took Tsuki into the corridor.

Itachi, Kisame, and Deidara continued their run through the tunnels. Even with Itachi unable to use his Sharingan, the group hadn't slowed in their run towards their goal.

"The number of traps are increasing, hm. Seems we are getting close to something important," spoke Deidara.

"Keep in mind they might be trying to bait us into a dead end," spoke Itachi.

"Not that dead ends are a problem for me," replied Deidara.

"Blowing a hole in the wall is not advised," spoke Itachi.

"I'm with Itachi-san, I don't want this place falling apart on us," spoke Kisame.

"Fine, have it your way... wait, there are some odd seals up ahead, hm. Flare up your chakra a little so you can see them," spoke Deidara.

"I see them. These are space-time seals, set to summon something here. They appear to set in all the corridors leading away from this place, except the one we came through," replied Itachi.

"Do you know how to disable them?" asked Deidara.

"Easily done. Which corridor looks to be the best one to take from here?" asked Itachi.

"Hm... the one above us. I can see a dead end down these two. It looks like someone backtracked through this one, from the imprints on the ground," replied Deidara.

"Very well, Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu! (Fire Release: Grand Fireball Technique)" shouted Itachi. A fireball was sent up the tunnel, incinerating the seals.

"That should clear the path," spoke Itachi.

"Wait, one of the seals is absorbing part of your fireball, hm. It's sending something through!" shouted Deidara.

"What!?" shouted Kisame, "How could that happen?"

"Doesn't matter. Everyone, defensive stance!" shouted Itachi.

Deidara backed away from the body falling down through the tunnel. The team from Konoha found themselves face to face with a man with long, straight orange hair. The diagonal piercing he held in his nose made him standout, as well as his eyes.

"Pein-san?" asked Deidara.

"Hai," replied Human Path Pein.

"What are you doing here?" asked Kisame.

"I am here to make impede your progress," replied Pein.

"I see," spoke Itachi.

"Hey, Itachi, do you remember what the abilities of each of his bodies are, hm?" asked Deidara.

"Hai, if memory serves, this body is able to manipulate the souls of others. He can instantly gain information from someone, as well as rip out a person's soul, killing them instantly," explained Itachi.

"I see you are well versed in my abilities," replied Pein, with somewhat of a frown.

"The shinobi who were jonin at the time of your invasion of Konoha are aware of most of your abilities, as discovered by Naruto and Jiraiya during their fights with you," replied Itachi.

"I see. While this information is somewhat discomforting, do not assume I haven't added to my abilities," spoke Pein.

"I was hoping you would have done something. This wouldn't be much of a challenge otherwise," replied Itachi.

"I wouldn't say that, hm," spoke Deidara, as he put his hands together in a familiar seal.

"Katsu!" shouted Deidara.

An explosion went off in front of Pein. The force of the blast was enough to cave in the walls of the tunnel in that area.

"We don't need to use that corridor, anyway. With any luck, we'll be able to block others trying to get to this point, hm," spoke Deidara.

"Good thinking. That takes care of two things at once," spoke Itachi.

"I was kind of hoping we would get to fight him, though. Kind of takes all the fun out of it when you go and end it just like that," spoke Kisame.

"If you would like to entertain a fight with me, I will not disappoint," spoke Pein's Human Path, from behind Kisame. The shark-nin jumped forward, out of the reach of Pein.

"That was a little too close for comfort," spoke Kisame.

"How were you able to get over there. There's no way you could have moved that fast, hm!" shouted Deidara.

"I am aware. I do not possess the ability to move at such speeds. However, since you seem to be aware of some of my abilities, you should be aware of one that uses space-time jutsu. It's primarily used for summons, but can easily move each of us around with ease, should there be need to do so," explained Pein.

"I see you've been working on ways to counter Naruto's Hiraishin. Impressive. Let's see how strong you are," spoke Itachi, as he pulled out his katana. Kisame followed suit by pulling out the Samehada. Pein pulled out a pair of chakra blades.

Kisame and Itachi charged in the direction of Pein, bringing their blades to bear against those of Pein. Both charged chakra into their weapons. Pein was able to hold off Itachi with his left arm, while dealing with Kisame using his right. Itachi found his katana lost chakra each time it made contact with Pein's chakra blade. The Samehada did not experience this affect, as both the Samehada and Pein's chakra blades negated each other's abilities to absorb chakra. Itachi aimed for Pein's head, while Kisame aimed for Pein's midsection. Pein was able to block both of their strikes. Deidara saw his chance to strike at Pein from behind while he was busy fighting with Kisame and Itachi. Deidara approached Pein from the rear, and attempted to plunge a kunai in his shoulder. Pein quickly turned around, and sent a kick at Deidara's jaw, knocking the former Iwa-nin on his back. Pein jumped back to avoid the swinging of Itachi and Kisame's weapons. Itachi and Kisame were surprised at Pein being able to see in his blind spot, but didn't give it too much thought as they were forced back by Pein's strikes. Itachi and Kisame jumped back to join up with Deidara.

"You alright?" asked Kisame.

"I'm fine, hm. I didn't think he would have a pair of summons acting as his eyes. There are two small animals behind him. They blend in to the tunnel fairly well; I can barely see them. I'm sure they would show as bright as day to a doujutsu user, hm," explained Deidara.

"Sorry to say I won't be able to give you that kind of assistance for the time being," replied Itachi.

"Have a plan?" asked Kisame.

"We need to coordinate our strikes and overwhelm him. Even if he has the speed, he should find difficulty in engaging all three of us at once. Deidara, I hope you've been working on your close range skills," spoke Itachi.

"They aren't well refined, but I can do something," replied Deidara, as he pulled out a kunai.

"There's no point in trying to sneak up on him, so we'll go in full ahead. Make sure he doesn't touch you. Go!" shouted Itachi. The three charged towards Pein again. Itachi aimed for Pein's midsection, only to have his strike blocked. Kisame attempted to sweep Pein off his feet, only to have his weapon knocked back. Deidara attempted to strike between Itachi and Kisame's strikes, only to see Pein move out of the way. Pein moved to strike Deidara in the head, forcing the blond to duck. Itachi went to hit Pein's arm, only to be blocked. Kisame struck fast, landing a hit on Pein's shoulder, ripping away part of the cloak the body was wearing. Pein spun around, knocking Deidara and Itachi off balance, and aimed a kick for Kisame's face. The shark-nin avoided the strike, and attempted to strike Pein in the midsection. Pein blocked Kisame's strike, then spun to deliver a blow on Deidara's left shoulder. The chakra blade damaged Deidara's ability to use his entire left arm. Deidara cursed to himself as he jumped back. Itachi attempted to get in close to Pein, and use his speed to overwhelm him. Itachi increased the speed of his strikes, and began to drive Pein back. The clang of metal grew loud through the tunnels as Itachi increased his intensity. Kisame kept a careful eye on the pair, looking for any chance at an opening. Pein went back on the offensive, swinging his blades at a higher speed, with even greater precision than he had been using. Itachi was being driven back. Kisame took note that Pein was too focused on Itachi, and made his move. Kisame went in from behind, hoping to deliver crippling blow to Pein, only to have Pein avoid the strike at the last moment. Deidara saw a momentary opening, and took it, delivering a hard kick to his face. Pein was knocked off balance, giving Itachi the chance to go back on the offensive, driving Pein back again. Kisame joined him, and the pair drove Pein against a wall. The two quickly backed off as they saw Deidara make his hand seal again. Pein had no time to react as he was blasted forward by a pair of insect bombs Deidara mixed in with Pein's summons. The summons were wiped out in the blast, removing the advantage Pein had. Pein himself was injured by the blast, but was far from being disabled, and resumed his kenjutsu duel with Kisame and Itachi. It appeared as though Pein's strikes had increased in speed and intensity. Pein had managed to land solid blows on both Itachi and Kisame, knocking the pair back. Their midsections were hit. While the physical injury amounted to nothing more than a scratch, they lost their ability to manipulate chakra. Kisame and Itachi were slightly off balance, inviting Pein to renew his efforts against the pair, this time driving them back in the wall. Deidara, taking note of Pein's open blind spot, approached from behind, and threw a pair of small explosives at Pein's shoulder. Pein turned around at the last second, preventing the explosives from hitting their mark. However, they still make contact with Pein, leaving him with a pair of burn marks on his back. Pein turned his attention to Deidara and initiated a series of strikes against his former subordinate. Deidara attempted to hold Pein off with a kunai, but found he was greatly outmatched. Pein gave Deidara's right shoulder the run through, pinning him to the wall of the cave. Deidara grunted in pain. With his left arm already disabled, Deidara found himself unable to attack. His ability to manipulate chakra was crippled by the interference from Pein's chakra. Itachi and Deidara regained their stances and resumed their fight with Pein. Pein was slow to turn around, receiving a bad scrape from the Samehada on this right side, while receiving a gash from Itachi's katana on his left. Pein felt his chakra being disrupted by the chakra absorbing capacity of the Samehada. Itachi and Kisame brought their blades against Pein's, and began knocking him back. Itachi was able to deflect Pein's blades, giving Kisame a clear shot at Pein's body. Pein's body was torn open by the strike from Kisame, knocking him flat on his back. Blood dribbled out of Pein's mouth, as the body coughed a couple times.

"Well done, gentlemen..." muttered Pein's Human Path, before his body was summoned away.

"He's gotten better, I'll give him that. To be able to hold off the both of us at the same time, with one body, that's something else. I don't know how that Naruto kid was able to beat him," spoke Kisame.

"His loss must have given drive to greatly increase his strength. It would seem that the winner of this tournament will have their hands full in fighting Pein when he's using all of his bodies," replied Itachi.

"Oi, you two, you mind pulling me off of this wall, hm?" asked Deidara.

"What, you don't want to 'hang out' with us anymore?" asked Kisame.

Deidara frowned at Kisame, thinking of something to do to him when he got free. Itachi pulled out the blade pinning Deidara to the wall.

"I'm surprised you can tolerate the pain that had to have caused," spoke Kisame.

"I have a high tolerance for pain. I wouldn't utter a word of pain even if my body was being crushed," replied Deidara.

"Masochist," spoke Kisame.

"Shark freak," replied Deidara.

"This is not the time or place," spoke Itachi.

"Oh, right. I suppose it's good luck in bad luck that, while both of my arms are going to be useless for a while, he managed to avoid hitting my scope. Let's continue on, and try to avoid any more places that have a lot of suspicious looking seals, hm," spoke Deidara.

"Let's," spoke Itachi. The trio climbed up through the corridor Pein appeared from, being more cautious in regards to traps involving seals.

In Pein's hidden office, Nagato looked out a window overseeing the entire village. Though his eyes appeared to be fixed upon the business taking place throughout the village below, he was viewing the actions of his paths.

"So, the teams from Konoha retained knowledge of the abilities of my different bodies. Still, there are some things they don't know about. I will enjoy surprising them all with the abilities they have yet to seen. It seems that will have to wait, though. Seems the leader of Kusa and his team are about to trip one of my seals. Who to send this time? Ah, I know a good pick for such a headstrong individual. Let's see how he handles this," spoke Nagato. A grin crossed his face as he prepared one of his bodies.

In the tunnel, Kamakusa Futoshi, the leader of Kusa, and his team were heading into a straight section of the tunnel.

"That was one Hell of a climb. I thought this was the exit, though," spoke a tall man with a katana on his back.

"Yeah, for real, all that climbing and nothing? What a rip off," spoke a shorter man with several weapons pouches hanging from his belt.

"Shut it, you two. You should have kept track of how many times we went down in comparison to how many times we went up. If you did, you would have known that we are still a good thirty meters below ground," spoke Futoshi.

"Hey, you told us you were sure that was the exit!" shouted the taller man.

"You must have misheard, Jin," replied Futoshi.

"I heard you make the same claim," chimed in the shorter man.

"Shut it, Teizaki! I said no such thing!" shouted Futoshi.

"If you say so," replied Teizaki.

"Seems as though there is no other way to go except straight," spoke Jin.

"It would seem so. This wreaks of being a trap," spoke Futoshi.

"There's a statement I agree with. Look, there are seals all over the place," spoke Teizaki.

"They aren't explosive tags. They are the kind used for summoning. They're susceptible to being disrupted by chakra flows. They're nothing to worry about," spoke Futoshi, as the large man demonstrated his knowledge through disabling one of the seals. Jin and Teizaki followed suit.

"This hardly seems like a trap that a jonin level shinobi would have trouble with. This Nagato character must have been in a hurry when he came up with this one," spoke Teizaki.

"This isn't just easy to deal with; it's too easy. There must be something we missed," spoke Jin.

"That's probably what he wants us to think, making us want to go back and waste time. Sometimes things are intended to be obvious. Remember, he wants to delay us. That's the objective of any and all of his traps," spoke Futoshi.

"Good line of thinking," spoke Teizaki.

"I didn't become the leader of our village through my dashing good looks alone," replied Futoshi.

"About as dashing as a toad," thought Teizaki.

"That would work if he wasn't short and fat… well, not as short as Teizaki, but still fat," thought Jin.

The group continued on until they heard a noise come from behind them. The three turned around to see smoke drifting down the corridor.

"What the Hell was that!?" shouted Teizaki.

"That's not possible. I hit each and every one of those seals," spoke Futoshi.

"You did. It seems there was something else to those seals other than what we initially noticed about them," replied Jin.

"You are correct," came a voice from down the corridor, "There are a couple of seals with a second layer to them. The embedding is perfect; even a doujutsu user is unable to see it. I've already tricked a couple of such individuals."

"Who are you?" asked Futoshi.

The smoke cleared the reveal a well built individual with piercings covering his face and shorter, orange hair.

"I am the one known as Pein," replied Pein's Naraka path.

"Oh, I see. So, this is the Pein Rikudou I've heard about. So, you decided to personally intrude upon us to slow us down. Interesting," spoke Futoshi.

"You would be the leader of Kusa, Kamakusa Futoshi. I remember you from the meeting a year ago," replied Pein.

"I remember your core body. Why don't you step out of the shadows and challenge me directly?" asked Futoshi.

"Is that what you want? Then win the tournament. For now, you will face me like this," replied Pein.

"Bah, fine. I'll use this as a warm up for the fights to come. Jin, Teizaki, say back, I'll take care of this one on my own," replied Futoshi.

"If that's what you want to do, then good luck," spoke Jin.

"Don't complain to us if he proves to be too much of a challenge for you," spoke Teizaki.

"Your men don't appear to have that much respect for you," spoke Pein.

"They respect me just fine, they just have a unique way of showing it," spoke Futoshi, while directing his killing intent towards the pair of jonin with him. Both appeared to shiver in response.

"Now then, I'm not one for conversation, let's do this!" shouted Futoshi.

"Very well," replied Pein.

Futoshi made a quick observation of Pein, deciding how to attack him. Noting his cloak was ideal for hiding weapons, he opted to use a pair of katana. Futoshi drew his swords and charged towards Pein. Pein pulled out a pair of chakra blades and repelled Futoshi's strikes. The sounds of their weapons making contact reverberated down the corridor. Futoshi kept aiming for Pein's head, getting close a few times, but missing. Pein was merely repelling Futoshi's strikes, not attempting to attack him directly. Futoshi quickly grew frustrated with his inability to land a hit on Pein. The leader of Amegakure noticed the desperation growing in Futoshi's strikes, and opted to allow the leader of Kusa to land a blow on the side of his head. Futoshi was smiling as his blade slipped past Pein's chakra blades and hit the side of Pein's head. To Futoshi's surprise, a clang was heard, instead of the sound of blood being spilled. Futoshi seemed puzzled, until he realized he didn't hit Pein's head, but rather, he had struck the piercings coming out of his ears.

"These are made of the same material as my blade. Hitting them will get you nowhere, " spoke Pein.

"Damn it! Jin! Teizaki! Get your asses moving!!" shouted Futoshi.

"Not so confident now, is he?" asked Jin.

"Always overconfident. I really do have to wonder how he ever became the leader of our village," replied Teizaki.

Jin pulled out his katana, and charged towards Pein, joining in Futoshi's kenjutsu duel with Pein. Teizaki began running through a series of hand seals.

"That's it, just keep him occupied for a minute or two, then I'll take care of him," spoke Teizaki.

Pein was easily able to fend off the pair of Jin and Futoshi. Jin found what he thought was an opening near Pein's legs, and attempted to land a hit, only to take a hit to his right shoulder. Jin took note that his chakra circulation was affected by the blade. Futoshi aimed towards Pein's midsection, hoping to catch him off guard as he was landing his blow on Jin. Futoshi was surprised when the man twisted to the side, and delivered a solid hit to Futoshi's midsection, knocking the air out of the large man, and sending him onto the ground. Jin quickly recovered, and resumed his assault, preventing Pein from delivering a finishing blow to Futoshi. Jin increased the speed of his attacks, easily repelling the pair of chakra blades Pein was wielding. Jin began to knock Pein back slowly with the ferocity of his strikes. Pein responded by putting more strength into his strikes. Jin was knocked off balance, allowing Pein to deliver a solid blow to Jin's midsection, knocking him onto the ground next to Futoshi.

"Now, move it, you two!" shouted Teizaki.

The pair of Kusa-nin nodded and quickly retreated.

"Ninpou: Roku Hikari no Joushi! (Ninja Art: Six Arms of Light)" shouted Teizaki. Light surrounded Teizaki's form, separating into six distinct forms. The forms solidified into three pairs of arms, each digging into one of the multiple weapon pouches on Teizaki's belt.

"Heiki Renda! (Weapons Barrage)" shouted Teizaki. Weapons of all kinds were thrown in the direction of Naraka Path Pein. The bulky individual pulled up his arms to guard, not having the speed to move out of the way in time. The arms around Teizaki moved at inhuman speeds, continuing the assault until they faded away. The number of weapons kicked up enough debris to eclipse Pein from view of the Kusa-nin before him. Teizaki breathed heavily upon the completion of his attack, breathing a sigh of relief at the apparently fallen foe.

"That was a close one, eh?" asked Teizaki.

"Impressive," spoke Pein, from behind the cloud of debris.

"Impossible!!" shouted the Kusa-nin before him.

"No one has ever survived that attack before! Not at such a close range!" shouted Jin.

The debris cleared to reveal a demonic creature in place of Pein. The creature before them had thick, rock-like skin, which was able to prevent the weapons from causing any harm.

"If it weren't this body, I would have lost," spoke Pein, as he returned to his normal form. The weapons lodged in his skin fell to the ground with several clangs.

"Alright, if that won't work, then let's go for a battle of the freaks," spoke Teizaki, as he began another string of hand seals.

"Ninpou: Roku Ankoku no Joushi! (Ninja Art: Six Arms of Darkness)" shouted Teizaki. A dark aura surrounded Teizaki in the same manner as the light from his previous jutsu. This time, the arms formed were much more bulky, appearing to favor strength over speed. Each arm pulled out a small dagger from Teizaki's belt.

"Let's see how you deal with this one," spoke Teizaki, as he charged towards Pein's Naraka path.

Pein responded by pulling out a pair of chakra blades, in an attempt to deflect Teizaki's strikes. Pein was able to block the first round of strikes, but was quickly being pushed back by the force behind Teizaki's attacks. Even though Pein had more speed than Teizaki, the best he could do was block Teizaki. Pein was soon up against a wall, prompting Teizaki to form another group of hand seals, while his other arms continued their attacks.

"Yari! (spear)" shouted Teizaki.

Each of the six arms surrounding Teizaki changed from having hands to having pointed tips. Each arm headed straight for Pein. Pein attempted to cut off the points before they could reach him. Pein knocked the first pair off, only to have one get to his right shoulder, forcing him to drop one of his chakra blades. Pein was able to take off one more before his other shoulder was pierced, forcing him to drop his other blade. The last spear headed straight for Pein's neck. Teizaki was grinning at his imminent victory, until he saw the point of his spear being deflected at the last second by the transformation of Pein's neck. The spear bounced off, and dissipated, along with Teizaki's other arms.

"Impossible…" muttered Teizaki, as he staggered backwards, suffering from chakra exhaustion.

"It would seem that jutsu of yours requires a substantial amount of chakra to maintain. You are done here," spoke Pein.

Pein was about to strike down Teizaki when Jin brought his blade to bear against Pein's.

"Now!" shouted Jin.

"Doton: Wareme no Jutsu! (Earth Release: Fissure Technique)" shouted Futoshi. The ground below Pein opened up, forcing Pein down to the lower levels of his maze. Teizaki took a kunai, and tied an explosive tag to it. He threw it down towards Pein, and detonated it when he felt it make contact.

"Damn pain in the ass," spoke Futoshi.

"And that was just one of his bodies? I'd hate to challenge him with all six," spoke Jin.

"No wonder this guy was able to put such a number on Konoha," replied Teizaki.

"At least he's gone for the time being. Let's keep moving. I don't want to end up not making it out of this damn place on time. I want another crack at him," spoke Futoshi.

"I need a few moments to recover, you know that jutsu of mine takes a lot of chakra, and I had to use both variations in order to get that bastard," replied Teizaki.

"Very well, we can afford a few minutes," spoke Futoshi.

The group out of Kusa took enough time for Teizaki to recover, then continued on their way through the tunnels. In his office, Nagato was smirking greatly.

"So, the hot headed leader of Kusagakure isn't as tough as he makes himself out to be, not that I find this to be of any surprise," spoke Nagato, "It seems another team is about to hit one of my traps... hmm… one of our own. Even better."

"Hey, Hidan, stop dragging ass back there!!" shouted Seigai.

"We're not going to get extra time just because we're from Ame!" shouted Amika.

"Hey, you all need to slow down. We're plenty ahead, even after we took out the other team from Kusa," spoke Hidan.

"We would be further ahead if it weren't for that damn ritual. Did you have to kill them!?" shouted Seigai.

"They went for it, so I went for it," replied Hidan.

"Gah, whatever!" shouted Amika.

"Hold up," spoke Seigai.

Amika and Seigai stopped in their tracks, allowing Hidan to catch up to them.

"Hey, don't tell me you're going to stop after yelling at me to speed up, jack ass!" shouted Hidan.

"There's a trap up ahead. A rather intricate one," spoke Seigai.

"Something that those special eyes of yours can see, eh?" asked Hidan.

"Yeah, sure," spoke Seigai, who's red eyes now held a three point start that divided the iris' of his eyes into three sections.

"Don't mock Seigai's Sogekigan, (Sniping Eye)" spoke Amika.

"Feh, whatever. So, what of this trap," asked Hidan.

"The corridor up ahead is littered with seals. Some are explosives, while others are space-time seals," replied Seigai.

"Can't we go around?" asked Hidan.

"We could, but the other paths around here would add several hours to our journey. It would be best to just go straight through," replied Seigai.

"What's the plan?" asked Amika.

"Scouts first," spoke Seigai.

Amika nodded, and the pair began to make a chain of hand seals.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu! (Summoning Technique)" shouted Amika and Seigai. A pair of wolves appeared before the pair of summoners.

"You two check the corridor up ahead, and take a close look at the mechanics of those seals. Disable them if you can, but be careful not set any of them off," spoke Seigai.

"Will do, Seigai-sama," replied one of the wolves, as the pair dashed off down the corridor. Seigai used his doujutsu to keep an eye on the pair and their progress.

"What are those bitches you summoned doing?" asked Hidan.

"Do not insult our summons!!" shouted Amika, as she knocked Hidan on the head.

"Don't waste your time on that prick, Amika. He is how he is, and nothing we can do will ever change that," replied Seigai, "and to answer your question, they are studying the seals and attempting to disable them."

"Whatever," replied the Jashinist.

After several minutes, the pair of wolves returned to divulge the information they gained by observing the seals up close.

"Were you able to disable them all?" asked Seigai.

"Most of them, but not all of them. There are several dual layer seals. We can't disable them without setting them off," replied one of the wolves.

"I thought so. I recognized the pattern. That confirms it. I have a pretty good idea what those seals are for, too. Alright, you two did your part, you may leave," spoke Seigai.

"Hai!" shouted the pair of wolves in unison. Both disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

"They're rigged to summon something, aren't they?" asked Amika.

"Yeah, and I know what they're going to summon," replied Seigai.

"Oh, and what would that be?" asked Hidan.

"One of Pein's bodies," replied Amika.

"Eh? Well, hey, he's on our side, right? He'll just let us through," spoke Hidan.

"You really are simple, aren't you? He can't do that. He has to make things even for all the teams. He can't show favoritism by allowing us free passage. We'll have to fight him. Not that I have a problem with that," spoke Seigai.

"For real? Seriously? Well, I wouldn't mind giving that prick of a leader the run through, anyway. So, you going to set one of those things off?" asked Hidan.

"Have to. We can't avoid them, and we can't disable them. We do have an advantage, though. Since we know what they are for, we can take measures to incapacitate Pein before he can do anything to us. Let's see… we might as well set off the seal nearest to us. If we place a couple of explosive tags around it and set them to detonate on Pein, he won't be in any shape to give us trouble," spoke Seigai.

"You mean we're going to take the easy way out? What's the fun in that?" asked Hidan.

"He's not coming here to kill us; he's coming here to delay us. I bet he's counting on our willingness to fight him," spoke Seigai.

"I want to chance to attack him head to head so much, it hurts, but we have to avoid delays. We need to do it this way," replied Amika.

"Bah, pansies. Do whatever you want," spoke Hidan.

"It's not like you really have a say on the issue," replied Seigai, as he and Amika set the last of their counter traps.

"Okay, all set. Let's do it," spoke Amika. Seigai nodded in response.

The pair activated the tags they placed around the seal, then promptly activated the seal, achieving the desired effect. The pair backed off, and watched a poof of smoke indicate something had been summoned, followed up by the sound of an explosion.

"There, that should take care of that," spoke Amika.

"It would seem so. I can't see him," replied Seigai, "He likely has it set so that his bodies are summoned away if they take enough damage."

"Whatever, let's get moving then," spoke Hidan. The priest opted to advance before the smoke cleared. Seigai didn't appear to care, until something caught his eye.

"Look out!!" shouted Seigai, as he pulled Amika out of the way.

"Look out for what… fuck!!" shouted Hidan, as a serrated blade gave his body the run through. The smoke cleared to reveal a pair of damaged mechanical arms lying near the summoned seal, and Pein's Asura path, wearing the frown showing his body was in attack mode.

"You could have warned me, you know! This blade fucking hurts like Hell!" shouted Hidan.

"You should know not to walk ahead into a place where your vision will be obscured, baka!!" shouted Seigai.

"Are you done your bickering yet?" asked Pein, as he pulled back his blade.

"Figures you would use this body against us. It's the only body that wouldn't have been disabled by our little trap," replied Seigai.

"Truth be told, I came here on a whim. It would seem that luck is not on your side. That said, I will not go easy on you, just because you are a team of my village," replied Pein.

"I'm well aware of that fact. Amika, ready?" asked Seigai.

"Hai," replied Amika.

"Hidan, can you still fight?" asked Seigai.

"Yeah, yeah, I've had worse done to me before," replied Hidan.

"Alright then, let's see how you deal with this one, Pein," spoke Seigai, as he rapidly went through a chain of hand seals.

"That's…" muttered Pein.

"Suiton: Bakusui shouha! (Water Release: Exploding Water Shockwave)" shouted Seigai.

"Bah!! Not in here!!" shouted Hidan, as Seigai spit out enough water to viciously flood the tunnels. Hidan was swept down the corridor, while Amika and Pein knew to anchor themselves.

"Suiton: Suisou Sattou no Jutsu! (Water Release: Water Spear Rush Technique)" shouted Amika, after making a quick chain of hand seals. The water ahead of Seigai took the form of several spears, rushing towards Pein. The mechanical man barely had time to raise his defenses after being hit by Seigai's jutsu. The spears tore into one of the remaining pairs of arms Pein's Asura Path had, reducing it to one pair of arms.

"Not bad; you managed to take away one of the combat advantages I have with this body. Do not think this means you have managed to best me, though," spoke Pein.

"Hardly, that wasn't meant to finish to job," spoke Seigai, "Rather we…"

Seigai was cut off by a scythe rushing past his head. The scythe tore into Pein's body, knocking him back.

"Fuck if I'm going to let you two have all the fun!!" shouted Hidan, as he pulled himself down the corridor along the cable of his scythe.

"That's all good, but you almost hit me with that piece of shit you call a weapon!" shouted Seigai.

"Blah, blah," spoke Hidan, as he emerged in front of Pein. Hidan was quick to rip his scythe out of Pein's body, damaging the mechanisms for his remaining left arm. Hidan took note of this, and pinned Pein down by his right arm with a couple of his pikes.

"Hit him with something while he can't move!" shouted Hidan, as he backed off.

"Heh, yeah, sure," spoke Seigai, as he ran through a chain of seals.

"Fuuton: Kuukijin Bakuha no Jutsu! (Wind Release: Air Blade Blast Technique)" shouted Seigai, as he released a blast of air from his lungs. Hidan was barely able to get out of the way of the jutsu. The walls along the tunnel was scarred deeply as the blast approached Pein's body. The mechanical man was able to free himself from the ground, but was unable to make it out of the way of Seigai's attack, taking it head on. Pein's Asura path was torn apart by the attack. Pieces of the bodies mechanics scattered down the corridor as the body was completely demolished.

"Well, that wasn't so bad. Perhaps he's not as tough as I thought," spoke Hidan.

"It was only one body. His greatest strength is the ability to work as perfect team with his six bodies. Had he approached us as such, our victory would not have come as quickly," spoke Seigai.

"And though I hate to admit it, Hidan, with your help, we were able to perform as the perfect team, if only for a moment. That's also part of how we were able to defeat Pein so easily," replied Amika.

"Oh? Now you're grateful about having me here? Hah, I just wanted to get a piece of him. If it happened to work out well, then so be it, now let's go. I want to make it to the next part of the tournament. I'll have more chances at making sacrifices during the fights," spoke Hidan, as he led the way down the corridor.

"Now he's rushing… let's go, Amika!" shouted Seigai.

"Hai!" shouted Amika, as the pair followed Hidan down the corridor.

Pein's Asura Path appeared behind Nagato, in all of its parts. The recently restored Naraka path was quick to summon the Naraku no Ou (King of Hell) and restore the damaged body.

"That was my quickest defeat in this tournament so far. Those three would seem to have great potential. They could go far if they learn to work better as a team. Seigai and Amika already have that. Hidan can cover for their weaknesses, if they learn to work together. I look forward to seeing them later on in the tournament. Hmm… it would seem another team is close to one of my trap corridors. Let's see how they fare," spoke Nagato.

In another section of the tunnels, Gaara was leading his siblings through Nagato's maze. They were nearing the end of the tunnels when Gaara had them stop.

"What is it Gaara?" asked Kankuro.

"There are several seals laid throughout the corridor ahead," replied Gaara.

"Can we get around it?" asked Temari.

"That is not possible. All the other corridors lead back down. We must go this way to move forward," replied Gaara.

"You can use your sand to disable them, right?" asked Kankuro.

"Along with your puppets. Precision is most important when disarming seals," replied Gaara.

"Works for me," replied Kankuro, as he summoned Karasu.

"What kind of seals are they?" asked Temari.

"Several explosive tags, but they're merely distractions. The small seals appear to be summoning seals," replied Gaara.

"So, that's why you stopped, instead of using your sand to guard against the explosions," spoke Kankuro.

"Correct. The explosive tags aren't the problem," replied Gaara.

"Do you have an idea of what they would summon?" asked Temari.

"They could summon many several things. My best guess would be either a strong shinobi, or a powerful summon. I have a way to deal with either. It appears that all of the seals are linked in some way, so they likely are set to summon the same thing. That said, it would only take one to bring forth the intended trap. We must be careful with how we disable them," explained Gaara.

"Alright, I'll take care of disarming the summoning seals," replied Kankuro.

"I'll take care of the explosive tags," spoke Gaara, as he summoned his sand, and smothered the explosive tags. Though each one detonated, the compressed sand surrounding them prevented them from bringing harm to either Gaara and his siblings or the tunnel. Kankuro followed Gaara's sand with Karasu, which was picking apart the summoning seals. After Kankuro finished with one, he moved onto the next. Within a few minutes, all of the seals in the corridor were disabled.

"That's the last of them, Gaara," spoke Kankuro.

"No, they are still active. They have a second layer that is part of how they are linked," replied Gaara.

"How can you tell?" asked Temari.

"The same way I've been able to navigate the tunnels. Since the tunnel walls have many earth based materials, I can feel out the properties of anything connected to them with my chakra," explained Gaara.

"Makes sense. Can you disable them, then?" asked Temari.

"Second layer seals are both difficult to make and disarm. I can try, but be prepared to deal with what they summon," replied Gaara.

Gaara sent his sand after the first seal in their path. He attempted to further disrupt the seal with his chakra. He appeared to succeed, and prepared to take care of the next; however, Gaara noticed a reaction from the first seal.

"No good; they are set to go off if one of the seals is broken," replied Gaara, as he took note of which seal had activated, and sent his sand to cover the summoned target. A cloud of smoke signaled that activation of the seal.

"Sabaku Kyuu! (Desert Coffin)" shouted Gaara, covering the target immediately. The smoke disappeared to reveal a figure trapped within Gaara's sand.

"Sabaku Sousou!" shouted Gaara, appearing to crush the target. However, no blood appeared, leaving Gaara with a confused expression.

"There was something there, right?" asked Kankuro.

"It escaped," replied Gaara, while turning to look behind the group.

"Ah, so you noticed," came a feminine voice with a masculine overtone.

Gaara threw several suna shuriken in the direction of the voice. The person owning it ducked and dodged the projectiles.

"Those eyes… you are the leader of this village," spoke Gaara.

"Ah, so you remember my identity. In this form, I am Pein," replied Pein's Animal Path.

"How were you able to escape my sand?" asked Gaara, though he seemed to be looking down the corridor past Pein, rather than at Pein.

"Seems you already have an idea. It does indeed involve those seals. It's a trick I picked up on from a certain blond friend of yours," replied Animal Path Pein, as she made a familiar chain of hand seals.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu! (Summoning Technique)" shouted Pein. A dog, featuring Pein's eyes and piercings appeared before the Suna team.

"Interesting pet you have," spoke Kankuro, as he sent Karasu after it.

"I'll take care of this one, you guys take care of him," spoke Kankuro.

Gaara nodded, as he sent a wave of sand down the corridor towards Pein.

"No, not yet," replied Pein, as she summoned another creature, and disappeared in a cloud of smoke. When the smoke cleared, nothing could be seen.

"She's hiding," spoke Gaara.

"Can you find her?" asked Temari.

"I can," replied Gaara, as his sand quickly got hold of something, and began to cover its form.

"Optical camouflage will not work against me," spoke Gaara.

"Pein removed herself from the summon, and sent it away, facing Gaara and Temari on her own.

"I see. So, that's how you dealt with the seals. Several of the teams that have run into my trap have access to a doujutsu of some kind. Others are using Doton no Jutsu (Earth Release Techniques). As I've confirmed the futility of hiding, allow me to take a more direct approach," spoke Pein, as she brought forth another summon.

"What's with all these summons?" asked Temari.

"The information we have on Nagato and his Pein Rikudou states that each body that is part of Pein has a dedicated ability, and can use nothing beyond that ability," explained Gaara.

"So this one is a summoner? Alright, at least we know that much," spoke Temari.

The summon that appeared out of the smoke before Pein took the form of a armadillo with Pein's eyes and piercings.

"This one, as his last, appears to be an offensive type. I'll take care of the summon, you take care of Pein," spoke Gaara.

"Sure," replied Temari, as she rushed past Pein's summon. The beast attempted to knock the Suna-nin away from a path to its master, but a wall of sand prevented this.

"I'm your target," spoke Gaara.

Further down the corridor, Kankuro was fighting off Pein's dog summon. Karasu was able to weave around it's attacks. Kankuro was safely out of range of its strikes. Karasu pulled out a pair of blades, and began to spin, gaining the attention of the summon. Karasu headed straight into the body of the summon, easily tearing its body in two. Karasu burst through past the summon, covered in its blood.

"That was too easy. That ferocious looking thing looked like a challenge," spoke Kankuro, as he prepared to go back down the corridor to see how Gaara and Temari were doing. Kankuro stopped when he heard growling coming from behind him. Kankuro had Karasu block a strike that would have decapitated the Suna-nin.

"What the Hell!?" shouted Kankuro, as he noticed there were now two dogs in place of the one.

"This is insane. It's bad enough they look like freaks, but they have to have some strange ability, too!?" shouted Kankuro, as he backed away from the pair of beasts.

"Alright, then, if there's more of you, then I'll make it so there's more of me," spoke Kankuro, as he brought forth another puppet.

"Washi, let's do this," spoke Kankuro. Kankuro's new puppet had an appearance similar to that of Karasu. The differences being it's armor was white, and its limbs were thicker than those of its counterpart. The face appeared to have a beak, giving it more of a resemblance to a bird. Two limbs on the back of the puppet appeared to act like wings.

"Let's see how you deal with this pair," spoke Kankuro, as he sent his puppets forward, each one targeting one of the summons. Kankuro was careful to avoid splitting the beast again, surmising it would only add to his problems. Karasu launched poisoned senbon into the first summon, hoping the poison would slow it down. The beast howled in response, and smacked Karasu against the tunnel wall. Kankuro pulled Karasu out of the way of the next strike from the beast, which would have smashed Karasu. The puppet opened one of its arms, and launched several poisoned kunai at the beast, gathering the same reaction as before. Karasu was damaged by the next hit, losing its legs from the force of the hit it took from the summon Kankuro pulled Karasu back as he shifted his focus to dealing with the other summon. Washi's wings opened up to reveal several kunai in place of feathers. Kankuro sent the kunai at the second beast, and pulled Washi back, to avoid the beasts retaliatory strike. Kankuro took note that the pair of summons acted similarly, not appearing to be able to learn from each other's moves.

"I see, they're not linked, so they can't readily learn from one another. That gives me an advantage; if I can take one down, I can take the other down. The question is how? They're too big to trap in Kuroari. I can damage them, but if I split them, that'll just leave me with another opponent to deal with. That leaves only one option; wear them down, and wait for Gaara and Temari to defeat the summoner. The summons should go with her," thought Kankuro, as Washi pulled out a katana to deflect a strike from the summon it was fighting.

Kankuro noticed the pair of summons were attempting to work together. This prompted Kankuro to keep the pair separated. The first summon used a katon jutsu (fire technique) to strike at Karasu. Kankuro pulled his puppet out of the way, and fired a pair of smoke bombs in the direction of the creature. Washi folded it's wings against a similar katon jutsu. The wings metal form prevented the fire from damaging the wooden parts of the puppet. As the jutsu dissipated, the puppet fired a round of kunai from a compartment in its chest, all focused on one of the summon's legs. The beast let out a howl as it lost use of its leg. Kankuro saw his opportunity, and disabled the other front leg, causing the beast to fall on its face. This action enraged the beast further. It responded by attempting to stand on its hind legs. The height of the tunnel made this task impossible, rendering the beast incapacitated. Kankuro sent Washi to aid Karasu, going for the front pairs of legs. The second beast fell to the same fate of the first. Both roared in pain and anger at what Kankuro had brought upon them. The pair of beasts launched another katon jutsu in response. Kankuro pulled himself and his puppets out of its range, and kept a careful eye on the beasts to see if they had any more tricks up their sleeve. They attempted to push forward, but made little progress, ceasing their efforts on striking back at Kankuro.

"Good thing this place doesn't really leave a lot of room for creatures that size," spoke Kankuro, as he looked in the direction of where Gaara and Temari headed.

Further along the tunnels, sand exploded against the form of the creature Gaara was fighting. The armadillo had tucked itself into a ball, and began rolling towards Gaara. Gaara responded by forming a solid sphere of sand around him. The sphere took the full impact of the armadillo's strike. Gaara held his ground and began to manipulate the armor shell around him. Spikes began to protrude from the form of the sphere, pushing the armadillo away. Its armor shell protected it from any harm. The beast stood back, and took at look at its target. Gaara, upon noticing the beast had stepped back, broke his form to stare at the beast eye to eye. For a moment, the pair did nothing but attempt to measure the strength of the other. The moment of silence was broken when the armadillo fired off several needles from the ends of its fingers. Gaara's shield of sand blocked each projectile. The armadillo responded by throwing large rocks it pulled out of the tunnel walls. The shield of sand was also capable of repelling them. The armadillo roared as it curled up in to a ball, and prepared to charge Gaara once again. Instead of retreating into an armor shell, Gaara opted to pull up a wall of sand, halting the progress of the creature.

"Your defense is powerful. Conventional jutsu will have no effect. Let's see how a well your defense holds against this," spoke Gaara, as he ground the minerals of the tunnel down to increase his supply of sand. The newly formed sand approached Gaara's hand and began to take the form of a weapon.

"Saikou Zettai Hougeki: Shukaku no Houkou, (Ultimate Absolute Attack: Shukaku's Halberd)" spoke Gaara, as the sand forming in his hand took the form of a halberd.

The armadillo continued to wear down the wall of sand Gaara had created. Gaara could sense his wall being eroded away. Gaara stood at ready, waiting for his wall to collapse. Within the next several seconds, the wall was torn through, and the armadillo rushed towards Gaara. The kazekage took his weapon, and thrust it into the form of the armadillo. Gaara was knocked back by the force of the beast's momentum; however, the beast halted upon being struck by Gaara's weapon. The halberd had pierced the armor of the beast. The creature rolled back, and pulled out of its armored shell. The beast screamed out from being injured. Gaara took note of the beast's exposure of its soft underside, and let forth a barrage of suna shuriken. The beast roared further. The force of the weapons the beast was struck with knocked it on its back. Gaara noticed the armadillo was struggling to get up, but was unable to do so. Gaara kept a careful eye on the beast for a few moments, making sure it was incapacitated, before deciding to join Temari.

Temari and Pein's stare down lasted only a few seconds, before Temari opened her fan, and swung it towards her opponent.

"Kamaitachi no Jutsu! (Cutting Whirlwind Technique)" shouted Temari. Violent winds were sent down the corridor. Pein appeared to disappear in the debris thrown about from the destruction of the corridor. Temari smirked at what she believed to be an easy victory.

"You know, you should be a little more discreet. You could collapse this tunnel if you continue to attack me like that," spoke Pein, from behind Temari. She appeared to be unscathed. Temari swung her fan again, only to see Pein disappear before she could be hit.

Pein pulled out a chakra blade, and ran towards Temari, landing a hit before Temari could respond to Pein's new location. Temari felt her chakra flow being disrupted from the strike, but was able to block the next with her fan.

"Oh, not too bad, I was hoping you would give me some kind of challenge," spoke Pein. Temari smiled as she swung her fan again. Temari acted on the assumption that Pein was moving with speed, meaning she wouldn't be able to evade her attacks if she was close. Temari thought she had Pein, only to see her disappear again.

"How is that possible. There's no way you could do that at this range," spoke Temari, as she instinctively swung around to block another attack from Pein. Her instincts proved to be correct, protecting her from taking another direct hit. Temari noticed that Pein appeared behind her in a slightly different position from before. Pondering the reasoning behind that, Temari staved off another sequence of strikes from Pein's chakra blades before swinging her fan again.

"I would hope you would have learned by now your jutsu will not hurt me," spoke Pein.

Temari smiled as she continued to block strike after strike. Temari switched to using her fan as a club for the time being. Pein had the better speed between the pair, leaving Temari in a position where she was unable to attack. Temari was slowly being knocked down the corridor. Pein came close to hitting Temari several times. Temari took note that even a near miss disrupted the flow of chakra in her body.

"That's a strange weapon you have," spoke Temari, as she blocked another strike from Pein.

"It's unique to me, a holder of the Rinnegan," replied Pein.

"I see," spoke Temari. The pair could hear several crashes coming from down the corridor, as the pair moved closer to where the other battles were taking place.

"Well, as much as I would like to continue this show, I think it's about time for it to end," spoke Temari, as she leaped back, and swung her fan again. Pein smiled in response.

"Kamaitachi no Jutsu!" shouted Temari. Her wind once again went rolling down the tunnel. Pein was prepared to evade when she noticed she was not the target of the attack. Temari took a couple more swings, all of her jutsu missed Pein.

"I couldn't have worn you down so quickly. Do you have problems with hitting your target?" asked Pein. Temari answered with a grin before performing her jutsu again, this time at the corridor behind the pair.

"What are you doing… wait… you couldn't have!" shouted Pein.

"I remember what you and Gaara were talking about earlier. You said something about seals and a trick you picked up from a blond. I'm guessing by trick, you mean some kind of space-time jutsu. That's how you were able to avoid my attacks without taking a scratch. If it was speed, I would have hit you by now, even if said hit was nothing more than a tear in your cloak. Then I noticed that whenever you would appear and reappear, you wouldn't appear in the same place twice. I figured that meant it used seals that could only be used once. After realizing all this, I decided to take a defensive stance, and see how far you would push me down the corridor. I figured you would stop if we got too far from your seals. Seeing as you slowed your attacks at this point, I figured we were close," explained Temari.

"Ah, very good. You figured out how to disable my jutsu. If Gaara didn't have the ability to pick up on the seals I used, you would have never stood a chance. Well, just because you took one part of my strategy away doesn't mean I don't have more tricks to use," spoke Pein.

"Seeing as you can only summon, I doubt your tricks will amuse me that much," spoke Temari, as she charged a large burst of chakra into her fan.

"Daikamaitachi no jutsu! (Great Cutting Whirlwind Technique)" shouted Temari.

"So you were holding back… perhaps I was a little careless," spoke Pein, as she took the hit head on. She disappeared in a cloud of smoke once again, making Temari look behind her to see if Pein was there. Upon seeing no one, Temari investigated the place where Pein was. She took note of the blood splattered along the ground where Pein was standing.

"Looks like I got her this time," spoke Temari.

As Gaara and Kankuro were leaving the summons they fought behind, they noticed a cloud of smoke coming from each, showing they were no longer there. The pair interpreted it to mean Temari had taken care of Pein. Upon catching up to her, they confirmed their suspicion.

"Takes care of that," spoke Temari, with a grin on her face.

"Good work," spoke Gaara. Within the next few moments, the tunnels ahead of them collapsed.

"Temari…" muttered Kankuro.

"I guess I got a little carried away," spoke Temari.

"I can clear it; we won't have to go around," spoke Gaara, as he pushed his sand through the cracks, smashing the debris back into the walls.

"I told you that was going to happen," came the voice of Pein. Temari and Kankuro turned around to see the summoner. She appeared to be injured badly. Her clothes were stained with blood, and wounds covered her body.

"I won't fight you anymore. My purpose was to stall you. I'm sure you realize the exit is at the end of that corridor. Congratulations on being the first to pass," spoke Pein, before she disappeared again.

"I'm not sure whether she did that to congratulate us, as she said, or take a jab at me," spoke Temari.

"I would say both," spoke Kankuro, before being hit on the head by Temari.

"The tunnel is clear," spoke Gaara, as the trio raced for the end of the corridor, and opened the hatch above them.

"The team from Suna has put up the most fight so far," spoke Nagato, as he took note of the first team to make it to the surface.

"What makes you say that?" asked Konan, who had visited Nagato to see how he was doing.

"They were able to fight off a pair of my strongest summons, as well as deal with my version of the jutsu that defeated me. Most impressive," replied Nagato.

"Is that so?" asked Konan.

"Well, the tunnels did help them out. My summons had trouble fighting in them, and it was easy to find the seals used for Naruto's Hiraishin no Jutsu. (Flying Thundergod Technique) However, it's no small feat to be able to go one to one with summons in the manner they did," explained Nagato.

"Is it such a surprise that a kage and his siblings were able to do such a thing?" asked Konan.

"Not at all. I'm impressed all the same, though," replied Pein.

"I see," spoke Konan.

"There's still a day and a half left. I won't interfere in the tunnels for the duration of the first part of the tournament. Come, let's enjoy the festivities taking place in our village," replied Nagato.

"After we personally congratulate the kazekage's team. Yahiko is already on his way there," spoke Konan.

"Ah, right, we should do that," replied Nagato.

Over the course of the next day and a half, other teams emerged from the tunnels. Some teams appeared to be more worn out than others. Some teams almost clashed upon seeing each other again. At the end of the first round, sixteen of the eighteen teams emerged from the tunnels. One team from Kusa and one team from Taki failed to make it out of the tunnels.

"I congratulate all of you for passing through the first round of the tournament. You have all done well to represent your villages," spoke Pein's Deva Path to the teams who passed the first round of his tournament.

"You will have two days to rest and prepare for the next round of the tournament. For those of you who ran into other teams, I would advise you to take note of what you learned in those fights, as well as alter your strategies to avoid being figured out, should you meet again in battle."

"Hai!" shouted the shinobi before Pein.

"I look forward to a good showing," spoke Pein, before sending the teams off.

Pein could read the faces of the shinobi presented before him. He could feel the tension raised in the first part of the tournament. His original purpose for the first round was to create some unease, as well as allow the combatants to understand each other better. Pein, as well as everyone else, greatly looked forward to the next round of the tournament.

A/N: Before anyone points it out to me, I realize Pein's Naraka Path did not have the ability to transform. At the time I introduced the Naraka Path into Warriors of the Leaf, the Naraka Path's abilities had yet to have been revealed, so I made one up, and kept it for consistency. As for Kankuro's new puppet, since we do not know of the abilities of the new puppet he's revealed, I made up a puppet for him. Washi, written as鷲, means eagle. The name is a clue to its abilities. Thanks for reading, and please remember to review.