Rian's walking down one of the less populated streets, chattering lightly with her teammates, Sakura and Mariko. It's a clear day in Konoha, and they're wondering if they have a new mission, since their sensei was called away to a meeting. There's some speculation over what it could be.
Mariko offhandedly insults Sakura, resulting in a brief chase between the two of them as Sakura tries to punch her teammate. Rian just snickers when Mariko tries to hide behind her.
"Or Sharingan," says Elieyha, breaking silence. "So much for the famed Uchiha. Disappointing."
"Her kenjutsu is excellent, though. Even with the disorientation genjutsu."
Next -
Elieyha versus Haruno Sakura, who takes one look at her opponent then shouts, "I concede the match!" before even bothering to go down to the arena.
(Anyone Mariko is wary of is someone Sakura really, really doesn't want to tangle with. Sakura can be headstrong, but she's never been accused of being suicidal.)
What.
Sand seeps out of the gourd past the cork as she strides threateningly over to below where Sakura is standing.
"The preliminaries are over," the proctor declares. He and the gathered Leaf jounin are all watching Elieyha. "Rock Lee gets a bye. Those who are going on to the finals line up in front of me."
"Elieyha," the proctor says sharply, as the Leaf genin (Neji, Lee, Mariko, Rian, and Shino) go to line up as well.
Sakura's jounin sensei steps protectively in front of her, glaring down Elieyha.
She bares her teeth and holds the glare for a moment longer before turning on her heel and striding off to where the rest are lined up.
The Hokage comes down and gives another short speech, then they're told to pick out pieces of paper to determine their ordering in the finals.
The finals end up looking like so:
First Tsubasa versus Rock Lee, then Uzumaki Mariko versus Hyuuga Neji, then Kankurou versus Aburame Shino, then lastly Elieyha versus Uchiha Rian.
The one they didn't get too see. He looks... eager.
The bodysuit is a questionable fashion choice.
Lee is definitely very enthusiastic about the finals. And loud. And convinced he'll be facing Neji in the second round.
(Mariko is staring at Neji and mouthing 'you're going down'.)
They're told the date of the final test - one month from today - and then the Hokage explains the tournament structure, that they'll be tested on more than just ability to win, and finally dismisses them.
The Sand team manages to extricate from the Tower and back to their rooms without incident. The two of them that are not Elieyha are given strict instructions by their jounin to watch her carefully and not let her cause any trouble. Easier said than done. She really wants to kill someone, and he's only got so much chakra with which to run puppets to distract her. He and Tsubasa are not really at a level where they can be proper training partners long-term. He mentions as much to the jounin. A short time later, a collection of very interesting scrolls appears, some bearing the mark of the Leaf or clans belonging thereto. He leaves them where Elieyha can find them.
With the time this buys him, he can prepare for his match. Researching and preparing insecticides mostly, both gaseous and contact varieties. There's also the possibility that the bugs will latch onto his chakra strings, so he practices quickly breaking and reforming them.
What Tsubasa needs first is information. She doesn't know anything about who her opponent is or how he fights.
There are a lot of training grounds in the woods. She ghosts through them, looking for Rock Lee.
Who can be found rather loudly attacking a wooden training post. There's a noticeable dent in the side, and he's counting his strikes out loud - "One hundred forty one, one hundred forty two, one hundred forty three - "
After he finishes, he stretches, then declares, "Yosh! I will now run ten laps around the village! If I fail, I will do two hundred push-ups with only one hand!" And then he's off.
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