Chapter 9
The next day, early in the morning, Jiraiya had all the members of his family gathered in the dining room. There were all those who were supposed to participate in his plan. Or at least who had to be the first to hear him. So Minato with Kushina, Kurama, Tsunade and of course Naruto.
„Why are we all here so early? ” Kurama yawned.
„Because I came up with a plan to cheer Naruto for good and at the same time to expand this kingdom,” Jiraiya smiled happily.
„And your idea is?” Minato urged.
„I feel bad about that,” Naruto muttered.
„My idea is to have a tournament for Naruto's hand. Anyone from the surrounding kingdoms will be able to sign up. Of course, it won't just be that way. They will have to complete three difficult tasks to be worthy of Naruto at all.”
„I was right. That's a bad idea. I don't agree,” Naruto said angrily. „How can you decide for me like that! You're just like the others! ” he got angry and went to his room.
„Naruto!” Kushina shouted, but in vain.
„Just leave him. He'll be fine” Jiraiya smiled.
„I don't think that's a very good idea. It can only make Naruto worse,” Minato said seriously.
„Let me finish. What if Naruto's friend signed up for the tournament? And would he happen to win? That would solve everything. Yours and Naruto's problem.”
„The problem is, I let him die. I saw life run out of him,” Kurama said.
„Maybe you only saw what you wanted to see,” he replied mysteriously.
„What do you mean?” Tsunade interjected.
„Do you believe me or not?”
„How do you want to do that?” Minato asked.
„That's how I like it. First, we will send to all the kingdoms that there will be a tournament and the main prize will be a wedding with the prince. We'll give it a month. I think it will be best. I have everything perfectly thought out. All you have to do is prepare the place where the tournament will take place.”
A month later, everything was fully prepared. A total of five candidates entered the tournament. The list consisted of Itachi and Sasuke of the Kingdom of the Uchiha, a mysterious foreigner who introduced himself as Shukaku and represented the Sand Kingdom, Neji, who represented the Kingdom of Hyuga. The last was a masked stranger who introduced himself as Tobi and represented the expanding kingdom of Akatsuki.
All the suitors met in the throne room, where Minato and Kushina sat on the throne in front of them.
„I warmly welcome you to our kingdom. Since you have all entered the tournament for my son's hand, guests will be welcome here for the duration of the tournament. Each of you will get a room and you will be perfectly taken care of. The already expected tournament will start tomorrow. In order for no one to have an advantage over the others, the discipline will always be announced at the tournament. Is everything clear?” the king greeted his guests.
„Of course, Your Highness,” Itachi replied politely for all his colleagues.
„Alright, tomorrow the tournament starts at nine o'clock in the morning. I believe that before the tournament ends, our castle will be a pleasant home for you,” he agreed, and the suitors went to their chambers. Naruto watched the whole process behind a false wall. He already hopes that no one will win. He especially doesn't want to end up with Sasuke and Neji…, and actually with no one else.
Time flew like water and night quickly turned into day. From early in the morning, people tried to take the places with the best views. The last adjustments and preparations were in full swing. At exactly nine, all the suitors were ready for the first task. The royal family was sitting in the stands, and this time Naruto and Kurama must have been there. There were also Tsunade and Jiraiya, who smiled as if they had known the whole course of the tournament for a long time.
„Ladies and gentlemen, dear suitors, I hereby declare this tournament open. Everyone be prepared because the first discipline is coming. Today's discipline will be archery. Who hits the centre of the target wins and at the same time advances to the next day. Who loses automatically drops out. This doesn't mean that he must leave the kingdom immediately. The loser can stay here in peace until the end of his stay. I wish you all good luck in the match and let the best one win!” with this solemn speech, the king began the expected tournament.
All the candidates stood on their posts and checked their bows once more. Itachi Uchiha was the first to arrive. In front of him were three targets in a row, which overlapped and were separated by ten meters. Itachi took an arrow and set it on fire. He drew his bow, aimed, and hit the second target with absolute accuracy. His arrow flew through the centre of the first target and hit the centre of the second. It couldn't be otherwise, as the first target was on fire and there was a hole in the centre, and of course, everyone could see the burning centre of the second target. The crowd applauded in astonishment. The prince cleared the bow aside again and turned to the audience. He bowed and stepped aside to get a better view of his brother, who was to follow him.
Young Uchiha watched it all with resentment in his eyes. Now everyone thinks Itachi is the better one. He hated that feeling. Sasuke took three straight arrows and drew his bow. He focused on the target and tried to imagine the result. He exhaled and fired. All his arrows hit the exact centre of the first. This attempt was followed by loud applause and the whistling of the fans, which Prince Sasuke had blessedly. Sasuke turned to his brother and grinned triumphantly. Itachi smiled fondly at him. He was happy with his brother.
He was followed by Neji, who carried his head as proudly as Sasuke. Without any circumstances, he took an arrow and fired. He shot the first target and, like Itachi, hit the second. But that was not the end of his work. He immediately took another arrow and fired again. This arrow hit the first one and halved it at the same time. The crowd applauded like mad. They hadn't seen such a performance for a long time.
This was followed by a stranger from the Sand Kingdom. Shukaku was wearing a white shirt and a red cloak with a hood that fell to his face, so the suitor's identity was completely hidden. Shukaku took an arrow and aimed at his target. He just stood there for a moment, and it seemed as if he was incredibly focused when he finally fixed his gaze on the royal family, directly on Naruto, and fired. His arrow flew through the first and second targets and stabbed into the centre of the last target. The crowd didn't even mourn for a second before giving staggering applause. The suitor was oblivious to the applause and instead returned to the shadow of his post to make room for the last participant.
The last suitor called himself Tobi, and except for his black hair, he couldn't tell what he looked like, as he was wearing a long black robe with red ornaments and an orange mask that covered his face. Tobi drew his bow and fired. As with the previous suitor, the arrow hit the third target. In an instant, Tobi fired another arrow, halving the first, while also hitting the third target, and his second arrow struck the fence that bounded the tournament field. The crowd went crazy, clapping and whistling. Such experienced suitors, when one was better than the other and most of them were so handsome. Now they just had to wait until the end of today's tournament to announce the results. Until then, our competitors could rest.