Shinobi Isekai!

So It Must Be, For So It Is Written

Ah, the preliminaries.

Also known as the part where Hanako finds out if random generation can be canon.

Hanako sat with her back against the wall, listening with her eyes closed as the other participants complained about the arrangement. True, the preliminaries were a little unorthodox, and no one except her had really anticipated them, but to complain so loudly with the Hokage in earshot was a little...

"Hey, brat."

Hanako opened her eyes and looked up at Shikaku Nara, her sensei smirking down at her benignly.

"Hay serpientes en el bosque. Tenemos que decirle a Anko."

She watched as his smile froze before growing. His eyes were serious as he spoke. "Entiendo. Algo mas?" His accent was still a little weird, but way better than Shikamaru's.

"Hay crías en las hojas. Su madre está disfrazada de sonido."

He nodded, patting her on the head as he turned around and made his way to the Hokage on the other side of the arena. All along the raised walkway, teams stood with their senseis. The air was tense with anticipation, and even Hanako wasn't immune.

Things were different now.

And it wasn't just her presence she had to worry about. Kabuto hadn't dropped out. Instead, a member of the Kumo team had stepped down, citing injury, leaving an uneven number of participants. To make up for this, one genin would get through to the finals without a fight.

Heck, the Kumo team was the most worrisome aspect of all this. Orochimaru and his spies were easily countered, but these guys? These guys had Killer Bee as a sensei. The Hachibi jinchuriki stood leaning against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest, gaze obscured by dark sunglasses. The two Kumo genin still fighting stood nearby, their own expressions closed off and guarded.

Whose idea had it been to invite them? Did no one see the potential for disaster there?

Whatever. On the bright side, Neji had set aside some of his animosity to stand in front of a cowering Hinata, glaring at the foreigners from the exact opposite side of the arena. Enemy of my enemy, and all that.

The giant screen hanging from the ceiling chimed loudly and everyone looked up at it.

Huh. Sasuke vs. Yoroi.

Just like canon.

And, unlike canon, Sasuke had no curse mark to hold him back.

An easy win, then.

"Hey," Sakura said with a scowl when Hanako remained where she was. "Aren't you gonna watch?"

Hanako shrugged. "What's the point? The outcome's already decided."

"Huh? What do you mean, Hana-chan?" Oh, Naruto.

"She's right," Shikamaru drawled as he took a seat beside her. "Sasuke's got this in the bag. Why waste energy watching when we can be planning, instead?"

Hanako nodded. Her thoughts exactly.

Sakura pursed her lips and turned her attention back to the fight just in time to watch Sasuke land his finishing blow.

Not even two minutes, dang.

Well, that's Sasuke for ya.

Next up, Shino vs. Zaku the annoying Oto guy.

Again, just like canon.

At this rate, it looked like nothing was going to change. Hanako felt goosebumps rising all over her skin. If nothing changed, then Lee...