"No. Hatake Kakashi and Maito Gai are attempting to disrupt it." Indeed, the two are attempting to demolish the barrier she has erected around herself. Kankurou and Temari are attempting to get in the way, unsuccessfully. The Sand team's jounin sensei joins the fray and pushes Kakashi and Gai back long enough for Temari to slice into the sand and Kankurou to pull Elieyha out. She seems to be unconscious. The two of them take her and flee.

"Right."

He's freaked out by a lot so it's really easy to make several massive waves of clones, to go into the stands and start waking anyone with a Konoha headband - and also doing his best to foul up their enemies, though he tries not to get in the way of on-going fights over his level. Still, a few chuunin can also get the bonus of their opponents being dog-piled by Naruto clones.

Some of the clones approach Kakashi-sensei to try and get orders as to what the fuck should the genin be even doing (or if he has orders the clones should be passing on to newly awakened people, that'd be great, right now he's got a few clones dealing with a couple of other freaked out genin asking him where to go), though they keep out of the fight. Hopefully since they're clones Kakashi-sensei won't get distracted keeping them safe -

(Also ahhhhhh several clones see someone cut open or die and - )

(He's somewhere between scared and pissed as the memories flood back in from every destroyed clone - )

Naruto and the others who were competing today are to go as group after Elieyha and the other Sand genin and make sure they don't come back. Pakkun will be their tracker, and if they find any other Konoha genin on their way out of town, take them too. Sasuke will have operational command.

Right!

A clone near Kakashi dismisses, relaying that to the genin box. A couple of Naruto clones positioned high up then dismiss on their own, relaying the state of the village around the arena.

" - Right. We have eight people. If I'm out of commission, Chihiro has command. Neji, I want you checking the area around us for approaching enemies. When we catch up - Shino, you're on Kankurou. Shikamaru, try to catch Temari in your shadow possession. Me and Naruto will worry about Elieyha. Tenten, Neji, Chihiro, I need you three more mobile. They might have allies around, or might have techniques we're not expecting."

There are various acknowledgements. Pakkun arrives to lead them out.

And they're off.

(And a certain group of nine Sound shinobi, previously disguised in the village, begin to track them. They have their orders, after all, and what are seven unsuspecting genin and a dog against nine chuunin?)

Pakkun alerts Sasuke to the fact that they're being followed before they get too close. Neji confirms their numbers, they're at the edge of his range.

They don't have time to all fall back together, not with Elieyha potentially capable of accessing her tailed beast - 

Logically, Chihiro or Tenten are the best matches for large groups.

Logically, Sugira should take one or both with him.

Sugira is not actually very good at being logical.

"I'll hold them off. Chihiro has command."

And he's falling back before anyone can protest.

"We continue forward. Pakkun." She nods for him to continue the chase.

He refreshes the spells he spent against Elieyha.

Goes invisible, layers himself with every single protective spell he has, recasts Expeditious Retreat, refreshes those and replaces them with combat spells, lies in wait - 

And gets a perfect shot. Five enemies in a rough line - 

His opening move is a lightning bolt. It only downs two of them, but the other three aren't unscathed, and they're staggered, clearly surprised by his appearance.

They're even more surprised when the first flicker from Blink flings him in and out of the Ethereal Plane just in time to avoid a hail of kunai.

Of course, their ranged attacks - the few that hit - do no damage. His Protection from Arrows is enough for twenty kunai easily, more shuriken, which means he doesn't have to bother dodging just yet. Makes him harder to shepherd, makes it easier for him to stay on the move - 

He's not being careful. Not now, not against nine - now seven - elite opponents who could kill his team and have shown themselves willing to hunt children - 

He flows through one's attack, cuts him wide from hip to shoulder. Immediately teleports behind another, slams a kunai into his spine.

Another gets taken down with lightning rays. One goes down to a kunai in his throat (dead, dead, definitely dead, fuck but Sugira can't afford mercy, not as weak as he is - )

A blow lands, Sugira not blinking nor teleporting away fast enough. He goes flying into a tree; something in his ribs cracks. He ignores it. Keeps moving, keeps fighting - 

He's down to three opponents. The cautious ones, who realized early Sugira is more than an annoyance, more than a genin. All three have drawn melee weapons; good, that means they're unlikely to keep testing Sugira's ranged protections, and they'll have to catch him - 

He has three memorized spells left and his sword's slot by the time he's down to two opponents. Their unlucky third is another casualty to his True Strike and kunai combination. (Chuunin are, he notes clinically, much easier to hit than jounin).

The second to last he takes down with his last True Strike and a lightning ray.

The last - 

Sugira doesn't catch the last in time.

A sword goes through his gut. His opponent's too close, slamming him into a tree for good measure, and something sharp manages a screaming protest in Sugira's side - 

Sugira grabs his opponent's shirt and, silently, motionlessly, casts Shocking Grasp.

The woman falls, dead or unconscious, and Sugira collapses next to her.

Six seconds to restore Excluded Grimoire from memory. He keeps the sword in. He needs to not bleed out.

Six seconds to memorize each healing spell. He's getting blood on his spellbook. It doesn't matter. The pages just silently absorb the fluid.

He memorizes as many as he can before his vision goes grey.

He can't heal himself speared like this - 

He removes the blade from his stomach.

There's a screaming somewhere distant. He thinks it's just his ears.

Casting is - 

He coughs on the words several time. The gut wound isn't, actually, that much of an impediment, but as he tries to speak he's realizing the renewed ache in his side is bad, actually, and his lungs are filling with blood.

He's practiced under fire. He doesn't lose the spells -

And three minutes after taking down his last opponent, Sugira takes a deep breath, healed.

He flips his spell-book to another page. He doesn't have many spells left, today, not if he still wants to be able to think straight - 

But he can maybe turn the fight against Elieyha.

He stores his spellbook back in the Ethereal Plane, stands, and turns to run.

(He knows where his team was going.)

Naruto has transcended angry.

Elieyha threatened his friends, Sasuke's probably dead even if no one's telling him that - 

This anger burns. His blood, his skin, the bark beneath his clawed hands. The world is awash with red.

(There's a foreign rage. How dare these humans confine him, how dare Shukaku mock him that little upstart twerp - )

One tail of Nine Tails chakra is, it turns out, enough to go toe-to-toe with Shukaku.

It's not enough to win.

Naruto screams in anger - in pain, as his palms blister - 

A second tail is beginning to form.

Sugira is past cursing.

He moves. 

Shukaku is bad. Naruto losing himself to the Nine Tails is potentially worse.

He can only catch one's gaze at a time.

The first he manages is Naruto, when the blond whirls with a snarl at the noise of Sugira's approach - 

And he's elsewhere.

The stone walls are lit by a source-less light. Water swirls around his knees. Massive bars cut the room off on one end, and a single red eye glows in the darkness.

He's in a mindscape.

He hadn't realized how much he missed being in the body he pictures himself in.

Sugira takes a breath, looking at the world from his full height for the first time in five years.

A mental reach, and - 

He has his spells.

All six levels of them, and there's a wire humming in the back of his mind.

Sugira starts sorting through the ones he knows - and these aren't his usual set. He's suspecting a certain omnipotent asshole has been interfering...

As he does so, he looks around for his teammate.

Naruto's kneeling at the base of the bars, near the crack, holding onto his shoulders, trying not to scream as the scalding water - the anger - washes over him.

Sugira puts a hand on his shoulder. Cure, for the damage dealt, and Protection from Energy for the rest.

"Nine Tails!" he calls, voice echoing. "Nine Tails, you leave him alone."

"And why should I, mortal?" growls a voice fit to shake mountains. "Why should I leave my jailer alone so I may rot in my cell?"

"He's a child! He's done nothing except be born." He wants to threaten the fox, but - he has some sense. "He would be your friend, if you'd let him - your ally."

"What do I care, for the petty friendships of mortals?"

"For what we may do. What we may become."

He steps forward, more beside Naruto.

"This world is in shambles. I'm going to fix it, and when I do - 

"I'll make sure you're free, and Naruto's unharmed by it. Whether or not I then cut you off from everyone you could potentially harm depends largely on your actions going forward."

"Bold words. What does your brat of a friend say?"

He has no idea why Sasuke's suddenly an adult.

"I say fixing things starts with making friends. I'm Naruto. What's your name?"

That gives the fox pause. "I don't owe you my name, mortal," he growls after a moment. "A measly thing like you has hardly earned it."

But his gaze sweeps over them both. "Still... I am older than these mountains. I know patience. I will wait and see what you make of this world, and when you fail, as all humans fail, I will be free."