Chapter 04: Arrival
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Disclaimer: We of British Outback Inc. do not own Naruto, which is the property of Kishimoto. Any songs that we use will be declared at the end of the chapter.
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Two months passed before the Chuunin Exams drew near, and Konoha was busy preparing for the visiting dignitaries and shinobi. The higher ups also focused on training up their Chuunin hopefuls, while the chuunin and unassigned jounin organized the exams. But Konoha wasn't the only village to prepare for the exams. Every village had sent teams, and they were all converging on Konoha within a weeks' time.
The Oto Genin were approaching Konoha, moving at a comfortable pace. Their jounin leaders trailed a little behind, discussing the most recent training that they had given their teams when Juugo spoke up for the first time since they left Otogakure.
"The melody here…it's unnatural. It feels as though Konoha is marching to the beat of war drums."
"It's really obvious if you noticed it, ya psycho." Suigetsu said as he walked behind Juugo and Nanashi, ducking as Juugo suddenly swung his hand backwards, the back of his hand connecting to the zanbatou's hilt that showed over Suigetsu's shoulder. This was enough to spin Suigetsu around, but before he could retaliate, a spike of bone embedded itself in the ground between the two.
"It would be best if you two would wait until the exams to take care of that pent up energy," a white haired man said, glaring at Suigetsu in particular.
"Yes, Kimimaro-Sensei."
They continued on in silence until they reached the Gates of Konoha. There they were stopped by two ROOT operatives, who checked their belongings to prevent illegal goods to be smuggled in and directed the group to two Chuunin sitting at the check-in station.
"Well who do we have here? You two still working the Gates?" Orochimaru chuckled as the two guards paled, "We are here for the exams Kotetsu, Izumo."
"Y-yes, of course Orochimaru-sama. Please let us see your passports." Izumo stuttered out, clearly unnerved at the Snake Sannin's whimsical attitude. The Oto ninja turned over their passports one at a time, Kotetsu cross checked them with a list in his hand.
"Everything checks out. Each team has a single three room suite reserved for them at the Ha-Tobure-Ku Inn. Jounin captains are to check in with Lord Hokage while the Genin are free to roam around these areas," at this Kotetsu handed each team a map, "The red areas are forbidden for you to enter, doing so will result in dropping out of the exams and being detained for questioning, unless you have very good reasons. The training grounds marked in green are normally unused by our shinobi and you may use them if you wish."
Turning to the Genin, Orochimaru dismissed them, telling them to stay with their team and to meet them at the Inn at sun down. The teams walked off, splitting up as they went.
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"This Danzo sure seems full of himself," Jirobo commented as they entered the Meeting Room, waiting for Danzo to come out to meet with them. The room contained an ornate throne on a raised platform, protected by a strong barrier seal.
"Paranoid as well," Kabuto commented as he pushed his glasses up.
"A touch of paranoia can keep you alive, considering my given company," Danzo said, sitting down on the throne, flanked by several ROOT members.
"Of course," Orochimaru hissed, his eyes narrowing, "We were told to meet you here for something important?"
"It is an important matter for me, all I wish for is that any jounin leader with Genin in the exams give their word that they will control their students to prevent any mishaps that could affect both villages, and I will give my word that I will do the same with civilians and Shinobi of Konoha."
Orochimaru frowned, they would need something more concrete than that.
"Hokage-sama, If I may," one of the other jounin, Ryuku, interjected, "Given the previous history with many of our villagers and some shinobi with Konoha, I believe that Orochimaru-sama would feel it better if we had a more… permanent agreement for the duration of the exams. Perhaps in writing?"
Orochimaru chuckled once more. Despite Ryuku's fearsome appearance and reputation, he was first and foremost a spy and intelligence agent.
"That would indeed put my mind at ease, Danzo-san. Would that be acceptable for you?"
Danzo looked as impassive as ever, but inside he was trashing and rewriting many of his plans for the Oto-nin. If he wanted them to stay for the exams, and prove that Konoha could overcome any village, he would have to agree.
"Of course, Fu, fetch a blank ceasefire document, Torune, take some others and retrieve the Clan heads to witness this," Danzo ordered before turning back to the assemble Oto-nin, "Do you wish for your teams to be brought here to witness this?"
"No, the six of us make up most of the Oto Ruling Council. The other four have teams that were passed over in the interviews, but that's more than enough to run the village."
After the document was written up and the Clan heads where assembled, Danzo walked through the barrier and signed the ceasefire while stating, "I, Danzo Shimura the Fifth Hokage, state that I will keep the populace and shinobi of Konoha from starting any hostilities with the Otogakure representatives outside of the exams."
Ryuku and Fausuto signed, stating that as the Jounin Squad leaders, they would take responsibility for the actions of their Genin outside of the exams. Jirobo was next.
"I, Jirobo of the South Gate, state that I will take responsibility for the Genin of my squad outside of the Chuunin Exams"
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At the Same Time
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Tenten sat on a low wall watching her sensei and teammate get into a competition over who could do more push-ups, her other teammate Neji Hyuuga standing close by under a tree. Feeling bored, she pulled a kunai from one of her many pouches and began flipping in the air. By the time the two fitness freaks had reached two hundred pushups, a large Red-tailed hawk swooped down and snatched her kunai in mid toss, before circling above them.
"Hey bird brain! Get back here with that!" Tenten yelled, readying a handful of shuriken, ready to take the bird out of the air when a loud and piercing whistle reached them and the hawk dived towards the entrance of the training grounds.
"Hey Panda-girl, been a while, eh?"
Tenten stared at a childhood tormentor from the early days in the academy. Despite being a year younger than Tenten, this purple-haired girl was able to bully her and several others from many of the classes due to her having higher chakra reserves and strength than most of the others in the first few years of the Academy. Last she had heard, Ami had disappeared after the Raid, reports saying that she was carried off by a hawk summon.
"H-how? You were kidnapped!"
"My father worked for Orochimaru-sama while he was still a Konoha-nin, but the civilians murdered my family not long after he fled. I got lucky and escaped, the hawks choose me as their summoner." Ami removed the kunai from the hawk's talons, "You still have this old thing? You always were a nut, but this thing barely qualifies as a paperweight now, much less a weapon."
Tenten fumed. That kunai was the first one she had ever made in her father's forge, and was a memento from happier times when her mother was alive.
"Give…it…back…."
"Make me Bunbun."
Tenten let out a snarl and lunged, Ami dodging out of the way, keeping just out of reach. Her teammate, Rock Lee, stopped to go help her, but a boy whose face was covered in bandages stepped in his way. Lee heard a slight sound, and suddenly his view shifted.
"Gai-sensei, Why is the ground in the sky?"
"Tch, idiot," Neji said, though a sharp look from Gai made him get up to help his teammates.
"So, you're a Hyuuga? Not much to look at," the last boy who had come with Ami said.
"Unlike you, a six-armed freak, Fate has declared my superiority over those such as yourself."
"Really now? Then why are you surrounded?" the six-armed teen pulled his arms back, binding the Hyuuga in fine strands of silk. Neji immediately pulsed his chakra to break the strands, before attacking the boy, who dodge and began to insult the Hyuuga's ancestry.
Gai sighed, watching his team lose their cool because of a few insults and a little name calling. He felt like he should step in and stop it, but didn't have the chance as a ROOT operative landed in the field.
"All of you are to come with me for disturbing the peace."
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"I, Kabuto Yakushi, state that I will take responsibility for the Genin of my squad outside of the Chuunin Exams"
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At the Same Time
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"How long are those two going to follow us?" Zaku whispered to Kin, who shrugged.
"Tobio is from here, maybe they recognize him." Kin replied.
Zaku sighed as he caught a tubby boy and a blond girl out of the corner of his eye, following them just inside the tree line. He shook his head before turning to Kin once more.
"So Kin…have you and Nar…AHHHH!"
Zaku was pressed against the wall, outlined perfectly with senbon. Choji gasped and got hit over the head.
"Idiot! Now they know we're here!"
"Yes, we do." Ino shrieked as the silent boy had appeared behind her, "Now Nurse, the scalpel."
Ino screamed as the boy morphed into a demon, and approached her with scalpel in hand.
"Bubun Baika!" Tobio was suddenly engulfed by a large fist, as Choji glared at the boy within his grasp.
"Harm one hair on her head, and I'll crush you."
"Drop the douche bag, or I'll blow your brains all over the forest floor."
Choji turned his head to see Zaku aiming both arms at him, palms facing him. Slowly releasing his captive, Choji pulled Ino behind him. As Zaku backed up, Tobio released a wave of senbon, outlining Zaku once again up against the tree.
"What was that for?"
"You called him a douche bag." Kin replied, obviously pissed.
Before they could continue, an ANBU with the kanji for ROOT dropped out of the trees.
"All of you are to come with me for disturbing the peace."
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"I, Kimimaro Kaguya, state that I will take responsibility for the Genin of my squad outside of the Chuunin Exams"
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At the Same Time
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Suigetsu smiled at two civilian girls as he and his team passed through the market. He flexed his muscles. The two girls blushed and giggle behind their hands, watching him.
"Hey Bedwetter, are you sure we're going the right way?"
Suigetsu froze in mid step, before turning around and shouting, "I told you never to call me that! I just have problems maintaining control when I sleep."
Now the girls where giggling for an entirely different reason, along with many others in the marketplace.
"Yes, therefore, you are Bedwetter"
"That's it!" Suigetsu swings his zanbatou like a baseball bat, catching Sai with the flat of the blade. Sai opened his eyes as a dangerous glint appeared in them. As Sai drew his tanto, Isaribi sighed, knowing what they were arguing about but Sai's nickname drove Suigetsu over the edge, again.
"Hey guys, break it up. There are civilians prese-oof!"Isaribi watched as a feral looking boy tried to pry her teammates apart, before a sign caught her eye, and she wandered off into the shop.
"Come on you two at least take it to a train-yeouch!" the feral boy yelled, "All right we do this the hard way, get them Akamaru!"
A white dog that stood a little higher than the boy's knee jumped into the fray, latching on to Suigetsu's arm, who began waving said arm around in an attempt to detach the dog. As the boy pulled Sai into a choke hold, a sheet of ice formed in between Sai and Suigetsu, and a rather pretty girl stepped out, with a legendary blade strapped to her back.
"Kiba, What are you doing?" she asked addressing the wild boy.
"Attempting to stop these two, their teammate seems to have wandered off."
"Hey babe, what are you doing with Zabuza-sama's blade? How 'bout I take it off yah in exchange for some Suigetsu time?"
"Suigetsu, you do know that he's a boy right?" Isaribi said, reappearing with several bags of cloths.
"What? Really? Then we do this the fun way," Suigetsu said before bringing his zanbatou to bear, "Hand over the Kubikiribocho, and you won't die!"
As he swung, Haku brought the legendary sword up and the two locked blades, both trying to overpower the other as an ANBU with the kanji for ROOT dropped out of the trees.
"All of you are to come with me for disturbing the peace."
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"I, Orochimaru the Snake Sannin, state that I will take responsibility for the Genin of my squad outside of the Chuunin Exams"
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At the Same Time
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"Ah fuck, this breeze feels good, eh Blondie?" a red haired girl said from her perch. The boy in question nodded in agreement, looking out over the Akagahara training grounds. Below their perch on the rock in the center of the training grounds, lay a large patch of crimson clovers. Nanashi remembered the legend of these training grounds, but didn't really feel motivated enough to see if they were true.
"Does anyone else hear that?" Juugo asked, as the sounds of explosions and children screaming came from the edge of the field.
"Sounds like home. Besides, who cares? They probably deserved it, the little brats."
"Tayuya, listen it's getting closer."
Sure enough, not five minutes later, a little girl came running out of the tree line, screaming for her life. Not ten seconds later, another kid flew out of the tree line thrown by a mine going off behind him. The boy slammed face first into the Jizo statue in the center of the clover patch, scarf burning slightly. They were then treated to the hysterical sight of the boy trying to put it out before the girl managed to stomp it out.
"Hey brats, don't you know that this training ground is forbidden for kids?"Tayuya asked after she had leapt down, "Nice scream there Creampuff."
"I'm a Hyuuga, we don't scream. It was monkey boy over there."
"Sure, and I'm the actress Koyuki. Now what are you two doing here?"
"We came to find the Crimson Four Leaf clover!"
"Correction, he came to find the clover, I came to watch him and laugh when he got his ass killed."
"Didn't work out like that, now did it?"
The girl turned in a huff and began to pout, while the boy was on his hands and knees looking for the clover, "Hanabi help me!"
Before anyone could say anything, they heard a dull thud, "Is this what you were looking for?"
Konohamaru stared at the large boy who held the clover out to him. Feeling over joyed, he shouted out. Suddenly several shapes emerged out of the clover field, humanoid by appearance.
"Marionettes," Nanashi said as his cool and calculating gaze swept over the clearing.
"Well shithead, you going to do your thing or are the two of use going to have to do the work?"
"There is no need for me to tip my hand this early in the game. Have fun." Grabbing the two Academy Students and the Clover, he leapt towards the entrance of the training grounds. Hearing his teammates cussing and crazed yells, he thought it best to do double time. As he hit the fence line, a squad of ROOT operatives dashed into the training grounds while the commander spoke.
"Once the two in the training grounds are brought here, you will all accompany me to explain this incident to Lord Hokage."
Nanashi chuckled as Tayuya shot out of the woods, arms out stretched, grasping for his throat, while making strangling motions.
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"Please explain exactly what happened one more time, and this time, only one person at a time." Orochimaru said, as he shook his head at the mess they had got into only seconds before he and Danzo had finalized the ceasefire, "Preferably starting with Nanashi since his team is the only one not under arrest."
Most of the other Genin shifted uneasily under the combined looks of their sensei's while any involved Konoha shinobi did the same under Danzo's watchful eye.
"Yes sensei. We had traveled to the most out of the way training grounds in an effort to keep Juugo calm until he acclimated to the city, we these two academy students began to set off the traps and mines, barely surviving. They had come to look for the local legend of the Four Leaf Crimson Clover, which the boy is holding. When Juugo pushed the Jizo statue on its side to retrieve the clover for them, another trap activated, animating several marionettes. I left with the children with Tayuya close behind, while Juugo… released some frustration."
Danzo looked down at the two children in front of the group, "And why did two Academy students enter a training ground forbidden to the general public, besides chasing a legend?"
"It's because Kaede-chan is moving!" Konohamaru yelled, "That mission you gave her dad makes it so she can't stay at the Academy with us, and with the clover…. With the clover she could get her wish to stay!"
Before Danzo could speak, Nanashi made a motion to show he wished to speak once again.
"Let them go see their friend before you punish them. It's not like they're going to flee the village."
Danzo sighed, sometimes children were so stupid. Motioning for the two to leave, he turned back to Orochimaru, "At least your students were there, those two are the heir of the Sarutobi clan and the Secondary heiress of the Hyuuga clan. I will have to think upon their punishment, but for now, let's hear the rest of these stories."
Tobio looked up and said in a very plain voice, "They were following us, and I tried to scare them off."
"You tried to kill us! Your Bingo Book entry says a lot about you and the girl especially…"
"Now miss, all of my nin are under strict orders not to kill anyone outside of actual combat while we are within this village, but they will be punished with confinement to their quarters until the start of the exams," Orochimaru looked at the other two teams as well, "That means everyone who participated in their individual incidents."
"But Orochimaru-sama…AHHH!" Once again, Zaku found himself posed against the wall outlined in senbon.
"Don't talk back to the village leader, idiot." Kin said, before turning to Tobio, "And you quit wasting senbon on his sorry ass."
Tobio looked at her, reminding many of the Konoha Shinobi of an Aburame, "My launchers seem to be malfunctioning again, I should get them looked at."
Before another bout of 'Pin-Zaku-To-The-Wall-For-His-Stupidity' could begin, Ami stepped forward, "I just wanted to have a sparring match with Panda-chan, to see if she had improved at all."
"YOSH! It was truly a wonderful thing for young Ami-chan to do, after being away for many years, and even convinced her teammates to join in. don't worry I had it all under control."Gai said, stepping in. This was his way of telling his team that there was a lesson hidden within what had happened, but they had to find it first.
Danzo glared at the jounin, who returned the look with a glaringly bright smile in his ridiculous 'Nice Guy' pose.
"Apparently not well enough for nearby citizens to think that your team was being mauled. I will overlook this incident this one time."
Ami smirked at Zaku, smug about apparently getting off the hook, when Orochimaru spoke up, "You three are also confined to your quarters for the next three days."
Ami pouted, taking a swing at Zaku when he began gloating. The punched knocked him back into Juugo, who glared down at him. Zaku squeaked as Juugo clamped his hand on the smaller boys shoulder, holding him in place.
"What about you three?"
"I had no part in their squabble, Orochimaru-sama, as they are impossible stop once they start."
"Very well Isaribi, you may explore with Nanashi's team whenever they go out. And what do you two have to say?"
"The Hyouton bastard has Zabuza-sama's sword!"
"Of course… the sword…. Suigetsu as punishment you are confined to your quarters as well, Sai?"
Sai wasn't listening, as he had been studying Danzo, the man who had stunted him emotionally and socially before sending him on what was to be a suicide mission. Plastering a fake smile on his face, Sai answered, "Suigetsu attacked me, and I defended myself. When Kiba-san tried to push us apart, Suigetsu implicated him as well, and the fight would have continued if it wasn't for Haku-san."
Orochimaru sighed, Sai's hatred for Danzo was clear to him.
"You are on confinement as well, as you most likely started the fight like every other one."
These next three days were going to be long and nerve-grating.
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The Day of the Chuunin Exams
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Kankuro sighed as he fiddled with his Battle Puppet, making sure that he had correctly refilled all of the hidden weapon chambers for the exams. Why his psychotic younger brother had to be the first one in the exam hall didn't concern him. Keeping himself and his elder sister alive did. So he sat in the exam hall with his two siblings waiting for the rest of the Chuunin-hopefuls to show up.
Soon a large group of Oto Genin came through the doors as he finished rewrapping his puppet into its cocoon, causing Temari to gasp and Gaara to release a wave of Killing Intent.
"Kankuro, he's here!"
"Who's here?"
"The guy who escaped from Gaara!"
"Really? Which one?"
"The one with the guitar."
"You sure? I don't recognize him."
Temari sighed before whispering furiously into her younger brother's ear, "His teammate was the redhead girl with the foul mouth."
"Oh! Him!" Kankuro realized before thinking aloud, "I wonder what other things she can do with her mouth."
Temari swung her battle fan with all her might, cracking the puppeteer over the head, causing the other Genin to look over. The masked boy that had escaped Gaara's wrath unscathed seemed to grin at her as she continued to beat on her brother, before he started to tune his instrument.
As the other Genin began to file into the room, separating Gaara from the masked boy, Kankuro let out a sigh of relief. At least Gaara wouldn't try to murder the boy with a couple hundred others in the way, would he?
A loud argument drew his attention to the entrance, as two Konoha teams entered, before they were joined by another two squads. Two of the girls began screeching over the Uchiha boy, identified by the clan marking on the back of his shirt. Several of the boys stood together, quietly discussing something as two of the boys and a girl stood apart from them, but near their teams in case something happened, and a girl with her hair in buns was attempting to quiet her teammate who was challenging the Uchiha to a match, though the boy was ignored.
"I will not waste my time on some loser that cannot even use ninjutsu"
"Yosh! But I will have a match with you, and when I do, I will prove that hard work can overcome even a natural born genius such as yourself!"
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"Nanashi-kun, these people act differently than those in the village, why is that?" Kin asked, watching the Clan heirs of Konoha bicker and squabble. Even when Sai and Suigetsu got into their fights, there was a sense of camaraderie in their actions, in a weird, twisted kind of way. These Konoha shinobi didn't exhibit any of that.
"I don't know Sai, maybe it's something in the water," Nanashi said as he began to strum, "Or maybe, it's because people are strange when you're the stranger."
The chords and beats of the Oto-nin's instruments began to drift over the crowd as each of the teams began to eye each other, uneasy that enemies of their respective villages where in the same room.
People are strange when you're a stranger
Faces look ugly when you're alone
Women seem wicked when you're unwanted
Streets are uneven when you're down
The Konoha teams looked over at the corner the Oto Genin where sitting in, various reactions showing on their faces. Ino was terrified of the Genin while her teammates glared openly at Tobio and his team, and Kiba had begun to tap his foot to the beat. Team Gai looked annoyed at the girl that had interrupted their training three days ago, and Haku and Sasuke glared at Suigetsu and Nanashi respectively, the Uchiha remembering when the masked boy and his team had interfered with one of his training sessions over the week, when the tall orange haired boy had seemingly gone berserk, showcasing a strength far exceeding his own.
When you're strange
Faces come out of the rain
When you're strange
No one remembers your name
When you're strange
When you're strange
When you're strange
A team from Rain began to fiddle with the respirators, while their fellow genin, a blue haired girl and a red haired boy tried to keep their teammate from bursting out of his seat.
"But Tobi is a good boy!" The boy whined, straightening his mask.
"Leader told us to keep you under control." the red haired boy replied
Tobi turned and huffed, before an evil gleam appeared in his one visible eye.
People are strange when you're a stranger
Faces look ugly when you're alone
Women seem wicked when you're unwanted
Streets are uneven when you're down
The Kumo teams nervously backed away from one of their members as the girl's grin widened, and she turned her eyes to Nanashi.
'Soon kitten, he'll be all ours'
'Ours? He's mine!'
The Kumo Genin backed off even more when she purred, though this did nothing to the younger boy that she was staring at.
When you're strange
Faces come out of the rain
When you're strange
No one remembers your name
When you're strange
When you're strange
When you're strange
Gaara began to shake, his anger apparent as thin layers of sand began to swirl around him. Temari and Kankuro backed away, not wanting to anger their little brother even more.
'One of these days, I'll show you that you should listen to your older brother. Gaara, I'll show you what true strength is!'
'Gaara…'
When you're strange
Faces come out of the rain
When you're strange
No one remembers your name
When you're strange
When you're strange
When you're strange
"Shut up before I break that banjo over your head!"
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The entire room fell silent and there was a harsh screech as a string was struck just the wrong way.
Nanashi just glanced over at Sasuke with an eyebrow cocked.
"Run that past me again. What did you say?"
The Uchiha smirked, satisfied in the knowledge that he had struck a nerve.
"I told you to shut up before I break that banjo over your head."
The mountain of a kid, Juugo, stood with a growl and a ripple passed over his body. The effect was similar to that of a fish's scales seen from above the water. The crowd watched with unease, but the blond put his hand on his companion. Juugo noticeably relaxed, and with a forced deep inhalation, he calmed and sat back down. The redhead in the beanie looked disappointed, but the rest of the Sound Genin looked relieved.
"What? Can't even fight your own battles?"
This time Nanashi bristled and power flowed out of him, the killing intent paralyzing several of the weaker shinobi in the room. The inevitable fight was halted prematurely by the timely arrival of Anko Mitarashi, a Special Jounin of Konohagakure. Behind her trailed Iruka, a somewhat less vocal, but just as dangerous chuunin.
"Alright maggots, shut up and listen! I'm Anko and this is Iruka. We're here to tell you everything you need to know about this year's second Chuunin Exams. Rule number one! No fighting unless I tell you to."
A fair majority of the males were paying less attention to her speech, and more attention to her trench coat, which threatened to fall off every time she waved her arms. And she was waving her arms a lot. Iruka caught the way their eyes were wandering, and he walked up behind her, wrapping his arms around her and discreetly pulling her coat closed.
"Rule two! No eyeballing my girl." Anko seemed flustered at the sudden and unexpected attention, but didn't complain and smirked at her lover.
"Rule number three, no one is going to be allowed to progress from this room unless they sign a waiver." Choji seemed a little disturbed at that.
"A waiver? What waiver?"
Iruka handed a stack of papers to a Genin next to him, and the kid took three and passed the stack along, "This is just to ensure that when one of you dies, Konoha isn't held responsible. We can't have a war breaking out because one of you was caught off guard after all."
The offhand and friendly way the man said it did nothing to put the group at ease, and in fact went so far as to make some of them even more uncomfortable. The duo waited until the papers were passed out, signed, and returned before continuing.
"Now, usually the first stage of Konoha exams involves a test to put you under pressure and see how you react, and this time will be no different. What has changed however, is how many of you will be actively participating." Anko picked up where he left off without missing a beat.
"There will be two sets of teams, and you will basically be playing a game of Ninja Keep-Away. While two of you on one set of teams will be free to proceed as normal, one person from each team will be chosen at random. This person will be given a strong tranquilizer and will be unable to participate. It will be the job of the other two teammates to ensure that an antidote is procured, and until then the incapacitated team member is kept safe."
The room echoed with shouts of outrage for a few moments before Iruka lost his patients.
"Shut the hell up, the lot of you!" the man's head grew to be twice its normal size, and increased the volume of his voice. When the room fell back into silence, he released it. Anko leaned over and whispered something into his ear, and Iruka immediately palmed his face. Off to the side, Dosu snorted in amusement. The others glanced at him, and he whispered under his breath.
"She asked if his head was the only thing he could use that technique on."
The rest of the Sound Twelve, minus Isaribi and Kin who just giggled softly, laughed aloud. The Genin around them looked at them in confusion, and Anko gave them a surprised look.
"The other set of teams, meanwhile, will be holding an antidote. Now, there are many different types of tranquilizers that cause the same effects. Only one team will have the antidote your team needs in order to revive your downed comrade. That team will have the order to avoid you at all costs. In order to pass this test, they simply need to hang onto their antidote. The other half needs to keep their downed member safe, retrieve the antidote to revive them, and reach the safe zone all within a time limit."
A number of teams within the meeting room obviously had problems with that setup, and Sakura was the first to point it out.
"That hardly seems fair! One team barely has to do anything and they pass while the other is doing all of the work!" A number of people in the meeting room voiced their approval, but Anko just gave a vicious grin.
"Tough. Life's not fair, so get over it. You're lucky we're only using a tranquilizer and not something really nasty. We've got toxins that will leave you screaming for hours without passing out." Iruka said as he stepped forward, looking like he was ready to discipline his one time student over such an obvious question.
Anko, on the other hand, visibly twitched as he said that, though it was impossible to tell if she was actually getting off on it, or was just playing it up. Probably a combination of both.
"Oh, baby! I love it when you talk dirty." She rubbed herself against his side, and Iruka's eyes widened slightly.
"Alright you brats, let's get you all to the exam site and divided up into teams. We have... important... Procter stuff to do!"
As the teams hurried to join back up and follow behind their examiners, Kiba pointed out an observation.
"Did it look like Iruka was walking funny to you?"
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Songs:
People Are Strange- The Doors
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Author's Note: And here's chapter four! Anyone care to play a game of ninja keep away in the booby-trapped caverns beneath Konoha? No? Come on…. It's going to be a blast!