Chapter 3 – Jie

The bell rang sharply. This was the signal the students had been waiting for, filing from the rooms, heading home or going for extra training. In one room, the door did not open. The students remained seated waiting anxiously.

Kirika sat at the front of the room, as anxious as any of his students. He was even more anxious in some cases. Tension brought a lump up in his throat. He swallowed, trying to get rid of it, but found it would not leave. He could only imagine what the students had to go through.

The door slid open, and the jounin that had been there the day before stepped in. Like most ninja, he had found a look that worked for him and kept it, wearing the same black tank top and pants he had on before. Behind him, filed three other jounin. One other man, with dark brown hair in a ponytail, wearing a dark blue suit with his dark green vest zipped over it, as well as two women, one in an almost identical suit with cropped blonde hair, and the second with black hair, almost a dark blue, with a teal, skin tight shirt and dark pants. They stood at the front of the class. All attention was immediately drawn to the first man, who had already established himself in the class.

"Good morning, soldiers," the raven-haired woman greeted them instead. "Today, we'll find which of you will continue, and which will come back for… more training." She had stepped just a little in front of the other jounin, so that she stood out, even more than she did before in her casual clothing. "You will be divided into four groups, and then sent with one of us four jounin, who will test you and see if you really are ready to graduate. Kirika."

The teacher stood up obediently, carrying a clipboard in his hands. He looked over it quickly, then shifted his attention to the class. "In Amori's group…"

Jie looked carefully around at the rest of the group. Not one of them could stand up to him. He was confident in this fact.

"Hagane-sensei," one boy muttered, a rather squirrelly one, but he had proved in the Academy to be very fast. "What kind of test is this?"

Jie laughed inwardly as the boy was told it was a surprise. That you never knew what to expect on a mission, so they shouldn't know now. He laughed because, he knew already. He had known from the beginning each of the four jounin's tests, from the moment they entered the class.

They were on their way to a nearby mountain, where the test was supposed to begin. But, Jie knew, the test had already begun.

Jie had stopped before the rest. Mostly because he knew what had happened.

"Kai!" he demanded, forming the hand seal. The genjutsu in front of him dispelled.

The other students stood wide-eyed at where their teacher had fallen. Some were worried that he was okay, others that they wouldn't graduate now. Jie smiled, waiting as each of them turned over in their heads what to do.

Jie continued to smile, as he stepped into the chasm, and summarily fell to his death.

Only three had made it, Hagane noted, taking a look at the group around him. Only these three had noticed such a basic genjutsu, and stepped into the chasm. The rest, even after watching the three step in, one after the other, had gone home, or to the village leader to report what had happened. More likely, they would go to the teacher, he thought, Kirika, whining to him like the scared children they were.

"So, do we pass?" one boy asked, obviously having taken note that there were only three left, the same number it took to form a cell.

"Yes, you pass." Hagane looked at them sternly. "Give me your names, then go home, tell your parents."

The boy who had asked pumped on arm in the air in celebration, quickly blurted his name, then immediately climbed out of the small hole, only a few feet deep in reality.

The three left. Hagane didn't envy what they would soon go through.