There is swearing in this

The moment Team Five reach Sunagakure, they're whisked away from Natsumi along with the other Konoha genin teams. Kiku, Shou, and Toru quickly draw together. Already, the genins can see numerous other teams all waiting.

There's a loud crash to the left, and Shou turns to locate the source of the noise. On the other side of the room, a jōnin seems to suddenly appear. Kiku nudges her teammates and they all turn to face the Suna-nin.

The jōnin claps her hands to gain the genins' attention. "As all the teams are now here, the chūnin exams will officially start. Within this room, there are three hidden jōnins, six chūnins, and numerous genins. To pass, each genin must successfully locate one jōnin and collect one note with a riddle on it. The riddle will lead you to the next location." The kunoichi then disappears in a burst of smoke.

Team Five pull themselves out of the genjutsu that is starting to take place. Natsumi had taken to putting them under genjutsus randomly whenever she wanted so they would know almost instantly when they had been effected by one.

Toru takes charge, surveying the others he could see in the room while he speaks. "Shou look for the hidden jōnins but don't make contact. Kiku, keep on lookout for any sabotage that's aimed at us or anyone else; the chūnins are probably attempting to sabotage groups. I'll attempt to find notes."

"Got it," Kiku replies with a grin, "Let's smash this phase of the exam."

Approximately five minutes later, Kiku throws a kunai at an approaching genin. The genin drops from the ceiling onto the floor and attempts to engage Kiku in a taijutsu fight. However, Toru and Kiku gang up on the shinobi who quickly retreats. "That was a chūnin," Kiku confides to Toru. "He walked far too quietly and despite avoiding both of our blows with ease, backed out of a fight. He was testing us."

"He mightn't have been prepared for a two-on-one fight," Toru replies but doesn't really argue his point. "Take to the roof and grab your kunai, the wood will be slightly loose and underneath it should be a note. The chūnin left it when attacking us."

Kiku grins as she quickly moves up the wall before walking upside down on the roof. Upon grabbing her kunai, she stealthily grabs the note before dropping down on the ground next to Toru.

"Toru, I've found one. There's a rock where the jōnin who spoke to us stood; despite the few fights that have occurred there, it hasn't been touched," Shou reports.

"Good work," Toru compliments with an easy smile. "A metre to your left is a potted plant…"

"Plants they wouldn't have in Suna unless they needed little water, but that one looks like it has wet dirt. Nice spotting," Shou replies as the trio move over to the plant. With a little chakra, Shou disrupts the genjutsu and they find another note. "We need a third note. Any others found Toru?" Toru shakes his head with an annoyed expression. "Well, we can all look for one now."

"We could attack another genin and steal their note," Kiku suggests.

"No point in revealing our capabilities now, and lets not spend any more chakra and energy then we have to," Toru responds. "We might have to do a survival task next, and I don't want to do that tired." Shou takes a step forward, stumbles, and falls onto the ground in front of a wall. She stands up a moment later, and gives Toru a note she pulled out of a hole. "Thanks," Toru says. Shou smiles and Team Five exit the room.

Another Sunagakure ninja appears, stopping them from moving further. "There was a jōnin henged as a rock from when she first spoke to us in regards to the task," Shou says. "That's a jōnin that we all located. We each have a piece of paper with a riddle on it as well." The Suna-nin nods and disappears.

"One day, I'm going to be able to do that," Kiku mutters. "I'll be the one frightening the crap out of everyone then." Shou laughs softly and unrolls the two notes she has on her.

"Flashback to becoming genin," Toru says with a grin. Kiku gives him the note she got, and he reads it aloud, "'I am at home upon the sands with the stars to light my way. You would not wish to stumble upon me for despite blind eyes, I still kill. Where would you go if I had attacked you?' We're looking at something found in Kaze no Kuni that will lead us to a place in Sunagakure. At a guess, I would say an animal of some kind. Any ideas?"

"Well, if it can kill it's probably going to be venomous or poisonous; maybe a snake? Or even a scorpion… It's hard to tell; we haven't learnt much regarding animals in other countries," Shou says.

"If it's going to kill you, the place you would want to go if attacked would probably be a hospital," Kiku says helpfully. Shou and Toru turn to glance at the kunoichi. Kiku blinks before realising that she might be right. "I've got no idea where we are or how to get there, though."

Team Five enter the streets of Sunagakure, instantly feeling the change in temperature. "Kiku, you have point for now. I'll be back in lookout. Shou, you get middle position. Kiku, search for somewhere that will be friendly to us and ask where the hospital would be found."

"Sure thing," Kiku replies, striding off with Shou following her. "I'm thinking a restaurant, but we should also grab a meal to give a better appearance. Shou, do you have the necessary money?"

"Yes," Shou replies, "We still have all our equipment in our bags for travelling stored in the scroll."

"Oh, there's a dango place. It's more expensive than back at home, though," Kiku says a few minutes later, leading the Konoha genin team into the small shop. The blonde-haired genin goes up to the person staffing the counter and strikes up a conversation.

"Thoughts?" Toru asks Shou softly.

"We need to be careful; the people here are not welcoming especially towards Konoha-nins. I'm not overly sure why. I think it has to do with the political and economic climate. The higher prices could just be due to the influx of ninjas due to the chūnin exams, especially as the prices all seem extremely high. However, we can't avoid paying the fees. In Konoha, it would be the same, but only within ninja-run businesses," Shou answers.

"It's odd that the civilian-run businesses also have higher prices. It points to a bad economy and, with the influx of foreigners, there's a big possibility of earning more, especially if prices are higher than normal," Toru says thoughtfully just as Kiku returns to the pair with dango in one hand and change in the other.

"Hospital is located in the middle of Suna," Kiku reports around a mouthful of food. "If we follow this street we should reach the main street. Take a left and keep walking. It's a big spherical building with the kanji for doctor on it."

Roughly twenty minutes later, Team Five make it to the hospital, where they're approached by another Suna-nin. The kunoichi stares at them, "You're the sixth team to make it. As you have made it as an entire team, you make it to the next phase of the exams. It will begin in thirty minutes. You can wait here."

"Congratulations. You have all managed to pass the first phase of the Sunagakure chūnin exams," the kunoichi that had met Team Five at the hospital states blandly. "It is estimated that ten of the current sixteen teams will make it through the next phase. You will undertake this mission in teams that have been chosen for you. Each team will be given a single object. Your mission goal will be to bring the object back to Sunagakure with all of you alive. You will all be given a map and the item in question. There will be teams of chūnins around who will attempt to take the object, along with lone jōnins who will be 'assassins'. You will be knocked unconscious upon signing the legal terms for entering the chūnin exams and taken to the starting location for your mission."

Kiku wakes up with the words reverberating in her head. She pulls herself to her feet, searching for Shou and Toru. Instead, she finds herself stuck with two other genins – a Takigakure genin and a Shimogakure genin. Kiku scowls and swears mentally in her head as she wakes the two other genins up. Of course, the teams aren't teams from the same village. It's just her luck she gets stuck with genins from unallied villages.

"Who the fuck are you?" The Takigakure genin says upon waking up. "What the fuck happened to my head?"

Kiku grins, baring her teeth in a predator-like smile. "I'm Kiku, Konohagakure genin. I'm guessing you feel like your head's gone through a blender as well, huh? I'm guessing they knocked us out with a genjutsu. It feels like one."

"How do you know what one feels like?" The Taki-nin spits out.

Kiku pauses, remembering Natsumi's shark grins that she always gives after she runs Team Five into the ground. "My sensei enjoys working my team on the edge of pain and over the edge of exhaustion," she replies.

"I'm guessing that we have to work as a team until we reach Suna," the Shimogakure genin says as he stretches. "We're meant to have a map and some object. Either of you two got those things?"

"Who died and made you the fucking leader?" The Takigakure genin snarls and the Shimogakure shrugs.

"I've got a… small glass elephant," Kiku says as she rummages through her pack. "Nothing else apart from what I had on me already, which basically consists of trapping supplies and clothes with little food and some water."

"I also have food and water," the Shimo-nin reveals. "My name is Kaede by the way. I do not specialise in anything in particular."

"I'm good at ninjutsu," the Takigakure genin butts in. "I also have a shitty map and a name, Yuri."

"I'm good at taijutsu," Kiku says before turning to face the only other kunoichi on their team. "Does the map show where we are?"

"With a big fucking cross," Yuri responds with a scowl. "We're west of Sunagakure by about sixty kilometres. If you fuckers weren't slowing me down, I could get there by tomorrow afternoon without a break."

"I suggest we rest for the night," Kaede says. "It's easier to get ambushed in the dark especially as we aren't familiar with the terrain. There are also scorpions and snakes we need to look out for. They're more likely to come out in the dark."

Kiku glances at the sun, "We have maybe two, and a bit, hours until the sun sets. The nights here are freezing, so we best find somewhere that's slightly sheltered from the wind. I can set up traps around the area, but we should also have a watch."

"I don't trust either of you shits," Yuri grumbles. "But it'll have to do, I suppose. Lead on fucker."

Kaede rolls his brown eyes, "Are you always like this?"

Yuri snarls, "You mean this fucking good? You had better believe it. I'm the best genin in Taki. No one can beat me, and I doubt you shits can even land a hit." Kiku sighs and falls into step, a pace behind and to the left of Kaede, as they all settle into a run. She hopes that her teammates have a better team than she has.

"I hate Suna-nin," is the first thing Shou hears upon waking up. Shou rolls onto her feet and pulls out a kunai, already preparing herself for a fight. Instead, she finds herself looking at two other genins, neither being Toru or Kiku and Shou finds herself scowling.

"Hey beautiful," one genin says, turning to grin at Shou. Shou blinks in confusion at the Tanigakure genin before turning to face the Kusagakure genin.

"I'm Tsubame Suzuki," the kunoichi says in greeting. "From what Shizuka-san and I can gather, the Suna-nin have left us here with a map and an object, we need to reach Sunagakure. We're not sure what time frame we have, but we need to get back while being prepared for any ambushes."

"Who has the map?" Shou asks, "My name's Shou Shimizu. I think we should start moving quickly as well. We don't have long until sun down, and it's dangerous to continue moving on through the night."

"The pretty lady has a point," Shizuka says and Shou finds herself getting annoyed at the genin. "Shou-chan can lead us forward; she seems to know what she's doing."

"Shut up Shizuka-san, Shou-san doesn't need to deal with your shit," Tsubame replies. "Shou-san can you lead us, or shall I do it?" Tsubame says as she hands Shou the map. Shou studies the map before tracing a route.

"I've got it. We need to head southeast. Can both of you move quickly via chakra?" Tsubame nods while Shizuka shouts his agreement. "Alright," Shou decides, "I'll take point as I can lead. Shizuka-san, are you better at fighting close range or long range?"

"Long-range," Shizuka replies, "but I can do anything if you ask me to Shou-chan!"

"Shizuka-san can cover our backs," Shou responds. "You're going to need to be quieter as well Shizuka-san, and drop all the flirting. It's not necessary and creating unneeded noise. We need to be wary. We can be attacked at any moment. Tsubame-san can take the object and keep in the middle. Shizuka-san will be our first line of defence, then myself, and finally Tsubame-san. However, we should try to avoid fights, especially drawn out ones."

"Very well," Shizuka responds. "I'll drop the flirting if you want."

Tsubame gives Shizuka a suspicious look, "You mean I could have asked and you would have dropped it?" She asks.

Shizuka grins, "Hell yeah." He shrugs, "I don't want to make you guys uncomfortable, especially as we need to complete this faux mission. The flirting is more of a cover anyway, and we need to work together." Shou sighs and starts running, the other two quickly keeping pace with her. She wonders whether her teammates are okay.

"Ambush!" Toru yells, waking up his teammates as he flips around an attack. His attacker snarls but doesn't wait as she attempts to decapitate Toru. Toru drops to the ground and rolls before coming onto his feet again. He pushes chakra into his legs and moves, knocking the kunoichi to the ground and slamming the hilt of a kunai down onto her head. Her eyes close as she goes unconscious.

Already, Toru's kind-of teammates are tackling other attackers. The Ishigakure genin is fighting one while the Kumogakure genin is struggling with two. Toru growls under his breath and enters her fight, knowing that the Kumo-nin hates his guts; she had made that clear from the beginning. Nevertheless, Toru knows that to get to the next phase they all have to get back to Suna alive. It's the only reason the Kumo-nin hasn't attempted to take his head off yet.

Toru leaves a clear hole in his guard, and his opponent lunges forward, kunai leading. Toru swings wide, and kicks their legs out from under them. After that, it's the work of half a second to knock the Suna-nin unconscious. By the time that's done, the attackers have all been neutralised.

"We need to move," the Ishigakure genin – Kyou – says quietly and Toru nods in agreement. "Someone might have heard the noise; there's no point staying here now that we've made our position clear."

"Can you hide our tracks with a genjutsu?" The Kumo-nin – who hasn't told Toru her name yet – asks. Kyou nods, "Good. You need to take back position for that. The Konoha genin can go point, and I'll go middle."

Toru frowns, unwilling to trust the Kumogakure kunoichi with his back, but knowing he'll have to do it anyway. "Alright. Let's move," he says before taking off, keeping low to the ground, and staying in the shadows of the dunes.

A few minutes later, the Kumo genin curses. "We've got another team incoming. Are you sure you put that genjutsu up?"

Kyou nods, "I am. However, we did make a lot of noise and it's pretty easy to figure out which direction we would've gone."

Toru scowls and looks around, "There's a large sand dune up ahead. We should reach it right when the cloud covers the moon. We can attack then. I can set up a few nifty traps. Kyou, if you can cover one or two traps with a genjutsu and the darkest part of the shadow."

The trio move quickly, the Kumo-nin keeping watch while Toru sets up traps and Kyou puts his genjutsu in place. They barely finish in time, scrambling up the dune just as the chūnin team reach the trapped area.

The traps take down two of the four chūnins, and Toru readies himself to attack as the other chūnins approach. However, there's a near-quiet sound next to him and the Kumo-nin throws two handfuls of senbon. Toru watches as the senbon paralyse the two chūnins.

"That's impressive aim," Toru mutters softly. "We ready to move out?" The Kumo-nin glares at him and starts running, leaving Kyou and Toru to follow.

"What did you do to piss her off?" Kyou whispers to Toru. Toru shrugs.

"I think she's holding grudges from the last war and an incident that happened a few years ago between our respective villages," Toru replies just as softly.

"Fucking shit!" Yuri swore as she suddenly leapt sideways, almost ramming into Kiku. Kiku skidded to a halt, instantly turning so she could face the new threat.

Where Yuri had been running, stands a Suna-nin. "Jōnin," Kaede says, "Plan Z?"

Yuri glares at the Shimo-nin, "I'm not going to do a fucking thing you say. We can take this bastard down, easy."

Kiku groans, and the jōnin attacks, wind rushing towards them. "Mission!" Kiku shouts as she leaps into the air, twisting to avoid another blast of wind. She lands in a crouch, Kaede standing in a defensive position next to her.

"Oh, alright," Yuri groans. "You shits better get ready. Earth Release: Hiding Like A Mole Technique!" Yuri's chakra rises and the kunoichi grabs Kiku and Kaede, pulling them closer to her, before the three of them sink below the ground. Yuri's jutsu manages to take the three of them half a kilometre away.

"We don't have long until that jōnin will be onto us," Kaede says, saying what Kiku is thinking. "We need to move. If we're lucky, we might have half an hour before the jōnin finds us."

"At a guess, I would say we're roughly twenty kilometres to Sunagakure. Can you make that right now?" Kiku asks, turning to face Yuri who is panting after the major drain of chakra due to the jutsu she had just used.

"You fucking know I can do it. I'm better than all of you little shits," Yuri responds, and Kiku huffs out a laugh, growing fonder of the constantly swearing Takigakure genin. After sweeping blonde hair behind her ear, Yuri takes off, Kiku and Kaede following her.

As they race across the sand dunes, Kiku allows herself some time to think. Despite her hesitancy at first, Kaede and Yuri have both proven themselves to be trustworthy allies. Kiku thinks that Kaede and Toru would get along quite well. Meanwhile, Yuri would probably pick a fight with Kiku's actual teammates. Nevertheless, Yuri and Kaede have helped Kiku and she has helped them in turn.

"Sunagakure is just up ahead!" Kiku says with a grin, and the three genin pour on the speed in an attempt to reach Suna faster.

"Fuck yeah! We did it!" Yuri shouts. "Clearly you fuckers are somewhat better than I thought."

Kaede brushes dark brown hair out of his eyes, "If you just jinxed us, I will kill you," he says in a joking manner.

"Assassin!" Tsubame cries out as she leaps backwards, avoiding a puppet.

"Shizuka, you can tangle with it!" Shou says, and Shizuka grins.

"Anything for you beautiful," he says before going through a few hand seals. "Radiate Release: Burn!" Shou watches as blue-green flames ensnare the puppet, burning it.

Shou starts running, Tsubame and Shizuka keeping pace with her. "I'm starting to get frustrated at this constant running," Tsubame huffs out.

"I agree," Shou responds. "However, we have almost no chance of beating a jōnin or even a team of chūnins, so our best bet is in running. We just need to stay alive until we make it back to Sunagakure."

"You mean the place right in front of us?" Shizuka questions as they crest a large sand dune. "It's the best sight I've seen for ages."

The three surf down the sand dune, having learnt that it was the best way to get down a large sand dune. They reach the gates of Suna five minutes later. "I wonder how our teams faired," Tsubame muses as they're escorted into another building.

"Hopefully they made it," Shou mutters, searching for any signs of Kiku or Toru. She quickly spots Kiku, who's sitting next to a Shimogakure genin and a Takigakure genin. "I see one of my teammates, you guys see anyone you know?"

"Both my teammates are here," Tsubame replies. "I'm going to go talk to them. It was good working with you. I'll see you in the next phase."

"Good luck Tsubame-san," Shizuka says, and Shou waves to the kunoichi as she walks away. "No one from my team is here yet."

"You can sit with my teammate and I then, I think she's sitting with her teammates from this phase," Shou says as she leads Shizuka over to Kiku. "No flirting either," she adds after a moment. "Kiku would probably punch you."

Toru hobbles into the room with Kyou and Ren (the Kumo-nin who only told him her name when he took a kunai to the thigh for her) on either side. Just as they enter, the doors close behind them.

"You see your teammates?" Kyou asks. "We'll help you over to them."

"In the corner," Toru replies, pointing. He grimaces as pain shoots up his leg again. "Sorry I slowed us down."

"You managed to stop me from being killed, I think that evens us out," Ren responds. "If I had been hit then we wouldn't have been able to finish the exam phase."

"Better late than never," Kyou adds cheerfully just as they reach the other genins from Konoha's Team Five.

"Your teammate's fucking useless," is what the Takigakure genin next to Kiku says.

"Watch your mouth bitch," Ren instantly replies, coming to Toru's defence. "He's probably more useful than you."

"Are any of your teammates here?" Toru asks, ignoring the byplay between the two kunoichi.

"Yeah, my entire team made it," Ren reports. "I'll head over to them, you good here?"

"Yes," Toru replies before giving the Kumo-nin a small smile, "Thanks for your help."

Ren hesitates, nods, before walking away. "I think that's my cue to go," Kyou says. "Good luck with the next phase, and if we have to fight, I won't hold back."

"I wouldn't ask you to," Toru responds just before Kyou leaves, "but you better expect me to go all out."

"What happened to you?" Kiku asks, as she gestures to Toru's injured leg that has a ripped cloth wrapped around it.

"In saving a life, I took a kunai to the leg," Toru says, grimacing as he shifts his position. "However, it was worth it as Ren – the Kumogakure genin – finally started working with me. Who are your current teammates?"

"This is Yuri-san," Kiku says, pointing at the Taki-nin. "This guy's Kaede-san. Shou's teammates are Tsubame-san and Shizuka-san, but Tsubame-san went to go with her team. Shizuka-san is a little shit."

The Tanigakure genin gives Toru a beaming smile, "Did you fall from heaven? Because you look like an angel."

Toru gives Shou a confused look and flushes, while Shou and Kiku both groan. "It's kind of you to say so, but the reality is if I had fallen I would've injured myself, possibly causing a disfiguration. Therefore, it's improbable that I fell from heaven."

"It's more probable that he crawled up from hell," Kiku says with a joking grin while Shou shoves the Tanigakure genin.

"You said you wouldn't flirt," Shou says with a roll of her eyes.

"Hey, you didn't warn me your other teammate was so handsome!" Shizuka replies. Shou and Kiku exchange amused grins as Toru flushes yet again.

There's a shrill whistle and the genin all turn to face the door. "You've made it to the third phase," a Sunagakure ninja drones. "Your survival skills and will to complete the mission has been tested, along with your ability to create new alliances. Your intelligence and teamwork has also been judged. It is time to see how you fight in a group battle. There will be eight rounds with three participants. Only one participant can continue to the next phase of the exams. You are allowed to surrender, and try to avoid killing one another. Please follow me to the next location."

"Participants 2, 13, and 4," the Suna jōnin calls out. Kiku looks down at the number she was given upon entering the underground stadium.

"Good luck," Toru murmurs softly to Kiku as she stands up. "The Sunagakure genin may use poison, so be wary."

"Tsubame-san is pretty average, you should be able to get in close and take her out," Shou adds.

Kiku nods and traipses down the stairs. The moment she reaches the arena floor, a whistle blows and all three genin rush to attack. Kiku ducks under a kunai, elbows the Sunagakure genin, and blocks the Kusa-nin's attack before pulling back. She waits, watching as the Suna-nin cuts Tsubame's arm.

A few minutes later, it's clear Tsubame is slowing down. Kiku curses and attacks the Suna-nin, driving him away from the poisoned kunoichi who will be easier to fight when Kiku's tired. The Suna-nin tries to gain distance, but Kiku keeps close and engages the Suna-nin in a taijutsu fight.

The Sunagakure genin isn't very good at taijutsu. Kiku manages to avoid the poisoned weapons, and still rain down heavy blows. As the Suna-nin kicks out, Kiku drops to the ground and sweeps his feet out from underneath him. The shinobi falls, and Kiku moves quickly, pinning the genin's arms and holding a kunai to his throat.

"Surrender," she hisses, wary of the other genin slowly approaching.

"I surrender," the Suna-nin says as Kiku slowly puts weight onto her kunai, drawing blood.

Kiku grins and leaps away, just avoiding Tsubame who sways in one place before attempting to attack Kiku again. The other kunoichi's balance is off, and Kiku circles around her, forcing the Kusa-nin to keep spinning. Eventually, she stumbles, and Kiku races forward and knocks her unconscious.

"Participant 2 advances," comes the call and Kiku grins as she follows medical out of the arena. She wonders how the others will go.

"Participants 1, 10, and 17 please come down to the arena." Toru stands up, hissing as he puts pressure on his leg. He tightens the makeshift bandage around the deep cut, before limping down to the arena ground.

Once on ground level, he finds himself facing an Ishigakure genin and another genin from Sunagakure. Toru studies his opponents; the Suna-nin looks like a puppet master while the Ishigakure genin could either average in everything or specialise in ninjutsu or genjutsu.

"Begin."

Toru leaps onto the wall, channelling chakra into his feet and hands to keep him still. Three shuriken land where he just stood. Toru crawls along the wall, before jumping down to land behind the Ishigakure genin.

Toru throws a kunai, which the Sunagakure genin dodges before attacking. Toru blocks with his forearm before punching out at the Ishi-nin who has joined the fight. The Suna-nin takes that moment to knock Toru's feet from beneath him. Toru falls to the floor and quickly puts his arms behind his head and pushes himself up. Toru kicks the Ishi-nin in the jaw as he cartwheels backward, gaining space.

The other two genins pause and Toru goes through six hand seals. "Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!" The fireball forces the two genins apart, with the Ishi-nin extremely close to the kunai Toru had thrown earlier. Toru smirks and flares his chakra, causing the explosion tag on the kunai to go off. The Ishi-nin yelps as they get burnt.

The Suna-nin ignores Toru for now and defeats the Ishi-nin in a taijutsu match before knocking the genin out. Toru grimaces as the Suna-nin turns to face him. Except instead of getting closer, the Suna-nin creates distance. Toru curses as the Suna-nin unseals a puppet, sending the deadly object towards Toru.

Toru throws a smoke bomb down, and uses the smoke to set up a quick plan. He creates a clone before transforming into a small rock on the ground. Toru carefully controls the clone, getting it to dart out of the way to near a kunai. The puppet charges at the clone, before going through it. Toru lets the clone die and loses the transformation before swapping places with the kunai.

Right behind the puppet, Toru launches a set of shuriken that each cut deeply into the puppet, which collapses. Toru channels chakra through his legs and speeds around the puppet, wrapping it in ninja wire. He stops once he's sure it won't get up again, and turns to face the Sunagakure genin.

"You can give up now or I'll set fire to the puppet and we can continue fighting," he says, making sure to keep his weight even on both feet despite the pain it causes. He knows he can't afford to show any weaknesses.

"You're bluffing," the Suna-nin says, eyes flickering between Toru and the puppet.

"Do you want to find out?" Toru says, tilting a hip out in a cocky manner. "It's not that hard."

"Fine," the Suna-nin bites out, "I surrender. Now lose the wire." Toru nods and drops the wire.

"Participant 1 wins and will go through to the next phase of the competition. If you require medical aid, go receive it," the jōnin says and Toru limps towards the exit where a medic-nin is.

"Participants 20, 3, and 21 come down to the floor or forfeit." Shou gets up and heads down to the ground. Shou is the last one to get there, and once she's there, the Sunagakure jōnin tells them to start.

Shou leaps backwards, and throws a set of shuriken at the Takigakure genin, using the movement to hide the hand seals she goes through. "Sly Mind Affect Technique," she whispers, and she feels the genjutsu layer itself onto the Taki-nin. The Taki-nin shakes her head and stumbles, but doesn't appear to realise that she's in a genjutsu.

:Team up and then attack?: The Konoha-nin that Shou's versing asks.

:I'll support: Shou responds with a nod, and the Konoha genin kicks out at the Taki-nin who swears loudly. Together the pair manages to knock out the Takigakure genin who had been teamed with Kiku earlier.

The two Konoha genins turn to face each other. "No hard feelings," the more experienced Konoha-nin says.

"Agreed," Shou responds before putting her hands in the tiger hand seal. "Genjutsu: Infinite Darkness Jutsu!" She shouts, immediately feeling the burn as her chakra is drained out at an alarming rate. The A-rank genjutsu is one Shou has only recently learnt, and she can only use it once and one other genjutsu before her chakra is too low. Shou goes through a set of hand seals, "Demonic Illusion: Fire Jutsu," she whispers softly, just in time for the Konoha-nin to break through her first genjutsu.

Shou speeds towards the Konoha-nin, reaching them just as the Konoha-nin ends the second genjutsu. The other genin has no time to avoid Shou's kick, which knocks the wind out of the older genin. Shou follows up with a hard punch and sweeps the Konoha-nin's feet out from under them. It's then the work of a few seconds of scrambling to finally rest a kunai on the genin's throat.

"Yield," Shou says panting.

"Yield," the older genin says with a grin, and Shou puts away the kunai and helps the other genin up. The pair staggers towards the exit, ready to go rest.

"Good job," Natsumi says with a proud smile as she looks down at her genins who are sitting on the ground. "You now have nine days until you make it to the next task, which is a series of one-on-one fights until one person's left. Even if you lose, you still have the chance of becoming a chūnin. One of the other senseis from Konoha has said she'd be happy to take Kiku-chan under her wing and help her with taijutsu," Natsumi explains.

"Shou-san, I've got a few more genjutsu that you can start learning. I was thinking that we can refine your chakra control further so you can use that A-rank genjutsu plus a few others," Natsumi adds and Shou nods. "Your plan and bluff impressed me, Toru-kun, but I still have no idea what you can work on. There are a few genjutsu and ninjutsu that you can start learning, but I don't know how much of a help that'll be. The other Konoha senseis are happy to help out if you think of something you want to improve upon."

"I think learning another genjutsu would be good, and possibly another ninjutsu that isn't a water release as I have no way to get water into the arena. I think it'll be good to work on my chakra control as well," Toru replies as he starts thinking up things he can improve on.

"Alright then, are you happy to work on your own? You can come to me if you need help with anything," Natsumi says. Toru nods. "Very well, Kiku follow me and I'll show you to the sensei I was talking about. Shou, you can come as well as it's near the training ground we can use."

Toru watches as the others walk off and allows himself to think upon what he's going to work on over the next nine days. The last day he'll need to rest, so that leaves eight days to train. In the mornings, he can work on the new genjutsu while after he's recovering his chakra in the evenings he can work on the new ninjutsu. That leaves him with his afternoons for working on increasing his chakra control, speed, and stamina. He wonders what else would help him win in a fight (seals bloom from beneath his hands as the barrier rises in place; somewhere else, an explosion goes off as they prepare for an invasion). Toru acknowledges the fact he should probably look at seals, but he puts it off (because he remembers a blade through his chest and the harsh twist as it's jerked out as he dies and dies and diesdiesdiesdiesHE'SDEAD).

The first round of the last phase of the chūnin exam is between a Kumogakure kunoichi and a Sunagakure shinobi. It's a surprisingly fast-paced battle, but ultimately the Suna-nin wins due to their stronger tactics. The second match is between Toru and a Shimogakure genin – Kaede, who Kiku had worked with during the secondary phase of the exam.

The match is fairly even, with both genins able to meet and block each other's blows while also attack. The few genjutsu Toru employs are quickly shut down, but the Shimo-nin appears to have no genjutsu to try on Toru. After ten minutes of fighting, it starts to look like the match is going to be a matter of who has the better stamina.

It's the Shimo-nin who switches things by throwing a kunai and replacing themselves with it in mid-air. Toru leaps sideways and runs up the wall, from the roof he sends a fireball flying towards Kaede, who moves out of the way fairly easily.

Toru drops down to the ground and calls up his chakra as he claps his hands. "Wind Release: Gale Palm!" He shouts, throwing a few weapons so that the gust pushes them along. Unable to see where the weapons are due to the sand the gust throws up, Kaede ducks to the ground and braces himself.

Toru yanks on the wire he has connected to the weapons, pulling it so they land either side of Kaede. The other genin leaps forward and Toru quickly claps his hands and repeats the technique, forcing Kaede to stop and wait it out again.

Toru runs straight behind the gust of wind, and doesn't give Kaede a chance as he slams a punch into the other's jaw. The shinobi staggers backwards, barely blocking the punishing kick, before being knocked off balance by another punch. Toru goes through four hand seals and activates a genjutsu, which Kaede is forced to stop, leaving himself open to the next kick. He gets knocked onto his back, and is trying to stand up when Toru manages to knock him out.

The third round is between a Suna genin and Kiku. Kiku rushes in, not giving the Suna-nin any real chance as she engages in a quick taijutsu fight that leaves her as the winner. It's the fourth round that shows the first sign of a hard fight.

Shou fights against another Sunagakure genin, but this one has poison on his weapons. Shou doesn't keep their distance all the time, and they earn a decent sized scratch because of it, but the dark skinned kunoichi keeps looping basic genjutsu over genjutsu before attacking by replacing herself with items close to the Suna genin. Shou wins, eventually, but the battle stretches for almost an hour before it comes to a close.

The second round has two matches. The first match is between Toru and the only Sunagakure genin left in the exams, with the second match between Kiku and Shou.

Toru can't tell much about the Suna genin that he faces. She doesn't appear to have any puppets on her, and she doesn't look like a taijutsu specialist either. She looks quite average, but Toru does as well.

Toru shoves his reddish-brown hair out of his eyes, noting that it is starting to get quite long. He waits for the Suna-nin to start, deciding it is going to be easier to react and defend than attack and possibly be poisoned.

Toru finds himself surrounded by darkness. "Kai!" He says as he spins away, causing the kunoichi's kick to hit his shoulder instead of his torso. The kunoichi growls at Toru who throws a handful of shuriken at her to create distance. The kunoichi allows him to, responding with a few senbon. Toru dodges three, but two others stick into his shoulder. He pulls them out. His fingers tingle and Toru looks at the senbon and spots a blue tinge, indicating poison. He curses softly.

It's starting to become clear that Toru can't engage the Suna-nin in a taijutsu match, and they're on equal terms for genjutsu. However, Toru has managed to avoid demonstrating his most powerful skill throughout the entire competition – water release ninjutsu.

As the kunoichi flicks more senbon to him, Toru goes through three hand seals, "Water Release: Water Shield!" He says, pulling water from the small puddle in the corner, created for the purpose of water ninjutsu.

The water shield blocks the senbon and Toru allows it to collapse as he goes through another set of hand seals, "Water Release: Wave!" The water from the shield rises and surges towards the Suna-nin who leaps out of the way, the water slams into the wall behind her.

Toru throws a few kunai entwined with wire, "Wind Release: Gale Palm," he says to reinforce the strength of the weapons. The kunoichi bares her teeth at Toru who grins back as she's forced to run up a wall and flip backwards, just missing being entangled in the wire.

The kunoichi lands but Toru is already calling on his chakra, "Water Release: Wave!" The wave that follows is smaller than the first one Toru created, but the strength behind it is much more than it was earlier. It hits the kunoichi and slams her against the wall. The water drops down and Toru waits, seeing the Suna-nin on the floor.

The proctor checks the kunoichi, "She's unconscious. The next match will start once the floor is clear from previous fighters."

Toru takes a seat next to his sensei as Shou and Kiku get to the floor of the stadium. "Who do you think will win?" Natsumi asks Toru quietly.

"Normally, I would say Shou as they can keep Kiku at a distance while Kiku's main focus is taijutsu. However, Shou was poisoned earlier and the time between matches has probably caused it to spread more," Toru answers.

"Nicely spotted," Natsumi says just as the match starts.

"I surrender," Shou says before Kiku can launch any attack. "I'm poisoned and it's interfering with my chakra control, which will make it hard to activate any genjutsu that would allow me to win. Therefore, I forfeit and leave Kiku to win."

"Can the remaining fighter please come down for the final round," the proctor calls a moment or two later.

"Do your best," Kiku says once she's facing Toru down. Toru tilts his head and nods. "I'll do the same."

"The final match begins!" The proctor shouts before leaping out of the way.

Kiku charges forward at Toru, Toru matches her pace, noting that the other genin is faster than he remembers. However, Kiku isn't the only one who worked on her speed, and Toru keeps up as he blocks the blows that rain down on him.

Toru leaps back and slams his hands onto the ground, "Water Release: Stormy Upheaval!" Water crashes from the sky, and Kiku leaps into the air as it soaks into the ground. Toru cancels the technique with a jerk of his chakra as he starts going through hand seals. "Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing Technique! Fire Release: Great Fireball! Demonic Illusion: Fire Jutsu!"

Kiku quickly cancels the first genjutsu before moving out of the way of the fireball while Toru throws a set of kunai and henges himself as one. Kiku finally figures out that she's in a genjutsu and disrupts it, before looking around for her teammate.

Kiku sees the group of kunai and remembers a similar plan Toru had performed earlier in the chūnin exams. She throws a handful of shuriken at the pile, and Toru's henge breaks as he deflects the shuriken, but Kiku gets first blood.

Toru growls and bares his teeth at Kiku, and, for a moment, the Kurama clan member recalls how the Uchiha were known for the battle prowess and she can see an echo of something great in Toru's eyes.

Kiku bares her teeth in reply and the pair both bark out a laugh before Kiku leaps forward, preparing to engage Toru in another fast-paced taijutsu fight. However, Toru slides out of the way, and just as Kiku takes a step towards him, the ground next to her blows up.

Kiku stumbles with a curse, and Toru sprints towards her, intent on taking her out. Kiku manages to defend herself, just as Toru goes through a set of hand seals and sends a fireball towards her. Kiku scrambles out of the way, but Toru keeps her moving and Kiku can feel herself slowing down.

Toru stops as Kiku pauses, she pants. Toru offers her a half-grin, and Kiku rushes at him once more. "I forfeit," Toru states clearly. "I'm almost out of chakra and one of Kiku's hits will probably be enough to knock me down or out."

"Kiku Kurama of Konohagakure wins!" The proctor shouts. "Thank you for coming to see the chūnin exams; we hope you enjoyed your time in Suna."

"Kiku-chan, step forward," the Sandaime commands, and with a nervous look at her teammates, Kiku does so. "For your quick thinking, and ability to identify your own strengths and weaknesses, you have been promoted to chūnin. Congratulations."

Kiku bows, a large grin on her face. "Thank you Hokage-sama!" She steps back so she's in line with her genin teammates.

"Shou-san, step forward," the Sandaime then says. Shou does so, brushing dark brown hair off her face to show light brown eyes. "For your ability to analyse your own situation and your opponent's skills. You managed to identify when you would lose and showed talent in genjutsu. Congratulations on your promotion, chūnin."

Shou bows gracefully, a smile fighting for place on her face. "Thank you for this Hokage-sama," she says before stepping back to stand next to Toru.

"Toru-kun, step forward," the Hokage orders, and Toru does so. "In your chūnin exams, you showed you had a level-head and were willing to lead but step back if necessary. You showed an ability to plan ahead of time and decide what path was best to travel. You also showed a good grasp over a number of ninjutsu techniques. For these reasons, you have been promoted. Congratulations."

Toru bows, before stepping back so he was between his genin teammates. "Thank you Hokage-sama," he says softly but sincerely.

"Congratulations Team Five," the Hokage says once again. "It is good to see such fine Konoha ninja. Now, Toru-kun, if you could stay behind for a few minutes?" Toru nods as his teammates leave the Hokage's office. "Do you wish to join the councils for your clan now or later?"

"I think it would be better if I joined in two to three years, as I am still fairly young and inexperienced, especially in such matters as the councils. However, I am honoured by the position I have been given and am willing to do what's necessary," the tan chūnin replies.

The Hokage nods, "Dismissed. Tell Team Five to report for their first B-ranked mission in a day's time." Toru bows once more before leaving the office.

He greets his team with a hug. "We did it!" Kiku shouts, fist pumping the air. "I knew we could do it!"

"Of course we did," Shou replies, "How could we not? We had an amazing leader with strong ninjutsu, a good taijutsu specialist, plus myself."

"Who has great skill in genjutsu," Toru adds. "We're all pretty amazing. Now, we need to find Natsumi-sensei and tell her the good news. Also, Team Five has a B-ranked mission in a day."

"Do we still call her sensei?" Kiku asks with a befuddled expression.

"Sensei is sensei, even when we're jōnins," Shou replies with a laugh as they grab Toru and Kiku's arms. "Let's go!"

Kiku Kurama, Toru Uchiha, and Shou Shimizu were promoted to chūnin after partaking in the Sunagakure chūnin exams. They were the only Konoha-nins who made it into the last round. Toru came second overall with Kiku coming first. Their sensei is extremely proud of their efforts and cannot wait until she goes on a mission with her promoted team.