"I don't like it here anymore! Let's leave!"
"We can't until we prove who's behind this, Rins. Now be quiet or you'll bring them on us again."
"Heh! I'm only kidding, Rukia-san! I know we can't leave until our mission is over!"
Sakura looked away from her binoculars. "I thought you had an idea of who was behind this, Rukia."
"I do. But it's only an idea. For all I know someone could be controlling the hollows and arrancars." Though it's unlikely...
Rins took the binoculars when she decided Sakura was done with them "What are arrancars again?"
"They're the humanoid things in white we saw about a week ago."
"Oh! And I suppose we should be sure rather than blaming innocents."
Sakura glared at Rins. "I'm just glad we made it to the white building."
Rukia nodded. "So am I... It's just weird that we haven't seen anyone or anything for a week. It's almost like they're purposely letting us stay here..."
Rins lowered her binoculars. "I think you may be right. Look." She offered Rukia the binoculars.
Rukia took them and raised them to her eyes. She gasped. Looking through the binoculars, she could clearly see an arrancar looking right back at her.
She was even more surprised when it calmly walked away.
10 - To Become Death
"What do you want?"
Naruto looked around nervously, then glanced at his palm. "I... want to join the Shinigami Academy."
"You don't sound very sure about it."
"Uh... I am sure. I'm very sure. I want to be a Shinigami."
The Shinigami behind the administration desk smirked. "Well... I'm also sure of something." He leaned down.
The color drained from Naruto's face. "What is is? It. What is it?"
The Shinigami straightened up and slammed a large stack of papers of the desk. "The test says whether you join us or not."
Naruto nearly fainted.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
When Naruto sat at the isolated desk and actually looked at the questions, he did faint.
When he came to a few minutes later, he realized he wasn't going to be able to pass by only correctly answering the last question and leaving the others blank. The Shinigami didn't work like that. But that left him with the large obstacle that now stood in his way: to answer the questions on this test. He wasn't in the habit of giving up, but the object of this test wasn't to cheat without getting caught, it was to pass, simple as that.
But passing was something Naruto wasn't sure he could do. He barely knew how to be a Ninja. In fact, he still hadn't passed the Chunin Exams, which means that Ichigo would become a better Ninja than him. But that was another matter. Right now he had to answer questions about being a Shinigami, something he knew even less about.
Yep, passing was going to be a miracle.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Everything about this test was different than the one from the Chunin Exam.
45 minutes into the test, he finally realized that this test was untimed. He could sit here forever, if he wanted to.
48 minutes into the test, he realized that he might actually be here forever.
52 minutes into the test, he realized he had yet to answer a single question.
53 minutes into the test, Naruto fainted.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
A Shinigami looked inside the test room. The applicant was still unconscious, and he'd fainted five hours ago. "Ya think we should wake him up?"
"Heheheheh. Nah... We got bigger things to worry about." The second Shinigami gestured to what was left of the Seireitei.
"Yeah... And who knows where the Rukongai went..."
Footsteps echoed through the hall and the two Shinigami snapped to attention. The first Shinigami recognized who the footsteps belonged to. "Kuchiki-taichou? What are you doing in the Academy?"
The 6th Squad's Captain stopped in front of the two Shinigami. He gave them a look that was devoid of emotion, but at the same time managed to tell them that he was better than them in every way. "I could ask the same of you, Rikichi."
"Oh! Hahahaha! Uh... I was assigned duty here until we could regroup."
"I see."
The second Shinigami knocked Rikichi out of the way to get to Kuchiki-taichou. "Kuchiki-taichou! What brings you out here?"
Kuchiki gave the Shinigami a look of disdain. "I am here concerning the matter of a new applicant for the Academy. I was informed he was "interesting," and I came to see for myself." He made his way to the window on the door.
Rikichi and the other Shinigami gave each other looks of shock and quickly moved in front of Kuchiki.
"What are you doing?"
Rikichi looked in the window. He shouted into the door. "Uh... We don't think it's a good idea to disturb the applicant while he's testing!"
"Why are you screaming at the door? Stand aside, I'm just going to look in the window."
The other Shinigami also attempted to stop Kuchiki. He slid in front of the door with his arms stretched to his left and right. "Uh... Rikichi is right! We sh-"
Kuchiki side-stepped him and looked through the window. He immediately drew back with disgust. "Why is he asleep?"
Rikichi smiled sheepishly. "It's a long test...?"
"How long has he been taking it?"
The second Shinigami answered. "About six hours!" His eyes widened and he tried to correct his blunder. "I mean... Uh...Two hours...?"
Kuchiki turned from the door. "Six hours is too long. Competent Shinigami would have finished it in three hours, at most."
"Well, to be fair, Kuchiki-taichou... He's been asleep for-"
Kuchiki turned away and walked down the hall. "A competent Shinigami wouldn't fall asleep on the job. Remove him from the test." He turned a corner and was gone.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
"Damn it!"
"You failed? That's a surprise..."
Naruto sat up, dreading that the familiar voice was Ichigo's. He looked at the voice's body and breathed a sigh of relief. "It's only you!"
Train sat down on the hill next to Naruto. "Yeah... It's me. But I watched you take that test and-"
"Wait. You were here the whole time?"
"Pretty much. I must say... That was even worse than your display in the Chunin Exam. Not one answer, correct or otherwise, in six hours! That's embarrassing!"
"Shut- Wait. How do you know so much about all of us?"
"Heh. Let's just say... I watch television."
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
"NO!!"
Ichigo slammed his hands on the Ninja's desk. "What do you mean no?!"
The Ninja slammed his hands on the desk as well. "Are you stupid?! No means you can't become a Ninja!"
Ichigo leaned forward. "Why the hell not?!"
The Ninja leaned forward, almost bumping heads with Ichigo. "I don't like you! That's all I have to say on the matter!"
Ichigo headbutted the Ninja. He walked behind the desk and stopped when he saw the Ninja. "That's what I have to say about the matter." He walked past the desk, around a corner and out of sight.
Someone stepped from the shadows. "Hmm... Ta Kurosaki boy is here... Like's like ta time is finely here..." The shadow followed Ichigo around the corner.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
"So, what do you want?"
Train smirked. "What do you mean?"
"I thought we were supposed to do this on our own."
"When did I ever say that?"
"Huh?"
"If you remember... I said that the first to become the other and return first wins. I said nothing about you having to do it alone."
"I have to become him now?! I thought I just had to become a Shinigami!"
Train rolled his eyes. "You do! That's what I meant!"
"Huh?"
Train put his hand on Naruto's shoulder. "Look... You're hopeless... You couldn't pass that test in a million years. I've thought long and hard about this, and I decided not to tell you how I passed the test."
"Then, what am I gonna do?!"
Train pulled a folder from behind him and threw it in Naruto's lap. "You're going to cheat."
I don't own Bleach, Black Cat, Naruto, or any of the other anime to appear in this story.
Chapter 11 by Nov. 9, 2009.