Chapter 10: Chunin Exams!
The young genin of the next generation have trained hard for the last two weeks. Some have learned more than others, but it's sure to be a great competition between this talented group of the inheritors of the Will of Fire!
"Whaaaaatttttt!" Cell five stood with genin from every different village in the world. Besides Konoha, there were Iwa, Suna, Taki, and Kumo. At this moment, Hiroki was expressing to everyone just how upset he was that they had to take a written portion of the exam.
"H-H-Hiroki, c-c-calm down please," Hiroshi quietly muttered into his brother's ear, which was red hot from anger. The shy genin pressed his finger tips together; there were so many people from other villages that he didn't know. It made him nervous. Very nervous.
"I agree…what kind of written test would determine if we're worthy ninja or not?" Aiko crossed her arms and stared at the closed exam room doors. No one around had a clue either; everyone was just as equally upset. She looked around and sized up their competition, picking out a few genin here and there that looked tough enough for her. The young Inuzuka stopped when a group of Suna ninja approached her cell.
"Hey you two," a boy with short and spiky black hair called out the twins. "Well well, the sons of the ever so popular sixth Hokage, Naruto Uzumaki…and the princess Lady Hinata." He sized them up and snickered. "Doesn't look like much."
"Why you…!"
"H-H-Hiroki…"
The Suna boy laughed, crossing his arms over his chest. "Oh this surely will be interesting, don't you all think? I can't wait to take you on at some point. There's no doubt I'll humiliate you, and all of the Hyūga clan."
"Is this what this is about? What kind of beef do you have with my clan huh?"
"Agreed," Cell twelve approached from behind the Suna ninjas, Kazuo actually agreeing with his blonde cousin for once. "What did our clan ever so to you?"
The Suna boy felt surrounded. He looked back at the seemingly calmer Hyūga twins and then back to the blondes before smirking. "Nothing you need to know about. Just be sure to keep your guard up, and don't get too cocky like you special ninja always do." Without another word from anybody, the Suna boy and his team walked away. Kazuo glared at his blonde cousins.
"…Don't you dare lose to him."
Hiroki's eyes grew wide at his cousin's words. That must have been the closest thing to something nice that Kazuo has ever said to him since they entered the academy. He gave Kazuo the slightest grin before nodding his head.
"If you do, I won't be able to beat you later."
"That's if you can."
The teams split without saying another word. A few minutes passed before the exam room doors opened, and they were ushered in. When they all settled into their seats, Shikamaru appeared.
"Good morning prospective chunin," the lazy jounin started with a yawn. " This is the first portion of the chunin exams, knowledge. As a chunin, one must know a lot about his or her surroundings, the culture of other places, the history of the ninja, and other information that can and will eventually be vital in dangerous missions. Here, we will test this knowledge, but first, some guidelines. There will be absolutely NO cheating. There are moderators around this entire room. If you are caught, you will be automatically sent home."
The genin stirred and talked amongst themselves in frustration, but it quickly died back down to a silent hush. "If you are sent home for any reason, you will have to complete academy training."
"WHAT!" Hiroki, Kazuo, Amaya and Inoko angrily stood, only to be held back by one of their teammates. Shikamaru put his pinky in his ear and sighed.
"Yes, that's correct. Also, all three members of a cell must past the test, otherwise the whole cell will also have to go back to the academy. However if you forfeit now, you can have a chance of taking the exam next year."
Another stir in the room occurred as teams decided to stay or go. Within ten minutes, two cells from Iwa and one from Taki retreated, leaving the room with their heads down.
"Anyone else?" Hiroki nervously looked at his teammates. They all knew the excitable blonde wasn't very bright; he almost never reads. Aiko wasn't the smartest either, but she had a plan. The older twin nearly peed himself when he heard Shikamaru's next words.
"Great. From this point forward no one else is allowed to withdraw. The tests are being passed out. When I say begin, turn them over and start." Hiroki shakily turned back around in his seat. He was in the first row, with his brother behind him. "Shoot, shoot! I don't know a dammed thing…why did I ever fall asleep in class? Why"?
"Begin!"
He flipped his paper over and stared at it. Nothing. Not one answer came to his mind. The palms of his hands slowly became clammy as he looked at the moderators, who were standing as close to the walls as possible.
"C'mon you baka, this is why I sat behind you…" Hiroshi though as he watch his brother silently freak. The shy blonde looked back at his paper at scribbled down more answers. A few minutes later, he noticed his brother finally writing. "Thank goodness, he figured it out…"
"Byakugan, duh! I'm such an idiot. Thanks Hiroshi!"
Akane and Amaya had been training with elder Kakashi for the past two weeks, while Kaede sensei focused on Takumi. Naruto had removed the seal from both Uchiha children, as they promised to be responsible with their new found ability. Akane was far more comfortable with using it; especially now as he watched the pencil strokes of some of the smartest people he knew in his year. Amaya, on the other hand, relied on her good old-fashioned past time of staying in the library every now and again. Sakura had taught them both; it's equally important to train your brain than it is to train your body.
Inoko, having inherited more of her mother's abilities than her father's, was able to quickly enter the minds of the smart students and retreat once she memorized one or two answers. Her brother Takumi was gratefully smart, and he had reluctantly agreed to let her cheat off him the most. Shikamari had struck a deal with Hiari, who was using his fire ants to discretely gather information for the both of them.
The test lasted a good long hour, in which surprisingly no one was caught. "This bunch is definitely good…we might have to raise our standards," thought Shikamaru. "Alright, the test is over. But, there is one final question."
"What? Oh c'mon sensei…," Hiroki complained.
"One question, that if not answered correctly, you will NEVER be able to re-take the chunin exams."
"HUH!?"
"That's right. The whole cell will fail, but only one person from each cell can answer. You still have a chance now to withdraw as a team, if you wish." Hiroki looked back at his teammates.
"What do we do guys?! Should we risk this?"
"I- I- I'll go…," Hiroshi spoke up.
"But what if you don't get the answer right bro?"
"Yeah, we'll be stuck with D-ranked missions for life…," Aiko groaned and crossed her arms.
"W-we should take the risk guys. What does that say about us if we don't?" The two gave it some thought, and nodded in agreement.
"Alright, w trust you bro."
"Yeah, and if we lose, we won't blame this on ya, promised."
The shy genin nodded and raised his hand; therefore showing that he was going to speak for his team. No one else backed down. They were all safe.
Shikamaru smiled. "Well then, since no one's in protest, then no one backs down from a challenge…that's what we were looking for. You all pass." Every genin breathed a sigh of relief. "Tomorrow, you will start section two of the exam. Make sure you come up and take a card for your group. Don't lose it, or you won't be able to enter. Be on time."
"Alright!" Hiroki pumped his fist into the air, causing Aiko to shake her head.
"Yes!" Amaya cheered in the same manner. Hiroshi blushed at her behavior. "Amaya-chan…"
"*sighs* How troublesome."
xXxXxXx
Cool! Ten chapters completed. Be ready for epic Forest of Death action. I'll try not to make the exams too long and boring. But first, I'll have a special "filler episode" like chapter next.
Let's do Kaede this time. He's my favorite!
Affiliation: Konoha, Village Hidden in the Leaves
Current Ninja Rank: Jounin
Date of Birth: November 19th
Age: 25
Zodiac Sign: Scorpio
Height: 6.7 ft
Weight: 120 lbs.
Blood Type: O
Favorite Foods: Salty pork and rice
Least Favorite Foods: Sweet bean paste
Hobbies: Talking to Nori, jarring fruits
Missions Completed: D-rank; 105, C-rank; 23, B-rank; 15, A-rank; 28, S-rank; 0
Parents & Relatives: None mentioned yet
Description: Regular jounin outfit. Short brown hair, parted on his right, bangs to the left, one lock of blonde hair. Headband worn like Ebisu, except instead of over the forehead, the metal is on top of his head, like Sakura. (hard to explain I'm so sorry)
Thank you! Please review!